Meek’s guitar was completely lost in the mix, and on the softer songs they were completely drowned out by the booming bass of Yaeji who was playing at the opposite Blue Stage.
Unfortunately, the Red Stage had sound problems for most of the day, with Big Thief’s set no exception.
However, there was one crucial problem - they only sounded fantastic when you were able to hear them. They sounded absolutely fantastic, and there’s an argument to be made that they’re probably the best American rock band at the moment. Both sides of Big Thief were present on Friday night: the soft, folky stylings that played to the strengths of frontwoman Adrianne Lenker’s devastating voice and guitarist Buck Meek’s nimble fretwork, and then the guttural roar that the band can produce on songs like “Not”, or the unreleased “Dragon” that closed the set. And to their credit, they absolutely delivered. After 2019’s dual release of UFOF and Two Hands paired with the legendary tales of their live show, this was their chance to take it to the next level with a sub-headlining set that could elevate them to headliner status at the next go-around. Big Thief’s set on the Red Stage was supposed to be a coronation of sorts.