Bonnaroo 2012: The Kooks, Avett Brothers Rock Early Friday Sets

Manchester, Tenn. - It was clear that Bonnaroo concertgoers were hurting a little bit on Friday afternoon.

Weary through traveling and partying, fans weren't exactly ready to put forth their best effort when The Kooks took the Which Stage at 12:15 p.m.

Even The Kooks' front man Luke Pritchard admitted that he was feeling a bit rough at the start of their set.

Listen I know it's early, Pritchard told the crowd. I've got the red eyes too.

But The Kooks, a British rock band, were intent on doing their best to wake up the sleepy fans. They kicked off their hour-long set with See the World and Do You Wanna that got groups of fans on their feet.

The band is heavily influenced by The Beatles and other 1960s era British bands and even look a bit like The Beatles did in their heyday. There is the mop of hair on top of each band member's head and the pink suit worn by guitarist Hugh Harris is easily something The Beatles could have worn.

Playing such an early set on Friday afternoon is a difficult task for any band, but The Kooks have such a fun playing style that they were able to overcome the issues. The crowd watching them perform wasn't raucous in any way - many were even sitting down on the grass - but the fans were having fun in a relaxed manner.

Fans around me knew many of the band's songs from everything from Seaside to Shine On. The penultimate moment of the set was when the band closed with their biggest hit Naïve.

It was a strong performance in lieu of the circumstances and further reinforces the notion that this band is on the way up and set up well for even bigger things in the near future.

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Later on in the day The Avett Brothers played at the What Stage, the biggest stage at the Bonnaroo festival. Benefitting a bit from a 5:00 p.m. start, The Avett Brothers wowed the crowd with their mix of bluegrass, country, folk, and rock music.

The three-person band from Concord, N.C. put on an amazing show on Friday when it got fans of all ages up and dancing.

While taking in their set, I noticed a family with multiple young children, including some toddlers, swing dancing and twirling around while listening to the band play. There aren't many young families at Bonnaroo -- the heat, loud music, and more likely plays a factor - but many of them seemed to be at this set.

Part of it is because the band plays music with meaning, but also because it plays without the vulgarity that some other performers at Bonnaroo overly rely upon. The Avett Brothers appeal to a diverse group of fans, but one of the best compliments to them is that young children and adults can both get a lot out from one of their concerts.

The band's hour and a half long set left me wanting more and intent on seeing them the next time they swing by the New York City area.