RECOMMENDED: Our complete guide to Lollapalooza
1. A St. Vincent set that deserved top billing
Back when Lollapalooza's lineup was announced, organizers received some valid criticism for not booking any female artists as headlining acts. St. Vincent's late-afternoon performance—as compelling and visually arresting as anything that's graced the main stage so far this weekend—only called more attention to the glaring lack of women among the upper echelons of the lineup. Digging into the intimate electro-pop of her recent album, MASSEDUCTION, Annie Clark unleashed gut-wrenching lyrics and towering guitar melodies from atop a riser, leading her masked band as strange imagery flashed behind her. It felt like a headlining set, and it probably should have been.
2. Vampire Weekend's delightfully weird setlist
3. Any shaded area in Grant Park
Photograph: Zach Long
Saturday brought 96-degree temperatures and sunny skies to Grant Park, so patches of shade were at a premium. Since Lollapalooza still hasn't invested in a fleet of drones to hover above the festival with a giant canopy, most attendees resorted to finding trees, fences and anything else that cast a shadow—whatever it takes to stay cool in this increasingly dusty urban desert.
4. Carly Rae Jepsen's sunny sing-along
Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen may have been a last-minute replacement for English singer-songwriter Jessie Ware, but her fans got the memo (presumably before Saturday tickets sold out) and showed up in force. Turning the Lake Shore stage into a glitzy Vegas-style lounge, complete with backup singers, a tinsel backdrop and a bandstand, Jepsen's appearance didn't stray far from her performance at Pitchfork two summers ago, filled with slick pop hooks, endearingly on-the-nose lyricism and enthusiastic prancing across the stage. While a portion of the crowd showed up exclusively to sing along to "Call Me Maybe" (which arrived near the end of the set), anyone who stuck around probably discovered a few infectious anthem to add to their latest playlist.
5. Revival Food Hall's outpost in Chow Town
Photograph: Zach Long
There's no shortage of food vendors inside the gates—so long as you have an appetite for pizza, burgers, fried chicken and lobster corn dogs. If you're looking for even more variety, Revival Food Hall's stand (just south of Buckingham Fountain) offers dishes from four of the vendors located within the Loop lunch destination. Our favorite option is Antique Taco's chili cheese curds: fried cheese smothered in chorizo chili. We're not sure why it took this long for fried cheese curds to debut at Lolla...
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