Bonnaroo 2010 Webcasts, Streams & Free Music [Because You Can't Go]

Last night I went out for 10 cent wings with a buddy of mine who is heading to his first Bonnaroo today. He asked me if I had any tips for him. Here was my advice:

1. Hydrate.
2. Make friends with your neighbors.
3. Do Whatcha Wanna.

I also may or may not have emphasized the $1 popsicles at the Whole Foods Tent. I have to say, it was some of the best advice I've ever given. I shared a few of my favorite, "Things I Learned At Bonnaroo" stories, we slammed some wings and beers, and then I promptly skulked home in the rain and cried myself to sleep.

Okay, so Bonnaroo wasn't in the cards this year. Thankfully, there's an alternative to sitting in your underwear in a darkened room lit only by the lonely, gray glow of your laptop, staring misty-eyed at old pictures and clinging to memories of the great times you had while swilling Wild Turkey out of the bottle and listening to "Everybody Hurts" on repeat. There's a wealth of virtual 'Roo experiences available for us to at least attempt to enjoy the biggest festival of the summer without making the insanely long drive, losing our sandals in the mud, getting cooked out of our tents by the oppressive Tennessee sun, and brushing up against 80,000 of our crunchiest friends.

(Yes, I'm also pretending not to miss every single one of those things.)

First off, everyone's favorite pick-me-up: Free music! Via Spin and NPR, we've got a pair of mixes featuring some of this year's Bonnaroo artists, including Kings of Leon, the National, Phoenix, the Gaslight Anthem, Mumford & Sons, Tinariwen, Dan Deacon, the Black Keys, Ozomatli, and more.

Next, NPR is at it again. They will be streaming sets live from Bonnaroo all weekend long, from 1 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday through Sunday, with several sets getting archived for on-demand listening. The list of 40+ artists already on the schedule is damn impressive, with more certainly to come.

Finally, my favorite discovery of this year's festival season so far: Live Video Webcasts! I enjoyed these greatly during Coachella and I'm psyched to report that the same will be happening at Bonnaroo on their official YouTube channel. Check out the full schedule below:

Friday, June 11th

Julia Nunes - 12: 15 pm - 1:15 pm
Neon Indian - 1:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Carolina Chocolate Drops - 1:45 pm - 3:00 pm
The Temper Trap - 3:00 pm - 3:30 pm
The Dodos - 3:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Damian Marley & Nas- 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Mayer Hawtorne and the Country - 5:30 pm - 5:45 pm
The National - 5:45 pm - 7:15 pm
Tori Amos - 7:15 pm - 8:00 pm
Michael Franti & Spearhead - 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm
Tenacious D - 9:30 pm - 11:00 pm

Saturday, June 12th

Punch Brothers ft. Chris Thile - 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm
Gaslight Anthem - 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Norah Jones - 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Trombone Shorty - 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Mumford & Sons - 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
The Dead Weather - 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Umphrey's McGee - 7:30 pm - 7:55 pm
Jimmy Cliff - 7:55 pm - 9:25 pm
LCD Soundsystem - 9:25 pm - 10:55 pm
Kings of Leon - 10:55 pm - 11:30 pm
Jay -Z - 11:30 pm - 1:30 am

Sunday, June 13th

The Avett Brothers - 12:30 pm 1:45 pm
John Butler Trio - 1:45 pm - 3:00 pm
Regina Spektor - 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
John Fogerty - 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Weezer - 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Zac Brown Band - 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Ween - 8:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Rise Against - 8:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Dave Matthews Band - 9:00 pm - 11:30 pm

So there you go--all the festival without all the hippies. A vicarious experience nearly as good as the real thing! Alright, I wish I were going too. Who's got my heady Wild Turkey?

I’m Gonna Call It Good

Much goodness abounds around the interwebz these days, so here is some of it for you now.

