Thursday • Friday • Saturday • Sunday
Big Ears is not just representative of myriad musical genres, but also various cultural experiences, as well. There might have been a festival that featured both André 3000 and Digable Planets at some point, but there certainly hasn’t been one that featured Secret Chiefs 3, Kronos Quartet, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, John Paul Jones and Son Rompe Pera on the same bill. And all these artists took the stage at various venues across Knoxville on Saturday. Here’s a look back at the third day of Big Ears. – Rusty Odom
Min Xiao-Fen with River Guerguerian
One of the underappreciated elements of Big Ears is when music artists provide live accompaniments to films. This year’s offering was Chinese-born multi-instrumentalist Min Xiao-Fen and American River Guerguerian performing a soundtrack to two short silent Chinese films from the 1920s. The first was “Romance of the Fruit Peddler,” a spirited slapstick that still resonated with its humor and heart. The second, “Romance of a Western Chamber,” was a less-likable drama full of action, combat and societal manners.
Xiao-Fen and Guerguerian utilized several different instruments, with Xiao-Fen mostly playing native Chinese instruments and Guerguerian performing on a wide variety of things from around the world, everything from a didgeridoo to a single-string Brazilian instrument and all manner of percussion. Xiao-Fen also contributed vocals, which went from high and delicate to deep, almost throat-singing growls. While the combination worked beautifully on the first film, for the second, the music was far more interesting than the film. Still, it was a delight to sit in one of the most beautiful and best sounding halls in the South watching hundred-year-old films along with intriguing music. – Wayne Bledsoe
Dibia$e
Day three of Big Ears started with the third installment of Blacktronika – Afrofuturism in Electronic Music, curated by none other than King Britt. Much like the Mill & Mine setup on Friday night, the stage at Jackson Terminal was moved to the floor, which allowed the audience a more intimate viewing experience with all the DJs. Los Angeles’ Donell McGary, better known as Dibia$e, started the party early Saturday afternoon, showcasing his infectious hip-hop driven beats and samples.
As he flowed midway through his set, all heads were bobbing in unison to the smooth beats he was laying down. This prompted Britt to grab the mic and remark, “Who needs a neck brace? All neck braces to the front.” Admittedly, my neck had been a little stiff since Friday evening. Dibia$e put on a clinic of sampling and mixing, though, while adding fat basslines to the fray. Towards the end of his set, the LA DJ sampled a few seconds of “Everybody Loves the Sunshine,” which caused a huge eruption from the crowd. Indeed, the party had started much earlier than I had anticipated on Saturday and would continue into the wee hours of the morning, making my neck stiffness a badge of honor.
Dibia$e’s set led into longtime London DJ Charlie Dark MBE’s turn on the decks. Dark is an old-school DJ who spins an eclectic mix of vinyl for his shows. Dark and Britt were both present during the previous set, grabbing the mic and hyping up the crowd at various times, and the favor was returned during Dark’s set. At one point, all the artists featured in the Blacktronika installment were on hand, supporting each other, including director Kristian R. Hill, who directed “God Said Send ‘Em Drum Machines,” and keyboard maestro Brandon Coleman. Each artist could not have been more gracious, too, as they stopped to chat with many fans who greeted them throughout the sets. – John Flannagan
Sons of Chipotle
Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones wowed audiences earlier in the festival with his solo show, which featured some of his best known songs performed on organ, piano, various guitars and such. However, his set with cellist Anssi Karttunen as Sons of Chipotle was something else again. On this outing, Jones and Karttunen seemed to be harkening back to 1950s and ‘60s avant-garde music. That was the time when artists including George Crumb, John Cage, Albert Ayler and the like were challenging audiences, critics and academia to redefine what was considered music. At its best, it’s an arresting personal vision that inspires and challenges listeners to appreciate new sounds, techniques and ideas. It may be a difficult listen, but it truly is art. At its worst, it’s aimless noodling only pretending there’s something deeper at play.
