Lead
Photo by Ross Scarano
From August 12 to 14, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco became a playground for frolicking music and drug lovers. They call it Outside Lands, a music and (obligatory) arts festival with a line-up of over 70 acts. Unlike Pitchfork, Outside Lands falls firmly in the Bonnaroo/Coachella camp of music festivals (Outside Lands and Bonnaroo are both put on by Superfly Presents', for what it's worth), offering the patron an "experience" rather than just an opportunity to watch a bunch of great performances.
Depending on what you're into, this is either a positive or a negative. If you're looking for people spraypainting murals of hammerhead sharks while MGMT plays, you're good. If you'd like to see what a human wind chime looks like, you're grand. If you want to wander through a cluster of woods designated "Food Truck Forest," everything is fine.
The following photos are arranged chronologically by photographer.
Big and Dave
Photo by Laura Austin
Friday's most exciting bit of news: Dave Chappelle was at Outside Lands.
Before it became clear that Big Boi would not be performing, the energy backstage as he exchanged dap with Dave Chappelle was electric. But with each passing moment it became clearer that Cutmaster Swiff, Big's DJ, could not bring his laptop to life. Despite the think tank of techies that gathered around the device, no one could rouse it, meaning Big could not peform. Amidst the confusion, Dave Chappelle tried to salvage the situation.
