Lolla 2016: Bigger Than Kanye's Swimming Pool

It's been an eventful couple of months -- in addition to recovering from the disaster that was our kitchen renovation, which spawned additional projects almost literally the minute it was completed -- projects that required me to punch more holes in the walls, damaged our fancy new cabinets, and otherwise brightened my day -- I've been dodging possums hanging from our front door, mice that somehow snuck into our new kitchen, and rats that have apparently set up shop in our backyard.  Since we were supposed to be flying to a wedding today and that instead devolved into a monster hurricane, I figured I'd take a minute to check in before any more stupidity got in the way.

It hasn't all been bad at the Palazzo Rodentia, though -- in the midst of all the nonsense I've been processing all the music and positive memories acquired in my annual pilgrimage back home for Lollapalooza.  This year was a little different than the previous ten -- despite adding an entire new day to the festival, this was hand's down the weakest lineup in years.  The headliners were actually some of the best parts of the concert for a change and not take em or leave em throwaways like normal -- Radiohead was its usual amazing self and a rare treat to see this side of the pond (it'd been four years since their last appearance), the Chili Peppers put out a solid set of singalong songs for everyone gathered around the campfire, and LCD had one of the best sets of the entire weekend as folks went hellbent for leather and threw everything they had left into a gigantic danceparty before jetting out of town.

In between there was a lot of dead space, though -- a lot of first or second year bands still sharpening their teeth, stretching to fill their hour long slots with material, in addition to the unfortunate creep of monotonous DJs outside the confines of the electro stage ("ONE! TWO! THREE! GO!" and then cue monster sounds and plodding bass lines, over...and over...and over again), which for the first time affected almost every stage at some point or another, if not multiple at once.  It was a little unfortunate and felt like a missed opportunity for a 25th anniversary -- no big reunions, no special guests or appearances from bands that were there at the beginning (minus the Peps).  All in all, though, it was still a great time despite the mediocrity -- Foals destroyed their set in the middle of a monsoon and rocked so hard they stopped the rain (probably earning my vote for weekend champion), Danny Brown was a riotous good time as he ran back and forth whipping folks into a lather, and Silversun Pickups were pure fire in a blissed out set several years in the making.

There were some new discoveries of note, too -- first of which is Lewis del Mar, a duo from Rockaway Beach, NJ, of all places, who mix a swirl of thundering drums with a more laid back, trippy vibe to positive effect.  Frontman Danny Miller's honey-dipped voice and the songs' sauntering tempo give things an almost tropical feel, while drummer Max Harwood keeps you awake and moving as he rides the loud-quiet-loud tempo shifts into the sunset. The pair haven't released a ton, but what they have is pretty great -- "Loud(y)" was the single that took off earlier this year and is a combustible four minute ride (whose opening line is now one of my favorite things to "sing" at people, whether at concerts or at the office), "Painting (Masterpiece)" is a sunnier sounding jam with a great vocal hook, and "Memories" is another delectable spiral of sound effect snippets, juggernaut drums, and lyrics of a busted relationship.  "Malt Liquor" is the one to check first, a smoldering gem that ebbs and flows like the waves of the duo's name and waterfront home.  Check it out here:


Next up is the folksy three-piece from Boston, Honeysuckle, who kicked off day three in the shaded tree-lined cool and slowly woke the crowd from their heat and booze induced stupor. The band isn't doing anything fancy, just belting out song after song of warm three-part harmony, banjo, and plinking mandolin, but it works nicely.  Frontwoman Holly McGarry's voice meshes wonderfully with drummer/guitarist Benjamin Burns' and mandoliner Chris Bloniarz's, and the warm glow at times conjures memories of Out of Time-era R.E.M. and Rumours-era Fleetwood Mac. (With more banjo!)  Songs like "Large Regardless" from their Arrows EP and "Canary," "Skincolor," and "Waking Up" from their self-titled debut are all lovely and the perfect soundtrack to a lazy Sunday afternoon. "It's Getting Late" is one of their strongest -- McGarry's voice and the overall melody are great, and when the trio pauses to bellow the title in unison you can feel your heart swell.  Check it out here:


Finally, we'll close with maybe my favorite discovery of the weekend, the snot-nosed skatepunks of FIDLAR.  Their set was a contender for the most fun I had during the festival and a strong contributor to why the last day was definitely the best.  Noisy, brash, "if you don't like us, we don't give a fuck" -- they may have been slightly out of place on such a big stage in the middle of the day in a park, but their attitude and the sloppy excellence of the songs put you in the dark, crappy bar in your head where it needed to be so you could thrash around without worrying. These guys absolutely killed it, tossing out track after track of irresistible punk -- "Got No Money," "Cheap Beer," "Stoked and Broke," "Blackout Stout," "40oz on Repeat," "Punks," "Why Generation..."  Time and again this  four piece from LA throws down three minute blasts about booze, drugs, surfing, and skating, calling to mind everything you want a garage band to sound like.  It's loud, it's messy, but damn if it isn't also a fucking blast.  For me, nothing tops their debut single "Cocaine" -- guitarist Elvis Kuehn's surf rock riff slowly lures you into the buzzsaw of his brother Max pummeling the drums, Brandon Schwartzel's thudding bass line, and frontman Zac Carper's unhinged wail thirty seconds in and you're paste after that. It's three minutes of punk perfection that'll have you pumping your fist and flailing in unison -- just crank it up and check it out here: