A quartet of acts traipsing through Chicago within the week all dangle their feet over the brink of Complete, Utter Mistake. Do Lost Lander, Scale The Summit, Wim, and Foxy Shazam survive?

Singer/songwriters seem like introverts as it is, but the development of home-recording equipment has enticed a frothy stein of them to board up in their bedrooms and craft underwater opuses. The problem with this — assuming they get their work professionally mixed and mastered — is the homespun arrangements are often rendered arbitrarily, and stuck to a particular song simply because the effort was put in, and shit-no it’s just going to sit unused. Lost Lander, a.k.a. Matt Sheehy, tenuously does this balancing act on DRRT, fully immersed in his compositions but standing in the way of some of them. Tracks like “Cold Feet,” “Afraid Of Summer,” and “Gossamer” branch out of their stylistic underpinnings to become vibrant, individual slices integral to the album’s fabric. But “Kangaroo” and “Your Name Is A Fire” suffer the opposite: restrained by the ornamentation when they should really just rock the fuck out. (Thursday@Panchos with Exit Ghost and Jack & Ace.)

Speaking of inhibitions, something about instru-metal bands like Pelican and Russian Circles has sometimes felt withheld. The riffs are meaty, the playing ambitious and professional, but maybe something suppressed is what really fuels their crescendos and climaxes. Scale The Summit deal in similarly winding, post-rocky terrain, but they also aren’t shy about a little pizzazz. The Houston-based quartet is fronted by a pair of guitarists who worship John Petrucci, and went to great pains to build their own guitars from scratch. The Collective tracks like “Secret Earth” take some care not to be overrun by the stampeding solos, but know that music doesn’t really live unless it feels as if it might lose control. (Thursday@Reggies Rock with Elitist, Centaurus, and Burn The Remains.)

More than anything Radiohead did, the post-millennial flood of mamby-pamby British bands can be traced to Travis’ The Man Who. That Coldplay and Snow Patrol could get away with it while Travis were stuck with Keane, Starsailor, and Embrace was little consolation, as was the band’s own diminishing returns. Wim come in with a fresher outlook, not promising much by way of innovation but cutting through to the emotional core on their self-titled Modular debut. The Australians come close to that power of Travis’ “As You Are,” or Andy Dunlop’s underrated solo on “Writing To Reach You.” There are also shades of the Boo Radleys, Rufus Wainwright, and Sufjan Stevens, but their dignified approach to resurrecting a broken lineage is what resonates most. (Friday@Lincoln Hall with Other Lives.)

It’s not Foxy Shazam’s fault that Queen’s 40th anniversary was last year, or that it would be met with a full catalog reissue campaign. But with it fresh in the memory, this winter’s The Church Of Rock And Roll feels especially hamfisted. With valiant attempts at recreating the spirit of Queen, Cincy’s Shazam don’t have the talent to look past impersonation. (Saturday@Metro with The Darkness.)

– Steve Forstneger

It hasn’t even started yet, but we know everyone’s thrilled to root for the guy who made a jerk of himself when he was drafted, versus the guy who’s already won it enough. New York against Boston! No one’s tired of that! Cleanse your spirit with Red Wanting Blue or Asteroids Galaxy Tour this week.

An insane number of snobs believe that a number of bands are successful because they have fans who don’t really like music. They point to Goo Goo Dolls, Tonic, The Fray, Augustana, and maybe down the line hate will spread to Red Wanting Blue. It’s easy to tick the boxes on last month’s From The Vanishing Point: easy-going, unassertive acoustirock chord progressions; rhyming “missed” with “kissed”; a hint of muscle to convince male fans that they’re not a date away from a Katherine Heigl film fest. Yet some of those same critics will line up to pay homage to the mindless inanity of LMFAO. Sometimes it’s best to leave your hangups at the coat check. (Tuesday@Schubas with Jeremiah Higgins.)

The Asteroids Galaxy Tour might sound like a package deal — an idea that could be applied to the band’s cornucopia of sounds. The Danes recently swept Europe with their future funk, a pulsating marriage of Deee-Lite and Junior Senior. Out Of Frequency banks on ’60s soul in a way that has led some to compare frontwoman Mette Lindberg to Amy Winehouse, but more often she recalls ’50s torch singers — one who just got caught up in the groove. (Tuesday@Lincoln Hall with Vacationer.)

– Steve Forstneger

There’s a scene near the beginning of Lana Del Rey’s video for the title track of this, her debut album, where her expression momentarily collapses and then she reacts to keep the tears from falling. If it were part of a movie, you’d think it expertly acted, and expect to see Del Rey’s name cast in the sequence of Hollywood “it” girls from Angelina Jolie to Scarlett Johansson to Zooey Deschanel on down.

Ironically, it’s for acting that Del Rey has encountered stout resistance. Since Elizabeth Grant emerged in this role last year, she has been fought tooth-and-nail by bloggers who thought the major labels were no longer capable of scripting hype – appalled that such a clear fabrication could be so embraced by the Pitchfork generation. Her aborted, earlier attempt at pop stardom (as Lizzy Grant) was “exposed” as if some contemptible hypocrisy; January’s “Saturday Night Live” performance was deemed unmerited and hastily savaged in a way that would make Simon Cowell proud. Never mind that other television appearances went well (“Later With Jools Holland,” for instance), or that last year’s singles “Blue Jeans” and “Video Games” completely merited attention, or that Lady Gaga’s and Odd Future’s contrivances hold firm: thou shalt not trifle with sanctimonious indie hegemony.

Would that Born To Die completed the fairytale, and Del Rey repaid the faith of her courtiers. But the actress, it turns out, doesn’t show any range. Like Michael Cera or Vin Diesel, she applies the same approach to almost every syllable, and when she doesn’t (her alluring squeaks on “Off To The Races”) the exceptions prove the rule. And it’s a shame. Not because the uniform, noir production deserves more – to the contrary, it’s an accomplice – or the screenplay is Mamet-sharp (“Take a walk on the wild side”! Really?), but because of those squeaks, because of that scene in “Born To Die.”

Either Del Rey’s having a laugh at the chaos she’s created, or her inability to deliver on her campaign is a mortal flaw. It beggars belief that Born To Die not only fails to build on “Video Games” and “Blue Jeans,” but relies on them. As flashes in the pan go, this sets some kind of record. That her hype died a sudden death on January 31st is probably little consolation to her foes, same with the fact she’s set herself up for a nice little career in acting.

4/10

Steve Forstneger

The British take a lot of pride in their rock ‘n’ roll, boasting that they studied its roots better than its host country; rescued the form after the crooners rushed in to fill Elvis’ void; and, if you canvas the ’60s titans, only the Queen’s subjects showed any real longevity.

On that last part, the numbers sure are hard to ignore. Beyond those Rolling Stones – whose reputation now is more Barnum & Bailey than actual Rock ‘N’ Roll Circus – The Who, The Kinks, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin far outlasted the careers of The Band, The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, The Velvet Underground, or Simon & Garfunkel. The lone holdout are The Grateful Dead, while you’d want to put duct tape over the more embarrassing permutations of The Beach Boys and Jefferson Airplane/Starship.

Death, of course, intervened indiscriminately, which has led more than a couple people to wonder what would have become of The Doors. The conversation was controversially steered into view when keyboardist (and native Chicagoan) Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger ignored the cries of drummer John Densmore and critics by asking The Cult’s Ian Astbury (and recently Hawkwind’s Dave Brock) to fill Jim Morrison’s role on their Doors Of Perception tours, beginning 2002.

The tone is far less circumspect this year, however, as Rhino and Eagle Rock – on behalf of the original label, Elektra – revisit The Doors’ swan song, L.A. Woman. Despite the broken – physical and mental – status of their frontman, L.A. Woman and its Morrison Hotel predecessor declared a band who’d reorganized and been revitalized. That Morrison was to move to France matters not – it was an indefinite hiatus before there were indefinate hiatuses. The trio of Manzarek, Krieger, and Densmore would “complete” and release music they’d been working on at the time of Morrison’s death – music Morrison intended to complete.

Still, his ragged vocals on L.A. Woman and the collective decision to shelve touring before Morrison’s relocation to Paris suggest the set might have been an end forthcoming. In the new, authorized documentary Mr. Mojo Risin’: The Story Of L.A. Woman, Manzarek himself reckons, “We had one last album to go, and we’re gonna make this album. In this zen moment in time, we didn’t discuss the future: the future’s uncertain. The end is always near.”

Call it a crafty editing job.

“That would be a good story, what people want,” he jeers to IE, “that when Jim left for Paris we knew it was the end. That would be a good story. Like we’re fucking psychic. We knew he was at his end. That his destiny had been completed.”

You knew with the court case that he’d been under a lot of pressure, and that his voice was pretty shot.

“Have you listened to L.A. Woman?”

Yes.

“And you think his voice is shot?”

On certain tracks, it sounds a little ragged.

“Hey, you know? It’d been five years of singing his ass off, sure. You’re getting a little bit of that whiskey voice. Oh! What a shame! That means he’s going to die? He’s getting a little older. [Referring to the DVD:] Is that exactly what I said? Or did I say, ‘It was our last recording contract with Elektra Records. Our last record on the contract of the seven.’ That’s what the last is. It’s not The Doors’ last record.”

This, of course, is discussion of the end of The Doors. Let’s start with Ray at his musical beginnings.

