All Points West 2009 Day Three: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of All Points West

All Points West is the “McLovin” of music festivals. It tries so hard (coming through with the fake ID)—but ultimately just can’t win. A perpetual punch line, if you will (“You’re like All Points Wet; what are you, All Points Worst?”). With rain pouring in for much of the early afternoon, day three began nearly five hours late after ferries of fans were corralled, without explanation, into a nearby train station simply to sit and wait as staffers with bullhorns yelled “back up, back up” as a method of crowd control.

And once the day got rolling, it never really could find its momentum.

THE MUSIC, IN BRIEF

• Akron/Family: Are confusing everyone.

• La Roux: Needs better songs.

• Silversun Pickups: Go to 11.

• Echo and the Bunnymen: Should stop complaining.

• Lykke Li: Sounds like Santigold.

• Mogwai: Nearly made us defecate our pants.

• Coldplay: Covered “Billy Jean.”

What’s more important—especially considering that the money-sucking festival is at the end of its contract and promoters can’t expect to turn a buck this year—is the big picture. So here is Paste's take on the good, the bad and the ugly of All Points West 2009.

THE GOOD

• The Headliners: You can’t front. Regardless of your taste in music, it’s difficult to imagine a trio of festival marquees bigger than Jay-Z, Tool and Coldplay. It just doesn’t happen. And even if you skipped out on all three (ahem), the big billing shows that, even in a pinch when pressed to replace the Beastie Boys, APW has the clout to pull it off.

• The Mud: Thanks to two days of heavy rain, it was everywhere, and completely unavoidable. Some fans stepped gingerly, only to get sucked down to their ankles. Others, wrestling and fashioning the ground as a slip ‘n slide, embraced the filth. Simply put: You just had get over it; sulfur smell be dammed, you were gonna get dirty. It was like our own Glastonbury. Plus, any excuse to wear Docs in the summer heat is a good one.

• The Ferry: Momentary bouts of sea-borne nausea aside, the ferry is one All Points West’s finest attributes. Swift, efficient and scenic—particularly at night with the New York skyline bright against the dark sky—it provides a much needed (and hassle free) sliver of separation from the city.

THE BAD

• The Weather: Well, that’s the risk of running “rain or shine.” Although it didn’t manage to disturb any of the headliners, the rain on Friday and Sunday left crowds sparse and spirits dampened. Although, we’d imagine that the promoters are more upset than the fans about this.

• Ponchos: Like communism, in bright colors.

• (Lack of) Music Density: Wandering around, getting lost and discovering new bands is one of the best parts about attending Coachella. No matter what, throughout the day, there is always music playing somewhere, even if it’s just a DJ in the Sahara tent spinning house records. Light on options, All Points West doesn’t have such density. Too often we found ourselves waiting around, either for a band to finish its sound check or because there simply wasn’t anything to see at the moment, let alone discover.

THE UGLY

• Prohibitive Fees: All Points West is expensive. More expensive than just the ticket price. While food and water are pretty much festival standard, the real wallet-gouge is the ferry (touted by APW on its website as the best route to the grounds). Tickets cost $25 round trip per day ($20 if you purchased in advance through Ticketmaster, though, with fees, it ended up about the same), which nearly renders the idea of purchasing a three-day pass (and paying $75 on top of your ticket price) a non-option. There’s gotta be a better way to do this. On tour in 2001, Radiohead made the ferry free. Why can’t APW do the same?

• Location: Escapism is key to the success of any festival. Travel to Bonnaroo and you’re camping out for three days. Hit up Sasquatch and you’re at the epitome of scenic concert-going. Drive to Coachella, and you’re deep enough into the desert and far enough out of L.A. that it feels like an entirely different world. New Jersey is New Jersey. It’s no Indio, and it’s certainly not The Gorge. View of NYC and Lady Lib aside, Jersey City’s Liberty State Park is just a big area, large enough to accommodate a festival crowd. And, as trivial as it may seem, it really is difficult to let loose and fling yourself into the festival spirit when all your city-bound responsibilities are just a skyline view away.

• The Vibe: Easily the festival’s biggest problem, and perhaps FOP (Friend of Paste) Michael Tedder put it best on Saturday via Twitter: “I wish APW felt more like a cultural vanguard type thing (like Coachella at its best) or a community-building event...rather than some promoters saying, ‘Here's some groups. Most are pretty good, a few are wonderful. Enjoy the ferry ride.’” All Points West is without an identity. There’s no big picture; it’s just bands—some are good, some are bad. And because of that, you’re too often left with a fickle, nonplussed audience that’s only in attendance to see the headliner (much like the obnoxious late-arrivers at Coachella each night). Sure, APW had some wonderful moments of crowd captivation (both Crystal Castles and St. Vincent on Saturday), but too often the festival becomes a “just ’cause.” And we’d like to think of ourselves as much more passionate about music than that.