If you are headed to Grant Park this weekend and looking to maximize your festival experience, Case the Producer is here to help. After spending weeks analyzing the lineups of each day, he’s produced the best possible path to get the most bang for your buck out of this year’s Lolla.
Thursday
The Beaches (1:15-2:00, Bud Light Stage)
Having opened for the likes of the Foo Fighters and The Rolling Stones, The Beaches are the perfect band to kick off this year’s Lolla experience. The Canadian-quartet sounds like summer time in Chicago. Their last album was described by Elton John as “The best rock album of last year.” Now is your chance to get in early on a band that will be playing much later in the day the next time they play Lolla.
Beauty School Dropout (2:10-2:50, BMI Stage)
Fresh off of touring the country with Blink-182 and Turnstile, the Los Angeles-based band with stamps of approval from Mark Hoppus and Pete Wentz are back in the Windy City for a set at Lolla’s BMI Stage. Despite their off-kilter appearance, the trio has made it clear that they plan on being a mainstream success. They’ll get a chance to showcase their worth on Thursday.
Lovejoy (3:00-4:00, T-Mobile Stage)
Let me put it to you this way: if you’re reading this and you don’t know who Lovejoy is, you soon will. The up-and-coming Englanders have officially earned Buzz Band status. Everyone with a crystal ball sees massive success for this group in the near-future. They’ve already cultivated a feverish fanbase (we see your DM’s, we are playing “Call Me What You Like) and before long, they’ll be a household name. Although I’ve compiled a giant list of bands that you can check out with this blog, I want to make it clear that if I advise you see one band this weekend, it’s Lovejoy.
Noah Kahan (6:00-7:00, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage)
Noah Kahan is having one hell of a 2023. The folk singer has been everywhere. He’s graduated from a singer with a cult fanbase to a burgeoning superstar with his song “Dial Drunk”, which can be heard on Q101. If countless talk show appearances and critical praise wasn’t enough, Post Malone recently hopped on a remix of “Dial Drunk”. Kahan is a masterful songwriter who deserves to perform on the biggest stages possible. This is his year. His crowning performance may be this Thursday at Lollapalooza. Do not miss this set.
Carly Rae Jepsen (7:00-8:00, Bud Light Stage)
A love Carly Rae Jepsen and I don’t care who knows it. Now over a decade removed from one of the most catchiest songs in history with “Call Me Maybe”, Jepsen has evolved from pop cannon-fodder into a mainstay that balances mainstream sensibilities with serious artistry. She’s put out two records in the last year, 2022’s The Loneliest Time and the just-released follow-up The Loveliest Time. If the usual, unrelenting noise of pop music turns you off, Jepsen offers a refreshing change of pace.
Billie Eilish (8:45-end, T-Mobile Stage)
She’s back. For the first time since 2018, one of music’s most exciting superstars is back at Lollapalooza. Eilish, who is still only 21, will cross off yet another incredible milestone when she headlines the festival this year. A seven-time Grammy winner, contributor to numerous soundtracks for major blockbusters, and Coachella headliner, she now gets to take the main stage at the premier music festival in the world.
Friday
Sincere Engineer (1:15-2:15, Bud Light Stage)
Chicago’s very own Sincere Engineer, who garnered a lot of attention with their “corndog mosh pit” at last year’s Riot Fest, are taking their talents to Chicago’s OTHER landmark festival this year. The group, who just recently played a handful of dates on the Sad Summer Fest tour alongside Taking Back Sunday, The Maine, and others, continue the proud lineage of punk-inspired-pop bands from Chicago. This is the perfect way to kick-off Friday.
Cafuné (2:50-3:30, Bacardi Stage)
“Cafuné” is one word that encompasses an entire action or mood sequence: the act of running your fingers through someone’s hair in a tender way.
There you go.
In this context, however, Cafuné represents an incredibly exciting two-piece. Sedona Schat and Noah Yoo met in college and teamed up to create dreamy, atmospheric guitar music. Following in the vein of Chicago’s own Beach Bunny or fellow Lollapalooza perfomers Alvvays, Cafuné could be the soundtrack to your next Main Character Saga. We can’t recommend them enough.
beabadoobee (4:00-5:00, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage)
beabadoobee might have the hardest name to pronounce at this year’s festival, but her music is quite easy to grasp. The Filipino standout has spent the year on the road with Taylor Swift and taking her highly-successful Beatopia tour to Europe. She’s now back in Chicago for the first time since last year’s thrilling set at The Riv. Initially a standout due to her success on TikTok, she’s proven herself as an artist with creative legs. Her newest single, “the way things go”, is perhaps her fullest song to date, combining her unique songwriting with larger-than-life instrumentation. She could steal the entire weekend with her set on Friday.
