MUNA looks for 'moments of joy' in Pitchfork performance: Day 3 reviews and photos (2024)

As the final day of Pitchfork got underway Sunday, it was hard to tune into the music rather than the loud chatter circling the park. Just before the first act of the day took the stage, President Joe Biden made the announcement that he would not be seeking re-election.

“Hey did you hear about Biden?” Chicago Votes could be heard asking passersby to its booth near the Blue Stage. A new partner for Pitchfork Festival this year, the organization is described as a non-partisan non-profit “on a mission to make democracy fun and equitable by engaging and developing a new generation of leaders from all corners of the city.” Reps at the booth were handing out stickers to children, engaging adults in conversation, and confirmed they had registered more than 100 new voters as of publication.

In addition to talking up the national election, the group also encourages Chicagoans to be informed and take part in local balloting as well. Of the other activations drawing in a healthy crowd, the large Nespresso iced coffee lounge continued to be a hit, particularly as the final day began with some of the warmest and most humid conditions of the weekend.

Pitchfork in photos

Kayla Brill, left, and Lindsey Hardison enjoy some wine while sitting on a blanket in Union Park during the first day of Pitchfork, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Gabe Villalleal dances along with ML Buch as they perform on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Festival goers enjoy Angry Blackmen on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Payton Reich/Sun-Times

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New large VIP viewing platforms sit in front of the Green stage obscuring the view of the stage around the lawn of Union Park on the first day of Pitchfork Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Festival goers beat the heat by taking shade the trees at Union Park during the first day of Pitchfork, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Festival goers enjoy Angry Blackmen on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Carro Sharkey, left, and Stevie Gunter dance and sway to ML Buch as they perform on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Festival goers enjoy the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Stevie Gunter, left, dances with Carro Sharkey as Tkay Maidza performs on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Joan Harris and Lavvlo Collins pose for a photo on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Festival goers enjoy the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Angry Balckmen performs on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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See Also

Black Pumas And Alanis Morissette Impress At Pitchfork Music FestivalPitchfork Music Festival 2024: The Full RecapPitchfork Music Festival 2024: Our picks for the must-see bands, plus what else to knowMUNA in 'a sweet spot' as trio arrives for Pitchfork Music Festival show

Festival goers enjoy the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Angry Balckmen performs on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

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Sudan Archives performs on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Black Pumas performs on the first day of Pitchfork in Union Park, Friday, July 19, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Festival goers enjoy music under sunny skies on Pitchfork Day 2 in Union Park, July 20, 2024. | Peyton Reich/Sun-Times

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A fan dances at Pitchfork Music Festival in Union Park, July, 20, 2024. | Peyton Reich/Sun-Times

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Kids and adults rock out during Pitchfork Day 2 in Union Park, July 20, 2024. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

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Fans dance in the crowd during Pitchfork Day 2 in Union Park, July 20, 2024. | Peyton Reich/Sun-Times

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Akenya

People were slowly starting to trickle their way into Union Park as Chicago’s own Akenya took the Green Stage, blanketing the field with her mighty yet warm vocal power. The multi-disciplined talent was a formidable gateway to the feminine energy forthcoming in the park today with acts like Nala Sinephro, Jessica Pratt, Mannequin puss*, MUNA, Brittany Howard and of course the music mother herself, Alanis Morissette (carrying over from last night’s Carly Rae Jepsen-Jessie Ware-Bratmobile trifecta).

“Chicago, is it hotter than July up in here?” Akenya said, poking at the sweltering summer day. Joined by a skilled four-piece backup band and three ebullient backup vocalists, Akenya was a total maestra leading the ensemble into a harmonious delivery of gospel, R&B, soul, hip-hop and jazz.

Peyton Reich/ Sun-Times

Her reputation as a go-to music director for a slew of contemporaries (including Chicago rapper Noname) and also a frequent collaborator of Chance the Rapper and even Mavis Staples preceded Akenya’s set, as she came into her own well-deserved spotlight. “Is it alright if I move over to the piano and get a little intimate?” she asked before showing off another of her talents.

Among the standouts of the set was the new single “Hades Moon,” which appeared to be a live debut. It will be included on her forthcoming debut LP “Moon in the 4th,” alluded to with the celestial imagery in the backdrop behind the musical outfit. There was also her biggest single to date, “Decay,” delivered with aplomb. “Thank you all for over a million streams,” she said to preface the song.

