In Scenester, we spotlight the coolest shows, parties, and events in the City and beyond. It's like you're there, but you don't even have to get dressed. Want us to stop by? Contact Joshua at joshua@gazetteer.co.
Across the Bay from the hedonistic thrills of Portola Festival this weekend, fans of a quieter kind of fun gathered at Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall for the Yo-Yo Invitational, organized by indie folk darling Faye Webster as a one-afternoon detour of her Underdressed at the Symphony tour.
On Saturday afternoon, fifteen of the world’s greatest yo-yoers gathered at Zellerbach to showcase their most kick-ass tricks, interspersed by sets from Webster and her opening act, Japanese singer-songwriter mei ehara. Webster herself has long been a self-professed yo-yo head. For years, she’s done yo-yo tricks mid-concert, and regularly invites local yo-yo champions to perform during her intermissions. But the Invitational had a sort-of “blank check” appeal to it: Webster gathered together a bunch of superstar yo-yoers, and let them cook for an hour.
She also tapped Kyle Ng, designer at uber-cool L.A. brand Brain Dead, to help coordinate the event; Brain Dead’s aesthetic fingerprints were present everywhere, especially in the brand’s $50 T-shirts commemorating the event.
“If you want to start from the very, very beginning, my mom put a yo-yo in my stocking,” Webster explained bashfully while introducing the event. “And I just was on tour, at some point, kind of bored and started playing with it a lot.”
The show drew a packed house. Attendees were split between those in it to hear Webster, and those there the yo-yoing.
Betty Gallegos, a YouTube phenom who flew in from Mexico to perform, got a standing ovation and “Viva Mexico!” chants at the end of her run, while 19th-world-ranked yo-yoer Daniel Kim got plenty of hooting and hollering and chants of his initials as he entered the stage.
I’m not going to pretend I know much about the intricacies of yo-yo tricks, or how to evaluate them on their difficulty. But witnessing the best-of-the-best do their hardest tricks in rapid succession, frequently coordinated to music, was legitimately jaw-dropping.
Many of the tricks relied on body work: Kim pulled off what I can only describe as a one-legged spin while he spun a yo-yo around and under his elevated leg. Watching him evoked the same thrill of a Thrasher compilation, right down to the backing music.
The crowd gave a rapturous response to a performance from Hajime Miura, one of the greatest yo-yo performers of all time. He specializes in so-called “3a” yo-yo tricks, where two yo-yos interlock so that they land and unspool on each other. His set was an exercise in total control, perfectly attuned with a track by experimental pop group Cornelius. The whole thing was transfixing — and, frankly, so hard to describe. Please watch this clip of Miura at last year’s World Yo-Yo Contest for a sampling of the kind of awe-inspiring shit this guy can do.
As for the musical sets that wove through the afternoon, both mei ehara’s and Webster’s sets were gorgeous, each performing with just their hushed voices and unhurried electric guitars.
Webster’s concerts often have that kind of magic, like your coolest friend bringing you in on a secret.
“I’ve been nonstop crying since mei performed,” Webster told the crowd once the yo-yoers wrapped up. “These are some of my best friends.”
Webster seemed genuinely moved to get the chance to show off her niche hobbies. And the crowd responded with equal enthusiasm. And why wouldn’t we? In a sea of musicians and celebrities whose interests are tasteful at best and capitalist garbage at worst, the novelty of a humble yo-yo celebration is one-of-one.
