CHICAGO--Lollapalooza's hump day was just as loaded--yes, in all its connotations--as its opener and finale.

With great artists scattered across nine stages throughout the day and night, and with the two main stages nearly a mile apart, choices had to be made.

MP3.com visited sets by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Hold Steady, The Roots, Rhymefest, and Stephen Marley, and delivers the following reports:

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O / Photo Credit: Todd Fraser, Copyright: C3 Presents/Front Row Center.

Arising from New York City's drab music scene during the problem year of 2000, Yeah Yeah Yeahs were a fiery phoenix of retro-fitted garage rock. Getting their start touring with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, the YYYs quickly amassed a frenzied and dedicated following--an audience that has swelled to alarming numbers, as was evident by the massive crowd at Lollapalooza.

After a spirited introduction by Lolla founder Perry Farrell, during which he proclaimed YYYs his favorite band, costume-loving singer Karen O emerged, donning a sliver and black cape-like thing which made her look like some alien species of bird. She quickly released her signature banshee cry and with that her cape dropped and the rock began.

The band was joined by a masked Imaad Wasif who filled out the group's songs with additional guitar and electronics. The additional help paid off on the emotive "Maps," and "Gold Lion," but seemed to muddy up the sound on older material like "Date With The Night."

The Hold Steady

No other band at Lollapalooza displayed as much sheer, bombastic enthusiasm as this Minneapolis-based quintet. It was all over their faces Saturday afternoon as they bounced around the stage, and frontman Craig Finn said as much.

As he introduced the tune "Hot Soft Light," Finn said this year even topped the band's set at Lollapalooza last year, when he made the announcement that it "was the most fun I've ever had at 3 p.m." But at around 5:45 p.m., Saturday, Finn exclaimed, "This is shaping up to be the most fun I've ever had, period."

The Hold Steady combined that unbridled joy with some crafty Born to Run-era songwriting, mostly about wild characters and the turbulent times they incite, from booze (Party Pit") to drugs ("Cattle and the Creeping Things") to love and lust ("Southtown Girls").

Finn and his mates were the picture of infectious fervor. How many bands can you think of that every time you see them perform live, they seem like they're having the time of their lives?

The Roots

Photo Credit: Rob Loud, Copyright: C3 Presents/Front Row Center.

Nas' late 2006 release of Hip Hop Is Dead certainly sparked a debate, but hip-hop, particularly its connection to so many other types of music through sampling, is never more alive than in the hands of The Roots at a live show. In their hour-long set Saturday afternoon, the Philadelphia-based collective ran through more than 25 songs, at least in part, drawing from both their own rich catalog and that of the soul, funk, and hip-hop they love.

The set kicked off with two tracks from the band's 2006 album The Game Theory, with rapper Black Thought and drummer ?uestlove starting as a duo. Jazzier tracks like "Mellow My Man" and "Love of My Life" were also in the mix, with loads of short snippets of tracks like Iron Butterfly's "In-a-Gadda-Da-Vida" and Chic's "Good Times."

The band always comes with its regular "Hip Hop 101," when Black Thought leads the troops through a medley of classics like Salt N Pepa's "Push It" and Ol' Dirty Bastard's "Shimmy Shimmy Ya." We certainly could have done without the snippet of MIMS' vacuous "This Is Why I'm Hot," however.

This set also included a lengthy Motown medley, with Thought taking on the persona of a soul man, barking and screaming through tracks like "I'll Be There" and "Soul Power." It wasn't the band at its best but it was certainly one danceable history lesson.

Rhymefest

Photo Credit: Rob Loud, Copyright: C3 Presents/Front Row Center.

The Motown vibe was evident earlier in the day a few stages away when Chicago rapper Rhymefest took advantage of being in his hometown by bringing a full funk band with him. Rhymefest always has a freestyle rhyme at the ready, and he introduced each piece of the band with one, covering four horns, a DJ, a drummer, a guitarist, a bassist, a keyboardist, and an organist.

Like Black Thought would later in the day, Rhymefest mimicked the late James Brown by introducing instrumental solos with rhymes. Each of the rapper's songs took on a looser structure, particularly the minimal boom-bap of "Bullet."

Rhymefest was the most charismatic MC at Lollapalooza, and on "I Came Home," a new track from his forthcoming sophomore album, El Che, he showcased a new ode to his hometown that featured the chorus "Home is where the heart is."

Stephen Marley

Stephen Marley / Photo: Jim Welte

With his 4-year-old son Jeremiah waving the Rastafarian flag and dancing at the side of the stage--much like he himself did 20 years ago with his brother Ziggy's Melody Makers--Stephen Marley repped the family business to the fullest Saturday afternoon. Having spent the bulk of his career as a behind-the-scenes producer and songwriter for his many brothers, Marley put out his debut solo album, Mind Control, in March, and seems to be enjoying his time at the front of the stage.

The set featured both his father's famous tracks and his own, including the political "Chase Dem" and "Iron Bars" and the lighter "Hey Baby" and "Traffic Jam." Marley's voice is strikingly similar to that of his father, but he's not resting on his laurels. Much of Mind Control takes reggae in new directions, and Marley's set Saturday was far from satisfied with just rehashing the past.

Day One coverage

Day Three coverage