Basilica Block Party Day 2

Chester Bay

Best Moment: Chester Bay kept it fun throughout, and drew a much larger crowd than Robert Francis, the next act to follow. The ska-tinged sound was perfect for the atmosphere.

Worst Moment: After a while the sound started to get tiresome and the useless saxophonist

was annoying as hell, dancing around with his eyes closed mouthing the words to every song.

Robert Francis

Best Moment: There really wasn't one, this is one of the worst sets I have ever seen. It was so bad in fact that I didn't even care when he sat down right in front of me for one of his many "guitar solos."

Worst Moment: The whole set. Every song seemed to start with some motivational words along the lines of 'I'll pick you up if you're down,' and they got worse from there. Each song seemed to drag on for ever, featuring a guitar solo and some terrible humming/moaning.

V.V. Brown

Best Moment: Songs such as "Shark in the Water" that showed off the skills of her backing band were strong. She was the perfect act for people waiting for the Avett Brothers, as she changed up the pace nicely.

Worst Moment: Songs that featured mostly pre-recorded tracks weren't as good as other songs, but everything was pretty fun.

The Avett Brothers

Best Moment: Everything was great, but songs from Emotionalism and Four Thieves gone were stronger than I and Love and You stuff. "Colorshow" was great, as was songs I haven't seen live before such as "Weight of Lies," and "Distraction #74."

Worst Moment: "Living of Love" and "Pretty Girl From Cedar Lane" dragged a little bit, but everything was really amazing.

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Basilica Block Party Day 1

Here's a quick summary of the bands that played the M&Ms stage on Friday July 9th at Basilica Block Party.

Hunter Hero

Best Moment: The second-to-last song this "Battle of the Bands winner" played skewed away from their country tinged sound and took on a more enjoyable tone.

Worst Moment: The band seemed to be trying too hard. The bassist had an American flag pinned to his bass, and the lead singer looked like he was trying to be different, with two

stripes of black paint under his eyes.

Rogue Valley

Best Moment: Although their was a non-existent crowd, Chris Koza's crew seemed to be having fun. This was especially on second song "Red River of the North," where the band led a clap along for the few dozen people that were actually paying attention to them.

Worst Moment: After a couple of songs, the set dragged, plagued with slow numbers that failed to grab people's attention.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals

Best Moment: Grace Potter's backing band, the Nocturnals, captivated my attention for most of the set. The three men in the group all had color-coordinated suits and cool hair, and the chemistry between them was great. Grace Potter's voice was a force, and the audience quadrupled in size during her set. The drum circle was during "Medicine" was also extremely fun.

Worst Moment: Grace Potter playing a flying-V guitar as big as her was funny, but she even pulled that off.

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Spooooooooooooooooooooooooooon

Best Moment: I love Spoon, so I can't say anything bad about them. Their set was tight and loose at the same time. It flowed perfectly, and reverb and improv were used at the right time and in the right amounts. Britt Daniel's croon can't be matched.

Worst Moment: My one complaint would be that not enough tracks were played off of their best CD, "Kill the Moonlight."

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