Lollapalooza 2007 First Look

Lollapalooza Lineup looks to better previous years

Now in its third year, Lollapalooza has all but ensured that they will be the main music event in Chicago this summer. With headliners like Peral Jam, Daft Punk, Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, Muse and Iggy and the Stooges– not to mention the numerous other bands that will certainly entertain the thousands upon thousands of fans that will show this August. Before breaking down the line-up though, I would like to mention a few bands that are on my wish list of bands that would be nice to see added in the coming weeks/months.

Acts that I’d like to see at Lolla:

• Arcade Fire
• Arctic Monkeys
• The Avalanches
• Beck
• Belle & Sebastian
• Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
• Guillemots
• Jamie Lidell
• Jurassic 5
• Mark Ronson
• Sondre Lerche
• Radiohead

Despite that however, there are going to be tons of performances that will be well worth seeing– I just hope that there aren’t too many scheduling conflicts. Furthermore, it seems that the organizers perhaps learned their lesson from last year by not having any headliners that will attract the huge crowds that Red Hot Chili Peppers and Kanye West did last year– performances that, while enjoyable, led to fans having to show up over an hour early just to have the opportunity to see the stage.

While this list will probably change as artists are added, here are the top 20 artists to get excited about this year as of right now:

1. Muse
2. The Roots
3. My Morning Jacket
4. Kings of Leon
5. Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals
6. Pearl Jam
7. Yo La Tengo/TV On the Radio (tie)
8. The Hold Steady
9. The Black Keys
10. Blonde Redhead
11. Spoon
12. LCD Soundsystem
13. The Rapture
14. Lupe Fiasco
15. Pete Yorn
16. Yeah Yeah Yeahs
17. The View
18. Amy Winehouse
19. !!!
20. The Fratellis

Other noteworthy artists include Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Rhymefest, Soulive, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Snow Patrol.

As lineups are updated I’ll be sure to provide news as its available.

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Kings of Leon and Jarvis Cocker reviewed

I hope you enjoyed that little April Fool’s joke from last time. While there are certainly elements that are true (Zietgest is supposedly the album title), I have no idea if they’re playing Lollapalooza or not. Although, I will say that if the album comes out on July 7th as scheduled it wouldn’t be improbable for them to make a stop at Lollapalooza this August in support of the album. Anyway, at this point it is just speculation, but for those of you planning your Lollapalooza trip (tickets did just go on sale recently), I’ll have some info with that as well as other news updates and a few movie reviews in the coming weeks. In the meantime, here are the reviews for the latest from Kings of Leon and Jarvis.

Kings of Leon

Because of the Times

95

Wow, how far have these guys come? As much as I loved their first two albums, Because of the Times is a leaps and bounds better than their last efforts. Right off the bat, “Knocked Up” plays with outstanding resonance and authority and highlights not only their lyrical growth but their growth musically– as evidenced by the soaring U2-like guitars on this track or the outstanding drumming by Nathan Followill on “McFearless.” It has to be said that, if nothing else, “Knocked Up” best opening track since Interpol’s “Untitled” from Turn on the Bright Lights some five years ago. It’s from here that the album continues to excel with the Pixies influenced “Charmer,” an incredibly catchy and progressive take on a subject that Kings of Leon are quite well versed in– a manipulative woman. The single “On Call” is another high point despite (or perhaps because of) its incredible simplicity, it manages to capture the entire feel of the album without ever doing too much– the way a single should be, really. Perhaps my favorite track on the album, perhaps for the guitar riff alone if nothing else, is the song “Ragoo,” an incredibly fun song that bleeds nostalgia. While the album falters somewhat towards the end with “Trunk” and “Camaro,” it more than makes up for it with the outstanding closer “Arizona,” which perfectly serves as the opposing bookend to the opener “Knocked Up.” Kings of Leon have sufficiently upped the ante with the release of this album, and honestly, has probably shown the most growth in these past 7 years compared to many of their contemporaries. Because of the Times is a truly outstanding release.

Jarvis Cocker

Jarvis

88

Jarvis Cocker’s solo album definitely has a lot going for it. Songs like “Don’t Let Him Waste Your Time,” “Black Magic,” and the politically charged “From Auschwitz to Ipswitch” and “Running the World” are outstanding, and Cocker’s dreary voice accentuate the angst that lie within his songs. “Tonite” is another very well done song, with its psuedo doo-wop background vocals and blunt musings. Sonically, most of the album seems to find itself in 70’s-80’s pop, with an occasional sensation of glam. If there’s an issue with the album it’s definitely that it is the kind of album that you won’t fully appreciate on the first listen. The melodies and well-crafted songwriting are sometimes veiled in the tin-can productions that distance the listener. For the slower songs this works really well, like “Disney Time” and “Quantum Theory,” but instead of “Fat Children” being the engaging rocker it seems like it could’ve been, it instead rattles along timidly. All in all this is a very, very well done album, especially for a debut solo effort.

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Smashing Pumpkins to perform at Lollapalooza

“I have pissed off [Smashing Pumpkins] fans for far too long, it’s about time that we did something to show the city of Chicago how much we care.” -Billy Corgan

It gives me great pleasure to announce that the Smashing Pumpkins, after many a rumor, has been confirmed to play at Lollapalooza this upcoming summer. After negotiations fell through last year, the Pumpkins have made sure that their schedule would allow for the opportunity to play in front of the Chicago faithful during the festival, which has its dates set from August 3-5 this year. Already working on their next album entitled Zietgest, which is supposed to be sometime during the fall, Billy Corgan gave no real insight into the album but assured that it would be “very special” and would show the band’s maturity over the years. The release of Zietgest would be the first album of new material since MACHINA/The Machines of God in 2000. Stay tuned for more information as it develops, but needless to say this is going to make for a very memorable Lollapalooza.

A note from the editor- Happy April Fool’s Day, everyone!

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