Lollapalooza 2004-all dates cancelled

Read all about it

http://www.lollapalooza.com/

This is weird. Coachella seemed to be an enormous success, and the ticket prices were not that high for Lollapalooza plus the line-up seemed pretty cool. Personally I wouldn't have gone because a) it was being held at Randall's Island here which is not the greatest location in the world, and b) I think my festival days are over. Just not into that kinda commitment anymore. But I still find it odd. Even in the wake of Coachella being such a smash, I think we may be heading toward a generation of people who have other ways to kill time instead of listening to music ie, the internet etc.

I read an article in the NY Times regarding Lollapalooza that said concerts in general aren't doing well. Like this article from CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/Music/06/22/lollapalooza.canceled.reut/index.html

Not doing well, huh...Um...here's a hint LOWER THE TICKET PRICES! Hundreds to go to Madonna? $100 or more to see David Bowie or Prince? $90 to see Van Halen? Damn! When I saw Van Halen back in the day it was $9.75! I think all I had to do was mow a neighbor's lawn to get the money! In retrospect, that's gotta be the best $10 I ever spent...Dave was still in the band! Who can afford that kinda cash for a show now? And oh yeah...Britney and her injury that cancelled her tour this summer...hmm maybe that's sign. Stay off the road babe, you're lame!

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2004-06-22 22:36 ]

Too bad - if i was in the US i'd have definitely tried to go (even though i hate Morissey with a passion).

i'm a festival loving fool - you can see the bands you like and find out about other ones at the same time.

Ticket prices are too high - people expect live shows to be as good as the videos (hence the lip-synching and extravagent sets/costume changes).

On the subject of concert tours - how many classic bands really need to reform and tour?

How can you possibly hate Morrissey? The Smiths were one of the greatest bands during the early new wave invasion. I grew up on bands like the Smiths, The Cure, Depeche Mode, New Order, and others. I will always love these bands, because they remind me of my youth.

I'm also a big Smiths fan from way back. Not really a Morrisey fan though. I guess I can see how people wouldn't like them. I love The Smiths, but I don't think they have diverse appeal.

Baron...as far as people wanting to see a band perform with all the trappings of their videos, you're probably right about that, however The Who played here in NYC last month and their ticket prices were off the f'ing radar. A pair of good seats would run you about $600, and the not so good seats were running about $400 for a pair! I could pay alot of bills with that kind of money, and when was the last time you saw The Who (Townshend or Daltrey) do a video??

The problem with this year's Lollapalooza was that every show was spread over two days. That poses a logistical nightmare to fans who want to see both shows. You now have to pay for both nights and foot the bill for a hotel room. Of course that's if you want to see both dates.

That opens up problem number two. The second date of the show is so horribly low on star power. The first date has BRMC, Morrissey, Modest Mouse, PJ Harvey, Sonic Youth, and the list goes on. The second date has the Flaming Lips and (now I'm reaching) The Polyphonic Spree. Unless you live in NYC and LA, then you have The Pixies too.

This was destined to fail. If it was a streamlined one day bill it would have done as well as last year's bill.

-g-

Maybe Donhonyc hit it on the head without knowing it. Maybe the people like me who were going to the original Lalapalooza's are now thirty-something with kids and a morgage.

The times they are a changin'. I still love the music. Modest Mouse is like the best band on earth, but driving to Alpine Valley from Milwaukee to spend a crap-load of money for tix and food, and spend a whole day with a bunch of teenagers who still think dying your hair black makes you an individual, wondering the whole time if I should have cut the lawn that morning and if the babysitter remembered to give the kids naps, is just not going to happen.

Boy, I need a drink.

On 2004-06-23 08:46, finkdaddy wrote:
Maybe Donhonyc hit it on the head without knowing it. Maybe the people like me who were going to the original Lalapalooza's are now thirty-something with kids and a morgage.

The times they are a changin'. I still love the music. Modest Mouse is like the best band on earth, but driving to Alpine Valley from Milwaukee to spend a crap-load of money for tix and food, and spend a whole day with a bunch of teenagers who still think dying your hair black makes you an individual, wondering the whole time if I should have cut the lawn that morning and if the babysitter remembered to give the kids naps, is just not going to happen.

