Summer Music Fests Expected to Draw Huge Crowds
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SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 2015 Summer music fests expected to draw huge crowds he summer music festival season is “It is a much more competitive market today expected to draw hundreds of thousands than it was 20 years ago,” said Ken Hays, who Tof concertgoers in major cities and small founded Bridgeport, Connecticut’s Gathering of towns around the United States and translate the Vibes, which began 20 years ago as a hom- into big financial returns for promoters. With an age to Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, and estimated 900 festivals scheduled for North takes place in late July. “There are just so many America alone this year, there is a sense from weekends in a summer and limited dollars to go the promoters of these rock extravaganzas that around.” But the business is so robust that it has the modern music festival business cannot get attracted the undivided attention of the world’s much better than this. biggest concert promoter, Live Nation “All the major markets, and even secondary Entertainment, which was formed through the ones, have developed their marquee festivals merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. and they’re all doing great,” said Jordan In April, Live Nation acquired control of Wolowitz, co-founder of Governors Ball, which is Bonnaroo, the 100,000-capacity Tennessee fes- expected to draw some 50,000 people this tival due to start on June 11. In 2014, the com- weekend to New York’s Randall’s Island. “But pany paid $125 million for control of the pro- like any business, you should only enter if the moters behind Chicago’s Lollapalooza and market has a need for what you are offering.” Austin City Limits festivals. “I wouldn’t be sur- Last year, live music ticket sales in North prised to see a shakeout at some point,” said America totaled $6.2 billion, a large part earned Tony Margherita, who manages Chicago band during the festival season that unofficially Wilco, which organizes the Solid Sound festival kicked off in April with California’s Coachella held in late June at art museum MassMOCA. Valley Music and Arts Festival, according to con- “But while we may be in peak festival mode, for cert-trackers Pollstar. Tens of thousands of con- now it works well. “You get a maximum dosage certgoers are expected to turn out for The Black of music and culture, it’s efficient, and lots of Keys, Robert Plant, St Vincent and other artists fun.” — Reuters this weekend at Cincinnati’s Bunbury Music England’s musician Gordon Sumner, better Festival, Toronto’s Field Trip, Houston’s Free US singer Akon performs during the 14th known as Sting, performs on stage at Morocco’s Press Summer Fest and Mountain Jam at New edition of the music festival Mawazine. biggest music event, the Mawazine Festival, in York’s Hunter Mountain. Rabat, Morocco. — AP photos Brian Wilson’s music genius, mental issues are focus of film ith a shuffling gait and wearing jeans, sneakers and a blue at first, “Pet Sounds” is now considered one of the most influential ‘He’s in the music’ plaid shirt that matches his eyes, Brian Wilson is at the center compositions in popular music. But it was such a sonic departure that “That was probably my favorite week of acting ever,” Dano said, Wof a Hollywood whirlwind. This day, he’s been rushing to it caused a rift in the band, which exacerbated an emerging personal “doing those scenes in the studio where he recorded ‘Pet Sounds’ in screenings, giving interviews and posing for photos at a Los Angeles crisis for Wilson. He began showing signs of mental illness, hearing the ‘60s.” Already a guitarist, Dano learned to play piano for the role hotel as his new biopic prepares to hit theaters on Friday. “It’s a trip,” cacophonous voices and sounds in his head. John Cusack plays and also does his own singing on screen. Though he and Cusack each Wilson says. Ten years in the making, “Love & Mercy” takes an Wilson in the 1980s, a broken man, heavily medicated and terribly spent ample time with Wilson, both actors said they gleaned much of unflinching look at Wilson’s powerful creative energy and debilitating insecure, under constant watch by his Svengali-like psychotherapist, their insight into him by listening to his music. “That’s what brought mental illness, demystifying the man who created the sunny sounds Eugene Landy (Paul Giamatti). While shopping for a Cadillac, the trou- me closest to the character, was playing and singing for sure,” Dano of the Beach Boys before descending into a dark world of personal bled musician forms an instant connection with saleslady Melinda said. “He’s in his music.” demons. “The first time I watched it, it was like a real test for my emo- Ledbetter (Elizabeth Banks), who would go on to liberate him from Both actors said they were honored to portray such a sensitive, tions,” Wilson said in his typical clipped diction. “It portrays me so well Landy’s care and become Wilson’s second wife. intuitive and creative character, and that spending time with him was that I felt like I was being pushed into the movie.” Director Bill Pohlad interweaves the two narratives, creating a por- its own source of inspiration and light. “I also think about a guy who’s That meant re-experiencing some of his highest highs and lowest trait both painful and triumphant. “I was looking at how to get into that free and unformatted, because those people are very important lows. “Love & Mercy” focuses on two formative periods in the musi- the story in a way that wasn’t a typical biopic. I hate that,” said Pohlad, for us,” Cusack said. “When you see his music, you see he’s a spirit - a cian’s life, separated by 20 years. Paul Dano plays the younger Wilson a longtime producer whose credits include “Wild” and “12 Years A celestial spirit that can do anything, his imagination brings it - and we at perhaps the peak of his creative genius, when he stayed behind Slave.” “If we were going to do a movie about Brian, I wanted it to be need those north stars.” from the Beach Boys’ world tour to create his opus “Pet Sounds.” intimate. I wanted to know what this guy was all about.” Wilson and As for Wilson, who suffers from schizoaffective disorder, he says Feeling confined by surf music and inspired by the Beatles’ 1965 Ledbetter were involved with the making of the film, spending time these days, exercise makes him happy - “I go to a park and walk and album “Rubber Soul,” Wilson wanted to expand the Beach Boys’ and sharing personal stories with the director and his cast. walk and walk” - and, of course, music. He’s preparing to tour the U.S. sound and give form to the melodies and harmonies he imagined. Wilson said he was nervous about the movie and found parts of it this summer and the UK in the fall. Though he’s having an “off period” upsetting to watch (“Some of it was pretty rough”), but he also came where he hasn’t written for a few months, the 72-year-old knows Influencing the world away inspired - reminded, perhaps, of that feeling of all-encompass- there’s more music in him. It’s his language, he said, his means of com- He employed an orchestra, climbed inside a piano to plink its ing creativity. “I can see Paul Dano doing it in the studio, but I cannot munication. “It’s all done through music, that’s how I explain it,” strings with a bobby pin, and incorporated everyday sounds like keys remember actually recording in the studio,” Wilson said. “It brings Wilson said. “As a person, I couldn’t explain nothing. But with music, I jangling or dogs barking into the songs. Commercially disappointing back memories, like ‘How could I have done that?!’” can explain something.” — AP This photo provided by Roadside Attractions shows, John Cusack, left, as Brian Wilson (older) This photo provided by Roadside Attractions shows, Paul Dano as Brian Wilson, in a scene and Elizabeth Banks as Melinda Ledbetter, in a scene from the film, “Love & Mercy.”. from the film, “Love & Mercy.” — AP photos.