Exiting the stage with the same confidence she entered it, Akenya left little doubt she will be one of the next musical names to hit big. —Selena Fragassi

Nala Sinephro

“Thank you so much everyone for being here! This is my first time performing in America!” said experimental jazz artist Nala Sinephro on stage Sunday at Pitchfork Music Festival.

Those were just about the only words spoken by Sinephro over the course of her time on the Blue Stage.

Sinephro’s performance stands out as a terrific example of the historically diverse bookings at Pitchfork, one of the few major American festivals willing to stage a 45-minute instrumental jazz performance on a festival main stage.

Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Moving deftly between harp and modular synthesizer, Sinephro was backed by an incredibly tight three-piece group featuring drums, saxophone and additional keys during a set largely defined by unthinkable improvisation and subtle, nonverbal cues.

Pausing 23 minutes in, Sinephro turned, looking to her right, as she motioned a thank you to the passionate early Sunday audience.

Beginning on harp, she coaxed an array of sounds from one of the world’s oldest stringed instruments, veering between delicately plucked, but quiet moments, and more manic noise which almost sounded more like a violin.

Turning, Sinephro manipulated sound even further via the modular synthesizer, emitting an array of interplanetary, cosmic sounds throughout the set.

This was not the laughable smooth jazz of FM radio. It was an intense, thought-provoking performance that helps to push the jazz genre forward in 2024.

On the harp, Sinephro, who will release her second studio album “Endlessness” this September, conjured up images of Alice Coltrane. As the set cruised toward finish, saxophone and intense drumming created a sense of urgency that would’ve fit right into a live performance of John Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme.” —Jim Ryan

Model/Actriz

Not everything has to be a competition, of course, but when it comes to the best set of Pitchfork Festival Weekend 2024, Model/Actriz definitely was in contention.

The Brooklyn quartet, by way of Boston, is a fireball of performance-art power — so much so they should be studied by bands of the future for how to expertly command an audience. Alluring frontman Cole Haden literally had Union Park on its knees at one point (even scolding his own father in the crowd to get down).

Peyton Reich/Sun-Times

Haden spent much of the set deep in the crowd, stalking willing victims and getting inches from people’s faces, either staring them down for a full minute without breaking character or loudly reciting lyrics in their ears. His “Mommie Dearest” shtick, donning a white scarf, dark sunglasses and red lipstick that he kept applying, only made the whole thing seem more like a bona fide thriller. Just not one that anyone wanted to run away from.

Since the 2023 release of debut album “Dogsbody,” Model/Actriz has been on the lips of many who applaud the band’s queer themes, unstigmatized poetry and sheer noise — especially anyone who has seen the group live. It’s not just Haden, either; guitarist Jack Wetmore, bassist Aaron Shapiro and drummer Ruben Radlauer are just as pleasantly punishing with an aural assault of post-punk, noise rock and industrial fury on tracks like the let-loose “Mosquito.”

If Haden is the eyes and soul, the three musicians are the backbone that makes sure everything keeps from toppling over into farce. Like the Warhols of the New York art scene and the Bowie iconoclasts of the music world, the band is gunning for singular-name status. Rumor is Model/Actriz is working on new music, so it shouldn’t be too much longer now. —Selena Fragassi

Grandmaster Flash

“He’s known as the first DJ to make the turntable an instrument,” came the onstage announcement as Grandmaster Flash made his way to the stage Sunday afternoon in Union Park. “A 50-year love affair with the turntable and the fans.”

No Pitchfork set was more interactive this weekend than that of Grandmaster Flash, the artist and DJ known for his inventive techniques and exquisite mixes as well as his work at the helm of pioneering Rock and Roll Hall of Fame hip-hop outfit Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five.

While Sunday’s was technically a DJ set, it also functioned in autobiographical manner, with Flash dropping in anecdotes and stories not just about the music he spins but his life as well.

Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

“I grew up the youngest with four sisters,” explained Grandmaster Flash from the Red Stage Sunday afternoon, highlighting the manner in which his siblings exposed him to sounds ranging anywhere from classical to disco. “They helped me to understand that music should never have a color or a genre. There’s no way in hell that I’m gonna do a set and play one genre. Because she may love something that he may hate. So, I say f– - - it!”

