Day 3- August 5, 2007

I wanted so badly to get to the PlayStation stage by noon, to catch The Postmarks’ all-too-short half-hour set, but it didn’t happen. So I continued walking to the Bud Light stage to watch the Cribs, which had begun at 12:15 pm.

I knew nothing about them, but sometimes it’s interesting to watch a group play with no expectations whatsoever. With some research after the fact, I found out that they are three brothers from England. That explains the hints of their home country’s music, from classic punk to ‘90s Brit-rock, accented with a strong dose of NY indie rock. They were enjoyable, but were neither very demanding or rewarding.

At 1 pm, I shuffled over to the PlayStation stage to see Dios (Malos). The awkwardly named group is among the small number of bands to rise from southern California in recent years. Their chill sound is soaked with the beaches and sunsets of their native Hawthorne. The effect is what Jack Johnson might sound like fronting an entire band, if they were heavily influenced by Pink Floyd, the Beach Boys and marijuana. My brother commented that he wants Dios (Malos) to perform at his own private pool party.

Meanwhile, Rodrigo and Gabriela started on the Adidas stage at 1:15 pm. I wanted so badly to snub them, because of what they did when I saw them in London in May. Oh, you haven’t heard that story yet?

Well here’s the short version: The pair was delayed in obtaining working visas to tour the US last fall, because, according to Gabriela, Rodrigo was “mistaken for a terrorist”. I don’t know how truthful that tale was, but they decided to play a song that they called “Fuck The USA.” The entire London venue cheered, and my heart ached. When I returned to America, I started hearing their single “Tamacun” on Detroit’s 93.9 FM. I wanted to find some way to let the world know how irresponsibly this band was behaving. How can you say something like that about an entire nation, and not expect it to come back to haunt you??? It’s not even about blind American pride. It’s about their apparent lack of human decency in a growing global community! Especially since they are from Mexico, living in Dublin (where they gained popularity), bashing the US while playing in London in May, and then playing Lollapalooza and other American venues in August.

My anger slowly faded over the next few months, so I figured I would watch some of their set to get an idea of how the American crowd reacted. Basically, I don’t think the crowd was very impressed with their acoustic guitar songs that draw mostly from flamenco and folk music. Their sound is somewhat dependent on the acoustics of an indoor venue. The pair played the usual bits of Metallica songs, since they used to be thrash metal artists. I think karma is about to catch up with these fools. If they don’t watch their step, they’ll pass like a bad flu.

Luckily two teenie-boppers who go by Smoosh heightened my spirits at 1:45 pm on the BMI stage. The young Seattle sisters Chloe (13) and Aysa (15) really rocked this smaller stage hidden in the trees, with a view of the marina across Lake Shore Drive behind them.

The set-up was simple – Aysa sang and played keyboard, and Chloe played drums. They were smiley and confident at all times, entertaining a surprisingly big crowd. Aysa even played bass notes on one of her keyboards, until they brought out an even younger (10?) friend to play bass guitar. Then they shocked everyone with a respectable cover of Bloc Party’s “This Modern Love.” Their organic, no-bullshit approach is refreshing, and they rock the socks off kids and adults alike.

Amy Winehouse had burned out like a Black ‘n Mild cigar well before Lollapalooza even rolled around, but there was still a large crowd watching her 2:15 pm set on the Bud Light stage. Winehouse must have been in back boozin’, because she was about 15 minutes late coming out.

I was a skeptic for sure, but she does have a pretty sexy voice that’s not far off from Lauryn Hill. I can’t turn down the sweet Motown sounds of my childhood. She even sampled “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” for one of her songs. For a less contrived dose of Motown, funk and soul, I recommend you check out Sharon Jones and the Dap-kings (who are conveniently playing at the Magic Stick in Detroit on November 14).

Los Campesinos! were making a commotion on the PlayStation stage for their 2:15 pm set, and they drew my attention away from Winehouse by 2:45 pm. The singer has a strong British accent, and their sound is a crazy frenzy of instruments.

The group consists of three girls (playing violin, bass, and keyboard/vocals) and four guys (on vocals, guitars, and drums). The live sound mixes better than on their recently released Sticking Fingers Into Sockets EP. They played a Pavement cover and called that group “probably the best band to ever come out of America.” I thought that was highly doubtful, but it seems like a multitude of bands are influenced by Pavement.

I migrated southward to make sure I had a good view of Annuals on the Citi stage at 3:30 pm. I was fortunate enough to see this band perform at a small venue in London back in May, so I knew what I was getting myself into.

The young band from North Carolina has been touring the U.S. and Europe non-stop this summer, and their musical integrity is astonishing. They are exceptional songwriters and musicians, but the way they bring it all to the stage is the most remarkable thing. Each member shows their unique personality through their gestures and playing, but all in the framework of the band. They rotate instruments between songs, never hesitating use two drum sets at once.

I can’t get over the guitar work of Kenny Florence, because I love to see a guy with technical skills who doesn’t attempt to dominate the scene. They played their Impact hit “Dry Clothes” early on, so the cathartic track “Brother” was the climax of the set. This was one of the few shows of the weekend that I watched from beginning to end. Catch them at the Shelter in Detroit on November 4.

Kings of Leon had already begun their 4:15 pm set on the AT&T stage when I made my way over to the softball fields. They played enough songs from their first two albums (especially “Molly’s Chambers,” “Four Kicks” and “The Bucket”) to cover for the less remarkable songs from 2007’s Because of the Times. The downside is that they didn’t stray at all from the record versions, making the live show somewhat dispensable.

I got my butt back to the Citi stage at 5 pm for Peter Bjorn and John, and I immediately realized they had drawn the biggest crowd to this stage or its northern equivalent, the PlayStation stage. It makes sense, since they might have been the most buzzed about band of the past 12 months.

The Swedish quartet uses very buzzy, reverbed guitars to construct their retro rock sound. They played an alternate version of “The Chills,” but then the power went out on the stage about 10 minutes into the set. Everyone waited for a while, but many (myself included) eventually ditched for other shows. This was the second biggest upset of the weekend, after the CSS cancellation. However, what I heard of PB&J tells me that they are at least slightly overrated.

After the power outage, I caught a sample of !!! (Chk Chk Chk) during their 5:15 pm set on the MySpace stage. They sounded terribly cheesy. Their music is all about a drum beat, muted guitar string, some sax, and generally hushed vocals. It’s repetitive and dull.

Then My Morning Jacket swooped in from the sky and saved the day! The band completely turned my would-be hatred on its face at Lollapalooza 2006, and I was an instant fan. This year, they took the stage at 6:15 pm in tuxedos and vocalist Jim James had cut his bushy hair. Luckily, the lack of hair didn’t affect his monstrous voice.

“Off The Record” was probably audible way up at Wrigley Field (about 5 miles north, for those not familiar with Chicago’s geography). James pulled a sweet “rock slide” in front of a hilarious Candy Land-esque stage backdrop.

Halfway through the set, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra joined them for beautiful versions of “Gideon” and other songs. Perry Farrell asked the audience to send in video clips so they can construct a “revolutionary music video.” I sent one in, even though Farrell is a douche bag. We’ll see how good it turns out.