Jones and Karttunen are both great musicians, so it’s natural to give them the benefit of the doubt in any endeavor they present. On Saturday, both played the instruments they’re best known for and augmented that with some computers and electronics. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to break any new ground or give you anything you really hadn’t heard before. It made you feel a little nostalgic for a time when this sort of thing was new and surprising, but not so much that you wanted more of it. Steve Reich, known for his sometimes-polarizing works, once told me that if the music doesn’t move you emotionally, you should move on. Much of the audience did just that during the Sons of Chipotle set. After about 45 minutes of waiting to feel some connection or inspiration, I did the same. – WB
aja monet
It would have been hard to not be engaged by poet monet. Backed by a quartet of excellent jazz musicians, she delivered poems that were passionate and moving. While she didn’t sing them, she might as well have because they felt like music. They felt personal rather than academic and had a rawness and youthfulness that reminded you of Amiri Baraka’s or Nikki Giovanni’s work during the Civil Rights era. You suspect that, as monet continues to create works that combine activism and personal experiences, she will only get better. – WB
Horse Lords
Baltimore, Maryland, quartet Horse Lords were a change of pace to my musical viewing late Saturday afternoon. In typical Big Ears fashion, I went from DJs to avant-garde experimental rock. Horse Lords brought a prog-rock approach to the Mill & Mine, complete with impeccable timing and influences. The band reminded me of King Crimson at times, an act that I would love to see at Big Ears soon. Horse Lords’ set was loud and unpredictable in the best way possible, as evidenced by the huge turnout and reaction they received. – JF
Horse Lords (take two)
Starting with a bang by unleashing a beefy polyrhythmic assault upon the large contingent of festivalgoers gathered at the Mill & Mine late Saturday afternoon, this Baltimore four-piece made their intentions apparent immediately. Stabs of electric guitar and short saxophone bursts mingled with rumbling bass and percussion in intricate and ever-evolving patterns. Though the first couple of numbers fit the prototypical math-rock mold – straddling the line between early, Tyondai Braxton-led Battles and The Smile/various Shabaka Hutchings projects – the group’s sound morphed into a full-on free-jazz freakout featuring sax player Andrew Bernstein lobbing frenzied, wild shrieks over the audience with his instrument.
From there, the band incorporated electronic components courtesy of bassist Max Eilbacher and additional percussive elements (Bernstein again), along a journey that saw it employ different time signatures, navigate multiple genres and defy both convention and expectations all the while. Suffice it to say that these Horse Lords are no one-trick ponies … I’m sorry; there should have been a dad-joke warning. I will see myself out now. – Matt Rankin
Robin Holcomb
I’ve always been a sucker for pretty piano acts, so when I was undecided where to go during this time slot, I was pleased to find this Georgia native on the schedule. As I waited outside St. John’s with a crowd seemingly made up entirely of either retirees or Brooklyn hipsters, I became even more intrigued at the musical prospects that awaited me.
With its cello accompaniment, I found Holcomb’s music gorgeous and her songwriting full of imagery and deeply personal revelations. And while a bit highbrow, the performance was not overly challenging. Instead, her delivery was gentle, not only in her superior piano skills but also with her beautiful vocals. With a variety of works including not only her own, but covers by such creators as Steven Foster, it was a perfect palate cleanser for a festival filled with more complicated and demanding performances. – Jennifer Duncan-Rankin
Digable Planets
“Knoxville is mad happening right now!” exclaimed Butterfly, emcee and leader of Digable Planets, who were on point from the onset, with bassist Tugboat and drummer Kassa Overall laying down a silky-smooth backbeat, a highlight of the eight-piece ensemble’s set. In addition to being smooth, the group were incredibly tight and had the entire lower level of the Civic Auditorium standing and dancing throughout the entirety of their early evening set.
The group played classics such as “Nickel Bags,” “Where I’m From” and of course the inevitable show closer “Rebirth of Slick,” complete with improvisational jamming. Near the end of the show, Tugboat laid down a bass solo for the ages, complete with synchronized leg kicks with other members of the band. Next was Overall’s turn to solo on drums, which was a highlight of this year’s festival thus far. Another facet of the show that impressed me was how much fun they were having, as every member was enjoying every moment and soaking all of it up. This Digable Planets set was infectious, fun and of course cool like that. – JF
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum
It’s been many years since Sleepytime Gorilla Museum made regular stops at Knoxville’s tiny yet beloved Pilot Light. Saturday night, it was hard to believe the act could have ever fit on that stage. Complete with wild outfits; sort of horror-kabuki makeup; odd spiked headpieces; and a dancer, SGM know how to put on a show.
