Lollapalooza 2012 VS 2013

Every Lollapalooza there are ultimately some similarities between the way the lineup is organized for the massive festival. Various genres have to be considered so that Lollapalooza can truly provide something for every music lover. We've compiled a short list of some acts we're really quite excited to see this year and paired them with an artist who performed at last year's festival. Take this guide as a sort of.."If you liked them in 2012, then you'll be sure to LOVE this band in 2013.

2012     2013

Bassnectar

Steve Aoki

 

          

           

                            

Kendrick Lamar

  Childish Gambino  

                       

  Franz Ferdinand

    

The Killers

      

                       

Passion Pit

Phoenix

                                     

Santigold

Hot Chip

                                       

Lana del Rey

 Florence & The Machine 

    

                     

"It's time" for Imagine Dragons

Imagine Dragons' success seems to be on a whirlwind spiral upward. Since releasing Night Visions on Sept. 4, 2012 they have had three tracks land on the Billboard Hot 100, a top ten single with Radioactive and their single, It's Time, holds the record for the longest time on the 2012 Alternative top 10 charts. In addition to a number of television appearances it is no surprise that the Night Visions Tour has so far been a smashing success. Imagine Dragons comes to Grant Park this August to perform at their first Lollapalooza 2013. 

Check out the Passion Pit remix of their hit single It's Time and be sure to catch the band at this year's Lolla!

NEW VIDEO: Lana Del Rey "Young and Beautiful"

Lana Del Rey. Get on board people. Del Rey aka Lizzy Grant, debuted her first studio album, Lana Del Rey a.k.a. Lizzy Grant in January 2010. Soon after her smash single "Video Games" came out with a self created video via You Tube her second album, Born to Die, was released in January of 2012. 

Del Rey will be joining a slew of heavy hitters this year in Grant Park for Lollapalooza, but til' then enjoy her latest video for "Young and Beautiful," featured on the soundtrack for the The Great Gatsby.  

One final Lolla post...

 

Remember that awesome pre-Lolla party that SOTW hosted with Cynthia Rowley? With fall ever present, no time like the present to reminisce about the lovely party we had celebrating music and fashion. 

 There were yummy treats from Storefront Company.

 

There were beautiful displays!

  

 There was fun all around!

If you like what you see be sure to follow SOTW on facebook and check out more pictures from our event! Much thanks to Julius Ryan photography for covering the event for us.

Lolla After Show: Nero // Anamanaguchi // Die Antwoord

Chicago’s annual Lollapalooza will be kicking off later this week which means after shows galore. Grant Park won’t be the only place to catch musical action; the city is giving you multiple opportunities to create your personalized Lolla experience with various venues hosting after parties featuring artists from the Lolla lineup.

This upcoming Friday, Congress Theater will be hosting an after show with a perfect combo of Day One artists: Nero, Die Antwoord, and Anamanaguchi. Nero will bring the D & B, Die Antwoord will provide South African rap-rave, and Anamanaguchi's energized 8-bit tracks will caffeinate the crowd. Extend your Lolla adventure and grab your tickets here!

{Follow us on Twitter @sticoftheweek for live coverage of this event} 

Chelsea's MUST DO's to end Summer 2012 with a BANG!

1. Paddleboarding
2. Wicker Park Festival

3. Waterskiing/Wakesurfing
4. Dive off a boat
5. Lollapalooza
6. Skydiving
7. Bike along the beach
8. Get out of the city, and take weekend trip to Wisconsin and/or Michigan
9. North Coast
10. Go to at least one live show a week

11. Go all out on a Monday night, Rehab at Debonair and Porn & Chicken
12. Eat Pinkberry at least once a week (it has no calories ;-))
13. All you can eat sushi
14. Technology free day
15. Run barefoot on the beach (natural exfoliant)

First Aid Kit has Ointment for your Ears

The line-up is out, tickets are sold, and now the wait begins.
To get you pumped up for Lolla, Stic of the Week is going to preview a few of our favorite Lolla artists.

I've had the distinct pleasure of getting to discover and experience First Aid Kit during 2012.
I first saw their video for "Emmylou" and it blew me away. (Watch below).



