@ZackTeibloom After an easy crash on day one of Lollapalooza and an exhausting run around on day two, I was regretting the crash for day 3. Brett was a fun crash partner for two days of crashing, but my wise young crashing friend acquired a free Sunday pass from a guy on the train, leaving me to crash alone.

It rained in the morning, prompting me to leave my sunglasses and sunblock at home and take a sweatshirt and a hat. I’d regret that later. I did the same walk around as the day before, and there was no crashing to be had. The rain and lack of people trying to get in at once made the expertly placed security ready for all crashers. That’s why god invented the pass back. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom This is a win-win in my book. We help festival guru Big Bri get to North Coast on Sunday and bring his fiancée since they have to miss Saturday for someone else’s wedding. He has agreed to bring bacon pancakes for the first 50 people he runs into going to the fest on Sunday, so even more win! Betsy may not bring bacon pancakes (and I may have made up the part about Big Bri bringing them as well) but she has Umph love from way back and we respect that. And she asked nicely.

Winner #1: Big Bri

This has been my first festival-less summer since I hit Bonnaroo 2003.  When I first heard about North Coast, I had to change my pants (twice).  Some of my favorite bands in my hometown.  The best mix of jambands and electronica (do people still say electronica?) I’ve seen put together.  What could possibly go wrong? Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Our friends at North Coast Must Festival (Labor Day Weekend in Chicago) have given us a pair of tickets to give away for Saturday and another pair to give away for Sunday. Andy and I discussed the festival in our new Podcrash and gave you a little guide for what shows to see and why it seems like the fest was made just for us. I mean, Umphrey’s McGee (our favorite prog-rock jam band), Grace Potter (our favorite female-led band) and Lupe (our hometown hero)? Too. Much. Fun.

If you want a pair of tickets for Saturday or Sunday, you’re gonna have to drop some knowledge on us. You have two options. As always, the most creative answer wins: Read the rest of this entry »

@AndyShore Put all of our favorite bands into a line up and throw a festival in our hometown. You know we’re going to talk about it. Zack and I run through the stellar line-up of North Coast Music Festival and talk about why Lupe Fiasco should be a headliner (it’s his hometown too!).  Speaking of festivals and Chicago…Zack also reflects on some of the highlight of Lollapalooza 2010. We close with Zack telling us about his recent photo shoot. Thanks for listening to the Podcrash. Like the blog, with more laughing. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom This doesn’t happen at every other festival. I don’t know why. It’s just a Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo thing from what I’ve seen. And it’s different at Bonnaroo. When the night ends, the crowd spills out right in the smack of downtown and there is a magical buzz. A whooping buzz. Sure the “Bonnna-rooo!” chants come out, but that’s in the middle of Tennessee in a muddy farm. This is Michigan Avenue. One of the classiest streets in the country. And it’s happened like this every night this fest has been in Chicago. A good, healthy festival energy.

@ZackTeibloom If at the exact moment Blues Traveler is playing “Run Around” and a lane opens up that would just be a 40 yard dash running around the check in and you still can’t crash, it’s a sign you’re in for a long day of crashing. We tried every entrance before our opportunity finally presented itself Saturday. On Friday I had @snoogans913 crashing with me. Saturday I brought Smoosh along as well. A menage a crash. Not the most ideal situation. Especially on a day where the crowd didn’t seem to come in packs.

Brett got their early and told us to meet him at the side entrance. Not a good call. Five blocks out of the way and far too much security. Could we just walk in the entrance despite their being more security than people? Not so much. It felt like we each had our own security guard watching us. Did it stop me from trying three times? Of course not. I got escorted away mumbling about media check in. Having verified that entrance as a bust, we walked three blocks in the wrong direction as Snoogans and smoosh talked about jumping a fence on Lakeshore Drive.

“I don’t do crazy tactics. You don’t jump fences!” Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Green Day is the kind of show that skews the grading system. They did it all. I mean everything. The amount of artists who have that many moves in their pure entertainment repertoire is limited to The Flaming Lips and Girl Talk. That’s about it.

I’m choosing these words carefully on this next sentence, because this thought wouldn’t escape me throughout their two and a half hour set: Green Day is the most effective band at consistently pleasing a crowd I have ever seen. Were they the best musical act I’ve ever seen? Probably not in the top 25. They have a deep song catalog, and they know what they’re doing with it, but it was all in the performance. Read the rest of this entry »

Green Day did such a spectacular job of getting the crowd involved that this section needed its own post. I captured three of my favorite moments, but there were 5 crowd participation moments that you couldn’t help but love.

5. The Cute little girl in pigtails Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Guys like this are the reason YouTube was invented, why America’s Funniest Video and Tosh.O get ratings and why I’m happy I own a mini video camera. Is there a record for longest fall by someone not on heroin? Are we sure he’s not on heroin? What is he on? Did he ever get up? So many questions. I’m just glad we’re here.

Also, I recommend watching until at least 1:52 for the water spill and Jess’ hilarious face.

Fantastic first day at Lolla. I crashed just as the gates opened, the weather was ideal, there were too many good bands to see and I didn’t end up regretting any of the conflict choices. It’s rare to get all of those things. Lady Gaga was a massive disappointment, but that was the big wildcard. Here’s a quick rundown of the best, worst, most fun and surprising of day one of Lollapalooza 2010:

Best Show: The Strokes- Now I know why they’re called the Strokes. Julian Casablancas is a strong front man, but the way these boys stroke those axes is truly something special. They’re a top flight rock band. It’s time they start touring and releasing albums that remind us of this. They brought it from the opening note of “New York City Cops” and reminded us why we made such a big fuss about them when they were still producing. 9.3/10

Biggest Surprise: DEVO- They are not human. They are Devo! I always found “Whip it!” annoying when I was younger and it was all I knew by them. I’ve come to learn what a genius Mark Mothersbaugh is and what exciting performers they still are. Their costumes seemed purposeful and there was a concept that all made sense. Unlike a certain Lady. ”Whip it” wasn’t even the highlight. “Girl U Want” was a dance explosion and made for the most fun set of the afternoon. By a lot. 9/10 Read the rest of this entry »