janesaddiction.org

Washington Post
August 17, 1991
Edition: FINAL
Section: STYLE
Page: c1

LOLLAPALOOZA: HEAT WITH A BEAT

FAIRFAX ROCK CONCERT WILTS 25,000 FANS, IRKS NEIGHBORS
Author: Richard Harrington; Washington Post Staff Writer

The most popular act at yesterday's Lollapalooza festival at Lake Fairfax Park was Alexander "Buck" Marsh. Marsh was not in one of the alternative rock bands that performed, but he elicited the most heartfelt cheers every time he drove his Prom Pools truck up to the fence extending from both sides of the concert stage and shot 6,000-gallon cascades of water over the crowd of 25,000 hot and weary rock fans. While most welcomed the downpour, it did briefly threaten to turn the stage center slam-dance pit into a moat

Lollapalooza rolled into the park as the summer's most ambitious and most awaited concert tour -- seven bands representing a variety of contemporary styles from rap to metal, hoping to attract a variety of fans. The bands ranged from rapper Ice-T and industrial rockers Nine Inch Nails to veteran gothic punkers Siouxsie and the Banshees and heavy mental rockers Jane's Addiction. The latter organized the tour and may be letting it double as the band's classy farewell, though lead singer PerryFarrell suggested in his closing set that "maybe next year, we'll have Evian sponsorship and we'll all be given free water."

Water was definitely at a premium yesterday -- there just wasn't enough of it, free or otherwise. There were even cheers for the Port au Lot vacuum truck until folks got a better look at its logo. A local distributor did bring in 1,128 cases of Evian (with a dozen liter bottles to the case), but within a few hours of the noon kickoff he'd had to send for another 1,704 cases. At one point promoter Seth Hurwitz, perhaps aware that concertgoers were grumbling about long lines of traffic, then longlines to buy food, sent out 3,000 Evian bottles as placation.

Shade also proved precious in the 91-degree weather. Fortunately, there were a lot of tents on the site for food, drink and liberal-left information tables, and they remained packed throughout the nine-hour concert.

Black was the fashion choice for a surprising number of folks who either forgot or didn't care that black is not the best color for long, sun-drenched events. "Never again," said Soo, a 17-year-old from College Park, sweating profusely in black jeans, a black Jane's Addiction T-shirt and frizzy black-dyed hair. "I'm never going to another show that starts before dark, even if it's inside."

Most folks, however, seemed happy enough to be there, though hundreds ended up at the site's four first-aid stations because of the heat. Local rescue units stopped keeping statistics early on after the stream of heat exhaustion cases proved barely manageable. One paramedic blamed it on a combination of concert-goers coming unprepared to deal with the withering weather and problems with the water supply. In fact, when a PA voice said, "Are you ready for Ice-T?" a number of people headed for

The California rapper, who bills himself as the Original Gangster, grabbed their attention quickly with a set of hard-hitting raps before ending with four visceral thrashes featuring his metal band, Body Count (with two left-handed guitarists). Ice-T, insisting that "I'm not here to party for you, I'm here to party with y'all," got folks to wave their hands in the air like they just didn't care, to pump fists and soul-clap. He also did "LGBNAF," his public-service announcement promoting libidinous behavior, and concluded his set with a metal expletive chant directed at the police. Two Fairfax County officers standing backstage diplomatically issued a "no comment."

The concert kicked off with the purgative nooner set by the Henry Rollins Band and a B. Surfers show that sounded like most people felt -- hot, energized and beyond discipline. Nine Inch Nails delivered its pounding industrial-strength pop noise with proper panache, but there was something silly about the midafternoon smoke machine effects that clouded the stage.

Living Colour proved the most adept musicians, particularly guitarist Vernon Reid, but the relentless heat seemed to sap fans' energy as the day wore on. Siouxsie and the Banshees benefited from coming on after 6 p.m., and their dense polyrhythms (often with an Eastern edge) got the crowd excited enough to throw empty Evian bottles in the air in front of the stage, so many in fact that from a distance they looked like buzzing mosquitoes.

Considering the number of acts, the marathon concert ran surprisingly smoothly and right on time. Jane's Addiction closed the proceedings with its fluid meld of smart metal and postmodern angst. Farrell can't decide whether to rock hard or rock art, so he does both, giving songs like "My Girlfriend," "Been Caught Stealing" and "Three Days" a tense elasticity whether they race along or merely canter. Farrell's a kinetic showman who'd like to be a shaman -- his between-song patter sounds like what Bob Dylan might say if he talked. Very interesting and spontaneous, like the music itself.

Earlier, Ice-T told the crowd, which was predominantly young and white (though often with colorful hair), "Rock-and-roll has absolutely nothing to do with skin color. ... Rock-and-roll is a state of mind." Yesterday, the state was Virginia. Some homeowners near the park and many drivers probably were wishing it wasn't.

The capacity crowd shut down Routes 7 and 606 and Hunter Mill Road in Fairfax County yesterday afternoon. The backups subsided by 5 p.m., just in time for rush hour traffic.

The Fairfax County Park Authority and concert-goers drew the ire of residents surrounding Lake Fairfax Park. Some observers called it "Mini-Woodstock."

"I am enraged that they are having this concert out here," said Irene Bettius, who lives near Lake Fairfax. "If I should have an emergency, lots of luck getting out of my property. No consideration -- they have barricaded in the property {with their cars}."

Cars were parked in fields bordering both sides of Route 606 and on the median strip leading out of the park. Bettius estimated that parked cars stretched two miles to Reston.

Merni Fitzgerald, public information officer for the Park Authority, said security personnel were on hand to prevent people from parking in nearby neighborhoods and to direct traffic to designated locations.

"There was sufficient parking in the park and across the street," she said. "We did a lot of planning to try to avert potential problems."

Special correspondent Jonathan Filas contributed to this report