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Photos: 5-Stage Shaky Knees Rocked Downtown Atlanta

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Musical blitz including Bloc Party, Huey Lewis, The Kills, Jane's Addiction, and My Morning Jacket proves again that this city can handle large-scale urban festivals

By Josh Green
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Photos: Josh Green, Curbed Atlanta

The fourth annual Shaky Knees Festival made its downtown debut this year, and — if it hadn't already — should have solidified itself among America's big-league, multi-day musical blowouts.

With five stages scattered from the rising Atlanta Falcons stadium to the doorstep of the Georgia Aquarium, the festival seemed to ace crowd-dispersement, with the exception of occasional bottlenecks over a makeshift Marietta Street bridge. Pristinely cool weather and cloudless skies didn't hurt, either.

Conversations with out-of-town attendees (half of North Carolina was there, coincidentally or not) indicated that Shaky Knees was a fine showcase for Atlanta at large and downtown in particular.

Have a gander at some of the weekend's highlight below.

Pierre de Coubertin, father of the modern Olympic movement, double-fisting tallboys.
Pierre de Coubertin, father of the modern Olympic movement, double-fisting tallboys.
Savages scorch the Ponce de Leon Stage on Friday evening.
Savages scorch the Ponce de Leon Stage on Friday evening. Despite their angst, the London rockers issued compliments — as did other bands — for downtown's SkyView Ferris wheel.
The Boulevard and Peachtree stages, in the shadow of Atlanta football stadia, forthcoming and doomed.
The Boulevard and Peachtree stages, in the shadow of Atlanta football stadia, forthcoming and doomed.
Alex G on the festival's smallest venue, the Buford Highway Stage.
Alex G on the festival's smallest venue, the Buford Highway Stage.
Bloc Party brought it on Friday evening at the main stage, Peachtree.
That dude in a Tom Selleck hoodie.
That dude in a Tom Selleck hoodie.
Alison Mosshart of The Kills on the Boulevard stage as the sun set on downtown Friday. They killed.
The shaky bridge over Marietta Street.
The shaky bridge over Marietta Street.
The finale of Ghost's haunting performance.
No shortage of racy tip humor this year.
No shortage of racy tip humor this year.
Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro and singer Perry Farrell.
Ferrell dissed the festival's "hard curfew" and then inexplicably closed the show a little early.
Phosphorescent's Matthew Houck — formerly of Athens, now of Brooklyn — performing "Los Angeles" on Saturday.
C-town representing.
C-town representing.
Dad Rock extraordinaires Huey Lewis & the News partied like it's 1983, playing the entirety of their landmark "Sports" album and sounding vital overall. Lewis quipped that Atlanta played host to many of the band's "youthful transgressions."
In addressing the crowd, The Decemberists' frontman Colin Meloy flexed an extensive vocabulary, dropping "auspicious" and more.
My Morning Jacket closed the Peachtree stage Saturday with a beautifully blazing performance that was punctuated by a "Purple Rain" cover and the deep MMJ cut "Steam Engine," which includes a lyric that inspired the Shaky Knees Festival name.
Cannons showered the park in confetti as a giant disco ball twirled over the band during "Steam Engine."
MMJ frontman Jim James.
Pyro waterfall during "Wordless Chorus."
Fireworks and "One Big Holiday" to close the show.
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