I have been watching HBO’s newest David Simon creation, Treme, and like many have been wondering exactly where it’s going and debating with myself internally over whether I actually like it. One thing that I and everyone seem to agree on, though, is that some positively fan-freakin-tastic music has been the star of the show so far. To wit, the Internet has given birth to Songs From Treme. The creator of this most awesome Tumblr openly admits that he is “not at all qualified to run a blog about New Orleans music” (Although he links us to several people who are). Dude doesn’t even have HBO! He’s just a guy who digs the incredible music of Treme – hey, that’s just like us! How very accessible! *(For more Treme music, check out the show's official site, which offers full music playlists for each episode with links to buy every song on iTunes)

While we’re on the subject of New Orleans and music, we have to talk a little bit about Jazz Fest. The two-week long party wraps up this weekend, and since neither Smellson, nor the Rossman, nor several of my coworkers that will be there made any offer or attempt to stow me away as they head out to NoLa – friends like these, I know – that means another weekend of vicarious living. And just like with Coachella, that means we’ll be bumping webcasts and mixtapes (full listings below) while another incredible music weekend goes down somewhere other than where we are. Don’t know about you out there, but Schiff Happens is going to have to do something about this festival drought really soon. Bonnaroo gets more enticing every time you look at that lineup, and it’s not entirely out of the question… yet. One major question mark remains, thought: Who’s coming with me?

Finally, B.o.B's debut album, The Adventures of Bobby Ray, is finally out as of yesterday. You already know how good the live show is, so you're gonna want to go and get that.

-----

Tipitina’s Jazz Fest Webcast Schedule:

Wednesday 4.28.2010
10 PM CT: Railroad Earth

Thursday 4.29.2010
9 PM: North Mississippi Allstars plus City Champs
2 AM CT: Karl Denson's Tiny Universe

Friday 4.30.2010
9 PM CT: The Radiators
2 AM CT: The Greyboy Allstars

Saturday 5.1.2010
9 PM CT: Ani DiFranco
2 AM CT: Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave. CD Release Party with Special Guests TBA

-----

New Orleans Jazz Fest Mix (via Coventry Music):

Disc 1:

01. Big Chief - Professor Longhair
02. Cabbage Alley - The Meters
03. Junco Partner - James Booker
04. Iko Iko - The Dixie Cups
05. Yes We Can Can - Lee Dorsey
06. Hey Pocky A-Way - The Meters
07. Handa Wanda - Big Chief Bo Dollis & The Wild Magnolia Mardi Gras Indians
08. Carnival Time - Al Johnson
09. Mardi Gras Jig - The Bluerunners
10. Tipitina - Professor Longhair
11. Blues for Ben - Stanton Moore
12. Huey Smith Medley - Dr. John
13. Mardi Gras Mambo - The Meters
14. Sew, Sew, Sew - The Wild Magnolias
15. Mardi Gras Day - Dr. John
16. Bosco Stomp - The Red Stick Ramblers
17. Cissy Strut - The Meters
18. Look-Ka Py Py - The Meters
19. Zydeco Gris-Gris - Pine Leaf Boys
20. Mardi Gras In New Orleans - Professor Longhair

Disc 2:

01. Walking To New Orleans - Fats Domino
02. The Second Line - Stop, Inc.
03. Funky Miracle - The Meters
04. Bon Ton Roulet - Clarence "Bon Ton" Garlow
05. Brother John/Iko Iko - The Neville Brothers
06. Talkin' 'Bout New Orleans - The Meters
07. Let The Good Times Roll - Shirley & Lee
08. Ya Ya - Lee Dorsey
09. Don't You Just Know It - Huey "Piano" Smith & The Clowns
10. I Like It Like That - Chris Kenner
11. Ooh Poo Pah Doo - Jessie Hill
12. Night People - Lee Dorsey
13. Down South In New Orleans - The Band (w/ Bobby Charles)
14. Here Come the Girls - Ernie K-Doe
15. Made In The Shade - The Red Stick Ramblers
16. Soul Second Line - Papa Grows Funk
17. Ain't Nothin' But A Party - Dirty Dozen Brass Band
18. They All Ask'd For You - The Meters
19. Zydeco Mardi Gras - Pine Leaf Boys
20. Do Whatcha Wanna - Rebirth Brass Band
21. When The Saints Go Marching In - Preservation Hall Jazz Band with Walter "Wolfman" Washington and Theresa Andersson

The Kickdrums | COACHELLA | The Indio Sessions: Day 3

One more day of Coachella - don't you totally feel like you were there?



