It’s been 34 years since the very first Lollapalooza‘ now, the festival’s history and legacy will be explored in a new book titled Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival.
Due on March 25th through St. Martin’s Press, the book — written by authors Richard Bienstock and Tom Beaujour — will offer a “no-holds-barred history” of the famed festival, featuring hundreds of firsthand accounts from founders, organizers, crew, publicists, and many more.
Of course, the book will also feature recollections from the meat and potatoes of any good music festival: the artists themselves. Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil penned the forward, while Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell and members of Jane’s Addiction, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Nine Inch Nails, Sonic Youth, Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, Ice-T, Rage Against the Machine, Green Day, Patti Smith, Alice in Chains, and Metallica are among the many artists who sat down for interviews.
Primarily focusing on the festival’s initial run from 1991 to 1997 (before it settled down as a stationary, Chicago-based event), the book will celebrate Lollapalooza’s founding ideals, citing it as a forebear to the music festival scene and genre-flexible industry that followed.
Pre-orders for Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival are ongoing via Amazon. Check out the book’s cover artwork below.
Lollapalooza’s modern iteration will return in March 2025. For more, revisit Consequence’s past Lollapalooza coverage.
Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival Artwork: