NAPA — Saturday night’s BottleRock Napa offerings presented, perhaps, as challenging a headliner clash as the fest has ever seen. On one stage was one of the most exciting live bands in alt-rock today. One the other were a handful of some of the greatest rappers of all time. 

There was certainly some amount of jockeying between stages by attendees hoping to catch a glimpse of both Twenty One Pilots and Mount Westmore. Vocalist Tyler Joseph and Drummer Joshua Dun delivered the unpredictable and immersive set that fans have come to expect. 

The band opened with moody anthem “Heathens” before kicking into a combination of “Morph” and “Holding Onto You.” 

“Is this [section] VIP? Is this not VIP?” Joseph said, addressing the crowd. “Should you guys fight?” It was a joking attempt to divide the crowd based on class (as is the norm now, and as Bruno Mars once said, BottleRock is the “fancy Coachella”) but in all reality, Twenty One PIlots seemed appreciative of the thousands spread out on the lawn. 

The band played a relatively even mix of tracks, taking fans on a journey through its catalog. Joseph strapped on a bass guitar and played a truncated cover “Bad Boys for Life” before launching into the megahit “Stressed Out.”

“This moment is not lost on us. We know this isn’t normal,” Joseph said, amplifying a sentiment he would repeat throughout the night. “We’re so appreciative that you’re here with us.”

The energy was high, with Dun doing a flip off the keyboard and Joseph jumping off of just about anything he could find. They continued with songs like “Lane Boy” and “Chlorine.”

“This is my dad’s favorite song,” Joseph said during the opening notes of “Mulberry Street,” a song that also saw the singer throw on a pair of oversized sunglasses and sing a cover of “Bennie and the Jets.”

A horn player and a bassist joined the duo for most of the set, filling out the sound. A genuinely funny and endearing moment happened during Twenty one Pilots’ acoustic portion of the set. There was a campfire—a vital aspect of playing acoustic music—which wasn’t initially working. Joseph honed in on a crew member sprawled across the front of the stage working to get the flame ignited (that did the trick) and used it as an opportunity to thank the local crew for their hard work.

The attention then turned to a cameraman named Fooki. Joseph profusely thanked him and dedicated the acoustic portion of the show to him…a moment that would be recalled throughout the rest of the night. The acoustic set was a treat, mixing covers like “Kiss From a Rose,” “I Can See Clearly Now” and “My Girl” with the band’s folkier songs like “House of Gold.”

“We just worked all that out while we were backstage,” Joseph joked.

Things turned up once the band plugged back in for the intense “Jumpsuit” and hip-hop-influenced “heavydirtysoul.” At this point, Twenty One PIlots were really in their element, and the fans were in lockstep with the band. 

The duo also mixed in some familiar aspects of their performance. Dun hopped onto his drum “island” while being held up by the crowd for a mini solo during “Saturday,” while Joseph entered the crowd on the anthemic “Ride.”

Joseph had a flair for the dramatic to close the night, climbing up 10 feet of scaffolding into a VIP deck during “Car Radio.” The band sent fans home happy with a lively rendition of “Shy Away” percussive “Trees.”

“I’m sorry I gave you guys such a hard time,” Joseph told the VIP audience at the end. “You’re welcome back to see us anytime. But it’ll cost you $28,000 a ticket.”

Mount Westmore (Snoop Dogg, E-40, Too Short, Ice Cube)

If you saw Mount Westmore on the schedule, the name probably didn’t ring a bell. They’ve only released a few singles and haven’t gotten a lot of mainstream recognition. But if you read their bio and look at the photo you might recognize the four members: Oakland’s E-40 and Too Short, Compton’s Ice Cube, and Long Beach’s Snoop Dogg. The Mount Rushmore of West Coast hip-hop.

From the size of the crowd to see the group, it seems most people must have read their bio.

Thirty minutes before the show began, the crowd was already getting dense enough that the walkways were starting to get full, and by the time the set started the entire lawn in front of the Verizon Stage was so packed full of people that the crowd was wrapping around past the point they could even see the stage—just hoping to hear the music.

And the titans of the Westside didn’t disappoint.

Rising from the stage sitting side-by-side in golden thrones, they opened the show with one of their few songs as a group, “Big Subwoofer.” Too Short came down to the stage first, followed by E-40, who led with hyphy anthem “Tell Me When To Go.” Then came Ice Cube with “Put Your Ass Into It” and finally Snoop Dogg with “Next Episode.”

