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Is there any sight that warms the heart of a rock band more than a sea of upraised middle fingers? That’s the scene that greeted recently reformed British shoegaze pioneers My Bloody Valentine midway through their Saturday night set at All Points West Festival in New Jersey’s Liberty State Park.

(Photos live from All Points West: My Bloody Valentine, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and more.)

Though the gesture was mainly the response of impatient Tool fans reacting viscerally to My Bloody Valentine’s measured, enveloping music, it also handily summed up the mood of the day, one where a lion’s share of the music could be characterized by either ticked-off or tempestuous. If All Points West was a trilogy, Saturday would be its darker second installment.

(Read our report on Tool’s Day Two headlining set here.)

The clear skies and blazing sun were a welcome respite from Friday’s torrents of rain, but large expanses of thick, gooey mud and large pools of collected rainwater still made traipsing the festival grounds a singularly unpleasant experience. By the end of the day one of the larger patches of mud was spotted with several pairs of abandoned flip-flops, helpless victims of the greedy muck.

In theory, Saturday’s roster made a strange kind of sense: Tool are no one’s idea of a conventional metal band, so placing them at the end of a day filled with artists known for their sonic restlessness should have allowed for a welcome dismantling of musical borders. But instead of a warm musical reciprocity, what occurred mostly was separation. Liberty State Park was suspiciously underpopulated for most of the day, most of the acts being greeted with either indifference or hostility — like, for example, that My Bloody Valentine single-finger salute.

Which, to be fair, did not arrive without provocation. Part of the magic of a My Bloody Valentine show is the way the band members — all the while passive and distant — seem to take an impish thrill in pushing their audience to the physical breaking point. Saturday’s show featured their trademark gazillion-decibel onslaught, the twin guitars of Kevin Shields and an eerily trancelike Blinda Butcher punctured by Colm Ó Cíosóig’s astonishing, artillery-style percussion. Even by conservative standards, it was one of the day’s best performances — shocking and transfixing.

Sheffield pranksters Arctic Monkeys have gone a bit grouchy lately, too. They opened their manic set with a barrage of minor-key numbers: “This House is a Circus” was stormy and cataclysmic, frontman Alex Turner bending an endless stream of harsh notes from his guitar. Ditto “If You Were There, Beware,” an imposing sculpture built from jagged, twisting riffs. With a mane of unruly black hair and a severe gaze, Turner has begun to take on the demeanor of a young George Harrison. “I’d like to lighten the mood a little,” he announced before “Flourescent Adolescent.” The sudden shift in tone was welcome.

St. Vincent — Annie Clark to her parents — keeps her anger more expertly repressed. Her tight, toothy set was full of songs with frustrated protagonists: bored housewives, lying actors. Augmented by a flutist, violinist and oboist, Clark reinvented songs from her spellbinding new record Actor, using distortion to warp her butterfly voice, ratcheting up tempos and attacking choruses with impish glee. “You kind of resign yourself to the fact that it may not be the most nuanced performance you give, but it will make up for it in energy,” she explained to RS earlier in the day. “Luckily, I have two albums now, so I have some more rocking, uptempo stuff to draw from. As I was making this record, I knew I wanted to make songs that were more guitar-driven.” Fittingly, Clark’s prowess was on full display: she turned a cover of the Beatles’ “I Dig a Pony” into an opportunity to show off her nimble guitar work, lacing up the center of the song with slick, silvery runs.

The darkness in Neko Case’s songs comes mostly from heartbreak, and was expertly offset by the sharp wit of co-vocalist Kelly Hogan. Hogan acted as a surrogate frontwoman for Case, supplying wry between-song banter, at one point referencing black metal band Venom. Case and Hogan have the perfect partnership: Hogan schticks it up so Case can simply emote. Case’s voice is a wild, remarkable thing, and on Saturday she simply tilted her head back and let it come rolling out, shooting up the center of songs like “That Teenage Feeling” and “Maybe Sparrow” like a bottle rocket on the Fourth of July.

Gogol Bordello didn’t court darkness so much as embrace the inevitability of disaster. Their revved-up Balkan punk sounded like the last dance before the apocalypse, and marked the first instance of audience participation the entire afternoon. Chalk most of that up to frontman Eugene Hutz. He’s a dynamo, leaping and kicking and lunging his way across the stage, often yanking himself from one end of it to the other by the neck of his guitar or standing near the edge, egging on the eager crowd.

Hutz wasn’t the only one given to a bit of audience baiting. “Are you guys here to see Tool?” Judah Friedlander asked early in the afternoon. After receiving the anticipated applause, he added: ” ‘Cause I just beat up the whole band. Bunch of pussies.”

