See also "Fashion Freakouts at Lollapalooza 2012" -- plus "Day One: M83, Black Sabbath, Die Antwoord, Afghan Whigs, TEED" and "Day Three: Jack White, Sigur Ros, Florence + The Machine, and Others."
The second day of Lollapalooza could not have been more different than the first.
The temperature and tone had shifted by the early evening, and Twin Shadow's George Lewis Jr. took full advantage of it.
See the cut for a recap from day two of Lollapalooza 2012.
Twin Shadow
Google Play Stage
Can someone confirm how much it costs to cut Twin Shadow frontman George Lewis Jr.'s hair? $70? $700? $7,000?! Whatever the amount, this guy is working the floppy locks on top, the peach fuzz on the side, and a beard that probably will never completely subside from his face even with multiple shaves in one day. It's an iconic look that encapsulates his well-plotted aesthetic -- retro '80s-style pop that's danceable and dangerous. Listening closely is a game of "Is that a guitar pedal Hall & Oates used, or one Echo and the Bunnymen employed?" and watching him bathe his guitar in love is a bit like going through stills from Purple Rain. "Five Seconds," from this year's Confess is a top-five single on record, but it exploded like a bottle rocket onstage. "This turned out to be just a beautiful night," Lewis remarked after finishing the tune -- perhaps in full realization that he contributed immeasurably to making it that way. -- Reed Fischer
Franz Ferdinand
Bud Light Stage
The four Scotsmen of Franz Ferdinand are no strangers to the rain and didn't let the aftermath of the storm dampen their dapper style. Caution tape kept Lolla-goers away from the stage while staff rigged the speakers and poured water off the canopy. Once security removed the tape and attempted to herd the audience closer, the masses stampeded to the barricades. Franz Ferdinand lured us in with "The Dark of the Matinee," then delved into a decent helping from their discography including, "No You Girls," "Michael," and "Can't Stop Feeling," which set an overall dramatic pace. No ballads need apply. Two new tunes, including "Right Thoughts" stimulated the already energized crowd with hopes of a new record that has been long overdue since 2009's Tonight. Of course, they couldn't go without the popular power chord-driven "Take Me Out" complete with frontman, Alex Kapranos' signature eyebrows popping just like in their music video that makes audiences' swoon. Franz Ferdinand ended with the crowd roaring along in cult-like chanting, "burn this city" along with rapidly charged "This Fire." -- Abbie Gobeli
Doomtree
Red Bull Soundstage
"This is a fucking honor!" P.O.S called out during the Minneapolis hip-hop collective's set on the massive Red Bull stage. Hours before the Red Hot Chili Peppers turned the space into a muddy reminder of the late '90s, Doomtree baked in the hot sun and saw their crowd quadruple well into the thousands by the time they wrapped up. Without Sims in tow -- he was in Colorado for his brother's wedding -- Dessa, Mike Mictlan (look for his Snaxxx mixtape in September) and Cecil Otter upped their workload a bit. "Drumroll (We're All Thirsty)" was by far the theme of the early going of Saturday. Aside from a healthy dose of the group's No Kings effort, gears shifted to promoting P.O.S's fourth solo album, We Don't Even Live Here. Now due October 23, the schizophrenic beats (wobbly beats that Calvin Harris could've mixed in over on the Perry's stage) and anti-establishment lyrical leanings ("Fuck Your Stuff") signal a festival-ready boiler plate for years to come. -- Reed Fischer
Aloe Blacc
Red Bull Soundstage
Mr. Blacc delivered a fantastic afternoon performance, dealing in the classic tenets of R&B's closest cousin, soul. While he's best known for his "I Need a Dollar," which has been sampled by everyone from the folks at HBO's How to Make It in America to snow-white frat-rappers, he proved that his discography is already strong enough to swoon an audience for a full hour. Working through songs like "Politician" and "Miss Fortune," Blacc displayed a top-shelf sense of showmanship and overall live chops, and his backing band, as tight as any other from Saturday, only complemented things. -- Mike Madden
Frank Ocean and The Weeknd
Singers Abel Tesfaye and Christopher Breaux operate under the names The Weeknd and Frank Ocean respectively, and their recent contributions have done much to reshape the face of modern R&B.
After a torrential downpour threatened to cancel his set, The Weeknd's Tesfaye hopped onstage backed by a full band, launching right into "High for This." Running through tracks from his breakthrough mixtape, Tesfaye knocked out great renditions of "House of Balloons" and the slithering, shaking "Glass Table Girls." The crowd knew every lyric, singing his own songs back to him at full blast.
Though he's affiliated with rap upstart crew Odd Future, Ocean seems like he could care less about shocking anyone with sweet songs like "Summer Remains" and the tearjerking nostalgia of "Thinking About You," which was Ocean's standout performance of the night.
Who could care about the rain (or the evacuation) when the aftermath offers such a treat? -- Ian Traas
View more Village Voice Media coverage of Lollapalooza 2012.
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