With a positively incredible Bonnaroo 2013 weekend behind us, we can safely say that the Bonnaroo Arts & Music Festival is the single best fest in North America. The reasons are plentiful – and we’ll bring you a full breakdown on the details later today.
For now, however, get down with our coverage from the final day at this year’s ‘Roo, featuring performances and best-of breakdowns from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar, Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros, Baroness, David Byrne & St. Vincent, Tom Petty and more!
Check out our full coverage of Bonnaroo 2013!
Makin’ It Look Easy Award: Kendrick Lamar
Whoa. Kendrick Lamar took to the main Bonnaroo stage on Sunday with what appeared to be casual ease. Armed with only a DJ on the gigantic main platform, Kenrick pulled from his good kid, m.A.A.d city album during his hour-long set. Lamar got a taste of just how berzerk these kids were for him with the early-set arrival of “Backseat Freestyle,” which found the densely-packed crowd screaming every lyric back at him, bouncing to every beat. He drizzled in his own verses from A$AP Rocky’s “Fuckin’ Problems” and Young Jeezy’s “R.I.P.,” while hits “Poetic Justice” and “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” were ear-splitting singalongs. Then, the crowd pretty much took over vocal duties for the finale of “Swimming Pools (Drank)”.
GALLERY: See Kendrick Lamar perform at Bonnaroo 2013!
Most Celebrated Set: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Deafening roars of approval met Macklemore & Ryan Lewis as they took to the main stage at a criminally undeserved early slot of 2:30. As evidenced by his wildly-celebrated headlining spot at the Sasquatch festival set last month,
Macklemore wasn’t sporting his signature “Thrift Shop” prop fur coat, but someone in the crowd had backup: “Dear sir in the fur coat, you are insane,” the rapper told the sweating attendee, asking him to take it off and crowd-surf it to the stage. Correctly predicting that it would smell “like weed and malt liquor,” Macklemore donned the coat (“Tennessee bobcat!” he shouted) before the inevitable smash-hit singalong.
GALLERY: Watch Macklemore perform at Bonnaroo 2013!
Best Comeback Award: Baroness
In a moment of pure Bonnaroo perfection, just as the rains begin to tease what would become a full-on downpour later that evening, Baroness delivered an impossibly powerful set as part of their first tour back following a devastating bus crash last year. Bassist Nick Jost and drummer Sebastian Thomson have replaced low-ender Matt Maggioni and drummer Allen Blickle after the incident, and though they’re missed brethren we can now safely say that the current lineup is completely freakin’ badass.
Roaring and riffing their way through a set which was heavily peppered with songs off their 2012 album, Yellow & Green, the quartet raged through opener “Take My Bones Away,” through “March to The Sea” and many others before closing with a brutal rendition of “The Gnashing”.
GALLERY: Watch Baroness perform at Bonnaroo 2013!
Photogenic Couple Award: These guys
Crowd Play Award: Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros
Circumventing the VIP section and climbing into the audience, frontman Alex Ebert soaked up the adoration from the thousands of screaming fans at his feet. Unfortunately, however, while the hippie vagabond act is enchanting to those looking for an escape from the standard frontman fare, Edward Sharpe’s whole schtick reeks of a void of authenticity.
GALLERY: Watch Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros perform at Bonnaroo 2013!
Awkward Food Truck Name Award: “Eatbox”
“I See What You Did There” Award: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
“I predict you’re going to have an incredible time tonight,” Petty told the audience. “I don’t have to be anywhere for hours.” He kept his word with two hours of timeless gems, as tens of thousands in the rain-soaked audience ate out of his musical hand. Before running through “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “Refugee,” “I Won’t Back Down” and a slew of other classics, Mr. Petty opened his Bonnaroo finale set with a cover of The Byrds’ “So You Wanna Be A Rock n Roll Star”. In today’s age of decaying power players and burning music-industry rulebooks, the song takes on a revitalized poignance.
Merciful Timing Award: The rain
Downpours, usually a reliable Bonnaroo staple, didn’t arrive until the festival’s final headliner Tom Petty took the stage. Sure, packing up was a wet mess, but sleeping off the weekend’s indulgences to the soothing, chaotic choreography of the raindrops on our tent throughout the night was a fine way to end such an awesome weekend.
Day 4
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GALLERY: Macklemore
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GALLERY: Kendrick Lamar
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GALLERY: David Byrne & St. Vincent
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GALLERY: Tame Impala
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GALLERY: Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
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GALLERY: Baroness
Day 3
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RECAP: Bonnaroo 2013 Day 3 Recap & Photos: Bjorkupine, Body Paint & Weird Al Cobain
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GALLERY: Nas
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GALLERY: Portugal The Man
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GALLERY: Cat Power
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GALLERY: Matt & Kim
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GALLERY: Weird Al Yankovic
Day 2
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RECAP: Bonnaroo 2013 Day 2 Recap & Photos: Awards and Observations
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GALLERY: Wu-Tang Clan
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GALLERY: Wilco
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GALLERY: Of Monsters and Men
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GALLERY: Passion Pit
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GALLERY: Foals
Day 1
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RECAP: Bonnaroo 2013 Day One Recap & Photos: The Best, Worst & Beauty at ‘Roo
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UPDATE: Jack Johnson Replaces Mumford & Sons to Headline Saturday
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GALLERY: Alt-J
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GALLERY: Father John Misty
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GALLERY: HAIM
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GALLERY: Japandroids
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GALLERY: Milo Greene
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GALLERY: Twenty One Pilots
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GALLERY: Walk the Moon
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NEED TO KNOW: The Bonnaroo 2013 Survival Guide
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LIVE STREAM: Watch the Bonnaroo 2013 Concert Live Stream on CraveOnline!
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LINEUP: Who’s Playing Bonnaroo This Year? Full List of Acts and Set Times!
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PLAYLIST: 16 Tracks of Summertime Bonnaroo Goodness
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CAMPING: 16 Essential Things to Remember for Roughing It at ‘Roo