Radiohead in Chi Town

It has been a dream of ours (mine and my son, Connor) to see Radiohead for a long time. It’s not like they come around everyday.

Quite frankly, if you want to see some of your favorite alt rock bands in the Midwest, Lolla is THE place to be. For 60 days before and 30 days after their Lollapalooza appearance, Lolla bands are prohibited from booking a show within 250 miles of Chicago (which includes Madison, Milwaukee, Champaign, Indianapolis, Ann Arbor and Iowa City).

So, save your money for Lolla if you live in the Midwest and want to see some of the best bands in rock and roll.

The first time I ever heard “Creep” I fell in love—back in 1993. Connor was a baby then but I got him indoctrinated as soon as he could say “Beatles.”

Yesterday, we left Jackson at 5:30am and traveled by auto then train to Chicago for Lollapalooza—the concert festival event to end all events. Radiohead was the “big draw” for day one of Lolla. At 8:00pm, the boys from England took the stage.

For two hours, Radiohead wowed the crowd of 75,000. It was quite overwhelming to be shoulder to shoulder in the hot, musty air. But, though we second-hand smoked at least three packs and Connor got puked on by some kid who couldn’t hold his booze, the show was intense.

Playing most of their hits (though conspicuously leaving out “Creep”) to one of the most technologically advanced stage sets/lighting/and jumbo screens, Radiohead did not disappoint.

There is nothing quite like being in the middle of a crowd of people who know all the words to songs and scream things out at all the right times.

More than once I wished people had that much enthusiasm for corporate worship gatherings. Not concerts per se—that kind of participation is a given. But, normal, every week church gatherings.

If you would like to live vicariously through me, here is the setlist and the iTunes links for your downloading pleasure.

Setlist

15 Step

Airbag

There There

All I Need

Nude

Arpeggi

The Gloaming
(Link Not Available)

The National Anthem

Faust Arp

No Surprises

Jigsaw Falling Into Place

Reckoner

Lucky

The Bends

Everything In Its Right Place

Fake Plastic Trees

Bodysnatchers


Encore

Videotape

Paranoid Android

Dollar and Cents
(Link Not Available)

House of Cards

Optimistic


Encore Numero Dos

2+2=5

Idioteque