Boy, I need a drink.

AMEN Brother, feel your pain!

Right on Finkdaddy. I don't have the kid responsibility like you, but I hear you on the teenage poseur angle. There's nothing more annoying than seeing some kid decked out in full punk regalia. The sleeveless studded denim jacket with a Dead Kennedys logo and a Mohawk. Hello!!! That shit was over like 15 years ago at least. The authenticity is way past the expiration date. Get a grip and find a more relevant 'costume'.

During the 80s I was doing alot of bitching and moaning about how dull it was to live in that time, but in retrospect I'm glad I grew up then (late70s/80s). At least I got to witness some of the stuff in it's 'pristine' un-nostalgized form. It seems that kids growing up these days just don't have any real underground to be a part of . MTV has absolutely killed youth culture.

I'm also glad I got to see the first Lollapalooza in '91. I'll never forget how great The Rollins Band was, and how insane the Butthole Surfers were. Gibby opened their set by mumbling into the microphone and having somebody who looked like a roadie come out and smash a bottle over his head (I'm sure it was a prop) then they started the first song. I also remember him bringing a shotgun out, loaded with blanks I suspect, and firing it over the crowd during one of the songs. Craaazzzzy!

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2004-06-23 11:02 ]

I know where you guys are coming from. I've been to every Warped Tour since its inception ten years ago, and every year I feel a little older, a little fatter and a little more out of place.

I don't know why I keep going back, but I'll probably be there again this year.

-g-

They should take a hint from the people who do the Hootenanny in California every year (4th. of July weekend). This year is the 10th. anniversary so they are having the same lineup as the show 10 yrs. ago and charging the same price: only $25 for a whole day of great bands including the Cramps, Big Sandy, Blasters, Horton Heat, etc.!

http://www.thehootenanny.com/

Forget lollapaloser!

[ Edited by: thejab on 2004-06-23 12:00 ]

On 2004-06-23 11:56, thejab wrote:
They should take a hint from the people who do the Hootenanny in California every year (4th. of July weekend). This year is the 10th. anniversary so they are having the same lineup as the show 10 yrs. ago and charging the same price: only $25 for a whole day of great bands including the Cramps, Big Sandy, Blasters, Horton Heat, etc.!

http://www.thehootenanny.com/

Forget lollapaloser!

[ Edited by: thejab on 2004-06-23 12:00 ]

Except no Top Jimmy and the Rhythm Pigs...

Yeah it is weird seeing the youngin's decked out in the stuff our our (wasted) youth.

But, I guess that's the way it is. When I was 10 back in 1970, I was emulating the hippies with my super bells, no shoes, funky shirts and bag o' weed. (man, glad I quit the super bells, no shoes and funky shirt...)

Crosby, I find it real difficult to imagine you as a hippy!

Eating your tofu-vegan mock chilean sea bass fajita wrap, wearing a rasta cap on your head, the freakin birkenstocks, the B.O....and let's not forget, that stupid little hippy smirk that they all have which says......."I got a trust fund, and am set for life...I hate this country, but love berkelely..I have never worked a real hard job in my life, other then my part time hours at the berkeley school library, and I got plenty of good dope, but won't share it with you"...

I am having a real problem picturing you as a hippy!!

Thank God!!

Jeez. That Hootenanny looks amazing. That's something that just wouldn't happen out here. I'm tellin' ya, I'm a Californian trapped in a New York body, or vice-versa. Have fun at that damn Hootenanny.

" I think we may be heading toward a generation of people who have other ways to kill time instead of listening to music ie, the internet etc."

That's not it. Bonnaroo had well over 100,000 last week for 4 days of music and grows each year. People listening to different music maybe. Lollapoluza had attempted to follow Bonnaroo's lead by grabbing a few of their bands and going to 2 days.

Hey Mick, forget your meds again?

...some of us hippies collect tikis too.

i don't have a trust fund, if I did i'd have the biggest collection here. but no, i'm just a poor artist who chooses to be the way i am.

one of the reasons lalapalooza was canceled: rap music. there is no "alternative" schene in the eyes of "current music". also the line up was the weakest i've seen in years. What about skinny puppy, ministry & nine inch nails?

