Bonnaroo 2010: Day Two Report, Interviews And More

“Let’s get it started in here. Let’s get it started – ha!”

A theme emerged early on a hot and steamy Bonnaroo Friday. Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue were the first to take the stage, and got people moving with their cover of the Black Eyed Peas‘ “Get It Started.” Troy “Shorty” Andrews was but the first of many to flavor their Friday sets with a choice cover song.

More coverage after the jump.

The Flaming Lips were in on the gig too, with their late-night headline gig covering Pink Floyd‘s epic Dark Side of the Moon. Lead singer Wayne Coyne was on the scene early, popping up at This Tent and That Tent and taking in acts like She & Him.

She and Him

Umphrey’s McGee was in on the cover game too, busting out The Who‘s “Eminence Front” at the end of their set and taking it places Daltrey and Townshend never ventured. WXRT’s Marty Lennartz sat down with Ryan and Joel from Umphrey’s–stay tuned to WXRT’s Backstage at Bonnaroo page to watch the interview and find out what tunes UM did in their exclusive backstage performance.

Damian Marley covered father Bob in his set with Nas, who also worked in a hip-hop sample of the Eurythmics‘ “Sweet Dreams.” The duo then came together on the song “Count Your Blessings” from their new album Distant Relatives, with Marley singing “We in the West have taken some things for granted, like running water, electricity, and clean underwear.”

Beth Ditto of The Gossip

The Gossip didn’t cover any one song, but lead singer and mistress of ceremonies Beth Ditto teased everything from Lady Gaga to Talking Heads to Guns ‘N Roses in a rowdy, sweaty This Tent performance at the height of the hot Tennessee afternoon. Ditto told the crowd the story of their struggle to get to Bonnaroo after a cancelled flight from Amsterdam left the band delayed and stranded in Ohio, forcing to race to Manchester in a caravan of rented Tahoes.

Rush had their moment in the spotlight late Friday as well, when Les Claypool ended his set with “a tune that’s sadly underappreciated,” the aptly titled “Spirit of the Radio.” Claypool grinded through a spellbinding 90-minute set in the somewhat-remote Other Tent, and his adoring crowd hung on every word and mask change (at last count he had been a Monkey, a Pig, and either the Stork or Pinnoccio).

Matt Berringer of The National

Friday afternoon was all about The National, and their Which Stage set that drew massive crowds eager to hear tunes off their new album, High Violet. Lead singer Matt Berringer and guitarist Bryce Dessner sat down with Marty Lennartz for an XRT interview prior to their backstage performance earlier in the day. Keep your eyes on WXRT’s Backstage at Bonnaroo page to watch that interview and see more photos of the National in the Bonnaroo Day Two photo gallery.

Stay tuned for more music reports, including news from Friday’s late-nite extravaganza, a midnight to 4am marathon featuring the Flaming Lips, Bassnectar, LCD Soundsystem, Daryl Halland Chromeo, and B.o.B., plus the big Friday headline set from Kings of Leon.

See all Backstage at Bonnaroo coverage courtesy of our friends at WXRT, including tons of great interviews and special performances. You can even listen to interviews from bands like The xx, The Temper Trap and Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros.