It's a massive, genre-hopping, weekend-spanning sound orgy -- more great music than you'd ever be able to see. So, in order to see as much as you can, you'll need help navigating it efficiently. That's where we come in. Check the schedule for set times to the minute, then our alphabetical listings to read up on the bands. Finally, mind our five conflict-resolution tables, meant to help you decide between great bands that will be onstage at the same time. Starred bands lack name recognition, but are as good as any big name on the bill. Seriously consider catching a set or two. It'll be a hectic weekend, but hopefully this guide will make it a little more manageable. -- Luke Baumgarten
Architecture in Helsinki & r & Twee Collective * Saturday, 1:20 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & There is nothing so infectious as an Architecture in Helsinki song. Nothing. Where most great pop writers will give you one hook, AiH give you like three -- per song. Possessed with a twee ethic that subverts sing-a-longy pop with explorations of adultery and death (think Sesame Street meets When Bad Things Happen to Good People), AiH's live set is a beehive of multi-instrumentalism. It's the perfect antidote to both the rampant self-seriousness of indie and the thoughtless, jingly escapism of, well, everything else. Count with me: Eight members + dozens of instruments = the best show of the entire festival. (Luke Baumgarten)
The Arctic Monkeys & r & Hype Riders * Sunday, 2:45 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & It's funny seeing a band that's gotten huge literally overnight trying to come to terms with stardom by writing press releases in flowery prose using a nom de plume like Nabokov, trying to pretend their Blur-meets-Franz Britpop is more than just a derivative synthesis of what people already love. Platinum sales fueled by stainless-steel ideas. (LB)
Bauhaus & r & Goth Progenitors * Friday, 8:30 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & According to England's NME, "Bauhaus are to Goth what Radiohead are to Prog." Wait, what? That's like saying Jesus is to Christianity what Jim Jones is to suicide cults. Preposterous and anachronistic. Bauhaus invented Goth. They straight-up forged it from the fiery bowels of glam and kraut-rock. Now they're back, and touring. (LB)
Band of Horses & r & Five Good Songs * Saturday, 4 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & From their sparkling review in the influential Pitchforkmedia.com to their much ballyhooed SxSW showing in Austin, Texas, Band of Horses are the hottest indie rock band in Seattle right now. Risen from the ashes of the beloved Carissa's Wierd [sic], BoH churns out Shins/My Morning Jacket sound-alikes with a vague scent of down-homeyness. (Andrew Matson)
Beck & r & Pop Archivist * Sunday, 10:30 PM MAINSTAGE & r & Some rock critic or another once said that Beck would be the coolest older brother ever without realizing that, in his time on our playlists and in our hearts, he basically was our older brother. Displaying an appreciation for everything from country to hip-hop, he made -- and makes -- us want to branch out too. (LB)
Bedouin Soundclash & r & Rag, eh? * Saturday, Noon, WOOKIE STAGE & r & A three-piece reggae band from Canada? It has all the makings for a great parody, but somehow Bedouin Soundclash pulls the dub/reggae thing off, partly because of lead singer Jay Malinowski's voice, which isn't over Marley-ized. This'll appeal to the crunchies and more. Reggae, after all, is made for sunny afternoons outside. (Joel P. Smith)
Ben Harper & amp; the Innocent Criminals & r & Same As Ever * Saturday, 10 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Listening to Ben Harper is like taking a walk. Whether it's a dusty country road or a city street, it's not where you begin or end but everything in between. His lyrics are the journey we embark on every day, sometimes familiar and sometimes fresh, always painfully honest and gently hopeful. (Tessa Schilter)
Ben Lee & r & Aussie Pop * Sunday, 4 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & American audiences are probably most familiar with this Australian pop rocker from his role as one-third of "The Bens," with Ben Kweller and Ben Folds. It was a good match - Lee shares Kweller's melodic sensibilities and his lyrical introspectiveness, even if he's put his thrashing punk past a little further behind him. (JPS)
Big City Rock & r & Well Named * Sunday, Noon, YETI STAGE & r & "Do you wanna rock? Do you wanna roll? Do you wanna git down on the floor?" Do you want to sound exactly like Bon Jovi with some rudimentary, Killers-style synths? Big City Rock does. And in response to the initial three questions, they answer, without a shred of irony, "All of the above / fallin' in love." (LB)
Big Japan & r & Indi-emo * Sunday, 1:05 PM YETI STAGE & r & This is emo at its finest: melancholy music without all the whining. If your boyfriend/girlfriend has recently broken up with you, "drink champagne until the sunrise" and find solace in Big Japan. Their hearts may be broken, but their sound is soothing and (gasp!) maybe even a little hopeful. (TS)
Blue Scholars & r & Seattle's Best Hip-Hop * Sunday, 11:45 AM, MAIN STAGE & r & The 2006 Seattle Weekly Music Awards' top vote-getters are embroiled in recent controversy over not getting the SW's cover, but the reality is that Scholars Geologic and Sabzi don't need the exposure in Seattle: This duo is and has been the most widely recognized hip-hop group in Sea-town's recent rap renaissance.
