A slew of top draws blow into the Windy City this weekend as Perry Farrell's Lollapalooza music festival invades Chicago's Grant Park for its annual three-day visit. With one of the most diverse line-ups in the festival's long history, Lollapalooza organizers are hoping the broad bill attracts the usual 80,000-plus that perenially congregate on the shores of Lake Michigan for a weekend of unexpected surprises and mind-boggling afterparties.
This year's festival should deliver some interesting—and much anticipated—sets, including Kanye West's hopefully redeeming set in front of the nation's festival heads, Radiohead's expected epic performance, and Nine Inch Nails' likely melting of the Bud Light stage on Sunday night.
In between, expect powerful performances from a nicely mixed bag of artists that includes the likes of Blues Traveler, the Black Keys, Stephen Malkmus, the Raconteurs, Bloc Party, the Kills, Bang Camaro, Lupe Fiasco, Rage Against the Machine, Wilco, Dierks Bentley, Toadies, G. Love & Special Sauce, Mark Ronson, Love and Rockets, White Lies, and the Whigs.
Of course, all of this is in addition to the usual Lollapalooza festival fare that includes the "Kidz" stage and multiple performances from the students of Peter Green's School of Rock, and loads of other up and coming acts sure to find a place on someone's musical palette.
Rolling Stone is following the weekend's events from all angles on their Rock "N" Roll Diary page, which includes a blog, playlists, and both photo and video galleries. —Gabriel J. Hernandez