Windy City Rock - Chicago Music News

Show review: Fujiya & Miyagi, YAWN at Lincoln Hall, 1/25

2012-01-27T09:14:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg & Gene Wagendorf III

YAWN

Anytime music borders on psychedelic, the immediate reaction of listeners/viewers tends to be to drop all sorts of acid comparisons/analogies. If The White Album is an acid trip and MGMT is an acid trip and Merriweather Post Pavilion is a fucking acid trip, fine, but then that doesn't really tell me anything. Any amateur hippie will tell you that mindset is key when making the psychedelic leap, that what you bring in to the trip will manifest in the experience. So OK, yeah, you can have a trip that smells like Roxy Music while your buddy one couch over is meandering through a Cronenberg-ian flea market with Stockard Channing and Arthur Rimbaud. That isn't YAWN. That also isn't to say that I want to strip the band of the psychedelic label that its videos do little to shrug off. Instead, I'd compare YAWN to my last mushroom trip, wherein I found myself both wanting to be swallowed by thick, warm blankets and being incapable of sitting still thanks to my body's insatiable bond with the music slipping out of my stereo.

I showed up to Lincoln Hall Wednesday night crunched in the mucusy grip of a lingering, bastard cold, hacking up orbs of phlegm in the alley just before showtime. Reeking of mentholated cough drops and suffering from a nauseating sinus headache, I was hesitant about how much live music I'd be able to enjoy. Then the woo-ing started. Wisps of auditory lollipop drifted over ripe drumming before settling/bursting into a series of dynamic whooshes and playful yodels. Already my nasal passages were clearing and the dull pound in my skull had faded. YAWN, a group of really normal looking guys, were making this blissfully offbeat music that apparently had mystical healing properties. Either that, or it just confused me into not feeling sick. The third (or twentieth?) song they played began with a series of squeaks and blurps, like an intimate conversation between two eunuch-robots in love. Interrupted by the unfolding of a twitchy bass line and lush, tropical percussion, the tune tightroped between the yammering of a chatty spaceship and an Aztec dance party. I was briefly jarred out of my trance by the brightness of a new track, whose synth swirls were sharp enough to be obnoxious, before the edge was dulled by chunks of rolling rhythm. Later, a similar rhythm propelled a clacking, clattering number that sounded like a steam engine pulling a tidal wave into The Old West. Think Neal Cassady driving the bus in Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, but sopping wet and wearing a conductor's hat.

The least layered song YAWN pulled out was a new one. Stripped of their trademark saccharine trippiness, it moved with a spritely jangle, but without any inspired destination. "Indigo," from the band's 2011 release Open Season, used it's marshmallow reggae to get the crowd juking. Mind you, I don't use the term juking lightly. The show being put on by a couple of front row hipsters had me wondering whether I was supposed to tip. "Keep It Up" drifted back and forth between ominous sacrament and twinkling goofball, with the hook coming courtesy of layered vocals. Do I have any idea what the hell YAWN were singing about? No, but I'll be damned if wasn't catchy. The last few songs kind of melded together, probably a combination of my sickness creeping back in and a little musical monotony that felt like the last time I was lost in a hall of mirrors: it was entertaining for a while, but eventually I found myself standing still, staring at my own reflection, going "I get it, OK?" Then came the announcement that the band had one more song, and then came the music box-from-the-future melody, and then came the manic, dancehall-ish beat. A smile slipped back across my face and my knees buckled in rhythm with the music while I watched the hipster couple make babies on the dance floor. I had another one of those transcendent psychedelic experiences where I caught a glimpse of myself twenty years from now talking to an incredulous child. "This is what your parents used to dance to."

In the end, the Psilocybin-rockers had left me just like my last boomer trip- aglow with uncommon warmth, musically gorged, and exhausted. Without YAWN's music to act as an internal harmonizer/decongestant/cough suppressant, I was forced to leave Lincoln Hall before Fujiya & Miyagi took the stage. Luckily, Windy City Rock's resident mediocre cyclist, Andrew Hertzberg, stuck around for the evening's headliner.

--GWIII

Fujiya & Miyagi

Do us music writers have a tendency to overuse the adjective "infectious?" Perhaps "contagious," when describing a band meant to make you dance? Maybe especially for those bands that use repetition and have a tight rhythm section? Well, at least you’re already getting some idea of what Fujiya & Miyagi’s set was like last night. What sounds like a Japanese duo is actually a Brighton four-piece, with keys, strings (both 4 and 6) and skins. Although this appears like a conventional rock band set up, the funky group (and I mean funky with definitions both in their musical style and their quirkiness), they sound like they should have set up stage at the Mid or Debonair as opposed to Lincoln Hall.

The set kicked off with "Cat Got Your Tongue" with singer David Best affecting his best whispered kitten purrrr. As anything out of Brighton oughta be, the music is ominous and foreboding, and Best’s consistent whisper (sometimes with back up from bassist Matt Hainsby and synth-maestro Steve Lewis) only adds to the eeriness. But the weird thing is that music is also highly danceable and at times quite mischievous. I can picture English gangsters listening to this before hatching a scheme in a Guy Ritchie film. F&M certainly have a characteristic sound and those unfamiliar could say the songs, well, sound a lot alike. The whispered / emotionless vocals, unrelentingly repetitive bass lines, steady drums and keyboard leads can run together. But it is perfect for driving, running, or forgetting your public setting and dancing rather explicitly (as one couple in the front row chose to do).

"Collarbone" found itself midway through the set, the funky, single guitar lead sounding more showcased in the live setting than on 2006’s Transparent Things. It seemed most fans weren’t created after hearing last year’s Ventriloquizzing, but reacted best to the older cuts, albeit how few they were. The band kept the pace steady, barely a pause in between tracks (a stark contrasts to the silences between YAWN’s songs) and little crowd interaction. "Tinsel and Glitter" faded out to close the set, with a brief intermission before an encore of the "Nightclubbing"-esque jam (without the opiates) "Sixteen Shades of Black and Blue." A call from the balcony asked for more, and boy did we get it. Nearly another fifteen minutes fueled by "Ankle Injuries" (with accompanying music video playing on a screen overhead) with flashes of "Electro Karaoke," Best finding himself uncharacteristically assaulting his guitar. They slowed things down, faked the ending, and brought it back up with a chant of “Fujiya. Miyagi.” over and over again. Definitely one of the better and certainly unexpectedly energetic encores I’ve seen in quite some time.

-- AH

Company of Thieves cover Tom Petty on Lightbox Sessions

2012-01-25T21:47:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Recently Company of Thieves vocalist Genevieve Schatz and guitarist Marc Walloch were featured on Lightbox Sessions, where they recorded a brief interview and a few acoustic songs in an intimate setting. In addition to stripped down takes on their own tracks "Syrup" and "After Thought" off their fantastic 2011 album Running From a Gamble, the two decided to pull out a bit of Tom Petty in the form of "I Won't Back Down." The result is pretty special, with Genevieve's spot-on vocal squeezing every ounce of passion and conviction possible out of the song's message. I daresay Mr. Petty would be proud. Check out the video below, and if you're a fan, show the band some love by favoriting (let's just say that's a real word) the track on The Hype Machine. While you're at it, read what Genevieve and Marc had to say in a Paste Magazine interview that ran earlier this week.

Lightbox Sessions: Company of Thieves from Lightbox Productions on Vimeo.

Go to There: January 24 - 30

2012-01-24T10:19:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Tortoise

Tuesday, January 24th Tortoise at Empty Bottle (9:30 PM, 21+ $15)
It’s hard to beat Tortoise in the post rock game (vague genre descriptors be damned!). These locals have been at it for over 20 years and all the while with Thrill Jockey Records. Update: Unfortunately, the show is sold out already, so second bets go to Swedish death metal group Ghost at Bottom Lounge (interview on the Reader here) or the always reliable weekly Relax Attack series at the Whistler.

Wednesday, January 25th Ken Vandermark at Hideout (9:30, 21+, $10)
Speaking of jazz, I know we’re Windy City Rock, but doesn’t mean I don’t get down with something a little more out there from time to time. Vandermark is a staple in Chicago’s experimental and improvised scene. Bonus: show up early for the weekly Soup and Bread event.

Thursday, January 26th Bomb Banks at Mutiny (8:30 PM, 21+, FREE)
There’s not too much out there on these post-rockers yet (and a Google search might put you on some sort of list). For a taste, check out this video from Gonzo Chicago, and catch ‘em at a rare poking out from underground.

Friday, January 27th Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt at the Den Theater (10 PM, $5)
There’s a lot going on this night that is great, but I made a promise to myself to plug TDPR whenever they came through town. This is probably the only band I’ve made a point to see two days in a row. Homemade props, inflatable snowmen, fantastic lights and a crowd-consuming tent all to the soundtrack of upbeat, love-of-everything dance/pop. Not to be missed at this off the beaten path space. (all the good info can be found on the facebook page)

Saturday, January 28th Mucca Pazza, Lasers and Fast and Shit at Double Door (9 PM, 21+, $15) Circus punks Mucca Pazza have made a name for themselves pretty much all over the city with their surreal genre-twisting. If you haven’t seen ‘em yet, this is a great chance to do so.

Sunday, January 29th Cass McCombs at Lincoln Hall (8 PM, 21+, $15)
What McCombs lacks in the ferocity of many of these previous choices, he more than makes up for in lyrical depth and nuance. Last year’s Wit’s End finds the singer-songwriter traversing the same reflective landscape as Jon Brion and Sea Changes era Beck.

Monday, January 30th Pear Traps at Empty Bottle (9:30 PM, 21+, FREE)
Ultra Lo-Fi-wavers the Pear Traps return. As shown by the debut EP, The Pear Traps mellow Americana will be a fitting opener for Adam Arcuragi who is credited for popularizing the genre ‘Death Gospel.’

Record review: Rego - 'Seconds'

2012-01-23T18:37:00.002-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

Of all the bands I've had the pleasure of catching live around the city, I can't think of a single one that performs with as much of a sense of family as Rego. Songwriter Rebecca Rego and her accompanying players seem as comfortable on stage as they might be jamming in their own living rooms. They play off of each other with the kind of love and humor that even radiates into their official recordings. There's a spark there that the studio process can't even begin to subdue.

On their sophomore LP, Rego pours their alt-country songcraft into a space that's simultaneously warmer and more melancholy. Throughout Seconds, the band suspends a balance between a folksy bucolic hush and raw rock grit. But even at its angriest, Seconds remains fiercely introspective, often to the point of self-flagellation. Wistful bell lines and Neil Young-style alarm clock guitar blasts both punctuate laments of self-sabotage, the bewildering passing of time, and the destructive personal ruts we tend to dig ourselves into as we grow older.

Rego doesn't mind tackling the tough stuff lyrically, spelling out bare pathos in so many words as "when they ask why you do the things you do, you say it's mostly cause it's the only thing you tried." Despite its gilded instrumentation--chirpy guitars and tinkling percussion and deep warm bass--Seconds delves into some bitter places. Like Neil Young, Rego hits both the gentle acoustic strums and the fiery country stomps with the same emotional tones. Even when the record sheds its twang for a classic rock jangle on "Red Eye," it mostly serves to enhance the softer points, the subdued darkness wrapped up inside tracks like "Curse Myself" and "Light." Frustration and resignation stem from the same place here, revolving around each other and providing a sense of relief every time one gives way to its counterpart. But the record does resolve itself on a note of determination, branching out onto a third affect for closer "I Don't Know." Picking yourself up out of the bad parts is mostly just learning to "laugh at rain and hope for sun again"--and that's exactly where this record's journey leaves us.

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Rego will be releasing Seconds at Lincoln Hall on February 11th.

Listen: The Bright White preview upcoming EP with 'Mary Anne'

2012-01-20T11:50:00.004-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Carrying on the tradition of high-impact, guitar-driven Chicago power pop, four-piece The Bright White came onto the scene in early 2011 with their solid introductory EP Until Then. Building on the momentum created from that release and playing frequent shows around the city, the band has been back in the studio preparing new music for a second EP due out in March. They're offering a first taste in the form of "Mary Anne," an even bolder, more intense--but no less infectious--effort than their previous material. With frontman Matthew Kayser's grabbing vocals, a tight melody and a wailing guitar solo, the song is a reminder that while indie trends come and go, driving, hook-heavy rock and roll never stops sounding good.

The upcoming EP is still untitled, but according to the band it will feature five tracks and a less polished sound than Until Then that captures more of the energy of their live show. You can listen to "Mary Anne" below, and check out the band live tonight at Abbey Pub (also with I Lost Control and The Luck of Eden Hall, 9 p.m., $10).

The Bright White - Mary Anne by Windy City Rock

Tonight: Brice Woodall cassette release at the Ace Bar

2012-01-20T10:12:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

What's a little snow and bitter cold when there's live music to be seen?

Tonight at the Ace Bar (1505 W. Fullerton Ave.), Chicago's Brice Woodall will be celebrating the release of his new cassette EP, Some Odd Years, as part of a bill that also features Tiny Manatee and Sad Astronaut. Early in 2011, Windy City Rock's own Sasha Geffen interviewed Brice--and now what do you know--she is playing synths and bells with him as part of a three-piece that also includes Wade Work of Sequoia.

The EP, which is available for download now on Bandcamp, has an atmospheric folktronica sound that's the perfect fit for a frigid, snowy winter's day (it even features some cool wintry artwork courtesy of Sasha). You can listen to one of the songs, "POV," below, and take in the sounds live starting at 9 p.m. tonight. Click here for more information and tickets.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://bricewoodall.bandcamp.com/track/pov"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;POV by Brice Woodall&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Video: Michael Lux and the Bad Sons - 'Salt and Pepper'

2012-01-18T20:52:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

One of the albums I'm most looking forward to this year is the debut full-length from Michael Lux and the Bad Sons, a most genuine Chicago rock and roll band that we first heard from in late 2010 via their EP Neat Repeater (which they kindly have up for free download here--worth every megabyte on your hard drive/portable music device). The band recently made a really fun showing on Chic-A-Go-Go, and now they've got something a little more serious in the form of the music video for new track "Salt and Pepper." It's packed full of mystery, intrigue and smoke. Lots of smoke. Oh, and guitars. Big guitars. It's pretty great. See/hear it below, and check out the band live on Thursday, February 9th at the Empty Bottle.

Go To There: January 17 - 23

2012-01-17T14:35:00.000-06:00

Tuesday, January 17th Panda Riot, Advance Base, the Hit Back at Empty Bottle (9:30, 21+, $8)
The dream poppers in Panda Riot headline, but make sure to check out Advance Base, the new moniker of Owen Ashworth, formerly of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone.

Wednesday, January 18th Summer Girlfriends, E+ at Beat Kitchen (8 PM, 21+, $8)
Only half of the four-piece of E+ is playing this show, but they promise "in this format, the tunes are more mellow, groovy and quite ghostly." Summer Girlfriends are sure to be quite the opposite, bringing a post-riot grrrl garage rock.

Northpilot, The Kickback, The Bears of Blue River at Lincoln Hall (7 p.m., all ages, $7).
At LH, it's Left Field Management night for their "Biggest Show Ever," featuring some great Chicago acts you might have read about right here (see our Northpilot EP review and our review of The Kickback's latest).

Thursday, January 19th Archie Powell and the Exports at Quenchers (9 PM, 21+, $5 suggested)
Man, it seems like these guys are taking forever following up Skip Work, right? I guess that's how they sucker you into their live shows. Plus, Archie promises to buy you a Blatz. Not a bad way to spend a Thursday night.

Friday, January 20th Cave, Bill Vermette, Velcro Lewis Group, Killer Moon, Strychnine at Hideout (7 PM, 21+$10)
Night One of the third annual Psych Fest at the Hideout with the inimitable Cave headlining. Get lost in their trancey grooves. Check out this video from Gonzo Chicago of them playing on a flatbed truck down Milwaukee Ave.

Saturday, January 21st Dark Fog, Plastic Crimewave Sound, Rabble Rabble, Verma, Red Plastic Buddha at Hideout (7 PM, 21+$10)
And just in case you didn't have enough from the night before, here's night two of Psych Fest. If the Hideout is somehow still standing after Rabble rabble plays, surely it'll be taken down by Steve Krakow's classic Plastic Crimewave Sound.

Sunday, January 22nd Gaberdine at Subterranean (8 PM, 21+, $8)
After all that psych-rock, better take it down a notch. Gaberdine headlines at Subt, although I'm not sure how the six members will themselves and all their instruments on the tiny stage. Read my review of their performance opening for Low last year.

Monday, January 23rd Wally Dogger, Pinto and the Bean, Mutts, Otter Petter at Empty Bottle (9:30 PM, 21+, FREE)
Free Monday nights strike again, providing big sounds from small bands. At the heart of the lineup is the gravely three piece Mutts and duo of Pinto and the Bean (read Frank's review of their debut album The Waiting Place).

A few Chicago music news bites

2012-01-17T14:16:00.003-06:00

Prefixmag.com premiered a hypnotic new Loyal Divide track called "Otto," featuring guest vocals from Rachel Sarah Thomas.

Electro-rockers Moon Furies have released a great video for their track "Mercury 13."

In other video news, here's another gem from Chic-A-Go-Go, this time featuring Michael Lux and the Bad Sons pretend-playing a cool, catchy new track. Keep an eye out for an official video for their single "Salt and Pepper" later this week.

Daytrotter.com put up a live session with Chicago's Fort Frances.

Chicagoist wrote about the first single from Disappears' upcoming album Pre-Language (out March 1st).

Thomas Conner of the Sun-Times reviewed the recently released EP3 from psych-rockers Secret Colours.

Show review: Chairlift, Class Actress, Polica at Schubas, 1/14

2012-01-16T00:13:00.007-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Chairlift (photo: Frank Krolicki)

We're not even through the first month of 2012 and I'm already declaring Something, the upcoming sophomore album from Brooklyn's Chairlift, one of my top favorites of the year. To make that statement even bolder, I haven't even heard the whole thing yet. After incessantly listening to its three pre-released tracks, live versions and samples on iTunes, I feel that confident about it. So as soon as I found out the band would be passing through Chicago to headline Saturday night's installment of this year's Tomorrow Never Knows fest at Schubas, I made sure I'd be there. The full night consisted of an endurance-testing bill of five acts that focused on female voices, and while I didn't catch first openers Wild Belle and Willis Earl Beal, I arrived in time to take in Polica and Class Actress before the main event.

Polica (photo: Frank Krolicki)

Polica was mesmerizing, not so much because immediate hooks were in great supply, but because of the way singer Channy Leaneagh's powerful voice snaked around the room with both mystery and conviction. Sometimes processed with a slightly spooky, robotic touch and other times more natural, the front woman's delivery accompanied equally atmospheric music for trance inducing effect. Songs like "Violent Games" and "Amongster" off the band's debut Give You the Ghost struck just the right balance between pleasing and strange, and succeeded in setting a mood that captivated a packed Schubas.

Next came Brooklyn's Class Actress, fronted by the coquettish Elizabeth Harper, who despite her act's name didn't seem quite ready for her close-up. Dressed in a trench coat, with a tousled flop of brown hair and almost no stage light directed at her, Harper came across as a bit of an enigma (as well as a damn hard subject to capture a good photo of). This seemed a bit odd considering the unashamed, neon '80s synth sound of her music, which clearly looks to the dancey extroversion of vintage Madonna for inspiration. It didn't help that Class Actress's set began with Harper repeatedly requesting that the electronic drums be made louder for what seemed like five long minutes, which created confusion (I overheard a fellow audience member wonder if it was a comedy part of the act). Even if it was all kind of weird, it would have been tough to resist the candy-coated grooves of "Keep You" and "Weekend," highlights off the 2011 album Rapprocher, as well as the uplifting new wavey set closer "Let Me Take You Out." Class Actress made the smallest impact of the three acts I saw Saturday night, but the performance was entertaining overall and not without its glitzy high points.

