popwreckoning

Despite a great line-up of bands, Sunday was the most challenging day of the Lollapalooza festival. Mother Nature teased with some early morning rain before bringing on one of the hottest afternoons of the fest. By early evening, the rain returned with a vengeance turning the last bit of the festival into a mudfest. With our expensive camera guitar, we were less than thrilled about the rain, but it didn’t stop the thousands of other festival goers from having a blast.

We avoided the early morning rain by taking an extended breakfast at the Hard Rock Hotel and entered the festival as Noah and the Whale were wrapping their set. We found them a little dull at SXSW, but they seemed a lot livelier during their Lolla performance. The big crowd singalongs during “L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N” and “Five Years Time” made the set a lot more fun, too.

We then went to check out Canada’s City and Colour. With a new album on the way, Dallas Green and company treated us to a few new tracks, but also plenty of classics such as “Sleeping Sickness.” During one moment of the set, Dallas even asked everyone to put down the cameras, hide your phones and just enjoy the music. The vibes were just all around pleasant as the audience obliged and joined with an amazing singalong.

Next on the agenda was a classic: The Cars. These guys still can rock and I think even some of the younger folk that missed out on the Cars in their prime were surprised by how much energy these guys had. We were surprised to find ourselves saying more than once, “I didn’t realize this was a Cars song! I love it!” Looks like we need to revisit this music catalog.

From classic to completely brand new, we then went over to check out Boy & Bear. Hopefully some of the City and Colour fans made their way to this set as well because it also was full of some beautiful harmonies, acoustic guitars and sweet musicians. This charming folk music left us with a smile on our face and this is an act to keep on your radar.

We had to really switch gears for the next act. Cage the Elephant faced the threat of storm clouds opening up over their set, but they seemed to face the weather with a “bring it on, bitches” sort of attitude. The band ripped open with some of the most intense energy of any set and it wasn’t long before the singer was crowdsurfing. When it did start raining, it only seemed to intensify everyone’s desire to rock out. This set was a big improvement from Cage the Elephant’s Lolla performance a few years ago and finally helped us see what the fuss about Cage the Elephant is all about.

Because of the rain, we dashed into cover under the press tent. Arctic Monkeys delayed the start of their set, finally going on 30 minutes after their start time when the rain let up a little. It was still raining enough that we just listened to them from the safety of the press area as they quickly started delivering some of their older radio classics with a few new songs sprinkled in.

The rain stopped and we began our muddy trek to Explosions in the Sky. It was fascinating to watch the division in the crowd as half tried to carefully trod the least muddy path and the other half just embraced it and began mudsliding down hills. As for us, we weren’t thrilled to be muddy on the last day with our heavy gear and the prospect of riding the CTA back covered in dirt, so we were feeling a bit ruffled as we prepared for the next few performances. Fortunately, two things quickly made life better. #1: Lobster Corndogs. OMG. If you are ever in Chicago, you must try a lobster corndog at Grahamwich. As great as the music was, so was the festival food and these things were heaven. The best spent $8 ever. The #2 thing that made life better: Explosions in the Sky. These instrumental rockers politely apologized for beginning late (Arctic Monkeys cut into their set a bit) and began with a beautifully orchestrated dynamic piece that was the most cathartic moment of the festival. The anger at the rain quickly dispersed as their cleverly built songs continued to carry us over a range of emotions.

We were in much better spirits as we made our way through the mud toward the Music Unlimited Stage where the Foo Fighters would soon be taking the stage. The mud must have been going to people’s heads because we saw some stranger and stranger things on this walk: people making mud angels, mud fights and the worst: people using the mud as their personal bathrooms…ew. Fortunately, we had Foo Fighters to distract us from some of the less pleasant members of the audience.