Ray Manzarek: Everett grammar school. St. Rita High School. And DePaul University.
IE: Local history then was all about the folk revival at the Gate Of Horn, etc. Were you involved in that at all?
RM: No, the blues scene and the jazz scene.
IE: So the South Side and West Side clubs?
RM: South Side, yeah. I went to see Muddy Waters at 47th and Racine at whatever the heck the club was. So I saw Waters live. That was a most amazing evening.
IE: You were known for inserting nods to your heros in those keyboard lines.
RM: Oh, absolutely. A tip of the hat. With The Doors, we always credited John Coltrane; “My Favorite Things” and “Ole Coltrane” were the inspiration to play the solo in “Light My Fire.” Those two were in 3/4, but I’m basically playing it in 4/4. Gosh, Miles Davis – what an influence he was. We used to open our sets at the Whisky A Go-Go [in Los Angeles] at 9 o’clock – nobody’s in the club; no need for Jim to start singing – so John, Robby, and I would play “Milestones” and then “Kind Of Blue,” and then improvise like a jazz quartet. It was always a tip of the hat. I cut my eyeteeth on the piano players of rock ‘n’ roll. My deepest influence was the blues, South Side of Chicago. Al Benson I’d come home from school and he’d play blues [on WGES-AM]. Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Richard, Magic Sam . . . holy Christ! Howlin’ Wolf, all of it. You hear those sounds as a young keyboard player, it’s mesmerizing. The depth of the emotion of those men singing their songs: absolutely profound.
IE: You’re in your late teens, early 20s . . .
RM: I was gone by 21.
IE: So before that, when you saw Muddy on Racine – was it easy to do that? Just any kid at school?
RM: Oh, yeah, but [my classmates] just weren’t hip to it. It was pre-Butterfield. And pre-Stones. So the Stones showed white kids what the blues was, and Paul Butterfield opened up Chicago and probably college students to listening to the blues. But there we were, the South Side of Chicago. The blues permeated the South Side. So it was no big deal. But I could never find anybody who was into the blues. Rock ‘n’ roll? Definitely. They were definitely into rock ‘n’ roll.
IE: Well, you grew up on Western. And the city was/is segregated.
RM: Oof! Wasn’t it ever! That was a totally white neighborhood. There were no black guys at St. Rita, not until much later. It’s pretty well mixed now, but at the time it was a totally white school. “We do not play the blues in St. Rita High School.” But they sure do now.
IE: But you could cross into the clubs on Michigan Avenue and Roosevelt Road without a problem?
RM: Absolutely. Things were pretty cool. I was there at Peppers Lounge, and Muddy Waters was playing, and we’re three white guys: me and two buddies from DePaul. Muddy thought it was so charming, that he introduced us. [Laughs.] “I’ve got my white fanclub here.” And we’re going, “Nooo!” “Stand up boys, and take a bow.” So we stood up, and people are applauding, and we sat back down. Talk about embarrassment. We tried to melt into the floor and be totally inconspicuous. But it was fine, like, “There’s some white guys. Hey, it’s cool! Come on, you kids!”
IE: Was everyone else listening to rock at that time?
RM: Yep. A couple guys I knew, one was a musician and the other was our buddy. We said, “You gotta go see this show.” “We’re gonna go where?” “47th and Racine, Peppers Lounge. Come on, man!” “O.K. That could be quite the adventure.” “It’s Muddy! Playing live!” They were reticent, but had the time of our lives. We came out of the club like, “Holy fuck, man.” It was a ritual, out of the transposed soul of Africa to America.
IE: When you moved to Los Angeles, what sort of musicians did you grip onto?
RM: The jazz musicians. It was also in Chicago. I went down to the Blue Note – I think it was called the Blue Note. What was great about it was, well because you had to be 21 to get into it, this was for under-21 and in the back they had a railing separating the kids area. They actually had a kids area. They weren’t 12-year-olds, but 18, 19, and 20-year-olds. And they would only serve Cokes. And man, I saw Duke Ellington, Count Basie’s Big Band with Joe Williams singing the blues.
IE: That was when West Coast jazz was just hitting its stride.
RM: Just getting started. Very rarely did you hear Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker, Shorty Rogers, Shelly Mann, and those people.
IE: Whom do you hear in Robby? Obviously there’s blues overtones, but when you hear his jazz you don’t hear Wes Montgomery or George Benson.
RM: No.
IE: He sounds more like a sax player.
RM: Yeah. Well he’s fast now. Holy Christ, can he play fast. He was a rock ‘n’ roller when we first started. He played blues, with a bottle neck like country blues. That’s what he played, and he played flamenco. With The Doors, he didn’t play with a pick. So it was flamenco-style guitar in a rock ‘n’ roll band with blues influence. And that was Robby Krieger.
IE: Was that like most bands in L.A., like Love? Amalgams of different players? Today, rock bands are all weaned on rock.
RM: Psychedelic rock was too young. It had its Little Richard era. But the ’60s were a cross-cultural time in which white people and black people all embraced each other. Anybody who was psychedelic was a member of the tribe. The battle for supremacy was between the squares and the hip people. The heads and the straights – and the straights win.
IE: There was a book a couple years ago, called How The Beatles Destroyed Rock ‘N’ Roll, and the point was that snobbery didn’t exist among listeners until a certain point. You could listen to The Association and The Beach Boys as well as the Dead and Incredible String Band. There was no differentiation between what music was cool. Do you agree?
RM: Oh, yeah. I don’t know that The Beatles did that. And if you think of rock ‘n’ roll as ’50s music as Little Richard and Elvis Presley – that expanded from the original genre it was into almost world music. Hell, there was folk rock in Los Angeles that was very big, like The Byrds. Then into the mid-’70s like Jackson Browne, the Eagles, and Linda Ronstadt. Almost country rock. Jingle-jangle morning. Everything was going on.
IE: You didn’t happen to know [The Byrds'] Roger McGuinn back in Chicago, did you?
RM: No, I didn’t know anybody. That’s why I got out of there. I wasn’t going to stay around. I never played with any bands in Chicago – I played with my own band. There were no bands. There were little lounge gigs. I guess if there were bands, they were little folk-rock bands. And the only guys playing R&B and rock ‘n’ roll were black guys. With electric basses. Holy shit, the first time I ever heard that live!
IE: When you think about The Doors’ history – we can look at it now like the first one came out, the next one, L.A. Woman came out in ‘71. Does it seem like a blur, or can you see each as stages?
RM: The stages were pretty short, man. We were recording as fast as we could. The first album came out in January of ‘67, the second came out in October. We were moving. We were hauling ass. We were recording, playing, and the whole thing. It was just a rollercoaster ride.
IE: Today, four years is two albums. If that.
RM: It’s an album, two years of touring, and a year of recording the next album. People take their time. Jim’s got a great line: “In that year, we had a great visitation of energy” – that’s The Doors. That was a five-year year. It lasted January ‘67 to July 3rd, 1971, Jim’s death. But now, my God, it seems like 40 years.
IE: When you and Robby tour and do interviews, do you have conflicting memories?
RM: Oh, sure. It’s the reality plus 40 years of memory. But then we have memories that are identical. We are different people, different human beings. We were four people, now we’re three, and we all have our own version of it. I make my own stories. Robby and I can be sitting next to each other and talking about something and tell two different stories.
IE: Are there any specific instances where you can’t believe he doesn’t have the same memory as you?
RM: All the time, but there are no specifics that I can give you that would make an amusing point in your article. You’d have to be interviewing Robby and I at the exact same time.

(Here is where the chat turned to the misunderstanding on the DVD at the beginning of the article.)

IE: You may have been joking or being sarcastic.
RM: Hey, [people] love that shit. “We thought the end was coming, and we were making our last album together.” Even greater, if all three of us, if after Jim died, we’d committed suicide. That’s four brothers, a great rock ‘n’ roll story! But the fact is, we were making our music and playing away, and Jim was going to Paris to take a break. Jim never said anything about Paris until the album was virtually completed. All the recording was done, all the vocals were done, we were mixing, we had three/four more to go, and Jim said, “I’m leaving for Paris next week.” It was like, “What?” “I’m going to Paris.” “Good idea, man.” The contract was up. We’ve completed our contractual obligation. We are now free to break up and never play together again; sign with a new record company; or take a break and sign with another record company in six months or a year. “Go! Jesus Christ! You’ve been drinking too much, man. You’ve got too many groupies and too many bad friends. Perfect. Go to Paris, become Jim Morrison poet again in Paris.” An American In Paris. Hemingway. Fitzgerald. Who wrote Tropic Of Cancer/Tropic Of Capricorn? Henry Miller.

So, anyway, that was Jim Morrison. The next American in Paris. “Get your shit together: write.” Of course, he only lasted four months. And who knows what his thoughts were? “He was breaking up the band. He had quit.” People know that? If he had, in his mind, quit, and went to Paris without telling me? Then he broke the magic circle. If he’d said to me, “Ray! That’s it, buddy. We had a great run. We put this band together out of nothing, graduated out of UCLA, didn’t see each other for two months, didn’t see each other until July 1965, right on the beach and we started the band, we dreamed the dream but I’ve had it. That’s it. The dream is now over.” I would have said, “My friend, go to Paris. Send me a poem or two every once in a while, and I’ll see you.” That would have been fine.

IE: The music you were working on when he left, Full Circle . . .
RM: Full Circle would have been great had Jim been there.

IE: Was it normal for you guys to just jam, the three of you?
RM: Jim would be on a midnight creep for a week and a half, and then he’d come back. We’d have rehearsals every Tues-day/Thursday, Monday/Wednesday/Fri-day depending how ambitious we felt, how close we were, how exicted we were in the recording studio. And we’d work on songs. Jim would be there, not be there, Robby would have songs, when Jim left John and I started writing songs. We had plenty of material to work on, and we were just rehearsing as we usually did, and waiting for Jim to come back.

He said to John, he called John, and asked how L.A. Woman was doing, and [John] said fine. “It’s the Doors’ comeback.” And Jim said, “That’s great. Sure was fun making that record.” And John said, “We were talking about going on the road with Jerry Scheff [Elvis Presley's bassist, who played on the album] and Mark Benno on rhythm guitar, so instead of four there’d be six of us on stage and we’d do the album just like we recorded it.” And Morrison said, “What a great idea! Sounds fabulous! Let’s do that as soon as I get back.” John said, “Cool. When are you coming back?” “I don’t know.”
IE: When you guys were working on what would have become the album after L.A. Woman, would Morrison have been writing melodies as well as lyrics?
RM: Never.
IE: Never?
RM: Jim was the word-man. If he initiated the song, he would sing the melody. Well, he could add words to Robby’s stuff. That was Jim’s words to Robby’s melody. His songs, he sings the melody, that’s his melody. And he had a good sense of bars and phrases, and when to lay out and when to come back in. He was a very musical guy.

And the British very certainly couldn’t call this one their own.

– Steve Forstneger

Just because Martha Berner’s finally closed a six-year gap between full-length studio outings, it doesn’t mean the singer/songwriter was inactive. In fact, she’s used the half decade and change to practically start from scratch, reinventing her already alluring folk flavorings under the umbrella of insurgent country, good ol’ fashioned rock ‘n’ roll, and Stax soul. Much of the evolution comes from slogging it out on the local circuit and beyond, but another key element was the cementing of her supporting band, The Significant Others, with whom Berner shares co-billing throughout the new Fool’s Fantasy (Poprock).

Appearing: Friday, February 4th at Lincoln Hall with Andrew Fraker and Raised On Zenith.