Chairlift (photo: Frank Krolicki)

After a night filled with late start times, Chairlift finally took the stage around 12:30, almost a half hour after they were supposed to begin. By this time a portion of the audience had already trickled out (post-midnight start times can have that effect), but there was still a sizable crowd, and Chairlift quickly made it clear that anyone who decided to soldier on to the end made the right decision. I went into the show admittedly biased, but I would have a hard time understanding how anyone could resist the enchantment of the band's live show, loaded with slinky synth lines, sexy bass grooves, and most importantly, the stunning ethereal vocals of front woman Caroline Polachek. Like influencers Kate Bush and Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser, Polachek has the gift of not only being an exceptional singer, but an exceptional singer who can transport you to a different world with her delivery. "All of the bones in your body are in way too few pieces for me, time to do something about it if you know what I mean," she coolly asserted as the first line of opener "Sidewalk Safari," and a threat of physical harm never sounded so alluring.

Patrick Wimberly of Chairlift (photo: Frank Krolicki)

Although technically currently a duo--Polachek is teamed with multi-instrumentalist Patrick Wimberly--a larger band is smartly present on Chairlift's current tour. This allowed for a fuller, more grabbing sound than just two people could fill a room with, which was especially needed to give boisterous, '80s new wave-drenched songs such as "I Belong in Your Arms" and "Met Before" the sort of punch they have on their recorded versions. Those two new tracks joined a handful of others off the soon-released Something to make up the bulk of the set. To represent their 2008 debut Does You Inspire You, Chairlift wisely chose to include the four most memorable tracks--the playful French cut "Le Flying Saucer Hat," the dreamy, slap-bass heavy "Planet Health," a dancier take on single "Evident Utensil" and their most widely known song, bouncy iPod anthem "Bruises." In place of former member Aaron Pfenning's vocal part on the album version of "Bruises," Polachek cleverly inserted a bit of Modern English's "I Melt With You."

After opting to skip the theatrics of leaving the stage and coming back out for an encore, the band closed the night with "Amanaemonesia," a titan of a synth-pop tune that has generated plenty of buzz online thanks to its bizarre unitard-and-wonky-dance-heavy video. Polachek concentrated on singing the hell out of the song instead of doing the infamous Amanaemonesia dance. It was a reasonable trade-off and a high-energy finale.

At one point during Chairlift's set Wimberly quipped, "Somebody shut those back doors. You can't leave." The thought never crossed my mind.

Chairlift setlist: Sidewalk Safari, Le Flying Saucer Hat, Take It out on Me, Wrong Opinion, Planet Health, Ghost Tonight, I Belong in Your Arms, Guilty as Charged, Bruises, Met Before, Evident Utensil, Amanaemonesia

Chairlift (photo: Frank Krolicki)

Class Actress (photo: Frank Krolicki)

Polica (photo: Frank Krolicki)

Tonight: Filligar, Daniel Ellsworth & the Great Lakes, Save the Clocktower at Subterranean

2012-01-13T09:06:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

Filligar

You may be tempted, winter creatures, to hide away in your burrows tonight. After all, our city's been granted its first real coat of snow, and getting from point A to point B is suddenly a much slushier endeavor. But I'll urge you not to lose this Friday in hibernation, if only because some very talented and exceptionally friendly bands would love to melt away your winter blues at Subterranean tonight.

Our friends Save the Clocktower will be kicking off the eve with their fuzzy, retro-styled electropop. If you haven't already picked up their latest record, you have about zero excuses. It's extra awesome and free on Bandcamp. Tonight's show will be their new bassist Chris's inaugural performance, so come show the new-minted quartet some love. New friends Daniel Ellsworth & the Great Lakes will drop by from the sunnier skies of Nashville, Tennessee to play their quirky electronic-enforced indie pop. They released their LP Civilized Man last year to critical acclaim and I believe there are at least 14 reasons to start to love them contained within this one video alone. We'll also get to see Filligar flood the place with their sunny retro jangle. I caught these dudes at Subterranean ages ago and they have more fun than just about anybody on stage. Check out the following cut from their recent live session at the Hideout for a taste:

Knock Yourself Out by Filligar

Not only is Subt mere steps from the blue line, but Filligar has struck up a deal with Chicago's Uber car service for their fans. Just use the promo code "FILLIGAR" to get 25% off your ride to the show.

Doors at 8:30, show at 9, tickets are $10, 21+.

Check this out: The Shakedown album release show, 1/14

2012-01-12T20:51:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

When they're not putting down their thoughts about music, a few of our writers here at WCR like to play it, too. One of our musically-inclined is Christian Chiakulas, who is at the helm of The Shakedown. The band is about to release their debut album You and I at the End, and will celebrate with a show at Logan Square's Box Social (2129 N. Milwaukee Ave.) on Saturday, January 14th. Party at the Moontower, Every Wakes Dream and The Broken Belts are also part of the lineup.

The Shakedown's sound seems to scream "current indie trends be-damned," which is something I always find pretty admirable (as much as I am a fan of some of those current indie trends). Instead of reverb-drenched indie pop, art rock, or anything else you'd find getting a lot of hype today, the band opt for mostly loud, mostly fast, mostly straightforward rock with a touch of punk and a lot of energy (and the occasionally slowed-down tune for a bit of variety). Revved-up tracks such as "She Smiled (And Said Goodbye)" and "Flush" should get the blood flowing on a cold winter night and are bound to sound especially good with a beer in hand over the weekend. So if you're looking for a show Saturday, check out The Shakedown at Box Social and be sure to say hey to Christian.

The Shakedown take the stage at 9 p.m. Click here for more details.

Go To There: January 10 - 16

2012-01-10T12:02:00.001-06:00

This week's edition of Go To There features a couple Tomorrow Never Knows picks as well as an easy way to fulfill one of my other resolutions to never miss an ONO show again.

TuesdayJanuary 10^th Creepy Band, Jon Drake and the Shakes, Ryley Walker at Empty Bottle(9 PM, 21+, $8)

Read previous EP reviews of Creepy Band and Jon Drake. Make sure to get there early for the John Fahey/Nick Drake acoustic strums of Ryley Walker.

WednesdayJanuary 11^th Names Divine, Nude Sunrise at Burlington (9PM, 21+, $5)

Catch Names Divine before they go on their nationwide tour. Take a look at their route and tell your friends in other cities to go!

ThursdayJanuary 12^th Videotape, Unplugged and Reborn at Beat Kitchen (8PM,$10, 17+)

Read a review of U&R's debut album from last year.

FridayJanuary 13^th Caveman, Gauntlet Hair, Prussia at Schubas (TNK2012) (9 PM, 18+, $15)

Caveman and Gauntlet Hair made big buzz at CMJ in the Fall (and for good reason), but I've been crushing on Prussia's Poor English trilogy, for free on their bandcamp.

SaturdayJanuary 14^th Heavy Times at Crown Tap Room (9 PM, 21+, $5)

Heavy Times' 'Jacker' was one of the best from last year. Catch the Dead Boysesque punk rock in a primo dive of a joint.

SundayJanuary 15^th White Mystery, Mannequin Men at Schubas (TNK2012) (9 PM, 18+, $15)

Tomorrow may not know, but we already do how much White. Mystery. Rocks. Mannequin Men are an added bonus.

MondayJanuary 16^th ONO, Wume, Moonrises at Empty Bottle (9:30 PM, 21+,FREE)

No excuses to miss this one. Even though it's free, wouldn't be surprised if the Bottle hit capacity early.

Record review: The Assembly - 'The Future Has Been Sold'

2012-01-09T08:48:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

The last we heard from Chicago alt-rockers The Assembly, they were exploring rather dark territory via 2008's The Tide Has Turned, a record that put more emphasis overall on setting an intense mood than supplying overt hooks. After a lengthy period of silence the four-piece has returned with The Future Has Been Sold, an eight-track album that retains elements of Tide's intensity and paranoia--as well as its powerful guitar crunch--while mixing in catchier choruses and lighter pop touches that make for their most accessible set of songs to date.

Future opens with "Matters" and "That's Not Enough," two rockers that play on the underlying darkness of The Assembly's sound, but with big, immediate hooks and guitar riffs galore to draw you in quickly. In particular, "Matters"--which according to the band is about social media overload--is a high-energy introduction that finds frontman Dave Suh repeating, "When you take matters into your own hands you forget everything that you know," in his distinctive vocal style that's equal parts '80s post-punk (think The Psychedelic Furs' Richard Butler) and '90s radio punk/alt-rock (think Billie Joe Armstrong). Those descriptors go for the music, too, which throughout alternates in referencing both decades and styles.

Later in the album, "Without A Fight" and "Without You" pick up where the first two tracks left off, but other material brings in a brighter, poppier sound that marks the most noticeable difference from Tide. The subject matter still relies mostly on dissatisfaction and a touch of gloom, but the vibe on "Who Do You Need Now, "In Control" and "Deafen the Sound of You" is more upbeat, the melodies prettier and the synths more pronounced. The record ends with the cautiously optimistic "Feel Better," where Suh asks, "Wouldn't it be so nice to feel better? Or will you stay here and feel the same?" over twinkling synths and a relaxed beat. It's a fitting end to The Assembly's latest offering--my personal favorite from the band so far--which proves that cynicism and hopefulness can be a satisfying combination.

The Assembly will be celebrating the release of The Future Has Been Sold with a show at Double Door on Friday, January 20th with Red Jr., Up Off Down and DJ Dihty Dihty (admission is only $1 and things kick off at 9. The Assembly starts at 10). You can download the album now on iTunes or get a hard copy via CD Baby.

Tonight: Pet Lions, Tiger Bones, The Hudson Branch at Metro

2012-01-06T00:43:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

As we pointed out in our show roundup earlier this week, the Metro's the place to be tonight. At the top of the bill are Pet Lions, makers of some of Chicago's finest indie rock/pop tunes whose debut full-length Houses was one of my favorites of 2011. The band recently put out a video for one of the album's highlights, "Trinidad," which you can check out below (every band could use a good "look at us as we go on fun musical adventures" video, and this is theirs). By going to the show you can also join Pet Lions in celebrating the recovery of their van, Jim, which has been out of commission after colliding with a deer but is now in proper working order and ready for even more fun musical adventures. It's a good thing, too, because the band are heading out on tour Saturday. Update: Unfortunately Pet Lions tweeted today that their van was broken into and left undriveable. The show is still on, though. Go cheer them up.

In addition to Pet Lions you'll get the ominous-yet-alluring indie rock of Tiger Bones and the moody, folky rock of The Hudson Branch (too bad they don't have an animal name too).

If all that weren't enough, you can get in free before 9 p.m. if you show this flyer. Otherwise you'll have to pay $9, which will no doubt still be well worth it. Doors 8 p.m./show 9 p.m., 18 and over.

Show review: Close Hits, Rambos at The Burlington, 1/4

2012-01-05T19:41:00.003-06:00

By Gene Wagendorf III

If the Mayans are right and this really is The Last Year for humanity at least I can say I kicked it off with two of my favorite Chicago bands. Close Hits and Rambos left my ears ringing and had me pumped for a 2012 that ought to be filled with great local music.

Rambos

Gearing up for the release of their debut record Rock and Roll Monsters, garage-rock gang Rambos blasted through a set of old and new material in front of an eager crowd at The Burlington on Wednesday. I don't know what this crew drank on NYE, but whatever it was had them charged with enough energy to level a small town. They didn't actually shatter the walls of the bar, but it wasn't for lack of effort, especially with respect to drummer Ian Tsan. After getting his leg shattered by a car back in October, Tsan seems to have spent his recovery time plotting ways to take it out on his kit. "Terrorize," the band's musical call to arms, lurched from the stage like a drunken, pissed-off Frankenstein's Monster, stumbling and thrashing with drum rolls and fills. Later, "Human Monster" maintained the Svengoolie-esque atmosphere. Washy guitars swirled over a chugging riff, giving vocalists Jeremy David Miller and Julie Meckler a Fright Night playground to yelp and holler over. The on-stage chemistry between those two remains one of Rambos' strong suits, and in a better world it would be the backbone for a Rambos Variety Hour special.

Two reworked (and re-titled) covers were sprinkled into the set, both getting the crowd bouncing- "Faggots," a comic take on the Black Lips' "Bad Kids," and "Do You Want to Die?," a punk take on Bobby Freeman's “Do You Want to Dance?"As I've noted previously, the latter is closer to a Ramones tribute than it is to the dreamy original, allowing it to fit perfectly next to newer Rambos tunes like the jangling punk of "Sweet Mothers of Death." That song tore across The Burlington like a black dust storm, contrasting starkly with some of the more plodding numbers that followed. Drifting away from their punk energy for a bit, Rambos gave their guitar players a chance to shred on some chunky, riff-heavy songs. The set ended with "Arrows," a song that has the musical charm of getting slapped in the face during a really great bout of sex. It hooks you in to the moment, leaving you to wondering whether you should slap back or start laughing. Either way it's hot and I'm comforted to know that this kind of fun has a place in 2012.

The duty of post-coital cuddling fell to Close Hits, who were more than eager to step in and give us a lighter bit of loving. That isn't to say the trio took the stage and eeked out pappy fluff, but their Motown and candy rock influences stir up a whole different kind of musical copulation.

Close Hits

When last I left Close Hits, drummer Evan Burrows was fleeing Chicago for warmer climates, leaving the band in a state of flux. The new lineup... looked a little like the old lineup. Ian Bertorelli assumed bass duties, while former bassist Ian Wisniewski found his way to the kit. Combining scratchy rhythms, schizophrenic solos and steadfast percussion, Close Hits bopped through a set that even the most ardent wallflower would have been hard-pressed not to move to. Singer/guitarist Dan Rico had his musical influences on full display, moving like Elvis, singing with a Prince-like flair and playing songs that sounded like a long lost Modern Lovers record. Unfortunately, the early portion of the set found his guitar burying his voice in a sea of fuzz, albeit danceable fuzz. Oh my, did I just coin a new genre?

Astutely dropped into a string of Close Hits' older material was a cover of The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Loving Feeling." Injected with a snap and pep the original never had, the cover was devoured by the crowd eager to sing along and shimmy. Other highlights included a song that sounded a bit like the dance rock cousin of "Blue Moon," and multiple catapults into the crowd by Rico. Not content daring the theoretical camera to film below his waist onstage, the singer seemed to want to actually make some babies in the crowd. Far too late to be the first children conceived in the new year, and likely not even the first conceived at a Close Hits show. The evening ended with Wisniewski and Bertorelli trading places, the former joining Rico to duet on a plucky, soulful closer. The song provided the only moment of sobriety in an evening otherwise filled with fist-pumping anthems and juke-along romps, and found Close Hits hitting their mark. With a new record slated for release later this year, let's hope the trio doesn't forget that last song while in the studio. A slow jam like that slipping out of my stereo might jeopardize my attempts not to procreate, but fuck it, if the world is ending at least I won't have to worry about paying this imaginary kid's college tuition.

A few Chicago music news bites

2012-01-04T16:21:00.000-06:00

No plans for Sunday, January 15th? Care to spend the day in "a creepy dark and damp warehouse" with Dastardly? The band is looking for people to be in their next music video on the verge of the release of their new EP, Bury Me in the Country. If you want in, click here for details.

Miss Alex White of Chicago's ever-rocking sibling duo White Mystery was recently featured as one of ten female guitarists you should know by Guitar World.

Locally-based experimentalists A Lull are set to embark on a winter tour later this month and have a new single, "Some Love," to coincide. You can get it for free now through the end of the tour (2/4) via Mush Records' Facebook page.

Gapers Block wrote about some of their best and worst Chicago music-related happenings of 2011.

Margot & the Nuclear So and So's have released a new single, "Prozac Rock," from their upcoming album Rot Gut, Domestic (out March 20th). You can download it via Amazon MP3 or iTunes, or get it as a 7" here. Check out a stream below.

Prozac Rock by MargotCloud

Check this out: Neighborpoem - 'Sold For Fire'

2012-01-04T11:25:00.000-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

Hugh Trimble carves canyons from the air. His latest output as Neighborpoem spans the atmosphere in huge, organic sweeps. As a fellow east coast transplant, I'm reminded of the mountains and cliffs of the land that touches the Atlantic. I understand the need to fill the flat midlands with songs that sound like torrential rains rushing down glacial granite slopes. With booming percussion and layered harmonies, handclaps and cascading guitars, Neighborpoem does just that. Like Fleet Foxes imbued with military urgency, "Sold For Fire" builds space and then fills it with transcendental echoes. This simple but massive track is one of three now available to download for free from Trimble.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://hughtrimble.bandcamp.com/track/sold-for-fire"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Sold For Fire by Hugh Trimble&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Show review: Color Card, Mines, Famous Laughs at Empty Bottle, 1/2

2012-01-03T21:05:00.001-06:00

By Anna Holmquist

Color Card

Well, kids, winter is here for good. Every time I stepped outside on Monday, I felt like I had to scream to express the unique pain I felt when a gust of wind hit me. I’ve lived in the Midwest for my entire almost-22 years of existence ((Thursday is my birthday!), but it hasn’t made me any more tolerant of winter weather.

Luckily, I had the Empty Bottle’s first show of 2012, which I attended with my friends JPLF and AA, to warm my soul, or something.

Famous Laughs was the first act of the night. Though Jake Acosta didn’t have any stage presence to speak of – I didn’t realize that the show had started for several minutes – his dreamy electronic space-scapes were the perfect soundtrack to the biting weather.

There is something raw and present about this kind of electro-experimental music that I love. It’s not so much music as it is an experience. Neither the audience nor the performer knows exactly what will come next. Also, he looped his vocals, and I have a weakness for that.

Next up was Mines. The vocalist was feeding his voice through a Fender ’63 Reverb unit and running that through a Twin Reverb reissue, creating a funky voice gimmick that worked… for the first few songs. By the end of the set, the fuzzed-out vocals became grating. Otherwise, though, the upbeat tunes kept my head bobbing. I appreciated the trio's obvious enthusiasm and the communication between band members. They never lost their cool, even when the bassist broke a string,

Color Card brought an Omnichord onstage and I almost lost my shit. I have Nerd Love for Omnichords. They also have a spiffy-looking, bespectacled drummer.

Their experimental, upbeat-but-not-quite-enough-to-dance-to tunes had me standing and swaying and tapping my foot. As with Mines, their vocal style underwhelmed me, but I think practice and variety could smooth that out.

Color Card is playing another free show with Grandeurs this Sunday, January 8, at the Whistler, so be sure to stop by and check them out.

Go to there: January 3-9

2012-01-03T08:00:00.000-06:00

This is the first installment of a new weekly series where we simply and succinctly tell you what to do each week. It'll mostly consist of local shows, but don't be surprised if we squeak a touring band or two in there from time to time. Get out there, Chicago:

Pet Lions play Metro Friday (photo: David Elliott)

Tuesday, January 3rd Mar Caribe at Hideout (9 PM, 21+, $5 suggested)

Wednesday, Januaruy 4th Close Hits and Rambos at Burlington (9 PM, 21+, $5)
(read previous show reviews for Close Hits and Rambos)

Thursday, January 5th Playfully Yours at Empty Bottle (9:30 PM, 21+, $8 or FREE w/RSVP)

Friday, January 6th Pet Lions, Tiger Bones at the Metro (8 PM, 18+, $9)
(read an album review for Houses by Pet Lions and about Tiger Bones most recent EP; guess that show wasn’t their last one after all. Find out how to get in for free on the event page on Facebook)

Saturday, January 7th Secret Colours, Apteka, Hollows at Empty Bottle (10 PM, 21+, $8 or FREE w/RSVP)
(Secret Colours release show for EP3; read a previous album review for their self-titled full length)

Sunday, January 8th Dastardly at Reggie’s Music Joint (8 PM, 21+, $5)
(here’s our review of Dastardly’s May You Never...)

