Bush, Zombie May Save Lollapalooza
If Lollapalooza doesn’t happen for the second
straight year, it won’t be for lack of trying.
Despite reports that organizers for the summer festival have all
but signed the “do not resuscitate” papers, there still remains the
strong possibility that the alterna-tour will breathe on its own
with Bush and Rob Zombie
performing the CPR.
As usual, no bands have been confirmed for the festival, but Bush,
for one, have been in discussions for the past “couple of weeks” to
headline the tour, according to band manager David
Dorrell. “[We’ve] been talking to [Lollapalooza
organizers] but, then again,” Dorrell says, “Axl Rose has been
talking to them.” Dorrell refers to Guns n’ Roses’ preliminary
negotiations to join the tour, which have since ended.
Whether or not Bush headline Lollapalooza ’99 may depend on whether
the group can get The Science of Things into stores in
time for the festival to roll out. Bush spokesman Michael
Pagnotta expects the album to be released in mid-to-late
May, while Dorrell won’t say for sure when it’ll be out.
Lollapalooza co-organizer Ted Gardner says the
tour can be customized around bands’ schedules, if needed. “The
good thing about Lollapalooza is we can vary the time frame
depending on if the band has a record [being released] in late
June,” he says. “We’ll move the tour to the latter part of June or
early July [if that’s the case].” Bush’s additional considerations
concern the money offered (obviously) and what other artists are
interested in joining the line-up. Already, acts like the
Offspring, Guns n’ Roses, Marilyn Manson and,
recently, Everlast have ended negotiations or
turned down offers to play on the tour.
And as difficult as it may be for some to stomach Bush joining
Lollapalooza, imagine the British grunge act having to follow the
on-stage frenzy of Rob Zombie — unless, of course, the
ghoul-rocker gets a better offer from OzzFest. “We’re talking to
both [Lollapalooza and OzzFest],” says Rob Zombie manager
Andy Gould. “For us the primary focus is where the
tours go and, more importantly, who’s on the tours.” Several
managers and booking agents also mentioned Korn,
who played Lollapalooza two years ago and are currently
co-headlining a tour with Zombie, as another possible headliner.
(Remember both Bush and Korn share the same William Morris booking
agent, and it’s the William Morris Agency that books Lollapalooza.)
Korn manager Jeff Kwantinetz, however, quashed
those suggestions. “It’s not true,” he says, adding that it’s “very
possible” Korn will return to the studio this summer to record the
follow-up to last year’s Follow the Leader prior to
another stint on their Family Values tour.
With the line-up in its usual state of flux, Gardener is curiously
more concerned with the “actual routing of the tour” and is still
optimistic it will roll out. “I’m always hoping it’ll work,” he
says. “I’d love to do it again, just to see what happens.”