lollapalooza recap - top eleven

yes, it’s been two weeks.  but turns out i haven’t had as much free time as i thought i would…who am i kidding? i knew i wouldn’t have free time… anyway, i wanted to do a full recap of our wonderful concert-going experience, but i’ll just do a top eleven bands recap (mainly because i did a top ten about a the things i learned).  is that ok with you? ok great.

11. mgmt - i really want to put them higher on the list, but i could not get a great spot and kept hearing the booka shade bass bleeding over.  their set was great and they played with a full band which was awesome.

10. john butler trio - they are so incredibly talented.  i have been trying to see them for the past couple of festivals i’ve been at, but never made it.  i’m so glad - their music is meaningful and very entertaining.

9. rage against the machine - i would feel bad if i ranked them higher only because i didn’t even get to stay for half their set.  i made it through the first two songs before i began to fear for my life (we were very, very close) but they rocked it as expected, and the crowd was…let’s just say “responsive”

8. the parlor mob - this was my new “find” for the festival.  they really rocked it out and i am so glad my brother dragged us to their set! they kind of seem like they’d be the next wolfmother…only hopefully they won’t disband after a few years.

7. explosions in the sky - this was such a pleasant surprise.  while i love their music, i wasn’t sure of how they would translate to a festival setting.  they really had a great energy and the music was so beautiful.

6. gnarls barkley - having seen them twice already, i kind of knew what to expect.  cee-lo and dangermouse exceeded those expectations immensly.  their set was amazing, the crowd was so involved and fun, and their cover of radiohead’s “reckoner” was surprisingly wonderful.

5. lupe fiasco - he really had so much energy at his show.  so many people were there just waiting for the rage show, but the crowd was mostly good and i think my favorite was go go gadget flow

4. chromeo - so. much. fun. i can’t really say much more than that. besides the fact that their setup was on “legs” that was hilarious/amazing.

3. the raconteurs - i knew i would like it because i like pretty much anything that jack white does…but this show blew me away. there were so many amazing songs, including a cover of charley parker’s “keep it clean.” (click on the link for the “steady as she goes” video)

2. radiohead - i might get in a lot of trouble for putting them second… don’t get me wrong, it was one of the most amazing sets i’ve ever seen - the lights, the songs, the crowd- but you’ll understand when you see my number one.

1. wilco - to see them in their hometown was  a magnificent experience.  even after going from the madness that is rage to the calmness that is wilco, it didn’t phase me. my favorite song they did was “handshake drugs,” “hate it here” was a close second.  but the best part about it was their outfits!!

photo from brooklynvegan - click to see the rest of their suits and a setlist.

honorable mention goes to g love and special sauce, booka shade, the black keys, kanye west (yes, he had an amazing show), and louis xiv. it was extremely hard to even narrow it down to eleven.  i loved every act i saw, even if it was just a couple of songs.

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