popwreckoning

Weary festival goers clutched their Starbucks cups closely on the CTA. The enthusiasm for day 2 of Lollapalooza was there, but the energy was not. Friday had been hot and filled with a combination of lots of dancing and walking. The evening was packed with after shows and after parties, so passengers suavely tried to glance at the tangled wrist bands of others to see what Chicago venues they had ended up at or in some cases, were just now returning home from.

For those that thought Saturday would leave thoughts of Gaga in the dust, they were wrong. One of the first bands I saw that day paid her an early afternoon tribute. Over at the BMI Stage, I caught the pop rock act: Skybox. These guys are Chicago-based, but they also have a Kansas City (where I’m from) connection. So I already, felt a bit of a bond to these grandiose rockers. The band’s singer, Tim Ellis, quickly had the crowd in the palm of his hand as he bounced around the stage singing catchy hooks and amping the crowd up for the rest of the day. When it came time for their last number, he said they were dedicating it to Lady Gaga, and he disappeared. When Ellis re-emerged, he was wearing a sparkly bra with his striped pants. Once past the initial shock of his change, we went with it and started dancing and having fun. It was like a big party in front of the stage. Fantastic.

Wild Beasts were one of those surprise bands that I ended up loving and had just kind of stumbled into. I honestly, didn’t know a thing about these ethereal rockers, but from the sampling I saw, I’m recommending everyone check them out.

Dragonette continued the trend of the BMI stage featuring synth-heavy, up-and-coming rock bands that were great for dancing. Considering that Gaga was able to blow up after her hot mess of a set on the BMI Stage a few years ago, I wouldn’t be surprised if this tight performance launches Dragonette into even bigger stardom.

Speaking of hot messes, I was less of a fan of the poptart I saw at the Hard Rock Music Lounge: Kristine Elezaj. She wants to be the next Britney or something, but with her over the top performance for a bunch of already established music industry people was a bit much. Honestly, we don’t need to see some over produced act feeling herself up while we’re trying to enjoy lunch. Ugh. Disgusted, I hurried back to the festival for some guaranteed good music.

More from day 2 soon to follow!

The lineup for the 2010 Lollapalooza Festival at Grant Park in Chicago on August 6-8 has been officially announced on their website. Some of this year’s headliners include newly reformed Soundgarden, last year’s hugely successful Frenchmen Phoenix, and the return of The Strokes and Arcade Fire. See below for the full lineup or head over to Lollapalooza.com for more information on ticketing and the latest news on the festival.

(Screen shot from Lollapalooza.com)

We’ll keep you updated on any changes made to the lineup before the festival in August.

The organizers  behind music festival Lollapalooza continue revealing clues to the 2010 line-up.

So far, fill-in-the-blank line-up has clued in the following letters: O, R, I.

The headliners are for the most part agreed upon: Soundgarden, Green Day, Lady Gaga, Arcade Fire, The Strokes and Phoenix.

However, forums still have a few blanks leaving them stumped.

Here are the guesses from the folks over at the official Lollapalooza forums. The bands in bold, while not confirmed, are the most likely guess:

1. soundgarden * green day * lady gaga * arcade fire * the strokes * phoenix
2. social distortion * mgmt or ween or cake or sade or… ? * jimmy cliff * hot chip * the black keys
3. the national * spoon * devo * cypress hill * cut copy * the new pornographers
4. slightly stoopid * grizzly bear * gogol bordello * chromeo * wolfmother
5. yeasayer * x japan * mutemath? * metric * dirty projectors * afi
6. mavis staples * matt & kim * the xx * drive-by truckers * blues traveler
7. edward sharpe & the magnetic zeros * the temper trap * jamie lidell
8. frightened rabbit * fuck buttons * deer tick * blitzen trapper * stars
9. raphael saadiq * the cribs * minus the bear * switchfoot * the walkmen?
10. mumford & sons * wild beasts * rogue wave * los amigos invisibles
11. the big pink * the dodos * hockey * cymbals eat guitars * sloan or B.o.b or aloha? * YACHT or dawes… ?
12. warpaint * the antlers * the soft pack * rebelution * balkan beat box? * K’Naan or…? (6spaces)
13. american bang * the ike reilly assassination * company of thieves * YACHT or dawes or wheat…?
14. harlem * the constellations * miniature tigers * mimicking birds
15. the kissaway trail * K’Naan or…? (6spaces) * delphic * the morning benders * foxy shazam
16. violent soho * royal bangs * neon trees * freelance whales
17. semi precious weapons * the heavy or hey champ? * the band of heathens * dragonette
18. my dear disco * buddy miller or…? * the heavy or hey champ? * jukebox the ghost
19. these united states * mynameisjohnmichael *  “and many more!” or…?

perry’s
1. 2manydjs * empire of the sun * digitalism * perry farrell * tiga
2. felix da housecat * rusko * erol alkan * kaskade or malente… ? * flosstradamus
3. wolfgang gartner * joachim garraud * mexican institute of sound
4. caspa or MANDY or benga? * peanut butter wolf * dirty south * darko or nervo?  * cut copy (dj set)
5. beats antique * steve porter * didi gutman of brazilian girls
6. _ _ _ / _ I _ * team bayside high * dani deahl * dj mel?
7. _ _ _ *  _ O _ _ _ _ _ _ _ * only children * _ _ _ _ _ / _ _ R _ _ _ R O _ _

Time to call up your old hang-man partner or your Wheel of Fortune loving friend. Lollapalooza is set to officially reveal the 2010 line-up on April 6, but in the meantime, the festival organizers are teasing fans with a fill-in-the-blank line-up board viewable here.

The only letter given so far: ‘O’.

So how far can that single letter get you? Pretty far actually. From counting blanks and using the clued in O’s, it looks like rumors of  Soundgarden, Green Day and Lady Gaga are correct for the headliners. That fourth blank? Arcade Fire fits perfectly.

Previously confirmed The Strokes fill in the fifth blank.

Advanced pre-sale VIP tickets went on sale Tuesday for the festival.

What other guesses do you have? Comment and let us know.

Green Day have been writing new material, preparing for the American Idiot broadway debut and now they’re adding a late summer tour to their already busy schedules.

We have some dates below, but the band says more will be announced soon (and there’s still a gap that aligns nicely with their rumored Lollapalooza performance).

Tour Dates:
August 3 -  Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center / On Sale 4/3
August 5 – Buffalo, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center / On Sale 4/17
August 9 – Alpharetta, GA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre / On Sale 3/27
August 11 – Washington, DC @ Jiffy Lube Live On Sale / 4/9
August 12 – Hartford, CT @ Comcast Theater On Sale / 4/2
August 14 – Holmdel, NJ @ PNC / On Sale 3/26
August 16 – Boston, MA @ Comcast Center / On Sale 3/27
August 18 – Toronto, ONT @ Molson Canadian Amphitheatre / On Sale 3/27
August 23 – Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theater / On Sale 3/26
August 26 – Dallas, TX @ Superpages.com Center / On Sale 4/2
August 28 – Denver, CO @ Comfort Dental Amphitheater / On Sale 3/27
August  30 – Phoenix, AZ @ Cricket Wireless Pavilion / On Sale 4/3
August 31 – Los Angeles, CA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater / TBA
September 2 Chula Vista, CA Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre / On Sale 4/2

For additional ticket and tour information, visit www.greenday.com or www.livenation.com.