Lollapalooza
When: August 1-3, 2008
Where: Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois
Why: Lollapalooza is grandfather of the American festival circuit.
Who: Rage Against the Machine, Kanye West, Radiohead, Broken Social Scene, Battles, Explosions in the Sky, Girl Talk, Spank Rock, Love and Rockets, The Raconteurs, Lupe Fiasco, Wilco, and many more.
How: Three-day passes are $205 for standard admission; individual-day passes are $80. VIP three-day passes are $850. For more details, head over to the official Lollapalooza Web site.
As the brainchild of Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, Lollapalooza has rejuvenated itself by abandoning multiple summer stops for one three-day smorgasbord of alternative music in Chicago. Boasting seven stages and more than 100 musical acts, Lollapalooza serves as the Midwest's main summer attraction, and this year should be no different. Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, and Kanye West are being billed as the headliners for each of the three nights but with a deep lineup that includes showstoppers Broken Social Scene, postmodern rockers Battles, emotional instrumentalists Explosions in the Sky, mash-up king Girl Talk, B'More electro rap act Spank Rock, a Love and Rockets reunion, supergroup The Raconteurs, skater/rapper Lupe Fiasco, and hometown heroes Wilco, there's plenty to keep any decent music fan happy.
Main Attraction: Rage Against the Machine
Anyone can go on and on about Rage being the best political band of our generation--as well as one of the angriest--but its worthiness can be summed up with just one word: BOMBTRACK.
Don't Miss: Broken Social Scene
BSS absolutely killed at Lolla '06, going full strength by recruiting part-time members Feist and Stars' Amy Millan for an epic blowout. Even if the band isn't a dozen members strong, the Canadian supertroupe always delivers.
Played Out: Gnarls Barkley
The eclectic duo of Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo was almost fun once...once. It's hard to follow up a megahit like "Crazy."