Snoop, of course, was surrounded by pole dancers. Extremely impressive pole dancers, with the strength to do things that seem physically impossible. They would come back every now and then, usually accompanied by Snoop making it rain on the first few rows with a cash gun.

Once all four were down on the stage, they stayed there, around and behind whichever artist was featured for that song. E-40, Too Short and Ice Cube would sit down, chat, drink and occasionally join in. Snoop Dogg spent most of his time dancing and smoking weed.

As they rapped, cameras would pan the crowd and highlight the diversity. Lest you assume Mount Westmore’s appeal would be narrow, there was more than one middle-aged white man or college-aged girl seen singing along with every word. It’s not surprising, considering one of the group was just featured in the Super Bowl halftime show, but the appeal is broad.

And speaking of football, for E-40’s last song of the night, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle joined him on stage. Wearing a frankly ridiculous matching shirt and shorts, he danced along with the song and with Snoop and Too Short.

“Bang bang Niner gang!” E-40 shouted as the song ended, echoing the chorus of the song he wrote for the team.

Too Short responded with, “No no no. Let me hear it, people: RAAAAAAAIDEEERS.”

Even among the West Coast’s elite, there are still divisions. But when it comes to music, they came together for an incredible show.

Moonalice

The latest incarnation of Moonalice, now a psychedelic soul ensemble, had the unenviable honor of playing their set at the opposite end of the field hosting the massive and beat-heavy Mount Westmore performance. At times the bass and never-ending expletives from the Verizon stage were hard to ignore, but the audience gathered to see “Summer of Soul” royalty Lester Chambers and his son Dylan revisit a few of the classics of his heyday with the Chambers Brothers were not disappointed.  

Lester Chambers’ gravelly vocals on Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready” carried the weight of his years and felt particularly poignant. Vocal trio T Sisters, who like everyone in this band calls the Bay Area home, shined with their sterling singing and brought a valuable boost of joy and energy to the stage. It’s a shame more fans didn’t get to enjoy this unique and special performance.

BANKS

Pop singer-songwriter BANKS had the tough task of playing right before Mount Westmore. Many had arrived early to get a good viewpoint for the rappers. Still, the L.A.-born singer, whose name is Jillian Rose Banks, managed to deliver a set heavy of atmospheric pop that varied quite a bit from some of the other pop acts at BottleRock Napa. BANKS had a very distinct performance style, whether she was alone on stage or flanked by a pair of dancers. It was rhythmic, deliberate and expressive.

“This is my first festival in three years,” the singer announced early on.There seemed to be some apprehension, but that quickly faded as BANKS delivered a solid, beat-heavy performance on tracks like “Meteorite,” “Gemeni,” and “Fuck With Myself.” Touring in support of her latest album, Serpentina, Banks offered a unique presence. At times it felt more like an interpretive art than a music concert, while at others it was more free-flowing. Despite a high degree of difficulty, BANKS delivered a solid set that should earn her some new fans.

Rainbow Kitten Surprise

To start its set, Rainbow Kitten Surprise let the music do the talking. The band got through “Our Song,” “That’s My Shit” and “Matchbox” before vocalist Ela Melo finally asked quite possibly the easiest-to-answer question of BottleRock: “Who’s been drinking wine?”

Most of their set was their signature indie rock with a bit of a Southern twang from the band’s North Carolina roots, both in the vocals and the overall sound. Melo, guitarist Darrick Keller and bassist Charlie Holt punctuated songs with twirls, like a less-exuberant Stevie Nicks. As the set went on and the crowd got comfortable, though, the music delved more and more into other sounds, incorporating everything from funk-inspired backbeats to a sort of hip-hop pacing.

According to Melo, that set was the last show of the band’s tour before it heads home to Nashville. Judging by that last hurrah, they earned the rest.

Kinky

Kinky needed to be on a bigger stage. The fairly small area in front of the Allianz Stage was packed with festival attendees jumping and dancing, and that number only grew as word spread.

The veteran Mexican band played a raucous show spanning its 20-year career and the myriad of styles and influences, each somehow more frenzied than the last. Primarily a bass-driven, synth-heavy rock band with the expected Latin influences, Kinky veered from almost pure electronic music to a heavily distorted interpretation of Latin jazz to sounds so hard to define that it almost requires one to invent new genres. One song could only be described as electronic funk metal until the synth player picked up his accordion.

There was no break, no slowdown to give the band a breather. Kinky blazed through “Instintos Animales,” which the band just released yesterday, all the way back to “Cornman,” which was released 20 years ago. “Más,” the lead track from its debut album, sounded ready-made for a movie because it was; it’s been featured in “Thirteen” and “Man on Fire,” on TV shows “Alias” and “NCIS,” and even in a Taco Bell commercial.

