Lollapalooza ’96 was full of surprises, a major one being the near 30,000 people who showed up for the event in Des Moines last Friday. Beth Hart of The Beth Hart Band called it “the best time of her life.” Metallica’s Lars Ulrich was a little more accurate when he told MTV that it is “a carnival with background music.”

The crowded fairgrounds housed a variety of booths and tents on Friday afternoon to support a variety of causes and hobbies. Some fans bared the heat and took a stand in the mosh pit, while others relaxed in the bandstand shade. There was one thing all music fans gathered for on Friday: water.

Main Stage Coverage

Main Stage action took off with a controversial entrance by Psychotica’s Pat Briggs. Painted in a metallic silver rubber suit, Briggs was strapped into a revolving steel cross. Psychotica’s high-energy/ low-talent show was wrongly placed as Lollapalooza’s main stage opener, but Briggs’ ballsy antics (notice the pun) saved the band from failure.

Failure did seem the word to come to mind during The Ramones comeback attempt. The band’s 20 song set was as monotonous as their signature ‘One. Two. Three. Four.’ countdown into every song. Bearing the high temperatures, Joey and clan remained in full gear with their black leather jackets and black jeans. Also sporting the leather jacket-look were die-hard Ramones fans, Rancid.

Taking stage as the first act with familiarity, Rancid had no problems scoring mosh points with the crowd. Rancid favorites “Salvation,” “Time Bomb” and “Ruby Soho” were tough competition with a remaining set that included a four-song ska voyage.

Rancid’s punk routine served as a 50 minute commercial for Lollapalooza’s many clothing, piercing and hairstyling booths. Want to look like Rancid? Body piercings (above the belt of course) only $50. A colored mohawk only $45. Wallet chains only $15. Interesting concept — it only costs $110 to be a punk.

Metallica. What can you say? Well, apart from his cover of “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”, they made Waylon Jennings look like the Pope with a black cowboy hat and guitar.

They rocked, that was expected. They fit in, that was not. Metal-heads and punks alike, the musically overpowering Metallica was the icing on a cake without sugar. From the vulgar opening of “So What,” to the sorrow spoken “One,” Metallica brought something new to Lollapalooza, gift wrapped in 90 minutes of power.

Second Stage Coverage

Metallica headlining Lollapalooza? The Ramones in the ’90s? Waylon who? Forget the Main Stage media hype; Lollapalooza ’96 has back-up.

Perhaps the biggest upset in music history, Lollapalooza’s second stage line-up featuring Ruby, Ben Folds’ Five, Girls Against Boys and the Beth Hart Band stole the show from such main stage acts as Soundgarden and The Ramones.

“All the main stage bands are boring,” Ruby’s Lesley Rankine said after her afternoon performance in Des Moines. “The second stage is where all the fun is. The people are great.”

Rankine is right. Ruby’s collision of over a dozen musical styles was only the beginning of the variety the second stage displayed.

“On Salt Peter (Ruby’s recent release) I wanted to take little parts from everything I had ever heard that I enjoyed,” Rankine said. “It’s not really a challenge to play it live, but again, we’re not trying to duplicate the record in a live form.”

Ben Folds’ Five followed Ruby, premiering Lollapalooza’s best vocals. Folds’ routine made his out- of-place grand piano look like a finite tool of rock ‘n’ roll as he hammered on the keys from all directions. Like Girls Against Boys, the pretty boy quartet surprised concert-goers passing by with their high-energy feel.

Headlining the second stage was the Beth Hart Band, by far the most exciting surprise of the day. Hart’s vocals, registering somewhere between Janis Joplin’s and Alanis Morrisette’s, made for a perfect live sound. With a strong band behind her, Hart proved that rock ‘n’ roll is alive at Lollapalooza.

“I love it,” Hart said of Lollapalooza as she came off the stage after her early evening performance. Hart, in the spirit of Lollapalooza, battled the sun by dumping a bottle of Evian over her head as she entered her tour bus. “This is great. I couldn’t be happier.”