Source: http://www.aux.tv/newmusic/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/lollapalooza-2010.jpg

Lollapalooza is only a couple months away and with that comes a stir of emotions ranging from sheer indifference to a subtle, but strong, sense of curiosity.  Naturally I had to dive into the depths of this mega-concert-festival in hopes of resurfacing to bring you all the booty of my findings. After a few hiccups and some mild asphyxiation I bring you all the information you need to make your Lolla experience the best it can possibly be!

First and foremost, it’s all about location and no other place could hold such an event better than beautiful Chicago, Illinois. The Windy City has been host to Lolla since 2005; extending it’s contract recently until 2018, guaranteeing about $13 million to the city of Chicago. Now, if you haven’t attended Lollapalooza yet, or for that matter ever visited Chicago itself but will this summer, you are in for a treat. The festival is held at Grant Park, which, aesthetically, is one of the best locales in the entire city. With the blue waters of Lake Michigan directly to the east and magnificent, towering skyscrapers directly to the west, you’re nestled in beautiful scenery.

Source: http://fuzzythoughts.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/ariel-crowd.jpg

According to planners, this year they’ve expanded and rearranged the layout of the grounds so that an additional 20,000 tickets could be sold each day. While bigger is better, one has to imagine what a headliner like a Lady Gaga will do to a multitude as big as this year promises to have. It seems, however, that the event’s organizers anticipate immense turnouts and so their main focus, they say, is to ensure that the flow of people moving about the grounds is as fluid as possible. Yet, what I find most convenient, and exciting, is the fact that organizers plan to ‘centralize’ the port-o-potties allowing easy accessibility to all. YAY!

Every year we anxiously await the unveiling of the line-up and schedule for the festival and this year, I must admit, I was a bit disappointed with the acts performing; primarily with the headliners. Also, there are several worth-seeing acts playing around or at the same time as other acts, leaving you with dilemmas left and right as to whom to see. I suppose for many this will be a test to where their loyalties stand, for example, on opening night one has to choose between the reigning queen of pop, Lady Gaga, and a band that I’m sure is close to a lot of our hearts, The Strokes. Another clutch call one has to make is between seeing MGMT or Wolfmother, which certainly will cause a lot of heartache. Other major headliners performing worth mentioning include indie sensation Arcade Fire and, if you’re into reminiscing, Soundgarden and Green Day. While I’m sure there are many people that are excited to see Green Day in all it’s Dookie glory, hopefully, as I mentioned, the headliners are, for lack of a better term, a bust.

Not to knock the event off in any way, I just feel, with the exception of Gaga, that the line-up isn’t all that exciting. However, I am very happy to see that the line-up does consist of many acts the WILD honey pie has covered extensively including The xx, The National, Hot Chip, Yeasayer, Fuck Buttons, The Antlers, Violent Soho, Cymbals Eat Guitars and a few others. It’s a great way for these up-and-coming bands, many with established fan-bases, to be exposed on such a big stage as Lollapalooza. If you haven’t checked many of these bands out you can find them here on the site and if you like them, why not go see their set!

Overall, don’t let the fact that maybe your favorite band isn’t on the bill prevent you from attending or considering attending Lollapalooza. Whether or not you fancy the music that will be blasted throughout the weekend, the fact remains that Lollapalooza is one of the hottest concert-festivals of the summer happening in one of the best cities in entire world. So hurry and buy those tickets before the prices skyrocket and you’ll be left with little to no monies to spend on booze and grub! Also, stay posted here for updates pertaining to Lolla!

Source: http://dietrichthrall.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/lollapalooza_2007_09_27_01.jpg