Spring Break
Bonnaroos prepare to rock under the sun
Alexia Lang
Issue date: 6/1/09 Section: Culture
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With a wide range of options in terms of music, activities and camping amenities, Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival remains a popular destination for camping and music enthusiasts alike.
To be held June 11-14 in Manchester, Tenn., the festivities draw thousands of people each year.
Headliners this year include such big names as Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Wilco, Andrew Bird, Ben Harper and the Relentless7, Phish, Coheed and Cambria, Ani DiFranco, Girl Talk, Aziz Ansari and many, many more.
Andrew Bird is back at Bonnaroo this year after making quite an impression in 2006.
While in '06 he played only with Martin Dosh, Bird, who is well-known for his solo performances, said fans can expect a more sophisticated sound this year thanks to the addition of new band members.
"Well I've since, in the last two years, added Jeremy Ylvisaker playing guitar, and, most recently, Michael Lewis playing bass," Bird said.
"So it is a quartet now. But to kind of prove that it's - I wasn't really doing it in the first place to save manpower, because I'm still doing it just as much as I was when I was solo. It's just (got a whole) band contributing to it as well."
A fun twist to Bonnaroo is that comedians like Jimmy Fallon and Aziz Ansari have stage time too.
Ansari said having comedy complements the many different types of music.
"You know you can see like all these different genres and stuff you might as well be able to see some comedy," Ansari said.
"And there is such an overlap of the audiences like, you know, music fans and comedy fans that I guess it is kind of a cool thing for us to be able to perform for, you know, all these music fans."
Bonnaroo guests are not limited to comedy and music.
Other attractions include a 24-hour cinema, live television broadcasts, an arcade, a hair salon, a scratch DJ academy, Bonnaroo baseball, the Broo'ers Festival featuring 20 breweries, the Art of Such N Such show and more.
Whether you like to have fun in the sun or have it made in the shade, Bonnaroo has it covered for you.
Visit www.bonnaroo.com for more festival information.
alang@unews.com
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