FRIDAY
Death Cab For Cutie
To hear Death Cab For Cutie recorded is to enjoy them; to see the band live is to adore them. These geeky indie-pop rockers are stunning and always fun in concert, and thus a pristine choice to close the first night of Lollapalooza. Harnessing giddy, nervous energy, they played a 1 1/2-hour set of punchy, clean and ridiculously energetic tunes, plus a two-song encore. Highlights: salutes to Sleater-Kinney and Stars, plus an impressive dual drum set bonanza with singer Ben Gibbard taking up sticks to join the ever-amazing Jason McGerr. [ Fauzia Arain, metromix ]
Editors
Editors are no strangers to major music fests–the British foursome has played Glastonbury and Reading–yet during their set, singer Tom Smith said playing Lollapalooza is “[bleep] awesome.” Smith made spastic arm movements and played his guitar high and tight–often up around his neck–but his rich vocals remained steady and clear throughout. When slowing it down with “Fall,” off debut album “The Back Room,” the group conjured up a dark intensity reminiscent of Echo & the Bunnymen. A slightly sped-up version of single “Munich” had the crowd dancing. [ Karen Budell, metromix ]
The Raconteurs
It took a few hours and a couple-dozen bands, but the Lollapalooza audience finally came alive for The Raconteurs, erupting as co-frontman Jack White delivered his first line in the band’s opener, “Intimate Secretary.” For the next hour, White and partner Brendan Benson pulled out all the stops, verbally somersaulting over each other’s vocals while they one-upped each other’s guitar riffs. With one 10-song album under their belt and an hour slot to fill, The Raconteurs fleshed out their set with a few choice covers, including David Bowie’s “It Ain’t Easy,” Nancy Sinatra’s “Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” and, much to the crowd’s delight, Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy.” [ Matt McGuire, metromix ]
My Morning Jacket
Atmospheric and moody on record, My Morning Jacket acted like a band possessed onstage. Even mellower songs like “Wordless Chorus” were energized by long-haired lead singer Jim James’ plaintive wail. James explained the Kentucky band’s enthusiasm by telling the audience of his dreams of playing Lollapalooza when he attended an earlier incarnation in 1994. Perhaps the September release of their live album “Okonokos” will finally deliver on the group’s live sound. [ Scott Smith, metromix special contributor ]
SATURDAY
Common
Does Common have other albums besides “Be”? You wouldn’t think so based on the Chicago native’s Lollapalooza set, which featured about half of his Grammy-nominated breakthrough album (his sixth) and a couple freestyles but hardly any older material. Onstage, he’s a force of conviction and energy–and not too shabby on the keys either–but for all his sermonizing about being faithful, it would be nice if he’d have faith in his audience to know more of his catalog. [ Matt Pais, metromix ]
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips put on a visually spectacular show. The group started its majestic hour with dozens of big, blue balloons bouncing into the audience, followed by frontman Wayne Coyne himself enclosed in a huge, clear balloon. Coyne prompted the massive crowd to sing along in an effort to “stop traffic” in the area and to “stop Israel from bombing Lebanon.” And, of course, there was the usual Lips fare of confetti-spraying cannons and costumed dancers. [ Fauzia Arain, metromix ]
Manu Chao
Multilingual musical polymath and international pop star Manu Chao rarely plays the U.S., so the chance to catch him Saturday night was something worth savoring. With songs shifting from breakneck punk to reggae at the flip of a switch, Chao’s set was a frenetic, eclectic blast. Though Chao sung mostly in Spanish (in fact, he was the first non-English language mainstage performer in Lolla history), the political bent of his impassioned songs came through loud and clear. [ Joshua Klein, metromix special contributor ]
Kanye West
In case there was any doubt, Kanye West is a superstar. That was reconfirmed Saturday by his sea of fans, backup singers, dancer, DJ, band–including a string section–and on-point enthusiasm. Regardless of where he resides since rocketing into fame, West seemed touched by the turnout and made it clear that he still considers Chicago his hometown. A solid show, despite a buzz-kill sound issue with his mic that continued throughout the set, with surprise guest appearances by Lupe Fiasco, Twista and Common. [ Fauzia Arain, metromix ]
Gnarls Barkley
Cee-Lo, Danger Mouse and a band of 11–all dressed in tennis whites–played a tight set of funked-up soul and groove tracks off debut album “St. Elsewhere.” But when it came time for hit single “Crazy,” a sore throat stopped Cee-Lo from hitting all the high notes. An enthusiastic crowd helped sing many of the lyrics, and a wave of spirit fingers sent Gnarls Barkley the support it needed to finish the set with “Smiling Faces.” [ Karen Budell, metromix ]
SUNDAY
30 Seconds To Mars
As an actor, Jared Leto knows how to entertain, and he’s applied the skill to fronting 30 Seconds To Mars. He and the band entered wearing white masks, waving flags and throwing roses while also jumping in the crowd and climbing the stage scaffolding. But the cheerleading couldn’t cover up the fact that songs such as “The Kill” and “The Story” were nothing more than recycled metallic alt-rock loaded with commonplace arrangements and lyrical cliches. [ Andy Argyrakis, metromix special contributor ]
Wilco
Playing yet another celebratory outdoor show in Grant Park, Wilco showed off a handful of quirky but oddly poppy new songs that instantly clicked with the highly sympathetic fans, who sang along with nearly every word of the rest of the set. The group was in high spirits and good form, and as with the best of their sets, whet the appetite for what comes next. [ Joshua Klein, metromix special contributor ]
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Sometimes too much anticipation can turn to chaos, and that’s exactly what happened from the second the Red Hot Chili Peppers took the stage. During a blistering bass-rippled instrumental, thousands surged the stage, resulting in a slew of bodies being hurled above the heads of security personnel and over the barricades. The scene probably would’ve looked cool on TV but proved to be a treacherous viewing environment as the group bounced through the familiar “Dani California” and “Scar Tissue.” Yet an assortment of lackluster, half-baked material from “Stadium Arcadium” broke the set’s continuity, which didn’t escalate again until the home stretch battle cries of “By the Way” and “Give It Away.”
