Lolla 3
Kid Sister
Early in the day Sunday, Chicago rising star Kid Sister braved the brutal heat with Flosstradamus (with J2K on vocals and Autobot on the decks). Kid Sis bounded through an energetic set that was all dance moves and ridiculous banter. Despite her forthcoming debut, Dream Date, not dropping yet, she debuted new and unheard material, alongside better known blog and club hits like the undeniable “Control” and the infamous “Pro Nails,” the latter of which featured back-up dancers in Salt-N-Pepa-esque outfits. (JD)
The Whigs
The attention Athens, Georgia’s The Whigs have received derives from an indie-tastic brand of power-pop. Thankfully, the group avoid the negative connotations that usually accompany such descriptions, with the band never coming off too jangly or twee. Rather, they ripped through intense and echo-laden numbers, such as “Like A Vibration,” which was enhanced in no small part by frenzied but focused drummer Julian Dorio. And “Right Hand On My Heart” found a hypnotic groove and went with it. It’s debatable whether The Whigs will end up being the next indie saviors to come out of R.E.M.’s hometown. But they’re certainly off to an auspicious start. (JD)
Perry Farrell and Slash (part two)
Thankfully Saturday’s reprisal of this devious duo with the School of Rock All-Stars in the Kidz Zone (another ironic location considering Slash’s expletive-laden baseball cap and chain smoking) was packed with all the proper power, allowing the timeless (albeit overplayed) “Jane Says” to show its true colors. Farrell also charismatically fronted a cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door,” complete with a lesson to the little ones about the idea of going to heaven after death. However, all attempts at a moral message were thrown out the window when Slash tossed a used cigarette into the pit of toddlers and pre-teens — totally tacky, but a textbook teaching in “Rock N’ Roll Lifestyle 101” nonetheless. (AA)
Black Kids
While the group showed promise and raised intrigue with their Wizard Of Ahhhs EP, onstage, Black Kids delivered little to no surprises. Playing through a safe and straightforward set, the group delivered a few moments of passion here and there, with some half-hearted attempts at stage banter, but ultimately, delivered little that was memorable, dangerous, or otherwise noteworthy. Thankfully, the next act up would more than make up for it. (JD)
Saul Williams
Saul Williams is a cross-genre amalgam, mixed with a style-triapsing anomaly, to put it simply. Drawing from his Trent Reznor-produced The Inevitable Rise And Liberation Of NiggyTardust!, Williams held the attention of a rapt and captive audience. It wasn’t hard to understand why — the man himself was outfitted in yellow jeans, a teal shirt, a face-painted eye mask, and feathers on his head. It seemed fitting enough though, given Williams’ music is at once confusing, intriguing, and altogether puzzling. Yet it was perhaps Williams who best encapsulated everything Lollapalooza was originally about — dangerous, confusing, and impossible to classify. Williams gave the crowd something to think about while still being entertaining, no easy feat, as too many acts on the weekend’s bill did neither. In a better world, he would’ve ended up alongside Nine Inch Nails, instead of a sidenote, when he has already far surpassed Reznor’s modern works. (JD)
Blues Traveler
Ever since John Popper lost weight, Blues Traveler just haven’t been as jolly, and the 20-year veterans overcompensated by jamming more than usual. Although fun in spurts (like a blazing cover of Charlie Daniels Band’s “The Devil Went Down To Georgia”), hits like “Run-Around” are even more annoying now than they were in the ’90s. The forthcoming “How You Remember It” was cut from a similar cloth, showcasing very little evolution from “Back In The Day,” even among the fiery, instrumental improv. (AA)
The National
Those passing through the park who didn’t realize Ian Curtis died nearly three decades ago could’ve safely assumed Joy Division were playing the Petrillo Music Shell. After all, The National frontman Matt Berninger was a dead ringer for the brooding indie rocker, not to mention a clone of recent acts like Editors, She Wants Revenge, or (insert any other genre imitator here). Despite the undeniable similarities, the group had a fairly sizeable audience. (AA)
Love And Rockets