True to his word, Grandmaster Flash followed up that mission statement with The Doobie Brothers, sending Michael McDonald’s resplendent lead vocal out across Union Park on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon in Chicago.

Elsewhere, he worked in everything from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Prince, even an isolated Freddie Mercury vocal track, as well as The Furious Five’s “The Message.”

“I had a wonderful time with you guys. I love you,” said Grandmaster Flash, closing out his Pitchfork set appropriately with a bit of Steam’s “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye,” long a rallying anthem for the White Sox. —Jim Ryan

MUNA

In 2019, indie pop band MUNA released the acclaimed album “Saves the World,” and the trio is still on that wavelength five years later. “We’re a queer band that wants the revolution and we know a lot needs to change for that to happen, but we need to find moments of joy and spaces where people come together,” singer Katie Gavin shared with a large, roaring crowd to wrap up a Sunday night Pitchfork set.

Few bands have been overtly political this weekend, especially given today’s historic developments in the presidential race. But MUNA spared no words. The singer, dressed in a barely-there sheer frock over a bikini (“I swear I thought this was a dress,” she joked), was not shy on making statements throughout the hourlong pop trip.

“We don’t know what’s going on in our country right now or what’s going to happen but we want to say ‘Free Palestine’ and free people everywhere,” Gavin added. Later, she discussed growing up in the Chicago area and coming to Pitchfork Music Festival “to impress boys, but it turns out I’m gay,” then dedicating the acoustic number “Kind of Girl” to MUNA’s trans fans and “Solid” to “any dykes that are here tonight.”

Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Pitchfork Festival has been touting one of its most LGBTQ+-friendly lineups ever, and MUNA was a great example of an out and proud band encouraging everyone to dance, sing and cheer along.

Currently on Phoebe Bridger’s label Saddest Factory, MUNA has been sitting on the brink of Top 40 stardom, notably opening for Taylor Swift and Harry Styles.

As the band’s star keeps ascending, a few members are breaking out into other projects too. Naomi McPherson will be making their acting debut in Jason Reitman’s “SNL 1975,” playing Janis Ian, and Gavin will soon be releasing her solo debut single “Aftertaste.”

“She’s responsible for breaking up the band, but the song’s good,” McPherson jokingly chided the singer. But, based on the visible camaraderie and chemistry, it’s fair to say that’s not happening any time soon. —Selena Fragassi

Les Savy Fav

Peyton Reich/Sun-Times

For any other band, starting the show with the frontman riding into the crowd on an electric scooter while wearing a neon print mumu and matching vibrant highlighter-yellow hair would be a complete head-turner. For Les Savy Fav, that’s an average Sunday.

Like the day’s earlier act Model/Actriz, Les Savy Fav is made up of New York art punk rockers who thrive off wacky performance hijinks, though they’ve been doing it a lot longer, since the mid-‘90s. And yet somehow madman frontman Tim Harrington has never lost steam. He may have been a bit more “tame” today than we’ve seen him before, like a totally unhinged performance at Riot Fest 2021, but there were still bizarre antics aplenty. Like attempts at “disappearing” magic tricks with a giant tarp, somersault nosedives into the ADA seating platform and zooming around the crowd like a banshee with an extended microphone cord close to tripping or decapitating a number of fans.

One said fan was Allison Wolfe of Bratmobile, who leaned into the microphone to scream along with Harrington.

There may have been even more that wasn’t totally visible — at the Blue Stage, there were no video screens to get a full view. But judging by the uproarious applause and the audience claustrophobically moving in closer, it was all well-received and in total agreement with Harrington’s DIY T-shirt that read, “I’m just happy to be here.” When he tore it off, the lettering carried over to his bare chest, too.

The musicians upstage kept the beat flowing the entire time, distractions be damned, particularly on songs like the new single “Limo Scene” from the just-released “Oui, LSF,” the band’s first album in 14 years. Perhaps the lag is due to the fact that two Les Savy Fav members, guitarist Seth Jabour and bassist Syd Butler, are part of the 8G Band along with Fred Armisen, better known as the house band for “Late Night With Seth Meyers.” The music troupe has been laid off for the upcoming season, perhaps giving the players more time to focus on their other day job.

—Selena Fragassi