Lollapalooza Gets a Brazilian: Foo Fighters Lead Alt-Festival's South American Invasion

Lollapalooza has a lot to celebrate with its first Brazilian edition now under its belt. The brainchild of Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, the alternative festival that was once meant to be his band's send-off has grown into a multi-date, dual-continent extravaganza with big names to back it up.

Lollapalooza took its first steps in São Paulo last weekend and brought some well-needed sunshine and a bit of rain to the 70,000 festival-goers who came out to see everything from emerging local bands to the biggest international stars. The five stages (including Kidzapalooza, with local children's performers for the youngest attendees) were positioned at every corner of Jockey Club, a venue usually used for putting your money down on the ponies.

But Brazil wasn't Lollapalooza's first South American stop.

The '90s mainstay's first foray outside North America was to Chile last year, where the festival made big enough waves to make its way back for another run this year -- and to open the doors for other neighbouring countries to host the alt-rock festival. While it certainly seems like an odd choice of venue for Farrell to take his once-ailing project (it had a bit of a stumble when organizers first tried to make it a two-day festival in 2004 and ticket sales were so bad the event was cancelled), South American fans are what Lollapalooza truly needs to stay alive.

Europe may appear to be the obvious choice when thinking of expanding any music festival, but as Farrell has said himself, they've already got all the music festivals there. It's the fact that South America has largely been ignored by the music industry for so long that made the sold-out Brazilian event such a success. The Foo Fighters headlined the first night, and it was also the first time Brazilian fans were able to see the band in its 17-year career.

It was Lollapalooza's '90s roots that make it so appealing to fans south of the border. Brazil was blossoming in the early years of that decade, having just come out of a military dictatorship, so to be able to have access to bands like Jane's Addiction and Foo Fighters again is a celebration of freedom for people of that generation.

But it's the young ones that Lollapalooza has truly tapped into, bringing favourites like Arctic Monkeys, Foster the People and MGMT to the stage, giving the new generation the access to music the last generation never had.

And it's just that access that is making the festival's brand grow like Farrell never expected it would. He and his partners have managed to blend international acts seamlessly with local bands, making it possible to mix Brazilian culture with an event that started with no thought of South America ever being a part of it. Tapping into the Brazilian market, where fans truly are fanatics, is a smart move from Farrell, who figured out before most others did that South America has a true appreciation for music and a yearning to soak it all in, one lyric at a time.

Brazilian favourite O Rappa, a reggae-rock band that's been protesting Brazil's social problems since its self-titled album was released in 1994, was amongst the first acts to throw down. The four-man band brought along a slew of musicians to make its voice even louder, but it was the chorus of fans that drowned out any other noise coming from the city-locked venue. It was O Rappa's tribute to Rage Against the Machine -- a band that got their big break playing Lollapalooza '93 -- that got the crowd jumping and chanting "Killing in the Name Of," proving the band from Rio de Janeiro a clear fan favourite.

Even when it rained no one seemed to mind. Gogol Bordello and Foster the People were early crowd favourites, both bringing an energy to the stage that kept the fans going.

Over on the aptly named "Perry "electronic stage, the music never stopped. DJ sets from the likes of Peaches, Bassnectar and Calvin Harris turned the space into an outdoor nightclub, complete with strobe lights, a dancefloor and a cozy atmosphere, due to the tent blocking out most of the night sky.

But it was the Foo Fighters that everyone was waiting for, and they didn't disappoint. Dave Grohl and company played everyone's favourites, including "Learn to Fly," just as planes flew overhead while taking off from the nearby airport. The Foos even invited Lollapalooza colleague Joan Jett on stage for a couple songs (including "I Love Rock 'n' Roll," of course). They seemed to play the two-and-a-half hour show without taking a breath, although Grohl did get a bit of one when drummer Taylor Hawkins took over on vocals. The crowd sang every word to every song, proving Lollapalooza's Brazilian adventure a tremendous success.