Having moved to Seattle last May, this summer has been full of one-year markers and anniversaries. With each annual event I’m forced to reflect on a year ago and I am repeatedly stunned by how much has changed. This weekend, that process is triggered by Capitol Hill Block Party – a weekend-long, nationally-acclaimed music festival smack-dab in the middle of my neighborhood.
Last year I bought my 3-day pass the day they became available without any idea who I would go with or what bands I would see. I just figured I should be there. The end of July rolled around and the few friends I had made thus far were all out of town, so I strolled down to the festival solo. I saw some great bands, including Yeasayer, Fruit Bats, Blitzen Trapper, !!!, The Drowning Men, The Young Evils, and The Dead Weather. But as I look back on last year’s schedule I’m blown away by the bands I MISSED, especially locals, who I can no longer imagine my musical life without. How would my summer 2010 have changed if I knew to catch The Head and the Heart, Ravenna Woods, Macklemore, Fences, and Grand Hallway? Within a few months I was thoroughly versed in these wonderful local talents but it’s a trip that I was so-close-yet-so-far at the time. Ultimately the weekend was a huge catalyst for me in ways separate from the bands playing. I met several awesome people there who have become some of my best friends in Seattle and inspired me to keep my head up at a really challenging time in my life. Good music brings good people together – something I am now reminded of on the regular.
But [BLAH BLAH BLAH] this weekend is Block Party 2011! And this year I have a press pass! Although I’m delightfully exhausted, just getting home from from my band’s first West Coast tour (again, what a difference a year makes), I’m very excited to see some fantastic bands this weekend and doubtlessly miss out on even more that I will fall in love with 2-3 months down the road. The more things change, the more I learn, the more I remember that I don’t know jack. But, in any case, here are some bands I’m especially pumped to see – many for the first time:
FRIDAY: Yarn Owl, The Head and the Heart, Yuck
SATURDAY: The Lumineers, Seapony, Ravenna Woods, Beat Connection, The Young Evils, TV on the Radio
SUNDAY: Land of Pines, My Goodness, Virgin Islands, Campfire OK, The Cave Singers
Sound awesome right!? Tickets for the festival are still available – click here!
