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cover of episode A new oral history of Lollapalooza recalls the alt-rock music festival's wildest days

A new oral history of Lollapalooza recalls the alt-rock music festival's wildest days

2025/4/10
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NPR's Book of the Day
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Richard Beanstalk
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Tom Beaujour
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Richard Beanstalk: Lollapalooza首场演出便充满混乱，Jane's Addiction乐队成员Perry Farrell和Dave Navarro在台上大打出手；Nine Inch Nails乐队的演出也因设备故障而中断，Trent Reznor砸毁了设备。尽管开局混乱，Lollapalooza却定义了90年代的摇滚乐。 Lollapalooza的成功离不开Perry Farrell的远见卓识，他邀请了Ice-T、Suzy and the Banshees等风格迥异的乐队，并尝试将看似对立的理念（例如NRA和Greenpeace）融合在一起。这体现了他理想主义，尽管有些天真。 在Lollapalooza的早期，各种冲突和意外层出不穷，例如1994年L7乐队和Nick Cave在达拉斯重演肯尼迪遇刺事件，这展现了长期巡演带来的压力和不理智行为。 Lollapalooza的成功也受益于Nirvana的《Nevermind》专辑发行以及当时的时代背景，使得另类音乐迅速进入主流。Lollapalooza融合了多种音乐类型（如摇滚、嘻哈），这在当时是独一无二的，如今已成为音乐节的常态。 尽管Perry Farrell是Lollapalooza的灵魂人物，但在乐队阵容的选择上，他和其他人之间也存在许多摩擦和分歧，这影响了部分乐队的参与。 最终，Metallica在1996年成为Lollapalooza的头牌乐队，标志着Lollapalooza失去了其另类音乐基石的地位，Perry Farrell也因此退出。 总而言之，Lollapalooza是特定时代背景下的产物，如今类似规模的巡回音乐节已不可能再现。这本书既是对Lollapalooza的致敬，也展现了它不为人知的一面。 Tom Beaujour: Lollapalooza的创办者们对音乐的品味和商业考量之间存在冲突，这导致了乐队阵容选择上的反复权衡。 Metallica在1996年成为头牌乐队，是Lollapalooza走向商业化，并失去其另类音乐特质的转折点，Perry Farrell对此非常不满，并最终退出。

Deep Dive

Chapters
This chapter explores the origins of Lollapalooza as Jane's Addiction's farewell tour in 1991, highlighting its initial chaotic energy, including on-stage brawls and technical mishaps. It also recounts the festival's unique approach to genre-bending and its surprising success despite early setbacks.
  • Lollapalooza began as Jane's Addiction's farewell tour.
  • The first show was marked by chaos, including a fight between band members and a power outage.
  • Perry Farrell's vision was to unite diverse genres and ideas.
  • The festival's eclectic lineup included Ice-T, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and other diverse artists.
  • The reenactment of the Kennedy assassination by L7 and Nick Cave in Dallas highlighted the festival's eccentric nature.

Shownotes Transcript

Lollapalooza is a popular music festival that takes place in Chicago's Grant Park each year. But it was conceived as a farewell tour for the band Jane's Addiction, kicking off with a series of chaotic performances across the United States in the summer of 1991. Lollapalooza, a new oral history by Richard Bienstock and Tom Beaujour, documents the wild early days of the festival through interviews with bands like Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails and Green Day. In today's episode, the book's authors speak with NPR's A Martínez about the way the festival united genres and helped bring alternative music into the mainstream.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices)NPR Privacy Policy)