“I never expected it to be six years since I put out my last full-length, and I actually had plans to make the next one shortly after [debut album] . . . this side of yesterday!” exclaims the troubadour by phone from her Windy City home. “In the end, what probably took an additional three years [more than I wanted] was just a shift in who I was working with and really wanting to differ this record from the others. [It's] not that one way was right and the other was wrong, but [I preferred] just to have a very cohesive and intimate band feel with musicians who knew the songs for awhile and experienced them live for a long time before going into the studio. Basically the timing isn’t always what we think it’s going to be as artists, and even though I’m kicking myself a little bit, I feel really great having it come out now and I’m excited for where the band is at.”

Berner’s idea for The Significant Others began with a call to longtime friend and collaborator Scott Fritz, who produced Fool’s Fantasy, played a slew of instruments (from guitar on down), and helped recruit the other musicians. Keyboardist Will Sprawls and drummer Tyson Ellert round out the group, contributing to the comparatively thicker, full-band feel and extra aggression.

“The new music has a little bit more grit and edge that my other albums didn’t have, and it’s a little more rock ‘n’ roll,” confirms Berner. “I wrote all the songs, but the guys wrote their own parts and we all sort of co-produced it together. It’s still billed as Martha Berner & The Significant Others, but it definitely is a band effort. I see them as the special sauce, and I couldn’t achieve this sound without them.”

As for those specific sounds on Fool’s Fantasy, they range from the 10,000 Maniacs-styled title track to the smoky soul of “Some Stay A While” and the alternative country grit of “Cry.” On the other hand, “Where Does The Day Go” could easily fit alongside the easygoing indie pop of Feist, while “Irene” and “Burning Candles” recall recent collaborations of Robert Plant with Alison Krauss. (Because this collection features four-time Grammy-winning mastering engineer Gavin Lurssen, perhaps that last comparison is no coincidence.)

“I met Gavin through a good friend and fellow artist Erika Rose, and I flew out to L.A. [to work with him],” she explains. “It was super fun sitting there seeing his Grammys, and it was a real honor to watch whatever it is that he does. He seemed to really hang on to the textures, warmth, and depth, and not lose it in the compression process.”

Another area of depth comes on the songwriting side of the coin, which Berner culls from a composite of everyone from Leonard Cohen to Sinead O’Connor, The Sundays, Wilco, Bon Iver, and Rogue Wave. Lyrically, many of her tunes take a storytelling approach, and even though they’re coming from the perspective of a burgeoning artist hoping to make a mark on the world at large, Berner makes a point to relate to listeners from any walk of life.

“‘Fool’s Fantasy’ as a song and the record as a whole are my examination of life, not just for me, but people in general on a journey to achieve what they want in life,” she says. “It’s the song that kind of questions how do you know when to draw the line in your pursuit, whether that be a music career or relationships. How do you know when you should work harder or just walk away? [In my case], whether I’m foolish or not, I’ll carry on this [musical] path.”

Even if Berner’s yet to become a household name, she’s been making a push through multiple appearances at Austin’s gem-uncovering South By Southwest conference and Milwaukee Summerfest, plus an aggressive campaign to be heard on television programs, most notably MTV’s “The Real World.” Add in some WXRT radio airplay, mounds of positive press, plus a continual presence on the road, and the tunesmith is certainly popping up in all the right places.

“I think there’s a natural desire to push [my career] forward, even with the state of the music industry right now,” she considers. “There’s some great stuff going on and some tougher stuff, too, but I just want to strike a balance between being very driven and also really wanting to preserve my love for it. I always have something I’m working on, and at the end of the day, I want to love performing and writing and being in a band. It all ebbs and flows as it would for anyone, especially in today’s economy, but I’m going to keep on doing it.”

Despite having to weather the music industry’s uncertainty, Berner’s thankful for Chicago’s support over the past eight years she’s lived here, which follows a provincial Wisconsin upbringing, through spending time in cosmopolitan San Francisco, and more exotic locales like the Virgin Islands and Thailand. She attributes the frequent moves to wanderlust, though one has to question the tendency away from paradise and toward the wintry Great Lakes.

“Chicago is a very inviting and warm city and I love the Midwest strategy of picking yourself up by your bootstraps and cracking a good joke while you’re doing it,” she explains. “I love the drive and humor and, music-wise, I just continue to have great relationships with musicians in the city. Chicago has the big city opportunity, sophistication, and talent, but still the small-town hospitality. We back each other up, we’re all in this together and we have a good time above all.”

It’s all part of her fantasy.

– Andy Argyrakis

Chicago hip-hop artists who make and perform music full-time are too few and far between – that is, artists who actually still reside in the area. But while it becomes even tougher for local rappers to ditch their day jobs, 20-year-old Chicagoan Rockie Fresh is among a select few who are already on their way to stardom before ever having to step inside a cubicle.

“It’s definitely become my life,” says Fresh of his music. “I’ve been able to make an earning off of it and take care of things that I need to take care of – get the things that I need and I want. I wanna do this forever, so it keeps me on track and focused.”

If Fresh were a label-manufactured act, his ascension wouldn’t be so surprising. To his credit, though, this MC with the slow flow has been able to garner a decent amount of downloads and book a whole lot of shows independently. Yes, some of this was done with the aid of a management and public-relations team, but before he had any publicist, he was still able to fill Reggies Rock Club in 2009 for the release party of his debut mixtape, Rockie’s Modern Life. This was also his first live show ever.

“I was kind spoiled because that was the crowd that was all of my fans and they knew the words and were super happy to see me,” he reflects about his debut.

And so 2010 was the true test of Fresh’s abilities when he hit the road rocking shows along with fests like South By Southwest and CMJ in front of largely unfamiliar audiences. He accepted the challenge and embraced the positive response from new fans. In fact, he says it was certain Chicagoans at that time who began to have a problem with his growing popularity – something he addresses openly throughout his second mixtape, 2010’s The Otherside.

On the synthy, smoked-out “They Don’t Understand Why” he raps, “Anytime you gettin’ money then you bound to get respect/but you gonna find a problem when you find success/the ones that used to hate you feel like they know you the best.”

Without calling out anyone specifically, Fresh explains that “people on the Internet and people outside of Chicago, they were definitely showing a lot of love for the music, but I kind of expected more from people at home. And in turn, I realized that the way Chicago people treated me as an artist really made me a lot tougher and it gave me a lot of strength that a lot of artists don’t get in other cities. So it was cool in the long run.”

It makes sense why Fresh has been compared to Drake – a pair of meditative MCs who can show their self-consciousness about their haters but ultimately aren’t afraid fire back or boast about their achievements – whether they be within hip-hop or with women.

One can pluck just about any line from his tracks for proof, but especially as he raps on “Otherside,” “All my life I’ve been picked on, slept on, stared at/however, I refuse to be stepped on.”

He’s less than three years into his career, but Fresh, the Prairie State College dropout, is already easing into his own style. What sets him apart from Drake or other acts to whom he’s been compared is his alt-rock edge. Yes, he can do straight-up braggadocio rap as heard on “Sofa King Cole” or his collaboration with West Coast act Casey Veggies (“Duckin N Dodgin”), but his rock tendencies are just as prevalent. They’re the creations of his production team The Cartoonz and others, who are often adding guitar riffs into his beats or to a greater extent by doing collaborations with his rock influences like Good Charlotte.

While he now lives in the city, as a teen attending Homewood-Flossmoor High School, it wasn’t beats and rhymes all day.

“Growing up in the suburbs and being introduced to alternative rock and different types of music outside of rap, like punk, it made me really get into that type of stuff,” he explains. “Fall Out Boy was a band that I really appreciated and same with Good Charlotte. John Mayer is one of my favorite artists of all time. So for me, there were certain things that I wanted to do to make myself different from everybody else. I never really saw anybody add that dark element of rap to music and be consistent with it and so that was something that I wanted to be my thing and I just ran with it.”

That dark element is something Fresh is no doubt still building upon within his reflective raps. The first single off his new mixtape, Driving 88, is called “No Fear” and rife with moody backup vocals, downtempo drums, and lyrical meditations. It’s not exactly happy-go-lucky material when he kicks off by rhyming, “Reporting live from Chicago/where they tell me I’m the future/but I’m not promised tomorrow.”

Fresh is a live-in-the-moment type of person, whether gloomy or grandiose at the moment. When he performed a homecoming show of sorts at the Metro last November with Fall Out Boy’s Patrick Stump, it was hard to tell how the crowd full of the headliner’s fans would react to the young rapper, even if Fresh had already toured coast-to-coast with Stump. But he didn’t appear worried when he hit the stage. Ripping through “Sofa King Cole,” calling himself “so fucking cold,” the crowd was visually lifted.

“This is the most love I’ve gotten, I swear to God,” he told the Metro between songs.

As Fresh continues to develop his sonics, his fanbase expands as well. During our interview he talks with equal enthusiasm about his work with NYC rhymer Action Bronson and SoCal rockers Good Charlotte.

“I do realize that my fans range from all different types,” he says. “Some of ‘em appreciate rap music, some of ‘em like urban rap, some of ‘em like when I sing so it’s just really trying to get people all of those things and all of the different types of music that I appreciate.”

It’s all a balancing act that this full-time rhymer thus far has proven possible – hard times or not.

Rockie Fresh released the Driving 88 mixtape at the end of January. Download for free at rockiefresh.com.