Lead vocalist and guitarist Nils Frykdahl referred to the audience as “hill people” between songs, offering his respects. The band’s music is a combination of brooding and ominous art rock, black-metal hardcore and uncategorizable spookiness. It sounded like the music that Satan might have sex to if it were played backwards … if he weren’t torturing souls by playing them Kid Rock songs forwards. It was all too much fun to be scary, though. And when, during the last song “Emperor Demon,” a person possibly on stilts wearing a giant furry puppet head strode into the audience, it completed the creepy carnival atmosphere. – WB
JG Thirlwell + Ensemble
Saturday was mostly about discovery for me. I purposely picked acts I knew nothing about, as that is where the real fun is at such an experimental festival. Thirlwell, in a bright white suit and flaming red hair, put on a mini rock opera inside the Bijou. His stage presence was so commanding that I could not look away. With his incredibly talented ensemble of piano, violin, drums, guitar and harp, he put on a performance that was dark and menacing; a bit histrionic; and with stark imagery of war and desolation. Drawing from many genres including rock, punk, industrial and classical, the music was completely engrossing. Dramatic and expressive, he had the audience hanging on every word, making it impossible for even this ADHD brain to wander too far from the spectacle at hand. – JDR
While his music may be delicate and sparse, Roger Eno is certainly not. Taking the stage with a pint in hand, he clarified to the audience that he invited the other musicians to have a beer, also, but they all declined. His wry humor ended up being an instrument all its own, as the between-song banter increasingly provided a foil for the sober music. As Eno explained, they were playing “Interlude #7” because Nos. 1-6 were “rubbish.”
The music itself was fantastic, filling St. John’s Cathedral with an elegance it deserves. Eno’s assembled group, who he explained he had met just that day and had only three hours with which to rehearse, fared more than admirably, taking cues and direction in real time from the bandleader with grace. Parker, Pamela, Jackson, Hunter and Elizabeth played the bass, cello, viola and fiddle, respectively, to not only the crowd’s pleasure, but to Eno’s, as well, with the ringleader taking a seat on a side-stage bench on multiple occasions to enjoy his pint and listen to them play. Upon introducing “Shadown Clock,” Eno joked that the passage of time is but an illusion and only flows forward when we fill it with activity. If he’s right about that, then everyone owes him a debt of gratitude for allowing us to pass our time in such a wonderful way. – Daniel Britt
Wyatt Ellis
A bluegrass prodigy hailing from just down the road in Maryville, this adolescent wunderkind has shared stages with some of the genre’s best players at their behest and is already a veteran of the Grand Ole Opry, the venerated Nashville institution that introduced innumerable country legends to the world. And, as Ellis remarked Saturday evening from the stage of Boyd’s Jig & Reel in the Old City, this Big Ears set established him as the youngest performer in the festival’s history.
All of those accolades are just fine and dandy, but his proficiency on the mandolin was the real draw, and Ellis and his group for the night – consisting of top local musicians including Alex Leach, himself once a rising child star in bluegrass – delivered on the hype, turning in one tight standard after another. The always charismatic Matt Morelock made a cameo appearance on the banjo and drew hoots and hollers when he busted out a melody on the jaw harp, but the headliner remained the star of the show throughout, matching or bettering each bandmate’s solo with one of his own, thus sending a message that he will be a force with which to be reckoned for decades to come. I did have to wonder, though, whether the young man’s second set, which started at 11 p.m., kept him up past his regular bedtime. – MR
Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog
It’s possible that no other artist has had more performances in more different configurations than guitarist Marc Ribot. He’s played everything from simple acoustic blues accompaniment to Charlie Chaplin’s “The Kid,” to sets with his Cuban music rock band Los Cubanos Postizos, to sit-ins with several other jazz and rock combinations. His trio Ceramic Dog, with bass guitarist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Ches Smith, though, may be his most intriguing and versatile project.