More All Points West ‘09

• Jay-Z Breaks Out Blizzard of Hits, Pays Tribute to Michael Jackson at All Points West
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Vampire Weekend Rescue Rainy All Points West With High-Energy Sets

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Tags: Arctic Monkeys, Clear Skies, Conventional Metal, Finger Salute, guitar, Helpless Victims, Liberty State Park, Middle Fingers, Muck, Music, Musical Borders, My Bloody Valentine, Park Photos, Provocation, Rainwater, Reciprocity, Restlessness, Strange Kind, Tool Fans, Unpleasant Experience, Welcome Respite, Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Denver, Colorado’s the Fray recently stopped by the Rolling Stone studios in New York with acoustic instruments in hand to play a few tracks off their chart-topping second album The Fray. Up top, the Mile High quartet perform an intimate take on their recent hit “You Found Me,” which topped over 2 million digital downloads. The Fray also treated our cameras played an unplugged version of their self-titled’s “Say When,” and frontman Isaac Slade wrapped up our session with a moving solo cover of Joan Osborne’s “St. Teresa.” Check out those two performances after the jump.

Rolling Stone has said the Fray’s piano rock “suggests a more earnest, less arty Coldplay,” but the band proved they can soldier on without the keys during our unplugged session. These three videos should be enough to hold over fans until next Monday, when the Fray appear on the July 27th episode of The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien to showcase a track off their self-titled album.

Fray guitarist Joe King also made headlines recently when he entered the studio with American Idol Season Eight winner Kris Allen to work on tracks for Allen’s debut album. Allen had previously covered the Fray’s rendition of Kanye West’s “Heartless” during his Idol drive. As Rock Daily wrote in June, Allen approached King about working together, to which King simply responded, “Yes.” The collaboration reportedly produced a few demos and at the very least, a great melody, according to King, who wouldn’t elaborate on the potential song’s title.

“Say When”

Joan Osborne’s “St. Teresa”

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Tags: american idol, coldplay, denver colorado, guitar, guitarist joe, instrument, joan osborne, kanye west, Music, piano rock, rolling stone

Photo: Devaney/WireImage

• Paul McCartney made an historic return to the Ed Sullivan Theater — atop David Letterman’s marquee — for a mini-set that stunned New Yorkers below. The city’s inhabits were shocked again by the Dead Weather’s ferocious set at a tiny downtown gallery.

• Ozzy Osbourne announced he’s dropping guitarist Zakk Wylde, while Slash revealed Velvet Revolver are still looking for a singer. And Ace Frehley revealed he’s not looking for a Gene Simmons.
• A trio of divas made headlines: Mariah Carey put out her “Obsessed” video, Whitney Houston revealed her album cover and new songs, and Shakira shared the inspiration behind her howling electro hit “She Wolf.”
• In more somber news, video from Michael Jackson’s ill-fated 1984 Pepsi commercial shoot leaked, showing the singer aflame. Autopsy results for the singer have also been delayed by two weeks, the L.A. coroner reported.
• Trent Reznor discussed the future of NIN and ex-Panic! at the Disco members promised to focus on the Beach Boys and Kinks for future projects.

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Tags: david letterman, ed sullivan theater, gene simmons, guitar, Music, ozzy osbourne, paul mccartney, whitney houston

 

   Yes, it was a home run that sparked those fireworks high above Citi Field Friday night – not from one of the usual sources, but from pop music’s most-dependable slugger, Sir Paul McCartney.

   The blasts that punctuated “Live and Let Die,” both on the massive stage set up in centerfield and above it, served as a not-so-subtle reminder that the man who ushered in the era of stadium rock in 1965, when The Beatles made history by playing Shea Stadium, was in town to christen another stadium. In true McCartney fashion, though, that bombastic statement was followed by a bit of aw-shucks theatrics, some pretending that all the smoke got in his eyes and that he really wasn’t worth all that fuss.
    That’s the thing about McCartney that often gets lost in the shuffle – his incredible sense of balance. His set pulled from the first Beatles hits to his recent experimental album done under the pseudonym The Fireman, masterfully navigating that tightrope of playing what he wanted to play and what the bulk of his fans wanted to hear.
    Few artists would see the connection between the cranky strut of The Fireman’s “Highway” and the lush orchestrated ballad “The Long and Winding Road,” but McCartney effortlessly makes that transition, along with welding the present to the past.
    “Long time since I was here,” McCartney said. “I’ve got a feeling that we’re going to have a little bit of fun tonight.”

   He often reminded the crowd how no one could hear anything when The Beatles first played Shea Stadium. This time, though, the acoustics were a little better.
    And actually, so is McCartney.
    Harmonies sweetened a revved-up “Jet.” Bluesy guitar and organ built a new groove on “Let Me Roll It,” which got a dose of Jimi Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady.” “Paperback Writer” developed a bit of a punk snarl and honky-tonk piano riffs freshened “The Long and Winding Road.” Billy Joel, who invited McCartney to perform at the final concert at Shea Stadium last year, served as the special guest during a raucous “I Saw Her Standing There.”
    McCartney was careful to pay tribute to those who helped get him to where he is, dedicating “My Love” to his late wife Linda, a ukelele version of “Something” to George Harrison and the poignant “Here Today” to John Lennon, whose “Give Peace a Chance” also became part of “A Day in the Life.”
    But when he made a jarring turn from the lovely “Yesterday” to the wild “Helter Skelter” seem elegant? That was a true sign of a master at work.