Yeah, me neither. But hey, our boy B.o.B closes out the mixtape series and hits the stage tonight (webcast at 7pm!), so you'll at least have one up on your festival-going friends when they come back all "We went to Coachella and ZOMG we saw the next big thing!" and you tell them you already knew.

The Kickdrums | Coachella | The Indio Sessions: Day 1

Just 10 miles to Indio. Too bad you ain't going!

Hey, internet! Are you like me? Still in denial that you won't be at the Empire Polo Grounds when Coachella 2010 kicks off in just a few hours? Well, The Kickdrums got your back with The Indio Sessions, a mixtape series featuring highlights from a slew of Coachella's finest - just like being there!

/facepalm

Alright, so it can't possibly compare, but these mixtapes and a webcast series being promoted by 5 Gum (facebook here, myspace here) are all we have. I'll be sure to post the Day 2 and Day 3 Indio Sessions tapes tomorrow and Sunday to help move you from denial through the various stages of Coachella-less grief. Of course, if you're a regular here, you've probably already found Day 1 and Day 2.

On to the weekend, people! Yankee games (no rain! no rain!), keggers, and a bunch of running. What's everyone getting into??

WTF It's April? [Schiff Happens Quarterly Review]

College basketball is over,* baseball has (finally!) begun - it's April. In what feels like a flash, we're already a quarter of the way into 2010. It's time for a look back - and a look ahead. In the spirit of my recent return to the workforce (more on that momentarily), it's time for an official Schiff Happens First Quarter Review.

Entering Q1, Schiff Happens was at a crossroads, still reeling from the epic suckfest of a year so brutal it can't even be spoken of by name. Yet out of the shitheap came a glimmer of hope, dreams of promise for a great year in 2010. There were big challenges and high expectations ahead.**

We started off Q1 by bidding a bittersweet farewell to the Greatest Reality TV Show in the History of Ever. I was high from all the hairspray fumes I inhaled getting ready for the finale party, so it took me a few extra days to let it go. Not to worry, though, fist-pumpers. Looking ahead, we should be lucky enough to have Sitch, Snooks, Pauly D and the whole gang back in our lives - hopefully late Q2, almost certainly early Q3. As if it were possible, the show will become even less Jersey, as season 2 will take place in Miami.

Another Q1 highlight: The Schiff Happens name made the jump across the pond. I was interviewed by a BBC documentary crew and poised to appear alongside such Internet royalty as Al Gore, Tim Berners-Lee and Bill Gates. However, the BBC web player only allowed you to access the show from inside the UK. Oh, sweet irony! I wondered, "If you get interviewed by a prestigious international television network for being the guy who defriended his facebook friends for a free Whopper, and nobody in America can watch it, did it really happen?" It's the age-old philosophical conundrum. However, I am delighted to report that as we enter Q2, the show has at least made its way to YouTube. Enjoy the video below and have at it in the comments.



My primary Q1 objective was always to get a job, but due to financial constraints, that missive quickly morphed into "Generate income by any means necessary." I found myself taking a part-time gig shilling sneakers in one of New York's oldest sporting goods stores, which, as part-time gigs go, really wasn't bad. Frankly, it forced me to drag my ass out of bed in the morning, shed the Snuggie of unemployment, and begin to rejoin the rest of society. In the end, I'm grateful that the opportunity came along. As always seems to be the case, my job search was a case of feast or famine, and after months of turning up nothing, contacts were being established and networks were expanding almost immediately upon starting my new role. Within a few weeks I was interviewing and, I am excited to say, accepted a brand new full-time job. I try not to to mix business with the proceedings around here, but I will say that I am working at one of the top young internet companies around right now, I'm surrounded by bright, focused people in a laid back atmosphere that encourages creativity, and am extremely well-nourished thanks to the greatest office kitchen I have ever been around.

