When Buku announced their initial lineup featuring The Flaming Lips, Nas, Sleigh Bells, Generationals, Chance the Rapper, and Dan Deacon, I was immediately on board. The festival has taken further steps to fuse the worlds of indie rock, hip-hop, and EDM. This year’s lineup was a triumph in all three domains. Although last year showed a clear trend in this direction with a bill featuring Passion Pit, Alt-J, Kid Cudi, and Kendrick Lamar. Many folks I’ve talked with in Pop Press International’s hometown of Austin remain oblivious to Buku, but with quality bookings and a desirous and proximate locale like New Orleans, that’s sure to change.
I arrived early in the day to the festival grounds, Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World, which overlooks the Mississippi River and is situated just a few blocks away from the historic French Quarter. Festivalgoers cross over old railroad tracks to enter the grounds, which feels appropriate considering that the city is home to the nation’s oldest streetcar line. Down the tracks to the right a dilapidated power plant sits, its smokestacks stretching skyward. Once inside the grounds, the Crescent City Connection, the huge twin bridges that connect New Orleans’ downtown to the West Bank, looms in the background. As with any festival, part of the charm of the experience is inherently tied to the identity of the event’s home city. It was an unexpected but true joy to step outside of Austin insular musical palate and experience most of the musical tastes and music lovers of New Orleans.
The first band I saw was Smallpools, who performed on the festival’s main stage situated with the power plant as a backdrop. The group performed a quick set of synthpop and indie rock before yielding the stage to veteran hip-hop tribe Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. The group still possesses enormous credibility as a staple of the early days of hip-hop with classic songs like “First of the Month” and “Crossroads.” Miami Horror, an act that merges some the electronic and indie rock sensibilities seen in more polar bands on the bill, was the first band I caught in the ballroom, although much of the festival attendees lingered at the power plant stage for the finale of Bone Thugs’ set.
Back on that stage, another hip hop legend, Nas, entered wearing a sweatshirt commemorating the 20th anniversary of his debut album Illmatic and launched his set with standout track “N.Y. State of Mind.” Now forty years old, Nas sounded as forceful and edgy as ever, missing none of the grit of his younger days of spitting. As he rapped through the opening number, images of his home city of New York flashed on the screen behind him.
In a completely different world, back on the ballroom stage, West Coast garage rock band Wavves delivered a blistering set to a crowd of enrapt fans. Wavves is a band that has seen many lineup changes over the years, but the project of songwriter and guitarist Nathan Williams has remained in public and critical favor. The band’s live show features propulsive noise and energetic physical antics onstage.
This brings me to the only EDM set I saw of the day. Although Buku has a reputation as an EDM festival, most of the acts I saw over the two days were rock or rap, a testament to the event’s increasing diversity. The abundance of neon fishnet-wearing festival attendees converged on the power plant stage for a set by German house music artist Zedd. The set featured a lot of light, a lot of hands in the air, and a tiny silhouette behind a large table. The crowd certainly seemed to love it.
After a couple of songs, I headed to the Float Den to catch Sleigh Bells, an act to which I had been greatly looking forward. I’ve been on a parallel track with this band for a couple of years now, and it was great to finally intersect. It would seem our meeting couldn’t have happened at a better time. Two friends had complained to me that the duo’s live set was lacking, but their new incarnation is a four-piece and offered plenty of sound to feel fully realized. The bass thumped louder than I’ve heard from a rock show in recent memory, if not ever. Vocalist Alexis Krauss runs from one end of the stage to the other, screaming lyrics into the mic as surges of light engulf her shape. She’s both energetic and transfixing, and the band’s set was a clear highlight for the first day.
Following Sleigh Bells, Pusha T took the stage, but only after his DJ and hype man kept fans waiting a good while, spinning and getting everyone pumped up. Pusha sounded solid, flowed well, and his beats were on point, but against hip hop giants like Nas and Bone Thugs, the set felt like it was wanting something. And stronger hip-hop sets later in the day and during the next would solidify my feelings. Back on the main stage, Ellie Goulding gave pop fans the set they came for, although we found ourself as disenchanted as ever by the postured performance. Goulding isn’t quite willing to don a sequined bra and panties, but she’s still tearing off clothes as she dances around stage.
In the Float Den, New Orleans rapper and “bounce queen” Big Freedia got the twerking cranked up to maximum with chants of “ass everywhere.” Big Freedia’s performances certainly inspire conversations about objectification and sexualization, but with both female and male dancers onstage and Big Freedia himself shaking his booty, the act is an equal opportunity employer, and no one can deny the fun of the all out spectacle. This was the first New Orleans performer I caught of the weekend, and it’s great to see a city celebrate locals, especially a performer as inclusive as Big Freedia.
I ended the night by catching a set from Chance the Rapper. His most recent album Acid Rap moved hip hop in whole new directions and he’s easily the rapper I was most looking forward to seeing at Buku. His set didn’t disappoint. A brass section flanked him onstage, sputtering along with his backing beats as Chance twirled around the stage in playful movements as he spit rhymes. After a few songs, he tore off his New Orleans hoodie, leaving himself shirtless and wearing only overalls and a cap pulled low over his eyes. A high energy show with live sounds from instruments generally foreign to rap made the set the hip-hop highlight of the weekend and showcased the myriad reasons that Chance represents the future of his genre.
Stay tuned for day two coverage tomorrow. For now, peruse a gallery of our photographs from day one. All images © Bryan Parker & Pop Press International. Click any image to open in slideshow viewer.