– Max Herman

Veilside’s sophomore effort, This Time . . ., mixes Godsmack riffs with Sevendust grooves. It’s six-songs of modern rock with huge power chords, multi-layered vocal harmonies, and well-thought out guitar leads. Otherwise radio-friendly with a melodic, hard-rock edge, an odd cover of Kansas’ “Dust In The Wind” – with dual lead guitars swapped for the original’s violin arrangement – adds a galloping, Southern-rock flavor. Veilside possesses a true rockstar mentality and This Time is solidly hard-driving with attitude and spirit. (veilsideband.com)
– Kelley Simms

Just because Abstract Giants is billed as a hip-hop act doesn’t mean all its beats are based on DJ samples, loops, or programming. In fact, its self-titled long player is a full-band affair (think The Roots) that makes ample use of bass and drums, but also more unconventional instruments in the genre, like violins, banjos, and even a pedal steel, allowing these eight versatile players to stand out from the overly auto-tuned pack. (abstractgiants.com)
– Andy Argyrakis

The Assembly’s eight-track The Future Has Been Sold is worth getting together for. The veteran alt-rock band’s latest effort is slightly more pop-centric than past efforts without sacrificing the Cure/Psychedelic Furs pedigree. The guitar-driven songs are tight, an average of 3:30 in length, with just enough synth highlights, as on the catchy “Matters” and the bouncy rhythm of “Who Do You Need Now,” the latter made complete with chorus-like backing vocals. (theassemblyband.net)
– Jason Scales

Think of the last time – I mean the only time – you heard “I Gave My Love A Cherry.” Well, with this there is no guitar for Belushi to smash, because Andrew Calhoun sings it a cappella on his 19-track Grapevine. The solo artist has lovingly recorded his devotion to folk standards. His slightly gravelly crooning and acoustic-guitar picking are a warm throwback to days of yore: he sings the original four verses of “O Susanna” and ably tells the tales of “John Henry” and “Fifteen Years On The Erie Canal” in authentic busker fashion. (waterbug.com)
– Jason Scales

The title You’ll Not Take Us Alive is no idle boast. The Fisticuffs‘ 14 tracks bristle with high-energy punk delivered and traditional Irish folk instrumentation. These South Siders unabashedly embody the fighting Irish spirit, in tight instrumentation and lyrical content, proving they can hold their own against genre stalwarts like Dropkick Murphys. Whether it’s railing against discrimination, as on “Paddys Need Not Apply,” or telling an inspirational tale, as on “Young Ned Of The Hill,” it’s always rollicking and full of Celtic pride. (thefisticuffs.com)
– Jason Scales

Singer/songwriter Jennifer Hall revels in genre hopping, and there definitely is a lot to take in on her new full-length, In This. “Green And Blue” and “Oceans” are bona fide torch songs while “When We Were Good” offers a soulful rock approach that recalls Amy Winehouse and Duffy. Luckily, Hall possesses the pipes to pull this off, even when she’s raising the roof on the big production of “Like I Lie To You.” (jenniferhall.bandcamp.com)
– Terrence Flamm

Singer/guitarist Jeremy Keen’s engaging vocals can convey complex emotions as well as soar on Lock & Key, the latest effort from Jeremy Keen & The False Starts. The more energetic songs work best, particularly “Barnburner,” a prime example of Midwestern rock in the tradition of The BoDeans and Fire Town. “Brother” is the best of the slower tracks, thanks to Keen’s authentic portrayal of hard times and guest musician Bryan Meier’s pedal-steel guitar. (www. jeremykeen.com)
– Terrence Flamm

While Tsikago may not be a universally appealing flavor, it’s a true taste of world music. On the 15-song platter, Lamajamal provides original Balkan- and Middle Eastern-influenced melodies along with updated renditions of traditional tunes. Tracks such as “Oud Taxim” and “Jasmin Tea” aren’t overly distinctive, but all feature instruments like the santour and tambur in addition to familiar Western beats. In the end, it’s an accomplished but not terribly interesting or innovative effort. (lamajamal.com)
– Jeff Berkwits

Mission Man, a.k.a. Gary Milholland, conveys positive vibes through quick rhymes and jazz-influenced beats on his latest CD, liberty island. The better tracks, like “Starting Over” and “Living To The Rhythm,” paint a compelling picture of struggling to get by, but their message is diminished by Mission Man’s use of the same laid-back delivery throughout his music. He’ll need to light a fire under his vocals and vary his approach if he wants to succeed. (missionman.net)
– Terrence Flamm

Falling somewhere between folk and blues revival, Overman’s The Future Is Gonna Be Great practically has “WXRT” written all over it, so it’s no wonder the Plainfield-dwelling players have already earned airtime on “Local Anesthetic.” With equal shades of The Decemberists as The Black Keys, the four-piece band are poised to breakout of the burbs and become a key player in the future of carefully crafted indie rock. (overman.info)
– Andy Argyrakis

Punch Cabbie pound their way through the five-song Human Intrusion with macho/aggro vocals, calculated breakdowns, big hooks, crushing drums, and melodic leads and riffs. “Sin Eater” opens with down-tuned, fuzzy, guitar distortion and a big low-end rumble from punchy, thunderous drums. The band’s hardcore roots are displayed on “Bite Back,” including shouted gang vocals, while metalcore elements are present on “Big Oaks.” Punch Cabbie’s screamo/metalcore/post-hardcore cycle gets repetitive, but it’s dangerous with a dirty street sound. I can only imagine the pit rages at their shows. (facebook.com/punchcabbieband)
– Kelley Simms

Psychedelic/blues/rock trio Rosetta West play fuzzy and distorted riffs with heavy basslines on Racoon. It’s a short disc at 33 minutes for 12 tracks, and its recording technique gives it a ’60s-’70s vibe. Similarities to Grand Funk Railroad, The Guess Who (“I Don’t Care”), Simon & Garfunkel (“River Of Days”), BLS Zakk Wylde-ish vocals, and Robin Trower-ish songs “Bridge Of Sighs” and “Jack And Jill” (“The Temple”) are present here. The distinctive, hippy-like crooning of Joe Demagore gives Rosetta West its unique character. His raspy vocals are the perfect complement to the old-school space-rock jams. (myspace.com/rosettawest)
– Kelley Simms

Just when the first few moments of The Escapist lead one to expect a full CD of string-enhanced acoustic/trad folk guitar music, the Jason Seed Stringtet takes a serious and not surprising classical turn, seeing as its members hail from various local symphonies. Clearly, all are proficient players and guitarist/ringleader Jason Seed’s mostly original compositions successfully navigate the shoreline where classical laps teasingly into rock/folk/jazz. In this impressive sampling of the Stringtet’s breadth and scope, one is reminded of fellow traveler string quartet Ethel, yet thankfully Seed’s group is far less obsessed with classical music’s avant garde/experimental edges. (jasonseedmusic.com)
– David C. Eldredge

Symphonic-metal band Shield Of Wings play a mix of black metal and classical arrangements interwoven with metal elements on their self-produced, self-released EP, Solarium. The six songs consist of melody-based, keyboard-driven pieces that complement Grace Meridan’s elegant, operatic vocals and James Gregor’s aggressive growls. The “Beauty And The Beast” singing technique works without overwhelming or sacrificing the music’s heaviness. Nightwish, Epica, Delain, as well as Dimmu Borgir and Therion influences pop up, mostly because of the orchestral tones. Solarium’s dark, yet insightful lyrics go hand-in-hand with the music, mood, and atmosphere that the band create. (www. myspace.com/shieldofwingsrock)
– Kelley Simms

Terata’s Red Means Go, a three-track collection neatly marketed on a rubber bracelet USB device, is upbeat and peppy party rock. “I Made It All Up” and “You Are” each build to a relationship-gone-wrong chorus punctuated by crashing cymbals and power chords. The vocals, delivered Liz Phair-like, are mixed far too loudly, which is less of a problem with “Someday” due to its ballad style. (teratamusic.com)
– Jason Scales

When he keeps it simple (just him and his acoustic) and stays in the lower end of his vocal range on his seven-cut EP, Carol Streamer Troy Leif Thompson serves up his Americana originals most convincingly. Otherwise, Angels In The Attic’s not really pushing any musical boundaries and Thompson’s originals, while serviceable enough vehicles for him this time out, aren’t anything any other artist will jump to cover. (myspace.com/troyleifthompson)
– David C. Eldredge

Promising MC/producer Tizone may have titled his new album The Interpretation, but the tracks aren’t quite so committed to a single view. After an intro cut and opener where he establishes himself back in the game, Tizone switches course into playa/loverman mode for several tunes, and then weaves in and out of personalities for the remainder. It makes for a schizophrenic listen through the 18 songs, and ultimately bears the energetic, wanna-freak-ya side out. (tizoneonline.com)
– Steve Forstneger

Vapor Eyes has mastered the rapid-fire, hard-hitting rhymes fans expect from rap, but on his ambitious new CD, It’s Moving So Fast It’s Standing Still, he also incorporates elements of jazz, ambient, and gospel music. “Terra Incognita” sounds the alarm on global warming while “New Proof Material” delves into street crime. Space-age keyboards and sound bites add to the sense of intrigue on “Hypermart” and “Int3rlood,” while “Caressed By Sin” is smooth and seductive. (vaporeyesdj.com)
– Terrence Flamm

Chuck Maurer’s What Rebel began as a cover band in a west-suburban basement that eventually felt confident to move into originals. Tracks like “Rise Up” and “Time Is Running Out” force commonplace riffs and chord changes through a cardboard amplifier, which competes in the clasutrophobic mix with click-track vocal performances and A/B (sometimes just A/A) rhyme schemes. Clearly this is an act in its infancy – or maybe it’s several weeks premature. (reverbnation.com/WhatRebel)
– Steve Forstneger

With so many aged pop stars performing the Great American Songbook, it’s easy to dismiss Sometimes I’m Happy as yet another effort to rejuvenate hoary harmonies. Yet newcomer Amy Yassinger does something few old hands have accomplished: delivering genuinely fresh interpretations of classic tunes. “Slow Boat To China” and “Bei Mir Bist Du Schon” are standouts, but almost all of the 11 melodies are delightful. This is one artist who proves that what’s old truly can be new again. (amydoesjazz.com)
– Jeff Berkwits

In mid December, Metallica – drunk on the euphoria building for their 30th-anniversary celebrations, or scampering to mitigate the damage caused by Lulu – made the unusual decision to sell some demos on iTunes.

As the Garage Days releases have shown, the band aren’t afraid to show warts, but the decision to release (which also arrived on CD in January) the Beyond Magnetic EP was a curious one. First, the four leftovers – from 2008’s Death Magnetic – were originally given to fanclub members, which was on par with Metallica’s relationship with its official supporters. Each was then played on separate nights of the San Francisco-rooted anniversary showcase – an event populated entirely by fanclub members.

Delivering them to general music consumers, however, is a change in course. Over the years, Metallica have jealously guarded sketches and outtakes of songs that were eventually intended for release (note their conspicuous absence from the world of expanded reissues and boxsets), a tactic in keeping with their highly manicured and rigid image maintenance from no videos, to the iconic one, to the “Black Album,” explosion, Load-era. You could argue that it all fell apart with the Some Kind Of Monster debacle, and they’d prefer you averted your eyes from their personal failures to their musical ones.

*The announcement of guitarist Tony Iommi’s battle with lymphoma strikes a number of chords – mostly saddening, given the proximity to Ronnie James Dio’s death from stomach cancer. On business terms, it’s a blow to the planned Black Sabbath reunion, which was fought for tooth-and-nail by Sharon Osbourne as she struggles to boost Ozzy’s image post-Heaven And Hell’s success. It also renders Iommi’s own, recently published autobiography, Iron Man (Da Capo), pretty incomplete. Though not quite symbolic of Sabbath’s vengeful outcast, the phrase “iron man” typically denotes someone with superhuman endurance. Struggling to contain several dozen (not always chronological, sometimes repetitive) “chapters,” each about four to five pages long, Iommi’s memoir instead recalls someone who runs distance events by sprinting and stopping every couple-hundred feet. Short on narrative but long on uncanny detail, Iron Man (subtitled: My Journey Through Heaven And Hell With Black Sabbath) will satisfy Sab fans looking for a coffeetable book, but frustrate people seeking a more thoughtful, historical counterpoint to the frenzied I Am Ozzy. Iommi has stories to spare – he’s dealt with abusive parents, disfigurement, marital strife, severe addiction, and, of course, Mr. Osbourne – but his dry, anecdotal approach is better suited to snippets than 416 pages.