In addition to getting me re-focused and refreshed, working in the sporting goods store also led to something of a running renaissance for me. Spending so much time around running shoes, runners and the sport of running in general inspired me to sign up for a half marathon and train seriously for the first time since my high school glory days. All of a sudden, I'm on a team for charity and committed to run the ING New York City Marathon in November. More on all this to follow in the weeks and months ahead (and trust me, there will much more because you're all going to be donating), but for now I hope you'll direct your attention to Schiff Happens' most recent side venture: Run, Schiff, Run! Follow my awesome Tumblr for every mile - if you ever run with me or come watch me cross a finish line, I'll be sure you get a cameo. Running: an unexpected Q1 development that created new goals to carry us through Q2, 3, and 4. Who knew?

In the final post of Q1, I promised a future post on Festival Season, but looking ahead to Q2 and beyond, it's simply an impossibility that Schiff Happens will be able to attend one of the most perfectly constructed festivals in recent memory (of this generation?) or make a repeat appearance at the big 'Roo, which gets ever-more enticing each time you put it away and come back to it. So what does that leave us, musically, going forward? For starters, a lot of vicarious living. I've been loving The Kickdrums' Indio Sessions mixtapes for the last couple of weeks (Day 1, Day 2) and am excited for the release of Day 3 to complete the set. We're also left with prayers for miracles. There's a less than minuscule, impossible chance that I may be in New Orleans with the new job for the last 3 days of April, positioning me perfectly for Weekend 2 of Jazz Fest. Send the good vibes my way, people!

Mostly, though, we're now charged with creating an old-fashioned summer tour out of the local shows at our disposal, unaided by a huge festival to help catch all the big names of the now. That means Lupe Fiasco (with opening act b.O.b., which, truth be told, I may be more excited for) this Saturday night at Irving Plaza. That means I'm still intrigued by the possibility of checking out newly reformed Sublime With Rome at Roseland Ballroom in May. I know it's not the same without Brad, but Sublime remains one of my favorite bands of all time and I'm willing to see what Eric and Bud have to offer with a new frontman. That means the big musical story of the summer will be Phish. Again. A year after I said 5 shows in one summer was too many, I'll be heading out to 4 in 3 cities from late-Q2 to mid-Q3 Amazing how the more things change, the more they stay the same.

The end of Q1 has brought back the gorgeous weather and Sundays in Central Park that we longed for throughout the snowy, frigid winter. We've got more than a few excellent positives to build on as we forge deeper into 2010, a year that began with such high hopes.*** The seeds have been planted and we're on the verge of greatness, now we just have to see it through. Of course, we can still improve - not a single Springsteen mention in an entire quarterly report?! - but so far, 2010, you're so money and you don't even know it.****


*Sitting down to author this post as the starting lineups are being introduced. I don't see it shaking out this way, but I really hope Butler takes down the Dookies. Wouldn't be the first time Schiff Happens looked on and blogged in amazement while an unlikely upstart took down Coach K's cake eaters.

**I'm still dreaming of a world where Butler beats Duke in the NCAA Championship. Still don't think it will happen, but the Bulldogs are putting up a fight (down 2 with the ball 8:21 to go in the 1st half)

***High hopes including watching Duke lose in the NCAA Tournament Championship Game... to Butler. Bulldogs have the ball with 13 seconds left, trailing by just 1. If this happens, anything truly is possible for us good guys in 2010. Could it be???

****Gordon Hayward just missed a potential game-winner for Butler that was nearly identical to Sean Singletary's game-winner vs. Duke in the game referenced above. Freakin' Duke. At least Singler got trucked on the final play. This game is over, and this post needs to be too. G'night, Canada!