If you missed it, you missed out. Keep an eye out for their next local tour stop.

Hot Milk

The Truly stage served up plenty of pleasant surprises Saturday night. Manchester, U.K. punk rockers Hot Milk provided a dynamic, diverse and energetic set that stirred up the crowd into a mosh pit. Han Mee and Jim Shaw traded off vocals on most of the band’s songs.

“We’re an inclusive band. You’re welcome here as long as you’re not a twat,” Mee announced early in the set. “And if you are, find me after the set and we’ll have a little conversation.”

Mee was a compelling performer, a cross between Joan Jett, Lita Ford and the Ramones; adeptly sparring with Shaw during the lively performance. The set crossed punk, hardcore and emo while sprinkling just the slightest bit of garage rock along the way.

As the energy ramped up, Hot Milk continued challenging the crowd to start a circle pit, and after a little bit coaxing, the crowd obliged.

DE’WAYNE

One of the beauties of a music festival is the revelation of a hidden gem, a breakthrough talent on the verge of big things. On Saturday, that artist was DeWayne Jackson, better known as DE’WAYNE.

Jackson fused hip-hop, alt-rock and punk. The Houston vocalist took no prisoners during his 45-minute set, expressively attacking on his more emo- and punk-based songs. The most impressive part was Jackson’s ability to smoothly shift between genres, which included R&B and even a little bit of blues, without batting an eye—before sharply shifting back to mix in an Iggy Pop cover.

“Do you guys mosh here?” Jackson asked.

He debuted a new track, a collaboration with Grandson called “Good Morning,” an aggressive but anthemic punk track. Jackson also performed his Waterparks collaboration, “Perfume.” He even took a moment to shout out the band playing opposite him—The Suffers—who are also from his hometown.

“They were coming up while I was in Houston,” he said. ”It’s cool to be playing while they’re playing.”

Jackson spoke of Napa multiple times, saying he was increasingly inebriated.

“I’m going to play a few more songs so I can get a little more drunk,” he said.

The Suffers

Some festivals like to start off slow, open up with some lower-key bands and slowly ramp up to a crescendo at the headliner. BottleRock, apparently, does not, because The Suffers were the main stage’s second act of the day and came in hot.

The soul, funk and Caribbean fusion act from Houston blew in with its horn section blazing and got the early afternoon crowd moving. The Suffers’ set was heavy on songs from their new album, due out June 3, including already-released singles “Don’t Bother Me” and “Take Me to the Good Times,” and the unreleased “Nunya.” The latter had a running theme of disillusionment with the business practices and exploitation of the music industry.

OTTTO

Hard rockers OTTTO came back for a return engagement at this year’s festival after debuting here in 2021. It was a passing of the baton from Metallica’s Friday headlining set. OTTTO features bassist Tye Trujjilo (son of Robert Trujillo). Also like last year, OTTTO was one of the heaviest bands on the bill, churning out tracks rooted in thrash and heavy metal. The band showed even more polish than it did just a last fall. The addition of drummer Patrick Chavez made the band sound stronger and tighter.

The band kept the between-song chatter to a minimum, though Chavez riled up the crowd quite a bit. At one point, Trujillo parted the crowd to set up a wall of death (given the wine country crowd, not everyone was quite up to speed as to what to do), but a respectable pit broke out. Vocalist and guitarist Bryan Ferretti laid down pinpoint riffs on tracks like “Ride Low”  while Trujillo’s bass rumbled, the latter getting a few opportunities to show off his impressive skills between songs.

“We saved our heaviest for last,” Ferretti said as OTTTO launched into its closer.

Chef Aarón Sanchez and Twenty One Pilots at the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage

Burritos were on the menu for Twenty One Pilots and chef Aarón Sanchez, with a very specific set of parameters: 21 ingredients on a 21-inch tortilla. The tie-in was not unintentional. The pair have an off-menu burrito available at Chipotle named the 10/10. As vocalist Tyler Joseph explained, when the band would visit Chipotle on the road, the two would pose as inspectors from the company, special-ordering the specific burrito, saying they would give the store a “10’10” rating. The group help chef Aarón Sanchez, donning a massive tortilla cape, to come up with the massive creation.

Follow editor Daniel J. Willis at Twitter.com/BayAreaData. Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald. Follow photographer Steve Carlson at Instagram.com/SteveCarlsonSF and Twitter.com/SteveCarlsonSF.