After two days of spectacular weather, Governors Ball couldn’t quite escape its reputation for being cursed by rain Sunday.
But unlike years past, when severe weather would cancel shows or turn Randall’s Island into a muddy swamp, the third and final day of Gov Ball 2017 was merely drizzly. While many festivalgoers donned waterproof ponchos, the weather did little to damper the overall spirit of the performances.
Warpaint kicked off the gray Sunday with brooding indie rock, which was only enhanced by the weather. The all-female foursome from Los Angeles drew a rapt crowd, and their fuzzed out guitars, reverb-drenched vocals and propulsive beats had a hypnotic power over the audience.
Governors Ball Music Festival 2017
Guitar-driven indie rock continued to reign at the Honda stage for Canadian singer-songwriter Mac DeMarco. Known for his goofball personality and sleepy, soft rock style, DeMarco came to the stage with a cigarette in one hand and Miller Lite in the other and constantly being in the news.
As Gambino finally took the stage on Randall’s Island, I became overwhelmed with nostalgia. As he ripped through classics like “Sober,” “3005” and “Standing Tall” from his latest albums, I couldn’t help but consider how much I have matured since I started listening to him. The feelings only intensified when Gambino suggested that his next album would be his last. Although Glover has not further elaborated on this, since he has a TV program to produce and two major roles in upcoming Hollywood blockbusters, this could be the last we see of his alter ego Childish Gambino for some time.
Gambino’s crowd was huge despite the fact that he was playing at a smaller stage than Phoenix, the other headliner. This showman, Gambino, however, would not be outdone by anyone. As he seemed to near the end of his set, rather than playing his final song Gambino prompted the DJ to help him tell an impromptu story. “I didn’t want to do this show anywhere else because I love New York summer nights because it’s house party weather,” Gambino said.
He proceeded to tell a story of how at the end of a house party he had attempted to play the perfect song to get a woman to come home with him even as the host was trying to get him to leave. On Saturday after setting up a few songs with his Randall’s Island DJ to demonstrate just how he tried to impress that woman, Gambino finally ended the story: The host brought him into her room to yell at him but then turned on the sexiest song to make love to.
And Saturday night just as Gambino concluded his spontaneous monologue, the fireworks ending the “Phoenix” set shot up into the air and Gambino started his finale with the sexiest song to make love to. So as I watched Glover brilliantly close out his set with the crowd-pleasing “Redbone” in perfect sync with the festival fireworks, I considered what the end of Gambino means.