Lollapalooza, day three

On Sunday, I'm able to sleep in a bit and hit the gym before heading to Grant Park. My shoulders and back have been uncomfortable, so I wasn't going to work out too hard. Surprisingly, my whole body felt a lot better after going to the gym.

When I get to the Bud Light stage Amy Winehouse's covering Lauren Hill's Doo Wop. Her set's very good, mixing her limited oeuvre with girl group covers. Her voice and backing band are solid and she's dressed really cute.

At the end of her set, I watch a bit of Paolo Nutini, whom I thought was Brazilian but is actually from Scotland. That takes a while for me to wrap my head around and I end up being let down and leave their show after a song or two.

I get some chicken-on-a-stick over noodles, which are very good--slurping it all down. Then head over to the AT&T stage, where my good friend Adam had set up camp right in front of the sound deck. There was a fenced off T from the deck to the stage so that no one would trip or disconnect the cables. He had put a blanket down in the corner of the T, made some friends, and been elected as viceroy of Cornerville.

I settled in among them and got ready for Kings of Leon, whom I had been very excited about seeing for quite a while. They were fucking incredible.



My original plan was to head over to Yo La Tengo and then Modest Mouse (whom I had also been anticipating for a long time), then head back to watch Pearl Jam perform a couple of songs, then head out. But my friends talk me into staying in Cornerville and seeing My Morning Jacket-who are performing with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra-and then Pearl Jam. Things are getting so crowded we were becoming ensconced within the crowd. I waffled for a few minutes-I really didn't want to miss Modest Mouse-but decide to stay in Cornerville.

This is kind of important, because this is where the weekend changed for me. Up until this point I've been enjoying the bands, but I was mostly hanging out toward the outer half of the crowds, close enough so the sound is good and I can see the stage-but really I watch the big screens, a habit I dislike, but can't stop. Out there, the people sway, occasionally dance, some lounge on blankets and tap their toes. Some even read beach novels while their friends enjoy the music. In Cornerville, I'm in the throng. The people around me are ecstatic and jumping and entirely into the music.

I had heard of, but not heard, My Morning Jacket before. They were so delightfully good. I'm having an amazing time, grooving on a Sunday afternoon. The Youth Symphony Orchestra were exactly what I hoped for, some of the boys trying to look cool with sunglasses, some of the girls trying to contain their smiles.

Before they started we braved through the crowd to pee and buy beer. That occurred around 5:30. My Morning Jacket finishes at 7:15 and I'm ready to pee again, but we were fully immured by the crowd. There was no getting out for more beer or a bathroom or even a porta-potty. By 8:15 Pearl Jam hasn't started yet and I know there's no way I'm going to last until 10 without peeing. Adam feels the same way, so he has his girl stand in front of him and pisses into a cup while I serve as a side block, turning my back to him and chatting up the girls who are sitting next to us.

'How are you girls doing?' I ask. 'Isn't this a great weekend? The bands sound great. Did you see Daft Punk? I hear they were amazing.'

But it's apparent what we're doing and the crowd around us lets out signs of disgust, especially when he's done and pours the urine into a bottle so he could cap it off.

I wait a few minutes until Pearl Jam is getting ready to go on and the crowd is distracted. Adam covertly holds an empty trash bag in front of me while I piss and the crowd's none the wiser.

One final note: Pearl Jam rocked so fucking hard it made me remember why I love music.