With its expansion to three days, and with headliners like Kanye West, Guns N Roses, and Kings of Leon, Governors Ball seemed poised to be the East Coast’s answer to Coachella and Bonnaroo. Unfortunately, due to some extremely untimely weather, this years festival will most likely be remembered as one of the messiest music festivals of all time, saved only by the fact that everyone was able to return home after each day, rather than be forced to sleep in the mud.
Its tough to really talk about the festival without getting all of the weather issues out of the way. Its tough to points fingers and say what was done right and wrong – with tour routing, they couldn’t have pushed back the festival one day (which many people seemed to have suggested). If they just cancelled the first day, they’d be flooded with complaints – it was supposed to be rain or shine. If they didn’t cancel Friday’s headliners, there was a clear safety hazard – it was pouring rain, the fields were destroyed, and sound was cutting out on any many artists. By the time Kings of Leon were supposed to go on, there was only a few dozen fans still waiting for the band to go on – everyone else had given up.
But with quick thinking, Governors Ball learned on the fly, fixing many of the issues that made Day 1 nearly unbearable. They managed to get Kings Of Leon on stage on Saturday, making up for their cancelled Friday night set (Pretty Lights, unfortunately couldn’t reschedule), and they fixed many of the transportation problems that plagued the first day. Unfortunately, they couldn’t fix the grounds, which were still a giant mud pit for the rest of the weekend. It was not uncommon to see shoes, sneakers, and sandals stranded in the mud, casualties of war with the festival’s ground.
But it wasn’t all bad – there was some great music hidden underneath all that mud. You can’t fault Governors Ball’s line up, because they did a solid job filling it up with top notch acts. The two that deserve the most praise are, unsurprisingly, two of the headliners. Guns N Roses’ showed up – gasp! – early, who would have guessed it? Their set, while similar to their much smaller show in Brooklyn on Thursday night, was juiced up with crazy pyrotechnics and fireballs, reminding a crowd that were toddlers when ‘Appetite For Destruction’ was released how real rock royalty work.
On Sunday night, Kanye West stole the show, opening with a pair of new songs that sounded more like Nine Inch Nails than ‘College Dropout’. Throughout the set, Kanye weaved in classics, sing a longs, and some brand new tracks, leaving the packed crowd satisfied. Kanye spoke about his new CD, explaining that there’s no single released to radio, there’s no big marketing push, there’s barely even album art. It’s all about the music, and it really showed. It felt like a different Kanye up there.
It wasn’t all headliners though – Edward Sharpe and The Magentic Zeroes put on an all out party, hitting most of their songs from their most recent album perfectly. They have an old school family band vibe, with everyone having a distinct personality and top notch musicianship. In a day full of mud, they gave a packed crowd something to smile about, as everyone danced and clapped along for the hour long set. Many braved the mud to dance around to Alt-J as well, and rewarded with a fantastic set from the up and coming Brits. Gary Clark Jr. proved why he is one of the most exciting guitarists in the world today.
Most people will look back on Governors Ball and remember the terrible weather conditions – the eight hours of rain, the terrible mud, and the horrid smells. But by the third day, everyone was ready to have fun again. Just like with anything else in life, the crowd moved on, and came back even more determined the next day and the day after. By the time Kanye West took the stage as the festivals’ last artist, it felt just like any other festival. Even after having to trek back through the mud to get home, the festival ended a high note with Kanye’s set, and most people seemed to leave with a good taste in their mouth.