When the McDowell Mountain Festival announces its lineup each December, it becomes a little bleep on the web pages of highly trafficked sites like Pitchfork , which bothers festival organizers very little. Instead a small local community embraces the unveiling – which is the closest thing Arizona has to a national non touring music festival that’s not country or hip-hop oriented. Past years have seen the likes of The Shins, The Roots, The Black Crowes, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Ben Harper and The Flaming Lips visit the Phoenix metropolitan area for MMMF. The festival attracts some serious national contenders but they are also not trying to coerce the remaining members of the Grateful Dead back for another go-around and create a big to-do in any sense of the word.
With the festival now being staged in the urban confines of Margaret Hance Park, camping options are more concrete than green. And the name McDowell Mountain isn’t relative these days as the festival has since relocated from its prior location in North Scottdale at the base of the McDowell Mountain range. Instead its redeveloped an identity of its own as a premier regional festival that is void of the many hassles that make going to Bonnaroo and Coachella a logistics nightmare. So while most of Arizona is hyped up on the last weekend of spring training and the calm before the late spring heat waves, a strong mixture of music boasted up the McDowell Mountain Music Fest for 2015.
Stand up and Deliver Award
Portugal.The Man flew 33 hours from South Africa after opening for headliner Paolo Nutini at the Sowing the Seeds Music Festival at Emmarentia Dam. As one of the hardest touring and most prolific recording acts today (seven albums in ten years), we can almost expect nothing but close to 100% from the diligent Alaskans.
Front man John Gourley joked, “That’s a new song off our next record,” after playing a spirited version of Oasis’ “Don’t Look Back in Anger.” Portugal. The Man’s latest album Evil Friends, was produced by Danger Mouse and they showcased some of those albums stronger moments including a funky take on “Purple Yellow Red and Blue,” They also tore through “Atomic Man,” “Modern Jesus,” “Creep in a T-Shirt” and “Someday Believers” which all proved to be a smart festival relay.
Highlights included a heartfelt take on Ghostface Killah’s “Kilo” and an intriguing stab at Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall,” which was followed by another pass at “Purple Yellow Red and Blue.” Gourley and staff then hit up the original “Sleep Forever” blending seamlessly into a triumphant outro to the Beatles’ “Hey Jude.”
Local Band Does Good
With Trampled by Turtles bringing in their well harmonized bluesgrass/rock/folk to the main stage to a close, Phoenix’s own The Haymarket Squares played to perhaps the most well attended set on the second stage. Playing their self anointed “punkgrass for the people,” the five piece and their vintage instrumentation of fiddle, standup bass, banjo and guitar and spot-on multi vocal harmonies offered the ideal afternoon Sunday set, even if it was for just 30 minutes. Their politically leaning material shined on”Revolt, Resists, Rebel” to the tongue in cheek”Let’s Get Fucked Up” and a bluegrassy take on Pink Floyd’s “Hey You.” The best part of their set was the mix of music fans that cant by one alone all getting down to their anthemic sing-along “Let’s Start a Riot.”
Take It Or Leave It
It slightly ironic that Passion Pit’s new single “Lifted Up (1985)” from their soon to be released new album KINDRED featured four keyboards -what an 80’s thing to hit us with. There was no falsetto voids in the hour and fifteen minute set as Passion Pit delved into their New Edition meets Empire of the Sun sound. Frontman Michael Angelakos’ high pitched helium voice has proved to make most rock fans cringe and head to the local tavern, never mind the fact that there’s hardly a guitar hook in their song book. But for the younger tank topped, neon flared youth sect looking to party at MMF, Passion Pit did the deed. Its career definining what having one solid big debut album can do for you- ask Cold War Kids and Young the Giant.
Better Heard Indoors
Phantogram has mass appeal with their catchy “street beat, psych pop” but playing to a night time festival crowd isn’t their forte. Lucky for everybody that Sarah Barthel is so sultry and seductive in both her leather pants and appealing figure, that its hard to leave a Phantogram show too downtrodden. Despite the good looks, Barthel mainly sounds pre-recorded & flat and the rest of the band was difficult to hear as well in the tough mix. The booking might not have made the most sense either since the more roots rock oriented crowd was craving the more organic flairs of the Thievery Corporation that would follow next. What are now iconic Phantogram songs “Mouthful of Diamonds” and “When I’m Small” came later in the set and replayed the modern synth rock soundtrack of 2010… if there ever was such a thing.
Full Throttle For The Ladys & Gents
On the last night of their leg one spring tour, Widespread Panic, unlike other bands in the jam realm, proved festival gigs can be true throw-downs and offer the same immediacy and gusto that a regular two set gig can bring. Although a bit tired from the two previous nights in Vegas (who wouldn’t be?) and using the house lighting set up instead of their own rig, Panic started off slow but churned up the energy as the set continued to roll into a two and half park burner. Highlights included an outstanding “ Fishwater -> Drums -> Fishwater” jam and the always potent “Protein Drink>Sewing Machine to conclude the set. As for strongest lead singers in the jam scene, Warren Haynes and John Bell are a cut above the rest.
Not To Be Forgotten
Although the festival only had one big stage, there were a handful of other solid sets offered from Real Estate, Ryan Bingham, The Revivalists, Trombone Shorty, Beats Antique and the headlining set from Thievery Corporation on Saturday night that could do no wrong. And let’s not forget the festival organizers themselves for another stellar year in downtown Phoenix, which has once again impressed both fans and the artists alike with its accessibility and chill factor. For small niche festivals that offer lenient security, no traffic, no lines, access to urban conveniences of restaurants and hotels, nationally respected non-mainstream artists, affordable ticket prices and perfect weather- McDowell Mountain Music Festival sets the standard for small urban music festivals.
Live photos by Matty Steinkamp
