Call me trapped in the past (I’m not), but I so miss the days of party music. Stuff that was catchy and, most importantly, FUN. Does anyone remember laughter?
Junior Senior, thankfully, remembers laughter, and their new single, “Can I Get Get Get,” is about the catchiest thing you will hear this year. Now shake that ass. That’s an order.
Before they became “Golden Earring” and scored huge with “Radar Love”, they were Golden Earrings and scored their first #1 in 1968 in the Netherlands with “Dong-Dong-Diki-Di-Gi-Dong,” a wonderful tune that was later covered by Kasenetz-Katz Super Cirkus. Dig it.
Not to be confused with Muse’s “Knights of Cydonia,” another song I hyped under the “You heard it here first” banner. My boys from Staines are back with their second long-player, and if this song is any indication, this record is gonna be HUGE. At the very least, it will sound huge, and principal songwriter Richard Archer clearly hasn’t forgotten that sometimes the simplest parts of a song are its most enduring. Not sure what I mean? Wait for the backing vocals in the chorus.
The album, Once upon a Time in the West, drops September 18. I, for one, can’t wait.
It is surely because Jason and I are in our mid to late ‘30s, but the third day of Lollapalooza is hell. They could stock it with our favorite bands (something we’ll explore in more depth in our final recap), and it would still be hard to get excited about the third day. The organizers appeared to be aware of this, and to lure people in early, they front-loaded the day with Little Miss Drunken Hipster…
2:15: Amy Winehouse, Bud Light stage
David: One of the few artists that wasn’t on time (I pictured her drunk in her trailer, throwing bottles as people dragged her to the stage), but she sounded fabulous, if a bit mid-tempo (read: sleep-inducing) for such a hot day. I love Back to Black, but even I was eager to get into the shade and listen to the rest of her set from there.
2:15: Los Campesinos!, PlayStation stage
Jason: Good God, it’s another scorcher today, and even though they have called for rain the sun is beating down on me while I’m watching this so-so performance. The studio clip the band had on the official Lolla site was certainly more interesting than this public execution. I’m sweating the water as fast as I’m drinking it. Ugh.
3:30: Apostle of Hustle, PlayStation stage
Jason: Luckily, I get to stay put and don’t have to walk anywhere to get to the next band and lose even more fluids through my sweat glands. Unluckily, the Apostle of Hustle is tossing out the second mediocre performance for the day. Apparently day two of the fest was my day. Things aren’t sounding (or feeling) so good. Something’s gotta give.
4:15: Iggy and the Stooges, Bud Light stage
Jason: I’m on my way over from Apostle of Hustle when I hear this giant explosion from the Bud Light stage. Yes, it’s Iggy and the Stooges and they’re making a huge, glorious racket. Did anyone expect anything less? Perfect, primal rocking and Iggy giving the vocals full-throttle overdrive. At least there was a payoff to all this heat. But I’m feeling slightly nauseous from the sun and beat…I’m heading back to the hotel to relax.
4:15: Kings of Leon, AT&T stage
David: This is perfect. I’m in the media area, out of the sun, in a chair, and the Kings are rocking the house a hundred yards away. I close my eyes, and smile. This is the most relaxed I’ve been all weekend.
6:15: My Morning Jacket, AT&T stage
David: There are approximately 600,000 people at the AT&T stage, and I’m guessing about half of them are there to see Pearl Jam. Perry Farrell introduces the Chicago Youth Orchestra to play with the band. The tepid response is actually kind of sad.
8:00: Pearl Jam, AT&T stage
David: Um, they rocked. That’s why they’re the headliners of Lollapa-freaking-looza. Any other questions?
Our final, much more detailed recap of the weekend’s events will hit Bullz-Eye this week. Stay tuned, if you want to know about Juliette Lewis and the return of Punky Brewster fashion.
With constant cloud cover and a 15-degree drop in temperature, this was the most picture-perfect weather an all-day concert fan could possibly ask for after being burned to death the day before. And with better weather came a much better day of performances. Oh, and BE writer James Eldred assures us that Daft Punk was “fucking incredible” on Friday. Sigh,.
2:30: Silverchair, AT&T stage
David: The quote of the day came with the first band I saw: “I had a dream that I vomited dolphins.” And laugh all you want about Australia ‘s teenage answer to Pearl Jam playing Lolla, but these guys freaking brought it live. I just got a copy of their new album. I can’t wait to hear it.
3:00: Lady Gaga, BMI
Jason: Ho-ly shit. What the hell did I just witness? Lady Gaga came out and rocked on keyboards and vocals while Lady Starlight DJd and go-go danced on the stage! They were both scantily clad and oh so luscious. Lady Gaga’s only 20 years old and is making amazing music. Check her out!
3:30: Motion City Soundtrack, MySpace stage
David: At the risk of dating myself – which is illegal where I come from, bad um bump – I had never heard of this band in my life. But they were the kind of band that I’d be okay with my kids listening to. Sounded good, seemed to be decent human beings, and their drummer was damn good.
4:30: The Roots, Bud Light stage
David: So, these guys write songs of their own, right? Half of their set consisted of covers, including, God help us, Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend.” I know that lots of people love the Roots, but this was not their finest hour
5:00: Roky Erickson & The Explosives, PlayStation
Jason: Oh. My. God. Roky fucking Erikson came out and blew the place away with his psychedelic blues. Just incredible. This is a legend we’re talking about people, and the man did not disappoint. It was everything great, real rock and roll should be and then some. I witnessed history, folks, and even Jeff Tweedy showed up in the crowd. Beautiful.
5:30: Regina Spektor, Adidas stage
David: So, so cute. Like eat-you-all-up cute. During one song, she whacked a drum stick on a chair while singing and playing piano with one hand. Adorable.
6:30: Snow Patrol, Bud Light stage
David: Sounded fab, but not terribly engaging. The bit where they spoke of Spider-Man (I was out of view of the stage) was funny. Someone must have come up onstage for a snog.
7:30: Patti Smith, Adidas
Jason: What was gonna top Roky? Nothing, but Patti equaled him. Patti’s 61 this year and is still as powerful as ever. It was if she was exorcising herself and the crowd as the rain came down and she and her band thundered through “Gloria” and a ton of other rockers. I am so glad I opted to see Patti instead of Spoon, as I had originally scheduled. This was powerful, earth-moving stuff.
7:30: Spoon, Myspace stage
David: I like Spoon, I really do. But they bore me to tears live. Three songs in, we left to get as close as we can to see Muse.
8:30 – Interpol, Bud Light
Jason: Yeesh. What’s this wannabe Bauhaus stuff? I’m not sure what the big draw to this band is, having now heard them live. Needless to say they were not anywhere close to matching the entertainment and excitement I witnessed from the three prior acts. Ah well, it was a wonderful day overall filled with amazing music and performances.
8:30: Muse, AT&T stage
David: As BE’s resident Muse nut, I have to say that I was slightly disappointed with the set list. “Butterflies and Hurricanes,” YES. A whole bunch of mellow piano songs in the middle of the set, NO. But “Knights of Cydonia” freaking killed. “No one’s gonna taaaaaake meeeee aliiiiiiiiiive…”
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