Bonnaroo restored Ben Folds’ faith in the music festival. A festival veteran of 12 years, he first played the Manchester, Tenn., festival in 2006, right after he went on his first-ever yoga retreat. He didn’t take off any time to prep for Bonnaroo – he didn’t even know what Bonnaroo was.
“For all I knew, it was like a coffeehouse,” Folds said. “I had no idea. And then we walked out on stage, and there’s like 60,000 people. And not only that, they were really in-tune. They were really in-tune with music, and I thought, ‘Well, there’s some hope out there,’ because I think that people are connected in the music world by different strings than they used to be.”
He had become jaded about festivals, Folds said, but his experience at Bonnaroo changed that.
“I was sort of a born-again festival player after that,” he said. “I don’t take them as lightly now when I go, because it’s possible that it might not suck when you show up.”
You too can renew your faith in the festival, have your first experience or head back for another trip when the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival returns from June 12 to 15. In a conference call with The Diamondback, Folds, comedian Jim Norton and My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan discussed returning to the festival, past memories and the Metallica effect.
This year, Bonnaroo’s headliners include Pearl Jam, Widespread Panic and Metallica – not the oft-rumored Led Zeppelin reunion. Robert Plant, however, will be at the farm, performing a set with Alison Krauss, and Lez Zeppelin, the all-girl Zeppelin tribute band, will be there as well. Other big-name acts include Jack Johnson, Kanye West, The Raconteurs and Bonnaroo’s first-ever main stage comedy performer, Chris Rock.
This will be My Morning Jacket’s fifth performance at the festival – the last time they played, in 2006, the band played a now legendary three-hour-plus late-night tent set.
“I think that that was one of the most electrifying experiences of my life personally,” he said. “It was just something out of the heavens, that’s for sure. I don’t think I’ve ever been more pumped up and more nervous and anxious to hit a stage I’ve ever been in my entire life.”
Norton, known for his off-the-cuff and often offensive humor, is part of Bonnaroo’s comedy tent – an air-conditioned tent that will also host performances by Janeane Garofalo, Zach Galifianakis and Mike Birbiglia. Norton sees comedy at Bonnaro as a welcome distraction from the typical musical acts.
“I think it’s great,” Norton said. “Typically, music festivals are just music … [but] they know people are going to enjoy comedy, and it’s not the first year they’re doing it, but it’s great.”
The festival atmosphere is also a plus for comedy, Norton said.
“You know, this is a little bit more like – a little bit more of a looser field to it,” he said. “You know, it’s kind of like standing in someone’s yard or in a barbecue and just, you know, shit-talking and hoping they enjoy it. So I think that’ll be a little bit different. [There’s] a little bit of a less structured atmosphere than a club.”
One of the biggest changes for Bonnaroo this year is Metallica’s Friday-night headlining slot – one of the most unlikely acts to appear at the festival yet. Norton and Hallahan, however, see the metal legends as a welcome addition. For Norton, it’s the band he’s most looking forward to see.
“I think they’ll like them,” he said. “Metallica’s one of the most successful bands in the world. I mean, any type of music fans and outdoor festival has to at least like them. You cannot not like them.”
But if any crowd could handle the diverse musical styles, it’s the Bonnaroo crowd, a sentiment all three artists agreed upon. Folds even sees Bonnaroo as the new mainstream.
“Maybe indie rock is actually more mainstream,” Folds said. “Sort of like if, you know, if you can count something as radical, but if everyone in the country is radical then what is it really? I think that’s really more what it is. I would argue that everything has shifted towards Bonnaroo rather than Bonnaroo shifted toward other things.”
Hallahan said Bonnaroo fans are some of the most informed in the world.
“I think that Bonnaroo crowds for the most part are extreme music fans,” he said. “They do a lot of homework, you know, if they want to come and see all these acts play live and for these extended sets. And I think that they’re very respectful for all the elements that they’re enjoying and all the possibilities to act out. I feel like Bonnaroo crowds cheer when it’s time to cheer and go crazy when it’s time to go crazy and be quiet when it’s time to be quiet.”
The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., takes place from June 12 to 15. Tickets cost $244.50. For more information and a full lineup, visit www.bonnaroo.com.
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