Saturday at Mill & Mine, the group dove headfirst into a program of songs that were wild and loaded with energy. Sometimes there were Latin elements. Sometimes it was loud and angry, and the music was jarring. Sometimes it was driving and made you want to bounce to it. Sometimes, as with a musical adaptation of Allen Ginsberg’s “Sometimes Jailhouse Blues,” it was quiet and lovely. Ribot is a guitarist who can play pretty much anything and, with Smith and Ismaily at his side, pretty much does. However, it isn’t an act to simply show off the virtuosity and skill of the players. There’s a drive behind it. Ribot slips in poetry. The group ended with what Ribot said was the group’s “manifesto,” “Soldiers in the Army of Love.” Even if the music wasn’t always “pretty,” it wasn’t hard to accept that, through the music Ribot and company intended to make, at least the part of the world they occupied at the moment was a better place. – WB
Bonnie “Prince” Billy
This right here was my show: the big cannot-miss set of the weekend, and Kentucky’s Mr. Will Oldham came through big-time. His charm is endless, and I fall ever more in love every time I see him perform. The ultimate collaborator, his set welcomed a healthy helping of guest musicians, with Louisville Folk School’s Thomas Deakin sitting in throughout the majority of the show to offer guitar, clarinet, trumpet and vocal support.
I was thrilled as Oldham started by digging deep into his catalog, from when he was performing under the Palace Music moniker, with 1995’s “New Partner.” His banter between songs is always so engaging, too, and his ever-present sense of humor was on display Saturday night at the Tennessee. He incorporated covers such as Phil Oakes’ should-have-been-a-hit “My Kingdom for a Car,” as well as more recent works like “Crazy Blues Bells” from his most recent album “Keeping Secrets Will Destroy You.”
Joan Shelley joined in along with guitarist Nathan Salsburg and violinist Sara Callaway for new renditions of Shelley’s “Stay on My Shore” and Oldham’s “Shorty’s Ark,” the latter of which became a book for young readers inspired by the tale of the classic Bible story. The entire show felt like a jam session among friends, which was kind of the point. Inviting audience participation for the closing song, Oldham emphasized the personal nature of music and how all participants should get something from the experience. His music – and even more so his shows – are about connection and expression, and I do sincerely believe there is no one better at making the listener feel part of the experience. – JDR
Son Rompe Pera
The midnight shows at the Mill & Mine on Saturday nights have become legendary over the years, with groups like Sons of Kemet delivering incredible, life-affirming dance parties. And with this set, 2024 festival darlings Son Rompe Pera may have provided the best one yet. After a beyond-capacity surprise show at Barley’s on Wednesday that unofficially kicked off the festival and capacity shows that drew rave reviews on Thursday and Friday, expectations were more than high for this one, and the band delivered in spades.
Son Rompe Pera consists of three brothers and two others, all from a suburb of Mexico City, who play cumbia music from Mexico and Colombia with a ferocious punk edge, sort of like what the Avett Brothers did with American folk when they were first beginning. Constantly exhorting the crowd to “arriba, arriba;” shouting; throwing guitars; and even carrying the marimba, they had the entire crowd of well over a thousand people dancing, and a huge mosh pit formed for several songs. (Said participant Johnny Miller, “It was the sweetest mosh pit I’ve ever seen.”) They finished up after a little over an hour, and it looked like no one had left, and everyone was sweaty and exhausted. They have one more show today at the Jig & Reel; if you still haven’t seen them, get there early. – Bill Foster
Spike Hellis – What For? at Pilot Light
During some basketball catch-up time this weekend, we ran into Brandon Biondo of The New Romantics at Local Smokey, who gave us the recommendation of checking out Spike Hellis at Pilot Light on Saturday night. Being very familiar with Biondo’s work and musical stylings, I followed his recommendation and finished my night by taking in the aggressive industrial sound of the LA duo. The pairing of Cortland Gibson and Lainey were lost in a heavy haze of fog and strobe lights, which really set the dark mood for their jam-packed What For? closing set at the Pilot Light. The duo blended a heavy sound with elements of new wave, hip-hop and techno with unbridled energy. Their sound system was incredible, too, and might’ve been the best sounding show I’ve ever attended at the venue.
As for Biondo, in addition to the top-shelf recommendation, he will be curating Channel Pressure at Local Smokey on Sunday from 2 p.m. until 9-ish. The curation, in collaboration with BLANK and the Blom Shop, will feature an array of music styles featuring Big Ears alum FKA ICE, Horcerer, Meth Dad out of Nashville and of course Biondo playing New Romantics’ songs in a solo set, his first show in nearly five years. Channel Pressure is completely free to the public and promises to showcase an outstanding and eclectic mix of music throughout the afternoon and evening. – JF
Thursday • Friday • Saturday • Sunday
