On the north-side of Grant Park during Lollapalooza, it doesn’t get any bigger than the Bud Light Stage. On Thursday, July 31, the first day of the four-day musical extravaganza, festival organizers tapped a group of local favorites to welcome fans to the stage.
Ratboys – Julia Steiner (guitar, vocals), Dave Sagan (guitar), Marcus Nuccio (drums) and Sean Neumann (bass, vocals) – performed a 1:30 p.m. set that included a slew of songs from their 2023 album, The Window, and they even debuted a brand new song from their forthcoming album.
“Thanks for starting things off with us here at the Bud Light Stage,” said Steiner introducing “No Way” early in the set. “Alright, these first few songs that we’re playing tonight are all on a record that we put out a couple years ago called the window, and we’re just so excited to be here on this big ass stage playing these songs. This song’s gonna be a big fuck you to our corporate billionaire overlords.”
Ratboys perform at Lollapalooza in Chicago on July 31, 2025. Photo Credit: Laurie Fanelli, Rebellious Magazine
“It’s Alive!” – dedicated to all of Steiner’s “anxious brethren” – the guitar-heavy “Making Noise for the Ones You Love,” and the title track were among the other tracks from The Window that connected with fans throughout Ratboys’ 45-minute performance.
“If you’re just joining us, we’re a band called Ratboys. We live here. We love living here. We just finished a new record. It’s all done. If you’d be so kind, we’re gonna play one of these new ones now. Our favorite one, it’s a bit of a wormhole jam,” announced Steiner near the end of the show adding that everyone should feel free to move around.
Decisive strums began the new, unreleased song which evolved into a swirl of noisy feedback that created visceral excitement. The tune would have sounded right at home in the early days of Lollapalooza when bands like Jane’s Addiction, Violent Femmes, and Living Colour topped the bill. If this song is an indication, the new album is going to be among the best of the year.
Ratboys Lollapalooza performance set the bar high for a spectacular day of music on the Bud Light Stage, which also featured performances from Mark Ambor, Sierra Ferrell, Cage the Elephant, and Luke Combs. Click here to pick-up any remaining 1-day tickets to the remainder of Lollapalooza and more information about the fest can be found at Lollapalooza.com.
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