*No sooner did we coax Trevor de Brauw into submitting for “Caught In A Mosh”’s collection of best-of-2011 top-fives, do Pelican announce a new EP and tour. The jaunt will mostly canvas Europe, but Ataraxia/Taraxis (Southern Lord, April 10th) breaks a two-year recording gap. The four-song set was also tracked in a quartet of different studios, and they stuck to Chicago-band protocol by doing some of the work with Sanford Parker.

*Supergroups are de rigeur in our incestuous, local circles, and Beak are no exception. Consisting of former Timeout Drawer members Chris Eichenseer and Jason Goldberg as well as Engine Studios co-founder Andy Bosnak and frontman Jon Slusher (who’s also sat in Timeout), the quartet had no trouble deciding where to record their debut. Though Beak demur when being categorized as metal, it’s difficult to fathom lumping Eyrie (Someoddpilot, April 3rd) anywhere else. True, elements of post rock, hardcore, and prog intermingle (and hello Micromoog bass!), but the opening minute of “Angry Mother Of Bones” pushes a pretty fierce interpretation of black metal. They open for Anvil on the 23rd at Reggies.

*On the 28th, Corrosion Of Conformity’s Animosity-era lineup drops a self-titled album via Candlelight. For those of us who met C.O.C. in Pepper Keenan’s Sabbath-drenched ’90s heyday and later learned they were a hardcore punk band when they started, 1985’s Animosity was a girder-solid melding of the two, and its masterful balance has been faithfully replicated on the new album. They hit Double Door on March 7th with Torche, Valient Thorr, and A Storm Of Light.

*As we lead up to the Republican nomination, all this chatter about when life actually begins and the dominos of court cases that led to Roe v Wade got us thinking: when’s Dying Fetus playing again? Not for nearly two months: March 26th at Mojoes. The Marlboro-bred death titans proclaim a “return to roots” for the upcoming Reign Supreme, which Relapse hasn’t yet handed a release date. In a sign of the impending apocalypse, their tour kicks off at the South By Southwest Music Conference in Austin.

Trevor Fisher is taking some time off.

– Steve Forstneger

Having a lot of buzz surrounding a film doesn’t always mean big box office. For all of the critical acclaim surrounding Drive, the returns didn’t match the hype. Unfortunate – as Drive is one of the best films of 2011.

The plot is B-movie simplicity at its best: a Hollywood stuntman (Ryan Gosling, credited only as “Driver”) moonlights as a getaway driver for anyone who will pay for his services, at least until he’s double-crossed.

After a phenomenal opening sequence that turns the standard chase sequence on its ear – a tense game of cat and mouse is substituted for screeching tires – Drive settles into a clean, minimalist aesthetic. Driver’s relationship with his new neighbor Irene (Carey Mulligan) is shown not with long conversations, but in sparse, eloquent glances and self-conscious gestures.

As good as Gosling and Mulligan are, the standout of the film is Albert Brooks, superbly cast against type as a former film producer turned wannabe crime boss.

If you get a sense of deja-vu while watching Drive, there’s a good reason. The film has drawn comparisons to everything and everyone from Clint Eastwood’s man-with-no-name to Robert DeNiro’s Travis Bickel.

However, the film owes its greatest debt to the ’80s. From its pastel-colored opening credits on, it draws the most inspiration from William Friedkin’s To Live And Die In L.A., and even more so from Michael Mann efforts such as Thief and Heat, with a little “Miami Vice” tossed in for good measure. There are also explosive bouts of Tarantino-esque violence from time to time.

This is not to say that Drive is simply a copy of what came before – it’s much more. Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn lovingly and brilliantly mixes all the elements to creates his own unique world – a beautifully layered universe where a genre flick can achieve arthouse respect. Not only that, but he can do it with a completely straight face, not with the winking, knowing irony that comes so easily these days when filmmakers want to pay homage.

The Blu-ray suffers from a weak list of special features; four of the five featurettes don’t go into enough detail to make them anything more than a passing curiosity, and only the 25-minute offering with Refn is worth more than a passing glance. Drive deserves a better release than this.

U2: From The Sky Down
IFC

Having reached the pinnacle of being the biggest band in the world after the release of The Joshua Tree, U2 nearly let it all come crashing down under the weight of a mammoth tour, and the resulting big-screen release, Rattle And Hum. To many, its portrayal of the band discovering American roots music and musicians came across as both pretentious and sanctimonious – as if they were saying “Hey look, we just found this really cool guy named B.B. King, and we’re gonna let you all in on the secret. You’re welcome!”

Licking their wounds, the foursome retreated to the warm confines of post-communism Berlin, where they immersed themselves in the club and experimental culture that had previously been inspiration for David Bowie and Iggy Pop.

For the 20th anniversary of Achtung Baby (the film had been included with the high-end edition of last year’s reissue), From The Sky Down takes a look at the band’s time at Berlin’s Hansa Studios, where the album was conceived and delivered. Not only had Hansa midwifed the Bowie and Pop projects, but it also inhabited space mere yards from where the Berlin Wall had fallen just months earlier.

Sure, U2 may have absorbed and recycled German musical styles for this outing, but this time their self-awareness had been previously unseen.

From The Sky Down suffers from having little archival footage of U2 actually recording the album at Hansa, so they make do by going back to the studio and doing the interviews and performances present-day. Despite this, director Davis Guggenheim does a nice job reminding us of what Germany was dealing with at the time, and the inspiration it provided to U2.

Special Features include extra performances of “So Cruel,” “Love Is Blindness,” and “The Fly,” as well as a Q&A with Bono, The Edge, and Guggenheim from the Toronto International Film Festival

– Timothy Hiatt

If the Thirsty Whale could do it, why not? Durty Nellie’s in Palatine has slotted February 26th to reanimate a potential competitor: Haymakers. The Prospect Heights club, shuttered in 1984, will return for one night before rushing home in glass slippers. Coming from as far as California and Florida, members of some of the venue’s stalwart acts (Bitch, Dreamer, Hounds, Madfox, One Arm Bandit, Pezband Allstars, and Tantrum) will suit up once again and rock like it’s the Reagan era. Former IE Editor Guy Arnston co-masterminded the event with Kathy Powers-Hall, wife of former owner Chuck Hall. Far from a hangout for bygone local musicians, Haymakers also hosted Cheap Trick, Survivor, The Bangles, Shoes, The Kind, Sly Stone, Queensryche, and Twisted Sister. Visit the Facebook page for more info.

WWW.SMACKDOWN.COM

The opposition cheered as caustic, conservative attacks sullied the GOP’s own primary debates, but then the glove-dropping contagion afflicted the nominally liberal world of musicians. Veteran local rapper/actor (and White House honoree) Common kicked off, telling WGCI that the “soft” MCs attacked in his new track, “Sweet,” included sensitive singer/rapper Drake. The Canadian answered back by calling Common out on the Rick Ross side “Stay Schemin’” – despite earlier pledging, “Diss me and you’ll never hear a reply for it.” Not missing a beat, Common remixed the same track with his retort, saying Drake can’t get girls, um, excited, because he’s Canada Dry – and then encouraged people to print Canada Dry shirts. The weird thing is it’s reportedly a beef over the affections of tennis star Serena Williams, who could probably kick both their asses. (Fakeshoredrive posted this news about Drake after we went to press.)

– Steve Forstneger

IE: Was the hype for your debut thrilling or scary?
Alaina Moore: It was definitely more scary. Obviously, we appreciated it and were going to take the opportunity, but we didn’t know what we were doing. Our way of handling that was forcing things to stay as small as possible. We ended up saying “no” to lots of things: no producer, no management. We said “no” to support tours because we weren’t sure if we could tour for very long.

IE: So another force was pushing you along?
AM: This time the momentum behind us is more sustained and created by us, and we feel more in control. Anyone who, at some stage in their career, has been considered a buzz band understands it’s like riding a tidal wave. You have no say, it’s just happening. It’s really amazing, but you keep finding yourself with decisions that you don’t want. I remember the first time we got a publicist, they asked us about doing late [TV] shows and they could push for that, and we were like, “No. Not at all.” I shut it down immediately. “I do not want to be on TV – it sounds horrible.”

IE: Are you ready for your tag to be, “Patrick Carney produced their album; they’re the band the Black Keys guy is involved with.”
AM: It’s funny, maybe nihilistic, but I’d be relieved if people thought that than the dismissive stereotype of us as the wedding-couple-sailing band. [Tennis' first album was inspired by a boat trip.]

IE: What inspired Young And Old?
AM: I immersed myself in Todd Rundgren; I wanted to write things on piano. I listened to a lot of Elton John and Rundgren. Patrick [Riley, guitarist/husband] switched to playing baritone guitar instead of wall-of-sound surf guitar, so that brought out a lot of differences in songwriting.

IE: Rundgren’s one of those guys who I get why people enjoy him, but I can’t stand his music.
AM: [Laughs.] When I first started dating Patrick he played me Todd Rundgren and I totally hated it. Three-years later we were at someone’s house and Something/Anything was playing and I was like, what is this? And I ended up delving into his catalog.

IE: In what sense is the Tennis name a metaphor for the dynamic?
AM: Sometimes I see me and Patrick in those classic matches, where the competition is fierce but then they hug afterwards. But I cannot emphasize enough the complete, flippant lark [it was]. If we’d thought about it, we probably wouldn’t have picked it.

Tennis’ Young And Old arrives Valentine’s Day through Fat Possum. They play Lincoln Hall on February 26th. Q&A by Steve Forstneger.

Paul Stanley of Kiss has evidently put down his paintbrush long enough to partner with Washburn Guitars and release the cool-looking (and sounding?) PS21012 Starfire signature guitar.

The PS2012 features a carved, raised center solid mahogany body that recalls the glammy heyday of Kiss with chrome hardware, and has two Seymour-Duncan SM-3 Mini Humbuckers, controlled by two volume knobs, two tone knobs, and a three-way toggle switch. A custom Tone-Pros Tune-O-Matic bridge and Starchild tailpiece machined from solid aluminum completes the body. This U.S.-manufactured guitar is available in both black and white.