The energy was electric as anticipation grew for Dave Grohl and company to take the stage. When the band finally came out, they looked almost as giddy as the audience–it is always heart-warming to see musicians that really love what they do and don’t look like they’re just here for a check. From the first guitar strum, the band dived right into non-stop hits from their record – we can’t believe how prolific they are! Crowdsurfers were going wild, the audience singing along was almost as loud as Grohl’s amplified voice. Grohl knows how to play to a crowd and quickly ran across the stage to the left, dropped a true rock star pose and played some killer riffs before running back to the right. Forget Willow Smith, Grohl knows how to whip his hair back and forth. He was as dynamic to watch as he was to listen…the whole band was that way. These guys were everything that headliners should be. The rain decided to challenge the band during their third song, but this is the Foo Fighters; rain can’t stop them. Grohl shouted some encouragement at the audience before the fourth song and cheers reverberated through Grant Park bigger than any thunder clap.

This was an epic way to close out Lollapalooza and I would have been content ending there, but there were two other performances going on: Kid Cudi and Deadmau5. We’ve seen Deadmau5 and had no doubt that people were dancing and swimming through the mud to his electronica beats, but Kid Cudi was in a tent and we’ve never seen the up-and-comer, so we made our way to Perry’s (the appeal of it being covered also factored into our decision.) This was the first time we braved the tent at this year’s festival. It had been expanded to being the size of football field and it looked like people were having a blast every time we had walked past, but it also looked a lot more intense than any other stage. I don’t know where some of these fans were getting their energy from to keep up with Perry’s non-stop dance party. In the end, we’re glad we made our way into Perry’s, not only to check out the new digs, but because Kid Cudi generally surprised us with how enjoyable his set was. Kid Cudi brought great rhythms, witty lyrics and a spectacular light show. We can see why he was selected to round out the last night of Perry’s 3-day party. He sent us off into the night, amped up for the return of Lollapalooza in 2012.

Check back to PopWreckoning.com for more Lollapalooza recaps, interviews and photo. See coverage from Friday here and Saturday here.

Saturday at Lollapalooza starts with just as much mental excitement, but unfortunately, the body is already starting to feel a bit drained from the long hours and lots of walking.

When PopWreckoning arrived from our train stop, we could hear Walk the Moon from across park, but unfortunately resigned ourselves to being unable to hobble over in time. Instead, we began with Aussie duo An Horse at the Google+ Stage. We’ve seen these guys before and we’re continually impressed by their full sound for just being a drummer and a singer with a guitar. Plus singer Kate Cooper is a force unto herself. That girl can belt.

From two to at least thirteen, the next act we caught was a big change up from An Horse. Portland’s Typhoon quickly became our favorite discovery at Lollapalooza. This ensemble had brass, strings, multiple guitarist and percussionists. They knew how to build-up a song and they knew how to have fun. Put these charming chamber folk musicians on your radar.

We really changed things up as we returned to a group with fewer members and switched out the folk sounds for electronic synthesized ones. Phantogram got us to dance over by the Sony Stage. The group sparsely uses lyrics, so the focus is all on the sounds and the beats they drop.

But we never stay in one spot too long, much like the singer of the next act we caught: Friendly Fires. Singer Ed MacFarlane is one entertaining fellow. He danced as he sang and though the stage was at least 20 feet above the audience, but he jumped down and surfed through the crowd. The rest of the band was pretty content staying out of the crowd and instead focused on delivering a tightly played set. The rhythms dropped by drummer Jack Savidge especially impressed because without those beats, none of the tropical dancing would be possible.

We had some interviews to conduct (which will be posted on PopWreckoning.com soon), so we had to miss Fitz and the Tantrums‘ Lolla set. But we did overhear their jazzy waves all the way in the press area and it sounds like they did two great covers (“Sweet Dreams” and “Steady as She Goes”) that might be worth youtubeing.

After we finished interviewing, we worked our way to the young up-and-comers DOM, and overheard a raucous party over at the tail end of the Black Lips‘ set. A lot of those Black Lips fans must have worked their way over to DOM because that stage was just as much of a party as the young group really embraced the rock and roll aesthetic of their synth indie rock.

Just across the way, another synth indie rock act was performing a very different type of music. Denver’s Chain Gang of 1974 mixes a lot of different elements into its brand of rock – from American rock to some global influences most noteworthy in the percussion and then a bit of glam dance thrown in.

