D and I haven’t been to a Lolla since ’05. That was the year Perry Farrell first brought his music festival back from the ashes and made it a single city, multiple day, multiple stage, show. When Depeche Mode showed up on this year’s lineup (and not making a single other stop anywhere in the Midwest) I thought it was time to make a return trip to Chicago. Tickets weren’t cheap, and three days (plus parking) in a downtown hotel were expensive, but it was an amazing end of Summer blast! And a big weekend deserves a big blog post (or two or three).
Day 1
Friday started out gray and very rainy. The weather was actually fine until right before Lolla’s start; that was about the time we were just rolling into town. Due to weather (and some traffic delays) we cut the first couple bands from our agenda and got situated in the hotel instead. So, we missed watching The Knux and White Lies, a couple bands I’m recently impressed with, but with so many acts to follow, I was only looking forward.
We got into the park a little after 4:00 and after a quick look around while STS9 played in the distance. We then sloshed into the already muddy fields for the start of Crystal Castles. The duo was joined by a live drummer and immediately whipped the crowd into a rainy dance party. The lo-fi, hyperactive synths really meshed with singer Alice Glass’ vocal and physical contortions. They certainly set the tone for a frenetic three days to follow.
We extracted ourselves from the mud near the end of the Crystal Castle set, to catch the end of the Asher Roth show. Roth, wearing a t-shirt and basketball shorts, looks every bit the frat rapper douche jour he is, but damn if he doesn’t have a catchy college anthem.
From there we had a little time to catch a bite, and not just of any lame festival food. One of the premiere chefs in Chicago, Graham Elliot Bowles, had a booth serving awesome lobster corn dogs with lemon aioli. It was fried just crisp enough, with no sogginess, and was loaded with lobster chunks. Yes, it was an oral-palooza. And for nine bucks, it should be.
While enjoying the snack we listed to Thievery Corporation. I was really just waiting for their set to end, and their fans to thin, so we could make our way into a good spot for Depeche, but I was happily surprised by their performance. The pair of DJ’s had lots of musicians with them (horns, latin percussion, etc.) and several singers who switched off song to song. Even in the rain (which was thinning) there was a strong Carnivale vibe. After their set we made a break for stage center. We got as far as about 10 deep from the front before reaching a concentration of fans who were already established. We killed an hour standing there, watching the rain finally cease, and doing our best to keep the growing horde behind us.
Depeche took the stage at 8, while the other night’s headliner, Kings of Leon, did the same, way at the north end of the park. DM eased into the set with newer songs, and by the forth song the energy was full on as they played “Walking in My Shoes”. The first half of the show also included “Question of Time” and “Fly on the Windscreen”, songs which probably predated the birth of some of the attendees, but the older fans sang away.
One of the real highlights came at the halfway point when Martin sang “Home” against only a piano backing. While Dave’s voice has been slowly trading range for power, he’s kept fairly youthful looking. Martin on the other hand, is quickly looking too old for his eyeliner and flamboyant outfits, but his voice is as spot on as ever. The second half of the set included huge Violater hits “Policy of Truth” and “Enjoy the Silence”.
Then they finished with perhaps their best arena song “Never Let Me Down Again”. We’ve seen this song a few times live, and each time, singing and standing in sea of swinging arms, is truly awesome. Finally they came back out and capped off the night with a encore of “Stripped” and “Personal Jesus”. And the damp, exhausted masses made our way out of the park.
It was a strong first day. And we were only getting started.
Tags: concerts
