The Lillooet stage was the place to be this morning when up and coming act The Fiery Furnaces played a great set. Coming all the way from New York, they were enjoyed by both fans and artists alike. Amongst the crowd were members of Chromeo and Death Cab for Cutie.

 

Vampire Weekend was up on the main stage and put on a great show with a lot of sing-a-longs and just a lot of fun. The next act N.E.R.D. was running late but more than made up for it with a crowd pleasing set. Listening to the crowd chant “All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom” made for a most interesting set. Pharrell continued to spaz and dance around providing one of the most energetic preformances of the festival.

 

Death Cab for Cutie played a mix of old and new songs, including a longer instrumental version of “I will possess your heart.” The band rocked out and kept the energy from the N.E.R.D show going.

 

Finally, the first of the huge acts of the day was up. Jay-Z himself came on stage and the crowd went insane. People as far as you can see were gathered to catch a glimpse of Jay-Z performing his hits like “99 Problems” and “H to the Izzo.” Even bringing along fellow artist Memphis Bleek to perform, Jay-Z brought Canada a hip hop show that will be talked about for a while.

 

Coldplay was simply amazing. There is nothing that can be said about this band that hasn't already been said. With the new album out they had a load of new material with a highlight being the performance of their new single “Viva La Vida” with video of the band members playing cellos and violins.

 

Well unfortunately the festival is over and we'll all be going home. It's sad to be done but now we have next year to look forward too. I want to say thank you to the organizers for a fantastic festival. It was amazing. Thanks to security for being pretty awesome. The medical staff  were great to the mobility challenged festival goers, ensuring we all got to see and enjoy the show.

 

So that’s it for this year! Drive home safe.

The crowd swelled with people and seemed to grow larger than it had been all weekend when Tom Petty took the stage. His classic rock show spanned the generational gap and young and old sang along. Anyone who thought coming into the show that Petty might not be able to rock as hard as he used to was definitely shown otherwise. The entire crowd sang along to nearly every song and the ground shook with excitement.

 

Fans had waited for an entire day jockeying for position along the front railing and hoping to get as close to Petty as possible. Petty was sure to make this worth it as he played hard for his entire show. The trademark hat on the stage was present and up on the screens while fans eagerly waited for the encore. When Petty came back with the first encore of the festival he started back with a bang playing his hit “Runnin’ Down a Dream”. This was met with thunderous applause and a rousing sing a long.

 

Tom Petty was a fantastic act for the festival and could not have fit better. This rocker gave an act that will be hard to follow but if anyone can meet this expectation it will be today. With an all star line up of N.E.R.D., Jay Z and Coldplay this festival will solidify itself as the best in Canada.

 

Enjoy the last day and plan for another great year next year.

The shows last night were all fantastic and the artists definitely played their best. A wind related tent emergency that made me miss Chromeo ended up perfect as I caught the Interpol set which was phenomenal. Saying it was their last show for a while, the band definitely gave their best performance for a large crowd. With a sound reminiscent of Joy Division the group gave their moody rock to a crowd that was totally receptive. Having seen Interpol live at a festival before I knew they were good but this proved that they never fail to impress.

 

The Nine Inch Nails show was something that had to be seen to be believed. Playing for an hour and a half it still felt far too short. Starting with songs from the newest release “The Slip” and moving onto songs from a whole range for albums they definitely gave a good show of their musical catalogue. Hearing old classics like "Closer" and "Terrible Lie" seemed to be a crowd favorite and everyone was singing along. A personal favorite at any Nine Inch Nails show is “March of the Pigs” and I was sure to be right at the front for that. By bringing along an entire slew of talented musicians(including Beck guitarist Justin Meldal-Johnson) Trent Reznor showed that, though he essentially is Nine Inch Nails, he makes sure to bring along amazing talent to supplement his live performances. The lights show was amazing and was essentially different for every single song. One of the coolest lighting jobs was for the song “Only” in which Trent was behind a wall of light static, a hole in the static followed him around on stage and grew with the intensity of the lyrics. There was a Kraftwerk style lighting for one of the songs with the three band members playing keyboards with a red light behind each member being the only light on the stage.

 

The Bacardi B-Live tent came alive last night to end the day. Though there were not a whole lot of people inside, Junkie XL showed just how hard he can rock a party. His heavy bass had everyone in the crowd dancing and enjoying themselves. With the great lighting in the Bacardi B-Live tent it made Junkie XL's performance both a visual and auditory treat.