From here we went to see one of the most anticipated sets of the festival: Death From Above 1979. The newly reunited duo had one of the largest daytime crowds. One donned white and the other embraced black clothes – their appearance reflected the duality of their music – the tug and war of the drums and guitar perfectly balanced out. For a group that’s been away from the stage for some time, you wouldn’t know it from their performance. They were tight and energetic and dripped with passion. From this performance, it was easy to see why DFA has influenced so many other acts to follow.

As cool as the classic acts are at Lolla, we also love checking out the newer ones. Patrick Stump then Ellie Goulding were next on our agenda. Patrick Stump is a popular Chicago son, having built a fanbase with his previous act Fall Out Boy. Now he’s gone R&B, which is well suited for his voice, but it looks like his new backing band has some kinks to work out. The band let stress show through when they were hit with a few technical difficulties. Ellie Goulding is a British singer that many first started hearing about when she performed for the Royal Wedding. We’re kind of on the fence about her. Her original pop songs are great and catchy, but she can do some atrocious covers – particularly her sloppy cover of Elton John’s “Your Song.”

Another new act we caught was the Pretty Reckless. This is the project that has taken Taylor Momsen from the acting stage and onto the music stage. It seems she likes the spotlight more here because she’s given up her role on Gossip Girl to focus on her band. The Pretty Reckless is a glam rock group, but honestly, Taylor’s outfit held our attention more so than the music. Taylor was wearing a very strappy mini-dress that didn’t leave too much too the imagination, but it also did a good job embracing the rockstar image she is working to exude. We just didn’t care for the strained vocals when she goes into a louder rock passage. The girl can sing and it is evident at times, but the attempt to reach for rock isn’t quite effortless yet.

The next band we saw didn’t even bother with singing. Beats Antique blew us away with their instrumental music and belly dancing show. Big drums, strings – this was a great introduction to global music for people who had previously only thought they were cultured after watching one single Bollywood film. The trio’s dancer kept eyes transfixed on her fusion of belly dancing, ballet and jazz. By song two, she amazed yet again by picking up a big bass drum. This is an act that should be seen live if you ever have the chance.

Lykke Li kept us dancing, but more in that ‘sway along to the pleasant music’ type of dancing. Lykke Li had this mystical air about her enhanced by her trash bag like outfit. She was good, but didn’t hook us quite as much as the amazing Beats Antique performance prior.

Just when we thought our feet would give out beneath us, we were hit by a fresh wave of energy at the thought of it being headliner time. We began with My Morning Jacket who delivered one of their best sets yet: 2 hours of solid entertainment from these indie rockers. Jim James had brought his A-game, sporting a special voice box on his chest and practically prowling about the stage. Across the park, Eminem also brought his A-game. Even if you’re like us and rap isn’t your thing, Eminem delivered an entertaining superstar set. He had passion, impeccable timing, charisma and some amazing visuals. The videos during his set were just as entertaining as he was. But one of the greatest highlights was the surprise appearance of singer/guitarist Bruno Mars. It was a fantastic surprise to hear some of the guest vocals performed live instead of listening to pre-recorded tracks.

The last band that we were most excited about was Beirut. The brass-loving French band doesn’t tour the states to often, but with a new album about to drop, this was our chance to see one of our favorite indie acts live at last. This was almost as enriching as seeing a full orchestra live – french horn, tuba, trombone and more – the songs were beautiful, haunting and a great way to send us off into the dark Chicago night.

Check back to PopWreckoning.com for more Lollapalooza recaps, interviews and photo and see coverage from Friday here.

This year, Lollapalooza promised a bigger and better event than past years. The three day festival brought back some classic artists (Big Audio Dynamite, The Cars) and introduced some great new artists (Typhoon, Reptar) to the thousands massed in Grant Park for the music festivals 20th anniversary celebration.

Now nothing says celebration like cake, so to help kick things off, the Charm City Cakes crew, aka Ace of Cakes, unveiled a very special moving treat. The fondant masterpiece had little bands, cassette tapes and the classic Lolla sign. And yes, Charm City’s cakes taste just as good as they look on TV.

The festival officially kicks off with the traditional blasting of the Star Wars theme. As the triumphant ‘dun dun dun duuun’ sounded the opening of the gates, music lovers poured through the gates and excitedly rushed to one of the many stages sporting bands.

