Live Recap: Just Like Heaven Music Festival
Last weekend, ANCHR hit the Just Like Heaven music fest in Los Angeles. Tune in below to hear all about our experience there!
First of all, on the bill was a great and diverse mix of music, from DJ Them Jeans playing the crowd in until Interpol ended the night, the music never took a break! Back to back to back, stage to stage, the music remained uninterrupted over the course of the day.
The fest itself was laid out over Brookside at the Hollywood Bowl; the terrain is smooth and mostly level, with lots grass and easy to get around. Parking was ample and for VIPs it was provided. The main stage, The Orion, had its own dedicated VIP and Clubhouse viewing sections but the stage was high enough if you wanted to be in the GA melee the view was still good, even if it was crowded. The secondary stage, Stardust, was lower but still located with a great sightline no matter where you were, VIP, Clubhouse or GA. The stages were far enough apart that the lights could be seen but the music from the other was just a soft din between sets.
In addition, both stages boasted some of the best video screens and sound I’ve experienced at a festival; like ever. Not a moment or word spoken on either stage was lost to the din of the crowd and the video screens were crisp, clear and tracked the stage action perfectly.
So pretty much no matter where you were, you could see and hear at least one of the stages. And if you weren’t listening you could have been eating—anything. From vegan fare to burgers, everything you could think of were represented in the food tents that flanked most of one side of the set-up. Tables, with sunshades and without, were ample or you could just pick a spot in the grass in the shade. Separate drinks tents were there for the boozy or the bland and the number of locations made it so the lines were never ridiculously long.
Merch tents with festival branded and band branded merch moved like clockwork with at least a couple dozen attendants working the tables. My friend tried to pick up several different T-shirts but sadly they had sold out pretty quick.
Overall, JLH is held in a well laid out, well apportioned space built for the vast crowds to make it feel like it wasn’t vastly crowded.
The Music
The biggest downside to the fest overall was that the stages were run on a tight, efficient schedule that made catching all the acts you wanted to a little tough if they were on opposing stages. For once a delay to start would have been appreciated. If you were at Orion, you would have to cut short one to make it to the next at Stardust in time. Sometimes lag time between acts is actually a good thing, but there was none at JLH. Down to the rotating stage for Orion that meant sometimes as few as five minutes between sets!
Gates opened and as the crowds made their way in there was music from DJs Them Jeans on Orion and Cosmic Kids on Stardust. As the lawns filled up, the first bands of the day took to Orion, where I spent the bulk of my time.
First up were The Cribs, with a short and sweet setlist that included a nod to the 15 year anniversary of “Men’s Needs.” They were a fun and energetic start to the day on the big stage.
Followed up by The Raveonettes, who’s set was a bit more subdued but sounded fantastic. Unfortunately because of the time sets and distances staying at Orion meant missing Geographer and Islands who were loaded up on the Stardust stage— too far away and the band times too close together to make it.
But back at Orion something was brewing and that was The Teaches of Peaches played in full by Peaches in honor of its 22 anniversary. And Peaches outdid even herself on this one! The dancers, the old lady stage persona she was dressed as, and the term is being used loosely, were fabulous. She made multiple costume changes include her black “Thank God for Abortion” one-piece. The crowd loved her and for good reason!
After her set I ducked over to the Stardust stage to catch !!!. Fun, high energy and a great time was had, then it was time to run back to Orion because The Hives were coming up next and well…The Hives tore the place down. So much loud, fun with Howlin' Pelle keeping photogs and security on their toes as he jumped off the stage and made for the barricade or turned and ran down the aisle to the center of GA without missing a beat or a lyric. The crowd was having fun, but so were The Hives.
And just when you think you can’t top something, Franz Ferdinand proved that they, in fact, were up to following someone as impressive as The Hives. They were amazing, including the refreshed line up with new drummer Audrey Tait stepping smoothly into the big shoes behind the kit. Honestly, having seen Franz play multiple times, this show was right on point. They looked, sounded, and felt so alive and fun— the entire crowd was dancing along.
Bloc Party was next on the Orion and probably suffered slightly coming after two of the (IMO) best bands of the day. They sounded good but frankly almost everything after the spin-along energy of Franz and the Hives feels slower, less frantic. I made my way back over to the Stardust to catch Chromeo, who was fun and dancey with a crowd chanting for them as they took the stage.
After Chromeo, it was time to grab some food and take a few minutes out of the sun before heading back to the big stage to catch the end of The Shins who sounded great and the crowd really seemed to love.
Then Modest Mouse took the stage to play a great set including their newest as well as, of course, the crowd favorite “Float On.” Even though the sets from both The Shins and Modest Mouse were not terribly dynamic after some of the acts, the music was solid and entertaining. I was questioning my logic of skipping M.I.A. for Modest Mouse in the end though.
Finally, headliners Interpol took to the stage bathed in a dark array of moody lighting in front of a crowd that had been waiting faithfully for the band. Their sound was great even though they seemed a somewhat dark end to an otherwise bright and amazing day. 14 songs and two encores later, they brought JLH to its inevitable close.
Overall, Just Like Heaven was a well planned and well coordinated festival with ample amenities and a great mix of music.
If you missed the festival, check out the photo gallery below featuring Chromeo, Franz Ferdinand, Peaches, The Hives and more!