Monday, January 9th Thin Hymns at the Whistler (9 PM, 21+, FREE)

New Year's Resolutions

2012-01-02T09:09:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Ok, I’m not normally one to make these kinds of things, but having been inspired by the list at We Listen For You for all of us who create, listen to, buy, steal, and write about music, I’ve decided I want to step up my own game on the Internet machine. So here is how I’m going to be a better person about music this year:

1) Preview more shows. Rarely a night goes by in this city without some incredible musical event taking place. I’d go to them all if time and money were irrelevant. But just because I can’t go to every show, doesn’t mean you don’t have to. Every Tuesday, I’m gonna run a weekly preview of shows I think you should go to. Why Tuesday? Because it’s just as arbitrary as any other day of the week. Especially during these winter months, I know we all need a little extra motivation to want to go out, so this is my little way of giving you a little kick in the ass and out the door.

2) Buy more vinyl. I think we can all agree that if anyone wants to purchase a physical copy of anything, it might as well be vinyl. I don’t know the last time I bought a CD and didn’t just immediately burn it to my computer and never touch the disc again. Considering a lot of bands and labels offer a download code with the vinyl, might as well get both the digital and analog bang for your buck. Not to mention supporting bands, labels and local record stores directly as opposed to relying on the Spotifys and Bandcamps.

3) Listen to more recorded music. Besides the abundance of year end lists that make another one just a piece of hay in a haystack, I’ve never really attempted one, because, well, I realize I just don’t take the time to listen to a lot of albums and become immersed enough with them. I am generally more attracted to the live setting and the sense that anything can happen as opposed to static content, but that’s only one side of the coin. Hoping my #2 will help in this department.

4) Read other blogs. Of course I read other blogs, but not to the extent that I should. Although this doesn’t fall entirely on me. Unfortunately, a lot of blogs end up posting the same stuff and it can be cumbersome to weed through the repetitive emails, posts and tweets about the new daily Weeknd album. Just gonna push myself to find better blogs with original content and hope that we at WCR help fill that role ourselves.

5) Never miss another ONO show again. This band has been around one way or another for longer than I’ve been alive and I only finally saw them a couple months ago. Part avant-garde noise rock, part performance art. Richard from Loud Loop Press coined them "Indavant Gospelgaze." Don’t make the same mistakes I have. Follow them on frontman Travis’ personal website.

Ohh, I’m sure there’s always more I can do, but this looks like a good start. Here’s to 2012. Cheers.

Record review: Young Jesus - 'Home'

2012-01-02T00:30:00.000-06:00

By Christian Chiakulas

The album cover for Young Jesus's Home looks like they just grabbed a bunch of their friends, posed underneath a tree and had somebody take a picture. Not that it's poorly done or looks bad, but the near unprofessionalism belies the music within.

From “Family and Friends,” a two-and-a-half introduction of sorts, you know this is an album with ambition. The second song, “David,” is most representative of the band's fun sort of pop-rock sound driven by lead singer John Rossiter's deep, passionate vocals that go from mellow, earnest singing to shouting in key at the drop of a hat. Underneath are layers of metallic-sounding clean guitars and the almost melodic beats from drummer Peter Martin, who joins with Rossiter's vocals to give the band their developed sense of dynamics.

“Falling For You” starts off quietly, with Rossiter singing over the single strums of a gorgeous clean guitar, until the bass comes in, then the rest of the band, and track three takes off. Bassist Shawn Nystrand shows off some of his skills, and Rossiter continues to impress with his singing abilities, especially in the backing vocals and melodies.

“New Cool” is a slight departure from the previous songs, trading in the chords for arpeggios, and containing a catchy staccato drum beat and doubled vocals.

“News” brings on the acoustic guitar, and a little blues. Once again, Rossiter's Gahan-esque vocals take center stage. About halfway through, the acoustic is traded in for the band's trademark clean electric guitar for a happy, funky breakdown and guitar solo. Rossiter screams through to the end, giving this song a noticeable climax, to a round of applause from the imagined audience.

The band does a quiet, melancholy and atmospheric reprise of the first song, “Family and Friends,” with more acoustic guitar and chanting background vocals. Aside from the backing vox it's instrumental, and serves to bridge the gap between the first and second halves of the album.

Young Jesus pick it up again with “Away,” and for the first time, we get a bit of distortion on the guitar as it fights to overpower the vocals. The guitar may be louder, but as with every other song on Home, John Rossiter's vocals are the centerpiece, practically the whole reason for the song's existence. "Away" has some cool interludes, and an extended drumroll with some atmospheric guitar effects, but you kind of forget about them whenever the singing starts back up. This is another screamer, with the band going nuts behind their lead singer as he switches between yelling and singing.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://youngjesus.bandcamp.com/track/away"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Away by Young Jesus&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;
The band continue this mean streak with “The Greater Boulders.” Rossiter shouts some kind of beat poetry over a driving bass-and-drum beat, then sings, then screams, never quite able to make up his mind. It mixes to create probably the most dynamic song yet on the album, although “Boulders” remains deficient in hooks and never really delivers on the promises made by the ever-shifting dynamics.

“Earthquake,” despite its name, is a sparse acoustic song with more sonic textures and eerie background vocals, so much so that it could almost pass for Leonard Cohen. It comes at a perfect time in the album, third to the last, and right before the behemoth that is “Not Quite Dead.”

With “Not Quite Dead,” the band could have indulged themselves to create a faux-prog bottle of pretension to curry favor with art-rock types, and although they may straddle the line, they never cross it. The intro is Rossiter singing over a clean, electric arpeggiated riff, before launching into a massive chorus/breakdown with distorted vocals, that while lacking melody, still beat the rest of the instruments for your attention. There's a false stop about halfway through, with a lot of feedback and industrial noises, then the band fades in with more laid-back singing, chanting backing vocals, and some piano for good measure, and plays the song off with an outro.

The piano stays for “Home,” the final track on the album. “Home” is exactly the type of track the band would be expected to close their album with, but that doesn't make it a bad thing. The piano is pretty, and when the beat finally comes in the song becomes catchy. The singing brings the song up a level, and the band goes out on a good note.

Home is far from a perfect album, and it's not built to be a chart-smasher, but Young Jesus know how to write good songs and how to put them together into a cohesive whole. Rossiter's vocals are absolutely the best thing about this band, but the songs themselves are worth listening to, especially “David,” “Falling For You” and “News.

'Home' is out Wednesday, January 4th via the band's record release show at Lincoln Hall (also with Canasta, Brontosaurus and Hemmingbirds), and January 24th digitally. Click here for tickets and more info on the show.

Fifteen of my favorite 2011 Chicago music releases

2011-12-30T00:49:00.003-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Damn. At this point the last thing the world needs is another year-end list, but here goes. I tried to resist adding to the mountain of existing roundups, but after seeing so many people write about their favorite releases of 2011 I started to think more about mine and what I might say about them in a sentence or two. In keeping with the spirit of this site all of my picks are releases from Chicago-based artists, some who I previously highlighted as favorites in years past and others who I heard for the first time in 2011. I'm not going to say they're the "best" because of course it's all subjective--I'm sure even my fellow WCR writers would have very different lists--but below are 15 releases that I enjoyed the most, in no particular order.

Company of Thieves--Running From a Gamble: For their second LP, COT managed a bolder, sharper, more memorable set of tunes to create the opposite of a sophomore slump. The crazy-good vocals of frontwoman Genevieve Schatz move effortlessly from sultry to snarling, and so does the guitar.

Pet Lions--Houses: Introducing themselves with straightforward guitar pop on 2009's Soft Right EP, Pet Lions expanded on that foundation with greater depth and more atmosphere on their debut full-length.

The Kickback--Mea Culpa Mea Culpa EP: Four solid tracks of muscular, hooky alt-rock that make me really curious what these guys will come up with on their first full-length, currently in progress. Plus, "Sting's Teacher Years" is quite possibly my favorite song title of the year.

Gypsyblood--Cold in the Guestway: Speaking of alt-rock, there's plenty more high quality, guitar-driven specimens on Gypsyblood's debut, which goes the extra mile by throwing in the occasional curveball like the strangely twangy "Dirty Thieves."

Architecture--When We Were Young EP: Dream pop that’s equal parts sweet and eerie. Sort of like music for a haunted dollhouse, which I can't say about anything else I heard this year.

Smith Westerns--Dye It Blonde: I still can't figure out why Smith Westerns are one of the only current Chicago bands people are willing to give buzz outside our city, but that doesn't take away the fact that this record's exuberant glam pop is worthy of praise.

Village--Local Moves: A great big guitar record loaded with power pop hooks, psychedelic undertones and pure rock 'n' roll energy.

My My My--Wishing You Whatever’s Best EP: One of Chicago's most consistently fun bands returns with more slightly off-kilter singalongs, this time with a dancier, synthier touch.

Pinto & the Bean--The Waiting Place: Electro-tinged pop/rock with a twist of quirkiness and a sound that comes across as much bigger than the product of a duo.

White Mystery--Blood & Venom: Just like you can count on the sun to rise, you can count on White Mystery for some good-time garage rock. Turn on their second album and let the rock and roll party start (there's even a track called "Party" to make sure you know what to do).

Tiny Magnets--Time to Try: This is a release so low-key that last time I checked you couldn't even buy it online (it's totally worth tracking down a hard copy from the band). Power pop jangle meets folky strum meets panoramic indie rock, all tied together with top-notch songwriting.

The Bright White--Until Then EP: Simply well-crafted rock songs that don't need any gimmicks to catch your ear and stay in your head for days.

Save the Clocktower--Carousel: On STC's second release, there are dreamy electro waves galore to grab onto and ride into blissful places.

Bailiff--Red Balloon: Bailiff is another band whose sound evolved in a great way from EP to LP, stretching their original bluesy vibe to something more varied and captivating.

Blah Blah Blah--Thank You Thank You EP: A strong set of charming, slightly melancholy tunes that reference new wave and Britpop. Think the Smiths, but more wide-eyed than cynical.

Margot & the Nuclear So and So's to release new LP in March

2011-12-29T09:09:00.000-06:00

By Shannon Shreibak

We’re all looking forward to New Year’s Eve. After a long year filled with hard work, stress and sleepless nights, we can finally end 2011 for good with the help of our methods of choice. It’s finally time to raise our glasses to yet another year. But Margot and the Nuclear So & So’s have more than 365 days to celebrate; they also have an album.

Rot Gut, Domestic, Margot’s fourth studio effort, will be released March 20th of 2012 from their own label, Mariel Recording Company. The new album further develops their unique style of guitar-driven indie pop. Rot is filled with the raw, lo-fi songs that dominated their 2010 release Buzzard, the beginning of an album trilogy wrought with their “panic pop” sound. This second installment remains consistent with Buzzard’s abandonment of bombastic orchestral arrangements that made Margot famous in order for a more focused rock sound.

Written in a mere 26 days, Margot frontman Richard Edwards began the process during a retreat in Pismo Beach, California in the wake of last spring. Searching for solace from the exhaustion of touring and severe stomach pain, he headed to the band’s west coast mecca after commencing the Buzzard tour. Using character development and imagery stemming from his experiences in the Midwest, Edwards paints an evocative musical landscape that envelops listeners in thick rock arrangements.

In celebration of this major accomplishment, MNSS will be performing at Deluxe at Amber Room in their hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana, on New Year’s Eve. Made exclusively for the NYE show, a limited edition 7-inch vinyl of Rot’s lead single “Prozac Rock” with B-Side “Fingertips” will be on sale. Any left over from the stock of 500 will be available to donors of the band’s PledgeMusic campaign before being made available to the public. “Prozac Rock” will hit the web on January 3rd.

Rot Gut, Domestic track listing:

1. Disease Tobacco Free
2. Books About Trains
3. Shannon
4. Prozac Rock
5. A Journalist Falls In Love
6. Frank Left
7. Fisher of Men

8. Arvydas Sabonis
9. Coonskin Cap
10. Ludlow Junk Hustle
11. The Devil
12. Christ

Interview: Ezra Furman

2011-12-28T15:29:00.002-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Ezra Furman is one of the unfortunately often forgot indie musicians of our day. Maybe because he started making waves around the same time as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and it was easy to compare his unconventional vocals to CYHSY's Alec Ounsworth's. But unlike them, Furman has continued to mature with each recording, growing equal parts more refined and primal. He and fellow Harpoons released Mysterious Power earlier this year, which nabbed a number two spot from the Sun-Times for the best of 2011. Now, Furman has a solo album: The Year of No Returning is ready for release on February 7th, 2012. The Evanston native now calls San Francisco home, but let's not hold it against him. The opportunity to go solo shows how consistent he is making stellar recordings, his gut-spilling yelp still in tact. Take a listen to the album's first track "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" here, and catch him live with the Harpoons at the Hideout this Thursday, December 29 and solo at SPACE on Friday, December 30. Read more to see what Ezra had to say about going solo, moving west and starting fights.

WCR: The new album that you have coming out was recorded in the attic of your apartment at Montrose and Damen. Why did you choose that environment as opposed to a studio or somewhere more conventional to record in?

Ezra: Well, it is a studio. I was living in this house full of musicians and weirdos and outlaws and stuff. And the top floor was a recording studio. It was just there, it was there and I was living there for months, went on tour and came back and it was still there and it was just calling my name, you know? I probably wouldn’t have even made the album if the studio wasn’t there. Well, maybe I would have. The house really birthed the album in a way, living in this house. I started writing most of the songs while living there. I moved into this house that musicians lived in, had a studio on the top floor, a live venue on the basement floor and I just started feeling differently about what to do with music. And it culminated into going up the attic and making an album.

Since Mysterious Powers was released only less than a year ago, how would you say the new album differs from that?

All the albums I’ve put out so far, I consider them rock and roll affairs...part of the goal was to capture the joy of playing in a rock and roll band where everyone’s playing together, having a good time. The new one is made in a lot more contemplative way. It’s built every track from the ground up, kind of. I was doing it alone without any outside help, except Tim [Sandusky] who was recording with me, the producer and engineer; there was not much input from anyone else. Rather than the rock and roll collaborative version of a musician, I was like the creative guy just kind of tinkering.

Is this your first foray into an entirely solo thing?

Yeah. Well, since the band has existed. I used to make some recordings before I was in the band. It’s so great to be in a band. It’s so fun for us, for me, to play live shows, and we want to make our records like our shows in a lot of ways. And that was always distracting us from getting down to the…I mean, you can hear it on some of the tracks we’ve made that we also have this drive to make…well, not softer music, but something that’s sort of less off the cuff and more composed and more contemplative. I don’t want to give the impression that the new album is all soft and stuff. It’s just made differently, where you can hear every instrument when it comes in.

I wanted to get into that next. You wrote these new songs after starting fights with strangers at bars. How exactly did that inspire you to write?

I’m a little shy on that matter actually. But yeah, it was a fight a song. This is where it starts to get sort of strange and mysterious and I’m not able to understand what's happening when I write a song…with maybe some exceptions, they’re not really songs about fighting. It was just this thing where…I don’t know, I think that writing songs you have to engage with what’s your idea of yourself as a musician and as a person, you know, and you start to get bored with yourself. I don’t know, there’s something about that fighting that was like a waking up kind of thing [laughs]. I don’t know, it’s strange, a song sort of stood up after each fight.

How often are you Jekyll and how often are you Hyde?

[laughs] I don’t know, the thing about that story is neither of those characters are really…you think of it as good and evil, and I guess it is, but it seems more about "normality" vs. "non-normality." While writing this album I started to feel less "normal" at some point. I don’t know if I can answer that question.

In that sense, you recently moved to San Francisco. Any particular reason?

You know, you can’t move much further west than San Francisco.…I think it was an echo of manifest destiny still bouncing around that I got a hold of just to go as far west as possible. Strange forces pulled me to San Francisco. Also, "normal" life outside of music distracted us as a band from being a band. There’s various band members who’ve got different things coming up and sort of, I won’t say totally unfortunately, but by a turn of events there was no…I wasn’t leaving anyone in the woods by leaving Chicago. We took a break as a band, sort of an indefinite break, that might just stop at any point. We might just get together at any point and go on tour or make an album.

What do you think about the music scene in San Francisco?

I don’t know, there’s a lot of bands I like in San Francisco but I haven’t met them. But I have met some nice, really cool, good musicians who are interested, who are engaged, I guess is what I mean. I don’t have that much to say about it. I like San Francisco. I like to walk around--everything’s a little bit fancy and a little bit dingy, kind of like New York without a certain East Coast bad feeling that I remember. That may have all come from just me. It just feels different. It feels like a different country. You should need a passport to go really.

Any favorite Chicago memories, music related or otherwise?

I used to really like going to the Hideout Tuesday nights for that bluegrass band, Devil in the Woodpile. There was a time I think I was going to every week. I don’t know, I don’t remember all far back in the Jekyll past. I have a buddy I like to walk around with. We’d have good times just walking all over the city. Like walk from Wrigleyville to the South Side. A loooooong walk. I’m not good with cities, though. I’m not good with Chicago. Whenever someone comes here and asks “What should I do in Chicago?” I say go to some second-hand record shop or something.

Check this out: Harmonica Dunn's Best of 2011 mix

2011-12-27T20:41:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Here's another dose of free music to help end 2011 on a high note. The "Harmonica Dunn Best of 2011" mix comes courtesy of Donnie Biggins, who put together the Chicago Roots Collective a couple years ago with the goal of getting local bands working together and developing a stronger music scene in the Windy City. Its 19 tracks feature mostly Chicago-based bands (many of which we've written about here on WCR, such as Bailiff, Dastardly, Derek Nelson & the Musicians and Sad Brad Smith) plus a few out-of-state artists worth checking out as well.

Check out the full tracklist below, and download it for free on Bandcamp.

1. The Happen-Ins - Be Yer Fool
2. Elephant Gun - Go And Leave
3. Bailiff - In The Reverie
4. The Dirty Pigeons - The Way I See It
5. Young Buffalo - Catipilah
6. Dastardly - Exercises In Self Loathing
7. Go Long Mule - Ghosts
8. Michele McGuire - Darling Girl
9. Antony And The Tramps - Gold Rush
10. Musikanto - Every Which Way
11. Farewell Milwaukee - Living On Your Look
12. Sad Brad Smith - Sure
13. Derek Nelson & The Musicians - Die Darlin'
14. The O'My's - In My House
15. Tristen - Baby Drugs
16. Flame Shark - Straight Through Your Heart
17. Rachele Eve - Wife Song
18. Rambos - Chuck Taylors
19. Ornery Little Darlings - Lazy

Tandem Shop Records gives the gift of free music

2011-12-23T20:52:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Merry almost Christmas, y'all. To add to all the seasonal fun, the people of Chicago's own Tandem Shop Records has put out their third annual holiday mix for free download. Wasn't that nice of them? You can now head over to their Bandcamp page to grab the entire thing, including two new songs from both The Island of Misfit Toys and Project Film, as well as tracks from Mr. Bear, Honest Engines and Tandem's newest addition, Many Places.

Although the tunes aren't really holiday-themed, try sneaking this on at the family get together when you've hit your breaking point from all the usual lame, overplayed stuff. It'll be sure to bring down the house. Or cause deep confusion. Either way, there's the potential for amusement. You can preview a couple of the selections below.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;lt;a href="http://tandemshop.bandcamp.com/track/big-foot-walks"&amp;gt;Big Foot Walks by Mr. Bear&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;lt;a href="http://tandemshop.bandcamp.com/track/art-school"&amp;gt;Art School by Project Film&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Record review: Barefoot on Bumblebees - 'Everything Shiny Is New'

2011-12-21T12:35:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

When the group then known as the gruesomely-titled We Will Eat Rats to Survive put out their first record back in 2009, they disguised the heft of their talent in a shroud of rust and wire. The songs were there, rock-solid and powerfully written, but it took a moment to settle into the grit of their aesthetic. I imagine followers of early Modest Mouse had the same experience once, before the group tightened their sound and scraped off the rough edges. Since then, though, the duo has been reborn. They've refined their songcraft, polished up their recordings, and even packed up their banjos and set out to play their music throughout the states. They keep an illustrated blog of their adventures on their website. Their debut LP as Barefoot on Bumblebees works as both a soundtrack to the travelogue and an independently wonderful musical reflection on yearning, death and wanderlust.