Famous for embracing a marriage of the thinking and working world, Geologic's communist-ish raps glorify culture, race, and close consideration of human encounters over Sabzi's hypnotic and surprisingly musical backdrops. The fact that this band is on the Main Stage says a lot. (AM)
Brett Dennen & r & Curious Oberst * Saturday, Noon, YETI STAGE & r & Somewhere between Conner Oberst and Jack Johnson lies the sound of Brett Dennen. Even the most painful lyrics are layered over the sound of soothing guitar. He can switch between lonely and carefree with a voice that's slightly haunting and a message that lingers. (TS)
Chad VanGaalen & r & Indie * Sunday, 1:20 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & VanGaalen has created homemade saxes, violins and pianos. More important, he's created a ton of surprising, spacey, often highly danceable songs on his Tascam four-track. Most important, he shares them. An articulate writer and a sharp composer, VanGaalen's the best thing to come out of Calgary since Theoren Fleury. (JPS)
Clap Your Hands & r & DIY-ities * Sunday, 8 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & There's no way to understate the phenomenon Clap Your Hands, Say Yeah! have become in just over a year's time. They've self-released an album, that, despite no record deal, no distribution deal and almost zero budget became the American underground's must-have cut. But rather than going away like so many must-have albums, their S/T debut has shown remarkable staying power, fueled by the sheer audacity of singer Alec Ounsworth's creativity. CYHSY touches the common pop tropes and still delivers the freshness. Fresher still, their live performances offer songs significantly altered from the album originals. (LB)
Common Market & r & Seattle's Second Best Hip-Hop * Saturday, 5:25 PM, YETI STAGE & r & Having risen to the same prominence in Seattle as the Blue Scholars, Common Market need only time to prove their true worth to NW hip-hop. Grounded by the Scholars' Sabzi on the beats, Common Market is made distinctive by RA Scion's politically charged lyrics. Bush wants to tap his phone. (AM)
The Constantines & r & Thoughts That Scream * Saturday, 5:20 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & If you can crawl beneath the layers of noise, there are songs here that would make philosophers furrow their brows and make dungeon-keepers weep. There are ideas hidden here, in areas where only the simplest, stupidest of rock platitudes usually dwell. Once you get that, those layers of noise cease being confining, and become welcoming. Or something. (LB)
Damien Jurado & r & Black Coffee Folk * Sunday, 6:40 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & Jurado writes sad, acoustic folk songs, often drenched in ethereal found sounds, but more often drenched in a cloud of melancholy. (Of course, he lives in Seattle.) But that cloud of melancholy has a silver lining, too. In nearly every one of his sad, earnestly sung love songs, there's a bright little moment rimming the edges. (JPS)
David Ford & r & Strum, Whisper, Strum * Saturday, 2:10 PM, YETI STAGE & r & Sad yet soothing, this is the guy to listen to if you plan on getting drunk alone in your basement tonight. (Then again, maybe that's not such a good idea.) The bare sound of Ford and his guitar is so personal, it's like listening to your own thoughts. (TS)
DeadBoy and the Elephantmen & r & Post-Proto-Grunge * Friday, 5:30 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & With track titles like "Fly on the Eye of the Lamb," you might think you know what DeadBoy and the Elephantmen are all about, or have it narrowed down to either metal or super-dark Goth. You were right the second time -- and add a little Melvins in there too. (LB)
Death Cab for Cutie & r & Lovesick Rock * Sunday, 8:45 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & The Seattle-by-way-of-Bellingham indie darlings angered hipsters when they went over to Atlantic Records from Barsuk for last year's Plans. Worse, the album paled in comparison to previous efforts - especially Transatlanticism, which made them honorary O.C. cast members. See Ben Gibbard try and sway his way back into our hearts. (JPS)
The Decemberists & r & Privateer Pop * Sunday, 4:15 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & The Decemberists put on one of the best live shows in music. In a Spokane appearance last October, they rolled around onstage, got the audience to squat down on the floor of the Big Easy and circulated a giant pair of cardboard whale jaws during "The Mariner's Revenge Song." Watch for new tricks. (JPS)
