Now Here This - Lollapalooza Day 2

Saturday serves as the meat in your Lollapalooza weekend sandwich, boasting an impressive line-up of bands to catch. Here are our recommendations for how to tackle it and end up happy.

Google Play Stage - Noon
Kopecky Family Band
Much like Friday, there are some really solid choices to kick-start your day, including throwback soul crooner JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound with their clever cover of Wilco's "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart". The act that stands out from the bunch on Saturday morning is easily Nashville's Kopecky Family Band. The male/female vocals and chamber pop arrangements remind us a bit of Margot And The Nuclear So And So's, which is definitely a good thing in our book. The laid back folk of Milo Green has its charms, but Kopecky will start your day with just a bit more pep.

Red Bull Soundstage - 12:45
Doomtree
The shaggy garage rock of FIDLAR is worthwhile choice, but we think this time slot is a great time to take a chance of some of the diversity Lollapalooza offers. Minneapolis hip-hop collective, Doomtree is a mass of talent worth your attention thanks to the killer soulful beats of Lazerbeak and the great flows of rappers like P.O.S. and Sims.

 

Sony Stage - 1:30
Bear In Heaven
The buzzing rock of Nashville's JEFF The Brotherhood will likely sound great live, but the dreamy electro-pop sound of, Brooklyn duo, Bear In Heaven sounds tailor-made for the sticky summer setting. The effervescent club-ready sound and mellow-chill vocals of the pair should make for a great mid-afternoon set.

 

Google Play Stage - 2:15
Givers
So-Cal indie rockers, Delta Spirit's delightfully infectious guitar pop on the Bud Light stage, soulful cool of Aloe Blacc (who provided HBO's How To Make It In America its theme song), and spacy rock of Moon Taxi each offer compelling choices, but we think the shaggy indie pop cool of Givers is the way to go here. One listen to the male/female vocals of Kirby Campbell and Tiffany Lamson and upbeat celebratory vibe of tunes like blissful "Saw You First" and sexed-up "Ripe" and you will know why we feel this Louisiana outfit will not be on the side stages for long. Think of them as this year's Grouplove, who played a criminally early set last year and are now everywhere.

BMI Stage - 3:20
Empires
The soul-dipped blues stylings of JJ Grey & Mofro are on the PlayStation Stage, and Brooklyn-based synthpop duo, Chairlift are definitely have more to offer than just their addictive iPod commercial tune "Bruises" at the Google Play Stage, but we think Chicago's Empires is where it's at. The trio took a sonic leap forward with this year's Garage Hymns offering a towering guitar-rich sound and anthemic hooks, at times reminiscent of Gaslight Anthem, that might just land them on bigger stages in coming years.

Bud Light Stage - 4:15
Alabama Shakes
As much as we like The Temper Trap, there is zero chance we would recommend missing Alabama Shakes for nearly anyone on the schedule, including the solid offering of UK's The Dunwells at the BMI Stage. Consider the soulful rock of this powerhouse band a must-see set. The excellent "Hold On" is but a brief glimpse of how great this band is.

Google Play Stage - 4:45
Fun.
We caught Nate Ruess live at Metro back in his days as frontman for The Format and were honestly a little underwhelmed in comparisson to the albums. That said, Ruess' latest effort with fun. is good enough to make us give him another shot. Ruess writes addictive pop with the best of them and, the band's latest, Some Nights has more to love than just the infectious "We Are Young".

Sony Stage - 5:00
tUnE-yArDs
The spaztic beat-centric lo-fi pop of tUnE-yArDs and the strummy acoustic folk of The Tallest Man On Earth seem diametrically opposed, making for an interesting choice late in the afternoon. In the end, we figure the craziness of tUnE-yArDs is going to play better in the outdoor setting, but could certainly see you going the other way.

Bud Light Stage - 6:15
Franz Ferdinand
There is something interesting about up-and-coming pop-rock singer LP's unique vocals, and the atmospheric synth pop stylings of Washed Out should be a cool listen at the Google Play Stage, but the itchy indie soul of The Weeknd is the one that really stings to miss. Still, Scottish post-punk outfit, Franz Ferdinand are good enough to make you feel good about the choice. We do beg you to avoid Walk Off The Earth like the plague. We are not quite sure how a band most famous for making nearly identical covers is playing Lolla, but are sure you should steer clear in protest.

Sony Stage - 7:00
Bloc Party
The British elctro-rockers are nearing the release of their latest effort, Four. Consider this your chance to hear more than the shuttering "Octopus" from the new album in advance of the August 20th release date. If hearing new music is not your thing, we recommend refamiliarizing yourself with their frenetic punk-influenced take on electronic rock.

Red Bull Soundstage - 8:00
Red Hot Chilli Peppers
The end of Saturday offers some interesting choices, with the dance pop of "Avicii" at one end of the park and rock legends Red Hot Chilli Peppers on the other. That, in of itself, would be an easy choice for us, but the middle of the park finds Frank Ocean and Santigold also offering their songs. The smooth R&B offerings of Ocean might not be the best way to cap off your night, perhaps better served in the middle of the day, but Santigold's jittery grooves give you a great excuse to check out the dancefloor of Perry's. Ultimately, it is hard not to recommend catching RHCP, even sans John Frusciante. Should the RHCP set hit a dead spot, Perry's is a short walk up the hill.