Girl Tones kicked things off at Orion, and they were a phenomenal way to start. Two sisters jamming out and making genuinely good rock music, throwing energy at a small but growing crowd as people were drawn in by their magnetic presence. That’s a hard thing to pull off in a noon slot. Orion had a rotating stage, a smart production choice by the festival. Sound check happened out of view while the previous band was still playing, so turnarounds between acts ran five to ten minutes. It kept the early afternoon moving at a clip. This Is Lorelei were up next, and payed a handful of catchy tracks. Nate Amos has gift of writing catchy hooks, as witnessed in the numerous artists that have covered his songs. Porches followed with their own unique sounds; albeit a bit on the maudlin side, it had some real texture to it. Their track “Daddies” was a real highlight.

Whitney was a band I had been following for a while without ever catching live. They’re a seriously talented group and deserve a lot more attention they get. Right after Whitney was Matt and Kim, who obliterated the stage. It was my first time seeing them live and I will never miss another set of theirs. Kim’s energy is bigger than any other performer I have ever watched. From atop her drumkit, Kim held up a Budweiser, as if to lead a toast, before jumping off and into Gold Ol’ Fashion Nightmare. She never once let on that the heat had registered with her as she twerked around to FredAgain while Matt bounced around his keys. Near the end they launched four massive beach balls into the crowd, easily ten feet across, as fans fought to keep them in the air. They truly had the best performance of the day, and it wasn’t close.

Following was STRFKR who rarely miss, in their performances or albums. Their sound is remarkably consistent, and so is their show. They brought two dancers out dressed as astronauts (god bless them, I still don’t understand how they managed it in that heat). By this point the field had started organizing itself around shade. Everywhere I looked there were tight clusters of people pressed into whatever cover they could find, skinny trees casting a strip of a shadow, backs of sound tents, or fence lines. The crowds were great all day, but through the afternoon they were noticeably muted and slower.

The back half of the day was where the scheduling started forcing decisions. Sets ran up against each other, and slipping out early to catch the front end of something else became a regular move. I caught only a few songs of EKKSTACY, a band I came in knowing nothing about, and left wanting more. Very grunge, very punk, and very SoCal, which I was immediately into. From there I ducked over to Stardust for Twin Peaks, who played “Butterfly,” one of my favorites of theirs. It has been a while since they’ve performed in LA, and it was good to have them back out and moving again.

This is Lorelei at Just Like Heaven Festival photo by David Saxum

Dayglow was the one disappointment. The band didn’t seem to have much energy, which the heat might explain, and the vocals just weren’t strong enough to carry the set. I had been hoping for more. Feist more than made up for it. She is special in a way that’s hard to overstate. Gentle, engaging, emotionally direct without ever turning harsh, her expert touch feels like she’s in the room with you rather than performing at you. Her lyricism is thoughtful and personal but easy to connect to.

The Rapture were another band I came in cold on and left a fan of. Formed in New York in 1998, they were forerunners of the dance-punk revival, and their 2003 album Echoes came out on DFA, the label co-founded by James Murphy. They went quiet for years before returning recently, and they clearly haven’t lost anything. The drummer was killer, driving both the crowd and the rest of the band with relentless energy behind the kit.

Which made the timing of LCD Soundsystem’s set at Orion feel almost deliberate, given Murphy’s fingerprints on the band that played an hour earlier. Their set was insane. A massive disco ball came down and lit the night up like a lighthouse beacon. The stage looked crowded with that many members and instruments, and honestly an hour isn’t enough for a catalog that deep, but neither slowed them down. “Dance Yourself Clean,” “North American Scum,” and “Tonite” all hit. Chromeo took Stardust afterward, and while their music isn’t really my style, the set was great. They lean all the way into the chrome look, right down to the guitars, and their electro-funk was a good complement to what LCD had just done.

The Strokes closed Orion with Julian being typical Julian, talking a lot and taking the piss to charge people up. He made a few remarks about LCD Soundsystem, that he thought they had retired, that theirs was the worst performance at Just Like Heaven, all obviously in jest. The crowd spanned every age and demographic I could think of, and by then the sun was finally gone and everyone had energy again. “Reptilia,” “Someday,” and “The Adults Are Talking” were the highlights for me. Just Like Heaven’s bill runs veterans, alongside bands still building an audience, well welcoming back bands getting into it again after years away. Because of this setup, I got a great hit of nostalgia while discovering some new favorites.

Words and photos by David Saxum

The Rapture at Just Like Heaven Festival photo by David Saxum

More info on Jus Like Heaven Festival HERE