5 Lollapalooza bands you need to listen to immediately

Lollapalooza is once again on the docket and Q101 is the place to be for everything Lollapalooza related. On Thursday, at 8am, Q101 tickets off Ticket Blitz Thursday with Brian & Justin. This continues all day through 6:00pm with Brian Phillips. This will be your FIRST chance to get Lolla tickets before they go on-sale on Friday.

As an expert in bands at the bottom of the poster, it is time once again to shed some light on some under the radar bands trapped at the bottom of the poster.

beabadoobee

As you read this, beabadoobee [BE-BUH-DOO-BE] is preparing to open up Taylor Swift on a string of dates on Swift’s already-infamous Eras Tour. The Filipino, bedroom-pop savant has made a lot of noise in the music industry by, in reality, making very little noise at all. Every outlet, from Rolling Stone to the Tonight Show have given the Gen Z Superstar their seal of approval. She is best known for her vocals on “death bed (coffee for your head)“, a song that has amassed over a billion streams on Spotify, but her best work comes from her latest record with the song “the perfect pair”.

Knocked Loose

Now for something completely different.

Much like Turnstile last year, Knocked Loose is the sole representative for aggressive guitar music this year. The Louisville hardcore outlet has turned heads over the last few years for their unrelenting live show. They are no stranger to the festival scene, having headlined a bevy of hardcore festivals and tagging onto Warper Tour in 2017 and 2018, but 10 years into their career, the band is reaching new heights. This year, they’ll play Coachella and Bonnaroo before unloading their barrage of heavy riffs and blood-curling shrieks on Grant Park this summer. If you find yourself longing for the days where fresh, heavy guitar music dominated your life, Knocked Loose can provide some much-needed comfort.

Lovejoy

Remember the name Lovejoy. The next time they play Lollapalooza, their name will be in a much more prominent position on the poster. The English quarter has been getting in their 10,000 hours, releasing a pair of EP’s as they gear up for their upcoming release, “Wake Up & It’s Over”. The lead single from that project, “Call Me What You Like”, combines the swagger of Arctic Monkeys with the delightful kookiness of The Wombats. This may be your first time listening to Lovejoy, but it certainly won’t be your last.

Dehd

It wouldn’t be Lollapalooza without some great Chicago music, and this year Dehd is the local band to watch (alongside our corndog-loving friends in Sincere Engineer). Dehd have been a longtime favorite of music critics and with good reason. They blend a proto-alt sound while touting Dolly Parton and Roy Orbison as influences. No one is doing it quite like this Chicago three-piece, and while they’ve played Pitchfork Music Festival before, it will be great to see them on the big stage at Lolla.

The 502s

I really love The 502s. There’s something about them that is wholesome and sincere, yet I feel like any of their songs could be used in the background as Toyota tries to sell me a car. Being able to straddle that line takes real talent. This folky sextet came into my life last year their hit, “Just A Little While”, has been embedded in my brain ever since. With The Lumineers gravitating towards electric guitars on their most recent release and Mumford & Sons taking a step back as Marcus Mumford pursues a solo career, The 502s have a chance to become the premier Stomp & Clap band in town. I anxiously await watching their set in awe as the sun sets on the greatest city on Earth.