After last year's COVID entry requirements were lifted -- because, you know, there's no more COVID in the world, right? -- Lolla was back to its pre-pandemic glory. I went four full days, saw dozens of bands, and had a hell of a lovely time.
The weather was great for the second year in a row. There was no rain, and it was in the upper 70s and low 80s and partly cloudy the whole weekend, which made it quite pleasant. That's not to say it didn't get hot in the middle of the fields with no shade, but it wasn't like some years where you're dripping sweat the whole time. Occasional cloud cover makes all the difference.
All four days, there were bands or artists I wanted to see early, so I was in Grant Park by 1 p.m. each day. This year, I skipped the aftershows all together and I left before the headliners on Friday (as I wasn't interested in seeing J. Cole, Kygo, or Kaskade), which certainly helped my ability to power through 8-10 hours at the fest each day. Every day, I ran into people I knew and made new "festival friends" that I kept running into throughout the weekend.
With Metallica headlining Thursday night and Green Day headlining Sunday night, the fest had nice headlining bookends for me. They added more cocktail lounges throughout the park this year, which was a nice touch. Those are always in shaded areas and are 21+ only, so you can take a nice break from the riff raff between shows and enjoy a $25 double Jack and Coke. That helped make up for the fact that the former craft beer garden was now combined with the former wine garden, and I found the beer selection a little disappointing. Too many of the same beers as last year, and frankly, I don't think a mango wheat needs to be an option.
One quick aside. People dress like idiots in general at Lolla. I mean, even if it's only 80 degrees and not 90, that's no reason to wear a full bodysuit or a velvet cape, but alas, I saw both. But none of that was any match for what I saw Friday: a very angry looking looking woman fully dressed as Ernie from Sesame Street. She didn't smile both times I saw her walking around, and that leads me to believe she either lost a bet or she showed up to Lolla only to realize her friends were not dressed as Bert, Elmo, and Oscar.
But I digress. Some people might think rock and roll is dead, but this year's Lolla proved that it certainly isn't. Sure, you might have to look harder to find it, but dammit, it's there, and it gives me hope for the future. As usual, I saw great bands and artists that I already knew about, but as always and more importantly, discovered plenty of others that I didn't really know much (or anything) about before seeing them. Here are the bands and artists for which I saw two or more songs over the course of the weekend:
Thursday: Last Dinosaurs, Sam Fender, Petey, Inhaler, The Wombats, Giovannie and The Hired Guns, Tove Lo, Manchester Orchestra, Lorna Shore, Metallica
Friday: Jackie Hayes, Flipturn, Daisy the Great, Taipei Houston, Wet Leg, Mahalia, The Regrettes, Royal Blood, Rawayana, girl in red, Dua Lipa
Saturday: Crawlers, Alexander 23, Hinds, Meet Me @ The Alter, Dashboard Confessional, Wallows, COIN, IDLES, Turnstile
Sunday: Low Cut Connie, Horsegirl, Buffalo Nichols, Hot Milk, DJO, LØLØ, Måneskin, Beach Bunny, Porno For Pyros, BANKS, Green Day
Here are my top ten shows that I saw over the course of the weekend (in chronological order):
Honorable Mention: Sam Fender (whose band's equipment wasn't working for a while, so he decided to sing a solo version of "Dancing in the Dark"), Petey (for playing the 2016 Olympic men's 400 meter medley relay in the background), Dua Lipa, Hinds, Meet Me @ The Alter, Buffalo Nichols, Beach Bunny
1. Giovannie and The Hired Guns
These guys rocked. They were playing at my favorite stage, the BMI Stage, which is the smallest stage, but also the most shaded. I guess I would describe their music as hard rock and metal with a Latino and country tinge. They had twin lead guitars in a few songs, and I'm a sucker for twin lead guitars.
2. Metallica
This was my fourth time seeing Metallica, and as expected, they brought the thunder. They played a good mix of "new" and "old" songs, including their cover of "Whiskey in the Jar."
3. Taipei Houston
This was one of my favorite finds of the weekend. Taipei Houston is a two-piece band, with only a bassist and a drummer (like Royal Blood, who played later on Friday), and they were also playing the BMI Stage. These guys absolutely rocked. There was an older couple with Taipei Houston t-shirts roaming around the crowd, and we were sure they were the parents of someone in the band. Turns out we were wrong, as the two guys in the band are Lars Ulrich's kids!
4. The Regrettes
This was the one aftershow I was bummed about not seeing, but it was Thursday night, and I wasn't about to leave Metallica early. They made up for it by putting on a fun and energetic show on Friday, complete with lead singer Lydia Night doing some crowd surfing.
5. Royal Blood
I've seen these guys a few times, and they never disappoint. It's amazing how much sound they get from two guys. Plus, the drummer, who is a doppelganger for Turtle from Entourage, had a gong behind his drum set. A word of advice: if you're at a festival and you see a band whose drummer has a gong, just go ahead and check them out.
6. Rawayana
Rawayana was probably my favorite show of the weekend. I knew pretty much nothing about them, but a couple of the songs I heard on Spotify sounded kind of reggaeish, so I decided to check them out. They're a funk/disco/reggae band from Venezuela, and they also played at the aforementioned BMI Stage. They had the whole crowd in a dancing frenzy from the get-go. It's definitely a band I'll be seeing again whenever they come through town.
7. Crawlers
British are a 75% female band from Liverpool, and I love bands like this that are on the way up and playing early in the day because they're so grateful to be at a huge fest. I think the lead singer even said it was their first American music festival. They were great, playing a nice mix of punk, rock, and pop.
8. Low Cut Connie
This is a band that I've wanted to see for a while, and for whatever reason, the stars haven't aligned. They played early on Sunday, and I wasn't going to miss them. I'm glad I made it. They were awesome. I'd describe their music as kind of like early '70s Stones or the Black Crowes -- piano-laden rock and roll with backing singers. They were showmen/women, and put on a great show for those of us who managed to make it to Grant Park by 12:15 on Sunday.
9. Måneskin
Another band that I didn't know much about, but liked the songs I heard on Spotify, these guys are Italian glam rockers with a Danish name. It was a lot of energy and good old rock and roll.
10. Green Day
Lolla 2022 closed out with a bang. This was only the third time I've seen Green Day, and they are one of the best live bands out there. Setting aside that I like their music, Billie Joe knows how to work a crowd, calling up audience members to sing a verse or even play the guitar. Plus my kids came with me Sunday, and I think they were blown away, even if they didn't know many of the songs.
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