Elvis Perkins & r & Dark Folk * Saturday, 1:05 PM, YETI STAGE & r & By itself, the fact that Perkins is the son of Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) should have messed him up enough. Add the fact that Dad died of AIDS and Mom died in the 9/11 attacks, and you have a seriously troubled songwriter. His music is tragic but strangely beautiful. (JPS)
Flaming Lips & r & Newly Protest Rockish * Saturday, 8:30 PM MAINSTAGE & r & Following Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, their landmark reintroduction to the masses, the Flaming Lips direct their ever-ongoing tour toward their new album, At War With the Mystics. The Lips hate George Bush and have a lot to say about U.S. politics. Unfortunately for those who would like to know exactly what they have to say, they've couched their political statements in psychedelia. Still, even half-baked Lips' efforts are more creative than your entire life. Because the Lips are not only this country's most visually impressive live band -- they're living legends. (AM)
Headphones & r & Beatdro the Lion * Sunday, 6:30 PM, YETI STAGE & r & David Bazan is the kind of Christian non-Christians like to hang out with. He believes -- fervently -- but he's not trying to convert you. He can barely keep himself converted most days. Picking up where Pedro the Lion left off, Headphones are loop-centric, exploring the beautiful, tragic intersection of God's blinding omnipotence and man's staggering impotence. (LB)
Gomez & r & BritPop Invasion * Saturday, 1:15 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & We thought at first that perhaps Raul Julia was reprising his role as Gomez Addams, but then we realized that Raul Julia is dead. This is actually a British quintet, poppy and eminently danceable. They should be a hit with the crowd waiting for Sufjan. (JPS)
The Heavenly States & r & Post-Pop-Punk * Sunday, 2:40 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & At the Heavenly States' first-ever performance -- and after dropping the name Fluke Starbucker -- singer Genevieve Gagon lit her scarf on fire. Bodes well for the show. If you're close enough to be heard, request their version of Kenny Loggins' "Dangerzone." (JPS)
HIM & r & Finn Rock * Friday, 7:05 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & The one band at Sasquatch that's actually from Helsinki, HIM plays big, loud, melodramatic rock with a melodic, sensitive-guy sensibility. Titles like "Wings of a Butterfly" sound lame, but this may be some of the best guitar music at the festival this year. (JPS)
Iron & amp; Wine & r & Hush Folk * Saturday, 3:30 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Who would've thought that playing acoustic guitar and singing really, really quietly could be so revolutionary? Ever since 2002's The Creek Drank the Cradle, Sam Beam has turned the volume down on indie music. He could be a downer in the festival environment, but he could also make the Mainstage feel like one big living room. (JPS)
Jamie Liddell & r & Soul Survivor * Sunday, Noon, WOOKIE STAGE & r & If we hear one more white guy name-drop Marvin Gaye, Prince and/or Al Green this year to describe his sound, we're going to commit murders. We actually almost did commit one, after we read Jamie Liddell's bio. Thankfully, we listened to his music before doing anything rash. He channels those singers with the respect they deserve. (LB)
Korby Lenker & r & Alt-country * Saturday, 4:20 PM, YETI STAGE & r & You might recognize the voice of this Twin Falls native and Western grad from "The MySpace song," an up-tempo blues/country number in which he laments that his girlfriend dropped him out of her Top 8. The song's all right, but the rest of his stuff shows more depth. Informed by his year in relative isolation in West Virginia - listening to Doc Watson and learning to play bluegrass - and by his appearances with country greats like Steve Earle and Lucinda Williams, the material off his newest record, King of Hearts, zings with one solid electric country after another. (JPS)
Laura Veirs & r & Folk Tectonics * Sunday, 4:20 PM, YETI STAGE & r & When it comes time to decide among the Decemberists, Ben Lee and Laura Veirs on Sunday afternoon, there's no doubt where this writer will be: front and center for Ms. Veirs and her band, the Tortured Souls (featuring indie stalwart Karl Blau on bass). Veirs is a keen songwriter and has one of the most disarming voices in indie today. With a degree in geology and musical roots in punk, she sings beautiful, gut-busting songs with an earnestness and modesty that plants them deep within your ear. Her last release, Year of Meteors, was one of the best records of 2005. Her performance Sunday should be the highlight of the Yeti stage. (JPS)
