The 2012 Sasquatch! Music Festival is over. Since getting home I have been going back through all of my photos and notes trying to wrap my head around everything I saw. A four day music festival in a place like the Gorge feels a bit like a marathon, but the payoff is more than worth it.
The lineup was stacked this year and the Sasquatch artists didn’t disappoint. There were even some unscheduled performances that stole the show at times. On day one Seattle rapper Macklemore popped up on a small platform in the middle of the main stage pit with producer Ryan Lewis and others to rock a surprise show after the Girl Talk set ended. The crowd went crazy as they performed three songs and ended with “Irish Celebration.”
The following night Seattle rocker Reignwolf surprised fans on the lawn near the main stage when he climbed on top of an Easy Street Records van with his amps, kick drum and guitar. He seemed to come from nowhere, but when he started rocking and stomping on top of that van the crowd came running. He played two songs and vanished into the night as suddenly as he had appeared, leaving many in the crowd asking, “Who the heck was that?”
I don’t know if these types of performances were a first for Sasquatch, but I do know that in all the years I’ve been going I’ve never seen anything like that.
The scheduled performances were pretty good too. Jack White probably put on the performance of the weekend when he played songs from his new solo album, The White Stripes and even the Raconteurs.
Childish Gambino cemented himself, in my mind at least, as the real deal. Donald Glover is so much more than an actor trying to rap. I was a big Childish Gambino fan before his set and it was a better live show than even I expected.
I could go on and on about all the great shows from the weekend, but my big takeaway from Sasquatch is my reminder of how beautiful the Gorge is. I have been there more times than I can count for so many amazing concerts, but sometimes I forget to just think about how impressive the landscape really is.
I spoke to fans who traveled from New York and Florida just for Sasquatch. It has gotten to a point where I wouldn’t be surprised if half the crowd were Canadian. Bands I spoke to who had never been to the Gorge told me they really couldn’t believe how beautiful it was.
Even Jack Black said “This has got to be the most beautiful of all the festivals” while Tenacious D played on Monday night.
After a beautiful weekend filled with incredible performances and almost perfect weather at what is easily one of the most beautiful venues in the world, I really couldn’t be more satisfied. This is hands down my favorite music festival, and now that it’s over all I can do is sit back and wonder who will be on the lineup next year.
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