Your 2009 Lollapalooza weekend review

'This is a Chicago sports blog!'

Yes, yes, of course it is. But you'll have to excuse me, I really didn't pay too much attention to my favorite sports teams this weekend. I don't know how the Sox fared, how close Peavy is to returning, or if our long national nightmare is over, and Zack Bowman is back on the Burbonnais practice fields. No clue. I heard Patrick Kane beat the shit out of some guy, but that's about it.

But I have to write something here today, right? So Lollapalooza thoughts it is. I'm sure no one cares - One Star Guy should finally feel vindicated - so I'll hide all this nonsense after the jump.

Programming note: I'll be running Full Court Press over at the Sun-Times again for the week. Once I figure out what the hell happened the last few days. I'll be sure to link to it later in the day.

Lollapalooza recap, after the jump...

The award for my new least favorite thing ever goes to.....rain!

I showed up Friday around 12:30 and got steadily pounded with rain until 5. I cannot overstate how horrible this was. I was pretty much miserable that entire period. When most people were screaming out names of songs, I just kinda felt like screaming out 'hypothermia'. Fuck you rain, how dare you put a 5 percent overall tarnish on my favorite weekend of the year.

- Once the rain subsided, we got the highlight of the day and arguably the highlight of the festival: of Montreal. I'm not really sure how to describe the set, other than saying it's the closest I'll ever come to tripping on acid.

Kevin Barnes and crew were extra insane. They totally brought their 'A game' at a time when everyone desperately needed it. The show itself was about 65 percent music, 35 percent play. I have no idea what the fuck was going on, but it was awesome, let me tell you. It looked like priests wearing gas masks trying to kill men in pig masks. Weird, yes, but these things are even more satisfying when you went to catholic school for 12 years. Trust me.


The Arctic Monkeys hate their best songs

The band I was most excited to see at Lolla was The Arctic Monkeys. I don't want to say they disappointed me, but they could have been better. The band sounded great, that wasn't the problem. They just didn't play their best songs. No 'When the Sun Goes Down', no 'Mardy Bum', no 'Still Take You Home', no 'Certain Romance'. Instead they played new jams, from an album that doesn't even come out for two more weeks. Again, the band sounded very tight, but I need to hear the hits, yo. Concerts are obviously so much better when you know the songs.

I sort of get it, though. The Arctic Monkeys are about my age. Alex Turner probably wrote the songs for 'Whatever You Say I Am, That's What I Am Not' when he was like 17. I feel like I'm a lot different now than I was when I was 17, and I'm sure Turner feels the same way. He probably thinks those songs are silly and immature. So he didn't play 'em.

The one time they did touch the first album was for 'I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor', which was awesome and got the crowd super rowdy. If they played all the classics, the show would have been phenomenal. Instead it was just good. Too bad.

The Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's rock the house down

YYY's killed it Saturday night. Absolutely in the running for highlight of the weekend. The show was really just one big party.

Front woman Karen O cemented herself as the ultimate female rock star. She's like the Gwen Stafani of this decade, only way more badass (though not nearly as hot). The Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's should be the favorite band of any any chick who likes music. Hell, they're one of my favorite bands, and, I mean, my three favorite things to do are watch football, drink beer, and listen to rock music. I'm about as dude-ish as they come, for better or worse (self awareness, what up!). 

Also: I don't want the fact that Karen O rocks so much to cover up the fact that the two guys in the band are awesome, as well.

Still, YYY's get negative points for two reasons:

a) 'Maps'. Cleary their defining song, and the first thing that comes to mind if someone said 'name an indie rock love song'. That song is amazing, clearly. But, as anyone who has played 'Rock Band' knows, the best part of it is the driving drum beat that starts in the beginning. We didn't get that at Lolla. They played a striped down, drum-less version with only an acoustic guitar accompaning KO. Some loved it, I didn't.

b) Not covering 'Fight For Your Right to Party' as an encore. This is just a no-brainer, considering YYY's weren't supposed to be in that slot, the Beastie Boys were. It would have been pure madness. Opportunity lost.

(For the record, Jay-Z filled in for the Beasties at a similar festival in New York last week, and this is what he opened with. /Goosebumps)

Snoopapalooza

What do you get when you put Snoop Dogg at a huge festival with a mostly 20-somethings crowd, 90 percent of whom are white? Pot jokes, that's what.

I'm not all that into rap, but I have seen a few live shows, only at Lolla. Snoop Dogg was without a doubt the best I've ever seen. Kanye was very good last year, but Snoop blew him out of the water. 

It was so much fun. Seconds into the show, Snoop asked the crowd "What do I do?" to a thunderous response of "Smoke weed everyday!". As if that isn't hilarious enough, minutes later Snoop had everyone holding up double middle fingers, screaming 'Fuck the police!" in perfect unison.

Snoop went on to play 'Gin and Juice', 'Drop it Like It's Hot', and cover 'Jump Around', all of which were awesome.

The highlight: Towards the end of the set, Snoop stopped the show and played police sirens. "Oh shit, it's the cops!" he said, and crouched down. Then, right on cue, he stood back up: "If you don't give a fuck about the cops, say 'Fuck the police'".

Thousands and thousands of white people, at the top of their lungs: "FUCK THE POLICE".

Snoop Dogg rules, Dr. Dre > Jay-Z. Sorry Stompy.

- Snoop was followed by the Silversun Pickups. I love that band, and I had very high expectations. Thankfully they met and exceeded them. Alternative rock at it's finest, to be sure. Everything sounded phenomenal, from old hits like the closer 'Lazy Eye' - which felt truly epic - to new ones like the Will Leitch inspired 'The Royal We'.

'Panic Switch' - which I've been told is currently tearing up the radio - is not even close to my favorite SSP song, but even it sounded insanely good. 100 percent kick ass all around. Well done, Silversun.

The Killers define arena rock, and that's OK

Suspend your cynicism. When you see The Killers, that's all you have to do.

I could sit here all day and give plenty of reasons why that band sucks. The only problem is that they don't.

The hits sounded phenomenal, and were every bit the sing-a-longs I was hoping for. And, unlike the Arctic Monkeys, The Killers actually played 'em. A tip of the cap to you, Brandon Flowers. I'm sure he'll accept it.

Final word

All and all, not as sweet as last year - because last year had Radiohead - but still totally sweet. Oh, and Dan Deacon. I'm not sure what the hell happened during his set, but it was honestly 5x the rager Girl Talk was last year, which I didn't even think was humanly possible.

Sports soon. I promise.