Surviving Lollapalooza: Day 2

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LOLLAPALOOZA DAY 2
Saturday August 4th, 2007 – Grant Park – Chicago, IL

The day that falls in between Friday and Sunday...

I was pretty underwhelmed by Friday’s lineup and even less enthusiastic about Saturday's, so Tito’s-and-Vitamin Waters were being consumed aggressively. However I did manage to catch a few acts that left very lasting impressions.

My day began around 2:30 p.m. when I had the good fortune of catching an overly impressive performance by former teenage wonders, Silverchair. Remember those 14-year-old Australian kids that followed the grunge scene with their own Nirvana-esque tribute? Well they’re still playing music and they’re really fucking good. Daniel Johns, frontman and husband to the beautiful Natalie Imbruglia, has traded in his boyish looks for some tats, nipple piercings, facial hair and muscles galore. The three-piece ripped through its hour long set with past and current hits (or so I’m told because, like Hanson, I thought they went away after they hit puberty) so impressively that I actually went home and downloaded (illegally from a strange Russian website) their two most recent albums. In all honesty, these guys are really, really good and deserve a listen.

I left the main stage to roam the grounds for a bit and was able to catch a couple minutes of Stephen Marley’s performance. Is it me or are all the Marley’s the same person? He was good, the crowd seemed to enjoy themselves, but I don’t smoke pot. After, I made my way to the smaller PlayStation stage to see my first hip-hop show of the festival (because I'm not sure if Mickey Avalon is actually considered hip-hop.) Rhymefest -- Kanye West’s protégé and co-writer of the Grammy Award winning “Jesus Walks” -- was about to take the stage. I really enjoyed Fest’s major label debut, Blue Collar, but had never seen him perform live so I was a bit skeptical. To me, hip-hop just doesn’t translate well live. But let me tell you something, this guy is a flat-out rock star.

Here’s what I liked about Rhymefest as a performer: great showman, funny as shit, got the crowd involved (and not just in some cheesy rap way by telling everyone to get their hands up) and actually seemed to care about what he was saying. Performance wise, Rhymefest had a full band plus horn section, amazing break dancers, a sidekick who could sing the lights out and songs that were slamming! The bottom line is that it wasn’t your typical hip-hop show. This one had it all, and then some. I’m pissed to admit that I missed the Cold War Kids show because I’m a big fan but there’s only so many shows you can see and I’ve seen the band several times before.

After the 3:30 p.m. performances ended, the skies turned dark and the air became wet so I retreated to the fancy, VIP area for more cocktails. My friend Nathan then dragged me to the smallest stage in the entire venue to see one of his “friends” perform. As I entered the Mindfield staging area I noticed two men seated with acoustic guitars. I couldn’t have been less excited about anything in my entire life. The first man introduced himself as James Marsden (the actor who plays Cyclops in the X-Men movies). The second guy introduced himself as Josh Hopkins (the actor from numerous TV shows including "Ally McBeal" and "Brothers & Sisters.") This made it even worse! I was about to watch Dogstar or 30 Odd Foot of Grunts or any of those other actor fronted bands.

Before they began, Mr. Hopkins announced to the crowd that this show was not for children and that all kids should be escorted out immediately. That’s when it got interesting. What I witnessed for the next 30 minutes made for the funniest concert I have ever been to in my life! These two pretty boys became the good looking version of Tenacious D. They sang songs about being honest to girlfriends, about pooping after swimming, about man-crushes and more. It was downright hysterical! I couldn’t get enough. I wanted more but before I knew it the show was over. Check out their video for a song called “Feigning Interest” on YouTube. You will not be disappointed.

Sadly, I missed Regina Spektor and was told she was marvelous, though I later watched her performance on the in-house feed. To be sure I didn't miss all of the fabulous female performers, I made sure I was front and center for Ms. Karen O and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. I’ve seen this band on numerous occasions and always felt that the live show didn’t do the recorded music justice. Not today my friends, not today! They kicked major ass. The costume changes, the energy and the songs really made for one of the best performances of the entire festival. From the distance I could hear Spoon but my legs just didn’t seem to care so from 1/8 mile away I give their performance a B-minus.

Choosing between the night’s two headliners wasn’t really a choice, for me, at all. I like Interpol but they live in the US (so I’ll see them again) and they’re actually kind of boring. Muse is British and they play their instruments really loud and they have a massive light show. I chose Muse. Guess what? They’re British, they play their instruments really loud and they have a massive light show AND they still sound like Radiohead on speed. Good show chaps, good show.

Stay tuned for Day 3...

Check out Day 1 here...

web address: http://suicidegirls.com/news/music/22064/Surviving-Lollapalooza-Day-2/