It's finally here. Lollapalooza. 3 days of nothing but music, food and everybody's choice of mind altering drugs. A big thank you to my little brother for getting me a three day pass this year...Thanks George but I vaguely remember him saying that it was Marcy who actually got it. So a big thanks to my sister-in-law.
We, my friend Patty & I, started out at the Grove Stage for Roadkill Ghost Choir. Great name but not my kind of music. They had three guitarists on stage but used so many effects and computer loops that I bailed quickly. I am not saying they were bad, just not for me. I guess I am old school...just give me the vocals, guitars and drums...you can keep all the spacey effects. Or maybe I need the effects to actually add something to the music...one of my favorite bands The Cure uses the effects to set a mood on stage and I love how they do it.
Poor Abe Lincoln. He had so much bird shit on his head he appeared to be a bottle blonde...maybe he was just preparing to see Eminem later tonight.
I always claim to not be a music snob and I definitely am not a beer snob, but there is no way I can drink Budweiser. So here is my beer stand for the next three days.
For some strange reason the screens on the the main stages showed RAIN DELAY but it was partly sunny and not raining at that time. Eventually NYC's The So So Glos rocked the Lakeshore Stage with their power pop/punk songs. I really liked this band.
They put on a good show, joked with the crowd and had a bunch of good songs, lyrically and musically.
We checked out Of Verona on our way to see Lucius. Again not my cup of tea musically speaking. We stopped to grab a sandwich and on the video screen we caught two or three songs of Kodaline's set. I enjoyed their songs. A bit mellow singer/songwriter type of music but the band was really good...
...on the other hand I have read that Lucius is amazing live. I didn't see that. They were OK. Sometimes hipster bands just get overhyped. That might be the case here. If I had never read or heard of Lucius, I might have thought they were good. What's that? Public Enemy says "Don't Believe The Hype!"
J. Roddy Walston & The Business rocked the Bud Light Stage with their brand of southern boogie. Good head rocking foot stomping music with singalong chorus. Simple but damn good when done right. I did leave in the middle of their set to check out Johnnyswim on the small BMI Stage. I saw them on Live at Daryl's House recently and thought they were great. They are a married couple and she is Donna Summer's daughter. They write really good songs together and their voices provide a perfect mix for the songs.
After loving Johnnyswim's set. I was completely blown away by Hozier. Like most people, I have hear his hit, "Take Me To Church" and loved it. This guy can write some powerful songs. He and his band sounded great and all the songs were really good.
Part of my enjoyment of Lolla is the kids who have a different style. This fan of Hozier had cool tattoos with muddy Keens.
The Irish were out in full force to support Hozier who I believe is from Dublin.
I love it when the music combines the heart with the mind to provide powerful emotions musically. Hozier definitely did that throughout his set. Interpol was up next and I was bored after 3 three songs. No emotion at all, they seemed bored on stage so we left to get some Brazilian Fried Cheese on a Stick. That led us to my favorite band of the day.
Rudimental. I know I posted their video for Free on facebook and said it wasn't my type of music. That is why seeing a band live is so important. I loved this band. Once they hit the stage, it was an all out party at The Grove.
The multiple singers, the MC and the band were a perfect blend of upbeat music, dancing, stage showmanship and great songs with a message.
Bands like this are why I love music festivals. Rudimental. Check them out and go see them live.
We saw a few songs from Lorde, Royal Blood and The Kooks. All were good but nothing great. To be fair to Lorde, we were very far away and she had minimal music playing behind her. I might have liked it better in a small club. That said, I was impressed that she was able to command the attention of the huge crowd that came to see her. I did notice every young girl near me was singing along to every song.
I live here so I know all the things that make Chicago a flawed city...but from here...right now...Chicago looks great.
So I ended my day at Lollapalooza with Eminem. He put on a great show. I loved it from start to finish. When Rhianna came out for "Love The Way You Lie, Monster & Stan" the already pumped up crowd went to another level. We were easily the oldest people anywhere near us but I loved Eminem's set. While he blasted through a long career of incredible songs I had a few thoughts about him. I love music that makes you think, causes you to consider what is being sung or music that just pisses you off. Good songs can create all kinds of emotions...that is why I love music so much. Live music can take a good song and the performance can make it an amazing song. Eminem did that for me tonight. But I realized he has done that his whole career. His fuck you attitude probably drew me to his music originally because music should offend you at times. It should make you think about subjects you would rather ignore. Marshall Mathers has grown from singing about bitches to writing the amazingly powerful and beautiful "Love The Way You Lie". Along the way he has created a fantastic catalog of songs that cover many topics most people chose to ignore...I am damn glad I saw him perform those songs tonight.
No comments:
Post a Comment