For those who experienced and loved ATP America’s festivals in Monticello, NY, it may have been difficult to imagine how a change of location, from upstate New York to the New Jersey shore, could possibly improve and enhance the unique and uncanny event that it was known to be. Well, it has.

Friday afternoon the fans, followers and leaders of All Tomorrow’s Parties arrived in Asbury Park, NY, a town that only five or so years ago was known for its high crime rate and abandoned boardwalk. It’s likely that this decadence, however, is precisely what draws the festival and its goers to a new spot on the map, a mere hour south of New York City. Although the rain dampened the ground here at Asbury Park, it did not extinguish the ATP fire that was sparked on stage by Chavez, Reggie Watts with his knee-slapping musical spoofs (ironically fit for a music festival), event regulars Shellac, Hannibal Buress and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, The Album Leaf and the absorbing Jeff Magnum (of Neutral Milk Hotel).

Saturday, day two of the festival kicked off with Beak, a personal favorite, who put on a riveting show, and will continue with performances by The Horrors, Battles, Ultramagnetic MC’s, Swans and, among other artists, Saturday night ‘s headliner, Portishead.

There will be DJs playing and parties pumping well into the night after the last bands of the evening leave the stage, and Sunday the festival will culminate with shows by Public Enemy, Earth, Mogwai, and another Jeff Magnum show.

Trains and buses run from all over the Northeast to Asbury Park, and is a mere one hour drive from New York City. No excuse is a good excuse to miss this party. If it’s to roam the same city streets as always, go for brunch at the restaurant around the corner from your house and drink a bloody mary like you did last Sunday, all that can be said is that you can get all of that here, and become a part of the All Tomorrow’s Parties phenomenon.

I’ve always approached music festivals with mixed emotions.  Almost invariably, sacrifices must be made – set times are usually short, sound quality can be sketchy and timetable clashes often mean that you will miss portions of your favorite acts.  With these considerations in mind, I attended the first day of the inaugural All Points West Music & Arts Festival at Liberty State Park in New Jersey on Friday.

Presented by West Coast concert promoters Goldenvoice - All Points West was destined to attract comparisons to the company’s Coachella Music & Arts Festival held annually in Indio, California.  Both festivals consist of a three-day program with bands playing multiple stages set against striking backdrops (the mountain ranges of the Coachella Valley in the case of Coachella and the Manhattan skyline & the Statue of Liberty for All Points West).  In recent years, Coachella has also made a name for itself by providing attendees with a people-friendly festival which attracted both important and high-profiles acts.  As an example – Kraftwerk, Portishead and Prince headlined Coachella’s main stage on the festival’s opening night this year.  Despite my stated misgivings in relation to festivals, the involvement of Goldenvoice raised expectations.

Although storm clouds loomed ominously over the venue and lightning could be seen to strike the Empire State Building on a number of occasions, a small shower cleared in time for Brooklyn’s Grizzly Bear. Playing a beautiful set consisting of equal parts new material and songs taken from their acclaimed album Yellowhouse, their four-part harmonies swept across the festival grounds.  Brazilian all-girl-but-for-one-dude band CSS offered an energetic set but material from their new album Donkey did not attract a huge response from the crowd and entirely no response from Maroon 5‘s Adam Levine who could be seen watching from side-stage.

Playing before sundown must now be an unusual situation for electronic father figures Underworld.  Despite the presence of daylight and some minor problems with their inflatable on-stage props – Karl Hyde & Rick Smith provided a set including dance classics such as “Born Slippy” and “King of Snake” which made me wish I could be reaching for the lasers.

With respect to the other acts performing on the day – Friday was all about Radiohead who played the first of their two-night headlining sets.  Featuring an incredible light and visual display, the band offered a polished 25 song / two-plus hour set which featured a number of highlights including “Pyramid Song”, “Paranoid Android,” and “Just”.  It was my first time seeing Radiohead and it’s fair to say that I wasn’t disappointed in the slightest that it occurred in a festival environment.

Overall, All Points West did a lot to allay my fears in relation to festivals but it has a long way go before it is on par with Coachella – which offers a greater range of artists, a better selection of food and beverages and the option of camping for festival goers who are attending over the three days.

All points West continued on Saturday and Sunday with acts including Jack Johnson, Cat Power and Kings of Leon.