The London indie rockers the Vaccines were playing some catchy hooks as PopWreckoning made our way out of the press area and over the nicely shaded Google+ Stage for husband and wife act, Tennis. The Denver couple was joined by a friend to help round out their charming sound. They played saccharine indie pop tunes and were like a fresh breeze to the hot air. Alaina Moore’s light and airy vocals were an especially nice compliment to the piano, as was the group’s neverending supply of smiles.

After the relaxing set from Tennis eased us into the festival, we finally felt ready to dance and worked our way to the Sony Stage. The Naked and Famous perform catchy synth pop tunes – think Passion Pit, but with a female and male singer as opposed to just a male singer who can sound like a female. The Naked and Famous have great chemistry on stage and sound even better live than they do on album.

With “Punching in a Dream” stuck in our heads, we parted Sony to return to the Google+ to experience Reptar, and what an experience they were. If you couldn’t guess from the Rugrats’ inspired name, Reptar is a little quirky…for example, one of the guys was wearing a blue, ankle-length leotard. Their music matches their fun personalities and with their drumming patterns, they sound a bit like Vampire Weekend. Tiny little bells added a great percussive layer too.

Then the amazingly talented Grace Potter and the Nocturnals pulled us to the BudLight Stage, where Potter’s soulful singing kept everyone transfixed. Two tigers adorned the band’s amps and as we watched the frontwoman move about the stage in a flapper-esque dress, we could help but think that she was like a tiger on the prowl with her own might roar.

The ever increasingly popular Foster the People played across the park on the Sony stage. One of the largest crowds of the day had gathered to hear the ubiquitous “Pumped Up Kicks,” among other tunes.

Synth pop/rock kept us busy through the next few acts. White Lies entertained on the Music Unlimited Stage, gleefully smiling at the audience gathered. Question: did someone lose a suitcase on the way to the festival? Three of the members were matching in all white, while the other members were not. Regardless of the peculiarity in fashion decision, the band’s music was the focus and what hooked us in. Fans of the Killers will instantly love this band’s music, whose vocals and synth patterns are of similar fashion.

Ireland’s Two Door Cinema Club also played synth pop/rock, but while White Lies was slower, more reflective musings, Two Door Cinema Club played amped up songs that got people in a dancing frenzy. The band quipped about the effect of playing in the Midwest sun with their fair Irish skin, but the heat didn’t seem to faze them. They were energetic as they passed guitar riffs and vocal lines back and forth amongst members.

Lollapalooza has its share of local Chicago acts and one of the most buzzed about ones was Black Cards, a project featuring former Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz. Here, Pete steps away from the bass and back behind a DJ table. Bebe Rexha sings over the tracks he spins, while Spencer Peterson drops a beat. Some slightly stripperish dancers joined on stage, but we were more intrigued by the prowling male dancer who popped some moves than the girls that were all up on the monitors. Pete doesn’t spend very much time spinning from back behind the DJ table. Cheerleader might be a better description for what he was doing – yelling “put your hands up,” crowdsurfing and throwing toilet paper at the crowd. This was definitely an interesting set to watch, but we’re not sure we’re sold on the musical aspect of it.

Speaking of musical aspect, Tinie Tempah surprised with a much more rocking set than we thought it would be. Rap/hip hop isn’t usually our thing, but with a live drummer, bassist, etc Tinie Tempah’s set delivered a lot more musicality than we ever expected. We wish we could have stayed longer, but we had to get over to our favorite Midwest indie rocker’s set.

Bright Eyes has already been impressing on this year’s festival rounds. The Omaha alternative folk rock act performed with an enthusiasm that was absent from Bright Eyes shows of the past. This refreshed take on the songs was evident from the get-go, when the group started with “Four Winds.”Additionally, frontman Conor Oberst has grown a lot more confident over the years and this really shows in his performance.

“Jar of Hearts” has been everywhere on the radio, so even though it hasn’t appealed to us on that format, we thought it might be a good idea to check out rising star Christina Perri on the BMI Stage. Perri and her backing band ended up being a pleasant surprise – their other songs are a lot catchier and more upbeat than the single “Jar of Hearts.” We were hooked on Perri’s effervescent piano playing. Now, just maybe, we might think twice before changing the dial when “Jar of Hearts” comes on the radio.

