The 2013 Pitchfork Music Festival Performances, Rated Pitchfork-Style

When in Rome, right? Instead of giving you the typical run-down or waiting for the videos to surface, we've decided to get judgmental and rate the performances from the 2013 Pitchfork Music Festival in the style of Pitchfork, on a scale of 1-10, with very careful consideration for the decimals that separate a 6 from a 7 and a 7 from an 8. Even when you've seen an act live before, there's something different about the festival setting, especially when the festival's headliners are Björk, Belle and Sebastian, and R. Kelly. As we saw in our series of portraits, the audience was diverse, and that led to some surprising standouts and some unanticipated disappointments.

Score: 4.0

I'm probably going to get a lot of hate for this one, but Savages really just aren't that good of a band. Their music sounds like second-tier, tired rock, and their style and storyline outshine their songwriting. I'm all for women who rock out, but I'm equally for calling a spade a spade—this band is merely decent. Savages are, if anything, an example of the powerful taste-making entity that Pitchfork has become—without Laura Snapes' passionate cover story on the act, they'd be far less prominent. I remember when that story went up someone—I can't remember who—wrote on Twitter wrote that they enjoyed her story on Savages a lot more than anything the group themselves put out, I'm inclined to agree.—Caitlin White

Score: 5.5

When you're in the presence of Sky Ferreira, you feel like you're watching someone far more famous than Sky Ferreira really is. Besides "Everything is Embarrassing," most people—even the die-hard music heads who are at Pitchfork—don't know much of the young model/singer's music. There's something magnetic about her, though, in her look and the way she carries herself, and it makes it impossible to take your eyes off her when she's up on a stage. The problem, however, is that she doesn't realize this. She lacks confidence and seems almost apologetic, as if we all have something better to do. It's cute, it's endearing, it makes you like Sky Ferreira even more. But it doesn't make her live show very enjoyable.—Confusion

Score: 5.6

It's always unfair to judge a show based on expectations, but looking at the 2013 Pitchfork Music Festival lineup, M.I.A.'s name jumps out as one of the big stars. She's got a highly anticipated album coming up, she's famous for bringing the energy and getting people to move, and her music and vibe seem like a great fit for the open-field format of Chicago's Union Park. Unfortunately, those expectations only made M.I.A.'s lackluster show even more disappointing. She sounded off-key, the energy—besides that of the front row who probably would have danced if M.I.A. started playing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"—was non-existent, and her party-starting production was jumbled and lost in translation. Even for crowd favorites like "Bad Girls," cheers quickly died down into murmurs. —Confusion

Score: 6.3

As I've written before, Olsen is an ephemeral yet relatable performer—simultaneously angelic and goofy. Her Pitchfork set was no different, although it did seem like Olsen was a but overwhelmed by the amount of disengagement the buzzing crowd had with her music—early afternoon on the first day of a festival is no picnic. Still, she conveyed a level of old-world elegance and detailed, diary-like confessions under a blazing sun and amidst disoriented newcomers, a feat that demanded respect. Shouts out to her backing band too, last time I saw her she was accompanied only by a violist.—Caitlin White

Score: 6.6

Mish Way is one of those humans so luminescent you just want to be in her presence, let alone watch her perform. A writer and cultural commentator in her own right, Mish is the bad-ass, blood curdling frontwoman of Canadian punk royalty White Lung, a Vancouver band that is truly on the make. There's a certain level of rebellion that noise creepers Swans channeled in their set—White Lung was the only act at Pitchfork who approached this level aside from them. White Lung have that same fire—an outrageously defiant determination to be heard, and heard on their own terms. If you ever get the opportunity, check out their mystically rabid live show.—Caitlin White

Score: 6.7

I tried to hang in there for the moshing, cooking, and thrashing #based contingent for Lil B's set, but after one song amidst those sweaty, pink bandana-clad bodies I had to push my way back out of the crowd just to breathe. Let's be honest: most people don't actually listen to or know much about the Based God's discography, it's more his cult-like status and radiant messages of positivity that attract people to the rapper. Yet, there were large sections of this crowd that could sing along to every word of almost every song, and I was standing near the back. My boyfriend, an avid Lil B lover compared the crowd's indelible fandom for the Based God to Beliebers, or, perhaps more fittingly, to the crowd's later response to Pitchfork headliner Robert Kelly. He may not be a deft musician per se, but Lil B is here to stay and that feels like a success in itself.—Caitlin White

Score: 6.9

TNGHT is not made to be played in a field under some large trees while the sun sets. You don't realize this until you're in a field, under some large trees, watching a TNGHT show while the sun sets. The lighting effects were sharp, the music sounded great, but there was something unnatural about the setting, which was ironic considering those huge trees. As I watched, I stood behind some kid who had glowing balls on the tips of his fingers. He was dancing aggressively at some girl who looked 12 years old while "Higher Ground" blasted through speakers, branches, and open air. Right around this time, an enormous flock of inflatable doves was let loose into the Chicago sky. That was R. Kelly, playing over on the other stage. That was about the point I turned around and reunited with the R. Kelly crowd.—Confusion

