The Adnostic

Day 2 - Sunday

We started the day with the New Pornographers (minus Neko Case) at the main stage. I really enjoyed them, very upbeat and I thought Case's substitute held her own.

After that it was off to the Bumberella stage for Dengue Fever. Dave was intrigued and slightly skeptical of a Cambodian rock band with only one Cambodian member, but it was right after the New Pornographers and we were able to meet up with two more of Dave's friends, Keith and Staci, at the beer garden. Dengue Fever was one of those bands I had always meant to see, but never got around to it. Funny how I had to go all the way to Seattle to catch a band from LA, but oh well, at least I got there. Dengue was good. I couldn't understand a word they sang, but the melodies were so solid and well executed that it didn't matter.

With two bands down it was time to get some disappointing lunch before we headed over to the Alki room for a reading by another one of my favorite authors, Gary Shteyngart, and, to quote The Stranger, "some Arab chick." Both authors were great, very different, but great and clearly impassioned by their work. Laila Lalami read from her book about Moroccan refugees making the illegal voyage to Spain which was very sad and poetic, while Shteyngart read a passage about an overweight eighteen year old Russian Jewish immigrant about to get circumcised by a group of Chasids that have been paid off by his father, which was very funny and somewhat self-depricating.

After the readings we walked around the art exhibits which were curated based on the themes of technology and craft. We saw a dress that incorporated CDs as sequins (which I would totally wear), a sculpture of a gutted stag with knitted entrails that were drawn out to form a crimson chandelier, and an exhibit on art and self-expression in SecondLife. All of which were very interesting and worth seeing.

Then it was off to the beer garden again to meet up with Keith and Staci and meet another one of Dave's friends, Mike. There was lots of laughing and talking and killing time before Zero 7 on the other side of the park.

We walked over to the Backyard stage with Mike and his girlfriend (I forget her name, but she was really nice) and grabbed more disappointing food for dinner before staking claim to a patch of ground with a reasonable view of the stage. Zero 7 was wonderful. Even though they were competing with Kanye they drew a very large crowd and pulled out a few of the old hits to go along with the songs from the new album. I sang along to "Destiny" while snatching glances back at Dave (totally cheesy, but practically obligatory). We also caught another couple trying to make out on the grass next to us. Sexy music does strange things to people.

For the encore Sia brought out Dancing Matt to do his jig to one of her songs and she even joined in at one point. When Internet phenomena and real life intersects it is completely surreal.

[all photos (except one) courtesy of Dave Shea]