Pitchfork Festival 2021: Sunday Recap and Photos
Tomberlin
Singer-songwriter Tomberlin filled in for the opening slot on the Green stage somewhat last minute, when Cassandra Jenkins had to cancel her current tour. Armed with solely a guitar and her voice, Tomberlin was able to captivate the building, early afternoon crowd. The stripped down performance gave everyone a chance to fully soak in and appreciate the thoughtful lyrics.
Between her indie folk songs, Tomberlin delivered funny quips and banter to the audience. As she played, the sky remained clear with a breeze passing through Union Park, and it felt like the perfect way to ease into the final day of the festival.
Special Interest
Special Interest followed Tomberlin on the Red Stage next, completely shaking up the mood and cranking up the volume. Combining moody electronic beats, punk riffs and an intense stage persona, the band from New Orleans put on a show that falls within my top three of the entire weekend.
Fronted by vocalist Alli Logout, Special Interest’s show never lacked in exuberance or action. Logout swung the microphone stand around, made outlandish facial expressions and paced across the entire stage, making the full audience feel connected to the performance. The stark contrast between Special Interest and Tomberlin highlighted the incredible range of artists we’re lucky enough to see at Pitchfork every year. If you get a chance to catch a Special Interest show, don’t miss it.
Caroline Polachek
Caroline Polachek took over the Green Stage later in the afternoon, providing a mesmerizing set filled with eloquent dance moves and a charming presence.
As Polachek sauntered and swayed across the stage, she also showcased a phenomenal vocal range alongside her stage presence. Earlier in the afternoon, Polachek gave an interview to Pitchfork stating that she pulled influence from Celine Dion in her new material, and that inspiration definitely translated to a lot of her vocal inflection during her Pitchfork set.
Polachek’s show delivered it all: production value, a fun and confident attitude, and electric energy from the crowd. The audience seemed especially into the performance of “Bunny is a Rider,” which Polachek released earlier this Summer, and we also got a sneak peek of an unreleased track during her show. Stay tuned for more new music from Caroline Polachek soon.
The Weather Station
The Weather Station performed to an absolutely packed Blue Stage on Sunday afternoon, and if there was an award for best style coordination among band members, they’d differently win it. Led by singer-songwriter Tamara Lindeman, The Weather Station took the stage all donning coordinated outfits in golden earth tones.
Besides being visual stunning, Lindeman also enchanted the audience with her serene vocals. The set opened with the single “I Tried to Wear the World,” a collaboration with Jennifer Castle, before pivoting to many songs from the 2021 album Ignorance, including “Parking Lot” and “Tried to Tell You.” The full band lineup onstage (including a clarinet player) gave a richness and layered texture to the live sound of these songs.
Thundercat
Thundercat gave us another genre-defying set over at the Red Stage later on Sunday evening. The brainchild of musician and songwriter Stephen Lee Bruner, Thundercat has become known for his fun-spirited mix of funk, jazz, r&b and electronic musical stylings.
Thundercat’s performance had a sprightly energy to it, which was reciprocated by the crowd dancing along. We got to experience lots of extended jams and jazzy bass riffs to kick off the set, especially with songs like “Interstellar Love” and “I Love Louis Cole.” The set wrapped up with the hit “Funny Thing” which even had audience members all the way at the back grinning from ear to ear and grooving along. Thundercat’s set was the perfect transition into. the evening of the final day at Pitchfork.