The raw quirk notable in Bumblebees' original incarnation hasn't dissolved entirely. A warm, lo-fi energy still pulses through Everything Shiny Is New, but the scratches and burns that clouded the fullness of sound on the group's previous release have been cleared away. This time around, the instrumentation inhabits a fuller role in the affect of each song. Bells, whistles and singing saws slink coolly around bristles of acoustic guitar and banjo. The arrangements have their bucolic charm, but the philosophy they're wrapped around weights each song with a momentum that pulls the record far from the realm of indie-folk preciousness and into a deeper, more vital space.

These songs sound exactly as though they were born hurtling down an interstate highway. From the brisk opening stomper "Lonely Are the Brave" to the haunted, hushed "Twos and Threes," they're laden with the kind of introspection that seems to blossom organically from the solitary rush of leaving. The record grapples with the sort of questions that arise in their purest form in transit; questions of what to do with the miles and years we've got left in our bodies, of where we ought to take ourselves before our time is up and what we ought to leave in our wake. On "A Road is Not a Road, It's a Metaphor," vocalist Christopher Stryker contemplates those long gone builders of the roads he drives; how they must have been striving for something beyond just the physical reality of the dirt and tar beneath their feet. Roads are just disguises for a larger want, just as the physical way becomes a vessel for an intangible metaphysical journey. "My life is just a segue, but it's the only way I know," remarks Stryker. We're only alive for a brief journey between unknowables, so we'd better choose well the way we take.

Barefoot on Bumblebees have matured their sound into a force that wrestles with the toughest stuff with an ineffable air of humility and sincerity. An LP that wouldn't sound out of place amongst the Elephant 6 catalog, Everything Shiny Is New is one of the biggest, bravest, yet most honest indie-folk records you'll hear in a while. It's narrowly sneaked in to become one of my favorite records of the year and I imagine it'll stay with me long into the next.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://barefootonbumblebees.bandcamp.com/track/the-art-of-dreaming"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Art Of Dreaming by Barefoot on Bumblebees&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Everything Shiny Is New is out now as a $5 mp3 download or a limited edition CD package complete with custom stamps made by Christopher Stryker. Barefoot on Bumblebees will be releasing the record tonight at the Hollywood Lounge at 8 p.m.

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-12-21T12:10:00.004-06:00

Scott Lucas & the Married Men will put on their second annual "Holiday Music Hour" at Hideout this Thursday, featuring an "old tyme radio variety show"-themed set complete with an MC and special guests (Rowlf from the Muppets showed up last time, nearly a year before the Muppets were all the rage again...just sayin'). If you can't make it in person, you'll be able to watch a recording on the band's website for a limited time starting on Christmas Eve.

As far as we know Dastardly still haven't found their stolen van, but they do have some good stuff going on to help lessen the pain. This week their recent session with Audiotree went live, and ever the crazy kids, they even shave their banjo player's head at the end. They're also gearing up for the late-January release of a new EP, Bury Me in the Country.

Jim DeRogatis blogged about Pitchfork editors relocating from Chicago to New York, and how that may or may not affect Pitchfork Music Festival and the future of Chicago band Scotland Yard Gospel Choir.

Richard over at Loud Loop Press wrote a review of the new album from Bully in the Hallway, in which he compares them to a twinkie.

Wilco week might be over, but WXRT has a bit of video and some photos to remind us of the veritable Tweedy extravaganza that went down.

Clip Art to play Schubas residency in January

2011-12-19T19:33:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

photo: Brad Meese

A lot of new music comes through these parts, and frankly, a good portion of it tends to fade from the memory just as quickly as it sinks to the depths of the ol' inbox. Every so often, though, something shows itself that refuses to be forgotten. Like Clip Art. It was back in the first half of 2010 that I reviewed Broken by Design--the band's debut EP--but its tracks still pop into my head quite often, making sure it keeps a comfortable place on my iPod. I mean, listen to "Dead Letter" and tell me it's not the catchiest damn thing you've heard all _____ (fill in the blank according to how much music you consume). Hook heaven. I haven't heard a whole lot from Clip Art since the EP came out, so I was pleasantly surprised to see they've got an active start to the New Year planned with a January residence at Schubas. Quality band paired with quality place to see live music is a recipe that should bring some much-needed joy to the frigid Monday nights in Chicago that are sure to be in store next month. Check out all of the dates and opening bands below, and get tickets here.

    1/9 - w/ Algebro + Any Kind
    1/16 - w/ Dick Prall + Paper Thick Walls
    1/23 - w/ Briar Rabbit + The Sometimes Family
    1/30 - w/ Baby Teeth + Jennifer Hall
    All shows are 8PM/$6/18+

Help Dastardly find their van

2011-12-16T15:19:00.001-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

You may have seen by now that Dastardly's touring van got stolen...or so they say. This music blogger is convinced band leader Gabe Liebowitz just got drunk and forgot where he parked it, but he claims otherwise. Apparently, it was last seen at North and Ashland Tuesday night. It's a bigass white Dodge van with black streaks on the side and numerous stickers on the back window. The Illinois plates read N38 7306. If anyone has any info on this, let Gabe know at gabe@dastardlyband.com and peep more pics of the van on their blog here.

Luckily there was no equipment on the inside, but I'm sure the band isn't looking forward to taking the CTA to their next shows. Speaking of which! The alt-folk band has a gig on January 6th at Honky Tonk BBQ with Cains & Abels. More officially, Thursday, January 19th at Lincoln Hall will be a release show for their newest EP, Bury Me in the Country. Brighton, MA and Santah are also on the bill for that one ($10, 18+, 8 PM). Until then, keep an eye out for that van!

Video: Secret Colours - 'Faust'

2011-12-16T15:17:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Just recently I was thinking to myself, "I wonder what Secret Colours are up to. For a while they were releasing new tunes and playing shows like crazy and I haven't heard any news from them in a bit." (yes, I'm enough of a geek to have these sorts of thoughts on any given day--but you knew that already). And then poof, like magic, one day shortly after I get word about their new release EP3 as well as an accompanying music video for the track "Faust." The track is a pretty sweet psychedelic freakout and the clip is kind of crazy, in a good way. Check it out below, look for the new EP on January 1st and see the band live on Saturday, January 7th at the Empty Bottle (free with RSVP--more info here).

Show preview: Noise for Toys, Friday 12/16 at Beat Kitchen

2011-12-15T17:33:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Last year I had the pleasure of being introduced to Archie Powell and the Exports at their annual holiday show at the Darkroom. Aside from adding revved up live energy to their already stellar album Skip Work, along with a few Christmas covers, the fellas threw vanity to the wind and dressed up in red onesies while rocking the night away. Not only did that cement them as a band I needed to see again, but I knew I wouldn’t want to miss another holiday show after a spectacle like that. This year promises to be even better with the Dad Rock / Not Dad Rock four piece playing along with the Scissors, the Noise FM, and the show being headlined by State and Madison. Local pop-rock goodness all around. As the evening is called the Noise for Toys charity event, bringing a sealed toy will get you half off the ticket price. As if that weren’t enough, all four bands roamed the streets of Chicago looking for a drunk Santa. Huh? Watch below then follow the directions. As for the show, you can catch the fun tomorrow night Friday December 16th at the Beat Kitchen (8:30, 17+, $10 / $5 with packaged toy).

Be in Unplugged and Reborn's First Music Video

2011-12-15T00:16:00.001-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Are you an actor? Do you like music? Want to party? Answering yes to just one of these questions means you should be in the next Unplugged and Reborn music video. The three piece is throwing a party this weekend for part of the video for the undeniably dancey “Khandi Kids” off of their debut Promise Me this Day. The role is simple: show up looking good and party. Seriously. Dressing in neon / retro / underground chic is requested, but certainly not mandatory. The event is free and open to anyone and BYOB of course. The party is taking place at 4447 S. Karlov this Saturday, December 17th at 8 p.m. and will feature DJ sets from Sickboy, Rude Gentlemen, Blowclerk, and Erok 69.

Leading up to the night, the band has been counting down, revealing more details and releasing remixes of the track in question. Head over to their website for the full breakdown. The band will be giving away CDs with the remixes on them while supplies last which makes it difficult to decide if you want free music or to be fashionably late? The choice is yours.

Hear A Lull cover Springsteen's 'I'm on Fire'

2011-12-13T12:00:00.000-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Cover songs are a tricky thing; when they sound almost exactly like the original they're pretty pointless, and when they go too far into a different direction they can totally lose the spirit of whatever they're paying tribute to. The perfect cover songs fall somewhere in the middle of the two extremes. Take the unexpected new version of Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A. cut "I'm on Fire" from Chicago experimentalists A Lull. Whenever I think of A Lull I think "really arty" and whenever I think of the Boss I think "rootsy dad rock," so on the surface this is kind of an odd combination. But it actually sounds really good, and A Lull do a nice job of finding that cover song sweet spot. Check it out below, and catch the band when they play Subterranean on Friday, December 30th with Deleted Scenes.

I'm On Fire by A Lull

Check this out: Village do Coach House Sounds

2011-12-13T09:20:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

One day in the not-too-distant, warmer past, Chicago rockers Village paid a visit to Coach House Sound's studio and recorded a live set of tunes that has just now seen a light of day. If you happened to catch my review of their latest album Local Moves, you'll know I was already a big fan of these guys, and they sound just as great as usual here. They played a few tracks from that LP, plus both songs from their recent digital single, one from their first release Minimal Animal, and a great take on Big Star's "When My Baby's Beside Me." Sweet sounds and good vibes all around.

You can check it out in either video or audio format here. Then, see Village live this Wednesday, December 14th, at the Empty Bottle with Charming People and Strychnine (free with RSVP--more info here).

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-12-12T09:02:00.000-06:00

A few Chicago acts have been announced so far to play SXSW 2012 in March, including Gold Motel, Musikanto, Chrissy Murderbot, U.S. Girls and Mahogany. Head over to Gapers Block for a list of others from the region and stay tuned for more.

The obligatory end of year lists are well underway. To link a few: Jim DeRogatis compiled his top 40 album picks on his Vocalo blog, Pitchfork ran their always amusing list of the year's worst album covers as well as their top music videos and top tracks, and Greg Kot took a look at the most notable box sets.

Opting for something different to roundup 2011's finest musical offerings, Gonzo Chicago put together a great Windy City-centric video featuring footage of live show highlights from throughout the year. Check it out here.

Locally-based mashup duo The Hood Internet released their new album for free download, including mashups of Ariel Pink, Foster the People and many more.

Daytrotter.com has a new session up for download from Chicago rock stalwarts Wilco.

Show review: Bon Iver at UIC Pavilion, 12/9

2011-12-10T14:03:00.001-06:00

By Shannon Shreibak

Anyone at all well versed in the indie music scene knows the overly romanticized story of the origin of Bon Iver. Heartbroken after a break-up, Justin Vernon secluded himself in the woodlands of Wisconsin during the harsh Midwest winter to emerge with his masterpiece debut album For Emma, Forever Ago. Three years later, Bon Iver has transformed from underground syndicate to a Grammy-nominated musical machine. It’s hard to imagine that they have reached such a high level of notoriety that they managed to pack UIC Pavilion Friday night.

Upon hearing that Bon Iver would be appearing at such a large venue, to say I was worried would be an understatement. There were too many hypotheticals to consider! I wondered if their ethereal sound would manage to fill the huge amount of dead space in the large pavilion. Would the songs maintain their trademark intimacy? How would the intricacies of Justin Vernon’s breathtaking compositions translate live? Not only were my fears put to rest upon listening to the opening song, but also I completely forgot about my qualms against the venue choice.

Beginning with cuts from the most recent album, Bon Iver, the nuances and impressive number of layers in the songs became evident. With as many as 10 men on stage at the same time, it took an arsenal to recreate the unique sound that has made Justin Vernon a musical innovator in his own right. The crisp drum rolls of “Perth” bounced against the dark expanses of the pavilion, leaving no audience member hungry for sound. Vocal harmonies between all band members were spot-on; it was easy to tell that I was not the only one left speechless at the first song.

The set list was Bon Iver in almost its entirety. Wrought with unrestrained sound effects and rolling guitar riffs, each song blended into the other seamlessly. Personally, I’m not a fan of seamless transitions between songs. I think that it prevents audience interaction and is unnecessary. But the way it was executed tonight created a beautiful soundscape to admire, not something to scoff at. One downside of these transitions was the length. Between “Holocene” and “Blood Bank” was a nearly five-minute saxophone solo consisting of no more than three notes. While much of the appeal surrounding Bon Iver’s musical style is its sparseness, this was taking it to a whole new level that shouldn’t be revisited.

Some early hits were interspersed throughout the set, including the guitar-thrashing “Blood Bank.” It was a unique opportunity to hear the evolution of the band as they have developed. From the almost strictly acoustic songs from For Emma…, toying around with auto-tune and overdub with Blood Bank and finally establishing a trademark “style” with Bon Iver. Three guitarists stood before massive pedal boards, a frightening jumble of wires and dials. Following most songs, they could all be seen toying with tones and volumes and effects. The result was an impressive new interpretation of songs that we have grown to love.

One of the reasons I was so thrilled to see Bon Iver live was to hear Justin Vernon’s infamous stage banter. I craved to discover the meaning behind his ambiguous and poetic lyrics, for him to shed some light on his inspiration. But audience interaction was minimal. When he did address us, though, it was often a comical observation or proclamations of gratitude. He even introduced “Towers” by saying, “This is a college basketball arena, and this is a song about college basketball,” and letting out a self-satisfied chuckle. Despite this minor shortcoming, I did feel that just being present during the performance gave me a new perspective on songs that have made appearances in the soundtrack of my life.

I think the most impressive aspect of Justin Vernon’s musicianship was the dichotomy between his true persona, a lovable goofball, and the crooning guitarist. One memorable moment was Justin revealing, “This is my first gig with beer men. That’s the shit! I’m pretty into that,” before unleashing his heart wrenching falsetto for “Re: Stacks.” No live recording could have matched the energy that radiated throughout the pavilion during that song. There stood a man completely alone, basking in the spotlight, still recovering from the very heartbreak that led him to that stage.

While I could nit pick and criticize the few shortcomings that were present last night, I’d prefer the contrary. I want to remember the concert as a perfect night when the songs that I listen to in my loneliest moments came to life. I want to remember the sense of comfort and companionship that just a man from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and his backing band created. I want to remember it in the perfection that it may or may not have been. Whichever it was, it just doesn’t matter.

Setlist:
Perth
Minnesota, WI
Towers
Michiant
Creature Fear
Hinnom, TX
Wash
Holocene
Blood Bank
Re: Stacks
Calgary
Beth/Rest
The Wolves (Act I and II)
ENCORE:
Flume
Skinny Love
For Emma

###

Check out more show reviews:
The National at Aragon Ballroom
Moon Furies at Double Door
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at Lincoln Hall
Austra, Young Galaxy, Tasseomancy at Empty Bottle
Prince Rama, Indian Jewelry at Subterranean

Show preview: Tiger Bones at the Burlington, Saturday 12/10

2011-12-09T10:52:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Tiger Bones are back with seven new ominous and cryptic tunes. When You Die finds the band exploring the same general sonic landscape as Go Over Here released in March, but with a more fully realized performance and production (despite an ever-present hiss throughout the EP). So that’s really to say, the brooding parts are more brooding, and the surf-punk parts are packaged in tidal wave sized surges of energy. My guess is the guys were watching a lot of David Lynch when writing these tunes, "Alone" sounding particularly Twin Peaks inspired. Conversely, "Send Me Gold" is loaded with fractured and anxious guitar riffs backed with uptempo drums. Although the album comes out Tuesday (via Candy Dinner), Tiger Bones are celebrating early this Saturday at the Burlington (3425 W Fullerton, 9 PM, 21+, $5). Limited stock of handmade CDRs of the new album will be available. The band recently tweeted that it’ll be guitarist Nick Hagen’s last show with the band, and possibly the last Tiger Bones show ever. As if that weren’t enough incentive to get out the door, the show is opened up with the Runnies, celebrating the recent release of their garage-rock stomper You Can’t Win. Sandwiched between the two bands is Paul Cary and the Small Scaries channeling Lux Interior and the Cramps. Gonna be a wild night.

Tonight: Sequoia, The Set, and more at Martyrs'

2011-12-09T10:35:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

The Set

Oh, hey there, snow. It's been a while. Good to see you could make it in time for the holidays. Personally I'm a fan of the seasonal frost (at least in December, while it's still clean and white and cheery and not slushy and awful) but if the shorter daylight hours are getting to you and you'd like to hide away somewhere warm and dry tonight while pleasantly battering away at your eardums, you might want to scope out the loud lineup at Martyrs'.

Chicago's own rock quartet Sequoia will come out to play their first show since releasing their third LP, Couple Two Tree, at the end of the summer. Their upbeat, thunderous guitar rock reaches the scope and density of Hum but carries a far lighter, janglier mood. Like Hum, Sequoia is definitely a band for the tone freaks, those of us who can't get enough of the electric guitar and the way it sounds when treated properly. And swinging in on their way back to their hometown of Minneapolis, The Set will drop by to play our own windy city. After dropping a 5-track EP, they went on to bring their sunny electro-acoustic rock to SXSW 2011. Not bad for a young Midwestern outfit.

We'll also see openers Hot Hot Robot (like Hot Hot Heat, but with robots instead, I guess) lay down tracks from their new self-titled EP. They're a punky bunch, with just enough alt-country slide tones woven in to keep things interesting. We'll also see Persistence of Memory in slot two with their metal-influenced, lady-voxed alt rock.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://sequoia.bandcamp.com/track/the-hunt"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Hunt by Sequoia&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Tickets are $8, doors are at 9, and the show is 21+.

EP review: Cousins - 'Axthoxy'

2011-12-08T09:55:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

Of all the "it" bands of a given year, there remains the question of who will last and who will drop away into obscurity after an album or two. No matter how beloved a record may be by all the right publications, it takes a special kind of inertia to become a mainstay in people's music libraries. How many "best new bands" of 2005 can you remember? As something of a digital hoarder, I keep all those records--deep in the recesses of an external hard drive, without playing them for years, but I keep them. And it's always interesting to go back and see how certain glowing criticisms of the past falter with the ongoing course of music history. That oddly tribal mid-decade neo-noise, for example, was a turn I never liked despite all the praise it garnered from the big players in underground music journalism. I may have not been an expert, but I think I was right. No one listens to Wilderness anymore. They weren't good. Noise is a hard genre to pin down. You need to build momentum with texture, bare weight, and punctuation rather than traditional songcraft. Most who attempt it let their progressions hang in stale air, hoping their effects pedals will be enough to carry them through. Then there are the bands who get it--bands who enter the reverbed fray with purpose and intelligence. Cousins? They get it.

This emergent Chicago/Milwaukee four-piece get that to build a true state of hypnosis takes patience--that sometimes a single chord, if propelled correctly, can fill more space than a whole hook. The opening whallop of a track "a" demonstrates a spectacular sense of pacing as it turns on its axis, building a full and spacious revolving drone. Two gently chanted lines fall in the background as a new animal swells. A quick look at Cousins' lyrics page reveals that they're based on a Eugene O'Neill play. In fact, the lyrics to each song are prefaced by a literary quote of some variety--some longer than the lyrics themselves. These intellectually-sourced snippets of text could stand alone as prose poems, but somehow work even better draped in echoes beyond recognition, discovered only when the work of investigating them is done.