Must Go! Must Buy! [Coachella 2010 Lineup!]

You guys! You guys! I'm seriously!

Some time Tuesday night the Coachella lineup was born unto this earth, and like Moses descending Mount Sinai bearing the 15 10 Commandments, it was a miracle sight to behold.

And lo didst the Festival Gods shineth down their light upon Indio. And yeah, it was good, and Schiff rejoiced.

Is this the best festival card you've ever seen?

The Bonnaroo Tales, Vol. II: Can I Live While I'm Young?

Friday morning was cloudy, which is part of the reason I was able to sleep so well. But the other major factor was our campsite itself. It was the festival setup I've always wanted. Along the way from Jersey to 'Roo via JMaddy, we picked up my college freshman cousin and 5 of his hometown buddies. They rolled down Highway 81 from Boston in a rented minivan, and from the start clearly had no idea waht they were walking into. To the yoots' credit, they did a great job festivaling once we were down there. They all seemed to have a great time, and despite being grossly unprepared -- "Whoa, you guys brought a cooler?" -- really contributed to the campsite, namely with caffeine and liquor. Friday morning I was able to chug a mugful of Starbucks right to my brain thanks to a 150 year old device that I had never seen or heard of before. According to Wikipedia, "French pressed coffee is usually stronger and thicker and has more sediment than drip-brewed coffee." Oddly, I found myself saying the same thing about the fresh pressed product I left in the toi-toi a few minutes later.


We spent the better part of Friday morning foraging around our neighborhood for various necessities and sundry items. We found a perfect flagpole and doubled the height of our crucial campsite landmark, the sweet California bruin flag. We wandered across the campgrounds and slugged through a bunch of mud to hang out for a bit with Adam's friend from college and my homegirl Hippie Katie, then wandered back and had a delicious lunch of turkey sandwiches and ham grilled cheeses, all courtesy of the legendary Meatbag Magician. Fat and satisfied, we ventured to Centeroo and caught the end of Santigold's set.

Santi kept the crowd bouncing, but capturing the attention of myself and many of those around me were a pair of sign language interpreters perched on an edge of the soundboard area. I always find this hilarious. They were mouthing every lyric, dancing to the beat, half signing, half raving with all kinds of sassy, hearing impaired gusto. I'm not saying deaf people shouldn't go to festivals, but no matter how well somebody lip-syncs and keeps a beat... I mean... they still can't really hear the concert, right? Someone might want to send me to sensitivity training for this, but I just don't get it. It was funny. Forget it, moving on.


Adam, Mike and I agreed that Al Green was not to be missed, and we were all too happy to watch one of the true legends smiling from ear to ear as he glided and pranced around the main stage, sweating through a red-vested three-piece suit as the evening sun continued to beat down. Green may not heed the farmers' almanac, but he still has the moves. He also still has his way with the ladies (although you could say he had a rough go of it with his women at first), tossing roses into the crowd and stopping more that once to lament that he couldn't jump into the audience and spread a little bit more love. "These people came out here to love me, not to hurt nobody," he declared. And damn if I didn't want a piece of the Reverend right then and there.* The most important thing that he still had -- that voice. He can still hit those sweet soulful notes, and god bless him for it, I hope he can forever.

*Guessing this is the closest I'll ever feel to being Catholic.


