By Maria Lopez Conde, Senior Contributing Reporter
SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – The legendary festival that started as a grunge rock affair to bid adieu to band Jane’s Addiction in 1991, Lollapalooza, will celebrate its third Brazilian edition with fifty international and domestic acts in São Paulo this weekend (April 5 – April 6, 2014).
Headlining one of Brazil’s largest music events of the kind are world-acclaimed rock bands such as Muse, Soundgarden, Nine Inch Nails and Arcade Fire. Rounding out the main stage will be performances by indie darlings Vampire Weekend and Phoenix.
“São Paulo is an enormous urban center without a big festival and this an opportunity for rock fans to take advantage of national and international bands in a special format,” Leo Ganem, president of Geo Eventos, which planned Lollapalooza 2013, told The Rio Times last year.
Created by Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell in 1991, the festival started as an alternative rock concert for his band’s U.S. farewell. Today, Lollapalooza has evolved into a larger-than-life music destination that unites musicians of all genres. In 2011, Farrell’s brainchild went international with a Chilean edition, followed by a Brazilian version in 2012.
Despite relentless rain and cold weather, last year’s edition at São Paulo‘s Jockey Club drew 167,000 fans from March 29th – March 31st. Organized by Geo Eventos, part of the Globo media conglomerate, the 2013 Lollapalooza hosted international acts such as Pearl Jam, The Killers and Queens of the Stone Age.
This year’s Lollapalooza is moving away from Jockey Club to the Autódromo de Interlagos, a racetrack. “The festival has changed addresses and is five times bigger, with a space of 600 square meters,” the new organizers, Time for Fun, said in a statement. “Great benefit for those who will experience Lollapalooza on both days because the stages will have the appropriate distance between each other, guaranteeing maximum sound quality.”
Marcos Caruso, a São Paulo area publicist who attends music festivals, told The Rio Times he wants to see AFI, New Order and the Bloody Beetroots at this year’s event. “I want to go to get to know the [festival’s] structure and take a peek at what is new in the music world,” Caruso said.
This weekend, the concert will kick off with the presence of the soulful sensation from New Zealand, Lorde, and her instant classic, “Royals,” followed by The Strokes’ former frontman-gone-solo, Julian Casablancas. Indie rock fans will be catered to with the French tunes from Phoenix, while electronic music connoisseurs vibrate to the tunes of the UK’s hit electronic duo, Disclosure.
The first night of the festivities will close with a big rock-and-roll bang, courtesy of English band Muse and American legends Nine Inch Nails. Industrial rock pioneers, NIN, promise nothing other than loud riffs, strong drums and powerful vocals from the legendary Trent Reznor with renditions of “Hurt,” “Closer” and “The Hand that Feeds.”
The festival’s second day will be filled with the sounds of alternative rock kings, the Pixies and electro visionaries from New Order before Arcade Fire and Soundgarden’s grunge rhythms bring Lollapalooza 2014 to a close.
Caruso, who attended the famed Lollapalooza festival in Chicago last year, said that the American version’s organization is a “dream.” “Over [in Chicago], they have more attractions than here, and the 2014 edition will be a spectacle,” adding that rapper Eminem is slated to perform at Grant Park, Chicago in August.
The festival’s tickets are also more affordable abroad, according to Caruso. “The price of the tickets I found to be a bit too [high] for the Brazilian reality compared to what is paid abroad,” he said. Two-day passes for São Paulo’s Lollapalooza come in at R$540 paying full-price (R$270 half-price), while a one-day ticket costs R$290 (R$140 half-price), while a day at the American Lollapalooza costs concertgoers US$100.