Anyone who's listened to early '90s shoegaze and no-wave will recognize the shapes of those echoes. Cousins sources textures from recognizable places--the Sonic Youth, Slint, Slowdive roster, with an offhand Dinosaur Jr. vocal delivery thrown in for good measure. But they aren't here to reminisce. They've come to reassemble those artifacts with enough brains and brawn to make them their own.

The Axthoxy EP emerges as an exciting debut from a new band who understands how to play within their genre from the start. I can't wait to see how they'll evolve their sources.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://wearenotcousins.bandcamp.com/track/a"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;a by Cousins&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

You can download the whole EP for free now, or pre-order the $5 cassette release.

Show review: The National, Local Natives, Wye Oak at the Aragon, 12/6

2011-12-07T09:48:00.000-06:00

By Shannon Shreibak

The National

Very rarely do I find myself excited about opening bands. More often than not, they either bear no name recognition or their MySpace music samples are disappointing. But the lineup at Aragon Ballroom on Tuesday was absolutely flawless in every sense of the word. With Local Natives and Wye Oak opening for The National, there was little conceivable room for improvement. Whether it was the unrestrained energy of Local Natives, the drunken ramblings of The National’s Matt Berninger or, most importantly, the unmatchable music, the Aragon didn’t see a dull moment last night.

Wye Oak, hailing from Baltimore, Maryland, was first. Their opening song was strong, but an early cut that few audience members recognized. Luckily, redemption came early to the alt-rock newcomers when the second song they busted out was single "Holy Holy" from their most recent album Civilian. Vocalist/guitarist Jenn Wasner belted the difficult chorus with ease, pushing the limits of her impressive vocal range. A front woman whose falsetto can prevail over a deafening whirl of electric guitar and percussion is a true gem, and Jenn proved herself to be one. The crowd reached a point of elation when the opening chords of Civilian's title track chimed through the acoustically unsound theatre. Wye Oak traipsed off stage with a crowd full of newly declared fans.

After a quick set change, L.A. band Local Natives took the stage. Congratulating Chicago on our recent snow and promptly beginning their set, singer Taylor Rice enchanted the crowd with both his personality and voice. Local Natives played a well-rounded set, featuring about half of their debut album Gorilla Manor interspersed with new songs. The new material maintained the essence of the band with flawless harmonies and intricate guitar picking, while adding a new depth to their already strong catalogue. They closed with the single that catapulted them to notoriety, “Airplanes.” Its strong mandolin riff and catchy chorus enthralled the audience and energized them for the main event that we had all been waiting for.

Though both opening acts were strong in their own rights, no band could appease the crowd’s thirst for headlining melancholy rockers The National. Right on time, a giant screen hanging from the rafters of the stage shone with a black-and-white footage of the band preparing backstage. Some members were enjoying each other’s company; others paced back and forth nervously anticipating the electrically charged crowd awaiting. After a few long minutes of spying on the band, they finally vanished from the shot and appeared on stage.

The band took the stage with authority and tore into “Runaway” from their most recent album High Violet. They continued to meander through their breakthrough album Boxer as singer Matt Beringer swigged white wine as if it were water. For nearly the first half of the show, he seemed unaffected by the impressive amount of alcohol he’d consumed. His wails consumed the expansive theatre as he delivered a passionate rendition of “Squalor Victoria.” Matt’s drunkenness wasn’t evident until it was time to introduce the brass section. He fumbled through names and attempted to regain composure, but trusted multi-instrumentalist Aaron Dessner had already begun the recognizable piano intro of “Fake Empire.”

The band then abandoned the stage briefly and promptly returned for an encore. The beginning was rocky to say the least, as Matt forgot the lyrics to “About Today.” After which, he claimed that he knew “about 15% of the lyrics.” Just when it seemed as if the Cincinnati five-piece was going to abandon the encore, Matt redeemed himself with one of my favorite National songs, “Mr. November.” It’s an overlooked cut from Alligator, but it is one of the rawest songs in their catalogue and showcases Matt’s powerful voice and emotional performances.

The highlight of the night was indefinitely Matt’s crowd surfing during “Terrible Love." His vocals were surprisingly flawless for a man being groped and manhandled by hundreds of awestruck strangers and devoted fans. Maybe that’s what makes The National a band of true rock stars; they overcome their on-stage hiccups and deliver an unforgettable show.

A huge surprise for the audience was the final song, “Vanderlylle Crybaby.” It was shocking not just for the song’s obscurity, but also for its delivery. Members of both Wye Oak and Local Natives took the stage and sang along, beer and wine bottles in hand, as The National delivered a completely unplugged rendition sans amps or mics.

While there were some stumbles and minor hiccups throughout the night, neither the audience nor the bands seemed fazed. It was one of those rare concerts where none of the trivialities mattered, not the lackluster acoustics or a drunken lead singer; it was all about the music. One of those nights when we realize why we parted with 40 hard earned dollars and braved the chilling winds of Uptown—it’s all about the music.

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Check out more show reviews:
Moon Furies at Double Door
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at Lincoln Hall
Austra, Young Galaxy, Tasseomancy at Empty Bottle
Prince Rama, Indian Jewelry at Subterranean
Shonen Knife at the Empty Bottle

Video: Blah Blah Blah do Chic-A-Go-Go

2011-12-06T10:39:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Thank you, Chic-A-Go-Go, for consistently injecting joy into the world. Your rock and roll dance parties never fail to entertain, and what other music show could make lip-syncing so fun to watch? Case in point: Blah Blah Blah's recent performance. Keyboardist going apeshit + drummer drumming with pool noodles + dancing Santa + baby crawling around in the background = gold.

Show review: Moon Furies at Double Door, 12/2

2011-12-06T08:46:00.001-06:00

By Gene Wagendorf III

Moon Furies blasting out "Sun Burnt Love"

Former Chicago residents/current Brooklynites Moon Furies returned home Friday night for the first time since completing their 100 Shows in 100 Days charity marathon this past summer. Armed with a new drummer and a batch of fresh songs, not to mention matching turquoise pants, the band looked... snug. Energy was abundant from the get-go as the trio blasted off with "Way Down," from their 2011 release Mercury. The track found vocalists Andy Kiel and Jim Wittmann snapping trundling rhymes at each other over fizzing synth lines while gyrating to dance beats.

Moon Furies have never been short on catchy hooks, and the new material played Saturday proved that their load was not blown on record one. The first such cut found more of Kiel's flow snaking around a curvy synthesizer lead and clattering drum work by aforementioned newcomer Pat McAvena. Later, it was Kiel's guitar that took center stage on a new tune, slapping a zaftig crunch on some shadowbox percussion. A bit more bite than what I'd come to expect from Moon Furies, and something that a less confident group might have botched. Smooth electro-pop bands can get themselves into trouble when they drop the slick and get a little dirty, but here it worked, and with the right production it could be damned refreshing on a record.

Kiel and McAvena jamming

Despite a joke about the song's subject (a "bitch"), "Look At Me" stood out as being the urgent feeling song of the night, a result of a desperate-to-celebratory vocal turn and McAvena's mountainous crashing and thumping. The audio orgasm came courtesy of Wittmann, who dropped to his knees and wailed on his trumpet like he was trying to punch a hole in the roof with pure sound. "Sun Burnt Love" provided a nice moment, and proved that all breakups aren't ugly, as the band invited former drummer Andrew Hertzberg onstage to jam. The song benefited from the dual percussion, as well as Wittmann's raspy vocals. As if determined to blow his lungs out, he picked the horn up again and wandered through the Double Door, whirling out the opening notes of "Fallen" before springing back on the stage. Watching he and Kiel boogie through the set, I couldn't help but wonder if a part of them wished they could opt out of Moon Furies as well, at least for a night, so that they could spend more time dancing with the audience.

That unasked question was answered at the close of the set, when the band debuted their video for "Mercury 13" and played along with it. Its slow build exploded into what I've previously praised as being their most euphonic hook, making the song both undeniable danceable and emotionally gripping. All three members of Moon Furies looked to be on cloud nine during the it, which is probably only a few million miles lower than where they're aiming. Most of the crowd bopped along blissfully as Kiel and Wittmann harmonized on the line we cannot lose/ we were born to win. Well, they almost got it right. I'm thinking that this band is what they were born to do. Here's to winning.

Download a new track from Unicycle Loves You

2011-12-05T19:16:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

photo: Meagan Fredette

Chicago trio Unicycle Loves You loves you so much that they want to give you a brand new track from their forthcoming album Failure for free. I feel like everyone takes free mp3s for granted these days because nearly every band offers them and frankly a lot of them suck. But this one is in the camp that ensures free mp3s will never stop being worth getting a bit giddy over. "Wow Wave Cinema," operative word being "wave," takes you on a great big, joyous fuzz pop ride that doesn't stop for anything until it comes to a halt at two-minutes and fifty-seven seconds. Grab it below and keep an eye out for Failure on Valentine's Day 2012.

Download MP3: Unicycle Loves You - "Wow Wave Cinema"

As a bonus, check out another new track, "Sun Comes Out (And I Don't Care)," that ULY have released to preview the record. It features the same poppy goodness with a bit more of a '60s pysch vibe.

Sun Comes Out (And I Don't Care) by UnicycleLovesYou

Tonight: Free Smith Westerns show at Hard Rock Hotel

2011-12-02T08:35:00.003-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Free show alert! Our friends over at do312.com have put together another really great event, this time teaming up with vitaminwater for a "Winter Escape" at the Hard Rock Hotel's Fender Ballroom (230 N. Michigan Ave.), featuring sets from Chicago favorites Smith Westerns plus Franki Chan, Black Light Saints, Windy City Soul Club and Kirby Kaiser. Things kick off tonight at 9 p.m. and there will be a hosted bar until 11. You can get in for zip just by RSVPing on the event's Do312 page, and when you do so you'll also get a chance to win a private luxury ride to and from the event.

Show review: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at Lincoln Hall, 11/29

2011-12-01T17:42:00.024-06:00

By Gene Wagendorf III

CYHSY's Alec Ounsworth and Lee Sargent on "Misspent Youth"

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah took the stage at Lincoln Hall Tuesday night seemingly intent on confirming everything notion of them that I had going in. They're uplifting, occasionally boring, sometimes danceable and impossible to win an argument about.

Touring to promote their third and most recent release, Hysterical, the band Ponged between that new material and tracks from their first two albums. CYHSY have a pretty distinct timbre and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried that the set would wind up melting into a semi-repetitive blur of soothing sounds and whiny vocals. My worries were quelled early as the group rumbled through a broody version of "Satan Said Dance" that featured spelunking drums and a swollen bass line. That percussion then tumbled through "Gimme Some Salt," a skitterish, chunky jam slicked with low, grimy guitars. Normally bands that pull such scuzzy sounds from their instruments are fronted my mutton-chopped ghouls with bellowing voices, which made the nasal la-di-da of frontman Alec Ounsworth even more refreshing.

In a genius bit of setlisting, the aforementioned songs were followed by the twinkling narrative of "Misspent Youth." Probably the strongest of the new songs played, it gave me the same warm, pastel feeling I get from watching Lost in Translation. Ounsworth's lyrics, when decipherable, tend to lean toward interesting goofball stuff. This only makes his more poetic moments more convincing, as I found myself mesmerized while he sang there's a permanence to the memory of a bruise/ and I still take it on the chin/ for you. You're falling in love too, aren't you?

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah have the girls swooning

The opening chords of "In This Home of Ice" sounded far more grand live thanks to Lincoln Hall's pristine acoustics. This wasn't lost on the band, as at one point Ounsworth admitted being a tad intimidated by everything sounding "a bit too perfect up here." Apt phrasing, as moments of the show felt less like a rock concert and more like sacrament. I don't mean to get lost in hyperbole. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah wasn't exactly divine, but the atmosphere jived awkwardly with the fact that someone was burping Miller Lite next to me all night. The layered guitars that sculpted that mood came courtesy of Robbie Guertin and Lee Sargent, whose crystal swirls and balmy leads gave life to "Over and Over Again," an otherwise unspectacular song.

The main set concluded with two tracks from CYHSY's eponymous debut, "Is This Love?" and "Heavy Metal." The former was the highlight of the night; its trampoline verses and tilt-a-whirl chorus frolicked over the same snappy drumming that had the whole crowd dancing. I can't help but think that that's what recess would be like if the playground were littered with giddy 9-5ers. That's right, not only am I covering a rock show, I'm crafting a utopia for all of us. You can thank me when your job gives you 30 minutes of playtime. The dance party turned to collective pogo-sticking during "Heavy Metal," another song that never really stood out to me. The band looked most into this song however, even infusing it with a bit of Clash-like swagger. I know that's high praise, but it was also the second time in the night I thought that CYHSY sounded a smidge more punk than expected. Who knew?

The encore proved to be the only moment where I thought Clap Your Hands truly stumbled. "Adam's Plane" was a sort of bloated acoustic number that sounded like I should be taking it seriously, but mostly I was just bored. "Upon This Tidal Wave of Young Blood" ended the night, and though I was looking forward to hearing it earlier it sounded like it was missing something. What might have been a charming ramble early just felt like muddle with obnoxious yipping. An unfortunate end to what was an otherwise great show, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah probably reinforced a bit more love than they gained, but they sure as hell couldn't have lost any.

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Check out more show reviews:
Austra, Young Galaxy, Tasseomancy at Empty Bottle
Prince Rama, Indian Jewelry at Subterranean
Shonen Knife at the Empty Bottle
Mister Heavenly at Subterranean
Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab at the Empty Bottle

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-12-01T09:12:00.001-06:00

SmallChicago.com has posted a new live session with the always-entertaining alt-country outfit Dastardly. They've got video of three songs plus a photo gallery from the performance.

Josh Caterer of Chicago rock mainstays Smoking Popes has a new holiday EP out titled The Heart of Christmas, with a take on "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" plus a few originals. He'll celebrate the release with an acoustic show at Schubas December 14th (also with Scott Lucas of Local H and Rainbow Rhythms).

Audiotree has an audio session up from Bailiff, with tracks from their recent album Red Balloon and more (including a pretty sweet slow-burning take on the Boss's "Dancing in the Dark").

Jim DeRogatis picked his "biggest turkeys of 2011," calling out Metallica/Lou Reed, Bon Iver, Coldplay and more. See what he thought the year's worst were here.

Pysch-rock locals Secret Colours have a new single out titled "Faust," part of their upcoming five-song EP3 out January 1st.

Video: Hemmingbirds - 'Mellow Gold Haze'

2011-11-30T20:39:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

In looking back at my review of Death Wave, the debut record from Hemmingbirds, I realized I didn't call out the track "Mellow Gold Haze." I'm kind of surprised because I was totally feeling it just a few minutes ago while watching the new video for the song, but then again Death Wave had plenty of other tracks worthy of mentioning too. In any case, the clip--directed by Cody Ong--is a good reflection of the track's title, mostly featuring the band walking around the streets of Chicago, playing music and hanging out on the beach on warmer days. See for yourself below and catch the band live this Thursday, December 1st at Subterranean with Mutts, Sleepy Kitty and Glittermouse (tickets here).

Show review: Austra, Young Galaxy, Tasseomancy at Empty Bottle

2011-11-29T23:40:00.001-06:00

By Reagan Healey

Austra

I’m going to get right to it. This show was packed –like, ridiculously packed. Seriously, Empty Bottle, how many fire codes did you break? It was Canadian invasion night on Western Avenue this Monday, with shortlisted 2011 Polaris Music Prize nominees Austra returning to Chicago and the Empty Bottle on the last leg of their US tour with opening acts Young Galaxy and live collaborators Tasseomancy. It was about as cramped as I’ve ever been at that venue, but I’d be lying if I said the capacity crowd wasn’t entirely merited. In the spirit of full disclosure, I’d like to submit that the whole thing was pretty fucking awesome from beginning to end.

If I left it at that, though, I would be leaving a lot out.

I spent some time in my album review of Chicago three-piece Pillars and Tongues’ The Pass and Crossings discussing how acts that blend gothic mysticism and natural imagery with electronic instrumentation seem to have utterly taken the current music scene hostage. If that’s true, then this concert was undeniable evidence that the hostage situation is reaching a breaking point. Tasseomancy, fronted by twin sisters Sari and Romy Lightman, take their name from the practice of divining the future by examining tea leaves and wine dregs. If you can think of a hipper, more mystical name, I’m all ears –I mean c’mon, tea leaves and wine dregs, just wow. Dressed like a Romanian gypsy and an androgynous matador, they kind of resembled the ghosts of Bat For Lashes both Present and Future (respectively).

I’m not saying it was corny. Joined on stage by Austra drummer Maya Postepski, they delivered a perfect juxtaposition of witchy harmony with a tasteful blend of electronic and acoustic instrumentation. Of course, they also dedicated the show to a gay rooster named Henry. They elaborated more on that, but it was difficult to make out through their ghostly whispers –turns out speaking up is antithetical to being enigmatic. But why criticize the banter if the songs were solid, right? They certainly were, and Tasseomancy is also a lot of fun to watch, too. For some reason, being twins happens to go really well with acting supernatural, and they really acted the part. Romy was especially transfixing as she seemed to have perfected a dance gleaned in one part from a legitimate gypsy and in another from a strange old lady in church. When Tasseomancy joined Austra onstage later in the night as Katie Stelmanis’s backing singers, Romy threatened to upstage even Stelmanis herself.

Tasseomancy

Oh, did I mention where Austra got their name? Well, first of all, it’s Katie Stelmanis’s middle name. Also, it’s the name of a goddess from Latvian mythology. Turns out there are things more mystical than telling the future with tea leaves. First of all –and I bet Stelmanis gets this a lot, if both she and Zola Jesus were standing on a stage in front of me, I’m not entirely certain I could tell them apart. Second of all, Stelmanis is clearly the better songwriter. Feel it Break is an unbelievably catchy album, seeming at times to be crafted with each song in mind as a potential single. Add the vocal and visual impact of Tasseomancy to that along with Stelmanis’s own masterful vocal range, and the result is an experience that is at times honest-to-God transcendent. “Darken her Horse,” a powerful song in its own right, becomes flattening when performed live with a three-part harmony.

“Flattening” is a very good word for the whole experience. Austra live is loud, and I mean loud. The only louder band I’ve heard in a long while was Austra’s opening act, Young Galaxy. In fact, for “Beat and the Pulse,” Young Galaxy drummer Andrea Silver joined the rest of the band for a two-part drum arrangement in addition to a beat machine. You read me right. At this point, I would like to formally request that every band in the world from now on use two drummers and a beat machine for every song. I’m a fan of the genre, so I was expecting a lot from the Austra concert, but I certainly wasn’t expecting it to be mind-meltingly brutal. I thought it was a sign of patent amateurism when they began obvious fan-favorite “Lose It” only two songs into their set, but it turns out the Austra touring band is capable of elevating their entire catalogue into the stuff of anthemic dance-pop opera. They even did an encore. How badass is that?

Young Galaxy

–almost as badass as Austra’s opening act, Young Galaxy, as it turns out. Now, call me ignorant, but before this show, I’d heard of Young Galaxy, but I’d never bothered to learn more about them aside from the fact that they classify themselves as dream pop. And dream pop has a tendency to put me to sleep. Boy, do I have a lot of crow to eat after their set. I should have known I wasn’t in for the standard, politely ethereal indie rock show when I noticed that the band had decided to mic their bass drum. Not only that, but the bassist was using a full-sized Ampeg stack (ridiculous for such a small venue) which –get this, was also mic’ed! I’m pretty sure Young Galaxy mics their mics. It took a full 20 minutes after their set just to remove all the damn speakers. My ears are still ringing.

