Sasquatch! 2009: Passion Pit, Dent May, Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band

And now, we bring you some awesome bands playing mid-day.

Passion Pit:

YOU GUYS, CAN YOU GET A CONTACT HIGH IF PEOPLE AROUND YOU ARE DOING ECSTASY? I GOT A LIL’ TINGLY WHEN I WAS WATCHING THE PASSION PITS AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE IT WAS BECAUSE THEY WERE AWESOME AND NOT BECAUSE OF SOME SORT OF AIRBORNE CONTAGIOUS FORM OF E HIGHNESS.

Seriously, though, Passion Pit overcame an unsteady start and a too-long set-up process to move an overgrown crowd. Maybe they’re not quite established enough to play the main stage, but there were definitely too many people packed in around the middle stage for dancing to be comfortable. Still, the audience yelled and clapped along as the band sounded solid pumping songs they admitted to having played maybe only four times in front of an audience. So good.

Dent May and His Maginficent Ukulele:

Dent May kind of looks like a Will Forte character, but the crooning over his Uke works. The Morrissey comparisons are inevitable, but the swaying harmonies remind me of Southern California old school cruising music. I’d be surprised if he wasn’t at least familiar with Malo’s “Suavecito.” Peppering songs with wit and humor is tricky business, but Dent May is able to pull it off without seeming like everything’s a joke. This was a highly enjoyable set.

Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band:

We love Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, but I was a little nervous to see them play a festival gig. Part of what makes them awesome is their complicated song structure, playfulness with time signatures, and their use of dynamics, all of which can be off-putting for an audience mostly consisting of people who’ve never heard of this band. Thankfully, the nervousness was not necessary as the band immediately engaged the crowd. Heads bobbed and hands clapped. “Going on a Hunt,” and the set-closing “Albatross, Albatross, Albatross” were highlights.

For the record, other things that make Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band awesome: sweet riffage, custom-made tambourine-on-stick thingies, and a super-talented teenage drummer. See also: roughly a billionty other things. Also, they popped drum hits mid-song by throwing tennis balls off a tom-tom. Rad.

– Jeff Reguilon