SETLIST: Drive My Car / Jet / Only Mama Knows / Flaming Pie / Got To Get You Into My Life / Let Me Roll It/Purple Haze / Highway / The Long and Winding Road / My Love / Blackbird / Here Today / Dance Tonight / Calico Skies / Mrs. Vanderbilt / Eleanor Rigby / Sing the Changes / Band on the Run / Back in the U.S.S.R. / I’m Down / Something / I’ve Got a Feeling / Paperback Writer / A Day in the Life/Give Peace a Chance / Let It Be / Live and Let Die / Hey Jude // ENCORES: Day Tripper / Lady Madonna / I Saw Her Standing There (with Billy Joel) / Yesterday / Helter Skelter / Get Back / Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band/The End

PHOTO: Paul McCartney at Citi Field from Associated Press.

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Tags: guitar, long and winding road, Music, shea stadium, sir paul mccartney

3:42 p.m.: They carry the casket out while "Man in the Mirror" plays.

3:40 p.m.: Paris Katharine Jackson: ‘I just wanted to say ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine. I just wanted to say I love him so much.’

3:33 p.m.: "Heal the World," with the family onstage. It’s nice to know his kids know the words.

3:25 p.m.: "We Are the World"

3:18 p.m.: Shaheen Jafargholi, from "Britain’s Got Talent," is knocking out "Who’s Lovin’ You"

3:15 p.m.: Smokey Robinson: ‘That’s my little brother over there. You just don’t think you’ll live to see him gone. He will never really be gone. He is going to live forever and ever and ever and ever.’

3:08 p.m.: Usher sings Jackson’s "Gone Too Soon," touching Jackson’s casket and breaking down in tears.

3:00 p.m.: Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee takes a subtle swipe at Rep. Peter King’s anti-Jackson comments. "We understand the Constitution. We understand laws."

2:54 p.m.: Martin Luther King III: ‘Michael Jackson was truly the best of what he was.’

2:47 p.m.: Jermaine Jackson sings "Smile," the Charlie Chaplin song that was Michael Jackson’s favorite.

2:39 p.m.: Brooke Shields: "To us, it was the most natural and easiest of friendships… We would have fun no matter where we were. We had a bond."

2:34 p.m.: John Mayer plays "Human Nature," letting his guitar play Jackson’s vocal line

2:31 p.m.: Sharpton: "I want his children to know, there was nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what he had to deal with, but he dealt with it."

2:27 p.m.: The Rev. Al Sharpton: "It was that dream that changed culture all over the world… He opened up the music world. It was Michael Jackson that brought blacks and whites and Latinos and Asians together."

2:20 p.m.: Jennifer Hudson is belting out "Will You Be There"

2:09 p.m.: Stevie Wonder sings "I Never Dreamed You’d Leave in Summer."

2:02 p.m.: Berry Gordy gets a standing ovation after saying, "I feel the King of Pop is not big enough for him. I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that every lived."

PHOTO: Michael Jackson at his final tour rehearsal by Kevin Mazur of Getty Images.

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Tags: guitar, Music

Need to give your iPod a break after listening to the Dead Weather’s Horehound on repeat since its release Tuesday? Check out these exclusive acoustic performances by Alison Mosshart’s main project, the Kills. Rolling Stone recently caught up the Kills’ Mosshart and Jamie Hince in their hotel room in downtown NYC, with the pair performing intimate acoustic versions of their 2003 hit “Kissy Kissy” (above) and Willie Nelson’s “Crazy” (after the jump).

Even though the band is six years removed from their debut album Keep On Your Mean Side, Mosshart and Hince both unanimously agree it’s still their favorite material to play live. “We play so many things from that record live. ‘Kissy Kissy’ every night,” Mosshart says. “We tend to play more songs from Keep on Your Mean Side than we do on [2005’s] No Wow which is funny I think because we toured for No Wow so long we just were like, ‘OK, no more.’ Those songs were so important to us when we wrote them. It’s like that first thing. You’re so close to those things so I still love to play them.”

After spending the summer fronting the Dead Weather, Mosshart says she’ll be eager to get back to working on the next Kills LP. “This summer off and on I’m doing Dead Weather and then coming back we’re going to write and write just every moment we can,” Mosshart says, with Hince adding, “And record a record this year.”

The band say they’ve already begun working on new material, but won’t fully know what it’ll sound like until the employ their drum machine. “We’ll piece together things on an acoustic guitar, but as you know, that’s never how they end up. Soon as you get a drum machine involved, the whole feeling of it changes. It could be something like Big Black, or it could be something like Cabaret Voltaire,” Hince tells RS. “That’s what I love about drum machines. I think they’re far more liberating to work with.” As Mosshart can attest, however, having Jack White as your drummer isn’t a bad thing either.

Tags: guitar, Music