Live Recap: Pitchfork Festival 2022 Day 2
The second day of this year’s Pitchfork Festival kicked off on Saturday, July 16th. The rainy weather had cleared up, leaving behind a muddy Union Park for the fest’s second day.
When I arrived to the park on Saturday, I immediately noticed that larger crowds had come out for the fest that day—everything from the size of the crowd to the merch lines were larger.
I began my day catching a set from The Linda Lindas on the Green Stage, which was the original slot for Chubby and The Gang before they had to cancel their appearance here. I was sad to miss Chubby, but if anyone was going to fill in, I’d want it to be The Linda Lindas. The group composed of Bela Salazar, Eloise Wong, Lucia de la Garza, and Mila de la Garza has been garnering a huge fan base for their refreshing reboot of Riot Grrrl influences. While playing their set, the band members would often dance over to each other, demonstrating an incredible sense of chemistry and stage presence to go along with their great sound. Their setlist included songs from their album Growing Up, in addition to the track “Monica” from their self-titled EP—which Salazar dedicated to her cat named Monica. The group ended their set with a cover of Bikini Kill’s “Rebel Girl.”
Next up, The Armed began over on the Blue Stage, and this was absolutely the most bonkers, rowdiest show I think I’ve ever seen at Pitchfork. I absolutely loved it. The band is mysterious in the way that they’re a collective hardcore group with rotating, anonymous members, and their performance at Pitchfork included some of the members wearing costumes or face paint. With so many members in the rotation, they all took turns leading the vocals on the microphone, and they often joined fans out in the mosh pit. I’m looking forward to hopefully seeing The Armed back at Pitchfork another year on a bigger stage so they can expand upon their wild spectacle.
Hyd, the stage name of singer and performer Hayden Dunham, took the Red Stage next for a show that was a 180 from The Armed, but spectacular in its own way. Hyd entered the stage on her own, in a dramatic fashion, using movement to accentuate her music. “I have a few songs for you,” she told the audience before performing her single “The Look On Your Face.” If you’re a fan of Caroline Polachek, you should listen to Hyd not only because the two have collaborated together, but because they produce a similar style of music and stage presence. Hyd had a flowery, hazy vibe about her and she glided across the stage through choreographed movement.
Saturday was all about the theatrical choreography because next up, Yeule brought similar vibes back on the Blue Stage. Yeule is the alias for vocalist, songwriter and producer Nat Ćmiel from Singapore. Fans flocked to see Yeule perform, and she did not disappoint and she fluidly moved along to her glitch-pop tracks. As she performed songs from her 2022 album Glitch Princess, Yeule’s stage persona was amplified by her costume and dramatic make up that balanced the delicacy of her ethereal vocals.
Next up, Dry Cleaning brought their effortlessly cool vibes to the Green Stage, performing their mix of experimental rock, spoken word and post punk. For their second song, they brought out a guest saxophone player, and the sax guest seemed to be the theme of the weekend as it kept popping up in different sets. Dry Cleaning mostly performed songs from their 2021 album New Long Leg, but they also included their new single “Don’t Press Me.”
The duo of Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin, aka Magdalena Bay, brought their synth pop over to the Red Stage. The pair came onstage in coordinated outfits, with Tenenbaum sporting a microphone headset similar to those that Britney Spears and other 90s pop divas wore. I saw Magdalena Bay perform at Lincoln Hall earlier this year and was struck by how intense their fanbase was, and that same energy was present amongst the crowd at their Pitchfork performance. Tenenbaum danced and swirled across the stage during their entire set, as she and the band performed songs from their album Mercurial World.
The night wrapped up with a trio of Indie Darlings, the first being Lucy Dacus over on the Green Stage. Dacus took the stage wearing a brightly-colored outfit featuring rainbow and cloud details, and her fans were some of the most vocal of the entire festival. I could hardly hear Dacus over the sounds of fans shouting along the lyrics to songs like “Hot & Heavy” and “Night Shift.” The last time I had seen Lucy Dacus, she had performed at Thalia Hall, laying on a couch the entire time because of herniated discs, so it was wonderful to see her return to performing in full form. Towards the end of her set, Dacus even treated the festival audience to a cover of the iconic “Believe” by Cher, which was the first time she’s performed this cover live.
Japanese Breakfast closed out the Red Stage for Saturday night, a level up from the last time the band had performed at Pitchfork over on the Blue Stage. Michelle Zauner brought along a stage full of musicians in addition to her regular bandmates, adding depth to her songs with string musicians and a saxophone. The set opened with Zauner banging a gong during “Parprika,” while the rest of the set had her rotating between playing guitar or dancing around the span of the stage. Towards the end of the show, Jeff Tweedy joined Japanese Breakfast as a guest vocalist, singing “Kokomo, IN” from the album Jubilee. The band and Tweedy also performed a cover of Wilco’s “Jesus, Etc…” and Zauner thanked Tweedy by saying “Jeff tweedy is my favorite songwriter of all time.”
The second day of the festival concluded with Mitski, who was welcomed onstage with overwhelming applause. Mitski sauntered onstage to moody lighting framing her graceful movement. Mitski put out her sixth album Laurel Hell earlier this year, and her set featured some of those songs like “Working for the Knife” and “The Only Heartbreaker,” but she also sprinkled in tunes from earlier albums like 2018’s Be the Cowboy and Puberty 2. Mitski’s stage presence was the perfect way to end the theatrical tone of the second day at Pitchfork.
See the full photo recap below, and stay tuned for coverage of the third day of the festival.
