Idolator Pops Its Virgin Fest Cherry

Since the Idolator flophouse is on the East Coast, we weren’t able to haul ass to Lollapalooza this weekend–those Rock of Love episodes weren’t going to watch themselves–but there was always Virgin Fest, Sir Richard Branson’s attempt to recreate his popular international music festival in America, specifically at Baltimore’s scenic Pimlico Race Course. 2006′s edition was slightly anticlimatic, unless you enjoyed drinking $7 Bacardi Raz malt beverages and straining to hear moderately popular alt-rock bands over the poor sound system. But this year promised two days and enough big names for us to send Idolator photographer Frank Hamilton to the track to capture all the sweat and glitz. (But mostly sweat.) In the end, he destroyed one flash and one lens, broke an expensive piece of camera equipment, risked sunstroke, and listened to drunk frat guys bellowing the chorus to “Roxanne.” It was a long weekend. As to which was the better festival, well, in the end only one thing’s for sure: Lollapalooza sure as hell didn’t have any talking gnomes.