By Pat Fleming on July 5, 2010
Well it’s 7:15 am, my band the Poison Control Center finished up the weekend with another free 80/35 after Party at the Vaudeville Mews and it was amazing! Tons of people, a horn section featuring members of Pennyhawk, the Mumfords, and Christopher the Conquered joined us and what a way to end an absolutely perfect weekend!
You might ask what Im doing up so early… Well my band gets back on the road again for Leg 2 of our Never Ending Tour, and we need to be in Minneapolis by 1pm for an on air radio session.
I want to say a huge Congrats to the City of Des Moines and the people who came out to 80/35 from all over! You were well behaved and totally awesome!
I also want to say a HUGE THANK YOU AND CONGRATS to everyone involved…. The bands, the fans, the volunteers, the vendors, etc. You all did an amazing job to make this happen..
and Last but not least I want to say a huge thanks to Jill Haverkamp and Amedeo Rossi for working so hard day in and day out and making this festival happen! YOU AND THE DMMC should be very proud!
ps Thanks for letting me be involved again! I had one of the best musical weekends of my life!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Andrew Duffelmeyer on July 5, 2010
The weather couldn’t keep us down and another 80/35 went off without a hitch again this year. It was great to see so many people come out today despite the nasty weather and enjoy all the artists in downtown Des Moines.
Although everything I saw was good, I have to say Spoon, Christopher the Conquered and Yo La Tengo were the highlights for me this year. Thumbs up to the organizers for bringing a lot of great acts to Des Moines for the first time, particularly Spoon and Yo La Tengo.
After three years, I think it’s safe to say 80/35 has become a staple and we can expect to enjoy a new and interesting line-up every year. Cheers to everyone for making the last two days so fun and friendly!
Andy Duffelmeyer is a writer and editor for the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition's website, DMMC.com, and a reporter for IowaPolitics.com. He lives in Des Moines and is a graduate of Drake University.
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
Well the fest is coming to a killer close, I have never seen so many people in one spot EVER in Des Moines! I caught a bit of the Heavy and it was very interesting, tons of people digging on it!
Modest Mouse was playing the hits and it was pretty darn enjoyable seeing how many people were just loving it! Fantastic, a perfect headliner of an amazing day! The Jam Crowed Digging it, the Indie Kids, and everyone else was over at…..
The Mediacom Stage checking out the Killer sound of local fave Maxilla Blue drop some killer beats from their new record MBVOLII … So great, My legs feel like they are going to fall off, but I got some food finally and Im ready to rock the Vaudeville Mews for some AFTER PARTIES! Come hang!
ps as I type this I hear “Float On” in the background pretty fitting end to the evening! JUST KEEP FLOATING ON 80/35!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
Man I had a great hour, a while back caught a bit of the BASS pumping Cool Kids and they were so fantastic, great rhymes, and killer stage presence! Totally awesome! Pitchforkmedia and hometown boy Marc Hogan, was rapping along in the VIP section! I loved it!
Then onto check out a bit of Dar Williams an amazing singer songwriter who has been around forever! Her lyrics are so good and felt just right on a rainy afternoon!
Then into the social club to see the Ames band the Mumfords play and oh my they were making the windows sweat! Such an energetic, amazing show! I loved it.. I came into blogg cause I need to sit for a minute! The Heavy just started so I need to catch some of them, then see the M Mouse over on the main stage! Then if I have anything left leave it on the Vaudeville Floor at the After Party! WHAT A WEEKEND! Des Moines Rules!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
A few nights ago on tour the Poison Control Center played in Lincoln, NE and we met a dad and his too rad kids, at the show, They were from OK CITY, on their way to 80/35 it was so cool that they stopped to see PCC and I just ran into them at the fest..
So far Clayton (dad), Miranda (daughter) and Landon (son) have enjoyed Califone, Avi Buffalo, and the Walkmen today! They are having a great time and I just wanted to show the world how cool it is that people are traveling so far and wide to come to our Amazing City and this amazing Festival!!!!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
Man the rain aint keep us down! People are really having an amazing time, the rain keeps a coming off and on, and its fun seeing everyone in their coolest clothes drenched! I LOVE IT! It’s perfect! I have been catching some of the FINEST Ames, IA (my hometown) talent at the Des Moines social Club.. I have seen MUMFORDS, Nuclear Rodeo, Pennyhawk, Strong Like Bear, and Peace Love and Stuff all from Ames, and man they all just killed it at the social club! I joked that Ames was taking this festival over and Joe from PCC said might have to called it 30/35!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
Well now Im soaked I just did our free little acoustic show for the Yellowbrick Mag booth and there was so many people who came to see us, that we felt so blessed we needed to be out with them so we unplugged the guitars and played to them in the pouring rain and it was pretty magical! 80/35 you seriously are making this weekend one of the best of my life! THANK YOU!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Pat Fleming on July 4, 2010
WOW, I got over a hair late to catch Avi Buffalo but Devin told me they were incredible! I also heard amazing things about the WALKMEN’s set! So bummed i missed them both but I was there for the entire Christopher the Conquered set which was one of the greatest shows I have ever seen in my Life it was a total religious experience! He played piano from the sound booth, led a patriotic band horn section while a dude who looked like Billy Bob Holding an American Flag from the stage! I have seen so many CTC shows, and this was the cream of the crop! I would put it up there with Radiohead in 97, Wilco in 99, Flaming Lips in 99, Arcade Fire in 07, as one of the greatest shows I have ever seen in my life!
Im so happy people got to witness this local special talent!
Patrick Tape Fleming is a guitarist for the indie rock group the Poison Control Center who can't spell very well!
By Jill Haverkamp on July 4, 2010
A special thanks to all our photographers this year: Phil Thomson, Steve Fry, Viken Koundakjian, Karla Conrad, and Eric J Hermann.
Here are some of my favorite photos thus far:
Earl Greyhound bringing it down on the Kum & Go stage. Their performance was amazing, one of my favorites so far this year, and you gotta love her style!
Here’s a cool shot of Spoon. Their set last night was really fun. I loved all the people crowd surfing too!
This guy is having a blast!
I love the 9×16 television screen this year!
This is my favorite picture so far this year. The lighting on the Principal Building coupled with the blast of awesomeness from the stage is perfect. Scenes like this is a big reason why the festival is downtown. Love the urban vibe.
View more photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/8035.
By Andrew Duffelmeyer on July 4, 2010
Christopher the Conquered easily became my favorite free stage show at this year’s 80/35, providing great music, theatrics and humor into an excellent show that certainly grabbed them some more fans.
Imagine a deranged Elton John and you’ve basically found Christopher the Conquered. Great vocals, great keyboard work and a stellar backing band make them one of the Des Moines area’s rising stars.
The Walkmen were off to a great start when a downpour came in halfway through the show and swept me away to blog – mostly in the interest of not ruining my camera. The rain let up pretty quickly, though, and hopefully Mother Nature will cooperate for the rest of the day.
Andy Duffelmeyer is a writer and editor for the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition's website, DMMC.com, and a reporter for IowaPolitics.com. He lives in Des Moines and is a graduate of Drake University.
