Intonation Music Festival Coverage: Day 1

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The Stills
The Stills lost their singer/guitarist after their highly-acclaimed 2003 release Logic Will Break Your Heart, which harkened similarities to Strokes and Joy Division. They took this as an opportunity to redirect their sound, and break away from the new wave mold their debut was baked in. Adopting a tighter, more traditional pop-rock sound, The Stills displayed their latest effort with great skill on Saturday. Their 40-minute set was full of songs off their new album Without Feathers, some of the new songs felt a bit flat. For instance, "Helicopters" just didn't seem to go anywhere, technically it sounded great, the vocals were clean and simple. They played it well, like most of the songs they offered up, but the drive that I was accustomed to seemed mellowed out. They tried to summon a handclap chorus from the audience, on "Oh, Shoplifter", which fizzled out before it ever got going. Even when they pulled out their 2003 hit "Still in Love Song", that too seemed a bit different; the new wave nuances were shifted to a heavier, more grungier tone. I did enjoy the piano, giddy-up guitar, and lyricism on "In The Beginning", which is an example of the more piano-infused pop rock they have adopted. The clean lines and simplistic crooning on the new songs definitely showcase the writing, but I miss the energy the early songs had. I'm still in love, I just need some time to adjust.

Roky Erickson
It's a miracle he's still alive. It's been 25 years since Roky Erickson has played a show outside of Texas, the former frontman of the legendary 13th Floor Elevators has survived shock treatments, crooked record executives, poverty, and numerous bouts with schizophrenia, but he put those decades aside to play a historic show in Union Park. This hero of rock n' roll have influenced many along the way with his brand of psychedelic rock. Though his performance at Intonation might have been considered tame by his past standards, it was endearing to see him strum away and sing through some of his old songs, with his backing band (of equally matured musicians), The Explosives. His music has definitely picked up more of a Texas twang over the years, with some of the instrumentation and vocals lingering in Roy Orbison country. He definitely comes from the school of music over lyrics, especially in some of his post-Elevators material. For example, "I Walk with a Zombie", which happens to be the only lyric in the entire song (if you don't count the doo-wop style back up singing, 'He walk with a Zombie last night'). Yes, it makes his songs easy to sing-a-long to since you know all the lyrics after the first verse, but it can get a bit repetative to the casual listener. Aside from that, I enjoyed his set as did most of the responsive crowd. It didn't matter if we weren't around to witness Roky in his heyday, you couldn't help be feel supportive and apart of a historic moment.

On a side note, if you enjoyed Roky's performance you may want to consider donating to his Trust Fund, that was established to pay for his medical bills and other expenses he has accumulated over the years, You can donate Here.