Pitchfork Music Festival Entertainment Art Union Park Chicago, Il July 18-20, 2008

Day one, collaboration with the UK fest All Tomorrow’s Parties, featured Public Enemy, Sebadoh and Mission of Burma - each performing a career-defining album in its entirety.

Extreme humidity and an undersized crowd greeted 2006 PMF alums Mission of Burma as the band overcame opening slot sound issues to turn in an impressive take on 1982’s Vs. By the time the three-piece reached the album’s razor-sharp “New Nails,” they were on a roll. A shout-out to Barak Obama before endsong “That’s How I Escaped My Certain Fate” won the audience over completely.

Next up was Sebadoh, another notable trio, slated to perform 1993’s Bubble & Scrape. A delightfully ramshackle “Fantastic Disaster” proved to be a highlight, but mistuned instruments and the band’s derisive on-stage banter drove me to look up old friends scattered throughout the audience.

Friday’s headliners, Public Enemy, brought the noise with a revalidation of 1988’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. MC Chuck D rocked two microphones and a pair of gym shorts like nobody’s business, while toaster Flava Flav proved his worth in salt as a “hype man,” even if he is currently living down his celebrity as a sitcom sensation. A bumpin’ “Don’t Believe the Hype” and the critical call and response of “She Watch Channel Zero?!” stole the show and capped of an exciting “day one.” An invite from Bottom Lounge owner Mike Miller to attend an after party meant that there was free beer, industry elbow rubbing and, ultimately, the spectacle of drunken karaoke just a few short blocks away.

I reentered the gates at Union Park at 3 p.m. on Saturday and made my way to the “Aluminum Stage” to check out Seattle’s Fleet Foxes. The band’s good humor, gorgeous three and four-part harmonies and bowed guitar made for a winning set, despite the post-rain mud.

For the next hour I visited with local artist Shawn Smith at his booth and hung out in the press tent. At 5 p.m. I headed back to the “A” Stage for the much-hyped and very collegiate Vampire Weekend. Relatively clean sound and the band’s penchant for catchy pop meant that fan favorites like “Mansard Roof” and “I Stand Corrected” went down easily with little to no aftertaste.

As my palate was clean, I grabbed a tasty chicken sausage from Big Bite Catering and watched Les Savy Fav singer Tim Harrington give brave festivalgoers $2 haircuts. The next day I found him wearing cutoff hot pants and very little else on the “Connector Stage.”

A short walk to the smaller “Balance Stage” was rewarded with fiery guitar and heavy percussion courtesy of the African/American collaboration Extra Golden. Their “Obama,” named after a certain presidential candidate, who helped the band’s Kenyan members to obtain visas, was an absolute highlight.

Jarvis Cocker’s 8 p.m. “C” Stage set was an education on how British “jacket rock” ought to be done. The slinky, bespectacled Pulp front man wowed the audience with a Stonesy “Caucasian Blues,” the darkly humorous “Fat Children” and a “Crimson and Clover”-cribbed “Black Magic.”

I closed out the night entranced by Animal Collective’s set before heading back to the Bottom Lounge, where I saw local post-punk band A/V Murder turn in the set of the weekend and King Khan and the Shrines explode rock and soul with gleeful abandon.

Day number three found Union Park hot and stinky, but The Apples in Stereo proved to be the necessary spoonful of sugar to keep me from hiding in the press tent. Their set was chock-full of infectious pop and the audience favorite “Go” could not have been sweeter.

I then damned the blistering sun, sat on a blanket with old friends and shopped for records and toys in the CHIRP Record Fair/DEPART-ment clothing & craft tents.

I hit up Big Bite again, this time for delicious pulled pork tacos, and found some shade to watch M. Ward’s performance. The singer-songwriter was pleasant enough when he was playing solo acoustic guitar, but really came to life with the addition of a backing band. A rollicking “Sad, Sad Song” was a top moment.

Spiritualized was up next, and the band’s intense acid rock turned on a dime to incorporate bits of gospel and country. Two amazing, female back-up singers added a soulful dynamic to Jason Pierce’s (ex-Spacemen 3) propensity for freaked out guitar and the bar was set high for the rest of the night.

Alas, a long weekend had taken its toll, and I called it a night as a reunited Dinosaur Jr. welcomed the dusk. Unfavorable weather conditions and impending middle age not withstanding, I’ll head to Union Park next year knowing that Pitchfork has the “summer festival” down to a science.

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