I'm still trying to sort it out. I think there were a couple things working against him for his set -
Gary Clark Jr. ******* destroyed it in the set before. Hard to top.
The first act hit the stage at 12:30 that afternoon. Nine hours later, not very many people were going to be up for a two hour set. If he had kept it a tight 45-minutes to an hour and laid off the mid-song jam sessions, it would have fit in better with the framework of the festival. We left the stage area around 10 or a little after and walked back up the hill, and it was just littered with bodies. People were tired, drunk, or both.
As for his stage presence, I've seen him five times and he's really hit or miss live. This is just me playing armchair psychologist, but I think the quality of his show is very dependent on what kind of place he's in in his life. I don't think he's the type who can put away their personal stuff and put up a good front when the lights go up - showmen like Mick Jagger or Paul McCartney, you know....when they go on stage, those guys are on. When he's up it's a good, tight show. When he's down or deeply reflective, the show wanders and it's hard to stay engaged.
