Get to Know Music to Know

To be honest, I have never really been to a music festival. This August, however, that will no longer be true. MTK: Music to Know is the first of—I hope—many shows to take place on Runway 4 at the East Hampton Airport. I am excited that the festival is being headlined by some of my favorite bands. Most of all, I am excited that I will not be traveling to the ends of the earth to find the acts that will perform: they will be right here in the Hamptons.

Among my friends, I am about the only one who recognizes the names of more than half the bands playing. At the top of the list, the bands are relatively well known. Bands like Vampire Weekend, Chromeo, Matt and Kim, and Bright Eyes have made television appearances, successful music videos and records that have made the college radio Top 10 in Rolling Stone. While not including the Indie Rock superpowers—like Arcade Fire or Kings of Leon—the festival has talents from across the country that are similarly recognized.
I look forward to seeing Vampire Weekend’s performance above all. Their music is an eclectic blend of classic surfing music and the emerging “indie” genre. Among their best songs, the tracks “Oxford Comma” and “Ottoman” are my favorites. A friend invited me to a show of theirs last September, which I missed because of school obligations. When I saw the list I was happy to see their name right on top. The New York natives’ music has appealed to me ever since the summer after the release of their first album in January 2008. [expand]

I was pleasantly surprised again when I saw the second night’s headliner, a band named Bright Eyes. And again, I realized that my chance to see them had rolled around for the second time this year. When I traveled to Nashville in March, I narrowly missed one of their shows. I actually saw the road crew setting up! Thank you MTK, for bringing them here to Long Island!

A group I had relatively no knowledge of caught my attention as well. Chromeo is a Canadian electrofunk duo that has become increasingly famous over the Internet. I decided to do some research on YouTube and discovered how much I really enjoy their stuff. They have made recent appearances on television shows, notably the children’s show “Yo Gabba Gabba!” (indie bands are flocking to make appearances on this series), with an original song that shows why you should wash your hands!

I expect to be surprised by this festival. The acts that I know well could be the highlights of my experience. Then again, the acts at the bottom of the bill sometimes turn out to be just as good as the headliners. See you there!

Music to Know 2011 at Runway 4, East Hampton, August 13-14, musictoknow.com. [/expand]