Spirits stayed high as Voodoo rolled into its second day of celebration.
The crowds were bigger and had energy to burn. The temperature dropped lower than natives have felt in quite some time and the wind brought with it an authentic autumn feeling.
The New Orleans Noisician Coalition took to the streets of the festival, armed with unusual instruments such as metal trashcans and cheese graters. The unorthodox crew marched proudly while making “music.”
During the afternoon, homegrown band The Revivalists got to play a later gig after switching set times with K’Naan. The funk jazz septuple jammed out with notable zeal. The soulful vocals mingled nicely with the saxophone and trumpets. The Soul Rebels Brass Band joined the group on stage and supplied some revitalizing energy. The crowd jived to the familiar blues sounds.
AWOLNATION played with impressive vigor for the sizable crowd that collected before them. The indie pop group brought the noise with huge waves of synth and drum thumping. Crowd surfers were abundant, and an all-female crowd surfing session was requested by the band. The audience got amped for hits like “Not Your Fault” and went wild for radio rock anthem “Sail.” Front man Aaron Bruno took crowd surfing quite literally when he grabbed a boogie board and balanced atop it for what must have been a hell of a ride.
Local rock-pop sibling band, The Vettes, garnered a small but loyal crowd for its night time performance. Donning Native American attire, lead singer Rachel Vette belted the lyrics to single “Lil Wayne” to start things off. The group also jammed to cover songs such as “I Just Came to Say Hello” by Martin Solveig et Dragonette. They also premiered new songs: “Move Your Body,” “Summer” and “Textual.”
Justice, a pair of Parisian brothers and electronic artists, was surrounded by a wall of eager listeners. The crowd was a perpetual dance party. It seemed as if the ground transformed into a trampoline at the rate people were jumping and bouncing. The stage was simplistic, with a massive turntable and an illuminated cross. Strobe lights flickered throughout the show while glow sticks sporadically rained down on the festival-goers. Fireworks erupted in the sky while the audience got down and dirty.
Justice continually built anticipation and kept everyone on their toes, waiting for the moment when the illustrious bass would drop. During the show, the duo teased by playing a small portion from “We Are Your Friends.” They eventually finished the mix during their obligatory encore for the beat-hungry fans.
A successful day for the New Orleans music scene, most would say.
Hip-hop artist Zeale sings on stage Saturday afternoon at Voodoo Fest in New Orleans.