Guitarist/vocalist Daniel Ash, bassist David J, and dummer Kevin Haskins came together once again as Love And Rockets in the wake of Bauhaus’ fractured friendship (despite releasing a new studio CD in 2008). But since Peter Murphy was nowhere in sight, those hoping to hear something from the goth gods’ catalog were out of luck, with the more metallically minded brand of alternative rock from this fairly successful offshoot act taking spotlight. Whether driving through their own blend of dark infectiousness on “No New Tale To Tell” and “Haunted When The Minutes Drag” or a gloriously cloudy cover of The Temptations’ “Ball Of Confusion,” the trio picked up right where they left off. However, Love And Rockets’ biggest smash “So Alive” was conspicuously absent from the set list, leaving fans with an extra touch of gloom. (AA)
Nine Inch Nails
It seems a safe assumption to guess Trent Reznor arranged it so his band would take the stage following recently reformed goth forefathers Love And Rockets. It’s also fitting, seeing as Nine Inch Nails themselves are reaching a certain level of elder status. The group are also racing toward the alternative genre’s ever-expanding harmless and inessential list, alongside the reformed Smashing Pumpkins and the puzzlingly still active Pearl Jam. Whereas the band were once dangerous, later albums like With Teeth, Year Zero, and The Slip have confirmed NIN’s music is at its most remarkable when Reznor is at his most self-destructive. The muscle-rock of The Slip — which came out early in tracks like “1,000,000” and “Letting You” — is inconsequential when delivered alongside more ferocious fare like selections from Broken (“Gave Up”) and The Downward Spiral (“March Of The Pigs”). And while age hasn’t softened the brutal impact of Nine Inch Nails’ classic efforts, it has softened Reznor himself. As his studio albums devolve into masturbatory exercises in soulless and efficient studio mastery, fans will no doubt become more and more grateful Reznor and his hired guns still dip into an accomplished back catalog. (JD)
Kanye West
One of the festival’s biggest surprises came during one of the festival’s biggest performances. Native Chicagoan Kanye West turned in a surprisingly classy set uncharacteristically free of any sort of tantrums or drama. (Maybe Fiasco taught his teacher something in return.) Rather, West focused his attention towards the city he loves, the parent he lost, and talking up his favorite person in the whole wide world. (One guess who that is).
Never one for subtlety, West’s set featured a blindingly lit stage that, aside from some backing singers and sparse instrumentation, mainly served to showcase West himself. Naturally, the performance featured many of the hometown hero’s best known hits, including “Gold Digger,” “Jesus Walks,” “Flashing Lights,” and a powerful and engaging rendition of “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.” Yet one of the evening’s most captivating moments came from West delving into a song not featured on any of his records.
Instead, West delved into a lengthy solo version of Young Jeezy’s “Put On,” a track West cameos on for Jeezy’s forthcoming The Recession. The song perhaps best summed ‘Ye up, in his view of his impact on Chicago, (“We put this city on the map / I put this city on my back”), as well as the larger scope, referring to the set as “History in the making.” Most notable about “Put On,” however, was West utilizing the song as a tribute to his late mother, Donda West, who died last fall from cosmetic surgery complications. Recalling his mother first bringing him to Chicago, as well as revealing an early South Side address (7915 South Shore Dr., for inquiring stalkers), West lamented playing to a crowd of “100,000” people that was missing its one most crucial member. It was a sentiment West would revisit towards the end of his set, in the simplistic and heartfelt “Hey Mama.” Given that West has moved further away from being a real person over recent years, it was refreshing to witness him expressing actual emotion to the crowd. Pity it took an event like this to make it happen.
Of course, that’s not to say ‘Ye was entirely modest throughout his show. All tributes and dedications to his late mother aside, West still indulged in his trademark self-indulgant boastings. In a rant that, depending on where you’re sitting, is either ridiculously amusing or startlingly blasphemous, West compared himself to no less than James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, and John Lennon. But then — at a festival that took excessive heat, attendance, and scope to new levels — would any lesser claims have sufficed? (JD)
LOLLA ROUNDUP PAGE [1] [2] [3]
Category: Live Reviews