 

The campground has still been amazing and everyone is just getting together and really enjoying a sense of community. Meeting all your neighbors was the first couple of hours and after that it seems like you would meet a couple dozen more from everywhere! I think we've met people from all across Canada and even a few from the U.S. I have to say thank you to Travis from Victoria who helped us by giving us some hand sanitizer and thanks to Lou the bus driver who took us to get some more water from our car.

 

The main stage is just starting to kick off today and I can hear Sam Roberts starting his sound check. I haven't made it into the Barn Dance Tent yet but from what I hear it's already jumping. With The Flaming Lips tonight I think we'll have more than a few people becoming fabulous freaks. It's time to enjoy the second day of the festival so remember to stay hydrated, stay cool and look out for each other. Have fun today.

The second day of the festival has been a strong one with big acts all day. Canadian rocker Sam Roberts opened the show with a performance that brought the thunder, literally. At the end of Robert's set the rain began to fall but no one left till he said his last goodbyes.

 

After a short refreshing rain it was time for My Morning Jacket to hit the stage. My Morning Jacket played a solid set and were a talked about act in the campground. On the Lillooet stage Canadian hip hop artist Buck 65 rhymed and scratched to the delight of his slightly smaller crowd. He is definitely an artist that more people need to hear.

 

The next act of the day was The Tragically Hip who played a phenomenal show. Hip fans gathered in droves to watch Canadian legend Gord Downie rock the crowd. Destroying a mic stand early in the show a few lucky fans even got a piece of the show as he passed them the broken stand. Playing all their big hits it seemed like the only issue people had with this show was that it ended.

 

Finally on the Main stage were The Flaming Lips who were possibly the most amazing act I've ever seen. With lead singer Wayne Coyne getting the crowd worked up during sound check, he already had everyone excited when he came out in his Zorb ball. Rolling amongst the crowd he seemed to be having as much fun as everyone else but still kept his suit clean. The teletubby like creatures that danced around and the giant centipede were amazing additions that just seemed to fit. Coyne managed to shoot confetti shotguns throughout the show and was a treat throughout. I had met a few guys from Prince George before the show who told me it would be beyond anything I could imagine. They were right!

 

It's time for Tom Petty to close up the main stage so I'm off to see the legend himself. Have a great night everyone.

Halfway through the first day and it seems like everyone is getting in and the campground is filling up. I've decided that sitting in a clean and air conditioned room listening to Serj Tankian is definitely a good place to be. I'm pretty sure that this room will be the coolest and cleanest place I'll be all weekend. These posts will probably get longer as the weekend goes on.

 

The Campground is an amazing place to be despite the dirt and temperatures that vary by time. The night is so cold you can see your breath, but in the morning you wake up and getting out of your tent so you don't bake is your main goal. Besides that the campground is a place to meet a whole bunch of new friends and to hang out with old friends.

 

The day was started with the dance tents, but the real show was outside. Starting first on the Lillooet stage the show was opened with a terrific set by Monte Negro. The real kick off to the Lillooet stage was a performance by San Diego threesome Grande Ole Party. After their phenomenal show, a snow maker was turned on cooling everyone down and cutting down on the dust that seems to be always blowing.

 

The first act on the Mount Currie Stage was Metric. Emily Haines and crew didn't disappoint with a fantastic set. Finishing off with their hit “Monster Hospital” they had the whole crowd singing along. Canadians Metric were an awesome act to open the Currie stage and the sun shining over the mountain was the perfect backdrop. Wolfmother was a lively act and had the entire crowd rocking out. The keyboard player stole the show with his constant but entertaining abuse of his instrument. The only complaint that most people seemed to have about the show was that they left out their hit “The Joker and The Thief”. This didn't seem to be much of an issue when they were playing “Woman” and I think it will be soon forgotten.

 

The festival grounds themselves have been amazing with art and food everywhere. The most amazing general store is on the grounds where you can get some air conditioning, a little bit of everything and especially you can finally get out of the dust. Later on Nine Inch Nails is going to rock the main stage and Chromeo is definitely a must see act.

 

So far the festival has shown itself to be the best in Canada and hopefully it will continue to grow. The show has almost been good enough to skip your mother's birthday!(Oh yea, Happy Birthday mom). Have a great time everyone, I'm going back to the dust and Serj Tankian.