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Sluggish ticket sales can't stop a celebration
of women in rock, pop and soul
Sarah McLachlan/Mary J. Blige/Heart and more

Lilith
First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
Tinley Park, IL
July 17, 2010

Mary J. Blige

Court Yard Hounds

Sarah McLachlan

Story and photos by Andy Argyrakis

Even if the reinstallation of Lilith after a decade in hibernation hasn't gone as planned for organizers (including a slew of dropped dates and the cancellation of Kelly Clarkson, Cat Power and a suddenly ill La Roux at this particular show), there was still plenty to celebrate. Sluggish sales aside, the ten hour marathon displayed the vitality of women in the pop, rock and soul scenes these days, while arguably landing amongst the tour's most diverse to date.

Of course, founding performer Sarah McLachlan was placed in the headlining position, but as a grand finale of Patti Smith's "Because the Night" featuring warm-up stars like Mary J. Blige, Heart and Court Yard Hounds, the theme was once again blurring genre lines and bridging generations. Though McLachlan is an elder stateswoman of sorts these days, she's still cruising the charts thanks to the carefree (albeit predictable) "Loving You Is Easy," though it was her older tunes that truly resonated with the all ages audience.

"Building A Mystery" swirled with its chunky harmonic charm, "I Will Remember You" conjured up images of sweet nostalgia and "Adia" proved her angelic range is still intact. Unfortunately, she only performed 50 minutes of her own tunes, too many of which came from the sluggish in comparison new CD Laws of Illusion. A finale rendition of the sultry "Ice Cream" teased at just how pleasurable her past catalogue's become, suggesting a full solo tour should follow to fill in the blanks.

"The queen of hip-hop soul" Mary J. Blige brought the highest energy of the evening given her R&B-infused beats and empowering anthems. "No More Drama" served as an affirming club romp, while the self-assured "I Am" unveiled her more sophisticated songwriting style as of late. On the rock n' roll side of the dial, Heart also unfurled a fury-filled hour of oldies ("Barracuda," "Alone," "Crazy on You") and like-minded new cuts ("W.T.F.," "Hey You"), ensuring its ongoing liveliness and influence.

A glimpse of the future came courtesy of Court Yard Hounds, a side project of Emily Robison and Martie Maguire from the Dixie Chicks, though their cozy folk and country was all too safe, especially compared to the attitude of their day jobs. After La Roux's last minute cancellation, Kate Nash conquered her main stage promotion with some sassy, quirky and irreverent indie pop that deserves to be noticed. And chances are the thinner than usual but still fervent crowd took home several other lasting memories during the fairly ample showcase of the significant contributions by females in the music world at large.

Lilith Fair Concert review - Milwaukee, WI Aug. 1999