I promised myself I wouldn’t do Lolla this year (after doing all three days the last two years), but dammit, they really do book a fucking awesome show. And the sheer size of the event allows C3 to hedge their band bets: covering all the bases just by booking every band in the entire universe to play in Chicago on one weekend. (Note to self: Buy PBR now before the entire town runs dry).
Thankfully, I’m able to volunteer this year, which means I miss a bit of the middle-shows, but I’m seeing what I can for free-ninety-nine.
Here would be my recco/wish-list of who to see today:
Anything before Noon: I have no idea, so, go crazy.
Holy Fuck: Should be fun. Band was made to play live, and they’re damn entertaining. Also, maybe they’ll play their mix of the Radiohead’s “Nude” they entered in that contest.
Rogue Wave: I hear they’re actually not that great live, but c’mon. How cool would it be to hear “Lake Michigan” right next to Lake Michigan?
Yeasayer: Why not?
Tiny Masters of Today: Badass little kids. CSS, Karen O., and !!! love them, so why can’t you. What thread connects all these bands — the fact that their lyrics are terrible but it doesn’t matter.
The Black Keys / Golgol Bordello: Meh. This might be a good time to take a late lunch. These are definitely the two bands you should prolly see, but I’m not particularly a huge fan of either. Do you prefer your rock bluesy or gypsy-y?
Mates of State: Adorable
Grizzly Bear: A swell combo of pretty and creepy. Pretty Creepy. And a bit Sleepy. If you’re not up for this, I’d recco heading straight over to…
VHS or Beta DJ Set: VHS or Beta played a REALLY good live Lolla set two year back, but now they’re just here to DJ, which is a bummer. That said, there’s plenty of Robert Smith-leads-a-dance-punk-bands these days. 20$ they play Cut Copy.
The Cool Kids / CSS: Can’t really go wrong here, but CSS will probably be the most entertaining, but then again, Chicago Party Rap is the new Brazilian Electro Pop.
Radiohead: duh.
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Arms, Distance. 