WNEW | Where Rock Lives

A.M. Nuggets: Lineup Rumors, $60 Lollapalooza Tickets - Get 'em If You Can

Just like last year Lollapalooza is giving the faithful a chance to get in for only $60, but you gotta be quick and have some time on your hands. All this week the festival will be posting a secret link at lollapalooza.com - if you happen to find it you'll get the chance to click through and buy tickets to the 2009 fest for only $60. That's a three-day pass for less than a third of the likely full-price ticket (no word yet on the official on-sale date).
No official word on this year's lineup either, but our friends at FestivalOutlook.com have it on good authority that Kings of Leon, Depeche Mode, Jane's Addiction and Beastie Boys are among this year's heavies. Rumors abound, of course, including the likes of Rancid, Peter Bjorn & John, and Grizzly Bear. Check out their Lollapalooza page for more true rumors.

A.M. Nuggets: Final Look at Lolla; NY Ready For Radiohead

August has been a good month for us at WNEW. Lollapalooza rocked so hard last weekend that it's taken all week just to sort out what happened. And now here we are barely 5 days later and it's time to do it all over again at All Points West. Sometimes life is really tough.

Evan and I are off to Jersey City this afternoon to get ready for Radiohead and the long list of other bands playing APW. We'll do our best to bring you updates throughout the weekend, as well as full wrapups once it's all done.

If you missed any of our Lollapalooza coverage, here's a rundown of the great interviews from last weekend in Chicago:

• Dr. Dog
• Ed O'Brien of Radiohead
• The Kills
• DeVotchKa
• Patrick Carney of the Black Keys
• The Whigs
• G. Love
• Brendan Benson of the Raconteurs
• MGMT

Lollapalooza Interview: Dr. Dog

Less than a month ago, I received a copy of Dr. Dog’s latest album Fate. I was definitely feeling the band’s sound after enjoyed their last album We All Belong. As I was doing interviews for Lollapalooza, our tent was not too far away from where the guys were performing on the Myspace stage on Saturday afternoon. While my eyes were transfixed on the artists I was interviewing, my headphones were filling up with the echoing sound of the band’s performance bleeding into the interview. As soon as the interview ended, I made my way across the park to check out the rest of their set. Fate is a little different than We All Belong – it still has that sound reminiscent of the 60’s (which I love). I got to spend some time with them after their set to discuss Fate. Listen up:

Lollapalooza Interview: Ed O'Brien of Radiohead

Marty coaxed Ed O'Brien of Radiohead into sitting down for an interview backstage at Lollapalooza - the only interview granted by the band all weekend. Ed gave a preview of that night's main stage set ('...we're going to play all the songs off In Rainbows'), and took Marty track-by-track through the new album, explaining why some songs made the cut and others didn't.

By all accounts this was a totally major performance by Ed, Thom and the band. If you were there we'd love to hear from you - leave your review in the comments section.

Here's what Ed had to say:

Lollapalooza Interview: DeVotchKa

It was Bonnaroo 2004 when I first discovered DeVotchKa. Not because I saw them perform, but because they had a track featured on the Sweet Sounds of Bonnaroo CD sampler that they give to everyone once you enter the hallowed festival grounds in Manchester, Tennessee. The song was We’re Leaving and it was truly amazing. A kind-of gypsy rock fused with a blend of other elements of classic ethnic music. I went to see the band for the first time live at the famous Troubadour in Los Angeles – they were the featured band as they had just scored the popular Little Miss Sunshine movie soundtrack. I wandered up to the bar in the VIP area and saw Nick (the lead singer) order a drink and the bartender tried to make him pay for it. He said “I’m in the band!” and the bartender said “It’s still $10 sir”. I put $40 down on the bar and told the bartender “He doesn’t pay for drinks – give him 3 more whenever he wants them”. After that, I introduced myself to him, met the band and their manager, and have been friends with the band ever since. Their newest album A Mad And Faithful Telling doesn’t disappoint. The best part about DeVotchKa’s formula. . . there is no formula. You never know what kind of musical dish you’re going to be served, you just know that it will be tasty. Prepare to be served:

Here's the full track Along the Way:

What We Learned From Lollapalooza 2008

This past weekend, some 225,000 music fans conjugated in Chicago's Grant Park to take part in the 2008 edition of Lollapalooza. Between the masses of people, stellar music performances, and all the other fun that comes with a music festival (where else can you play Rock Band, turn in recycled cups for swag, and get an unlimited supply of ice cream all while watching Radiohead?), this weekend certainly provided us with quite a few lifelong memories.

In terms of recaps and reviews, you can get your Lollapalooza fix right here, thanks to our friends over at 93XRT Radio. A ton of live coverage and reviews from the weekend can also be found on my personal blog, Consequence of Sound. But today, right now, this second, lets get away from all the nitty-gritty and focus more on the lessons of the weekend. Just like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza provided us with plenty of unique examples of not only why we attend these major music events, despite the heat, exhaustion, and price, but why in the end, we love music to begin with.