[ Andy Argyrakis, metromix special contributor ]
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BEST OF LOLLA
— Bathrooms were shockingly clean for port-a-potties. [ Matt Creighton, 37, Lombard ]
— The surprisingly large crowd that gathered to hear the mellow acoustics of Iron and Wine, with “the youth of America smoking pot in unison.” [ Justin Kretzman, 18, Ashland, Ohio ]
— Last Band Standing winner Tonedeff, a rapper from New York City, played early Saturday to a sparse crowd, but rocked. [ Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz, RedEye ]
— “Gnarls Barkley and cute boys walking around in tank tops.” [ Becca Bradley, 24, Streeterville ]
— “Violent Femmes. They are old but awesome. And I love the crowd: Lots of young people and it’s crowded, but not too crowded.” [ Valerie Calhoun, 24, Lakeview ]
— “The sound. I’m surprised that with such a large space, I’m still able to hear very well, and the logistics for the festival seem very well coordinated.” [ Kandi Bobo, 36, West Loop ]
— The AT&T Digital Oasis, a cool spot to hang out, check e-mails and lounge in an outdoor cafe complete with water misters. Nice touch during hotter parts of the day. [ Kyra Kyles, RedEye ]
— “Common. He just really spoke to the crowd.” [ Neema Thachet, 23, Northwest Suburbs ]
— “It’s kind of cool to see so many different people coming together to enjoy the music. Everyone’s been super nice.” [ Ashley Hensler, 22, Carbondale ]
— Sleater-Kinney playing one of their last shows. “That’s the best on so many levels.” [ Amber Polivka, 23, Hinsdale ]
— Jared Leto climbing up the stage scaffolding during the 30 Seconds to Mars performance and singing while hanging by one hand. [ Curt Wagner, RedEye ]
— The big screens that allowed you to watch bands perform from far away. “We’re used to Summerfest in Milwaukee with no screens.” [ Sam Denker, 19, Milwaukee ]
— The weather, especially compared to last year. We got very lucky.
[ Kathryn Masterson, RedEye ]
WORST OF LOLLA
— The high cost of food and other amenities inside the fest, and the fact that “we have nowhere to sleep tonight.” [ Dave Fishler, 19, New York City ]
— That the water stands outside of the bathrooms ran out of water, so there was nowhere to wash your hands. [ Cara Schaufele, 25, Columbus, Ohio ]
— “Me being 36 years old, among a whole lot of kids, and it would be nice to have some chairs somewhere around the stages.” [ Kandi Bobo, 36, West Loop ]
— “The bathrooms are disgusting and there was no toilet paper a lot of times, and someone totally got sick in one I was unfortunate enough to enter.” [ Stephanie Romero, 21, Kearney, Neb. ]
— “They need more space in between bands. I’ve wanted to hear bands playing back-to-back on different stages, but I haven’t been able to make it on time because some of the stages are so far apart.” [ Joe Smyth, 19, Oak Forest ]
— “There’s litter all over the place, and they need more garbage cans. I’m tired of tripping over crap.” [ Dana Stubbs, 21, Kearney, Neb. ]
— “I think the festival has gotten a little too big. It takes some pretty long walks to get from stage to stage.” [ Pete Levine, 26, Lincoln Park ]
— “I don’t like the fact that you can only re-enter through those main gates by Buckingham Fountain. It’d be nice if people with wristbands could go in through the sides.” [ Jenny Accathara, 23, Northwest suburbs ]
— Sound problems at the Kanye West show that made it hard to hear him at times. [ Cara DiPasquale, RedEye ]
— HUGE, scary, crushing crowds at the Kanye West and The Flaming Lips shows. [ Curt Wagner, RedEye ]
— “When there’s two bands you like on at the same time.” [ Jessica Viesselmann, 17, Milwaukee ]
— “The smell. It’s putrid. Half the place smells like a port-a-potty.” [ Josh Bouton, 21, Tempe, Ariz. ]
— “It’s a long stretch between stages. Hiking back and forth is killing my feet. They’re on fire by the end of the day.” [ Matt Towey, 33, Irving Park ]
