We sucked it up and went out there early on Day Two. A storm front had moved in North of the city and it was surprisingly cool out when we left for lunch. So I made the executive decision to get out to the park in time to see The National. I felt like since I was the guy that started the “The National Hate Washington D.C.” rumor, I owed it to them to go see them. But only because the weather was cooperating.

We grabbed a taxi at 10 after two and made it out there in time to hear Jens Lekman’s last song(verdict: pretty damn good). I hustled up to the photo pit on the opposite stage and grabbed a prime spot before The National went on. Being from Ohio, the crowd was very vocal and restless while waiting for their (sort of) hometown heroes. The band soon took the stage and started “Secret Meeting,” and guess what? They were amazing. Just brilliant. I was shocked. Not that I expected them to suck but I wasn’t prepared for them to be so good. Perhaps Alligator doesn’t do a great job of getting all the little flourishes across that make their live show so compelling, but they sounded like a different band on stage. As a whole, their set was more upbeat than the record, which made a big difference. They were so good I almost got to the point where I would issue a formal apology for starting those nasty rumors, but fuck that, I’m even more pissed now. I want to see them again as soon as possible. Still, The National were my favorite band of the weekend.

Liars were up next and by the time they took the stage, the sun was out in full force, so it was appropriate that their first song had a chorus of "The weather is fierce." It was so hot in the photo pit that I only lasted up there about a song and a half. I don’t know how those kids that stayed up front all day made it. It had to be over 115 degrees up there with no shade whatsoever. Liars were surprisingly good, although they got a bit grating at times. Their industrial, tribal drum circle songs were great but their shouty, anarchistic screechy metal tunes left a lot to be desired.

After fleeing the photo pit, I grabbed a beer and headed back to our base camp in the shade by the main entrance. Ms. Smith and I learned a lot from Day One and spent most of Day Two lounging in the shade, people watching and just chilling while listening to the music from afar. The sound at the festival was brilliant, so you could clearly hear either main stage from pretty much anywhere on the site. So we saw no reason to move out into the sun. And we didn’t.

Mr. Lif and Aesop Rock were next and although the crowd was really into their set, I wasn’t. I found them too wordy and lacking the fat beats needed to keep my interest. I’m not really into indie hip-hop, so it wasn’t really my thing. But I got some good pictures. They were the most photgenic artist of the weekend.

I’m not all that familiar with punk veterans Mission of Burma outside of “Academy Fight Song” and “That’s When I Reach For My Revolver,” but I enjoyed their set. They seemed like they were a big hit, which is more than I can say for Devendra Barnhart. He was a total snoozefest. I don’t think his laid-back hippie vibe was a good fit after Mission of Burma tore it up. He almost put me to sleep. Ms. Smith was similarly unenthused so we used his set to wander around, grab some food and more beer.

Yo La Tengo was up next and I finally came to grips with the fact that I don’t really care for them. But I give them props for their first three songs. They were really long so I got to take a boatload of shots, mostly of Ira seemingly in pain. It was fun to watch the performers and see how long it took them to go from dry to completely drenched in sweat. In Ira’s case, approximately two minutes. Even less for the big guy.

It was around this time we tried to catch our first act of the weekend on the second stage but they were in the middle of a set change when we went over there. It turns out I didn’t see a single act over there. I was thinking it would be insanely hot in the tent, so that kept me away but the scheduling wasn’t exactly ideal. Spank Rock, Matthew Dear and Diplo all played at the same time as bands I wanted to (or thought I wanted to) see on the main stage, so picture taking took priority.

Spoon was next on the Connector stage, so Ms. Smith and I crossed the park on more time to go stake out our spot. Once we were settled, I went up front to grab a prime spot for photos. When I got up there, Britt was hanging out in the photo pit signing autographs and talking with the kids up front. He was really cool, signing everything that people shoved in his face, smiling and chatting the whole time. Right before he left one girl grabbed him with one arm, shoved her camera in my face with the other and commanded, “Take our picture!” So I complied. Britt walked over to me and said “Alright buddy,” slapped me on the back and headed back stage. What was my witty response to one of my favorite artists on the planet? “30 Gallon Tank,” I said, but it was not to be. Spoon’s set consisted almost exclusively of new songs and a mix of material from their last two albums. I was sad not to hear any Girls Can Tell material (especially "Chicago At Night"...hello!), but their insanely tight, catchy version of “Stay Don’t Go” (by no means my favorite Spoon song) almost made up for it. Being right in front during “The Two Sides Of Monsignor Valentine” was a big thrill.

After our allotted three songs in the photo pit, I headed back into the crowd to watch the rest of the set with Ms. Smith. During Spoon’s last song, I made my way over to the other stage one final time to get ready for Os Mutantes. They weren’t really my thing, too "Uncle John's Band" for me, so after a few songs, we made our way out the back exit and quickly hailed a cab back to the hotel, where air conditioning and cold showers awaited.

Overall I really enjoyed my experience at the Pitchfork Fest. Yes the writers on the site can be pretentious wankers at times (unlike the writer of this site), but they did a great job with this event. Everything there was super cheap, from the tickets ($30 for two days), food (most dishes under $5), beer ($4 for 12 oz.), and water ($1 for 20 oz.) The lines got a bit out of control at times, but most of them moved fast and everyone inside the gates was super friendly. I felt like I got a lot for my money.

I can’t say enough about the sound. There were some hiccups during Day Two (Most notably during Spoon and Os Mutantes) but overall it was crystal clear and loud as fuck. The heat was oppressive (and that’s understating it a bit) but we did better on Day Two by just hanging in the shade and not trying to over-extend ourselves by standing in the sun. That strategy worked wonders and we were able to enjoy everything to the fullest on Day Two. Chicago itself was great. I’ve been there twice and it already seems very familiar to me.

For the Day Two photoset on Flickr, click here.
Click here to see all my photos from the 2006 Pitchfork Music Festival.