KROQ COOKS UP ONE GREAT WEENIE.

Byline: Jesse Hiestand Staff Writer

Blame it on the heat. Blame it on having something to prove after a few failed albums and a lengthy breakup, but The Cult singer Ian Astbury took off into the crowd with a vengeance Saturday at KROQ's Weenie Roast in Irvine.

He ran up the aisles like Rocky and nearly reached the top of the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, giving the 17,000 people a thrilling rock moment on a sweltering afternoon.

The reunited band was riffing hard when Astbury, an aging goth dressed as a shorthaired skate punk, crawled back on stage and, in an apparent moment of bravado, grabbed a 15-foot boom camera. Try as he might, it wouldn't topple over. The cameraman yelled. Astbury went wild. Punches were thrown. The cameraman was thrown off stage. Roadies and event staff nearly came to blows as fans stared in disbelief.

You can hardly blame Astbury. KROQ-FM (106.7) is a kingmaker in modern rock and this was definitely the venue for the English band to mark its comeback. The ninth annual festival proved KROQ's influence by drawing several of today's most popular and hardest-hitting bands. Call it what you like, nu-metal, hip-hop rock, pop-punk, it was eight hours of unrelenting power chords and hyper drums from the likes of Papa Roach, 311, Staind, Blink 182 and headliners Jane's Addiction.

The crowd was treated to a few surprises, from an unannounced set by Stone Temple Pilots to Lakers superstar Shaquille O'Neal rapping along with 311 and crowd surfing.

One of the best rock festivals of late, the proceeds went to charity to boot.

A rotating stage meant the beat never stopped, with just a minute or two between most acts.

Stabbing Westward opened the main stage to many empty seats, a trend that would dog bands until sunset.

Crazy Town hammered out its generic nu-metal racket only to find, as suspected, that fans really wanted to hear the slowed groove of ``Butterfly,'' the Los Angeles band's radio hit.

Disturbed put more polish on their metal, sticking to verses and choruses instead of rap. Scary, shaved-head singer Dave Draiman ordered the crowd to stand up for one song. Few disobeyed.

With a blistering set of mostly new songs, The Cult proved it is still one of the most electrifying bands, macho stunts aside. Only late in the set did the band dust off a crowd favorite, ``Love Removal Machine,'' to the delight of older fans.

Aside from being odd man out on this bill, sensitive acoustic-rockers Coldplay had to follow The Cult's dust-up, prompting lead singer Chris Martin to say ``I hope what we got is OK for you.'' Intense numbers like ``Shiver'' and the lilting ``Yellow'' more than held the crowd's attention.

Past the festival tents selling everything from henna tattoos to fresh beef jerky, thousands hiked to the ``punk rock'' side stage, particularly for Hermosa Beach hardcore band Pennywise. Band members said they chose to play there, on an asphalt parking lot, to be closer to fans. Even in the heat, people soaked up every note of the heart-racing Southland punk.

Back on the main stage, Papa Roach turned in one of the best performances of the day. Vital and uncompromising, the Vacaville, Calif., natives are also good natured, with singer Coby Dick exhorting parents to, above all, love their children. He also praised other bands between inspiring versions of hits like ``Last Resort'' and ``Broken Home.''

The crowd could have cared less about accusations that Linkin Park is a manufactured band, the nu-metal Backstreet Boys, as the group kept its blend of hip-hop, rock and electronica hits coming.

Unlike Linkin Park, 311 has no credibility problem. When it comes to putting bounce in hard rock, these guys are old-school pioneers whose obvious affection for reggae came through on ``Come Original'' and ``Beautiful Disaster,'' two songs in their solid set. After circling the stadium in a helicopter, Shaq joined 311 to rap his new song ``Psycho,'' throw autographed basketballs to the audience and, improbably, be held aloft by fans as he surfed the crowd.

Members of recent chart-toppers Staind are a brooding bunch and their songs, highlighted by singer Aaron Lewis' unearthly growl, started to sound redundant until the haunting ballad ``Outside.''

The Stone Temple Pilots played a surprise set, starting with ``Crackerman'' and later hitting ``Sex Type Thing,'' both from its 1992 debut ``Core.'' After overcoming a drug problem, a proudly sober Scott Weiland was incensed when someone threw a beer in his face. That only encouraged a few more objects to be launched toward the singer, which seemed to unnerve the band and distract from an otherwise superb set.

Up next was San Diego's playful pop-punk band Blink 182, who have the No. 1 album in the country. Band members had as much fun with between-song toilet humor as they did playing their KROQ favorites and cuts from their new album ``Take Off Your Pants and Jacket.''

The crowd roared with approval for hard rock veteran Jane's Addiction. Despite efforts to keep to schedule, Jane's got off to a late start and was only able to play for 30 minutes. Singer Perry Farrell came out in a lime green jumpsuit, chugging a bottle of wine. Guitarist Dave Navarro vied for attention with a day-glo Spider-Man body suit that was more ridiculous than riveting.

The band got just a few songs in before the lights came up, but it was the climax the crowd anticipated. ``Up the Beach'' led into ``Mountain Song.'' Later there was a hard rock rendition of ``Been Caught Stealing'' and the set staple ``Jane Says.''

``I thought that was enough - those were some of my favorite songs,'' said 17-year-old Jordan Safan of Sherman Oaks, who earlier caught one Shaq's basketballs.

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Photo:

(1 -- 2) Ian Astbury, lead singer of The Cult, right, performs Saturday for the more than 17,000 fans during KROQ's ninth annual Weenie Roast at the Verizon Wireless Ampitheater in Irvine.

(3) Disturbed guitarist Dan Donegan rocks during KROQ's ninth annual Weenie Roast on Saturday.

Brittany M. Solo/Press-Telegram