Crystal Castles didn’t want any photographs taken of them, which actually ended up being for the better. The groups loud and eccentric electronica/rock songs meant we wanted to be free to dance around. Though it had already been a long day, everyone seemed to find a wave of new energy for this set and those that couldn’t spare the effort to dance stood transfixed on the antics of the act’s bold frontwoman.
When it came time for the headliners, Coldplay and Muse, both ends of the venue spouted fireworks. As excited as we were to see Coldplay and hear the new material they had been working on, we found it a bit hard to stay interested in their set. They sounded fine and were playing lots of the hit singles – “Yellow,” “Lost,” etc – but Muse was way too enthralling from even a mile away. Their laser show was lighting up the night sky, so we  soon moved on from Coldplay back toward their direction. On the way, we stopped at Google+ for instrumental duo Ratatat. They had a bit of a wild video and light show going on in their own little area of Grant Park and we enjoyed dancing and watching their bizarre chicken videos before finishing the walk to Muse.

Muse knows how to headline. They pulled out all the stops and performed lots of singles, spanning their entire catalogue, complete with big guitar solos and lots of wild lights. This band is easily one of the best live rock groups still performing and their live show is one not to be missed. They were the perfect ending to the first night of the festival.

Check back to PopWreckoning.com for more Lollapalooza recaps, interviews and photos…

It’s Lollapalooza‘s 20th anniversary and as we’re packing our bags to spend the weekend in Chicago’s Grant Park, here are 20 things that we’re most anticipating for Lollapalooza‘s 20th:

20. Grant Park. The park is beautiful and great place to visit even without a festival going. The long stretch of land is right next to Lake Michigan and wedged next to the Chicago skyline.

19. The artwork. Every year Lolla has some amazing sculptures setting a theme for the park and they always invite talented artists to design the official posters. We can’t wait to see what decorations will be set up this year.

18. Sold out. Ok, so some people may not be excited about this, but we love that over 200,000+ people are about to electrify the atmosphere with their excitement over the fest.

17. The Green Initiative. Volunteers go around picking up trash and collecting recyclables. There’s even a section of the venue that rewards you for turning in collected trash. Even water containers have been specially ordered to reduce Lolla’s carbon footprint.

16. The volunteers. A lot of this wouldn’t be possible without them, so be sure to thank them if you see them in their t-shirts giving out instructions or cleaning up somewhere around the park.

15. Cool down centers. It’s one of the hottest summers on record, but Lolla is kind enough to set up spray hoses and air conditioned buses.

14. Chicago tourist spots. A lot of Lolla attendees are from out of town, so this is a great opportunity to check out the Bean or Shedd Aquarium for the first time…or second…or 90 millionith. Chicago tourist spots are pretty amazing.

13. Free gear. Visit some of the radio station tents for cool gear and a chance to sit in the shade. Last year we got some great Lolla bandanas and paper fans that helped protect us from the sun.

12. Food. Chicago has some great spots to eat – hello deep dish pizza, but you don’t even have to leave the fest to grab a great meal. Be sure to stop by Chowtown where they have your standard fried festival fare, but also some great healthy options.

11. Veggie-friendly. Speaking of food, vegans and vegetarians are taken care of in Chowtown. There are plenty of options for everyone. Another reason why Lolla is awesome.

10. Kidzapalooza. Lolla really does think of everyone. With Kidzapalooza, people of all ages are able to have a great time at the fest. There are games and family friendly music that is special for the kids, but still enjoyable for parents.

9. Special guests. Lots of musicians are friends, so you never know who might pop up during another person’s set. A few years ago, Slash surprised everyone. This year, we’re keeping an eye on Black Cards and Patrick Stump, former members of Fall Out Boy that are playing the fest.

8. Cover songs. Lolla artist little hurricane just released a cover song and you can bet that plenty of artists have their own goodie bags of covers. We’ll more than likely hear a few of these live.

Chicago quartet Maps & Atlases is about to make its Lollapalooza debut. The band plays Saturday at 2:15 p.m. on the Google + Stage. In lieu of their hometown festival appearance, singer Dave Davison took some time out of the band’s busy tour schedule to talk about the group’s music, festival appearance and some of his favorite spots in the Windy City.

