Archive for April, 2007
Cover Story: The Police
The Police Red Light, Green Light It is just after 10:30 a.m. on Monday, February 12th, and a group of about 150 international entertainment journalists, music-industry insiders, and rock star celebs are ushered into Los Angeles’ famed Whiskey A-Go-Go on Sunset Boulevard. Joining them is a small but fiery group of hardcore fans who won […]
Bebel Gilberto interview
Bebel Gilberto The Parent Trap Bebel Gilberto speaks with the same soft, sensual cadences she uses when she sings — that graceful blend of sun, urbanity, and rhythm that turns the familiar into something exotic and the exotic into something intimate. Given Gilberto’s singing style, this is probably to be expected (or, if you’re male, […]
JJ Grey & Mofro interview
JJ Grey & Mofro Ain’t No Place Like Home When speaking with JJ Grey, you’re not likely to hear this proud Floridian call himself an activist. But since dropping the Blackwater album in 2001 with his band Mofro, this singer-songwriter has stood up for the oft-forgotten residents who dwell in the swampy outskirts of his […]
Megadeth interview
Megadeth Angry Again No Metallica. No Ellefson. No religion. These were the ground rules laid down for the Illinois Entertainer prior to our interview with Megadeth founder/frontman/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Appearing: May 5th at Allstate Arena in Rosemont.
Nachtmystium interview
Nachtmystium Cosmic American Black Metal In determined, jagged strikes, the young girl slashed her own skin with a razor blade she had smuggled into the all-ages show. As blood and consciousness escaped her, she collapsed onto a floor of broken glass. Her salvation came not from the band she showed up to worship, but from […]
Shadows Fall interview
Shadows Fall Full Speed Ahead “Loud. Loud and sloppy, but it’s all good” This is Shadows Fall bassist Paul Romanko’s account of the group’s just-completed sound check at Myth Nightclub in St. Paul, Minnesota on March 23rd, the first day of the Stone Sour-headlined Jägermeister Music Tour. Shadows Fall, along with Lacuna Coil, serve as […]
Hello, My Name Is Kevin
Hello, My Name Is Kevin This month’s conversationalist is erstwhile IE cover vet Kevin Cronin, who has REO Speedwagon back on the road.
File: May 2007
FREEDOM FRIES “Burger King, look the fuck out!” Such a statement hardly seems like the kind of impassioned declaration you would expect in the midst of rock ‘n’ roll history being made. But then you realize this is no ordinary rock ‘n’ roll history – this is Tom Morello, The Nightwatchman, at the Chicago stop […]
DVD Zone: May 2007
Smokin’ Aces Universal Picture if you will Ocean’s Eleven with a mob hit at the center of the plot instead of a casino heist. Now amp up the gunfire and mayhem, and you get Smokin’ Aces.
Indie Label Month: Inside Delmark
A Day In The Life Of Delmark Records The name Delmark Records isn’t just synonymous with Chicago jazz and blues, but has steadily become an American institution as the second oldest independent record label in music history. Since 1953, the company’s wide ranging roster has included such royalty as Junior Wells, Magic Sam, Otis Rush, […]
Local CD Reviews
The August scored some national buzz in 2005 with a spot on the Aware 11 compilation, though the group leans much closer to country than it does college rock on Thistle, Sparrow, And The Tall, Tall Grass. Female fronted songs such as “Drunken Picture” and “Sugar Mama” recall Nickel Creek or Dolly Parton, though there […]
Around Hear Page 2
Indie rock foursome The Gnomes carry a sound as understated as the title of their sophomore album, The Gnomes II. There’s no showboating or posturing on songs like “Whiskey Is Misery” or “Ho-Chunk Casino” – just sincere and slightly quirky tunes that pull you in with their pleasant undertone. Amid a couple underdeveloped tracks (e.g. […]
Around Hear Page 3
Elmhurst singer-songwriter Dean Milano has been part of The New Seekers and opened for Cab Calloway, but it seems his biggest achievement is his latest CD, Songs About Stuff, which manages to be tuneful, intelligent, sometimes humorous, and well-executed from beginning to end. Milano’s songs are streetwise and smart, a welcome addition to anyone’s collection […]
Rhyming For A Cause
Somali musician K’naan plays a rhythmic stew of hip-hop-influenced poetry that borrows from ancient Somali culture as much as it does from contemporary American influences. A refugee who fled his home at 14, he retains the quiet dignity of his heritage and yet fires lyrics with a swagger that has been compared to Eminem.
Mixmaster, Cut Faster
ALESIS iMultiMix 8 USB Alesis have come up with an impressive addition to their popular MultiMix series, spearheaded by the ingenious iMultiMix 8 USB, which features an iPod mounting dock that records directly to any second-through-fifth generation iPod.
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