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.
