Neil Young, Pharrell Williams, Elle King, and More Break More Than Curfews on Day 2 of BottleRock
Breaking curfew has never felt so good! According to Neil Young and Promise of The Real the 10 p.m. curfew was optional! During the 90-minute set the band ran up against curfew issues on Saturday night at BottleRock Napa. The plug was pulled before the band was able to complete “Rockin’ In The Free World,” however the crowd sang along with the sound coming off the stage to finish the set in proper form.
Photo Credit: Nisha Gulati (Latitude 38 Team)
BottleRock implemented a strict 10 p.m. curfew to appease neighbors who complained about the festival's noise in 2013. He joins a short list of music makers who have ignored the rule, including the Foo Fighters in 2017 and The Cure in 2014. The set was a walk down memory lane, it was a set for the lovers of true rock and roll mixed with nostalgia.
Earlier in the day bands like Against Me, Elle King, Sir Sly, Gary Clark Jr., Cypress Hill, Pharrell Williams, and more took over BottleRock!
Elle King gave an anti-climatic performance. Checking her phone from time to time between songs, BottleRockers sensed that giving her all was not exactly on her mind. Perhaps it was due to her performance the next day for ____. Although it wasn't the performance many may have been hoping for from the powerhouse, her vocals are undeniable.
Pink Sweat$ won over the hearts of many with his hit single, "Honesty," and his melodic intricacy and lyricism puts him on the list as a must-see. In an interview with Rollingstone, Pink Sweat$ states the importance of change and how he hopes to change the music industry.
“I’m not trying to be different — I am different,” Pink Sweat$ says. “I never talk about sex in an explicit way; that’s intentional. I never degrade women; that’s intentional. I don’t have a [fancy] haircut. I wear pink. That’s not typical for the history of R&B.”
It's clear that the artist, known as David Bowden, is bringing a new element to the R&B genre and we can't wait to hear more out of this talented artist.
“I’m tired of hearing the same varieties of styles,” Sweat$ explains. “I hear songs, and I know that’s a hit, but damn, I heard that flow so many fucking times. People are like, ‘You gotta put the Migos flow on it.’ Why?”
Photo Credit: Nisha Gulati (Latitude 38 Team)
Amongst many things, it comes as no surprise that Pharell Williams is a visionary, however this performance was brilliant. The sincere heartfelt performance came from a place of being straight up pissed off at the political climate and hoping for unity and change. Speaking his truth and using the stage as a platform is true Pharrell style.
Of course Pharrell led the crowd through his major hits and collabs, but he also had something important he wanted to share -- this time about the importance of women's rights in the wake of recent anti-abortion laws. Williams gave a shout out to all of the women-- mothers, sisters, daughters, wives and aunts -- before closing out with a goose-bump inducing performance of "Freedom."
Each and every year BottleRock brings something different for attendees, but in the mist of the political upsets this year hit more close to home than previous years.
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