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 Lollapalooza
2003
Sound Advice Amphitheater
Part One By: Erin Keene
I
was looking forward to nothing but a rainy evening watching re-runs
until my friend gave me a ticket to Lollapalooza, the return of the
best summer concert festival with Jane's Addiction, AudioSlave,
Incubus and many more!
Two
hours later, we rolled up to the Sound Advice Amphitheater as The
Donnas were finishing their set and as the rain clouds were clearing.
We walked in past the hotdog and six-dollar beer stands; past the
X-Box and Truth vendors, right to the pit; the absolute front of the
stage that only 100 people had access to! Man, I got lucky!
At 4:30p.m.
Jurassic 5 stepped onto the stage. The crowd was thin, probably
because they were the only rap group performing and because it was
still early. No one knew the words to their songs, except for (Holdin'
on to) What's Golden, the last song they played. But MC's Chali
2na, Zaakir (Soup), Akil and Marc 7 kept their audience entertained,
bouncing around the stage and making high pitched noises by swinging
around plastic-ridged tubes. As awesome as they were, their set did
not last for very long.
Next on the big stage was Queens of the Stone Age, who began
with a death metal-like song called You Think I Ain't Worth A Dollar,
But I Feel Like A Millionaire. Nick Oliveri, bassist, was belting
out lyrics in a deep voice; it was totally different from their other
songs. The song showed the band's wide range of talent and musical
influences. With bulging eyes, Josh Homme, the lead singer/guitarist,
came into the spotlight. His movements were strong and energetic as
his lips perfectly spelled out every word. They polished off their
set with No one Knows, their popular radio song.
When Incubus
came to the stage, the crowd started to gather. Although their stage
presence was less energetic than Queens, their calm, mellow attitude
went with the flow of their music. Throughout their performance, the
crowd was reciting every word along with lead singer, Brandon Boyd.
People got rowdy and began to crowd surf during (Goodbye) Nice
to know you and Stellar (How do you do it?) Halfway through
the set, Brandon took off his shirt and after that my memory gets
kind of hazy… Oh yeah, they ended with Wish you were here.
 Lollapalooza
Part 2
By: Matt Gordon
After a short
break, it was time for Audioslave - the hybrid formed when
Chris Cornell, singer of Soundgarden joined Rage Against The Machine.
Tom Morello, the lead guitarist, is one of the most amazing guitarists
in rock music and he definitely put on a great show. In addition to
the fastest fingers and some amazing solo skills, Tom's ability to
use a guitar as more than just a simple instrument is unique. Whether
he is turning pitch knobs while rubbing strings to make a turntable
sound or just slamming both hands down on the guitar's frets to make
powerful music, he can make more music come out of that guitar than
expected. Chris Cornell's voice was even more fantastic than on the
album. The depth that the live show adds is fantastic.
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Perry
Ferrell: Jane's Addiction
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Finally, the host of it all, Perry Farrell and his band Jane's
Addiction,
came to the
stage to make some good old music. Between Perry's rockstar antics
with his off-the-wall personality and the band's lead guitarist, Dave
Navarro, who looks like the über-cool rock god in sequined, shiny
red pants, there is no current group who can rival the feeling of
Jane's Addiction as THE rock band. From a trio of scantily clad dancers
prancing around stage with a video camera to wacko Perry, there was
plenty to take in. Before their finale of Jane Says, Navarro
had time to pick up a group of girls in front of the stage, catch
someone's demo CD, sign a girl's letter, and play some pretty amazing
guitar. All in a day's work, I suppose…
Lollapalooza
was utterly amazing and with the huge fan turnout I'm sure it will
be back next year. If it is, and if the bands are as good as this
year, make sure you get a ticket. There is nowhere else I could imagine
having been except screaming myself hoarse in front of the stage!
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