The illusive and secluded Randall’s Island, located on Manhattan’s east river, came alive last weekend. Thousands of New Yorkers and out-of-towners made their way across the many bridges that connect Randall’s Island to Manhattan for one of the biggest New York City parties of the summer, The Governors Ball Music Festival. The festival is still new at heart, and although it’s only in its second year of running, has already established a reputation for being a must-go event in NYC.

This year the festival not only lived up to, but exceeded its high expectations, with a little help from Mother Nature. As the sun beamed down on the island all day it was impossible not to become enthralled with the great atmosphere, food, energy and, of course, music this event offered. The vibe throughout the two-day festival was varied; much like the bands and DJ’s playing.

While there were some who climbed on top of others’ shoulders in the stage pits, there were also those who preferred the safety of the ground and caught some rays while sunbathing in the spacious park.

Those who wanted to be in the hot spot could join the rest of the ravers at one of the two available stages. While volleyballs, and at times people, were thrown in the air, the bands kept the crowds dancing and enthusiastic throughout the day. The Saturday line-up consisted of both well-known and amateur bands and DJ’s, but all acts managed to captivate the attention of their audiences.

The oversized 10 foot volleyball became the center of attention during Major Lazor’s performance, until his famous ‘take your shirt off and spin it in the air’ move captured the crowd’s attention even more. Pretty soon the majority of the audience was shirtless jumping up and down, waving with their shirts in the air, on Lazor’s demand. Things heated up even further when he preformed his well-known hit, “Pon de Floor;” even the sunbathers came out to join the party for this one.

Duck Sauce, best known for their single “Barbra Streisand,” decided that just in case onlookers were not aware who was playing, they would place a massive inflatable duck on their stage so there was no confusion. As entertaining as Duck Sauce was, they were nothing compared to the conga line consisting of over one hundred human bodies that so happened to form while their set was playing. Some fans wore pretend yellow duck noses, which unintentionally blended into the stage décor.

Passion Pit was by far one of the most crowd-pleasing bands of the day. Beginning at 8pm they had the entire audience jumping to their beats. As the sun began to fade away into the night, the festival was brightened by artificial lights from the stage and lanterns hanging from the clear sky.

The last act to headline the stage was well-known rapper and performer, Kid Kudi. Considering the festival had now been going strong for 12 hours, he managed to do a stand up job with exciting his fans. He kept the energy alive while performing some of his well-known hit songs, such as “Day and Night” and “Memories.” It was clear that this was the act that everybody was waiting around too see. The sun no longer shined, but the crowds kept the festival alight with glow sticks and aluminous clothing.

Others notable acts that preformed on Saturday, June 23rd included, Santigold, Atmosphere, Chromeo, Penguin Prison, Walk the Moon and Big Gigantic.

Countless food trucks, beer stalls, and amazing music, and what was the best thing about this two-day event? There was absolutely no overlap. How many festivals do you know of that offer this wonderful feature?

Image Courtesy of  laubarnes

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Well known in the Afro-Punk community, singer, songwriter, record producer, musician, and rapper Santigold (formerly known as Santogold) is back in a big way with her sophomore album Master of My Make-Believe. Already out in the UK, the album will be released in the US May 1st.

Santi came onto the music scene first working as an A&R representative for Epic Records and then moved on to co-write and produce singer Res’ debut album How I Do. She later became the lead singer of the Philadelphia-based punk rock band Stiffed which released two albums Sex Sells (2003) and Burned Again (2005) until she was offered a solo contract by Martin Heath of Lizard King Records.

In 2007, her initial singles “Creator” and “L.ES. Artistes” were released and received attention from the online media  Her album Santogold debuted in 2008 and was critically acclaimed. To learn about Santigold and listen to her music, visit her website, myspace, Facebook, and Twitter pages.

Master of My Make-Believe is organic and intense as it brings a fresh energy and approach with its multi-generic influences, from the reggae fused “Disparate Youth” to the electronica sounds of “Freak Like Me.” The reggae influence is heavily spread throughout the record as most of the album was recorded in Jamaica.

Drums are also featured heavily on the record. On the track “This Isn’t Our Parade” a taiko drum takes center stage and becomes the heart of the song as it booms and flows smoothly along with Santigold’s voice.

Though her style has been compared to that of M.I.A-on her last record Santogold the comparison is somewhat understandable-on this new album there’s no comparison to make, as it is completely gone. Santigold has new sound and her unique voice shines as she holds her own being the only voice on all but one of the tracks. Though Santi shares vocal duties with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs Karen O. on the track “Go!,”  Santigold’s voice is front and center.

Besides featuring a remix of “Go!” and “Disparate Youth” on the deluxe CD, Santi divulges a new song entitled “Never Enough.”

The theme of Master of My Make-Believe is all about taking control of your environment, being the ruler of your own reality and Santigold masters that beautifully. Santigold has already begun to embark on another tour. Visit her website to see which city she will be heading to next to attend one of her shows and enjoy her music.

Rating: 5/5

Image Courtesy of   Santigold

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Jagermeister, a brand as deeply rooted in music as it is in mythology and lore, is proud to announce an upcoming tour with headliner Alaskan rock band Portugal. The Man and supporting act, The Lonely Forest. The live shows kick off April 3rd and will be in 26 cities across the nation.

Jagermeister, the #1 selling imported liqueur in the United States, has a long history of supporting bands, both from a local level to national amphitheater acts. The brand has spent almost two decades developing artists and has seen many go from obscurity to the top of their fields. John Gourley, lead singer of Portugal. The Man said, “We were planning on taking a short break from the road, but Jagermeister presented an opportunity for us to visit a handful of cities that we have not been to in ages, so we jumped at the chance to play these shows.”

Last year, Atlantic Records artist Portugal. The Man released In The Mountain In The Cloud, the sixth album in six years from the Wasilla, AK-via-Portland, OR-based band. The critically-acclaimed album garnered inclusion in several notable “Best of 2011″ lists, including MTV, Huffington Post, and KCRW. Produced by John Hill (Santigold, M.I.A.) with co-production from Portugal.

The Man lead singer/guitarist/songwriter John Gourley as well as longtime band producer Casey Bates and mixed by Grammy Award winner Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Jeff Buckley), In The Mountain In The Cloud marks the first recording to truly harness the band’s exhilarating live show. From the dramatic “Got It All (This Can’t Be Living Now)” to the sprawling vision of “Sleep Forever,” the album captures a truly distinctive band evolving in real time, revealing their singular sonic vision in its purest and most powerful form thus far.

The Lonely Forest, an American indie rock band discovered and signed by Chris Walla from Death Cab for Cutie, who launched their debut album Arrows for his imprint label Trans via Atlantic Records, will serve as the supporting act.

Tickets will be on pre-sale starting Monday, January 23rd at www.portugaltheman.com and on sale to the public beginning Friday, January 27th. The 2012 Jagermeister Music Tour will feature Jagermeister custom tour prizes from Schecter Guitars and Peavey Electronics. For more information on Jagermeister, visit www.jager.com and for additional information on Portugal. The Man, visit www.facebook.com/portugaltheman, twitter.com/portugaltheman, and http://youtube.com/portugalthemanband.

Image Courtesy of   https://www.facebook.com/portugaltheman

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