Like the body, the neck is also mahogany and has a bound ebony fingerboard with 22 jumbo frets and split block inlays (the top half being pearl, and the bottom being abalone). Hats off to Washburn and Stanley for making more American-made guitars. Homefront craftsmanship certainly costs more: the retail price is $5,332.

Blue Microphones
Spark Digital iPad Mic

Like last year’s NAMM show, this year’s exhibitors showed off lots of iPad applications, and Blue Microphones debuted Spark Digital, the first “studio-grade” iPad mic that offers both iPad and USB connectivity. The combination of Spark Digital’s direct connection to iPad, along with numerous available recording apps such as Garage-Band, provides the first mobile studio setup for Apple’s tablet platform, according to the company as well as USB connectivity, delivering studio-enhanced audio to any computer, laptop or tablet with USB.

Like Blue’s acclaimed analog Spark microphone, the digital version delivers the same detailed and uncolored tone, making it suited for sound sources from vocals to drums to podcasts. Spark Digital also features studio capabilities including zero-latency headphone monitoring, fully adjustable gain control, and mute. $199.99 is the MSRP Details are available at bluemic.com.

Peavey & Antares
AT-200 Self-Tuning Guitar

You can tune a piano, but you can’t tuna . . . wait. We’ve heard plenty of bands having trouble keeping in tune on stage, so Peavey and Antares Audios‘ announcement of the AT-200TM auto-tune guitar is a blessing for those who lack a good roadie.

With the simple push of a button on the Peavey AT-200, guitar players can now create music in “perfect tune and pitch,” according to Peavey.

In their NAMM press announcement, Peavey said theAT-200 utilizes Antares Auto-Tune for Guitar, a DSP technology that works behind the scenes to bring the clarity of perfect pitch to a quality instrument in an unobtrusive manner. No bulky, unattractive hardware weighs down the playing experience: the Peavey AT-200 looks, plays, and sounds just like a conventional guitar.”

Like many Peavey guitars, to us it ain’t the most attractive axe in the shop, with an ’80s hair-metal vibe to its design. (At least it doesn’t look like Cher.) But time will allow the company to bring some btter looking ladies to the ball.

Just as Auto-Tune changed how vocals are recorded (for good and bad), the AT-200 Auto-Tune Guitar should help bands sound better on stage – used judiciously. On paper, players won’t have to stop to retune during live performances. With the AT-200 guitar, perfect pitch is the new standard. The price is not known at press time. For details visit peavey.com.

News & Notes

Two of our favorite local independent guitar stores are showing their wares this month: R&B Guitars in Carepentersville is holding their annual Guitar Show in Alsip on Sunday, February 26th at the Alsip Double Tree, and Tobias Music in Downers Grove has expanded their showroom and put it all on display at an open house and sale with Taylor and Walden Guitarsin March. More details at www.tobiasmusic.com and in the next issue.

Chris Auman and his buddy Tom Ziegler conceived of Reglar Wiglar during a night of drinking in Lincoln Park’s punk-rock haunt Delilah’s in 1993. The first two black-and-white, text-only issues poked fun at alternative music, and featured fake record reviews and fake interviews with fake bands.

At its peak, the $2 zine featured 100 pages of real, well-written reviews, comics, and articles with a circulation of 2,000 and distribution through Desert Moon Periodicals and Tower Records.

But Auman, who plays in Soft Targets and runs RoosterCow Records (and has written for IE), ceased publishing Reglar Wiglar in 2005.

“It was just too expensive,” he says. “Printing was the biggest expense, of course, but postage and shipping was a close second. It was also getting to the point where reviews of bad punk-rock CDs were becoming the bulk of the content, so the fun was being sucked out of it, too. That was my fault, due to my unwritten policy of reviewing every single piece of music I received. It also didn’t help that both of my distributors went under.”

Contributor Mike Dixon set up a blog for the zine in 2005, and four years later Auman restarted it as an online-only endeavor (reglarwiglar.com) that includes archives as well as fresh content such as interviews with Roctober’s Jake Austen, Radar Eyes, Portland comics artist Jesse Reklaw, and plenty of reviews. (Bands may visit the site to learn how to submit their work.)

The growing site gets 2,000 to 3,000 hits per week, and Auman loves the ease of digital publishing. “Kinko’s is out of the equation, as are trips to the post office. I don’t need to pedal around town with bags full of magazines during Chicago’s brutal winters. I can correct typos and edit content to infinity if I need to. I can fact check things more easily, thus making myself look smarter. It’s easier to get readers to find you through blogger tags and links from other sites; even Google searches bring people to the site.”

Later this year, Auman hopes to return to print – with a new zine “based on all the crappy jobs I’ve had in the past 25-plus years, which will be accompanied by comics and sidebar anecdotes.”

TERRESTRIAL TO PODCAST – METALMOUTH RADIO: Before launching his metal podcast, Neil Wonnell had a string of jobs as a producer, board op, and/or DJ at a handful of suburban radio stations, including WJOL, WICB, WLLI, and WCSF. The last straw came when he was working overnights, and gave the only respondent to a call-in contest its tiny jackpot. “[She] was ecstatic that she had won the entire pot of $9.50 and planned to use the money to buy doughnuts for her church,” he says of the elderly winner. “Monday morning, the station manager was less ecstatic and needless to say that ended my career at that station.”

Wonnell launched “Metalmouth Radio” in July 2010, as a heavy-metal talk show. “Not getting too many calls at first, I added music, but the sound quality on that original site was horrid,” he says. So he switched to music and started pre-recording on the city’s far South Side before uploading it to reverbnation.com/neilwonnell. (The show is distributed through Wonnell’s N.E.W. Audio Concepts LLC, and syndicated on Fox FM and Monclair State University’s WMSC-FM.)

Wonnell plays old-school, new-school, thrash, punk, and heavy metal and plenty of unsigned bands. A recent selection ranged from Fueled By Fire’s “Eye Of The Demon” to Killer Of Sheep’s “Lose Control” to Black Flag’s “Black Coffee.” After an energetic diatribe on the hypocrisy (and aroma) of hippies, he put on “Hippie Killer” by Suicidal Tendencies.

He says he’d like to find a co-host and do a full four-hour show on terrestrial or satellite radio, and add a talk edition of “Metalmouth.”

In the meantime, he says the recent signing of South Siders Diamond Plate to Earache Records put Chicago on the metal map. “Bands to watch for are Savagery and Smash Potater.”

Bands can submit music by contacting him via neilwonnell [at] yahoo.com.

ODDS N SODS: WGN-AM (720)’s new lineup is virtually devoid of women now that Karen Conti and Johnnie Putman are gone. At least they kept “Sports Night” co-host Andrea Darlas and “Sunday Night Special” co-host Marianne Murciano. The latter is one of the few live shows remaining on the weekends, which are now devoted to – yawn – “best-of” reruns . . . We loved the debut of Brooke Hunter and Jill Egan’s new weekly podcast, “The Brooke & Jill Show” (the two first paired up at “The Zone” in 2002). At press time they hadn’t launched a website; listen at chicagoradioandmedia.com or check out their Facebook page . . . They’re following the footsteps of local radio veteran Wendy Snyder, who continues doing her weekly podcast – which she started two-and-a-half years ago – with husband Jimmy “Mac” McInerney. Listen at snyderemarksradio.net . . . Which reminds us: on February 1st, the Chicago Foundation For Women co-sponsors a free screening of Miss Representation, a documentary about gender and discrimination in media. More at cfw.org.

Dot Dot Dot returned to the studio, this time with producer/mixer Tadpole (Plain White T’s, 3 Doors Down, Finger Eleven, Disturbed). Working out of Parka Studios in Berwyn, they say they’ve continued the direction of III, which itself was a marked departure from their early poppier sounds.

“Everyone has an opinion on what you should sound like” says lead singer Adam Blair, “They’re all trying to help, but at some point though we realized we wanted to just make music regardless of trends and or what sells – just trying to make music that represents what we sound like live. To me, it’s all about writing a great song.” The last recordings have found the band on a national commercial campaigns (Party City/Factory Card Outlet) as well as cable-TV standards like “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” while continuing a grueling tour of 150-plus shows per year. Drummer Marty Kane says, “Having worked with Tadpole on our last EP, it seemed when we got back into the studio for these latest sessions, we had a general understanding of how each of us worked, how we communicated, and what was expected in the performances. Tadpole knows what he wants and he’s not afraid to re-take until he captures precisely what he’s going for.”

The Damn Bats, consisting of locals/ former Rabid Bats, Reaganomics, and Bill Ura Dik members plus veteran British drummer Rat Scabies (The Damned), tracked two songs of which one was finished by Scabies at ALASKA STUDIOS in London, England. The demo for “Doomed” was then returned to Chicago so guitars, bass, vocals, and final mixing could be finished.

A year in the making, Richie Rich (a.k.a. Rich Ryan) and the Chi-Town Blues Band recorded From The Streets at Studio Chicago in Chicago with Wes Blaha engineering. Editing was done at Image Pictures in Tomah, Wisconsin with Ryan and owner Peter Malinger at the controls. Mixing and mastering was done at CRC Chicago by Grammy-nominated producer/engineer Chris Steinmetz and his assistant, Yuki Tasaka. To adequately capture modern blues witha traditional edge, Ryan brought some heavy hitters to the sessions: Grammy-winning guitarist Billy Flynn, Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith, plus Grammy-nominated pianist Barrelhouse Chuck, Mark DeVos on bass, and a horn section from the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. Ryan wrote and co-arranged all 12 songs on the CD, sharing three writing credits with Steinmetz.

At BobDog Studios in Oak Park, producer Dave Owsald brought singer/songwriter Arden Baldinger and guitarist extraordinaire Andon Davis in to remix one of Arden’s songs (from the recent Pony CD) for release as a single . . . Oak Park teen singer/songwriter Lena Fjortoft recorded a four-song demo . . . Arie Sorin recorded fiddle tracks to help finish the upcoming posthumous release of Dennis Dermer’s Psychic Change with Bill Kavanagh providing bass . . . Dave Ero brought in drummer Mike Panico, singer Sandy Lee, and keyboardist Dave Mathis to continue work on his upcoming release . . . South-African/American singer/songwriter Rozanne Gewaar recorded additional songs for her newest album . . . Scott Lehman treated home-recorded new songs with added, studio-quality plug-ins . . . Scott Fortman’s The New Normal continued tracking for their debut CD, with owner Kavanagh on bass.

Hey Studiophiler: To get your studio or band listed in “Studiophile,” just e-mail info on who you’re recording or who’s recording you to ed[at]illinoisentertainer.com, subject Studiophile, or fax (773) 751-5051. We reserve the right to edit submissions for space. Deadline for March 2012 is February 15th. We need your news, you need us to print it!

