The second day of Hangout Fest proceeded under a continual threat of rain, but fortunately most of the day was able to proceed without a hitch. The planners wisely moved up the closing sets by about 45 minutes and were able to get everyone out of the park before the truly gnarly weather moved past. Sonically, the day was all over the map for us. With sets from Americana acts like Bands of Horses and The Head and the Heart followed up with the experimental sounds of Major Lazer and Sigur Ros. We began the day with LP over on the Mermaid Stage. She drew a tight crowd of devoted followers and clearly relished the beach setting. Major Lazer brought their usual intensity coupled with a bit of local color to the Surf Stage. The band emerged wearing matching white shirts airbrushed with their band name across the front (clearly made up the street at one of the many souvenir shops). It’s wonderful to watch Major Lazer tear down the false seriousness that the EDM scene has cultivated over recent years. The Head and the Heart were able to find a bit of sonic isolation on the other side of the park at Fitz’s Stage with a wonderfully heartfelt set of new and old songs. Finally, we ended the night with what was shaping up to be a stunning set by Sigur Ros. Unfortunately, they were cut short by the storm that finally decided to track onto the beach. The band was about halfway through “Starálfur” when the stage crew informed them that the show would have to end. Personally, I would have loved to see Sigur Ros build their climactic sound during a wild storm, but safety and sanity prevailed. What could have been a disastrous day for Hangout ended up working just about right. The weather cleared the space for a perfect program of music. Hopefully day three will see the same luck.