Matisyahu & r & L'Chaim-Hop * Sunday, 5:45 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Even after the novelty of watching a suburban New York hippie-turned-Hasidic Jew beat-box and rap in traditional regalia has worn off, critics are still pretty much ga-ga for Matisyahu. We suspect Sasquatch fans will be, too. (JPS)
Matt Costa & r & Californiaaaaa... * Saturday, 8 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & Costa was a skateboarder in Huntington Beach, Calif., until he shattered a leg. No surprise, then, that when he turned back to the guitar during recovery, he started producing the kind of crisp, punchy pop that would fit right in on The O.C. And we're not being derogatory. (JPS)
Mercir & r & Indie Bliptronica * Sunday, 3:15 PM YETI STAGE & r & There's a sweet tenor laid over the twitching beats. The dual influences are apparent: Squarepusher and Bjork on the beat side, Pedro the Lion and Ben Gibbard on the other. It's odd when that voice is nudged electronically to hit on a break beat, though it fits what's been happening in Seattle lately. (LB)
Nada Surf & r & RIP Marissa Cooper * Sunday, 1:45 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & It's a long way from one-hit wonder (remember "Popular"?) to respected indie strummers and then back to one-hit wonder, but Nada Surf managed it, and all in under a decade. And though you'll find them on an O.C. mix (number two, cop it), they've remained true to their vision. Their latest, The Weight Is a Gift, is their strongest yet. (LB)
Neko Case & r & Countr-indie * Saturday, 4:35 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Known in straight-up indie circles as the female voice in Vancouver's New Pornographers, Case is also a queen of twang, with a whole string of country-tinged, punk-powered solo albums to her credit. Don't worry if you miss her; you'll probably hear her pipes from clear over at the Yeti stage. (JPS)
Nine Inch Nails & r & Steam Engine-esque * Friday, 10 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & After nearly two decades, Trent Reznor's Nails need no introduction. Solid vocals and heavy instrumentals characterize their style, which developed amid succession of band members, with Reznor as the only constant. From the gloriously loud ("Kind I Want To") to the painfully destructive ("Hurt"), they have the four bases of anger, lust, pain and depression covered. (TS)
Pretty Girls Make Graves & r & Indie Vital * Sunday, 12:45 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & More fun than a run through the sprinklers, Pretty Girls Make Graves will remind you of the good things in life (whatever those may be). Happy, smart and creative describe both their sound and their lyrics. They'll put a smile on your face and leave you humming even on your way to the dentist. (TS)
Queens of the Stone Age & r & Arena Rock * Sunday, 7:15 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Decadence is cool again thanks to Josh Homme and company, as is arena rock. Are these bad things? Corrupting influences? Agin' the natural order? Maybe. Probably. OK, sure, definitely, but ask Jerry Lee Lewis what rock would be without corruption and decadence. It'd be, like, boogie-woogie or whatever. (LB)
Rocky Votolato & r & Singer-Songwriterato * Sunday, 5:25 PM, YETI STAGE & r & The last time Seattle-based Rocky Votolato visited Spokane, so many people showed up at the Shop to see him do his sensitive singer-songwriter thing that some fans climbed into trees just to catch a glimpse of him. There are few trees at the Gorge; expect the Yeti stage to be packed. (JPS)
Rogue Wave & r & Hush-ternative * Saturday, 12:15 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Their lyrics on life are like the double-take, the second glance you give to someone or something that you want to know better. The music draws you in and the lyrics keep you captivated. Like Iron and Wine meets Simon and Garfunkel, these guys don't disappoint. (TS)
Sam Roberts Band & r & Toe-Tap Rock * Saturday, 6:40 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & It ain't easy when the other bands in your town are Wolf Parade, the Dears and the Arcade Fire, but Sam Roberts shouldn't be too worried. His band's brand of catchy, melodic, harmonic pop -- shades of the Beatles and Wilco -- occupies a niche all its own. (JPS)
The Shins & r & Hypely Anticipated * Saturday, 7 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & They were treading water even before Natalie Portman said that "New Slang" would "change your life" in Garden State, effectively causing their demise in the always trendaphobic (but entirely trendy) indie world. Chutes Too Narrow couldn't trump the genius of their debut, Oh, Inverted World, and there weren't even rumors of any new material. Soon, even the press in their adopted hometown of Portland wrote that they were tiring of hearing the Shins' old stuff. With all that working against them, they better draw heavily from their forthcoming summer release (titled either Wincing the Night Away or Sleeping Lessons), and it'd better kick ass, or all the hipstercrites will be out for blood. Keep it to yourself next time, Natalie. (JPS)