When exploring the formidable list of Chicago’s blues divas, Deitra Farr’s name is always front and center. Versatile and energetic, her smooth and controlled voice tackles a range of genres from soul to gospel but it always remains grounded in the blues. Growing up on the South Side, it was clear that Farr was headed for a life on stage. Her youth was filled with exceptional situations that kept thrusting her into the spotlight.

“When I was 7, I went to see my uncle perform. There was a female lead singer and I told them, ‘When you get tired of her, give me a call,’” Farr recalls of her early start. “Everybody thought I was cute, but when I was 17, the girl quit the band. I was ready. I had my songs, I knew the top-40 hits.” She auditioned for her uncle’s R&B band, Central Power Station, and beat out 11 others for the job. They performed pop hits at local parties, but it was just the first step in her quick ascent up the music business ladder.

By the time she graduated high school, Farr was already set to record her first single. She was studying music at Loop College (now Harold Washington College) with noted music producer James Mack and one of her classmates was looking for a lead singer for his group, Mill Street Depo. Farr snagged the job and recorded a single, “You Won’t Support Me,” with the band on Platinum Records, which was Sylvia Robinson’s (of Sugar Hill Records fame) label. The recording become a Cashbox Top 100 R&B hit in 1976, supplying 18-year-old Farr with a smash record and two professional groups with which she regularly performed. It was all heady stuff for anyone – especially a teen – but she viewed it as simply part of her path. “Because of the way my life has been, I expect the unusual and I do the unusual,” she says. Unusual indeed. When she was growing up in Englewood, her biggest dream was playing the Grand Ballroom on 63rd. She never imagined that she would eventually play in 40 countries. Her next step was obtaining blues-club gigs.

At 22, she was working as a desk clerk at the U Of I and one of her friends dared her to get up and sing with Phil Guy, who was performing at the school. “They didn’t know I could; I got up and sang ‘Steel Away’ and Phil said, ‘You can really sing, you need to play with us.’” Farr played with Guy at the Checkerboard and Theresa’s, meeting Junior Wells and Buddy Guy. “I thought, maybe I can be a blues singer. I liked it. My dad had a big blues collection so it wasn’t foreign to me.” She quickly became absorbed in the scene and was amazed at the wealth of legendary blues people who formed the local scene in the ’80s. She played Kingston Mines, Blue Chicago, and Wise Fools Pub. “I was in awe that I could meet people on blues records,” she says. “These people were my heroes. I met Louis Myers, who was Little Walter’s sideman. People coming on the blues scene now, I feel sorry for them because it’s gone. They can only learn it on records.”

Farr grabbed the opportunity to learn from legendary blues icons and it served her well. She went down to play in Birmingham, Alabama with Howlin’ Wolf drummer Sam Lay in the early ’80s. The band was white except for Farr and Lay, but they played a black club. With Lay in the back on drums and Farr backstage, all the club’s patrons saw were white faces and they walked out. When Farr came out to sing, the club was empty except a lone figure at the bar.

“I went out and decided to do my show and I sang my heart out,” she remembers, “pretending it was a full house. I got off stage and saw somebody sitting at the bar and it’s Eddie Kendricks of The Temptations. This was one of my idols and he was the only one in the audience. The lesson is to do your show because you don’t know who is watching.”

The world is watching Farr now. In the ’90s, she performed as the lead singer of Mississippi Heat, touring and recording two CDs. “They were the brothers I never had,” she says. She left the group to focus on her solo career and produced her first solo outing, The Search Is Over (JSP), in 1997. That album showcased her rich vocals and the smooth blues that has become her trademark. She followed with Let It Go! in 2005, which reflected her soul and gospel influences.

“I’m not strictly blues, I also do soul,” Farr says. “I sing what I feel. I feel blues. I feel soul. That’s the best way I can express myself. I’m not shy about singing jazz. I sing gospel. I’m a music lover. The way I best express me is blues, soul, gospel.” As a songwriter, she stands out as one of the most evocative in contemporary blues. All of her work displays a strong narrative and well-defined emotions.

“I’m inspired by what I hear, what I’m going through, and what I read,” she says of her process. “Sometimes the music gets to me first. I’ll hear chords in my head. I write all of my music in my head. I go through periods where I don’t write anything because I just wasn’t inspired. You can’t force creativity. It’s either there or not there.”

Always multi-faceted in terms of creativity, Farr is currently working on her memoirs, two movies, as well as her monthly “Artist To Artist” column in Living Blues. She kicks off a South American tour this summer, so catch her while you can.

Apparing: 2/2 at Buddy Guy’s Legends (700 S. Wabash) in Chicago.

Harp master Sugar Blue will make beautiful music at his blues wedding on February 16th at Rosa’s, 3420 W. Armitage. The event will start at 9 p.m. with the band playing, including groom Sugar Blue and bride Ilaria.

– Rosalind Cummings-Yeates

Firing some early February shows across your bow before we launch the new issue: the next CHIRP “First Time” recital, Swearwords’ record release, Stolen Silver’s residency, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Chicago Independent Radio Project (CHIRP) have a fresh “First Time” reading series lined up, this one called “First Record.” Miles Raymer (Chicago Reader), Whet Moser (Chicago Magazine), Shawn Campbell (CHIRP), Chuck Sudo (Chicagoist), and Sabrina Harper (Second City) will dig into their memories about the music they were first exposed to, hopefully to comedic effect. Then, a live band consisting of former Frisbie members Steve Frisbie, Liam Davis, and Gerald Dowd perform related songs in an acoustic setting without rehearsal. (Wednesday@Beat Kitchen.)

The birthplace of modern architecture. Twenty miles of sweeping lakefront vistas. Gritty, urban decay. Chicago has all these things, but what do local bands most incorporate into their imagery and press photos? The bridges that traverse the Chicago River downtown. Swearwords add their website to the scrolls, giving their peppy, modern-rock a handicap from the outset. The three, free tracks on their Ration The Joy EP are hard to resist however, pumping unself-conscious fun into the scraggy, headachey world of The Strokes and Longwave. (Thursday@Empty Bottle with Minor Characters.)

Appearances by the South African choir generally sell out, but this arrival comes on the heels of Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s collaboration compilation: Ladysmith Black Mambazo And Friends (Listen2). Including cuts from the album that introduced them to mainstream America (Paul Simon’s Graceland), the album spans a jawdropping variety from Bob Dylan covers with Dolly Parton, a gospel medley with Emmylou Harris, combinations with contemporaries like The SABC Choir, western institutions like The English Chamber Orchestra, and pure pop on a cover of Sam Cooke’s “Chain Gang” featuring Lou Rawls. (Friday@Old Town School Of Folk Music — two shows.)

Last year’s debut album opened with a deceptive opener for Stolen Silver. As anyone who ventured past the opening track will attest, the indie R&B of “Anticipation” leads not into a TV On The Radio headspace, but oaken harmonies to fit somewhere between Fleet Foxes and Seryn. Occupying the monthly “Practice Space,” the former Down The Line kleptocrats – singer Dan Myers also used to play with Gary Sinise’s Lt. Dan Band – will be working over new material as well as the 10 songs on their debut. You can call them the local chapter of Bon Iver-induced soft-rock revival. (Mondays@Schubas in February.)

– Steve Forstneger

Ronald McDonald House is hosting a youth-choir benefit this weekend, in order to raise funds for a new facility in Streeterville. The charity’s Chicagoland & Northwest Indiana chapter has organized the event at Harris Theater.

Voices Of The Future assembles a number of kids’ ensembles: Walt Whitman & The Soul Children Of Chicago, All City High School Choir, The Kenwood Academy Concert Choir, the Loyola Academy Honors Chamber Singers, Midwest Young Artists, Kelly High School Cantantes, Franklin Fine Arts Academy Choir, and, new this year, the Lincoln Park High School Chamber Singers. In honor of The Beatles’ 50th anniversary, each group will sing a Fab tune.

Proceeds from donations will go toward the construction — already underway — of a new Ronald McDonald House next to the new Lurie’s Children Hospital (formerly named Children’s Memorial) at 225 W. Chicago Ave. The concert begins at 2 p.m. (Sunday@Harris Theater in Millennium Park.)

When Cass McCombs lived in Chicago, he made himself difficult to find; his former publicist once meekly offered an e-mail interview to IE if McCombs could be tracked down before deadline. His first of two albums last year, Wit’s End (Domino) doesn’t behave as the work of a recluse. In fact, it has everything in common with Harry Nilsson’s non-Lennon trials except for where to stick the coconut. Combine your electric piano with terms like lonely, buried alive, stain, cave, shadow . . . a beautiful bummer. It often teeters on the brink of sadsack moaning, which can’t be side of the followup. Humor Risk is more inline with the eclectic, roaming indie songcrafter of yore. We say -crafter not -writer, because McCombs has always been as involved in sonics, which made the confessional tones of Wit’s End the catalog anomaly. (Sunday@Lincoln Hall with Frank Fairfield.)

It’s hard to imagine there being another Bruce Springsteen. Like Jason Anderson, Adam Acuragi’s going to try. Like a fire that consumes all before it (Thirty Tigers) wants your feet on your seat, or at least imagining Acuragi in a setting that has rows and rows of seats. It’s a rousing, anthemic affair with a backdrop of “let’s celebrate how life can suck.” (Monday@Empty Bottle with The Pear Traps and Will Phalen.)

– Steve Forstneger

When an artist stages a farewell tour, it’s generally just a bluff to sell more tickets and they wind up coming through town for an endless parade of victory laps. (Cher and the Eagles come to mind.) But in the case of Glen Campbell, this really is his last hurrah, due to a recent diagnosis with Alzheimer’s disease that will force him to retire from the road and recording studio.

Even with the bittersweet premise behind his first of two nights at the Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet (where he returns on Friday), Campbell went out with a bang thanks to a slew of country to pop crossovers and tunes from the new Ghost On The Canvas (Surfdog). Much like Johnny Cash in his golden years, the collection takes on a decidedly introspective nature, but as the 75-year-old assured the near-capacity crowd, he’s maintaining a positive attitude.

Despite admitting mild memory loss in recent interviews and having a teleprompter by his feet in case of emergencies, Campbell was coherent and personable throughout 75 short but sweet minutes, sounding particularly spry on the familiar opener “Gentle On My Mind” and his subsequent mining through 50-plus years of material. No matter how many times they’re told, Jimmy Webb narratives like “Galveston” (which he almost started a second time before quickly steering back on course) and “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and are still relatable tales of romantic yearning, though Campbell just as quickly turned the tides towards his cowboy side come “True Grit.”

