Festival Reviews
Lollapalooza 2021 Day 3 Recap: Rap and Rock Duel with Journey, Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, and Limp Bizkit
Day 3 of Lollapalooza 2021 felt like a tussle between the festival’s past and present, as legacy rock acts fought for airspace against a powerhouse pop rap billing. There isn’t much tying Journey, Limp Bizkit, and Tom DeLonge’s Angels & Airwaves together, and festival organizers could have helped any of them by booking more bands from the same general movement. But alogether they served as the counter-programming to the Saturday night main event, with Megan Thee Stallion drawing a headliner’s crowd and Post Malone building on top of itt. Check out our Day 3 Recap, including notable performances by Porches, Whitney, and Freddie Gibbs below. Advertisement Related Video — Wren Graves Porches Made the Case for Showing Up Early <img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1144010&...
Lollapalooza 2021 Day 2 Recap: Tyler, the Creator Led a Great Day for Hip-Hop
Day 1 of Lollapalooza 2021 was a reminder that if we ever get the COVID-19 crisis under control, a climate crisis is lurking. But the oppressive heat of Thursday gave way to a wonderfully temperate Friday, as Chicago’s not-so-secret luxury, the lake effect, reasserted its dominance. Like Paris in springtime or New York in the fall, summertime Chi remains one of the great urban wonders of the world. The perfectly cool weather found its complement in an even cooler collection of beats. The discriminating ear of Tyler, the Creator led to a staggeringly fun set, Mick Jenkins made a powerful statement, while Kenny Mason, AG Club, and Jack Harlow explored different avenues of the same genre. Check out some of the highlights from a great day for hip-hop below. — Wren Grav...
Lollapalooza 2021 Day One Recap: Miley Cyrus, Jimmy Eat World, and More
Lollapalooza has returned, a delight to fans and a test for public health officials. The beloved Chicago music festival is requiring proof of negative COVID-19 status for entry, and attendees certainly enjoyed the freedom this implied. Day one carried some of the manic energy of a party for the end of the world, as bewildered parents chased packs of feral youths, over-indulgers stumbled about like broken toys, and even veterans of the festival circuit found themselves swept up in the optimism. Live music is back. For the 30th anniversary edition of the festival — founded by Perry Farrell in 1991 — the exuberance could be witnessed both offstage and on. Rising artists like Flo Milli and Paris Texas made their triumphant Lollapalooza debuts, beloved veterans Jimmy Eat World celebrated ...
Newport Folk Fest Marks the Glorious Return of Festivals in US
Most major music festivals coming back in 2021 chose to give perspective attendees a fair amount of time to decide to get vaccinated while still keeping the events “summer.” Hence September is jammed with nearly sold-out fests, from Bonnaroo to BottleRock. But many are looking towards August’s Lollapalooza as the first real test of what a post-pandemic festival looks like, which isn’t entirely accurate. Over the weekend (July 23rd-25th), Newport Folk Festival returned for part one of its slimmed-down Folk On 2021 double-event — and there really is no better way to bring music festivals back. Typically on the smaller side of capacity limits anyway, Newport cut back to just 5,000 daily attendees to help mitigate COVID risks. They also broke up the schedule over two back-to-back three-day chu...
Stevie Nicks, Foo Fighters, Adam Sandler and More Toast Tom Petty at Virtual 70th Birthday Bash: Review
It’s not surprising that Tom Petty’s passing came to inspire an annual birthday festival. Anyone who ever attended a Heartbreakers show knows that infinite feeling and suspicion that a summer night and a favorite song might somehow go on forever. That may not have turned out to be quite true, but artists, friends, and fans have been flocking to Gainesville since Petty’s death to hold on as tightly as possible to what the man and his music meant to so many of us. This year, of course, posed additional challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but that didn’t stop Petty’s family and friends from piecing together a heartfelt tribute that not only celebrated what would’ve been the artist’s 70th birthday but raised money for several notable, music-related causes. <img aria-describedby="c...
