Sasquatch! Music Festival 2017, Day 1: The Head and the Heart

Sasquatch, Local Music, Live Reviews
05/27/2017
Matthew Howland
all photos by Matthew B. Thompson

As the sun began to set on The Gorge Amphitheater, The Head and the Heart played a memorable set at Day 1 of Sasquatch Music Festival, representing Seattle in the Eastern Washington Sasquatch setting. Despite Josiah Johnson still being absent from the band, the band still demonstrated their ability to craft heart-rending harmonies, drawing on their back catalog for a setlist which alternated between tracks from each of their three full-lengths (most recently 2016's Signs of Light). The band has effectively crafted a stage set which places them and the audience within an intimate bubble, and showcases the extent to which their music has touched people's lives over the past eight years.

Arguably the most poignant moment in the band's set came when Jonathan Russell told a story about an early version of the band meeting Chris Cornell, playing a cover of Soundgarden's "Fall on Black Days" in their rehearsal space in hopes of Cornell noticing (he lived nearby). They then played a gorgeous version of Temple of the Dog's "Hunger Strike," dedicated to the memory of Cornell.

[embed]https://flic.kr/p/UYdBSY[/embed]
[embed]https://flic.kr/p/V23Q1X[/embed]

[embed]https://flic.kr/p/UYdCTW[/embed]

[embed]https://flic.kr/p/TZ6eZ6[/embed]

[embed]https://flic.kr/p/UYdCVE[/embed]

[embed]https://flic.kr/p/UYdDnS[/embed]

Related News & Reviews

Sasquatch Live Reviews

Sasquatch! Music Festival, Day 2: MGMT

Before a closing performance from Twenty One Pilots, MGMT played a packed set at Sasquatch Music Festival's Main Stage, playing tracks from each of their past records, including several to be featured on the forthcoming Little Dark Age. As evidenced by past live performances, MGMT are unafraid of s…


Read More
Sasquatch Local Music

Sasquatch! Music Festival 2017, Day 2: DoNormaal (& Friends)

No stranger to the KEXP Blog or airwaves, DoNormaal took Sasquatch Music Festival by storm, playing a collaborative set which featured additional performances from close collaborators including Raven Matthews, Taylar Elizza Beth, Guayaba, and Astro King Pheonix. DoNormaal remains a magnetic, distin…


Read More
Sasquatch

Sasquatch! Music Festival 2017, Day 1: LCD Soundsystem

As the lights went up on the Sasquatch! Music Festival main stage, James Murphy, founder, frontman, and mastermind of LCD Soundsystem, sauntered out from the wings, sipping a glass of white wine. There’s cause to celebrate: he shared with the audience that the band finally finished their highly-ant…


Read More
Sasquatch

Sasquatch! Music Festival 2017, Day 1: Charles Bradley

Charles Bradley is more than his music. He's a Daptone Records institution, a life-affirming singer, and, as his organist, Mike Deller, introduced him to the crowd at dusk on the first day of the Sasquatch Music Festival, "The Screaming Eagle of Soul."


Read More
Sasquatch Local Music

Sasquatch! Music Festival 2017, Day 1: Gazebos

Seeing Gazebos in the daytime feels a rare occurrence. Usually found in a dimly-lit club, the Seattle band graced the Yeti Stage on Day 1 of this year's Sasquatch Music Festival, largely playing tracks from their 2016 debut record Die Alone. As the opening band of Sasquatch, Gazebos earned the dubi…


Read More
Local Music Live Reviews

Live Review: Fleet Foxes with Chris Cohen at Showbox at the Market 5/19/17

"Welcome to the show (We Missed You)", the projector screen read before Fleet Foxes made their homecoming on a warm May evening. From the chatter and mingling happening in the crowd ahead of the set, it was clear that the feeling was mutual. It'd been five years since the Seattle group played their…


Read More