80/35 dropped their schedule a few days ago, and it is full of awesomeness and a little heartbreak. It is not as agonizing as last year’s, but there are some definite conflicts that I think we are going to have to deal with. As always food and drink and stopping so my wife can pump and the children and friends and family throw wrenches into these things, but its always good to have a plan. So, let’s get to it.

Here is the full schedule:

Friday, July 5 – Doors: 4pm, Show: 5pm

Main Stage

5pm – Tea Leaf Green

7pm – Yeasayer

9:15pm – David Byrne & St Vincent

Kum & Go Stage

5pm – Annalibera

5:45pm – Kitty Pryde

6:45pm – Roster McCabe

8:15pm – Menomena

9pm – SUBliminal Chaos

10pm – Jesse Jamz

11pm – DJ Bui

Hy-Vee Stage

5pm – Play In*

6pm – Dustin Smith & The Sunday Silos

7pm – Maxilla Blue

8pm – Euforquestra

9pm – The Other Elements

10pm – M34N STR33T

11pm – Richie Daggers w/ Gadema

Saturday, July 6 – Doors: 11am, Show: 12pm

Main Stage

12pm – Dylan Sires and Neighbors

1:30pm – Mr. Baber’s Neighbors

3:30pm – Wavves

5pm – Umphrey’s McGee

7pm – Deerhunter

9pm – Wu-Tang Clan

Kum & Go Stage

12pm – Gloom Balloon

12:45pm – Prissy Clerks

1:45pm – Escondido

2:45pm – Water Liars

3:45pm – The Homemade Jamz Blues Band

4:45pm – Apollo Brown & Guilty Simpson

5:45pm – Strange Names

6:45pm – Jon Wayne & the Pain

8:00pm – House of Large Sizes

9pm – DJ Cosmo

10pm – Sphere

11pm – DJ Flash

Hy-Vee Stage

12pm – Mighty Shady

1pm – Play In*

2pm – H.D. Harmsen

3pm – SP3

4pm – Tires

5pm – Trouble Lights

6pm – The River Monks

7pm – Mumford’s

8pm – The Pines

9pm – I AM ZERO (Intro)

10pm – PATIENT ZERO

11pm – I AM ZERO (Outro)

* = Emperors Club, The Uniphonics are the two play in bands. Their set times will be announced shortly.

Now there is one big one, so let’s discuss that right away. Then we’ll go chronological:

Wavves (Saturday 3:330pm Main Stage) vs Tires (Saturday 4pm Hy-Vee Stage)

Wavves has two of my favorite albums of the last decade (Wavves and King of the Beach.) Their most recent album, Afraid of Heights is great, too. Tires is arguably my favorite band in the world, Iowa and beyond. I will be able to shout along to all of Wavves songs while kids look at me weird. I will be able to bob my head and bounce along to Tires while all the kids look at me weird. Their first time at 80/35 is a big deal for Tires, while Wavves probably will go out and play and it will be awesome, but it will just be another gig to them. Wavves may not be back for a while, and Tires plays fairly regularly (Like this event that you should all attend.) So while it will be a tough choice, ugh, I’m going national.

Winner: Wavves

Kitty Pryde (Friday 5:45pm Kum and Go Stage) vs. Dustin Smith and the Sunday Silos (Friday 6pm Hy-Vee Stage)

Dustin Smith and his band are great. They put on a show tailor made for a summer music festival. However, I just can’t quit Kitty. She’s so unique and adorable.

Winner: Kitty

Dylan Sires and Neighbors (Saturday Noon Main Stage) vs. Gloom Balloon (Saturday Noon Kum and Go Stage)

Dylan Sires and Neighbors are close to breaking out. There is this buzz around them that few other Iowa bands have. Gloom Balloon is the slightly avant-garde side project of Poison Control Center’s Patrick Tape Fleming, who is just about the nicest guy in the world, incidentally. While I like Gloom Balloon, there is just something about being on the ground floor to a potentially big break.

Winner: Dylan Sires and Neighbors

Escondido (Saturday 1:45pm Kum and Go Stage) vs. HD Harmsen and the Electrophones (Saturday 2pm Hy-Vee Stage)

I think HD Harmsen might be the best live act in the state right now. His album is near the top of my favorites this year. It’s just that, I sort of fell in love with Escondido while researching them for their band bio on the 80/35 page. They tumbled pretty quickly into my heart and into my can’t miss list.

Winner: Escondido

Apollo Brown and Guilty Simpson (Saturday 445pm Kum and Go Stage) vs. Trouble Lights (Saturday 5pm Hy-Vee Stage)

The Detroit hip-hop duo, Brown and Simpson, are special. They’re some serious rare talents. Anyone who has followed this blog knows how much I love Trouble Lights. I think Iowa loyalty is enough to carry me towards the Hy-Vee Stage. I know, earlier I went with a band because they’re national, so its harder to catch them. What can I say; I’m fickle.

Winner: Trouble Lights

There are, for sure some, that I am crushed to be missing (also, Maxilla Blue, Euforquestra, Mumford’s. They just happened to run into acts that I can’t miss. It’s not a conflict, per se, but it does suck to miss them.) I am pretty stoked with what 80/35 is offering this year, and I think it took me making a schedule to fully realize it. Here is my schedule which is always subject to the whims of the day.

Friday:

Annalibera
Kitty
Yeasayer
Menomena
David Byrne and St Vincent
Richie Daggers w/ Gadema

Saturday:

Dylan Sires and Neighbors
Prissy Clerks
Escondido
Water Liars
Wavves
Trouble Lights
River Monks
Deerhunter
House of Large Sizes
Wu Tang Clan

Oh, and while you’re planning your 80/35 Weekend Festivities don’t forget about the Iowa Concert Photographers, Band Bombshell, Iowaves shows. I’m proud of what we were able to put on, so please check the shows out.