[ Edited by: Unkle John on 2004-06-23 20:25 ]

On 2004-06-23 20:22, Unkle John wrote:
...some of us hippies collect tikis too.

i don't have a trust fund, if I did i'd have the biggest collection here. but no, i'm just a poor artist who chooses to be the way i am.

one of the reasons lalapalooza was canceled: rap music. there is no "alternative" schene in the eyes of "current music". also the line up was the weakest i've seen in years. What about skinny puppy, ministry & nine inch nails?

Unkle John,

It's a brave soul that chooses their occupation based on the artistic abilities. I'm not that brave, but think about it contantly.

I suspect the reason my occupation, as much as I detest it, is what it is, is because I'm hooked on the drug known as "things"; I love "things". Never had many "things" as a kid, now I just like to buy "things".

I hope I can kick the habit as soon as my house is filled to the rafters with "things".

(maybe there's a patch to help me kick the habit?)

I have always liked Ministry...I can easily say they are one of the more frightening sounding bands out there! And if you listen to their earlier stuff, you will here almost new wave style sounds!!

I saw ministry at Lallapalooza 92' at Bayfront park in Miami. They totally kicked ass. Their live album "in case you feel like showing up" with the crash test dummy on the cover is a classic. I miss the old days of Lallapalooza, when the line ups were extrodinary. I also remember seeing Rollins band, the Beastie Boys, and Cypress Hill at the same venue about 10-12 years ago down in Miami.

Another problem for Lollapalooza in the 21st century - the name.

The 18-25 year olds i work with assosiate it with what the marketers called "alternative (1991-1996) music," not the stuff they listen to now (White Stripes, the Rapture, DJ Shadow, !!!, Radiohead, Flaming Lips, Soulwax...).

Maybe Lollapalooza should continue on by booking musicians like Pearl Jam, Ministry, the Beasties, Pixies, Billy Corgan, Les Claypool, Rollins and include an area so our kids can be babysat while we're in the lawn enjoying the show?

Who thought up the word "alternative"? Until Nevermind hit #1 in January 1992 my friends and i always called it underground/independent/college music.

I thought that was the stupidest music label until someone (probably the same person) thought up the term "electronica." I always called it "dance music," but maybe the US's stigma against disco wouldn't allow it.

its that MTV2 generation that gets us everytime. WE gotta work so we can't go to shows during the week and during the day during the week. But the tour can't only operate on fridays and weekends. Skipping works fun, but everyones gotta get paid to pay to play.

The MTV2 Generation is a quote from the NY Post Newspaper on Weds 6.23.04 - when the shows were cancelled - I could resist using it!

On 2004-06-23 13:05, Tiki_Bong wrote:

Yeah it is weird seeing the youngin's decked out in the stuff of our (wasted) youth.

It's only hip if you're part of the generation.

You think our parents looked at the original punk rock movement and said "Whoa ... cool". No. They said the same thing we're saying now: "Whoa ... stupid".

Today's teenagers know they are cool. We simply "dont get it". That's the way I think it will always be.

~Hanford

I see what you're saying Handford, but I think the Baby Boomers and Genration X grew up with enough cool weirdness, that anything this current youth culture does looks lame and contrived. Rock music or anykind of music related to youth wasn't a red carpet affair. That's where MTV comes in. Pop music or rock music or whatever is now cross-bred with Hollywood glamour, which to me is, and I hate to borrow this term, 'establishment'. I can't imagine The Clash, Ramones, etc. arriving for the MTV Video awards back in their heydays the way these new.....um...'artists' do. It's just lame-o. I mean, I know Nirvana and Pearl Jam, Janes Addiction, etc. might have walked the red carpet at one point or another, but now that whole thing is just blown up to a sickening degree and is expected of all 'artists'. Avril Lavigne...punk rock? Lenny Kravitz...'rock star'? I think not.

But Donhonyc, was the Clash and Ramones "pop" in their day? No! Yes they had a couple hits but I don't hold it against them. There is alot of good new music today. It isn't on mtv prime time or on the local "rock" station every 20 minutes, but it is out there like it always has been. "Pop" or mainstream music is bad now like it always has been but the amazing artists will always be creating, and they are.

