Some last minute observations from Pitchfork: I was really, really exhausted around 3pm yesterday. I thought I was getting heat stroke. But it was the high of chasing Big Boi around the park that snapped me out of it (and maybe my new concoction of free mints, Clif bars and 6 mixed berry Amped energy drinks). At the end of the night, I could have done 3 more days. Book it. Next year, Pitchfork should be like 8 days.

• Big Boi was great. He skipped all the posturing, all the “Chicago are you ready!!!!!!” at the top of his set and just busted out on stage and started. He had something most of the other acts didn’t have, a set full of hits. Yeah, they were songs from Outkast but he didn’t go all artsy and just say he was doing his new solo work. Nope. Went right after all the tracks. He even brought up the same young breakdancers Raekwon did and for a performance almost appropriate for the 5-8 year olds.‚  That was, until he asked the audience to “show their racks” and then a little boy from the breakdancing crew also asked the ladies to “pull up their shirts.” Again, is it me? Am I full-blown adult now?
• When we did get the interview with Big Boi (up later), we met him in his trailer. He was pretty low-key, unimpressed with our crew until I explained to him the bit. We were going to fact-check his Wikipedia page. He lit up. He said “Yeah, there’s a bunch of bullsh*t on there!!!!!” He spent a good 2 of our 6 minutes talking about why he loves Billy Ocean. Sublime.
• I met a woman in the press tent who was interning for my former intern in Minneapolis. She said “You were my boss’s boss!!!!” My youth was hanging on by a thread. This killed it.
• Major Lazer was pretty awesome. I just heard them as I waited around for Big Boi, but they put on a show. And the best part? Their dancers. They were dressed in skimpy fatigues and they were all over the backstage. And, as evidenced in this wrap-up video, they weren’t shy.
• There are a ton of people to thank because they put in the work. First off, Kate Gardiner. Gardiner used to be an intern on the WBEZ City Room and now is working the social media for PBS NewsHour. She was shooting the event and boy did she work. I can’t say enough about how much she kicked ass this weekend. Almost every picture you see in our Pitchfork coverage was from her. She’s probably zonked out on a flight back to D.C. right now. Also, the video crew of Andrew Gill, Sean Aucoin and Michael Catano really stepped up. Andrew is the point guard of our Pitchfork coverage and he set up some great interviews with key people, including live performances for our “L” sessions. Catano and Aucoin locked the production down! Both of them worked their tails off and recorded maybe 15-20 sessions. All the way around, brilliant.
• I left before Pavement ended. I walked home, read some stories to my little boy, took a shower and plopped down on the couch to watch Sunday night drivel. I sat there quietly and I heard the bass and vocals from afar, bouncing off my windows. I turned to my wife and said “Gee, what’s going on in the park?” Life was back to normal.