Let’s get started on Gov Ball Day 3!
I can’t express enough how much I enjoyed myself on Gov Ball Day 3 and the previous other days. The excitement mostly comes from being able to see so many acts that had been sitting on my must-see list for a while. Seeing Florence + The Machine and Marina and the Diamonds after waiting so long to see them was phenomenal!
I had a great time during all the festivities and although it wasn’t my favorite festival – that award goes to Lollapalooza – this east coast gem can still hold it’s own. The weather during the festival was a bit touch and go on the first day, perfect on the second day and a bit windy on the last.
I witnessed a few sick kids, a ton of flower crowns, flash tattoos, mud pits and so many delicious food stands. All the music festival cliches came together along with a few surprises and overall I’ll definitely consider doing it all over again next year!
Highs:
Lana Del Rey can be a bit divisive. Some people love her and others feign nausea at the mention of her name. I’m personally a fan and I opted to forgo seeing The Black Keys in order to see her. This is probably the second or third time that I’ve missed The Black Keys for various reasons and I’m starting to think that seeing them just might not be in the cards for me. Lana however, is someone that barely makes an appearance in the NYC area and so the choice was easy.
When I realized she was scheduled to play Gov Ball Day 3 I was more than ready for it. My friends and I ended up spending the entire third day asking “Is it time for Lana yet?” which eventually became an inside joke. When you think of Lana’s fans just image at least 85% of the girls wearing feathers and flowers in the hair at the festival. That image is a bit misleading since although her fans look innocent enough they were probably some of the most cut-throat fans I’ve experienced in a long time.
There was so much pushing and shoving and crying. My years joining in on mosh pits paid off since I was able to thwart anyone who thought they could easily take on little ol’ me and were sorely mistaken. Overall I loved her set and I don’t think I had ever really appreciated her singing voice until I heard it live. She sounded beautiful and she reached these high notes that I wasn’t expecting. Feel free to check out some of my fave Lana Del Rey tracks below.
Note: The actual song for “Ride” starts around 2:26.
Royal Blood was an act I discovered a while ago on an upcoming artists list. I really liked their legit rock sound and their live set on Gov Ball Day 3 did not disappoint. Hermitude performed in the Gotham Tent which housed most of the DJs or artists with an alternative or EDM flair. I found that I liked a lot of the acts there and Hermitude was no different. You can check out songs from both groups below.
Lows:
- On Gov Ball Day 3 I stumbled upon Logic’s performance and felt pretty indifferent about it. I felt similarly about The War on Drugs but I’d give them another shot since I walked into the middle of their set.
- I like a little country but Sturgill Simpson wasn’t my cup of tea.
Fun Bits:
- Tame Impala and Hot Chip were great and Echosmith was entertaining too!
- Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds were pretty impressive and he played those Oasis hits that everyone was waiting for so I was a happy camper!
What do you think of Gov Ball Day 3? If you’d like me to spend time on any particular band let me know! In the upcoming weeks expect highlights from Zella Day, The Kooks, Atlas Genius and Joywave along with other weekly Music Monday picks!
NOTE: Also, I quietly changed the site design this weekend. Fingers crossed you guys like it!