[ Edited by: BaronV 2005-07-19 17:12 ]

McDougall-

I was using 'pop music' as a general term. I certainly don't hold anything against The Clash or Ramones for getting pop recognition. I guess what I'm trying to say...what frustrates me most is as I said in an earlier post, is that there is no more room for any musical underground. Okay maybe there is a little, but I just don't see that kind of outlet these days ie, your DIY labels like SST, Dischord, and Alternative Tentacles. Underground is virtually non-existent. It's not accesible to the teen and 20-something mind of today.

It's annoying to see Ashlee Simpson wearing a T-Shirt that says 'Punk' on it. Maybe in another context that shirt has relevance to her, but not in the context that she thinks she's wearing it in. Punk? Yeah, but not 'punk rock'.

Seeing a band like Simple Plan or Good Charlotte calling themselves 'punk rock' and having their own clothing lines is also annoying. Those guys are the biggest sham going. Can you imagine Jello and The DKs with their own clothing line?

Oh yeah...my ranting can be annoying too. but what can I say? I'm a rock n roll Luddite.

Baron V...pop music has not always sucked. Look at the Billboard charts 1966-1971 or so. Beatles, Stones, Steppenwolf, Stevie Wonder and a host of other so-called 'classic rock' and classic r&b, soul, and everything else. Songs AND bands. Just about everything except Zappa and Beefheart was getting mainstream airplay back in the1960s/early 70s.

There are good and band for every decade. Just seems that quality takes a back seat to style and image these days.

What we see as "pop" music, and by that I mean MTV, top 40 radio, fashion mags, etc, is the smallest fraction of a fraction of all the music out there. Overblown corporate pop music has been out there for as long as history has been paying attention. Elvis in the 60's, The Bee Gee's in the 70's, Madonna in the 80's, Pearl Jam in the 90's, and so on. But there always has been, and always will be an unimaginable mass of basement and garage bands laying the foundation for what gets advertised as modern music. In the year 2010, people will look back on this decade and only remember 5 or 6 songs that the radio made popular, and never remember the 60 gazillion bands that were really there grinding it out and setting the scene.

On a slightly lighter note... Since day one, since they had thier first e.p. on the market, I have been a huge Modest Mouse fan. This is a very strange thing for a guy in Milwaukee, since corporate radio is the only source of music here, independent radio doesn't exist, and there are very few clubs that showcase original bands. As a Modest Mouse fanatic, I felt like I had a piece of something that no one else had here. Then one day I heard them on Lazer 102 and I almost cried because that station is so god-awful bad. I knew then that Modest Mouse would never be the same for me. But the worst was a few days ago when I went to a Milwaukee Brewers game and they played Modest Mouse all day on the PA!!! I felt like some rape victim or something. I couldn't believe my ears. I guess nothing is sacred anymore.

Boy that was a long rant, all I wanted to say was that the radio sucks...

[i]there is no more room for any musical underground. Okay maybe there is a little, but I just don't see that kind of outlet these days ie, your DIY labels like SST, Dischord, and Alternative Tentacles. Underground is virtually non-existent. It's not accesible to the teen and 20-something mind of today.

Well that's their own damn fault then.

Remember zines? Send in a buck or two, wait a few months and get a badly photocopied newsletter fileld with reviews and pointless diatribes. Find an interesting band/label and then send stamps, wait 2 or 3 months, get a catalog, mail in an order, wait 2 or 3 months, and finally get to hear what the zine i ordered almost a year ago as talking about. That sucked.

The Internet is a godsend for music fans.

Listening to the Internet broadcast of John Peel on Radio 1 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/alt/johnpeel/index.shtml) a few weeks back and he had a "Grime Session" on - some tunes that sounded like dub, drum and bass, and hip hop put through a blender. While listening to the show I Google'd to the band's/label's site, heard some samples that sounded good, and ordered a CD EP. It showed up in the mail today and I'm blasting it to annoy my neighbors.

If an overweight, balding, 30 year old white dude living in Northern Japan can tap into the underground a little and the "kids" can't, they deserve the crap that's on the radio (and the cover of Rolling Stone).

Baron. That John Peel thing sounds pretty cool. What time are the live broadcasts. I'lll have to check that out.