The Swedish sister duo gained attention via YouTube in 2008 for their cover of Fleet Foxes's "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song." They released their first album, The Big Black & The Blue, in 2010. and toured to support it. This year saw the release of their second effort, The Lion's Roar, which was produced by Mike Mogis. No sophomore slump for them! The album shot straight to #1 in Sweden one week after its release.

When I saw them perform at Lincoln Hall, they were every bit as sweet and powerful in their performance as I had imagined.

Get ready for a magical concert from First Aid Kit, Lolla-goers.

Lollapalooza: Hott & Haute!

Lux of 105.7 The Point (STL)

It was one hottt Lollapalooza weekend in Chicago and while bikinis, bandeaus and cutt-offs were the wardrobe of choice for most, we managed to spot a few stylish festival goers who didn't succumb to the heat and managed to pull out some very cute and practical get ups. Check em out -->

Can you believe it's almost Wednesday?! I'm still in Lolla recovery, how bout you all?

Grimes & Lykke Li

Last night I was at the SOLD OUT show for Grimes and Lykke Li at Chicago's Metro. On a beautiful Monday May night in Chicago, you couldn't ask for any more. Grimes opened up for Lykke Li, this one lady act is nothing but impressive, how she takes control of the stage all by herself. She reminded me of a female Panda Bear (the band, not the animal). Her music reminds me of if you were to hang out at a night club in the later parts of the night, I can picture heads swaying as if you are almost in a trance.

Next up, Lykke Li, who has a incredible stage presence with her two drummers, back up singer, keys, bass and acoustic guitar playing. Dressed in a black leotard with tights and a sort of cape sort get up. Her newest album released in March "Wounded Rhymes," is a much darker album then the "Youth Novels." Don't get me wrong still incredibly danceable, just not as peppy as the first one. Her performance was much different then when I first saw her perform at Lolla two years ago. If you weren't able to make it to the Metro last night, don't get too sad, she will be back here for Lolla for her second time in August!

Smith Westerns are HOME!

Smith Westerns - "Weekend" from Fat Possum Records on Vimeo.

Smith Westerns are playing a home show tonight at Lincoln Hall if you haven't heard!? The very buzzed about band when I was down at SXSW, and even named by SPIN as the must see band to see down there. The SW's are really hitting the music scene here in Chicago and the rest of the country. They have resently even been called The Beatles of Chicago. Playing at Lollapalooza in August as well, can't help but to excited for the band, after all you gotta support the hometown band. Just listening to resent interview with Alexa Chung (Interview by Popsugar), she has even jumped on the Smith Western bandwagon, naming them the top band she listens to on her iPod.

The Empire Strikes the East Coast! Empire of the Sun at Terminal 5 - NYC

Two years, a burned out CD and hundreds of YouTube videos later, I finally got to see the otherworldly live experience that is Empire of the Sun, (not once but twice) as they made their US debut this past August. Although their first time in the US, Aussie natives "Emporer" Luke Steele (of alt group The Sleepy Jackson) and "Lord" Nick Littlemore (of dance-duo Pnau) are no strangers to the live show. They've been making musical magic since 2007 as EOTS, and released their debut album "Walking On A Dream" in fall 2008. Judging by the intense visuals of their cover art and the ultra-glam attire and scenery in their video's, you have to hope that they bring a traveling circus with them to their live shows as well. Trust me when I say they heeded my every expectation.    

They kicked off their 7-show circuit by lighting up Perry's @ Lollapallooza in Chicago on August 7th, before making their way to NYC for two, sold out Terminal 5 shows, the second of which I was lucky enough to catch. The entire show was magical. From start to finish the show felt like you were following your way through some epic adventure love story complete with all the creatures of Narnia, lights from some old school sci-fi junket, and noises & sounds from some uber cool pinball game. They opened with a favorite of mine, "Standing On The Shore" which (even in the photo pit), I was able to groove to. Other crowd favorites included "Half Mast" and "Swordfish Hotkiss Night" complete with some awesome metallic blue body-suits and fish masks. With enough costume changes to make even Cher jealous, it was hard to pick out our favorite pics. To see them all go here. Nearing the end of their 50 minute set they played "Walking On A Dream" which first beat out ignited the crowd into a dance frenzy.