The 502s (5:15-6:00, Bacardi Stage)
The 502s have one perfect song. As a band, they’re good, don’t get me wrong, but The 502s are worth checking out just to here their song “Just A Little While”. This song damn near knocked me over the first time I heard it. I was floored by how good it was. It’s a track that makes you marvel at the songwriting process. “How did they get everything so right?”, I asked myself, once I heard the cavalcade of horns wash over the folky strings. I want to bask in Golden Hour while this song rips through Grant Park. That’s the life we all deserve. We deserve that moment of bliss.
Foals (6:00-7:00, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage)
Foals are what I call a “back of the closet” band. I admittedly never find myself itching to hear Foals. They’re a band that isn’t on the forefront of my mind. They come and go from Chicago and my life largely stays the same…that is, until I hear a Foals song. Then, suddenly, I’m reminded that these guys are very, very good. Part math-rock, part-electronic, and all-together fun, Foals are the perfect band for this sort of setting.
Thirty Seconds to Mars (7:00-8:00, Bud Light Stage)
As a warmup act before his performance on Brian & Kenzie Friday morning, Jared Leto leads 30 Seconds to Mars into battle for a premier spot at Lollapalooza. With their first new record in five years, It’s the End of the World But It’s a Beautiful Day, slated to drop in mid-September, Lollapalooza-goers should be offered a sneak peak at once of the biggest albums on tap for 2023. The way I see it, any time you have the chance to be in the presence of Jared Leto, you should take advantage of that.
Knocked Loose (9:00-10:00, Bacardi Stage)
You literally can’t make a bad decision on Friday night. It’s unfortunate, really, that Lollapalooza put three of the most engaging live acts in all of music against one another, but that’s what Friday night turned into. While I totally understand anyone siding with The 1975 or Kendrick Lamar, my time will be spent with the heaviest band to ever come out of Louisville. Following in the footsteps of Turnstile last year, Knocked Loose represents one of the many thriving, young, heavy bands bubbling under the surface of the alternative landscape. Earlier this year, they brought stage-diving to Coachella. Now, they close out Lollapalooza on Friday night.
Saturday
Motherfolk (1:00-1:45, T-Mobile Stage)
Veterans of Q101’s Twisted Xmas, Motherfolk is back in Chicago for the first time since that faithful night with The Lumineers. Dubbing their style as “serious songs from goofy people”, they’re sure to start the vibes off on the right foot on Saturday afternoon.
The Linda Lindas (1:45-2:45, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage)
I don’t know how they do it, but The Linda Lindas seem to make their way onto every festival known to man. This isn’t a bad thing, by the way. The group, which is composed of incomprehensibly young musicians (two sisters, their cousin, and a close friend), made headlines in 2021 with their live performance of “Racist, Sexist Boy”, a callout song discussing the racism they faced due to COVID-19. The band was quickly embraced by punk icons, Tom Morello, Flea, and more. They hit the ground running once live music returned, and here they are, completing the Chicago Music Festival Trifecta after playing both Pitchfork and Riot Fest last year.
Windser (3:20-4:00, BMI Stage)
Windser is my biggest discovery of Lollapalooza acts this year. Most of the bands on this list, I’ve followed and supported for many years. Windser, however, I had no knowledge of before this year’s lineup dropped. I am now proudly a fan of the Santa Cruz-native. I hesitate to call this act “easy listening”, because I consider that to be a dirty term used only for people who have given up on having taste, but Windser is truly easy to listen to. It’s immediately accessible. It makes sense. Upon first listen, I knew exactly what it was, and I greatly enjoyed it. Hopefully I am not alone in this endeavor.
The Revivalists (4:45-5:45, T-Mobile Stage)
I didn’t get my fill of The Revivalists when they played a Q101 Pop-Up Performance at The Forge at Lemont Quarries in June. Part of me will be over at the T-Mobile Stage in hopes that they play their cover of “Creep” again. I truly loved that. If anything was proven in Lemont, it’s that The Revivalists do not miss. I expect this to be one of the high points of the weekend.
Maggie Rogers (6:45-7:45, Bud Light Stage)
Speaking of great performers, I present to you, Maggie Rogers. The Pharrell-backed indie folk singer stormed the Aragon in February and blew me away. I had followed from afar for a few years, but seeing her in the flesh, and seeing the way she commanded 4,500 rabid fans, was a sight to behold. Much like The Revivalists, I’m giddy to double-up and check out Maggie Rogers for the second time this year.
