The annual Lollapalooza music festival just wrapped up
after four days of music, overpriced food, and a healthy dose of both legal and
illegal inebriation, in Chicago’s Grant Park, where it has been held since
2005. For the past 5 years or so, the festival’s bookings have varied a bit and
have begun to lean toward a “teens and twenties” crowd. The festival that began
as the ultimate gathering in alternative music features fewer rock bands and
classic groups from the ‘80s and ‘90s and instead continues to bring in vast
amounts of EDM, pop-alternative, indie groups, and occasional legacy acts. Artists
who ride the lines between those categories are often the biggest draws, and
Bruno Mars, Vampire Weekend, Arctic Monkeys, and The Weeknd were some of the
notable closers on the main stages throughout the festival. Having said that, a Sunday night closing set
from Jack White and his tight backing band really stood out in the best
possible way compared to the other performances over the four days.
Closing a major festival like Lollapalooza is a big slot
for a band or artist to fill.
Thankfully, Detroit native, Jack White, was up to the task. White and
his current touring band have been on the road since March, around the time his
third and most recent solo LP, Boarding
House Reach, was released, performing in both Detroit and Grand Rapids in
April. White’s current shows have been running around or just under two hours,
so with only 90 minutes blocked off on the festival schedule, it was clear the
goal was to keep things at a high-energy, faced-paced tempo throughout the
show. With no encore break, very little banter between songs, and perhaps
skipping one or two of the newer songs he may have otherwise included, White
was able to condense his show without losing any of the elements that have made
his recent performances so noteworthy. Aside from working in a great deal more
synthesizer and keyboard than on previous tours, White continues to mix up the
songs performed each night, and he still avoids writing a set list rather preferring
to rely on the feeling he gets from the crowd during the show to determine what
song should be played next.
The set began with a short but rocking jam featuring all six members of the band before they launched into “Over and Over and Over”, which they had been opening most shows with on the current tour, but only recently has the opening jam been added, allowing the song itself to fit a bit better as an opening number rather than starting the song cold as it appears on the album. Once the band took off, the energy remained high and constant throughout the show. With the stage bathed in pale blue light, as it has been since White went solo about six years ago, the group tore through classics and fan favorites including songs from The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, and The Dead Weather, White’s other groups, but only songs he wrote himself were featured Sunday night. “Hotel Yorba”, “Sixteen Saltines”, “I Cut Like a Buffalo” and “Steady, as She Goes” each garnered a strong response from the crowd and were performed a bit faster than usual, possibly to allow for a few more songs to fit into the allotted time. During two of the early songs in the night, White played his St. Vincent signature model HHH guitar, which was coincidentally appropriate as St. Vincent herself performed on the same stage the previous evening. During the funky psychedelia of “Corporation”, White improvised that he was, “Thinking about taking it right to the top/right to the motherfucking White House!!!”, which was notable as White seldom makes public political comments or includes profanity during his concerts.
The set began with a short but rocking jam featuring all six members of the band before they launched into “Over and Over and Over”, which they had been opening most shows with on the current tour, but only recently has the opening jam been added, allowing the song itself to fit a bit better as an opening number rather than starting the song cold as it appears on the album. Once the band took off, the energy remained high and constant throughout the show. With the stage bathed in pale blue light, as it has been since White went solo about six years ago, the group tore through classics and fan favorites including songs from The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, and The Dead Weather, White’s other groups, but only songs he wrote himself were featured Sunday night. “Hotel Yorba”, “Sixteen Saltines”, “I Cut Like a Buffalo” and “Steady, as She Goes” each garnered a strong response from the crowd and were performed a bit faster than usual, possibly to allow for a few more songs to fit into the allotted time. During two of the early songs in the night, White played his St. Vincent signature model HHH guitar, which was coincidentally appropriate as St. Vincent herself performed on the same stage the previous evening. During the funky psychedelia of “Corporation”, White improvised that he was, “Thinking about taking it right to the top/right to the motherfucking White House!!!”, which was notable as White seldom makes public political comments or includes profanity during his concerts.
Overall, White’s band was tighter and in better shape
compared to the early shows on the tour, and it’s clear they’ve found a common
groove with one another as players while they interpret White’s songs alongside
him. Veteran bassist, Dominic Davis (also a Detroit native), and drummer, Carla
Azar (also of the group, Autolux), were especially impressive for keeping up
with White’s unexpected changes and various equipment issues that came and went
throughout the concert. While the music itself was very crisp and often spot on
across the stage, White’s lyrics can sometimes get buried in the mix, so if you
aren’t already up on them, it’s hard to catch parts of some songs. White
continued to make use of his three-pronged microphone stand and utilized various
vocal effects during certain songs, bringing an additional far out element to
the multilayered sounds of the selected tunes. As the night began to draw to a
close, White focused exclusively on some of his most popular work with The
White Stripes and ended the concert with “Fell in Love with a Girl”, “Ball and
Biscuit”, and “Seven Nation Army”, each of which had memorable if not
unexpected moments. “Fell in Love with a Girl”, White’s earliest real hit as a
songwriter or performer in any band, changed speeds and styles throughout,
catching the audience, and even the band, off guard a few times as they
attempted to sing and play along with White, who broke a string during but
soldiered on through “Ball and Biscuit” after switching guitars half-way
through. Switching yet again to his trusty slide guitar for the closing number,
which the audience began chanting before the concert began and again as soon as
White played the first few notes, the energy from the crowd finally peaked. The
comical frustration, however, continued when White broke another string on his
guitar during “Seven Nation Army” as well, and he alternated between playing in
a higher octave (to the delight of the band) and leading the audience to chant
the main riff during the final verse rather than attempting to play it without
the necessary string. Of course, this ended up being the highlight moment of
the concert because the song still worked out and maybe sounded even better
than it would have otherwise because of the unique elements and in-the-moment
changes that needed to be made. Then
again, that’s the kind of thing that drives White and his live performances the
most. A well-rocked crowd gave White and the band a lengthy ovation as they
took their final bow and exited the stage, and another year of the legendary
Lollapalooza came to a close.
Jack White set list (Chicago, IL 8-5-18)
(intro tape/jam)
Over and Over and Over
Corporation
Hotel Yorba
Cannon (portion)
Sixteen Saltines
I’m Slowly Turning into You
(short jam)
I Cut Like a Buffalo
We’re Going to Be Friends
Love Interruption
Respect Commander
You’ve Got Her in Your Pocket
Connected by Love
Catch Hell Blues
Broken Boy Soldier (portion)
Freedom at 21
Fell in Love with a Girl
Ball and Biscuit
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