Rogers Had a Picnic July 2008

Maddy: We arrived at the picnic decked out in rain boots and yellow rain coats prepared for the unlucky weather amongst a crowd, also well prepared. We arrived just in time to see the widely known English rapper and record producer Dizzee Rascal hit the stage with unique blend of garage MCing, conventional rap, grime and ragga. Even though the weather was down…

Dizzee had the crowd up and pumped. Entranced in his rhymes the crowd forgot the storming weather, as the real storm was Dizzee on stage. It wasn’t long before Dizzee had everyone on their feet, and all types swaying to the beat. (check him out at: www.myspace.com/dizzeerascal)
The crowd was sad to him leave the stage, but was easily pleased when Vampire weekend followed.

Mica: Vampire Weekend was my favourite group on the bill. Their mixture of Afro-beats and classical music makes an unheard sound which had the crows dancing literally at the first song. As the dust settled after Dizzee, groups of young, ‘hip’ people crowded the field, blocking my view.
But it didn’t matter because all I needed to see was Ezra’s face and cut-off swim trunks and I knew I was in for a treat. Vampire weekend’s members met at Columbia (the school in NY, not nose candy-central) and they describe their music as “Upper West Side Soweto. Being part African I’ve heard my fair share of my Gogi (grandmother)’s hometown music. Not only does their music incortporate this, but combined with their preppy image, it lead to an ACE performance.
And in all seriousness, I wanted to be one of those screaming girls at the front of the stage, with a professional camera, a band tee and a box of condoms, hoping they would point to me and then the back of the tour bus.

Vanessa & Melania: Like most of the crowd I wasn’t familiar with Animal Collective. It was my first time listening and seeing them live and I didn’t know what to expect. The duo consisting of Panda Bear and Avey Tare, tried to please the large crowd despite the rain. I couldn’t help but notice the WTF? Blank stares on people’s faces around me. The grass had disappeared and mud was conquering the ground. My new Nike blazers I bought 3 days before are ruined and I feel like the biggest idiot ever for not wearing weather appropriate shoes. I was too distracted with my shoes I forgot there was a band on stage. Melania and I weren’t feelin the psychedelic noises so we head for shelter and talked through out their set.
Into psychedelic noises? Check out their Myspace