Behind Which Stage: A Guide to Bonnaroo 2010

Last month host John Mathews and Baltimore Unsigned producer Nick Jackson traveled to Manchester, TN, to broadcast live from Bonnaroo, the premiere music festival of the summer.

Tune in 12 to 2 p.m. Monday, July 5th, for Behind Which Stage: A Guide to Bonnaroo 2010, as John and Nick deliver the the best of the fest with a full two hours of artist interviews and one-of-a-kind backstage performances. 

Featured artists include John Prine, The Avett Brothers, The xx, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Regina Spektor, Phoenix, and John Butler Trio.

Whether you're reliving this year's festival--or already planning next year's trip--John and Nick are your go-to guides to Bonnaroo, An encore edition of Behind Which Stage will air at 9 p.m. Saturday, July 10.

The Headless Spektor

I always love seeing Regina Spektor as much as I do hearing her; her face is just as expressive as that scatty/quirky voice.

And that really comes through on the video to "Laughing With" which appears on Far (out tomorrow). Check out the scene where she loses her head.

Jacknife Lee and Jeff Lyne (though she reportedly didn't know who exactly who he was when she hired him) are among four producers for this effort, so I have a feeling this song is not representative of all we're going to hear.

Tune in all day tomorrow to listen to cuts from it.

Virgin Day Two: Wu, Yahu and You!

Just wrapping up things at V-Fest 2007 enjoying a little Wu Tang Clan.

In trying to gauge the vibe, I'd say the unofficial impression indicates spectacular music moments were had by festival-goers, artists, promotors and the numerous organizations represented.

Sources are telling us now that over 42,000 concert-goers attended Saturday and another 30,000 on Sunday.

So when you add it all up...that's over 70,000 concert-goers blistering in the sun at Pimlico for a festival that's just in its second year. Not bad at all. And the concept of having just two stages, versus the 5 or even 12 at, say, an Austin City Limits or Bonnaroo, respectively, I think puts V-Fest in a niche' market for fests; it's more compact and makes it easier to choose between artists.

We'll try to find out what kind of commitments Virgin Mobile has to future V-Fests in Baltimore later this week. Word on the street, though, is the company is very, very happy with Baltimore as a music city!

Top 5 highlights of V-Fest 2007 for me:
1. Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals performing the best outdoor music set...I've ever seen.
2. The Police getting their act together and sounding, well, like The Police! I saw them at another show this summer, and as Stewart Copeland pointed out himself, he, Andy and Sting were not on the same page musically. On Saturday night...ALL the kinks were worked out and the band that got me loving music in the first place, reminded me of why.
3. The closest thing to a gospel tent: Matisyahu bringing a much needed dose of spirituality to the throngs of fans lined up very far back in the infield.
4. Regina Spektor: "Summer in the City"
5. Meeting everyone who stopped by the TMD booth! Thanks for that!

Where's the Candy, Regina?

I had fun sharing the best of Morning Sessions with you today. I'm curious...Regina Spektor talked about the making of her video for "On the Radio", she said it was shot in a chocolate factory assembly line and she even wore a hair net...albeit, briefly. I don't know, call me dense, but I don't see any candy in this video, do you?

Maybe Regina made off with the chocolates and handed them out to the adoreable kids in the video :) I hope you have a spectacular New Year. Peace.