Alex G (7:45-8:30, Bacardi Stage)
Lollapalooza has lined up a trio of artists that are very high on the all-time list of good vibes. The back-to-back-to-back combination of The Revivalists, Maggie Rogers, and Alex G is an unrelenting lineup of chill vibes and killer tunes. Having now released music for over a decade, Alex G is no stranger to big stages. I’m also no stranger to his music, as it was often blasted throughout the halls of Columbia College Chicago during my time there. Despite being known for his “intimate, lo-fi” approach, Alex G knows how to play to the back of the room…or, the back of Grant Park. Whatever. He’s really good.
Pusha T (8:45-9:45, Perry’s Stage)
This will be the only time Pusha T is ever mentioned on Q101.com, but let me just say that in the void that is contemporary hip-hop, Pusha T remains one of the few bright spots. He famously dissed Drake so hard that he made him reconnect with his son, and between his solo work and his time in Clipse, he is someone that I eagerly await at Lolla this year.
Sunday
Bakar (2:00-2:45, Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage)
You may have heard Bakar’s breakout hit “Hell N Back” with Brian & Kenzie recently. The final day of Lollapalooza now provides you with your chance to see Bakar live in-action. The British singer who reminds me of a more laid back version of Kele Okereke of Bloc Party fame hits the stage early as Lollapalooza winds down on Sunday.
Dehd (2:30-3:30, T-Mobile Stage)
Don’t be relaxed after watching Bakar taking the stage. Once his set ends, it’ll be time to run over to the T-Mobile stage to check out Chicago’s own Dehd. An underground and critical sensation for a number of years now, Dehd takes the Lollapalooza stage for the first time ever this year. I would rank Dehd right up there with the likes of Beach Bunny and LURK as the city’s current best bands. You will not want to miss this one.
Alvvays (Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage, 3:45, 4:45)
A late, but welcomed addition to the festival.
Alvvays recorded one of the single greatest songs of all-time. That is not a hyperbole. I feel in my bones that that statement is true. 2014’s “Archie, Marry Me” is peak songwriting. The song has amassed nearly 100 million streams, but it should be closer to one billion. It should have been a massive, chart-topping hit, and not just a playlist staple for the misunderstood and misanthropic (which I am one of). The band, in the decade that has followed the release of “Archie…”, has put forth a number of great tunes. They’re not as good as that one, but nothing is. My point here? Go see Alvvays.
Mt. Joy (4:30-5:30, T-Mobile Stage)
There’s more running back-and-forth between Tito’s and T-Mobile, unfortunately. The late addition of Alvvays will prevent me from seeing all of Mt. Joy’s set, but I’m going to do my damndest to get across the park to see Mt. Joy. The group found success on Q101 with “Evergreen”. That was far from the only blow-away track on 2022’s Orange Blood. If you are planning on attending every day of the fest and are invested in the likes of Noah Kahan and Maggie Rogers, Mt. Joy may end up being your new obsession.
Maise Peters (5:30-6:30, Coinbase Stage)
Maise Peters feels like the adult-evolution of the Tumblr standouts (The 1975, twenty-one pilots, The Wombats). Her music is unforgivingly catchy. Her recent record, aptly titled The Good Witch, is a non-stop assault of pop-leaning alt tracks with lyrics that should’ve been given the pleasure to have been reblogged. Peters turned heads when she played The Riv last fall. Now she gets a chance to win over an entirely new audience with her first Lolla performance.
The Backseat Lovers (7:30-8:30 Coinbase Stage)
With a quarter-of-a-billion streams and counting for their breakout hit “Kilby Girl”, The Backseat Lovers are an obvious choice when plotting out your Lolla lineup. This band has taken the world by storm over the last year and as a reward, they’ve earned a prime spot as Lolla nears its end. It doesn’t seem impossible that one day, this band could be going on last at this festival. It’s highly advised you give them a look on Sunday.
Red Hot Chili Peppers (8:30-end, T-Mobile stage)
Don’t be weird, go see the Red Hot Chili Peppers. You know all their songs, you like all their songs. Even the songs you don’t think you like, you’ll like them when you hear it live. I adore Lana Del Rey, but I will be closing out my weekend with RHCP.
Whoever you decide to see this weekend, we hope you have the time of your life. I speak for everyone at Q101 when I say we can’t wait to see you all out there this weekend.
