The 2011 Pitchfork Music Festival
Katjusa Cisar/Flickr
They're fighting the powers that be.
Summer in Chicagoland is packed with events, all of which are just teeming with people. All of these things—well, for the most part—are crazy fun, packed with bands, and food, and beer. But what can we learn from these events beyond the fact that Sixteen Candles is a hell of a cover band, or that it’s relatively easy to sneak beer into a street festival?
This summer, The A.V. Club aims to really gather some information from all of this madness. Hence, the Summer Survey. We’ll be stopping strangers at events all over town and grilling them about who they are, where they’re from, and just what kind of stuff they’re into. What better way to get to know our Windy City neighbors, right?
Hang on tight, though, because the results may surprise you.
Survey stop No. 7: This past weekend’s Pitchfork Music Festival
What’s the most “ironic” thing you’ve seen this weekend?
“The guy walking around in a dog suit.” —Martin
“That guy in the dog costume got all bummed when we didn’t react to him. He came up and started waving, and I was like ‘Do you know that guy?’” —Mike
“Guy in fur Wilfred the dog costume.” —Freda
“That two wasted guys are getting surveyed, when you should be surveying the guy in the dog costume instead.” —Jordan C.
"There’s that guy with pigtail braids and a baby boy balloon with a sticker of some naked people on it.” —Rob
“A lot of nerdy white dudes getting into it.” —Cristina
“I’ve seen a couple of guys wearing thongs instead of pants—translucent, white thongs.” —Susannah
“I saw a bunch of moms dancing with their babies in a cloud of weed, and I was like, ‘But those are babies.’” —Asia
“I saw Danny Pudi from Community walking around.” —Terry
“I saw Spiderman moshing at No Age.” —Danny
“I saw a girl in jeans and a long-sleeve T-shirt. That’s shocking!” —Catherine
“There’s that guy with the angel wings.” —Rachel
“Can I vote for you?” —Patrick
“Old men on ATVs, and shirtless guy with undone overalls on a bike.” —Mike
“Guy in full tie-dye outfit.” —Amanda
“Guy in full cowboy sheriff outfit.” —Nick
“Guy wearing jersey of an obscure, really bad basketball player.” —Mike
“Tea Party T-shirts: I saw one with the ‘Don’t Tread’ snake with a Pikachu.” —Emma
“I ironically expected people to dress more ironically.” —Duane
“A Polaroid camera tattoo and the Axe body spray tent.” —Alex
“The girl in Twin Sister’s hair.” —Leah
“We live in a post-ironic society.” —Jill
“Old, sleepy women snoozing on the grass during really loud performances.” —Jessica J., Gavin D., and Steve D.
“They charge for water on Friday, knock down the price on Saturday, and hand it out for free on Sunday.” —Jake R. and Nick C.
“So many babies and strollers. These people can afford tickets to Pitchfork, but they can’t pay for a babysitter?” —Ellen Y.
“A beer ... only costs three more dollars than a bottle of water.” —Melissa F.
“An independent music festival being sponsored by Heineken, a major beer company.” —Ken M.
“People wearing cut-off capri overalls with one strap on, one strap off.” —Emily M.
“A seagull flapping its wings in time with the music during the Battles concert. The animals can be just as, or more, into the music as the people.” —Dick L.
“A girl with a velvet, partly see-through dress, covered in body paint.” —Katy H.
“Nothing, because I was expecting to see something ironic today and I haven’t yet.” —James B.
“Everything, because everything is ironic all the time.” —Esten S.
“When the best team loses the World Cup.” —Tanya K.
“Losing the World Cup.” —Mike B.
“Two white people dancing really crazily, with their child sitting on the blanket watching them.” —Daniel O. and Steph R.
“Hearing somebody ask, ‘Who organized the festival?’” —Sarah K. and Alyssa K.
“Gangs of white, teen boys jumping the fence to see Odd Future for free.” —Brad T. and Shirley M.
