BottleRock Day 1: Weekend of music, food and wine begins with Lorde, Lil Wayne, Papa Roach, Men At Work
Napa Valley is welcoming tens of thousands of music fans, partiers and foodies for the sold-out BottleRock festival through Memorial Day weekend.
The three-day festival features nearly 80 performing acts across five music stages, celebrity appearances on the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage, wine and food tastings, and an eclectic range of sideline entertainment — from roller skating to silent disco space to spa services.
Day 1 kicked off with Teddy Swims, Papa Roach, Men At Work, Lil Wayne and Lorde.
Lorde headlined the first night, treating fans to hits like “Royals,” “Supercut,” and “Green Light,” while making the show a memorable, emotionally charged experience. She announced to the Napa crowd that the BottleRock performance was the very last time she and her band would perform this specific version of the tour. Partway through the set, Lorde took off her pants to reveal silver-painted knees and finished the rest of her performance in her boxer briefs.
Lil Wayne electrified BottleRock’s opening night on the T-Mobile Stage, delivering a high-energy headline set packed with his greatest hits and a surprising live guitar performance.
Vocal powerhouse Teddy Swims pulled triple duty by performing a solo set on the main Prudential Stage, crashing Papa Roach’s show with a surprise stage visit, and sharing the culinary stage with NBA star Jimmy Butler.
Swims gave the crowd a solid, diverse set selection that included including “Some Things I’ll Never Know,” “The Door” and “Guilty.” After the show, Swims made it the T-Mobile Stage and joined Papa Roach to perform a rendition of the band’s hit “Scars.”
The pride of Vacaville since 1993 — Papa Roach — appeared excited to be performing at BottleRock.
“Y’know, we’ve been knowing about this festival for a long, long, long time, and they finally let some rowdy motherf—s like Papa Roach on the stage,” lead singer Jacoby Shaddix shouted to the crowd.
Their set included “Getting Away With Murder,” “Leave a Light On (Talk Away the Dark),” “Between Angels and Insects” and “Last Resort.” Shaddix’s young son appeared on stage at one point, boasting some impressive vocal cords.
Despite the Day 1 star power on the main stages, the Times gives the ultimate thumbs up to Men at Work and its iconic Australian rock and new wave sound that has kept well and crisp since the 1980s.
Lead singer Colin Hay sounded great, with a tight set and remarkable solos by saxophonist and Bay Area native Rachel Mazer, drummer Jimmy Branly, bassist Yosmel Montejo of Cuba, vocalist Cecilia Noel, and lead guitarist San Miguel Perez, also of Cuba.
It was a crowd-pleasing performance by a legendary band which didn’t disappoint, mixing some of Hay’s solo originals with the well-known hits “Overkill,” “It’s a Mistake,” “Who Can It Be Now?” and “Down Under.”