Bethany, PopWreckoning: You guys are getting ready to play the Lollapalooza festival. For people who haven’t heard you, how would you describe your sound?
Dave Davison, Maps & Atlases: A lot of times, people describe it as sort of technical pop music or something. I think we have a big focus on songs and song structure and we go a little further out with that in using technicality in music. So, it’s as simple as you want to make it, I guess.

PW: I know you guys met in art school. How does your art background translate into your music?
Dave: I know that for me personally that because we started at a time where we’re learning so much about everything, especially art, that the band sort of served as a sort of place where we could experiment with a lot of the ideas that we had been exposed to and had been learning about. It lets us experiment with concepts that we had learned about in school and stuff. I think that developmentally that played a role like that. It’s been an extension-forming ideas into how music can evolve.

PW: Does the art background also carry over to your videos? You just released a video for “Solid Ground.” How much input did you guys have personally in that video?
Dave: Erin [Elders], our guitar player, and Chris Hainey, our drummer, they both majored in film and the video that we did for “Living Decorations,” Chris shot the video and Erin directed. So they’re the video experts. “Solid Ground,” we didn’t have as much input because Taryn Gould directed and had an interesting concept, so we let Gould direct that and that was fun. I think we definitely try to use whatever things we’ve learned, especially for video; and you know, Shiraz [Dada], the bass player, he majored in sound engineering, and recorded our first two EPs. So the stuff we learned in school, we definitely try to use as possible.

PW: Now that song, “Solid Ground” is off your first LP, Perch Patchwork, which came out a year ago. Are you guys already thinking about a new record or working on some new songs?
Dave: We try to stay consistently productive and all that. I personally try to not think too deeply about the actual release aspect of music until we get further along. We’re definitely thinking about doing something in the future and have recorded some music and played around with some ideas, but it’s hard to say when it will come out because we want to make sure that it’s something that we feel like we need and want to do as opposed to just having something new to release, so we’ll see when we have that. Hopefully something like that will just come together and be something we’re really excited to put out.

PW: Will you guys be playing anything new at Lollapalooza and your upcoming tour? What can people kind of expect from those performances?
Dave: I think Lollapalooza, we’ll be doing a lot of songs from Perch Patchwork. I think that they’re good songs where we can tour quite a bit and the songs have just naturally evolved from being played a lot, so there’s definitely some different stuff in there – our take on the songs that have evolved on Perch Patchwork, as well as some songs from previous EPs. I think the same can be said for the tour in October, but you can’t really say yet. We might play some newer songs on that tour, but we’ll see how it goes.

PW: What was your reaction when you were told that you’re playing Lollapalooza? You’re a Chicago band and you’re playing pretty much the biggest show of the year there.
Dave: We were extremely excited. Just on a really basic level, I think it’s really fun to play outside at festivals. It seems so much like the shows I went to when as a teenager and it was the times where you sort of…what it would be like for people developing. So for me it developed with that in mind. So a big festival and a big stage, anytime we have the opportunity to do that, and Lollapalooza probably being the biggest, any time we have the opportunity to play a big festival, the crowd has been is really exciting for that reason. It’s such a Chicago specific thing now and it’s really exciting to be able to go. And we’ll get to play for a lot of people that actually know us. People from the area that haven’t really been able to see us play. And I’m excited about that.

PW: Since you are from Chicago, and there are a lot of people coming in from out of town, do you have any must see, must visit Chicago spots that you’d recommend?
Dave: That’s tough. Probably all my recommendations are all restaurants. One of the advantages of not being from a place is being OK with doing touristy stuff. And Chicago has such a concentrated area of that. When I first started going to Columbia, I really loved being down in the South Loop area and going to all the museums. Definitely that stuff-the Art Institute, Shedd Aquarium. Hopefully it will be nice…the Zoo. I really like doing that kind of stuff. As far as off the beaten path recommendations, I’d have to think a bit more.