As soon as Al Green waved us goodbye, we realized that we had made our way up to a great spot right up against the rail dividing the pit from the rest of the crowd, and decided to stay put and stake our claim to that land in the name of Schiff during Beastie Boys, before Phish's late night set. If I could take a mulligan on one Roo decision, I would take it right here. Beasties vs Byrne was easily the most awful scheduling conflict of the weekend going in, and I agonized over it until the moment of truth came. I made the mistake of valuing our spot on the rail over seeing the music that I knew would maximize my experience. Next time I get the chance to see the man who wears the Big Suit, I'm going to make sure to take it. It's not that I didn't enjoy the Beasties' set, but I knew exactly what was coming, having seen them once before. Always opt to see a new show for the first time, especially if it's an artist you love. I consider myself a live music veteran, but this decision was total amateur hour. I knew I flubbed it the entire time, too. I just didn't pull the trigger on it because I was so into having that spot for Phish, who were involved in the second worst Bonnaroo scheduling conflict -- against Public Enemy. It would have been cool to see P.E. perform "It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back," and everyone knows how much love I have for ya boy, but I was left uninspired to make that move after seeing the Worst Fake Flav of All Time. I must have screamed "Flava Flaaavvv!" at this assclown a dozen times, and not once did he respond. If you're out there, bullshit Fake Flav, you suck. You mean to tell me you're willing to parade yourself around dressed like an asshole, but not act the part? For chrissakes, you're sitting on your fat, useless ass reading the fucking paper! Everyone knows Flava Flav can't read! Disgraceful.

Worst. Flav. Ever. Where's EK when you need him?

Point is, you can't go back, only forward, and inevitably we made it (finally) to the first main event of the weeknd: Phish on the main stage, Friday night at 11. It was a high-energy performance right from the gate, featuring another Chalkdust Torture opener like we had seen in Camden (Best show of the early summer tour leg? Methinks yes.), and the strong set of Divided Sky, Possum and Down With Disease hyping the action in the pit and around us to its first real fever pitch of the weekend. But after 8+ hours on my feet and the never enjoyable Wading In the Velvet Sea beginning to take form, I told Adam I had to get out of there. I recharged with a festival gyro and bottle of water, and after an entire night of overvaluing our precious rail spot, packed in amongst a few particularly insufferable Phish heads, I fittingly caught the hard-charging highlight of the festival to that point from a wide open patch of grass toward the back of the field. After Wading in the Velvet Shwag mercifully wrapped, the boys rolled through Harry Hood - always a personal favorite, though this version wasn't quite the pure joy of the previous Tuesday's Jones Beach edition - then covered Highway to Hell for the first time in over 12 years, jammed into 2001, and segued from YEM > Wilson > YEM in what felt like a moment of accidental perfection to close their set at 2:15am. An appropriate cover of the Beatles' A Day in the Life shut down the main stage for Friday night (at this point Saturday morning), and we ventured over to Girl Talk to close out the late late session.


Greg Gillis provided us with a predictably fun dance party, but I think at that point, for us it was just a little bit of noise that we didn't have to think too much about. Something to keep us bobbing and energized long enough to make it back to camp and crash. Before we did, we needed one last quick conversation about our strategy for Saturday -- the big day. Bruce Day. We decided we'd drive it to Firenze (we named our camp after our second landmark flag, a purple banner bearing red fleur de lys, purchased in Florence) for a cookout dinner pregame around 5, then hit up our same spot 3 hours or so before The Boss. That same, overrated spot. We didn't know that our well-intentioned plan wouldn't come to fruition, or that this would turn out to be the best thing that could have possibly happened to us. Content with our agenda, still spinning and exhausted from our long day of music, and with the sun rising on our first nearly 36 hours of Bonnaroo, it was time to make that move.

Pillow.

Face.

The Bonnaroo Tales, Vol. I: Runnin' On Empty

Yea it's taken me a while to talk some Bonnaroo. It's taken me a while to talk some anything. Well...tough. Sorry, that's all I have to say about it. Oh, that, and you're gonna wait a little longer as I recap the festival day by day. You like it.

It's often said that life isn't a sprint--it's a marathon. For this guy, the past 3 weeks or so have been some sort of delirious mash-up of the entire race. There's been a lot of talk among my circle recently of racing and running and living lots of life in a short while, and I feel like that's what I've been doing since I last posted, lo those many moons ago.

