sonic youth, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

I’m so glad that the powers that be decided to schedule the Capitol Hill Block Party on Friday and Saturday (instead of Saturday/Sunday), because I needed at least a full day of brunch and mojito sorbet and air conditioned photo sorting to recover from the sweltering weekend of fun, bands, gooey folded Tribunali pizzas, afterparties, beer gardens, and races through crowds and bottlenecks to catch bits and pieces of as much of the stacked Saturday lineup as possible.
The locals more than held their own against the nationals, the new layout helped a bit (though bottlenecks seem to be a fact of life for a festival set among intersections), and although I saw only three sets top-to-bottom — the Pains of Being Pure at Heart [swoon], the Thermals [awesome, now with even more amazing covers], and the Gossip [amazing, block party winners] — I heard a whole lot that’s sending me to my nearest record store this week. I also snapped far too many pictures (day one [flickr], day two [flickr].
If you don’t have time to wade through the photosets, snaps of most of the bands I caught are curated after the jump.

hey marseilles sing along, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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wild orchid children, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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hotels, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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moondoggies, sending out an anniversary dedication. from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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the pica beats, in the shade of the vera stage. from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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girls, changing shoes at neumo’s. from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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the pains of being pure at heart, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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new faces, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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the thermals, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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the thermals, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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gossip, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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noisettes, performing through a wardrobe malfunction. from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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sonic youth, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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sonic youth, from my chbp photoset [flickr]

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