Young Galaxy’s M.O. was pretty simple: step one, begin with an oeuvre of catchy, appropriately danceable glimmering pop songs. Step two, set up your equipment as if you’re a hardcore punk band. Step three, perform as if you’re a hardcore punk band. It worked well. Really well. If there’s one thing I love, it’s watching an opening act completely blow the headliner out of the water. There’s only a few things more metal than that which don’t involve actual explosives. And while Young Galaxy didn’t exactly do that (only because it turns out Austra is also ridiculous live), I was convinced for most of their set that they were going to. The rapport between bassist Stephen Kamp and drummer Andrea Silver alone was enough to make them worthy of headlining their own show. Also, every single member of the band sings. If you enjoy three-part harmonies, Young Galaxy has more than a few four-parters for you. Clad in matching white outfits, Young Galaxy may not have completely upstaged Austra, but they proved that when the electronic goth bubble inevitably bursts, people looking for a good show will still have somewhere to go.

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Check out more show reviews:
Prince Rama, Indian Jewelry at Subterranean
Shonen Knife at the Empty Bottle
Mister Heavenly at Subterranean
Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab at the Empty Bottle
tUnE-yArDs at Lincoln Hall

This Thursday: Warm, Safe & Sound benefit show at Lincoln Hall

2011-11-29T20:37:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Excellent Chicago bands and helping people. Both very, very good things on their own, but capable of producing extra mondo amounts of positive vibes when they come together under one roof. Such is sure to be the case this Thursday, December 1st at Lincoln Hall, when locally-based acts The Bright White, The Kickback, Blane Fonda, The Steepwater Band and Hawley Shoffner play a benefit concert called Warm, Safe and Sound to collect coats/sweaters for the city's homeless. You can get in for $5 if you bring a coat or sweater to donate ($10 without), and all clothing collected will be given to Cornerstone Community Outreach who will distribute them to those in need.

The show starts at 7 p.m. and tickets are available here. Below is the schedule for the evening. This one should be well worth checking out, for the music as well as the cause.

7-7:30 PM - Hawley Shoffner
7:45-8:15 - The Kickback (EP review here)
8:30-9:15 PM - The Bright White (EP review here)
9:30-10:15 PM - Blane Fonda
10:30 PM - The Steepwater Band

Record review: Bad Bad Meow - 'Big Phat Pussycat'

2011-11-28T09:54:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

About a year ago, I did one of my first interviews for this website with Bad Bad Meow’s drummer Sarah Sydow. In it, we discussed possible first album titles. At the time they were kicking around the idea of Pussydoodle, but have opted for the slightly less offensive Big Phat Pussycat. Released back in May (yeah, yeah, better late than never, right?), the debut LP shows a surprising dynamic between the tracks and all the slide guitar you could ask for. The band centers around Sarah behind the kit, Alen Khan on acoustic guitar and lead vocals, Chris Ray on slide guitar, and a rotating cast of characters filling in on bass and other surprises. Sarah and Alen have played together in infinity +1 bands going all the way back to their days in North Carolina before moving to Chicago. They haven’t lost their southern charm since moving the great north, making equally sure they don’t get too serious, nor too silly.

The album kicks off with "Mother, Father," a deceitfully straightforward rock song, but a great introduction to Khan’s heart-on-the-sleeve vocals that bring to mind Frank Black (Black Francis, even) but with the hint of a southern accent. "La La La" is actually just as cryptic, hectic and head-spinning enough to be a Surfer Rosa b-side. Remember when I mentioned the dynamics of this record? The together-forever doo-wopish ballad "Run to the Middle" is followed by the self-explaining punk-blues, garage-stomp "Drink and Regret," turning the remorseful “I said it / we never / should have gone to bed together” into a cathartic chorus at the end. Of course, this is followed be the track that may have inspired the regret, the piano led "Touch It!" that just demands to swing your partner round and round (dance floor optional).

Bad Bad Meow made sure to make their mark in the tradition of rock star excess with ‘Country Repeat’ which could be the theme song to Benny Hill if it was set in the South. ‘Please Wake Up’ sounds like Alen was actually crying in the studio when they recorded this, the abrasive slide guitar, playful xylophone and electric pianner adding to the eeriness at the end of the song. The album closes out with the entirely not subtle "Drugs" which alone warrants the comparison to the Violent Femmes that they often receive. Overall, listening to the album is just as emotive and fun as it is to see BBM live. You can tell Sarah and Alen have a great chemistry from playing together for a while, while simultaneously being open to what other creative minds have to add.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://badbadmeow.bandcamp.com/track/mother-father"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Mother Father by Bad Bad Meow&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;
Big Phat Pussycat is currently up on bandcamp for $nameyourownprice. See Bad Bad Meow in action this Wednesday, November 30th at the Empty Bottle. The show starts at 9:30 PM, is 21+, $8 (or free if you RSVP online ahead of time). The band promises some special guests to take the stage with them. Opening it up is Pinto and the Bean (you already know what we think of those rad dudes) and Peoria based, Eastern European folk inspired Jared Bartman.

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Check out more record reviews:
Pillars and Tongues - The Pass and Crossings
Ian Hoffman - Dome Swan
Rocket Miner - Songs for an October Sky
Tiny Magnets - Time to Try
To Destroy A City - S/T

Video: Deadbeat - 'Accident'

2011-11-24T00:38:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Here's a new one from Chicago's own Deadbeat (a.k.a Jessica Risker, who also fronts Absinthe & The Dirty Floors) for lovers of chill indie folk and beautifully-made video alike. The track, "Accident," is a reflective number that is paired with footage of various sea creatures doing what sea creatures do. On paper this might not sound like anything too thrilling, but the visuals, by Loren Risker, are stunning, the tune is sadly beautiful and together they're entirely engrossing. Check it out:

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-11-21T14:32:00.001-06:00

Gapers Block has the details on an upcoming exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago that will feature a collaboration from Andrew Bird and sculptor/luthier Ian Schneller. There will be a visual aspect including a "sound garden" of audio horn speakers as well as a performance by Bird.

We've still got a while until we find out who's going to play Lollapalooza 2012 in Chicago, but lineups have just been announced for the upcoming Chilean and Brazilian installments of the fest. Check them out here and here and let the Lolla Chicago lineup speculation begin.

LoudLoopPress.com has some video from last Thursday's M83 show at Lincoln Hall.

Long-time Windy City rockers Local H are apparently Rush fans, and they're out to make it known this New Year's Eve at the Bottom Lounge where they'll ring in 2012 with a salute to Rush's 2112. "Being Rush fans, we also realized that it was now or never to do something with 2112," says frontman Scott Lucas. "It's not numerically correct, but none of us will be around in 100 years, so we're doing this for humanity's sake."

EP review: Narrow Sparrow - Synthworks

2011-11-21T11:37:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

Remember those trippy scenes from Gumby when Gumby and pals would be roaming around outer space encountering all sorts of strange things for no apparent reason? As soon as the intro track, "Joe Meek's Dream," off Narrow Sparrow's debut EP Synthworks starts, I'm for some reason reminded of that. Random, yes. But any band who can make me think of such things is OK in my book. Like those old clips, this stuff is as far out and weird as it is colorful and accessible, and I can just imagine the happy green lump of clay running around on the moon while these blippy bedroom-pop sounds play away in the background (of course, the spacey, retro pop culture-referencing, stop-motion video for the track probably didn't hurt in making this connection).

"Joe Meek's Dream" is the definite jewel in the crown of the four-track Synthworks, but the entire EP is a solid introduction. "Spooky Head" combines the band's overall eerie spaciness with doo-wop and some creepy laughing noises to enchanting effect, while the vintage chirped synths and hazy mood of "Glow" take the eeriness even further. Final track "Moon Temple" caps it all off properly as a manic psychedelic send-off for this Chicago band's musical endeavors. It all ends too soon, but that's not really a bad thing because I know I'll be all ears whenever Narrow Sparrow comes up with something else.

You can hear for yourself by downloading Synthworks for free here.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;lt;a href="http://narrowsparrow.bandcamp.com/track/joe-meeks-dream"&amp;gt;Joe Meek's Dream by Narrow Sparrow&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Show preview: Soft Speaker, Secret Colours, more at Beat Kitchen, 11/19

2011-11-18T08:26:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

Most bands are lucky to keep up a rate of one album release a year, if that. But the psych-rock ensemble Soft Speaker have plowed through typical conventions of productivity by releasing their second full-length of 2011. Vortrobos dropped earlier this month as the follow-up to April's debut I'll Tend Your Garden, and the new record stands as a notable refinement of what was already quite a promising sound: vintage psychedelia reinforced with hefty prog muscle.

These prolific genre-swirlers will be celebrating the release of Vortrobos tomorrow night, November 19th, at Beat Kitchen. Joining them will be fellow psychedelic revivalists Secret Colours, who are a must-follow for any Chicago listeners nostalgic for the days of The Jesus and Mary Chain. Garage-gaze outfit Hotel St. George will also be swinging in from the west coast, while local emo-pop trio Headshadow will kick everything off.

It's sure to be a fuzz-laden evening out of these four, topped off by performances of brand new Soft Speaker tunes that sound about ready to explode in the moment. Check out 'Jeju Island' below for a snippet of what's in store.

Jeju Island by SOFT SPEAKER

Doors at 8, show at 8:30, 17 and over, tickets $8.

Show review: Prince Rama, Indian Jewelry at Subterranean, 11/15

2011-11-17T20:51:00.000-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Indian Jewelry (photos: Shannon Aliza)

Prince Rama is bizarre. Their history is steeped in as much mysticism as their music. The current incarnation involves sisters Taraka and Nimai Larson. They lived on a Hare Krishna farm in Florida, recorded their newest album Trust Now in a 19th century church in Seattle and now live in Brooklyn where they hold “group exorcisms to the score of old VHS workout music and re-staging apocalypses through chopped and screwed pop songs.” As for the music? It sounds tribal, touching multiple ethnic backgrounds, and values ritual at its core. They rely only a keyboard and drumkit (which makes ample use of the splash cymbal). They both sing and absolutely everything is covered in a thick layer of reverb (a bit too much for the recipe in my opinion). "Rest in Piece" sounds like it would be perfectly at home in a late 19th century Chinese opium den. The absolute best part of the night Tuesday: the music stops – the sisters whisper the word “trust” – Takara moves to the front of the stage, turns her back, and successfully trustfalls into the audience, carrying her stiff body throughout the SubT floor. Far out.

Taking the stage next was Houston’s Indian Jewelry (aka Corpses of Waco, aka the Turquoise Diamonds, aka, the Perpetual War Party Band, aka…). Lots of droning noise and psychedelic experimentation and you can tell they’ve listened to a PIL album or two. The blaring strobe lights on the floor made for a very uncomfortable effect, but really were quite appropriate to the disorienting nature of the music itself. It had a brainwashing, or even amnesiac quality to it. As soon as it was over, I felt like I woke up from out of some absurd dream that I can only vaguely recall.

Peep some more photos after the jump:

Prince Rama

Ghost of Nimai Larson

Indian Jewelry

Indian Jewelry, now with more strobelights!

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Check out more show reviews:
Shonen Knife at the Empty Bottle
Mister Heavenly at Subterranean
Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab at the Empty Bottle
tUnE-yArDs at Lincoln Hall
Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle

Record review: Pillars and Tongues - 'The Pass and Crossings'

2011-11-16T13:32:00.001-06:00

By Reagan Healey

The recent return of gothic sensibilities to popular music has been a strange one. Artists like Zola Jesus, Chelsea Wolfe and Former Ghosts seemed to appear practically out of nowhere, and their recent success has been just as inexplicable. This is the changing face of the dark. This is where the eerie side of pop was apparently hiding these past few years, and it’s this same strange alcove where Chicago three-piece Pillars and Tongues draw the somber yet incessant energy for their 35-minute release The Pass and Crossings. They haven’t exactly altered their sound since Lay of Pilgrim Park; they haven’t even really expanded it. To the contrary, with the release of The Pass and Crossings, Pillars and Tongues seem more focused than ever, relying less on vocal loops and sampling for a sound that is poignantly spare yet abyssal.

The influx of apocalyptic imagery and spooky arrangements into music’s mainstream doesn’t really fit neatly into what we’re accustomed to calling “gothic” in popular culture. Gone are the vampires, tombstones and overwrought theatrics. In fact, Pillars and Tongues are not exactly unique in that they tread much more closely to the traditional associations of Gothic literature as opposed to music. In The Pass and Crossings, nature is an ever-looming presence, cast in an eldritch, threatening light and endowed with an almost mystical significance. In “Oaky (Doting),” Mark Trecka moans: you are wading in your springs / you are an oaken ash / you are come upon your veils / you are wild grass. A sublime sensation of destiny and doom has replaced the old clichés of “goth,” and the sad truth is we don’t really have a good word for it.

Central to the sense of doom that pervades The Pass and Crossings is the interplay between Elizabeth Remis’s violin and Trecka’s harmonium (which permeates the entire record). On the epic dirge “A Dance In the Billowing Absence,” the album’s first and (at over nine minutes) longest track, the violin is highly reminiscent of Nick Cave’s score for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. In fact, there is something very cinematic about the scope of the band’s sound as a whole; the moods of songs shift over their course as if narrating some unseen film. In the case of the first track, tension builds as the harmonium slowly takes over. It sounds like a funeral organ.

The band is most affecting when it assumes these quasi-religious overtones. My personal favorite track on the release is probably “The Making Graceful” for its perfect mixture of disturbing obsession and almost pious devotion. Throughout the record, Pillars and Tongues utilizes Middle Eastern scales and psalm-like song structures. In the best moments, the spiritualism seems to barely camouflage a deep chasm of sexuality and animosity. In “The Making Graceful” as well as the album’s closer, “Decadent Crossing” the divine covers the dark and bottomless pit like a thin blanket of dead leaves.

Thank you, Oaky by Pillars and Tongues

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Check out more record reviews:
Ian Hoffman - Dome Swan
Rocket Miner - Songs for an October Sky
Pinto & the Bean - The Waiting Place
Tiny Magnets - Time to Try
To Destroy A City - S/T

Show review: Shonen Knife at the Empty Bottle, 11/12

2011-11-15T14:12:00.006-06:00

By Gene Wagendorf III

Yamano sings "Rock N Roll High School"

30th anniversary tour. The words bring images of bloated, wrinkled musicians and hired-guns wistfully stomping through cookie-cutter set lists and audiences split between those blinded by the thrill of their favorite hit and those left coldly disappointed by an impotent showing. Enter Shonen Knife and throw out everything I just said.

The pop-punk trio from Osaka, Japan opened their set Saturday with "Konnichiwa," from 1998's Happy Hour, immediately turning The Bottle into a grimy, sweaty basement party. Blunt drumming tussled with Ritsuko Taneda's rippling bass lines, instantly rubberizing knees and necks. The bassist jammed in sync with founding singer/guitarist Naoko Yamano, going for what looked like a kind of ZZ Top-meets-Devo thing. Serrated distortion shimmered through the bop of "Rock Society," the first of several songs played that justify the plethora of Ramones-comparisons associated with Shonen Knife. Built for fist-pumping, the tune is of the positive and playful punk that tends to be forgotten when talking about "real music." Yes, it can be difficult to take a band who earnestly plays songs like "I am a Cat" seriously, but any listener with their nose so upturned that they can't enjoy simple things like great melodies, stupid, giddy lyrics and a great beat is a fool who I didn't need to run into at the show anyway. The aforementioned kitty-themed song was sung by drummer Emi Morimoto, whose pixie voice pleasantly swayed over polished guitar flourishes.

Shonen Knife rips through "Twist Barbie"

"Capybara," named after a large South American rodent, was probably the night's most refreshing number, a buoyant ska romp that begged to be danced to and, tragically, was the end of animal-themed music. 1986's "Devil House" followed, a twinkling homage to the '60s girl groups that Shonen Knife is clearly influenced by. Yamano's voice seems to have only gotten better with age. Her performance was more elastic and endearing than on the now 25 year old song. The musical winks to past groups continued with "Redd Kross," a tribute to the California rock band of the same name. The main set closed with grinding metal jam that started off Motorhead and ended in a twisting, jerky Sabbath-esque crunch, causing the crowd to throw up the most sincere devil horns I've seen at a show in a long time. The entire night played out like a history lesson, except, you know, it was undeniably fun. Shonen Knife used this big 30th anniversary tour to play some classics and a few deep cuts, to show their range and most of all, get the crowd bopping.

For their encore the trio tossed out any need to play "guess the influence," returning to perform the bulk of their new record, Osaka Ramones, which, you guessed it, is a Ramones cover album. The crowd ate it up, melting into one of the friendliest pits I've ever seen (Riot Festers, this is how it's done). Having never seen the Ramones, getting the opportunity to slam to "Beat on the Brat" and "The KKK Took My Baby Away" was a treat, and I couldn't have been more pleased with the show's conclusion. That said, it did point out to me just how lazy the excessive comparisons are. Yeah, Shonen Knife learned a lot from Joey and the boys, but their sound is a mesh of that a whole lot more. They certainly do those pop-punk songs with a kind of ditzy perfection, but if that's all I had heard on Saturday I would've felt a little cheated. Instead I was left debating a trip to Indianapolis to see the band again in two nights. That is how I'll describe Shonen Knife from now on, not as "chick Ramones from Osaka," but as "a group so good I almost went to fucking Indianapolis."

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Check out more show reviews:
Mister Heavenly at Subterranean
Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab at the Empty Bottle
tUnE-yArDs at Lincoln Hall
Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle
Electric 6 at Double Door

Show review: Mister Heavenly at Subterranean, 11/13

2011-11-14T15:53:00.001-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Now that the buzz over Michael Cera being in Mister Heavenly has diminished, we can get a better look at what the Man Man / Islands / Modest Mouse members can do with the talents that have given all of their original groups such unique sounds. As all of the previous bands can be defined by a sound that rates on the higher end of the quirky scale (well, older Modest Mouse at least, but Man Man and Islands for sure), Mister Heavenly is a more refined, even conventional outfit. Keyboardist Ryan Kattner is without his all white tennis uniform, facepaint and handlebar mustache he is so accustomed to wearing on stage with Man Man and Nick Thorburn from Islands (and previously the Unicorns) is just a very straight-laced, suspenders-wearing guitar player. Opening Sunday night at SubT with “I Am a Hologram,” the impression is already made that this is a more straight up rock and roll show. In fact, it only took until the eponymous second track they played that you could tell where their self-described genre of "Doom-Wop" comes from. Likewise, it is an interesting juxtaposition between Ryan's Tom Waits growl with Nick's more clean-cut vocals. Kattner hits the lower octaves on the keyboard to make up for the Cera-less bass and the drummer threw a maraca to the most enthusiastic crowd member in the front row (the kid was later awarded "Best Person Alive" by Nick; kudos).

Although a little lackluster at the beginning, the trio only built up the energy throughout the evening. Kattner began to add in some of the chaos and dissonance that he is known for in Man Man (where he is known as Honus Honus) and that energy met its climax five songs in during the bridge of "Reggae Pie." The track that started out as an ominous lounge-jazz/reggae jam erupted into a violent destruction of the keyboard, Kattner unable to contain himself, punching and sitting on the ivories; the song expressed an energy unexplored on the album version, even Joe Plummer letting loose from behind the kit. It was easily the highlight of the evening and the band did a great job of keeping the energy up. They followed with the Buddy Hollyesque '50s rock of "Charlyne," a cover of Cody ChesnuTT’s "Look Good in Leather" (despite none of the members proving it fashionably), and the cryptic "Diddy Eyes."

The set closed out strong with "Bronx Sniper," which not only has one of the best videos I’ve seen this year, but also prompted a few members of the audience to hop on stage at Subterranean, do a little dance and attempt to jump into the crowd and surf like they do in the moving pictures. Whereas most failed, one determined young man was successful during "Pineapple Girl," and you could tell the band was feeding off the energy. It’s very easy to be skeptical of "supergroups" as Mister Heavenly may be considered, but the guys do have a great artistic connection with each other, all while still retaining their individual voices.

