I’m finding it harder to spend a lot of time cooking up detailed posts on here, so I’ll reduce this year’s Lolla to a single mega post to cover the epic three days. For 2012, Justin, Mike, and D and I were joined by Dave and Xian, plus a seven and a half month along Grace!
Friday
Our first day was one of those days you could practically spend all your time at one stage. We got into the park after the first couple sets, but then grabbed a couple beers and a couple smiles and headed down to the main stage on the north where a large crowd was already building up.
Metric
Our first act of the day was Metric, a band I missed seeing in 2010 as they were still emerging. Now with the recent release of Synthetica and “Youth Without Youth”, they had lots of buzz and tons of new fans. The Canadian four-piece gave us an energetic show in the heat of the day and got the weekend rolling nicely.
After Metric, Donna and Justin left our primo spots, just a couple people from the front, to watch Die Antwoord on the next stage over. I really wish I could’ve gone, but I was determined to keep our position for Passion Pit coming up next. So, instead I listened to the distant throbbing bass of Fatty Boom Boom while baking in the sun.
Passion Pit
As Die Antwoord was finishing up, the crowd coming over to the main stage got even denser, but Donna amazingly managed to make her way back over. We’d seen Passion Pit a couple times before, but this was the first time in a festival setting, and the vibe really translated well. Michael Angelakos had recently cancelled some of their tour dates to regroup mentally, and we we’re thrilled to be able see him onstage seemingly to really enjoy himself.
Black Sabbath
It’s impossible to recall an odder choice for a Lollapalooza headliner than Black Sabbath. With three of the original members, seeing the band perform was a rare sight in itself, but at Lolla the resulting mixture of concert-goers it led to was truly odd. Unfortunately staying in place in front of the main stage, meant missing M83, but I hung there waiting with Mike anyway. Once Sabbath came out Mike was finally in his metal element. Seeing Ozzy on stage was nothing like the reality TV version of himself. Even if he was a bit stiff and stumbly on stage, and out of breath at times, damn if he didn’t lay it all out there.
Bassnectar
Roughly half way through the Sabbath set the novelty was wearing off on me, and I left to finish the evening with another band. I felt I’d be underwhelmed by the other headliner, The Black Keys, so I decided to checkout Bassnectar on my own. Or so I thought. Turns out everyone but Mike saw some portion of Bassnectar even though we never ran into each other. The light show was amazing and totally immersive even at a distance. It was an energizing yet chill way to cap off the night.
Saturday
Day 2 got rolling with some more strolling around the park including a stop at the Adidas tent.
Aloe Black
We started our first set only knowing the fun vibe of Aloe Black’s “I Need a Dollar”. Turned out the whole set was really great and danceable.
Next we checked out the PlayStation tent while listening to Neon Indian from a distance. And then things turned ugly. The sunny skies quickly turned dark and all the video screens in the park announced an evacuation.
After the heavy rains of 2011 (during Cage and Foo Fighters) it was really hard to believe they would shut things done. But there was a storm related tragedy at the Indiana State Fair since then which no doubt changed protocol. Bands stopped mid-set. Hundreds of volunteers corralled everyone toward the exists. As we passed the Chow Town food booths, we saw head chef Graham Elliot. He graciously posed for a picture, but then caringly told us to be safe and make our way out. He also said “come on back after things reopen and I’m giving free truffle popcorn to everyone”. That guy rocks!
It was raining as we left the park. By the time we got to the hotel lobby the sky was almost totally dark and there was a full torrent failing.
We enjoyed a midday happy hour back at our hotel room while watching social media for the latest status. Finally after two hours, the rain had passed and they announced the show would go on with a modified schedule.
FUN.
After having our parade rained on, the perfect choice to start things off again was Fun. They played the smaller grove stage and drew a ridiculously huge crowd. I listed to a few songs with Dave, Xian, and D, but since it was hard to see anything, I headed off early to secure a spot for Franz at the main stage. Just as I got out of the fray I heard everyone burst into “We Are Young”.
Franz Ferdinand
I guess Franz ended up being our big set of the day. They played a great set with lots of hits while the sun sank toward evening. The heavy guitar riffs seemed like good medicine for a frustrating afternoon.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
After Franz I figured my best headliner choice would be the Chili Peppers at the opposite end of the park. Unfortunately having a good spot for Franz meant being buried deeper in the crowd and slower to get over there. As I swung past Perry’s I danced to Calvin Harris’s “Feel So Close” which had spilled into a full on street party. By the time I was past Perry’s, the Chili Peppers were already playing and the path to the stage was a total log jam. It was wall to wall people either trying to get through or straining to see anything from where they were. I watched the video screens for a song or two then decided the energy wasn’t right and it was a lost cause.
Santigold
I decided to head back over to Perry’s (Harris had just ended a couple minutes earlier) to grab an early spot for Santigold. We caught her set at Lolla 2009, but it was packed and we didn’t have a great view. This time I was right at the rail, just very far to the side. Which was fine – my energy was fading and I didn’t need to be in dance central. Without any real expectations I had a great time. She had her trademark backup singers and choreo on stage with some new surprises. At one point they just starting pulling fans on stage. People right next to me hurtled over the barricade to join them. This was one time I opted to hang back and just take it in.
Sunday
The weather forecast for Sunday was all clear, so we partied up and headed out. We started with some shady time under trees at a side stage while Justin and D started bagging their annual recyclables.
We watched a hip-hop act named Overdoz on that side stage, but they were a bit of a mess. One of those times where you’re pretty sure the band is having more fun than the audience. But it was a relaxing start to the day anyway.
Gary Clark Jr.
Next Dave and I swung over to see the blues crunch of Gark Clark Jr. I had listened to a couple of his tracks beforehand, but live is where he really shines.
Of Monsters and Men
From there, it was back over to the grove stage to see OMAM, definitely one of the acts I was most looking forward to. “Little Talks”, and even “Dirty Paws”, had blown up pretty good prior to Lolla so they also drew a oversized crowd for that stage. I got stuck a fair distance from the stage and was unable to even meet up with Justin and D, none the less they were fantastic.
Florence + The Machine
Most of our group took up a comfortable position to watch Florence on the north main stage. I saw a little of her set from a distance, and it sounded great, but I was already en route to my next favorite of the day.
Miike Snow
These Swedish eletro guys had become a favorite of mine over their past couple releases. Even though I was alone for this set I had a great time getting down to their percolating synths and live drums amid the dense swirls of stage smoke. They played an extra long remix of “Animal” for 7+ minutes that was so fun.
Jack White
The last act on our agenda was headliner Jack White. Even though we all spent a lot of the weekend going in different directions, we gradually all regrouped before this set. We set up a couple blankets on a near hillside, and just relaxed as the sun set and the band started. Surprisingly I didn’t get any video of his act. It had been a very long weekend. Jack hit his own singles, some of The White Stripes favorites, and even a Raconteurs song or two. As you’d expect he closed with “Seven Nation Army”. Funny how I’ve heard that riff chanted by more people in the OSU Horseshoe than in Grant Park that night, but it was still an awesome finish.