Radiohead are worth the price of admission: Unless you got in on the early-bird action, when it was all said and done, a three-day pass to Lollapalooza cost you around $200. But after watching Friday night headliner Radiohead make their way through a two-hour set full of In Rainbow favorites (15 Step, Nude, and Jigsaw Falling Into Place), classic gems (The National Anthem and Paranoid Android), and even a few unexpected surprises (fireworks introducing Everything In Its Right Place), most of the Day One attendees left Grant Park in a state of awe, reminiscing over the musical performance they just witnessed, rather than the price the weekend was costing them.

Rage Against the Machine is still relevant...and causes riots: Going into the weekend, Rage Against the Machine was easily the most talked about of Lollapalooza's five headliners, and perhaps deservedly so, considering the other heavyweights and the fact that Rage's reunion is now pushing two years of age. Still, when darkness appeared on Saturday evening, most Lolla-goers opted to fill the south side of the park to check out the rock fury of Zach de la Rocha, Tom Morello, Tim Commerford, and Brad Wilk in person, rather than the sweet melodies of Jeff Tweedy and Wilco on the opposite end of the grounds. With some 50,000 people packed in tight, even more if you count the supposed crashers, the scene became utter chaos as the first chords of set opener Testify rang out. In fact, at points the crowd was so rough that even Rage Against the Machine, a band that has never shied away from mayhem, had to cut the music.

Hell, they even caused a riot afterward. In other words, never under estimate Rage again.

Lollapalooza Interview: The Whigs

In clubs you can see people's faces, see their reactions. It's easier to connect with them... At festivals we try to make it more intimate even though there's a 20-foot barrier there... We hate that barricade, it's the worst. We're so much more used to that Schuba's vibe... that intimate house party vibe
- The Whigs, backstage at Lollapalooza

The Whigs stopped by the backstage area at Lollapalooza to offer their thoughts on baseball ('we sucked in the batting cages at Bonnaroo'), their trip to Japan ('they were watching Sumo wrestling in the airport') and the food at Schuba's ('they do a really good job with the variety on their menu'). Oh and they talked music too - if you haven't seen these guys check out some video of their Lolla set.

Check out the full interview here.

Lollapalooza Interview: G. Love

Superhero Brother is about me saving the world with my guitar... But there's plenty of party songs on the record too - I don't want to let my party people down.
- G. Love at Lollapalooza 2008

Marty Lennartz sat down with G. Love (sans Special Sauce) backstage at Lollapalooza - check out the full interview and performance below. G. Love talks about how the Chicago blues scene has influenced his music over the years, and he also gets some things off his mind with regards to the message behind his newer tunes.

G. Love also treats us to an acoustic performance of Peace, Love and Happiness - enjoy.

Lollapalooza Interview: Patrick Carney of the Black Keys

Saw you guys at Lollapalooza and you totally blew me away! I just went and bought two of your cd’s. Thanks for the refreshingly new old sound. Next time you’re in Chi town, i will be there!

- ryan g. commenting at theblackkeys.com, August 2007

The Black Keys were repeat performers at Lollapalooza this year, likely because of comments like that. If last year's performance was about discovery, this year's was all about melting faces. These guys have come a long way in one year - touring the world, working out new songs with Ike Turner and Danger Mouse, and making a name for themselves everywhere they go.

Marty Lennartz sat down with drummer Patrick Carney prior to their set on the Bud Light Stage - here's what Patrick had to say:

Lollapalooza Interview: MGMT

"Lollapalooza is a place where young upstarts become legends, and legends return to claim their fame."

- Perry Farrell

MGMT could definitely be described as 'young upstarts.' Whether their Lollapalooza performance was the stuff of legend probably requires further debate (were you there? what do you think?).

In any case these guys were among the most anticipated acts to hit the stage at this year's lakeside funfest in Chicago. Marty sat down with Andrew and Ben before their MySpace Stage set, and he asked them what it's like to be creating so much buzz. Take a listen, and let us know what you think of these guys.

Lollapalooza Interview: Brendan Benson of the Raconteurs

Here's our good friend Marty sitting down with Brendan Benson of the Raconteurs last weekend at Lollapalooza. Brendan talks about the recording process for Consolers of the Lonely, how the band has evolved, and about that killer version of Old Enough they played backstage at Bonnaroo this year.

Lollapalooza Interview: The Kills

I arrived to familiar sights at Grant Park in Chicago for this years’ Lolla extravaganza. We were partnered up with our good friends (and CBS Radio brethren) 93XRT. As I walked into the park the sounds of Holy F*ck were dominating the early festival crowd. Our first interview was the Kills. There was definitely a big buzz around the festival about this electronic/rock duo – their album Midnight Boom made a big splash when it hit stores a few months ago. The sound was definitely different from their previous albums, less gritty but still sexy. I saw a number of fans roaming the grounds with U.R.A. Fever t-shirts and realized that it looks like the Kills have arrived.

Parts II and III of the interview continue after the jump.