Black Pumas And Alanis Morissette Impress At Pitchfork Music Fe

“I’m having too much fun!” declared Black Pumas frontman Eric Burton on stage Friday night, in the shadow of United Center on Chicago’s near west side as the Pitchfork Music Festival got underway in Union Park. “Chicago!”

Few major festivals take as many chances in their bookings as Pitchfork, with the festival offering up a rewarding slate of eclectic early performances set against the picturesque Chicago skyline as well as headlining sets by artists like soul outfit Black Pumas, a rare U.S. DJ set by Jamie xx and 90s alternative stalwart Alanis Morissette.

At many music festivals, sets buried as early in the day as 1 PM local time tend to roll by sparsely attended. But Pitchfork’s single most endearing quality since 2006 remains in their meticulous curation, offering serious music fans the opportunity to catch incredible sounds before they begin gurgling beneath the mainstream radar.

Featuring members of Eleventh Dream Day and Tortoise, Black Duck functions as something of a local supergroup and their ethereal, instrumental sounds were resplendent early on day one at Pitchfork 2024, giving way to powerful local rap duo Angry Blackmen, who took the stage in support of their latest studio album The Legend of ABM while offering up a lesson in classic hip-hop call-and-response over the course of 40 minutes on the Red Stage.

“You all a little stiff, Chicago,” joked rapper Quentin Branch of the early, day one festival crowd, making his way back to the stage after mixing it up with fans situated along the front guardrail. “But we’ll get there.”