Shaky Knees

Day One

When my buddy told me his dad was able to snag 8 wristbands to the annual Shaky Knees Festival I was ecstatic. He was kind enough to invite a bunch of friends rather than sell them. We all arrived to Centennial Olympic Park at 4:00 PM on Friday and got to see some awesome bands. One of my favorites Portugal The Man kicked off our day and played their new single at the time "Feel It Still." Following them was Cage The Elephant, and they put on a hell of a show. The leader singer has an incredible stage presence, dancing all around the stage and diving into the crowd song after song. We were able to catch 20 minutes of The Pixes that were sadly a bit disappointing because they played all songs that my friends and I had never heard of none of their classics like "Monkey Gone To Heaven", "Here Comes Your Man", or "Where Is My Mind?" The night concluded with an epic finish courtesy of LCD Soundsystem. A group that hasn't toured in years came back and was making everyone in the crowd dance. The highlight of their show was a giant disco ball that changed colors and patterns reflected throughout the entire show. 

Day Two

After getting a good nights rest, our group made the journey back to the festival grounds and were ready to get groovy again. The only day time act I remember well was Bishop Briggs who was an indie singer who had a song in the FIFA 17 game. After her we were lucky enough to get a good spot for Lewis Del Mar at the smallest stage, a tropical indie band that is currently one of my favorite bands. They aren't that big yet but they are gaining traction and more of their songs are used in TV and Movies. Next we headed back to the main stage to watch Chet Faker who following the release of his latest album now goes by Nick Murphy. Chet Faker has several collaborations with the electronic artist Flume, in addition to that he has some amazing songs from previous albums like "Gold" and "Talk". Saturday night was closed by The XX. A British trio who utilizes guitar and bass as well as electronic elements. Their producer Jamie XX has had a ton of success on his own in addition to the success he's had with the band. The performance by them was flawless, both the lead guitar and the bass player were both exceptional musicians and vocalists. Along with a carefully orchestrated light show The XX put on one of the coolest shows I had ever witnessed.

Day Three

The last day went so smoothly because all of the bands we wanted to see performed on the stage. Saint Motel kicked off the day for us early in the day and they got everyone in a happy mood with their upbeat songs. Their song "My Type" was one of the biggest hits of the summer and they did the song justice live. Following them was Third Eye Blind who played all their sing-along classics. The whole set the audience just wrapped their arms around each other and sang all the words to songs like "Semi-Charmed Life" and "Jumper". Next up was one of my personal favorites The Shins. The lead singer of the band is also the lead singer of the electronic duo Broken Bells. They had super psychedelic stage decorations that had everyone intrigue throughout the show. The final performance of the weekend belonged to Phoenix and did they deserve it. The French band took an extra half hour to set up because they had to put together a giant mirror that was tilted sixty degrees over the stage so that if you looked directly at the stage you would have a birds-eye view of the band. Their all show was so epic, with flashing lights, different graphics, and a lead singer that traveled all over the place to perform. "1901" was the perfect way to end an unforgettable weekend. 

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