Hopscotch 2013 served as a platform for emotions—excitement, disappointment, love, bliss and confusion to name a few.
This year’s festival had more setbacks than previous years—numerous cancellations—but managed to bring in a diverse collection of performances that were alright at their worst and exceptional at their best.
The exciting
DJ Paypal, a Raleigh electronic artist who conceals his identity with a flat-bill cap, sunglasses and a face cloth, put on a mature electronic performance at The Pour House Thursday night. Paypal’s music sounded like a mix of house and trap music that featured dramatic build-ups that got concert-goers at The Pour House on their feet. At points, Paypal chopped and screwed popular rap songs and at other times played fast ‘80s-style synth that could have doubled as a videogame soundtrack.
Following DJ Paypal, Lapalux took the stage with a toned-down electronic performance that skirted between witch house and chill wave. The up-and-coming artist signed under Flying Lotus’ record label, Brainfeeder, had the crowd moving—albeit slowly—to starry synth sprinkled over dreamy hip-hop beats.
Greensboro’s Casual Curious jazzed up The Hive with a powerful performance that could have been a verbatim recording of Soul Train. The group incorporated vocoder, synth and saxophones into a fun, danceable performance.
Raleigh’s Saints Apollo performed a clean set of folk-pop songs at Tir Na Nog Saturday night. The band’s skilled string section and singers proved the band has enough talent to make a mark in the Triangle. Saints Apollo proved it has depth to be an impressive indie act, but could easily become a slightly less-clichéd version of The Lumineers.
The strange
Helado Negro performed a chilling set of electronic indie songs that were wise, as far as anyone could tell. The artist slowly gyrated on stage as he sang in Spanish over eerie house sounds in the Contemporary Art Museum.
After an extended set-up, Raleigh’s Whatever Brains performed a slew of unrecognizable indie-punk songs at Kings Barcade. The performance, which didn’t appear to include any of the band’s most recognizable material, was exciting, but confusing. Sound problems hindered the performance and led front man Richard Ivey to mutter, “Don’t clap, it’s terrible,” between one of his songs. Whether or not that statement was simply shtick, the performance was confusing and disappointing at times.
The exceptional
Saturday also featured Montreal’s Majical Cloudz’s performing an intimate show at The Hive. Singer Devon Welsh insisted the crowd encircle him and turned the stage lights off during the performance. Welsh’s opera-style voice resonated atop light synth tones, making for a beautiful, up-close performance.
Future Islands put on a dramatic new-wave performance in City Plaza on Friday. Singer Samuel Herring threw his hands up as he sang of heartbreak in front of Hopscotch’s largest crowd. Following the serious performance, Herring said the band completed a new album, and would mix and release it within the next few months.
in Conclusion
Hopscotch 2013 provided a stage for bands, both local and international, to show their current worth. Despite cancellations, performers proved Hopscotch a worthy music festival that will likely continue to grow.