Slender Means & r & Just Rock * Saturday, 3:15 PM, YETI STAGE & r & The press bio for Slender Means makes a big deal out of how playing "no-frills pop/rock" is a brave act in these days of gimmicky indie rock. But that's a spin doctor's way of saying that you've heard this before. Slender Means' brand of straightforward indie rock is good, but it's nothing you haven't heard. (JPS)
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks & r & Post-Pavement * Saturday, 2:40 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & Malkmus is like God without the omnipotence (though some may disagree): He's the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. No, his solo stuff isn't Pavement-level, perhaps, but it's close and it's familiar. (LB)
Sufjan Stevens & r & Chamber Pop * Saturday, 2:20 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Is it irresistible experimentalism or cloying narcissism that makes Sufjan hamstring himself into only writing albums about U.S. states? Both, we're guessing, but with such an imagination (turning a song about John Wayne Gacy into a personal exploration of one's dark side is an amazing leap), some sort of fencing in is probably necessary. The angelic strings, bells and keyed percussion he chooses matches his grand pantheistic imagery perfectly.
Sufjan's simply the most inventive songwriter around, and he only seems to be getting better. Rumor has it Oregon might be the next state he tackles (having already balladeered his way through Michigan and Illinois), so be sure to listen for a song about Crater Lake or Kindergarten Cop. (LB)
Tim Seely & r & Singer-Progwriter * Saturday, 6:30 PM, YETI STAGE & r & Seely plays interesting, spacey singer-songwriter stuff. OK. But we're more interested in seeing him play the "angel bar," an instrument of his own invention, by which he can play what sound like string arrangements with his own voice. (JPS)
Tragically Hip & r & Tragically Canadian Rock * Saturday, 5:40 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & They're Canadian. They're a rock band. They're been doing this for 20 years. The Tragically Hip must be doing something right. Their distinctive sound has set them apart and made them a cult favorite. Perhaps the recipe for success is hidden in their own lyrics: "Armed with will and determination and grace too." (TS)
...Trail of Dead & r & Rockmosphere * Friday, 5 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead's best work is like the Genesis Machine from The Wrath of Khan, carving out the most fertile soundscapes from lifeless hard-rock compounds. Their songs create peaks of battering guitaristry and valleys of near-ambient textures, filling highlands with propulsive rhythm. (LB)
The Trucks & r & Grrl Attack * Friday, 4:30 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & Four women from Bellingham who started as a lark - playing bass, an '86 Casio and a child's xylophone - the Trucks have become a Bellingham mainstay. Known for their raucous, often costumed live shows, their weird but charming Bangles-meet-Le Tigre sound shouldn't be missed. (JPS)
TV on the Radio & r & Jazzy Art Prog * Friday, 6 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & Their debut album, Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes, is like that cornstarch-and-water stuff we made in school to learn about solids and liquids. If you just jab at it, you'll bounce off -- but if you hang around, the syrupy vocals will surround you and suck you in. (LB)
The Village Green & r & New Oldies * Sunday, 2:10 PM, YETI STAGE & r & As its influences, the band lists the Beatles, the Kinks, Brian Eno, Nirvana and the Beach Boys. Though the Portland quartet stole its name from a Kinks song, you can hear all those influences in there. Lead singer J. Nicholas Allard's voice is backed by sharp-edged guitars here and '70s electric piano there. (JPS)
We Are Scientists & r & Predicta-pop * Sunday, 5:20 PM, WOOKIE STAGE & r & It's Franz Ferdinand with the depravity, but without the lack of self-consciousness. It's Hot Hot Heat without the balls-to-the-wall dance punk and absurd vocals. It's a lot of the things you like, but without what makes those things unique. (LB)
Wolfmother & r & Classic Rock Medley * Friday, 4 PM, MAINSTAGE & r & These guys bite every dark classic-rock trope in the book, and it's beautiful. From Hendrix to Sabbath, they not only steal the riffs, they co-opt the imagery and still manage to make it jibe with contemporary sensibilities. (LB)
