Didn’t get to Lolla on Friday? RedEye and Metromix rounded up reviews from early in the day. Check out metromix.com throughout the weekend for continuing coverage, and pick up Monday’s RedEye for even more reviews and photos.
April Smith and the Great Picture Show
11:15 a.m. BMI Stage
Not one but two pork pie hats among the weekend’s very first band. And appropriately enough: Smith and her four-piece serve up a fun, tight, vampy brand of yesteryear swing that had the modest early day crowd clapping along. Mixing in accordion, upright bass and a vintage leather Samsonite suitcase (no joke — as a drum) with Smith’s knockout pipes, the Brooklynites made for an energetic start to the weekend. Josh Noel
Hockey
11:30 a.m. Friday, PlayStation stage
After three and a half songs and two complete power shutdowns, Hockey threw in the towel. The sound issues weren’t their fault, but the promising Portland disco-rockers didn’t handle it well, with singer Benjamin Grubin somewhere between a tantrum and tears. The band thanked fans by tossing out cans of free beer, which seems like a good way to have a lawsuit on your hands before your debut drops (in October). Matt Pais
Hey Champ
12:30 p.m. Friday, Chicago 2016 stage
Hey Champ pulled off its first Lolla like a group of old pros. Frontman Saam Hagshenas busted out killer moves, energizing the already amped crowd, which more than doubled by mid-set. Fans erupted to favorites such as “Cold Dust Girl,” and then kept the muddy dance party going through the end of the crisp, explosive set. Erin Osmon
The Knux
1 p.m. Friday, Citi stage
Friday’s drizzle only kept the Citi Stage crowd down for a couple of songs before Rah Almillio and Krispy Kream achieved full hands-in-the-air participation on their breakout “Cappuccino.” By the time the duo hit the soulful chorus of “The Train,” clapping was not optional. But the rest of the set ebbed and flowed as the brothers alternated between pleasers like “Bang! Bang!” and awkward attempts to engage the crowd.
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