Cage the Elephant Help Rescue Lollapalooza’s Somewhat Jinxed Opening Day
There were some hiccups on the first day of Lollapalooza 2017. Liam Gallagher left the stage after just 20 minutes. Migos was late to start their show due to flight delays, and Muse, Lorde and all of the other headliners were forced to abandon their respective stages very early into their sets due to a lightning storm.
"Gutted" was the word of the day from the acts whose shows were cut short, with Gallagher, Lorde and Muse's Matt Bellamy all employing the verb to describe their disappointment.
But about three dozen acts did manage to fully share their music with the tens of thousands who flooded Chicago's Grant Park, including a very, very impressive set by Cage the Elephant. Lead vocalist Matthew Shultz made a strong first impression by strutting up to the mic in an evening dress and fishnets that would have made Dr. Frank-N-Furter proud: "I wanted to look pretty for you."
While his more conservatively "let's go get a pint"-dressed guitarist brother Brad immediately hopped over the security fence to play among the crowd, Shultz posed, preened and roamed the stage like a more primal, modern-day Mick Jagger. The 17-song set - largely focused on the group's two most recent albums, Melophobia and Tell Me I'm Pretty - was well-paced and kept the massive crowds at their stage rapt throughout.
Lollapalooza 2017 continues tonight, Saturday and Sunday with a lineup including Arcade Fire, Royal Blood, the Killers, Blink-182 and Run the Jewels.