It’s not often that a band’s second show in a country is at a major music festival, but that’s exactly the case for British punks VANT. The band will be playing Lollapalooza on the Grant Park Stage Sunday at 12:45, following their only other US appearance, which was the New York Governor’s Ball festival. The band have made noise in their home country, however, including main stage appearances at the Reading and Leeds festivals. We talk with frontman Mattie Vant about the band, and their second appearance stateside:
B&E: Introduce yourselves! Who are you?
MV: I am what I am and I ain’t what I ain’t.
B&E: Your latest album, “Dumb Blood” contains a whopping 22 tracks. Was anything left off of the album?
MV: Yeah, if you grab a copy of the Japanese Import you can hear the rest.
B&E: Lollapalooza is only your second US show. What should people expect from the band’s live show?
MV: Energy, lipstick and lawn mowers.
B&E: You’ve played the UK with some big bands, however. Who was your favorite band to play a show with?
MV: Blossoms. Such great guys.
B&E: Are there any plans for a US tour in the works yet?
MV: I hope so. You guys baffle me. I want to see all corners of bafflement.
B&E: Finally, We always love a good tour story. What’s the craziest thing that’s happened to you on tour?
MV: I once met James Murphy and got invited into his dressing room with the rest of LCD Soundsystem. He gave me some nice wine from his backstage cellar, told me about Bowie and hypothetically agreed to make my 5th record.
