Zepdog5 Presents: Rage Against The Machine Date: 08-02-2008 Lollapalooza Music Festival AT&T Stage Grant Park, Chicago IL Taper: Zepdog5 Source: SP-CMC-8 cardioid mics > spsb-10 battery box (w/bass roll-off @ 16Hz, mics attached to front of shoulder straps of backpack) > Edirol r-09 (line-in, 44.1 wav / 16 bit, 4gb san disk sdhc card) Transfer: Edirol r-09 > 2.0 usb cable > my hard drive > cdwave audio editor v1.93.3 > Audacity 1.2.4 (adjust volume levels, add fade ins/outs) > Flac frontend 1.7.1, level 6, verify, asb. Setlist: ================= 01 Testify 02 Bulls On Parade 03 People Of The Sun (cut short due to neanderthals pushing) 04 Zack's Plea 05 Bombtrack 06 Know Your Enemy 07 Zack & Security Plea 08 Bullet In The Head 09 Born Of A Broken Man 10 Guerilla Radio 11 Ashes In The Fall 12 Calm Like A Bomb 13 Sleep Now In The Fire 14 Wake Up 15 Crowd 16 Freedom 17 Killing In The Name Total: 92:15 Notes: Saw these guys last year at Coachella and was blown away, this year's episode was just as powerful but with a hell of alot more people. Sure, at the start the HGH-laced neanderthals down in front couldn't stop themselves from pushing anything and everyone, prompting Zack to cut "People Of The Sun" short, then asking for people to back up a few feet. This did stop the initial continuity and momentum of the performance, but the band and crowd weren't going to let it get in the way. There was just an ocean of people, literally, you couldn't see the back of it. There have been many comments about the sound quality of the concert itself, and although imo the vocals could have sounded sharper, this recording will give one an excellent idea of what was happening on the ground, recorded about 30 feet behind the soundboard and just to the right. The sound quality seems to improve a bit as the show goes on. One can remove the tracks asking for peace, I included them for completists. As with all Rage shows, there is a lot of contact with other people, and there are moments where the mics are bumped, pushed, etc., but nothing significant. There is really nothing quite like it when Zack intro's the band from L.A., and then they just explode into the opening bars of "Testify," whereby all first time RATM concertgoers begin to scream for mommy. The air raid siren before the start of the show is a great touch. Standout jams for me were Bulls On Parade, Bullet In The Head, Guerilla Radio, and a stirring conclusion with Killing In The Name. Crowd participation is awesome at many points of this concert. I'd like to dedicate this show to Mike (aka Tito), Landon, Brian, and Ashley, four people who I met prior to Rage whose hospitality and generosity will not be forgotten. The three dudes drove 25 hours from Calgary to get to the festival, while Ashley is a blue eyed blond from Georgia who lit it up. And although DJ Froyd missed the fest as a result of prior commitments, it was clear his heart was in Grant Park this past weekend. Comments are welcome, turn the shit up loud. Enjoy. Zepdog5 Aug 3 2008 1:51 PM EDT Rage Against The Machine's Lollapalooza Set Turns Ugly; Lupe Fiasco, Ting Tings, Wilco Play Day Two RATM ask crowd to stop pushing, as fans without tickets add to chaos by hopping fence. By James Montgomery, Gil Kaufman and John Norris CHICAGO — There were busted barricades, bruised bodies and backflips on Saturday at Lollapalooza, though only two of those things occurred during Rage Against the Machine's set. The agit-rock icons capped off the festival's second day with an incendiary, pummeling display of power that proved that they're still at the top of their game — though it probably wasn't Zack de la Rocha's screeds or Tom Morello's fret-bending guitarwork that people were talking about after the set. Instead, it was the ugly turn the night took shortly after RATM began their set. The reunited group opened with a trio of their bombastic best, including "Testify" and "Bulls on Parade," setting off multiple circle pits in the crowd and sending a stream of bodies — which appeared to be equally comprised of crowd-surfers and panicked fans trying to escape the crush — over the barricade in front of the stage. By the third song, there was a steady, at times frenzied, rush by hundreds of fanson the east side of the stage attempting to leave the area. The relentless fury of the music, combined with the sense of chaos in the crowd, made for some tense moments. Concertgoers trying to go up a set of cement steps were pushed backwards or blocked from exiting as a bull rush of male fans barreled down the steps, knocking people over like dominoes. The crowd surge got so bad that De la Rocha stopped the show on three separate occasions, pleading with fans to take a step back to avoid crushing the audience members up front, then introducing fist-pumping songs such as "Bullet in the Head." At another point during the set, Lollapalooza's head of security conferred with the members of the band and their team at the front of the stage. There was also at least one reported security breach of the venue's perimeter fence, according to both the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times, resulting in an unknown number of fans without tickets rushing into the park and reportedly injuring some security personnel in the process. Spokespeople for the festival could not be reached for comment at press time, and a Chicago Police Department spokesperson said that officials had not received calls for help from the festival, despite multiple reports that police on horseback had responded to the fence breach. Chicago Fire Department spokesperson Larry Langford said that as of 12:30 a.m. Sunday (August 3) his department had not received any calls for assistance from the private firm handling emergency services for the festival; MTV News is attempting to reach that firm. It was unknown at press time how many injuries occurred during the show, but an MTV reporter near the front of the stage witnessed at least a dozen dazed, limping and panicked fans being escorted to the medical tent, including one who was taken out on a backboard. It was an ugly and unfortunate end to what had been an otherwise idyllic day in Grant Park. The weather cooperated (sunny and breezy, not nearly as brain-melting as had been advertised), and the musical moments shone bright. The Ting Tings bleeped and shimmied in the early afternoon sun, MGMT were their usual psychedelic selves, and Explosions in the Sky coaxed grandeur out of their guitar pedals. Tyke rockers the Tiny Masters of Today blasted away on the Kidzapalooza stage (even working a protest song, "Bushy," into their set), Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings ground out an hour of pulse-quickening R&B, and Wilco jammed through a good-natured 90 minutes that took place at the same time all the Rage chaos was unfurling. But the early part of Saturday belonged to Chicago's own Lupe Fiasco, who made a major statement on his third trip to Lollapalooza and emerged as a conquering hero, stepping way outside the shadow of mentor Kanye West, who closes Lolla on Sunday night. And he did it from the get-go. Taking the stage to the theme from "Rocky" — performed by a fabulously funky nine-piece backing band that included bass, guitar, drums, DJ, three horns, backup singer, hype man and keyboard player - Lupe bobbed and weaved like a prize fighter but dressed like a futuristic Space Gentleman (in impeccable white and silver, down to his shining high-tops). He dropped to the floor to rip through some one-armed push-ups, sprang back to his feet, threw himself into an impressive backflip and welcomed the huge crowd to "Lupepalooza." And he didn't let up from there. The band turned the normally lazy tempo of "Kick, Push" into an old '70s funk jam as Fiasco ran from one end of the stage to the other, stalking it with a super-sized confidence that surpassed the swagger he displayed at Lolla last year. The ensemble was later augmented by a children's gospel choir, and during "Hip Hop Saved My Life," Fiasco copped a sly smile as he waved his hand in the air and thousands of converts followed suit. This was a man becoming, well, the man. It was epic, it was grandiose, and it was all anyone could talk about ... until Rage, of course. Your move, Kanye.