Overview
Bumbershoot '09
Official Poster Artwork: The New Year
In 2009, Bumbershoot faced one of the most challenging environments in its modern history.
The festival was still operating under the programming and promotional partnership between One Reel and AEG Live, but external conditions made the year difficult. The Great Recession significantly reduced discretionary spending nationwide, affecting attendance and sponsorship across the live events industry.
At the same time, heavy rain during the festival weekend dampened turnout for the outdoor event. Combined with the broader economic downturn, the conditions contributed to financial losses for the festival’s promoters.
In later accounts, AEG described experiencing “significant losses” during this period, highlighting the growing challenge of sustaining a large, multi-day outdoor festival with rising production costs and economic uncertainty.
The difficulties of 2009 illustrated the delicate balance Bumbershoot had always navigated: maintaining an ambitious, multidisciplinary civic festival while adapting to changing economic realities. Even so, the event continued presenting its characteristic mix of music, film, visual arts, performance, and community programming across Seattle Center.
Nearly four decades after its founding, Bumbershoot had weathered economic downturns before. The challenges of 2009 became another chapter in the festival’s long history of adapting to shifting cultural and financial landscapes.
Bumbershoot 2009's line up included: The Black Eyed Peas / Sheryl Crow / Modest Mouse / Jason Mraz / The All-American Rejects / Yeah Yeah Yeahs / Katy Perry / Michael Franti & Spearhead / Franz Ferdinand / Old 97′s / Cold War Kids / The Knux / De La Soul / David Cross / Metric / Brett Dennen / Raphael Saadiq / Os Mutantes / Soulsavers featuring Mark Lanegan / The Long Winters / Sly & Robbie & the Taxi Gang / World Party / Keller Williams / Eugene Mirman / Roy Ayers / MSTRKRFT / S.E. Hinton / The Helio Sequence / Common Market / UH HUH HER / Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women / Eric Hutchinson / Patton Oswalt / No Age / Todd Barry / Matt & / Kim / Dead / Confederate / Melvin Van Peebles / Janelle Monae / Matt Braunger / Wise Fool New Mexico / Doug Benson: The Benson Interruption / Writers of LOST w/Jeff Jensen / The Cave Singers / Audrye Sessions / Swollen Members / Vieux Farka Touré / Akron/Family / Lenka / Gang Gang Dance / Vivian Girls / Todd Snider / The Devil Makes Three / McSweeney’s New Fiction / Reggie Watts / Holy Fuck / Elvis Perkins in Dearland / Pacific Northwest Ballet / Iglu & Hartly / Wyatt Cenac / Christian Lander’s Stuff White People LikevMaximo Park /Wale w/ UCB / OTEP / Maria Bamford / DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid / Low vs Diamond / Tommy Johnagin / Sera Cahoone / Eleni Mandell / Mirah / Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears / 3 Inches of Blood / Kay Kay & His Weathered Underground / Nick Swardson / Gage Drawing Jam / U.S.E / Carrie Rodriguez / The Honey Brothers / Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head / Say Hi / Extra Golden / Mayer Hawthorne & The County / Jason Webley / The Minus 5 / Forgive Durden performing Razia’s Shadow / Cordero / Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band / Portland Cello Project / Telekinesis / Hey Marseilles / Sick Puppies / Everest / The New Mastersounds / Oren Lavie / Dyme Def / Delhi 2 Dublin / The Dusty 45s / The Seattle-Moscow Poster Show / Visqueen / Truckasauras / Head Like a Kite / Akimbo / Adrian Xavier / Paul Oscher “Alone with the Blues” / Parenthetical Girls / Charlyne Yi / Massy Ferguson / The Lonely Forest / PS 122 / Sleepy Eyes of Death / Red Wine Boys / Past Lives / Macklemor / Michael Shrieve’s Spellbinder / Wallpaper / The Whore Moans Present: The Black Atom! / Point Juncture, WA / Kim Field & The Mighty Titans of Tone / D.Black / Spaceman / Handful of Luvin’ / Champagne Champagne / Romance / Kristen Ward / Dept. of Energy / The Enablers have Spoken and You’re Fine: Spencer Moody / The Kindness Kind / Story Pirates Afterdark Present FOUND! / COBU / Zak Smith / Improvised Shakespeare / Mark Taylor Quartet / Hotels / Black Whales / Justin Kredible / Kore Ionz / Best of Seattle Intl. Comedy Competion 30 yr. Anniversary / Grand Hallway / Laff Hole / Anomie Belle / Tom Douglas / Steve Griggs Quintet / We Are Golden / Manic D at 25 / Blood Squad / Tyler Bryant / Canadian Comedy That Cares! / Youth Speaks Seattle w/Staceyann Chin & Prometheus Brown (Geo of Blue Scholars) / Famous Mystery Actor / iLL-Literacy / Olympic Sound Collective / Lo-Ball / The Goldberg Variations (featuring Mark Haim) / Dyno Jamz / Central Services’ Board of Education / The Not-Its! / Dada Economics / One Night Only, Part II / Recess Monkey / Kathleen Flinn / Cracked Up! / Kerfuffle (or the uneasy relationship between humanity and the environment) / The Great Northwest: Jess Walter, Kerry Cohen, Kevin Sampsell / Jess Walter / DASSdance / Woolly Mammoth Comes to Dinner / All Terrain / Julie Lindell / Ubiquitous They / BETA Society / Wild Rose / Speak, Poet!: Tara Hardy, Danny Sherrard, Jack McCarthy / The Radio8Ball Show / Vampires & Robots: Daniel Wilson, Kevin Emerson / Spin the Bottle, Jr. / theater simple 52 pick-up / Wing-It’s Rock Opera: Lease / Improsia / Assemblage: Way Stations / 31 Down w/Japanther / Midway Games / A.K. “Mimi” Allin / Professor Humbug’s Flea Circus