Side project or not, I anticipate we'll hear more from these guys and hopefully get to catch them in the States again soon! If you don't already have it, make sure you go pick up their album "Walking on a Dream". Stic favorite's include: Standing On The Shore, Without You, and of course the ultimate summer jam, Walking On A Dream.

Stic Exclusive Interview at Lollapalooza with The Constellations - Elijah Jones, Alaina Terry and Shabnam Bashiri

Wes and Elijah

Alaina and Shab

Q: Stic: Who is Felicia? This song is totally going to be a hit by the way! 

Elijah: All the girls

Alaina & Shab: <"laughs">

Stic: Is she symbolic to your love life?

Elijah: It’s basically about sexual power...            

Q: Stic: What was it like touring with Hockey? That's when I first heard you perform at Lincoln Hall. 

Elijah, Alaina, and Shab: It was our favorite tour, we loved it! We saw them last night and we told them they ruined tours for us because they had so much fun touring with them!  They are just really nice guys. Those guys were amazing.

Stic: You have been on tour a long time? I saw you back in March.

Elijah, Alaina, and Shab: Yep, it’s quite the long journey!

Q: Stic: The song “Step Right Up” reminds me of a circus, and clowns, its very different from other songs on you album, and then it gets up beat. What’s the symbolism behind the song?

Elijah: It’s very much about a circus, and the late night partying and onto the after hours. It’s very much a circus thing…

Alaina & Elijah: It’s originally a Tom Waits song; originally the idea was to cover the song. Then it turned into a complete remake of the song.

Stic: It sort of reminds me of the movie “It” or “The Shinning”


Elijah: It's not that scary? Is it? 


Laughs all around...

Q:Stic: You are here at Lollapalooza!! Whohoo!!  After months of touring you are here! I was reading something written a while ago, saying no one knew who you were back when you were playing in Atlanta, and now you are at one of the largest music festivals, what’s this like for you all?

Stic: Is this surreal for you all?

Elijah: Yes it really is! I have always wanted to come here! Never had the money and means to do it. Now I'm hear, and playing at it! 

Alaina: This is for sure the highlight of the tour!

Elijah: AND we can't wait to see The Strokes later!!


Stic: Yes! Agreed!!

Q: Stic: Has your music been on any TV shows yet?

Elijah, Alaina, and Shab: “Vampire Diaries,” “Royal Pains.”

Elijah: I haven’t seen Royal Pains yet though...I want to though.

Q:Stic: What’s your sense of style?

A: Elijah: Vintage, lots of vintage shopping!!! A place in Atlanta called Value Village, every last Wednesday it’s half off!! She (Alaina) finds like 12 dress for $14.

Clothing Warehouse in Atlanta is really dope, Stefan’s, and just all vintage shops.

Stic: You have to go vintage shopping out in Wicker Park!

Elijah, Alaina, and Shab: We won’t have time, but we will be back in September!! (Stic note: September 17 at Double Door with Electric Six)

Alaina & Shab: We stick on the cheaper side, Forever 21

Stic: I was going to say your sunglasses look like they are from Forever 21.

Elijah: While yes they are, a fan randomly gave them to me. Photographed in picture above)

Stic: Thanks for you time, good luck at your show today! 

Good byes all around!


For more information on The Constellations go here:
http://www.myspace.com/theconstellations

"Set Back" music video

01 Felicia by sticoftheweek

Lollapalooza 2009- Are you ready?

Lollapalooza is only a week away, below is a list of MY must see bands!

Friday:
Gaslight Anthem
Bon Iver
Ben Folds
Fleet Foxes
Peter Bjorn & John
The Decemberists
Of Montreal
Kings of Leon

Saturday:
Animal Collective
Arctic Monkeys
Chairlift
TV on the Radio
Santigold
Ben Harper and Relentless 7
Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Sunday:
Vampire Weekend
Passion Pit
Cold War Kids
Band of Horses
Deerhunter
The Killers