The Collegian

Issue date: 10/3/06 Section: Detour

Media Credit: Adrian Garro

This past Saturday, the Download Festival made its second-annual stop at the Shoreline Ampitheatre in Mountain View. While last year's lineup was comprised of up-and-coming buzz bands such as Modest Mouse and Arcade Fire (who would go on to attain big indie scene popularity in the ensuing months), this year's lineup was slightly more listener-friendly. It boasted bands and artists such as Beck, Muse, the Shins, Coheed and Cambria, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Wolfmother, the rising young Australian band, unfortunately cancelled a few days prior, due to a familial situation.

At any rate, the show was still top-notch. Kinky, a Mexican band specializing in an interesting blend of funk, jazz, dance-pop and rock, impressively emerged at 5 p.m. on the second stage. They had good stage presence for a band that is practically unknown by most of the country, their good vibe showing up in songs such as Sister Twisted, the lead single off of the new album Reina.

Next was the Shins, the band most people are familiar with on account of the soundtrack to Zach Braff's film Garden State. They were clad in black pants and dress shirts as they played their breezy, cheery Brit-Pop in an entertaining set that showcased singer James Russell Mercer's unique vocal talents. The band's set sounded like a soundtrack to accompany a jaunt in a grassy field, surrounded by cherubs dancing with unicorns and flowers. Their upbeat, catchy tunes made for a fun show, and put everyone in an amiable mood.

This feel-good set was in direct opposition to the sort of emotions displayed by second-stagers Coheed and Cambria. Despite having a goofy, cartoon-character like frontman in Claudio Sanchez (with his extreme hair and very high-pitched voice), the band's music is earnestly performed catchy pseudo-prog radio rock. Each album the band releases has something to do with an ongoing narrative the band has created. The songs stand well on their own too, with catchy, crunching riffs and solid, memorable harmonies.

After a short break, British darlings Muse hit the main stage. I had always heard they had an amazing live show, which definitely proved to be an accurate description. Opening with a blistering rendition of Knights of Cydonia, from the new album Black Holes and Revelations, the band tore through its hour-long set with intense renditions of Hysteria, Time is Running Out, among others. They were the highlight of the show, by far eclipsing my expectations, and putting the band high on my must-see-again list.

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