Grant Park filled in early on Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, for another sold-out day. A four-day festival sounds easy until Day 2 rolls around and you realize it’s another hot day of standing in the scorching sun for hours. When will we all collectively realize that having music festivals during the hottest months of the year isn’t ideal? I’d petition for a crisp early October fest, please. 

Regardless of the heat, the second day of Lollapalooza featured a range of indie folk, alternative rock, folk-pop and a set with the Chicago Philharmonic. 

Flying Geese 

My first set of the day featured fuzzy rock that builds on the old school rock vibe of The Rolling Stones, mixed with The Kinks—but with slightly more alternative and punk tendencies. Lead singer Cameron Winter wields a raspy scream-adjacent voice but his ranging vibrato allows him to carry a baritone melody and then switch to a higher, more resounding pitch.  

Winter is eccentric, flailing his arms to the beat and hopping on the keys for some songs. His floppy, mid-length hair is lightly coated with beads of sweat—but he uses it as an accessory instead making it a problem. For some songs, he talks in between melodies, matching his voice to that of Christopher Walken.  

Mid-set, the keyboardist strapped a keytar around his shoulders. I eat this up because musicians only do this for show—and it works. He looked cool as hell. The band maintains a sweet spot between composed songs and drawn-out jam sessions. When they let their instruments take it away, they are reminiscent of Creedence Clearwater Revival. 

The sun was beating down, and attendees waived personal accordion fans in vibrant colors around their heads. A guy walked through the crowd with a “Spray Pack” on his back, gracing fans with misty water and a bit of relief.  

Immediately after Geese wrapped up, I found myself over at a Wilderado set for the seventh time. Though they played the same set from the pop-up show the day before, they put a bit more umph into their performance. A massive crowd surrounded their set at the Bud Light Stage—coming together harmoniously for their song Surefire, their most popular on streaming.  

Tiny Habits, tiny stage 

The BMI Stage at Lollapalooza is notable for featuring artists that are just on the cusp of major growth. Think Lady Gaga in 2007—just three years later she headlined Lollapalooza in 2010. So, it’s no surprise Boston-based folk-pop trio Tiny Habits brought their melodies to the BMI Stage, as they’re experiencing a period of growth as a band.  

The three Berklee College of Music students—Cinya Khan, Maya Rae and Judah Mayowa—delivered soft harmonies over delicate acoustic strings in an area wonderfully shaded by tall trees. Walking up to their set late, I could hardly hear them at first over rapper Sexyy Red’s booming beats coming from the Bud Light Stage, thousands of feet away. But as I inched closer through the trees and near the stage, I was met with a refreshingly calm performance.  

Tiny Habits offer intricate lyricism and gorgeous three-part vocals in a stripped-down acoustic set. It made for a relaxing moment of ease, encouraging attendees to slow it down, soak it all in. The trio delicately sang through their own tunes, before performing a dreamy cover of Stevie Nicks’ song Landslide. The band were featured on country-pop artist Kacey Musgraves’ song Perfection, off her Deeper Well: Deeper into the Well deluxe album. In May, they released their debut album, All For Something, and have been touring almost constantly since.  

Glittering indie-rock 

Set in front of a stage lined with fake washing machines and shirts hanging on racks, Atlanta singer-songwriter Faye Webster swayed in her signature blue outfit, a Harmony Stratotone in hand. With the sun at its peak above the Tito’s Handmade Vodka Stage, heat radiated from the foreheads of thousands as they eagerly tried to sneak a peek at Webster on stage. A large bee buzzed by the heads of people smushed shoulder to shoulder, sending them into terrified shrieks—all while Webster jammed in the background.  

Her set was way more crowded than I anticipated. But when she started to play a song and every gal shrieked with excitement and pulled out a phone to record, it came to me: She must have a popular song on TikTok. People have always recorded live shows on cell phones, even digital cameras, but it’s eerie to see hundreds of people do it specifically for one song and then immediately walk away. Yes, the song was great, but why not stay for the entire set? Give artists the undivided attention they deserve.  

Webster and her band absolutely demand that attention, with a glittering, soothing sound. Webster is supported by a full band, including saxophone and piano, giving her music a layered sound that floats around your head. Her voice is so delicate and wispy, it almost sounds like a whisper.  

Spectral symphony 

“Welcome to the symphony!” Laufey excitedly exclaimed to a large crowd surrounding the Bud Light Stage. The Icelandic singer and musician was joined by the Chicago Philharmonic, a moment she said she has been dreaming of since the day she started playing music. With a classical music background, Laufey brought her songs to new heights at Lollapalooza, creating a performance no one had seen from her before.  

The 25-year-old has notably brought jazz and classical music to commercial success by putting her own flavor of pop in the mix. This past year, her Bewitched won a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Album. She has a gorgeous, nearly show-stopping voice reminiscent of Judy Garland—a similar deep contralto. It felt like I was watching some large, magical production like in White Christmas.  

Laufey is a theatrical performer, knowing which facial expressions and phrases will drive her fans mad with excitement. It wasn’t a common festival performance, making it a gorgeously refreshing live set. She was visibly grateful to be there and if people went to that performance not knowing who she was, she sure made them walk away knowing. You want to melt away to her music, with the philharmonic building a movie-like soundtrack to accompany it.  

Laufey, a multi-instrumentalist, played guitar, cello and piano on stage. Raye, who performed at Lollapalooza earlier in the day, joined her for one song. She put on a full-bodied and ethereal performance that made for the perfect end to the second day of the festival. It made my heart full to see other attendees enjoy her music and keeping jazz and classical music alive.  

Sets to catch on Day 3 

• Friko (12:50 p.m. on Bacardí Stage) 
• Destroy Boys (2 p.m. on IHG Hotels & Resorts Stage) 
• LEISURE (3 p.m. on T-Mobile Stage) 
• Briston Maroney (4 p.m. on IHG Hotels & Resorts Stage) 
• TV Girl (5 p.m. on Bud Light Stage) 
• Ethel Cain (5:45 p.m. on IHG Hotels & Resorts Stage) 
• Deftones (6:45 p.m. on T-Mobile Stage) 
• Hippo Campus (7:45 p.m. on IHG Hotels & Resorts Stage) 
• The Killers (8:45 p.m. on T-Mobile Stage) 

Kendall Polidori is The Rockhound, Luckbox’s resident rock critic. Follow her reviews on Instagram and X @rockhoundlb, TikTok @rockhoundkp