As the band had already exhausted the entirety of their only album, this year’s Out of Love, Kattner returned to the stage by himself, donning a black Rodman jersey someone threw on stage earlier to play a solo track. He introduced it: “This song’s a real bummer so I dedicate it to all of you.” Allegedly, it was written on the spot in the green room. Not to be outdone, Plummer and Thorburn performed one of their own, before the group all came back together to cover "Hybrid Moments" by the Misfits, Kattner taking lead vocals, jumping into the crowd and starting a raucous pit. Free from the shackles of his keyboard stool, Kattner made sure the crowd poured every last ounce of energy onto the checkered SubT floor to close out the night.

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Check out more show reviews:
Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab at the Empty Bottle
tUnE-yArDs at Lincoln Hall
Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle
Electric 6 at Double Door
Omar Souleyman at the Empty Bottle

Show review: Supreme Cuts, Memoryhouse, Balam Acab, 10/11

2011-11-13T23:19:00.001-06:00

By Reagan Healey

Supreme Cuts

Chicago duo Supreme Cuts refuse to be labeled “post-dubstep,” preferring instead the more whimsical “future R&B,” even musing on their Twitter that post-dubstep should sound “like Godspeed but with wobble bass” (ha ha ha). But despite their professed distaste for the Skrillex cult, there is a pretty striking similarity between most sample-based music and pretty much all dubstep: as a general rule, the most inebriated guy in the room is usually the only one who knows how to dance to it. That said, Supreme Cuts are an absolute trip, a local treasure. They’re like a fucked-up Yin-and-Yang that smells of menthol cigarettes and blunt smoke--that last part isn’t a metaphor, by the way, Slack Kevorkian damn near knocked me over on his way for a cigarette after Friday night's show at the Empty Bottle, and he really did smell like weed and more weed.

Slack Kevorkian (also known as Magical Options) and his bandmate Mike Perry seem onstage like the kind of opposites you find in an '80s cop-comedy. Mike Perry looks like a slightly younger, more wholesome version of Alan Palomo of Neon Indian. Slack Kevorkian looks like someone who would overcharge you for hydrocodone. Clad in a Gucci Mane hoodie, his long, stringy black hair pulled out of his eyes with a dirty Bulls cap, he seemed part early Jack Donoghue, part Jay from a Kevin Smith film. If he didn’t have the habit of constantly gushing over his favorite artists (which range from Waka Flocka Flame to James Ferraro), he really would have run the risk of coming off too sketchy for his own good.

Supreme Cuts are in between records at the moment: their debut EP Trouble is currently available through Small Plates Records, and their first LP Whispers in the Dark is slated to come out sometime in the spring. Given the duo’s unapologetic admiration of smooth R&B acts like R. Kelly and Keith Sweat, it doesn’t take long to guess where they might have found the latter title. If leaked single “Belly” is any indication, though, it’s an apt name. The duo’s absolute wealth of samples, although distorted and layered out of recognition, seems culled from obscure early-'90s soul compilations designed specifically for sex. Every good sample-based act needs an angle--that is, an essential feeling to the bits of sound they dig up and manipulate. Supreme Cuts' sound is uniquely their own: sleaze layered on with a heavy, sweaty hand.

Comparisons to Burial are an easy stretch when discussing Supreme Cuts, but to do so would be to miss some of the more subtle points about the duo's sound. Though both acts tout soundscapes crafted from the doldrums of urban life, Supreme Cuts is a uniquely Chicago outfit. Burial is contemplative to the point of being somber, but Supreme Cuts’s picture of the city is wry, even blithe. Also, Supreme Cuts’ samples tend to be shorter. This may seem a small detail, but it allows them to repeat samples in rhythmical variations impossible for other acts. Kevorkian and Perry build their songs through looping and punctuating intertwining rhythms over a song’s ethereal skeleton; the effect is not unlike that of Steve Reich’s Drumming or Clapping Music, as the syncopated samples coalesce, diverge and ultimately form something completely different through minor variations in cadence.

At the end of the last song Friday night, the duo suddenly abandoned their MIDI controllers and rushed off the stage in a cheesy move reminiscent of Prince or even the Beatles. I suppose it was supposed to remind the audience of an emcee dropping the proverbial mic, and I will admit for the minute or so it took the fading echoes and feedback to finally dissipate, it did seem genuinely badass (if a little gimmicky). It was as if they were saying, “just in case you guys were wondering how much craft goes into our live shows, this is what it sounds like when we stop pressing buttons.” Of course, tongues planted firmly in their cheeks, they then duly returned at the end of the song not to perform any sort of encore, but because they had to pack up their equipment and make room for Memoryhouse. Oh, Supreme Cuts, don’t ever change.

Memoryhouse

Toronto’s Memoryhouse recently re-envisioned and re-released their The Years EP to somewhat less critical acclaim than the original received over a year prior. And though I hate to simply add voice to an already established opinion, the introduction of more full, “organic” arrangements to their sound (most notably a drummer in place of a drum machine) just hasn’t done much for the group at all. I’ll be blunt: it’s mostly the drums that bother me. I don’t mean to rag on Daniel Gray. He’s been catching a lot of criticism in general for some of the changes he’s brought to the band’s sound, and that’s probably due largely to the fact that with fuller, more sweeping compositions, Memoryhouse just sounds less lo-fi (read: hip).

But I really did like that drum machine, and when Daniel Gray, talented multi-instrumentalist that he is, finally stepped away from the kit to man keyboards and sing backing vocals, I was stunned by how much more exciting the band sounded. In a single moment, they had gone from an obviously talented but boring shoegaze band with a reverby Telecaster and an Urban Outfitters model lead singer to an updated, more electronic version of nostalgia rock with a wonderful sense of harmony and balance. Seriously, I was ready to spend one paragraph panning their new lineup completely before moving on, but although the current arrangement doesn’t seem to be working for Memoryhouse right now, the band has shown the clear potential to be more vital than ever with some minor tweaking (might I suggest leaving the drums in Canada?). Interesting fact: The middle C key has been broken off of Daniel Gray’s synthesizer. Maybe it was damaged during touring, or maybe it was done intentionally to keep the band from feeling too comfortable with their instruments. I hope it was the latter, and not just because it makes for a really cool story.

Balam Acab

I wasn’t originally planning on covering the headliner, Balam Acab, in very much depth. If you’re the kind of person who reads music blogs, chances are you already know him and know exactly how you feel about him; Pennsylvania-native Alec Koone has been generating more buzz in 2011 than just about any other artist I can think of. However, Balam Acab has altered his material for his live show; introducing new songs, more traditional (vocal-heavy) arrangements of old ones, and most noticeably a talented young singer. Toward the end of the show, amidst their charmingly awkward “thank you”-s, she remarked that this was only Balam Acab’s third live show ever.

And it showed. Though the obvious star of the night, 20-year-old Alec Koone (who had an X drawn on his right hand to keep him from being served alcohol), seemed to be the least-confident guy room, acting genuinely touched to receive applause after each of his songs. In truth, it added to his idiosyncratic appeal. When Alec (who couldn’t be taller than 5’8”) would pick up the microphone to sing, he would turn out his palms and straighten his back, giving the impression of a flower in bloom. It was cherubic and strange, but hey, the guy can sing. The whole set sounded really new and exciting, maybe even more entrancing than the original recorded version of Wander/Wonder. At the very least, it felt like falling in love with the record all over again. And when the duo really hit their stride on the sprawling, gorgeous “Motion,” it was immediately obvious why Balam Acab has been singled out the way he has. There’s just no comparing him to most other live acts out there; I’ve written that lineup changes can be disastrous for an act’s sound, but in this case it was subliminal. Chipmunk voice-effects removed, I was struck by just how beautiful some of Balam Acab’s vocal melodies actually are. In every respect, it was a brilliant performance. Alec Koone has good reason to be proud. At the very least, he has good reason to stop meekly thanking the audience for listening to him after every song.

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Check out more show reviews:
tUnE-yArDs at Lincoln Hall
Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle
Electric 6 at Double Door
Omar Souleyman at the Empty Bottle
Star Anna at Hideout

EP review: Ian Hoffman - 'Dome Swan'

2011-11-12T13:47:00.001-06:00

By Sasha Geffen

I noticed recently that EPs and shorter records are going to make up a surprisingly large portion of my top releases of 2011 list. It seems that online distribution hasn't reinstated the single as the primary form of release, as some predicted, but the EP instead. The iTunes and now the Bandcamp models of selling music may have shortened the length of breakthrough records, but we're still seeing the best new music emerging as whole multi-song worlds. Maybe our attention spans have shrunk, or maybe the space of 20-30 minutes better holds the zeitgeist. Either way, it's become increasingly clear that artists can create entirely satisfying new work in the space of four to eight songs.

The latest release from Ian Hoffman, for example, feels more like a whole forest than a grove. Just four songs long, Dome Swan went the route of the mp3 and vinyl-only release. Boycotting the nearly obsolete compact disc is quickly becoming the new standard--why pay extra for a physical vessel of digital song files with shrunken artwork when a good analog press sounds better and the tactile engagement with the vinyl is just more fun? While I didn't get the opportunity to review the 7 inch release of Dome Swan, I can imagine it suits the medium perfectly.

This warm and incredibly lush miniature release marks Ian Hoffman's first venture under his own name. The former leader of Needers & Givers retains his predilection for tight, urgent songcraft, and to be honest, Dome Swan hardly sounds like a solo record. The accompanying efforts of Denise Hradecky (who both mixed and performed bass and vocals on the EP) and Christopher Hoffman ensure that the woodsy, acoustic sounds fill a great space. The depth of sound created by layers of guitars and vocal harmonies makes Dome Swan sound expansive, much in the way Elliott Smith or Jeff Mangum have never really sounded like one man in a room with a guitar.

The highlight of the album has to be the title track, which plays out like a midnight venture through a haunted thicket. High, eerie tones hang in the air above Hoffman's guitar and sprinkled percussion like yellow ghosts above knotted branches. But Hoffman paints a lovely unease on all four songs, sculpting out melodies sure to hang around your skull long after they stop playing. Dome Swan places pop structures under a mottled autumnal light, letting sweetness and oblique fear chase each other in and out of the shadows. Its simultaneously intimate and mythic qualities lift it above the typical connotations of the indie-folk tag.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://ianhoffman.bandcamp.com/track/dome-swan"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;dome swan by ian hoffman&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Show review: tUnE-yArDs, Pat Jordache at Lincoln Hall, 11/10

2011-11-11T13:37:00.001-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

tUnE-yArDs' Merrill Garbus

TUnE-yArDs and Pat Jordache hit up Lincoln Hall for the second of two sold out shows Thursday night. I knew tUnE-yArDs was the real deal after seeing the commanding power of the Merrill Garbus led group at the Pitchfork Music Festival over the summer, but I had no idea how great last night was truly going to be. As is often the case with sold out shows, most of the crowd was there for the headliner. Considering Pat Jordache’s connection with Merrill Garbus, I thought more people would have been interested in seeing what he can do on his own. Alas that wasn’t the case, although I can’t say for sure that they missed anything entirely special. Like Garbus in tUnE-yArDs, Jordache makes very off-kilter music, centered around highly unconventional vocals and compositions, drawing from a myriad of influences. Backed by two drummers and a guitarist, Jordache primarily handles the bass, often opting for chords as opposed to a rhythmic backline. This was definitely their biggest advantage live.

Jordache’s debut from this year, Future Songs, can get a bit monotonous in its effect-heavy production, but the two drums and bass chords become so much more alive and pounding on stage, particularly in the patient revenge fantasy "Get It (I Know You’re Going To)." The weird thing about Jordache is despite the fact that he can’t sing, he can actually craft great melodies, as in standout track "Phantom Limb." I couldn’t help be reminded by his baritone of Bowie’s theatrical "The Bewlay Brothers" as it was often countered with a higher harmony, creating an eerie sound. Although despite the acid-washed jeans Jordache was sporting, he wasn’t entirely revivalist. Abstract drumming, competitive guitar and keyboard and a vague sense of the tropical combined with minimal pop breakdowns reminded me of newer Peter, Bjorn and John, Icy Demons and even TV on the Radio. The set closed with the upbeat "Salt on the Fields," changing time signatures half-way through, ending things on an upbeat, albeit still dreary note.

Pat Jordache

Whereas Pat Jordache played the role of tortured artist, Garbus was all confidence. Much of her set was centered on vocal loops, which are always a tricky thing. Case in point, when feedback immediately entered into the loop. But without a stutter, Garbus calmly started again with her African tribal vocals, with few of such hiccups the rest of the night. She then picked up the drumsticks and played a simple beat on a tom and snare. She dropped the vocal loop and asked “DO YOU WANT TO LIVE?” with a resounding response from the audience. Enter Nate Brenner on bass and backing percussion to wrap up "Party Can." Two saxophonists made their way on stage, playing a jazzy, no-wavey noise while Garbus began the distinctive drumbeat to "Gangsta." On record, the track sounds like it aids from many vocal affects, but she recreated them perfectly live. Likewise, the stop-start timing of the bridge was nailed perfectly between all four musicians.

Hands down, Garbus has one of the best and unique voices in all of music today. It’s abrasive as it is feminine, and it’s that trait which is so compelling. When she says “This is where we jump” at the end of "You Yes You," the crowd jumps. When she counts down for the audience to make the weirdest noise they can, the crowd makes weird noises. And that’s not to say musicianship isn’t there. "Es-so," the distorted ukulele led jam, was funky enough on its own to get the crowd moving, featuring a delicate if not cryptic-sounding Garbus. Bathed in blue light, she perfectly harmonized with the saxes on "Doorstep," after providing an off-beat drum loop, hitting her micstand, while Brenner backed her up on glass bottles. On the subject of looping: it’s a great way to never ensure a lull in the show. She played a drumbeat and allowed it to loop while she tuned her ukulele. “Good things come to those who wait,” she assured us before beginning "Powa." If there is one track that showcases the power of her vocals, it has to be this one. With a vocal solo at the end, she didn't even need a microphone as she hit the highest parts of her falsetto. She nailed it just like at Pitchfork, implying she can replicate it night after night after night.

tUnE-yArDs

Her tribal facepaint spotlighted, Merrill raised a hand in the air to signal the start of "Bizness," a perpetual afro-pop build up, featuring extended solos from both saxophones. The set so far had mostly centered around this year’s brilliant w h o k i l l, but she did play "Fiya" off of 2009’s BiRd-BrAiNs, much less complex than her newer songs, as it was recorded on a handheld tape recorder and mixed on the free editing program Audacity. And in case you missed it, she just headlined two sold out shows at Lincoln Hall. Now that’s a DIY work ethic. And she’s not stopping yet. She played a new song for us, the vocals falling apart at the end into a harmony with the saxophones. Before her last song "My Country," she mentioned that she would be giving out hugs after the show for a donation to help countries in East Africa (she is fluent in Swahili and studied in Kenya). [final number from both shows: $1600]

Of course, things couldn’t end there. The band came back out to encore with "Real Live Flesh" from the BiRd-DrOpPiNgS EP. The R&Besque tune is layered, ominous and confusing and leaves you wondering what happens next all throughout, impressively while simultaneously putting the crowd in a slow trance. Appropriately, the night capped off the w h o k i l l closer "Killa," with Garbus proclaiming she’s “A new kind of woman / A don’t take shit from kind of woman.” A fitting way to end the night, and if these thousand words haven’t got the point across yet, Merrill Garbus is one of the most fascinating and creative artists performing today. If you couldn’t make either one of these shows, it’s not too late to pick up w h o k i l l. Expect to see it on every year-end list.

(Read a review of the first night over at Gaper's Block.)

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Check out more show reviews:
Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle
Electric 6 at Double Door
Omar Souleyman at the Empty Bottle

Star Anna at Hideout

Cymbals Eat Guitars at Lincoln Hall

Tonight: Martin Bisi, Whales, Light Coma at Quenchers

2011-11-11T09:01:00.002-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

If you'd like to start your weekend off by getting properly lost in a psychedelic sonic haze, a trip to Quenchers tonight should do the trick. Long-time producer and solo musician Martin Bisi will be taking over the Saloon, previewing his upcoming release Ex-Nihilo, due out next year. Martin's racked up a pretty impressive resume since getting started in the early '80s, having helped bring to life albums by Sonic Youth, Swans, The Dresden Dolls, John Zorn and many others at a studio started with Brian Eno in Brooklyn. Actually, "psychedelic sonic haze" probably doesn't do his sound total justice; you could also throw in "post-rock" and "no-wave," but the better bet is to take a listen to Ex-Nihilo's intro track, "Suffer the Moon," below.

Also on the bill are Chicago's Whales, who offer up a tasty combination of shoegaze, post-punk, noise-pop (and do it very well, as detailed by WCR's own Sasha Geffen in her review of their self-titled LP), Light Coma, who also seem quite adept at making good noise, and Mark Shippy (of Snailboy, Shorty, US Maple, Miracle Condition).

Things kick off at 9 p.m. and you can see it all for a mere $5 donation. 21 and over. 2401 N Western Ave.

Martin Bisi - Ex Nihilo - Suffer the Moon by orchidpromotion

Win VIP tickets to see The Drums this Friday & Saturday

2011-11-09T15:24:00.006-06:00

Want to score VIP tickets to see the Drums in Chicago this weekend? We've got a couple pair to give away and want to make 'em yours.

The band will be in town this Friday, November 11th and Saturday, November 12th to play launch parties for the Windows Phone 7.5, and we have one pair of tickets for each night up for grabs. They include guaranteed entry to the event as well as food and drinks.

To get in the running, all you have to do is send us an e-mail with the subject line "The Drums" plus your first and last name and whether you'd rather go to the Friday or Saturday event. We'll accept entries until 6 p.m. CST this Thursday, November 10th, and then randomly select winners for each night. We'll notify winners by the end of the night on Thursday and let them know the location of the show. Winners have been chosen. Thanks to all who entered!

If you don't win the VIP tickets, you can still RSVP for a chance to get in here (admission through this link is based on capacity). Both nights are 21 and over.

Show review: Wooden Shjips at the Empty Bottle, 11/5

2011-11-09T09:03:00.002-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Listen to a couple tracks by Wooden Shjips and it’s pretty easy to guess that they call San Francisco home. From their set-opener--"Black Smoke Rise," the hypnotic first track off this year’s West (released on Chicago’s Thrill Jockey) throughout the entire set at the Empty Bottle Saturday, the most appropriate adjective to describe their sound would be “psychedelic.” Now, yes, I understand that is a vague and inexplicit term. But for all of the connotations and associations that word brings up in your mind, Wooden Shjips hits them all. The drums and bass repeat relentlessly, the six strings scream and the electric organ drones.

Most songs follow a similar structure and are so fuzzed out that it can be difficult to tell where one ends and another begins (save for birds tweeting in-between songs). Really, tempo changes were the only way to differentiate, the improperly titled "Lazy Bones" one of the more upbeat and energetic of their catalogue, played early in the set. At one point, Ripley Johnson grinded the neck of his guitar against the mic stand. The action looked so unconscious that it was difficult to tell if on purpose or not. It was sort of odd how he also took the anti-frontman role, the only member constantly in the shadows, despite a projector aiming visual nonsense at the band. It added to the effect though, his baritone and already obscure vocals almost seeming to come out of nowhere.

