The next three days will see over 150 musical and comedy acts converge on Seattle Center for the annual Bumbershoot festival, with big names like Skrillex, Gotye, Jane’s Addiction, and Big Sean headlining this year. Oh, and Tony Bennett. Let’s not forget Tony Bennett.
But it’s the mid-tier, breaking bands that are looking to win over the throngs of music fans who attend the world-renowned, just-across-the-border festival, not the least of which is South African melodic rock trio Civil Twilight.
No strangers to playing in the northwest, the band is set to hit the Exhibition Hall Stage on Sunday evening and hope to win over even more Bumbershoot attendees after playing the festival last year.
“We always try enjoy ourselves up there and perform the best we can,” says Civil Twilight drummer Richard Wouters. “And it’s interesting playing outside and looking out over the audience.”
Always prone to experimentation and mixing things up on stage, Civil Twilight look forward to their Bumbershoot set as a conduit for the rich storytelling on their latest album, Holy Weather.
“We try to be creative on stage and the songs have a story that we try to connect people with, and we play from a place of giving them something that’s authentic and honest,” says Wouters. “Hopefully people can find a connection within our stories and get inspired by them.”
As one of the largest music festivals in North America, Bumbershoot draws a mixed crowd, including music fans that may or may not be interested in what Civil Twilight has to offer, a fact not lost on Wouters and the rest of the band, rounded out by brothers Andrew and Steven McKeller.
“It’s quite different playing to a mixed audience on a festival stage and trying to win people over a little bit more,” he says. “The sets are shorter, too, so that’s a different feel for us.”
With such a vast range of bands and comedians performing, groups from faraway places like South Africa have a decided advantage, not only because they themselves can revel in playing infamous musical hotbeds such as Seattle, but that the audiences’ curiosities can be peaked from a band hailing from afar. And despite living in Los Angeles since 2005, the band still gets plenty of interest and questions about their homeland.
“We have felt very welcome since coming here and have found that people are very receptive of us, and music in general,” says Wouters. “Most people say it’s really cool that we are from South Africa and are interested in what it’s like back there.”
Wouters and Civil Twilight will have a special glow about them as the jam-packed festival lineup gets underway this weekend. They are, after all, living their childhood dream to play big shows and festivals in North America.
“It’s something we always dreamed of as kids,” he says. “We grew up listening to North American bands and being inspired by them. It’s pretty surreal to be playing some of these places that completely changed music, and it’s a really cool feeling to be part of that. It makes us feel connected to this rich musical history.”
Bumbershoot (featuring Civil Twilight)
September 1-3
Seattle Center
$125-$140 US ($56 day passes)