The evening also unveiled glimpses of the veteran as a family man with his daughter Ashley backing him on banjo and keys, alongside his sons Shannon on guitar and Cal on drums (all of whom also served in the stellar opening act Instant People, a harmony-heavy, Southern-tinted indie-pop outfit). Aside from their obvious chemistry, a banjo/guitar duel between Ashley and her pop was most impressive, especially considering no teleprompter could ever deliver the fiery licks the elder Campbell effortlessly commanded. The communal feeling also paved the way for the gospel-infused current cuts like “It’s Your Amazing Grace” and “Ghost On The Canvas,” two primary examples of Campbell’s vitality and refusal to go down without swinging.

A home stretch of his most celebrated cuts (“Wichita Lineman,” “Rhinestone Cowboy,” “Southern Nights”) hinted at the musical legacy he’ll leave behind, while the new “A Better Place” suggested Campbell’s more concerned about the mark he’ll make as a human being. If this swansong show was any indication, he has nothing to worry about in either category thanks to a cherished catalog and the ability to courageously thrive in the face of adversity.

– Andy Argyrakis

Would, say, Lollapalooza be more enjoyable if it were scattered over a couple weekends? Obviously, tearing down and rebuilding the stages/leaving Grant Park blocked would be bad. But we like how Chicago Bluegrass & Blues takes a break and restarts.

This weekend comes the finale, or part two, or a completely separate event in this winter’s CBB12, and hoes down at an entirely different venue than last week’s Auditorium Theatre, and we still don’t quite understand why “blues” is in the fest title. Maybe Chicago Bluegrass & Americana sounds too narrow or whitebread. Headliners Drive-By Truckers play self-aware Southern rock, though their latest album (Go-Go Boots on ATO) finds them celebrating their inner session musicians and taking it easy on the body count. Reliable, local folk rockers Joe Pug, Bailiff, Van Ghost, Jaik Willis, The Shams Band, Jon Drake & The Shakes, Ben Ripani Music Co., The Future Laureates, Band Called Catch, Michele McGuire, and Paper Thick Walls round out the bill. Maybe Jon Spencer consulted on the lineup (go to 2:13). What’s in a festival name anyway? It’s not like Pitchfork books rural bands.(Saturday@Congress.)

If, two days after CBB, you still can’t shake the feeling, Charlie Parr might show you salvation. Parr’s latest album, Keep Your Hands On The Plow, collects a number of gospel standards and renders them on a drought-plagued prairie at dusk. The Minnesotan’s interpretations aim for grim, fire-and-brimstone tones, but with a distance that suggests Parr doesn’t subscribe to the content. Even the hallowing capabilities of Low guests Mimi Parker and Alan Sparhawk create a gray area where Parr’s detachment is either totally compelling or a dry turnoff. The battle for the soul should be filled with such ambivalence. (Monday@Reggies with Kent Rose and Me & The Devil.)

– Steve Forstneger

There’s a benefit/memorial show for Curtis “2C” Canino on the 28th at Bottom lounge. Canino was in Lygate and Death By Design, and had worked at Exit and other chicago venues.

– IE

Sometimes a subtle shift is all a band needs to find rejuvenation. Los Campesinos haven’t pulled a Kid A or even an OK Computer, but they’ve pulled enough to get out of a rut. They’re in town, as are Cheyenne Marie Mize and David Nail.

On 2010’s Romance Is Boring, the Welsh septet missed the target in an attempt to fire their bratty indie-punk into the heart of their more sincere expressions. Hello Sadness (Arts & Crafts) takes more or less the same approach, but with less haste and more of a clear sense of who they want to be. Almost unrecognizable from the coattail-Art Brut’ers who spun “You! Me! Dancing!”, Sadness feels genuine, as if the personal and creative struggles that emerged in Romance’s aftermath were the genesis for some actual examination. “You! Me! Dancing!” fans needn’t be totally worried, as the Campesinos can still work up an over-caffeinated fervor, but they’re a better veteran band than they were an album ago. (Friday@Metro with Parenthetical Girls.)

Some day, Cheyenne Marie Mize is going to look at her album titles and wonder what-if. The We Don’t Need (Yep Roc) EP follows the similarly truncated Before Lately, both suggesting a convoluted or self-serious singer/songwriter. Mize’s determination in her craft, shouldn’t be questioned either way. For a short set, We Don’t Need prismatically combines and refracts the colors that constitute her work. “Wishing Well” is the disco ball, combining her earthy energy, ad hoc percussion, and organic thrust that gets scattered through the haunted, less accessible “Call Me Beautiful” and the buoyant piano-pop of “Going Under.” If only the words that bound them weren’t so inscrutable. (Wednesday@Schubas with Secret Colours.)

If you had David Nail’s studio band, you’d play forever, too. With the power to turn even Nail’s slightest, pop-rock material into modern-country gold, it’s no wonder the average track on his sophomore label outing, The Sound Of A Million Dreams (MCA Nashville), runs about 90 seconds too long. A discordant, yet gritty moan greets opener “Grandpa’s Farm,” while “I Thought You Knew” harkens subconsciously to Def Leppard’s Hysteria without losing the plot. Nail, who nails the sweeping melody to “Let It Rain,” workmanly digs through country boilerplate, but never really has anything to say. Even the potentially devastating “Half Mile Hill” – about a boy watching daddy walk away – reads like it could have been written by anyone with a mild understanding of child psychology. You’d let the band play, too. (Thursday@Joe’s On Weed.)

– Steve Forstneger

Converse has been canvassing the land for its new music series, “Rubber Meets The Road,” which follows independent bands on tour. The first episode features local fellows Yawn, who trek to Brooklyn for the shoe manufacturer’s Rubber Tracks recording studio. Click on!

Part one was posted earlier, and the second of three is online now!

If it seems like “Mamma Mia!” tours through Chicago almost every year, that’s because it usually does, if only for Abba’s ongoing popularity and its single-stacked soundtrack. At this stage of its shelf-life, the musical created by original band members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus was witnessed by more than 50-million people around the world and continues running on both Broadway and London’s West End.

Besides its 1999 debut, the show’s seen several surges, especially following 2008’s film adaptation (starring Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried, Christine Baranski, and Julie Walters) and in 2010 after Abba was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Though there’s a story to be told (a girl who’s trying to find her father in advance of getting married), the real reason fans keep flocking are the songs themselves.

After all, who can resist singing along to “Lay All Your Love On Me,” “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!,” “S.O.S.,” and “Take A Chance On Me,” which are all weaved seamlessly into the humorous and sometimes touching tale. And here’s a tip for first time theatergoers: Don’t leave after the first curtain call because an encore segment ensures a mini tribute concert featuring a few reprises and favorites that didn’t fit in the storyline. “Dancing Queen” anyone? (Tuesday, January 24-Sunday, January 29@Oriental Theatre www.broadwayinchicago.com)

– Andy Argyrakis

CBGB in New York is a tourist attraction now. Never mind that it became a punk club. Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival might not be a haven for fundamentalists and zealots, but the first night, this Saturday, makes a case for the styles’ futures.

With a lineup featuring The Del McCoury Band with David Grisman, The Bluegrass Ball featuring The Travelin’ McCourys, Bill Nershi of String Cheese Incident with Jeff Austin of Yonder Mountain String Band, Joe Purdy, The Giving Tree Band, Henhouse Prowlers, and Majors Junction, you’re out of your element if you expect something akin to Joe’s On Weed or the North Halsted blues venues. The Auditorium Theatre’s pristine acoustics might be an odd match for music that rose up from the dirt, but it’s all the better to hear a madcap innovator like Grisman plying his trade.

Next Saturday, the 28th, the party moves to Congress Theatre with a 5 p.m. start. Drive-By Truckers headline, with Dawes and Joe Pug in tow.

– Steve Forstneger

Golden Globes: over. Mitt Romney: inevitable. Packers: safely packed away (though surely God won’t give Eli a second title, right?). Lana Del Rey: crashed and burned. Guess it’s Man Is Man, Martin Sexton, or Machine Head.

Husband-and-wife-duo Puerto Muerto existed on the margins of Chicago rock for a decade (which is why we didn’t have a problem adding them Shelby Lynne-like to our 10 local artists to watch for 2010), but despite continually keeping the Bottle and Hideout in their thrall never quite established themselves in the larger conversation. For whatever reason, Christa Meyer’s transformation into Man Is Man seems poised to change that. Without retreating from PM’s haunting aesthetic or showing any deviation from her musical evolution, Those Birds Will Eat Us feels more direct and personal. At first, that seems a foolish declaration, because PM’s lyrics always had a fly-on-the-wall element for the married couple producing them. Meyer’s gaze is eerily fixed as she moans “I love you” again and again, while cabernet-swilling Nick Cave runs through “Love Leaves Us.” There’s a titular fixation with animals — doves, horses, starlings, bears — but it’s Meyers soul that’s restive through a string of torch songs; her primal urges have been shown death’s door. (Thursday@Hideout with Angela James.)

The general ineffectiveness of music journalism and critics glares most when some apocalypse-harbinging sham scales the charts in defiance of the ink spilled against them. But there’s also a quieter, more dispiriting quandary posed by the likes of Martin Sexton. The Boston-based singer/songwriter tours consistently and fills midsize venues, but when you Google him, the most common hits are the varying pages of his own site. Nothing recent from Rolling Stone, Spin, Pitchfork, the L.A. Times, Boston Herald, New Yorker, Time Out . . . just a Pop Matters review and a smattering of praise from individual, aspiring bloggers. His soulful, acoustic pop is nothing new, for one, and though there’s the occasional political foray his sentimentality (the new Fall Like Rain EP includes both a cover of “For What It’s Worth” and a happy-sixth-anniversary ode to his wife) rules the day. So what gives? People just like him. Occasionally, the press is on the outside looking in. (Friday@Park West with Bhi Bhiman.)

Grunge rock absorbs a lot of blame for what happened to metal’s popularity in the ’90s, though honestly nu-metal did more internal damage. Gliding through trends and crashes, Machine Head come to town celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. Overshadowed in the beginning commercially by Pantera, Sepultura, and Korn, and in the underground by black metal’s swift, menacing rise, Machine Head dropped an album roughly every 30 months and only lost the plot once, in 1999. Their failure to issue an unimpeachable masterpiece will always blot the Oaklanders’ record, but without fanfare, last year’s Unto The Locust (Roadrunner) built another brick layer around their formidable reputation. (Sunday@House Of Blues with Suicide Silence and Darkest Hour.)

– Steve Forstneger