Wooden Shjips make music I would generally think of as "background." But live, they command attention. If not for volume then because of the shear absurdity of repetition used. Yeah, the keyboardist looks bored, but the other three make up for it, even with minimal chord changes or progressions, sometimes opting for even only one or two chords to center an entire song around. In the end, it’s the subtleties that make the difference. You think you’ve been listening to the same thing for a while, before you realize you didn’t even notice the drummer add in a ride cymbal, or when the soloing switched from the keys to guitar. As West so implies, the theme of the album is about movement, finding new territory and exploring the unknown. Wooden Shjips aren’t exactly achieving that, but they do take the best of their influences (Velvet Underground, Spacemen 3, the Doors, even) and scramble them into one noisy omelet.

Show review: Electric 6 at Double Door, 11/4

2011-11-08T08:37:00.002-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

In the early 2000s, there was a swarm of bands that really seemed to care about making you dance. The biggest names grew into your Franz Ferdinands and your Killers. Those who wanted something a little left of center however, looked for the Detroit outfit Electric 6, fronted by the ridiculous and flamboyant Dick Valentine. Their breakout album was Fire back in 2003, and through various lineup changes, the group has managed to keep it together, releasing seven more full-lengths after. And if the turnout at the Double Door on Friday (their 12th appearance there) was any indication, they’ve been going non-stop to build a devoted fan base.

Surprisingly, the set didn’t entirely focus on tracks from the recently released Heartbeats and Brainwaves, and in fact, the first six songs were all from different albums. The night kicked off with "French Bacon," a driving synth guiding the tune as if Ric Ocasek took the Cars on the Autobahn. Likewise, the cheeky "Body Shot" ended with a little reggae jam. The crowd loved all of the left turns that the band was throwing out, but I certainly didn’t expect "Gay Bar" to pop out in the middle of the set. The romantic tune (and kinky but historically accurate and certainly NSFW music video) certainly got the best response, especially when it went into a psych-jam psych-out before returning to "Gay Bar Part Two" from 2008’s Flashy. Appropriately, this was followed by "She’s White," referenced at the end of the previous song. Bouncing around genres again, "Formula 409" was a saxy almost no-wave jam about the multi-purpose cleaner, complete with extended soloing.

Although the group first got real notice in the 2000s, they originally started out as the Wildbunch, formed in 1996. Fifteen years later they’re still playing material from the early days, and treated the diehards at Double Door to "Don’t Be Afraid of the Robot." Throughout the set, you could notice Valentine wasn’t always willing to hit those falsettos that sound so crimson on wax (or 0s and 1s), but he commanded the dance that night. As such, it was quite the tease to end the set with "Dance Commander" and then leave us to our own devices. But if the past is any indication, Electric 6 will make a welcome return to the Double Door sometime soon.

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-11-07T15:01:00.001-06:00

By Frank Krolicki

2012's Tomorrow Never Knows fest--set for January 11-15th--confirmed an initial batch of artists, including The Walkmen, Grouplove, Chairlift, Tycho, Active Child, Caveman, Nadastrom and more. Stay tuned for additional announcements and get a jump on tickets starting this Friday at noon.

Gapers Block wrote up the Halloween weekend show at Double Door featuring two Chicago rock powerhouses: White Mystery and JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound. It's complete with photos of the festivities, so you can see the White siblings rockin' out in their Wonder Woman and Spiderman costumes.

Kilo Records announced that Chicago's one-man musical force of nature Netherfriends has joined their roster of artists. They're so excited about working with Shawn Rosenblatt that they even photoshopped him into a picture of the Dream Team. The first Kilo/Netherfriends release will be called Middle America, consist of the first 12 songs from Shawn's 50 Songs 50 States project, and come out in February 2012.

Logan Square bar/music venue The Whistler is having its second annual talent show this Thursday, November 10th, and are looking for participants. All talents welcome, they say, so sign up here and show 'em what you've got.

Sound Opinions hosts and music critics Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot will lead a discussion on the future of music this Friday, November 11th as part of the Chicago Humanities Festival. Details here.

Free show tonight: Bird Names, Cave, Running at the Empty Bottle

2011-11-07T08:47:00.001-06:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Cave

The Empty Bottle strikes again. Free Mondays never fail, especially when all of the bands playing are super solid. As their name implies, it’s sort of hard to know exactly when to catch Running (some of that may be their pseudo-Luddite opposition to social media). Either way, their 12-minute post punk noise is always welcome at the Bottle, and it may be awhile before we let you know when they’re playing again. Still riding buzz off the recently released Neverendless, Cave brings their trance-like kraut-rock to the stage second. As movement seems to be the theme of the night, here’s a video of the four-piece playing on the back of a flatbed. From bipeds and trucks to flight, the night closes out with Bird Names (one of the silliest bands I’ve ever Googled without a modifier like "music" or "Chicago"). As the name of their most recent album Metabolism: a Salute to the Energy of the Sun implies, expect a freaky psychout that will most likely leave you fawning over the cosmic vibes and saying things like "far out" and "groovy."

Tonight's show is 21+, starts at 9:30 and is totally free. The Empty Bottle is located at 1035 N. Western Ave.

Show review: Omar Souleyman, Black Bear Combo, Pillars & Tongues at Empty Bottle, 11/2

2011-11-03T23:04:00.001-05:00

By Reagan Healey

Omar Souleyman

Omar Souleyman might have the most enchanting backstory I have ever read. Before he was the venerable mascot of world dance music he most definitely is today, young Omar apparently worked as a factotum in Northern Syria, taking whatever jobs he could to support himself during the decades that saw the Lebanese Civil War and the Hama Massacre. Souleyman’s own biography makes pre-millennial Syria sound like an altogether shitty place to live, but the young Omar was able to amuse himself by, of all things, taking the stage at weddings to belt out what I can only imagine to be the Syrian versions of karaoke favorites. Yeah, Omar Souleyman was that guy.

Twenty years, 500+ wedding albums, a few Björk remixes, and a handful of festivals later, Souleyman has become a bona fide star of everything frantically danceable. He appeared this Wednesday night to an enthusiastic audience at The Empty Bottle with local opening acts Black Bear Combo and Pillars and Tongues. I was surprised to learn that despite his overwhelming success in the West, Souleyman remains largely unknown in the Arabic world outside of his native Syria, where his unmistakable image can be found on the shelves of virtually every convenience store and gas station.

Honestly, it’s not that surprising. Souleyman’s appearance at The Empty Bottle was in support of his newest album, Haflat Gharbia (The Western Concerts). According to Sublime Frequencies, the album “represents an hour of the best moments from the western tours between 2009 and 2011.” What it fails to mention is that in that time, Souleyman has hardly returned to Syria at all. The album may as well have been subtitled “The Only Concerts I’ve Performed for Three Years,” because while Omar Souleyman is nothing if not hardworking, his Western audience needs to come to terms with what’s quickly becoming an undeniable fact: his Western audience is his primary audience.

Granted, this is less an accusation than a simple observation that Souleyman has become popular on a worldwide scale –thanks in no small part to the efforts of Sublime Frequencies, the de facto tastemakers of all music that can be considered “world” or “exotic.” Souleyman may have begun his musical career as the emcee for countless dabke dances, but he has become since the mid-'90s something completely different from (and altogether more original than) his traditional Syrian roots. While folk-pop is still an applicable label here, bear in mind that the emphasis is placed squarely on the “pop.” Omar Souleyman is absolutely a pop act, as catchy and danceable as it is forgettably vapid fun.

I mean it wholeheartedly when I write that this is absolutely for the better.

Omar Souleyman

Souleyman’s show at the Empty Bottle was a more bare arrangement than most of his previous performances. Gone were the dancers and traditional sitar-esque stringed instruments. Gone were the mysterious poets who sometimes follow Souleyman onstage solely for the purpose of whispering in his ear (I couldn’t make this up). Gone was Souleyman’s entire entourage save for himself and his longtime collaborator, keyboardist Rizan Sa’id. Omar Souleyman has always been at its core a duo: Rizan Sa’id the musician and secret mechanic of the pop hooks that fuel the act, and Omar Souleyman the rockstar cartoon character in sunglasses and khaffiya.

I, like most of the audience in attendance that night, am no expert in traditional (or rather, non-traditional) Syrian wedding music. I’m familiar with Souleyman’s biggest hit, “Leh Jani,” and little more than that. I certainly can’t understand, much less sing along with heavily-stylized Arabic lyrics. I do however, recognize what it means when a singer begins absolutely every single song with an emphatically overcool “yyeeeaaahh!” --it means he has come to party and nothing else. Cultural detectives looking for insight into an underexposed country might have been sorely disappointed. Luckily, no one like that showed up. The people who did show up came purely to dance their asses off to 100% insane hyperbolic club music. In a certain context, it seems that Souleyman’s “exoticness” serves mainly to legitimize a surprisingly familiar electro-club disregard that would otherwise be passé. But who cares about context when you find yourself in the kind of crowd that actually dances? I noticed the accordion-player from Black Bear Combo in the audience, and I had no idea he had moves like that.

Pillars and Tongues

The problem with this kind of unapologetic club atmosphere, though, is that it has little patience for anything else. Chicago band Pillars and Tongues appeared in support of perhaps their strongest record to date, The Pass and Crossings. Watching them perform an altogether haunting and pitch-perfect set to far too sparse a crowd, though, I couldn’t help but notice how much Pillars and Tongues has suffered from the wholly inaccurate (and usually toxic) label of “folk.” There is hardly anything “folk” about Pillars and Tongues. They are, in fact, further from anything remotely resembling traditional than even Omar Souleyman. Listening to their ghostly harmonies –a brooding blend of Active Child’s ecclesiastical reverberations with Jonny Greenwood’s soundtrack for There Will be Blood, it’s hard to fathom how they were even saddled with the term. Is it because Elizabeth Remis plays a violin?

The disappointing turnout was probably due in large part to this chronic mischaracterization of the band –it was no-doubt the dubious “folk” label that got them on the same ticket as the subversively pseudo-traditional club pop of Souleyman and the downright Balkan stomp of Black Bear Combo in the first place. It is unfortunate that Pillars and Tongues were asked to open for such sledgehammer-subtle acts specifically because there are simply so many subtle things to admire about Pillars and Tongues’ unique sound. Beneath the obvious gimmickry of the droning harmonium and the heavily-distorted violin are distinctly hip-hop beats. This is where the band’s background in jazz improvisation becomes really evident. And while most of us have the nasty habit of conflating the word “jazz” with flat cap-wearing dorks and overwrought melodies, its effect in this case was to lend the group an eerily trip-hop atmosphere. I swear at a couple points in the set I detected slowed-down versions of Amen Breaks. It was this strange juxtaposition: church harmonies that constantly threatened to veer into atonality with hip-hop syncopations, I think, that helped Pillars and Tongues to become the most surprisingly memorable act of the night.

Black Bear Combo

That said, Black Bear Combo also touts a background in jazz improvisation, and I think their trumpet-player actually was wearing a flat cap. Despite some early mixing difficulties, however (the saxophonist remarked that they sounded like they were “in a swimming pool”), they performed an undeniably infectious set. The entire crowd all at once decided to do its best impression of a Greek wedding reception. Funny enough, Black Bear Combo was perhaps the only truly traditional act of the night. They’re primarily a Balkan brass outfit, so if you’re into acts like Beirut or Boban Marković Orkestar, then you’d probably like Black Bear Combo, too. Honestly, despite the overflowing buckets of energy (and sweat) they poured inside The Empty Bottle, they brought little variation to the genre save the introduction of a prominent saxophone. When it was an alto sax, Black Bear Combo were exciting to the point that it seemed the floor would break beneath the constant stomping. When it was a tenor sax, the floor still swelled with every drumbeat, but I sometimes couldn’t shake the feeling I was listening to a very long intro to a Tom Waits song that refused to begin. Regardless, by the time Omar Souleyman took the stage, Black Bear Combo had ensured that the whole building already smelled very much like armpits.

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Check out more show reviews:

Star Anna at Hideout

Cymbals Eat Guitars at Lincoln Hall
Boris at Metro
Dastardly presents 'Catastrophe' at Hideout
Smashing Pumpkins at the Riviera

Books, booze & brunch: An Empty Bottle book club

2011-11-03T10:16:00.002-05:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

Well, these are just a few of my favorite things. As if the Empty Bottle wasn’t a great enough venue on their own, they’re now starting their very own book club. The first selection is The Rum Diary by Hunter S. Thompson, his second novel detailing the events of over-indulgent journalists hanging out in Puerto Rico. Apparently it’s been given the Johnny Depp treatment recently, but I think the agenda is to stick with the original work. It’s free to participate, open to everybody who’s interested (spread the word!) and there’ll be some grub from Bite Café next door. So bring your book, a friend, an appetite and an idea for the next month’s book. The inaugural meeting goes down Sunday, November 13th from 1 to 4 p.m.

If you feel like sticking around, there’ll be some experimental tunes from Fortieth Day + Noise Crush, Lori Felker, and the Southbridge Slow Electronics DJs (7 p.m., $3). Finally, at 10 p.m., they'll continue the Everyone’s a DJ series with DJ Larissa. Now that is a Sunday Funday.

Show preview: Le Butcherettes at Subterranean, 11/4

2011-11-01T08:38:00.005-05:00

By Andrew Hertzberg

(Photo Credit: David Summers)

Halloween may have come and gone, but that doesn’t mean it's time to give up on live gore and campy horror. If Le Butcherettes' set at Lollapalooza was any indication, their show this Friday should be something not to be missed. They had probably the smallest crowd of anyone I saw that weekend, but I think every one of us walked away knowing we wouldn't see anything better for the whole event. Musically, the trio links the Cramps with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Lead singer Teri Gender Bender (originally from Guadalajara, Mexico) ran around the stage like a possessed madwoman, her smock covered in (hopefully) fake blood. She threw her shoes into the audience, bounced around a lot, pounded on the keyboard and six-strings and referenced Henry Miller. Let’s see…oh yeah, the drummer vomited before the last song and still managed to finish the set at breakneck speed. Ummm, yeah, it was a great show. I can only imagine it getting wilder in a more intimate venue, like say, maybe the Subterranean this Friday, November 4th (9:00 PM, 17+, $10, tickets here). This deal is equally sweetened with the addition of opening sets by locals White Mystery and Gypsyblood. Get ready for some noise and chaos.

Le Butcherettes - New York by Cargo_Promo

Video: The Cell Phones - 'It's Halloween'

2011-10-31T10:58:00.005-05:00

By Frank Krolicki

Happy Halloween! If you, like me, forgot it that it was October 31st until minutes ago, you should check out the video below from The Cell Phones pronto to help get yourself in the spirit. The Chicago trio are obviously big Halloween fans and decided to put their Lady Gaga/Devo costumes to good use for a clip all about this crazy day. Satanic cult and devilish hi-jinks included.

Show preview: JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, White Mystery at Double Door, 10/28

2011-10-27T14:47:00.001-05:00

By Frank Krolicki

Ever since JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound graced the world with their funky, soul-infused take on Wilco's much-lauded "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart," their name has been thrown around quite frequently around town and beyond. Now the band have unleashed their new Bloodshot Records album Want More, and are celebrating with a release show this Friday, October 28th at Double Door. If the show goes down anything like the album plays out, not even the most guarded of hipsters in attendance will be able to stand still. JC and company are armed with the most soulful of soul rock, as heard on lively tunes like first single "Everything Will Be Fine," "Bad News" and the record's title track. The guys also know how to slow it down without making you lose any of the good vibrations (see ultra-smooth cuts like "Awake" and "To Love Someone (That Don't Love You)"). This is pretty much a guaranteed good time.

Sweetening the deal is another of the Windy City's most noted acts--flame-haired garage rock siblings White Mystery--who seem to be playing shows constantly yet somehow never got tiresome. Also on the bill are Satan's Youth Ministers (appropriately-named considering it's Halloween weekend and all) and DJ Sloppy White.

Things kick off at 9 p.m. and will cost you 10 bucks if you order in advance ($12 at the door). Click here for more information and tickets and check out "Everything Will Be Fine" below.

JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound - Everything Will Be Fine by Windy City Rock

A few Chicago music news bites

2011-10-26T13:55:00.002-05:00

By Frank Krolicki

CHIRP (Chicago Independent Radio Project) announced their first ever "Record Crawl," which will involve hitting up a variety of Chicago record stores on Sunday, November 13th. Participants will score special discounts and gifts, and can keep the fun going at an after-party at Laurie's Planet of Sound. Details here.

You can add to your collection of Daytrotter sessions from Chicago bands with this new one from Distractions.

I'm not sure anyone was waiting anxiously for Wilco popcorn to exist, but here you go. Starting November 1st, the always delicious Windy City snack mainstay Garrett Popcorn will offer a custom Wilco tin and CD bundle. Four dollars of every sale will benefit the Jane Addams Hill House Association. And coming soon: the Wilco Chicago-style pizza. Kidding. Or am I?

The Chicago Tribune's Gret Kot interviewed longtime musical activist Joan Baez and got her thoughts on the "Occupy Chicago" protests going on in the city.

LostInConcert.com posted some great photos and a writeup of the recent Weezer show at Congress Theater.

New track from Radar Eyes: 'Summer Chills'

2011-10-26T13:10:00.001-05:00

By Sasha Geffen

Photo by Lily Chou

Following the release of their "Miracle" 7 inch, local fuzz-rock outfit Radar Eyes are gearing up for their debut LP on garage/punk label HoZac Records. HoZac just premiered the first single from the record and it's at least seven kinds of awesome, with dirty Stooges guitars and psychedelic vocals hidden inside miles of reverb. Check it out below and keep an eye out for the Best Friends LP release later this year.

Radar Eyes - Summer Chills (from HoZac LP) by HOZAC RECORDS

Show review: Star Anna, The Buddies at Hideout, 10/21

2011-10-25T08:37:00.000-05:00

By Gene Wagendorf III

Star Anna (photo via Facebook)

The Buddies took the stage at The Hideout Thursday night, armed with enthusiasm and three guitar players. Usually that last point has me skeptical- so many times I have seen a third guitarist clang along unnecessarily, fucking up a song that two competent players could adequately handle. Excess was not the case during this set however, as The Buddies played their songs with an endearing pop and swagger, making each note count. Pastoral melodies combined with aw-shucks hooks to craft what was ultimately a fine set of rock music. Blues-tinged numbers featured staple lines like you’ve got a way of walking / I’ve got a way of messing things up, but slipped out of predictability courtesy of dismantled chords and sneaky punch. An endearing acoustic song was lifted by clever accordion play and some dynamic group harmonies. In all, an enjoyable set, made even more so by unplugged cover of the traditional Irish drinking song "I'm A Man You Don't Meet Every Day." Any show that ends with one of those is bound to leave good (drunk?) feelings.

Star Anna’s visit to Chicago was well-timed; the first song she played felt like the perfect soundtrack for a fall road trip. The colors of leaves change and eventually they fall, leaving the sappiest of us wishing the moment lingered a bit longer. I had the same feeling about this set. Described to me as “good singer-songwriter stuff,” Star Anna wasn’t what I expected. This show found her backed by The Laughing Dogs, and the group had a sound that moved effortlessly between subtle and energetic. Gymnastic piano melodies glided through brash southern-rock solos, the perfect support for Anna’s elastic delivery. Her songwriting chops were on full display, but rather than fragile ballads she offered up songs that kept the audience on their toes. Frogger bass lines tumbled over intuitive percussion, a rhythm section that held sway until the singer called for unexpected and mesmerizing conclusions. On several occasions I found myself moving in-time with a catchy tune only to have the rug pulled out from beneath my feet.

One of the most surprising songs of the night sauntered with a soulful, Baby Huey-esque flair. Lilting guitars and an almost apologetic organ rolled out of the speakers with undeniable charisma. Those two words might also describe Star Anna herself, who was powerful and sexy without straining to be either. In an age where any female artist who shows a little skin and throws come-hither looks at a camera is regarded as a sexual icon, it’s refreshing and attractive to see someone who leans on nothing but confidence and talent. That is sexy.

Like all good road trips, the moment passed too quickly, but left me looking forward to my next vacation.