PW: What are some of your favorite restaurants?
Dave: This will be all veggie stuff. Irazu is really good in the Bucktown area: a Costa Rican restaurant. It’s one of my favorite restaurants. The Spice Thai in Logan Square is definitely worth checking out. Hm. Trying to think of places that aren’t quite so obvious…those are like the two places that I eat everyday. Downtown, it’s not super close to Lollapalooza, but you can get good veggie stuff if you go to Karyn’s. I always try to recommend that to everyone.

PW: Sounds great. Finally, what are you guys most looking forward to about Lollapalooza?
Dave: You know, I don’t even know really. I’m just excited to play. I’ve never actually been to Lollapalooza before, so I’m really looking forward to the actual performance. We’ve been gone on tour since like June 22 or something and we’ll get home that day, so it’s such a great way to be able to come. We get to come home and play this big show. It’s been a really fun summer of touring. Then we go back on tour like a week later.

For more information on Maps & Atlases Lollapalooza schedule and upcoming tour, visit myspace.com/mapsandatlases.

Mötley Crüe recently rocked the Sprint Center and joining them were glam rockers New York Dolls.

This band was the favorite of our photographer, Todd Zimmer, who shares these photos of the Dolls:

Joining Mötley Crüe at their recent Kansas City performance at the Sprint Center were glam rockers Poison.

Photographer Todd Zimmer was there and shares these photos from the event:

Heavy metal rockers Mötley Crüe revved up Kansas City fans at their Sprint Center performance. Between the rock, dancing girls and an impressive rollercoaster rig for Tommy Lee‘s drum set, the show was an amazing sight.

Photographer Todd Zimmer was there and shares these photos from the event:

Rock Chalk Jayhawk! Kansas pride was running high at the Beaumont Club Sunday and it isn’t even the season for college sports. The occasion? A Panic! at the Disco concert.

The Kansas City club was packed with a surprisingly diverse group of crowd – yes, the expected screaming tween girls were there with their parents, but so were some young adults and many guys.

California’s Funeral Party opened the night with their brand of punk dance rock. Their songs are very anthem-structured. It’s easy to sing/cheer along and get revved up, especially on a tune such as “Finale.” Funeral Party has been getting some radio play in Kansas City and that seemed to help increase the amount of people singing along. The five band members seemed a little crammed on the stage with their many synths and guitars and the covered instruments of the bands to come. However, the cramped space didn’t stop singer Chad Elliott from bouncing around and dancing across any inch of stage left uncovered by equipment. These guys were a great warm-up for what was to come.

The next act up was the upbeat indie pop of New York’s fun – seriously – I’ve seen them perform in the form as a trio to the now six-piece. Fun. is a hodgepodge of some very talented musicians that you might recognize from their work with other bands. For example, in the trio that makes up the official members of fun., you might recognize the distinctive vocals of Nate Ruess from The Format, multi-instrumentalist Andrew Dost from Anthallo and guitarist Jack Antonoff from Steel Train. The touring members have an equally impressive history; drummer Will Noon‘s from Straylight Run. Finally, if you flash back to this post’s opening “Rock Chalk Jayhawk” cheer – I have to give a major shout out to Nate Harold. Harold was rocking a KU basketball jersey – but this wasn’t one of those gimmicks where the artist dons local paraphernalia just for the city’s show and then ditches it. Harold really does have ties to KU and KU’s home in Lawrence. Harold is a Lawrence musician. His music resume includes several Lawrence bands such as Buffalo Saints, Kelpie, Koufax and Big Surrender. He’s lent his talents to Get Up Kids‘ live shows and Hidden Pictures‘ latest album. As if that slew of Kansas bands wasn’t enough, he’s also known for his work with Waking Ashland. So it’s pretty exciting to this bassist on this national tour. Of course, Kansas City, is mostly in Missouri, so there are plenty of Mizzou fans that weren’t exactly the most thrilled with a KU shout out in the middle of the set. To keep things light-hearted, singer Ruess said he’d represent Missouri for that night. ‘Light-hearted’ is exactly how you could describe fun.’s music. Serious musicians with a light-hearted sound. Even when a song whose title and primary line is, “At least I’m not as sad as I used to be,” would give you pause to state aloud, when singing it there’s no doubt: you’re happy. There’s no way you could be sad listening to the bubbly piano-chords and singing “oh oh ooohs” on various fun. tunes. Lastly, I don’t want to end without mentioning how much I love the addition of Emily Moore on backing vocals and keys. She really adds a nice depth to the already flawless vocals of Ruess with her harmonies.

