Sunday, Aug. 2 was probably a day like any other for most DePaul students. Maybe they went to the beach, some probably watched Netflix, and a few others were in attendance at the final day of Lollapalooza. I was part of the latter, attending my first Lollapalooza ever in my 22 years as a Chicagoan. But my first Lollapalooza experience went way beyond the norm, as I was able to see my favorite band, The Wombats, three times in 24 hours.
The Wombats have been my favorite band since I first heard them on the British television show, “The Inbetweeners.” Their blend of electronic and garage-rock influences was, and still is, exactly the kind of music I’m interested in. It is fun, but not the kind of pop that if you say they’re your favorite band you’ll be judged.
After seeing them on the Lollapalooza lineup, I found out they would be playing an after show at the Double Door in Wicker Park on Saturday. Settings like this is where the band shines. Playing favorites off their new album and classics that made fans scream and jump around for the duration of the song, it was a fantastic show.
Fighting exhaustion from their flight from Austrailia, they performed an excellent Saturday night show. Of note was bassist Tord Knudsen, who evoked so much energy that the band transformed a tired crowd into a room filled with commotion and frenzy, thanks to playing a lot of music off of their 2015 release, “Glitterbug.”
After witnessing their stellar performance Saturday night, I woke up exhausted on Sunday morning. But I was still ready to get to Lollapalooza early and take the band in as they performed one of the festival’s earliest set times.
“We’re playing the graveyard slot and we’re a bit worried no one will show up,” Murphy said at the Double Door show, but he was proved wrong Sunday morning at Chicago’s most well-known music festival.
A large crowd filled in an hour before the band went on, but I was still able to get second row, a feat I didn’t think would ever be possible at Lollapalooza. The Wombats again mostly played songs off of “Glitterbug,” but unlike other bands who play their newer music, there were no complaints from the fans. The Wombats are just as good now as they have ever been, and the reaction to their music at Lollapalooza proved that. People around me who had no idea who The Wombats were before their set were dancing by the end.
Although all their performances were flawless, in my biased, this-is-my-favorite-band opinion, the absolute best was their final one. Surrounded by close to 20 other people at the forgotten Toyota stage, The Wombats played again at 4 p.m., following Lollapalooza’s evacuation. I was in the front row for this performance before the evacuation, and I waited at the gates of Lollapalooza to be able to see the band from the front this time. I sprinted in with the rest of the crowd when the gates reopened at 3:30 p.m.
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While the band’s live performance is best suited for tiny clubs such as the Double Door, seeing them acoustic is a rare opportunity. I was beyond ecstatic, which they acknowledged, saying “For everyone who is walking past right now — we don’t normally sound like this.” Even if they don’t typically sound like that, the band’s set, which saw drummer Dan Haggis playing acoustic guitar alongside vocalist and guitarist Matthew Murphy, and Knudsen playing keyboards, was flawless.
The band again mostly performed songs in their short set off of “Glitterbug,” but also played their fan-favorite hit “Let’s Dance to Joy Division.”
Not only were they outstanding performers, but the band is comprised of genuinely nice people as well. They all signed a poster I ripped off the wall at the Double Door for me after their second set at Lollapalooza.
As much as it was one of the most fun days of my life, seeing your favorite band three times in one day is tough work. I’ve never been more tired, and I returned back home after Lollapalooza in intense pain. Even with the pain, it was completely worth it. Next time The Wombats are in Chicago, I’d recommend everyone to see them at least once, if not three times.