In the last two weeks I saw Phish in New York and New Jersey, drove to freaking Canada and back (a return trip that took 12 hours door-to-door and a Baseball Roadshow that deserves its own post entirely), and ran my Yankee Stadium record to 4-0 on the year so far -- all while looking for a 3 bedroom apartment in Manhattan. All this immediately followed a week that had completely rocked my world. I found myself reuniting with slews of old friends, and even a couple of exes. I have crammed what feels like a lifetime's worth of chaos, stress, action, confusion -- and yes, fun -- into a relatively short amount of time. There are many tales yet to be written, but the big one - or at least the story that best encompasses all of what I've been feeling these last few weeks - is Bonnaroo.

Bonnaroo is a literal and figurative time warp. As you make your way to the festival – at least if you’re truly road trippin' it – the miles and hours pile up and the journey feels interminable. Though we arrived in Manchester around 7:30 Thursday evening and made it inside after only a short wait (leaving us exactly enough daylight to set up camp and avoid a torrential downpour -- 'Roo Success #1!), some unfortunate souls are made to wait upwards of 5 hours to physically enter the festival grounds from the highway. The whole experience can feel like a never-ending odyssey. But once you reach your destination, the opposite effect occurs. Time seems to simply melt from one music-filled moment to the next. By the time the festival hits full stride, you’re not quite sure where one day starts and the next ends, and the places you’ve come from and intend to be going to at festival’s end feel like distant planets from a bygone time. On top of this dreamlike state of consciousness brought on by the long journey, oppressive Tennessee heat, sprawling music schedule stretching from noon until 4am daily, and never-ending stream of wild and crazy people, the state of Tennessee spans two time zones. Apparently there’s a sign that indicates when you’ve crossed over into Central Time, but no one in our car got that memo, which made for a confusing start to the trip when we had to figure out what time to go see Passion Pit on Thursday night. So it goes. If the whole festival experience has a time warp element to it, this confusion was probably the most appropriate way to start. Passion Pit were jumping at This Tent, we danced around, unnecessarily circumnavigated the entire campground in pouring rain on the way back to our spot, dried off and went to bed. It was the best night's sleep I'd had in nearly a month.

No Texas festival for Phish, says Fagot farmer

Watch as a local news anchor introduces this story, describing how a video on Phish's official site went viral and created rumors of a late summer festival on a Georgetown, Texas farm. Then watch as the ensuing story, starring an unfortunately named farmer with a sweet mullet who confirms that there is no chance of Phish holding a summer-ending festival on his property, seems itself to have been scripted for viral glory. Small-town irony, gotta love it.



Fans tracked down the Fagot farm from his promotional video posted on the band’s web site.

PHISH! SPRINGSTEEN! BEASTIES! BONNAROO!

Well, it happened. As we kind of knew, Little Eric was right, and the initial lineup announcement for Bonnaroo ’09 means the end of mankind and my face as we know it. Mind, you’re about to be blown. It’s been great knowing you. As if confirmation of the PHISHSTEEN rumors wasn’t enough, I get to see Beastie Boys again – and I thought I was lucky to have seen them once. That’s the holy trinity of Schiff Happens: The Hippie, The Tribesman and The Boss. Plus, there really is no party like a Snoop Dogg party. Warm up the RV, I’ll bring my green hat.

So much good music I already know and love, and so much that I have heard about and wanted to get into that I will now be able to see live in concert. As glad as I am that I get to spend a bunch more money I don’t have, a twin headliner of the best two bands I’ve ever seen, period, is worth the price of admission. And by the way, with complete and total Jersey domination descending on the year’s annual keynote summer festival, this WSJ article (which I have been trying for a minute to find the right context for) is really worth noting.

YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Oh yea, I almost forgot.... the lineup.

Previously:
Who decides? The Boss decides.
If I had a penny for my thoughts I'd be a millionaire [Beastie Boys]
It's (almost, ok not really but pretty much) official!
Suck It Philly: Springsteen Edition
Phish Happens? [Rumors, Speculation and Hearsay]