Illinois Entertainer

The Police
Red Light, Green Light

It is just after 10:30 a.m. on Monday, February 12th, and a group of about 150 international entertainment journalists, music-industry insiders, and rock star celebs are ushered into Los Angeles’ famed Whiskey A-Go-Go on Sunset Boulevard. Joining them is a small but fiery group of hardcore fans who won admittance via an Internet contest. Most everyone looks either exhausted, hung over, or both, having survived a night of post-Grammy Awards parties in L.A.

Appearing: July 5th and 6th at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

• Read more: Cover Story: The Police

Bebel Gilberto
The Parent Trap

Bebel Gilberto speaks with the same soft, sensual cadences she uses when she sings — that graceful blend of sun, urbanity, and rhythm that turns the familiar into something exotic and the exotic into something intimate. Given Gilberto’s singing style, this is probably to be expected (or, if you’re male, fervently hoped for). Gilberto’s vocals harken back to the early-’60s heyday of bossa nova/jazz without losing sight of the present. Gilberto has the voice of a woman who has been through it all and loved every, single minute of it.

Update: The May 14th and 15th dates at Black Orchid in Chicago have been rescheduled for June 24th at Park West.

• Read more: Bebel Gilberto interview

JJ Grey & Mofro
Ain’t No Place Like Home

When speaking with JJ Grey, you’re not likely to hear this proud Floridian call himself an activist. But since dropping the Blackwater album in 2001 with his band Mofro, this singer-songwriter has stood up for the oft-forgotten residents who dwell in the swampy outskirts of his native Jacksonville. He also paid tribute to the land itself, and does now even moreso on his and Mofro’s latest, Country Ghetto.

• Read more: JJ Grey & Mofro interview

Megadeth
Angry Again

No Metallica. No Ellefson. No religion.

These were the ground rules laid down for the Illinois Entertainer prior to our interview with Megadeth founder/frontman/guitarist Dave Mustaine.

Appearing: May 5th at Allstate Arena in Rosemont.

• Read more: Megadeth interview

Nachtmystium
Cosmic American Black Metal

In determined, jagged strikes, the young girl slashed her own skin with a razor blade she had smuggled into the all-ages show. As blood and consciousness escaped her, she collapsed onto a floor of broken glass. Her salvation came not from the band she showed up to worship, but from paramedics in the back of an ambulance.

Appearing: 5/10 at Empty Bottle (1035 N. Western Ave.) in Chicago.

• Read more: Nachtmystium interview

Shadows Fall
Full Speed Ahead

“Loud. Loud and sloppy, but it’s all good”

This is Shadows Fall bassist Paul Romanko’s account of the group’s just-completed sound check at Myth Nightclub in St. Paul, Minnesota on March 23rd, the first day of the Stone Sour-headlined Jägermeister Music Tour. Shadows Fall, along with Lacuna Coil, serve as openers, and if Romanko seems overly excited about something as mundane as sound check, it’s for good reason: His group, as hard-working of a live act as there is in heavy metal, hasn’t toured in some time, and, if Romanko’s enthusiasm speaks for the rest of the band, they’re chomping at the bit.

• Read more: Shadows Fall interview

Hello, My Name Is Kevin

This month’s conversationalist is erstwhile IE cover vet Kevin Cronin, who has REO Speedwagon back on the road.

• Read more: Hello, My Name Is Kevin

FREEDOM FRIES

“Burger King, look the fuck out!” Such a statement hardly seems like the kind of impassioned declaration you would expect in the midst of rock ‘n’ roll history being made. But then you realize this is no ordinary rock ‘n’ roll history – this is Tom Morello, The Nightwatchman, at the Chicago stop of his acoustic-centric Tell The Truth tour.

• Read more: File: May 2007

Smokin’ Aces
Universal

Picture if you will Ocean’s Eleven with a mob hit at the center of the plot instead of a casino heist. Now amp up the gunfire and mayhem, and you get Smokin’ Aces.

• Read more: DVD Zone: May 2007

A Day In The Life Of Delmark Records

The name Delmark Records isn’t just synonymous with Chicago jazz and blues, but has steadily become an American institution as the second oldest independent record label in music history. Since 1953, the company’s wide ranging roster has included such royalty as Junior Wells, Magic Sam, Otis Rush, and Sun Ra and now counts an extensive Apollo Records reissue campaign (featuring Dinah Washington, among many others). And from the very first day through present tense, label founder Bob Koester has stood at the helm, spearheading everything from day-to-day operations to recording sessions to taking inventory on his extensive archives that boast nearly 400 audio projects and about a dozen DVDs.

• Read more: Indie Label Month: Inside Delmark

The August scored some national buzz in 2005 with a spot on the Aware 11 compilation, though the group leans much closer to country than it does college rock on Thistle, Sparrow, And The Tall, Tall Grass. Female fronted songs such as “Drunken Picture” and “Sugar Mama” recall Nickel Creek or Dolly Parton, though there are unfortunately moments of more pedestrian fare (”Heartbreak On My Palm,” “Call You Up”). (www.myspace.com/theaugustmusic)
– Andy Argyrakis

• Read more: Local CD Reviews

Indie rock foursome The Gnomes carry a sound as understated as the title of their sophomore album, The Gnomes II. There’s no showboating or posturing on songs like “Whiskey Is Misery” or “Ho-Chunk Casino” – just sincere and slightly quirky tunes that pull you in with their pleasant undertone. Amid a couple underdeveloped tracks (e.g. the painfully plain “She’s A Bear”), The Gnomes II is a solid effort. (www.thegnomes.net)
– Max Herman

• Read more: Around Hear Page 2

Elmhurst singer-songwriter Dean Milano has been part of The New Seekers and opened for Cab Calloway, but it seems his biggest achievement is his latest CD, Songs About Stuff, which manages to be tuneful, intelligent, sometimes humorous, and well-executed from beginning to end. Milano’s songs are streetwise and smart, a welcome addition to anyone’s collection of troubadours. “Flashes Of Brilliance” is a great song, but any choice here is a winner. (deanguy@ameritech.net)
– Mike O’Cull

• Read more: Around Hear Page 3

Somali musician K’naan plays a rhythmic stew of hip-hop-influenced poetry that borrows from ancient Somali culture as much as it does from contemporary American influences. A refugee who fled his home at 14, he retains the quiet dignity of his heritage and yet fires lyrics with a swagger that has been compared to Eminem.

• Read more: Rhyming For A Cause

ALESIS
iMultiMix 8 USB

Alesis have come up with an impressive addition to their popular MultiMix series, spearheaded by the ingenious iMultiMix 8 USB, which features an iPod mounting dock that records directly to any second-through-fifth generation iPod.

• Read more: Mixmaster, Cut Faster