Score: 7.2

Chicago rapper Tree opened the festival's final day on a thematically appropriate note, playing songs like "Chuch" and "Devotion" off his two church-themed mixtapes, Sunday School and Sunday School 2. Accompanied by three backup singers, a hype man, a live drummer, and a DJ who, like the rapper himself, were all wearing white button downs and ties, Tree delivered a tightly produced set that showed off his hardworking approach. Noting that he had watched Danny Brown perform at the festival the previous year before launching into their collaboration "No Faces," Tree seemed honored and excited to introduce his signature "soul trap" style to the Pitchfork audience. Closing his set accompanied by several other members of his group Project Mayhem (also dressed in white shirts and ties), he definitely found a few new believers. The Chicago Tribune shot a video of Tree buying shoes before his perfomance. Watch it here.—Kyle Kramer

Score: 7.5

In 2011, Fleet Foxes were a headlining act at Pitchfork Festival, proof that even though the site notoriously avoids country and bluegrass music, the occasional folk act will slip into their domain. This year's proof of that is Matthew Houck's musical project, Phosphorescent. Having named his 2013 record Muchacho one of the best of the year, and endlessly looping "Song For Zula" in my headphones, I was more than excited to see him live—and the show was a hit.

It was early on Saturday but Houck played with the energy and charm of Springsteen, or another of his idols, Willie Nelson. The crowd was bopping and grooving to his psychedelic, often-tortured guitar anthems—Pitchfork's own Larry Fitzmaurice might've dubbed the sound best when he called it "country-damaged." Nonetheless, if the crowd picked up on a special happiness, a searing connection between Matthew and his keyboardist that stood out even under Saturday's hot sun, it wasn't just stage-tension. Our later interview revealed that despite his record's lovelorn feel, Matthew and his bandmate are engaged. Look for more in our forthcoming profile on him, and if you're heading to Newport Folk Festival this weekend watch for their knowing back-and-forth glances. Isn't love beautiful?—Caitlin White

Score: 7.6

In case you weren't aware, Autre Ne Veut is kind of a weirdo. His stage presence falls somewhere between dramatic rockstar and deadpan comedian. During his set, he had four men dressed in formal attire holding two large wooden frames. They did nothing during the set, just stood and held these frames, replicating the image on the cover of his latest album, Anxiety. Nothing was laugh-out-loud funny about that, but it did leave a lot of people scratching their head, and it created a sense of performance art beyond a music show. Unlike on his excellent album, his falsetto sounds a little shaky live, but he makes up for it with soulful flurries and body language that bled passion. The crowd seemed generally into the show, and they most likely would have been singing along if they could understand more than a few words of the songs.—Confusion

Score: 7.8

The gods have spoken—Solange is here to stay. Nothing made this more clear than her pre-headliner slot at P4K this year—which was packed out with oodles of fans oozing carefree, yet passionate support for The Younger Knowles Sister. Far from the glitter and glow of Beyonce, Solange kept it casual in a printed passionate, made a little diva only by her superstar six inch heels. Despite the footwear, Solange still made goofy, groovy styled disco dance moves look cool. And when "Losing You" hit, the roar from the crowd finally did approach Beyonce-fan levels, not to mention her signature Dirty Projectors cover "Stillness is the Move" to cement her indie-rock cred.—Caitlin White

Score: 8.3

It wasn't until I heard Dev Hynes sing about half of Sky Feirrera's "Everything is Embarrasing" that I realized how poignant, raw, and unfettered that song is. Although he did it in an effort to promote Sky's set a little later, and surely had no idea this would be the case, his take cemented just how terrible a performer she is. While the songs feels, well, embarrassing when Sky pouty-lip half-sings it, Dev made it warm, richly textured and shot with colorful bashfullness.

The rest of his set as Blood Orange—and performing the day before alongside Solange—was pumped full of Prince-channeling sex/love appeal. There's nothing taboo about his blatant baby-making jams—it feels like a family-oriented affair even when things get a little explicit. Dev Hynes reminds that music, and sex, were originally designed to promote life, love, and the pursuit of happiness.—Caitlin White

Score: 8.6

It's possible that Björk will forever remain in the mind of American audience's encased in her surrealist Swan Dress—the way that garment has continually resonated with our culture is astonishing, really. But as Friday night's headliner, the steely Icelandic singer seemed determined to make her music the unforgettable part of her set. Which isn't to say that she wasn't decked out in an otherworldly outfit—her silvery, spiny headgear alone made her presence feel more like a deep sea trench urchin than a singer. But backed with a full, female choir and prowling the stage like a predator, Björk proved her mettle beyond a fashion icon—her music flows slow-hot like magma, and then cools into something swirled, blackened, smoky, and strong.

"Mutual Core," off her 2011 release Biophilia, was a highlight. The video was plastered all over Times Square in an arts partnership this March, something that certainly upped it's exposure. It was also one of the last tracks Björk could perform before her set was clipped by a looming onslaught of lightning and thunder. "In Iceland, this would be nothing!" she chirped in her precious, avian-like accent. And when the rain hit in full force, it felt like Björk had summoned it.—Caitlin White