Now on to Panic! at the Disco – a band worth of having an exclamation in their name.

If you had asked me what I thought of the band when I first saw them perform in 2005 – ‘green,’ ‘pitchy,’ ‘eh’ would have been my reaction. They were excited, but not quite familiar with their instruments. They seemed a little nervous back then. By 2007 – I would have called them ‘too showy.’ It seemed like they were overcompensating with elaborate sets – at times it was impossible to even find the guys playing instruments amidst all the other skits happening on stage.

With this tour, they seem to have found that sweet spot between not overcompensating with an overdone stage set up and instead finding that confidence in their own talents as musicians. Don’t sweat if you liked a fancy stage piece – they still have a cool backdrop for this tour which was like Phantom of the Opera meets steampunk – (Phantom! of the Disco?). Eerie green lights highlighted organ pipes mountaining up from around the drum set. Fog billowed out from the pipes as our synth-organ-maestro Brendon Urie pounded out riffs on piano and guitar while the other original P!ATD member Spencer Smith dropped the beats that provided the backbone to the group’s many dance numbers.

Of course, as tickled as I was to see Brendon Urie display his ability to play multiple instruments (anyone remember back in ’05 when we weren’t even sure if he can play an instrument?), the real reason he makes the girls swoon is his voice. As I mentioned before, in ’05 I would have written Urie off – I found him unbelievably pitchy, but he really has been practicing training and now I see the charm of his vocals – a charm that really helps deliver songs such as  the hugeness of opening number “Ready to Go,” the subtle mood of “Lying Is the Most Fun” and the sweetness of “Always.” I love seeing a musician willing to work at their trade to improve – this is a job after all – so I really applaud Urie on how much he’s improved. I knew he had showmanship, but this tour really helps show that he also has musicianship. My only critique now is that when he can overuse vibrato, especially if a vocal is just a hair past his comfort level, but really his overall improvement makes that critique seem nitpicky.

Of course, Urie isn’t the only one who has done wonders impressing me over the years – drummer Spencer Smith – hot damn! I think because of that previously mentioned overdone stage set up a few years ago, the one that had Smith placed up on a platform 30 feet above the rest of the band – I had no idea how good this guy was. You couldn’t see him and you forgot to really listen to him in the melee of the theatrics. I’m so glad that they’ve taken him out of the shadows and placed him in better view because he should never go overlooked again. He packed some wicked syncopations into some of those numbers.

Now, for anyone who has been following P!ATD’s history, you’ll know that the band lost two of its members prior to this tour and their album. Joining Urie and Smith for the live performance were Ian Crawford (ex-The Cab) and Dallon Weekes. These guys did a great job keeping the sound full and complete, but I have to wonder if the line-up change was the reason for so few songs off of Pretty. Odd. It was expected that the band would play mostly off the latest release, but it did seem like Pretty. Odd was being neglected until toward the end of the set when they worked in two numbers. Of course, this is more of an observation – the fans still loved every minute of the set regardless.

Fun. wasn’t the only band that gave Kansas a big homage during their performance. P!ATD gave a special tribute of their own. When P!ATD returned for an encore, they treated everyone to a cover from rock group Kansas. It was a tight cover and you could see that many of the older crowd there really perked up with this addition. All these Kansas tributes made for a truly special night (but of course, you have to neglect that we were in Kansas City, Missouri).

P!ATD Set List:
Ready to Go
But It’s Better
Mona Lisa
Lying
Trade Mistakes
Camisado
Hurricane
Only Difference
Kill Tonight
Always
Nine
Things Have Changed
New Perspective
Calendar
Sins
//
Carry On (Kansas cover)
Nearly Witches

Kansas City rockers The Architects spent most of the Spring on tour with My Chemical Romance. Though that particular tour skipped over Kansas City, the band was not about to neglect their hometown. After resting for a few days, they band returned to the stage for a packed, high-energy show at RecordBar.

Photographer Todd Zimmer was there and shares these photos from The Architects‘ triumphant return to Kansas City: