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Second Opinion: Cameron on CHBP Day 2

Posted by July 29th, 2015 No Comments »

When I wrote the “How to Not Mess Up Capitol Hill Block Party” series I should have written an addendum for Block Party itself.

Breaks and Swells are too good to be in such an early slot. Marquetta Miller is an elite vocalist who does goddamn acrobatics with her voice over incredibly smooth compositions. Their self-titled EP came out last July and it is frightening because, throughout their discography, Miller sounds like she’s growing. Listen to Breaks and Swells.

I find my way to Vera for One Above Below None, the rap duo who recently won EMP’s SoundOff! competition, which specifically focuses on artists under 21 and is an honor held by local greats like The Lonely Forest and Dave B. Devante Cash and Mundy might be nervous but I can’t tell. They joke with their band and DJ. “We have five minutes before we go on so we’re just going to play “All Day” and chill,” Devante decides before Kanye’s latest starts pumping through the sound system. I’m already sold.

One Above Below None @ CHBP 2015 by Jim Toohey for Nada Mucho

One Above Below None. Photo by Jim Toohey.

One Above Below None’s playfulness balances out their youthful inhibitions. Sure, they rap about exposing lames and hardship – tenets of modern rap music – but, when a song introduction takes nearly one minute, Devante sheepishly admits it’s their first time performing the track live. He “loves a long intro for a reason” he says while scanning the crowd before adding “when the beat hits it hits your soul” just as it happens in real time. They are about to take over. Big time.

Girlpool are tied for greatest best friend music duo with Run The Jewels. Cleo Tucker and Harmony Tividad only need one bass and one guitar to both make you reconsider your entire life and feel completely confident in your path. Two young women in front of me quickly decide which of the two they are in their friendship, and promise to start a band the next day. Girlpool are sublime and sound precisely like their records.

Crowd @ CHBP 2015 by Sunny Martini for Nada Mucho

Also there was this guy

I get extremely bullish in VIP. “Sometimes it is very hard to be the greatest writer in Seattle,” I say out loud to another person.

Toro y Moi is like if cats required background music when they slept.

Toro Y Moi @ CHBP 2015 by Sunny Martini for Nada Mucho

“Where all my kitties at?”

The Coathangers (pictured above) are actually a punk coven I now openly worship. Every few songs they switch instruments because they are experts in black magic and it is nothing for them to stunt.

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