There comes a moment here at Sasquatch – the annual music festival held in the Columbia River Gorge in rural Washington state – when the frontman or frontwoman of some hyperventilated-over indie band ascends the main stage to a tidal wave of applause, turns his or her back on the grassy amphitheatre of adoring fans, and just stops to take in the scenery. Out past the synthesizers and drums, over a vast precipice, the silver-blue Columbia River snakes its way through sage-dotted canyons that fade out into infinity and reflect the clouds' shadows like a mirror.
[partner id="wireduk"]And that's when they say it:
"This is the most amazing venue we've ever played."
"Give it up for Mother Nature!"
You realize this is more than praise. It is, in fact, a magical incantation. Magical because upon its utterance, you, adoring fan, and him, untouchable frontman, are suddenly equals. You are both unabashedly geeking out at the scenery. And then it's loud. And it is the most epic TV on the Radio show you've ever seen. And it is the most epic place they've ever played! And did you see that shooting star? And is that an eagle? And do we even need to eat those mushrooms?!
So yes, the scenery alone is intoxicating enough to make the trek to the festival. But the distance seems to weed out what we here in America refer to as "the douche factor," which otherwise infects marquee festivals such as Coachella, that can't guarantee you won't get thrown up on or subjected to a drum circle.
But leave the landscape out of it and Sasquatch has a lineup to kill for.
More than 100 bands on four stages, with many shows overlapping – requiring you to tear ass across grass expanses past quesadilla vendors and Red Bull dispensaries to get a good vista on the Next Big Thing. This year's highlights included an explosive Friday night opener by the Foo Fighters, with Dave Grohl thrashing under the starlight, riding the high of a solid new album.
Los Angeles-based Local Natives carried the main stage Saturday, part Fleet Foxes, part ass-kicking, soul-wringing rock. The inimitable extraplanetary Swede they call Robyn played her set a half-hour late but reminded a packed crowd on the lawn why she's worth the wait, writhing around in a silver-lamé Salome dance routine with a backup band dressed like mad scientists.
Some stages can't handle the crowds – but as was the case in Saturday night's Sleigh Bells performance in the Banana Shack tent, that isn't always a bad thing. Everyone was packed, shoulder-to-shoulder, undulating like one organism under machine-gun bursts of drum loops and pink strobe lights.
There is no way to explain Seattle-based Reggie Watts, if you haven't heard of him, except to say: Hear of him. Immediately.
And as the midday sun beat down on the Sunday crowd, the Beach House's Victoria Grand had to learn how to unbutton her black leather midway through the band's hypnotically beautiful set. The Decemberists, The Flaming Lips, Ratatat, Deerhunter, Guided By Voices, and Modest Mouse all got their shot at rocking the Canyon before Wilco closed out the festival Monday night.
Most devotees of the several-day festival camp out for the duration (as we did), though there are hotels available for those averse to showering with a towelette (or waiting hours for the stalls near the campground). But as with any festival, by Day 3, the grime becomes a badge of honor – a rite of rock 'n' roll passage. And OK, it's far. And OK, you'll have to forgo two Glastonburys to pay your way. But this is as much a holiday in the American West as it is a music festival. And where, in the British Isles, can you play beer pong with Canadians at 8:30 a.m.? And where else, exactly, do you anticipate being a part of something as magical as this?
Bottom line: As the big festivals degrade into sweaty beerfests, with overexposed megabands slathered in logos and beamed out in high-def simulcasts, Sasquatch remains a kind of far-off indie rock utopia. You know it's special from the moment you round that first corner and see the canyonscape unfold around the main-stage amphitheater. You will give it up for Mother Nature.
All photos in gallery above by Allyce Andrew/Wired.com. For more Sasquatch photos, see Wired UK's gallery.
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