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DVD Zone: February 2009
The Secret Policeman’s Ball (Shout Factory) In 1976 Peter Luft, the assistant director of Amnesty International, made a phone call to John Cleese, founding member of the legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python. At the time, Amnesty was a struggling organization barely making ends meet in the fight to bring awareness of human rights violations […]
Passing The Torch: Odetta & Miriam Makeba
Two vital women, American folk singer and civil-rights activist Odetta and South Africa’s voice of hope and freedom, Miriam Makeba, passed away within weeks of one another in late 2008. Makeba, 76, died of cardiac arrest after performing in Italy November 9th, and Odetta Holmes, 77, succumbed to heart disease December 2nd. Though they weren’t […]
Local Studio Happenings
At BOMBSHELTER RECORDING STUDIO in Park Ridge, Dan Precision, founding member of Rise Against and 88 Fingers Louie, finished the vinyl remaster of Shot Baker‘s Take Control. He originally engineered, mixed, and produced the CD, and Blaise Barton mastered it . . . Precision also worked with gothic metal band Urn; he tracked all of […]
Heavy Duty Rock ‘N’ Roll
Lair Of The Minotaur‘s War Metal Battle Master might not have been the best heavy metal record of 2008 (fifth best, says me), but I can’t think of a more metal heavy metal record released all year. It’s only fitting the Chicago band also made the most metal music video, too.
Reasons To Be Cheerful Pt. III: “JBTV”
“I love to help those that have talent, give them a place to be a rock star . . . on ‘JBTV,’” says Jerry Bryant, who has been bringing alternative-music videos, concert footage, and free-form interviews to the Chicago area since 1986. “JBTV” has featured everyone from The Afghan Whigs to Zwan, and won two […]
It’s NAMM, man
NAMM show postgame Despite the dodgy economy, there was no lack of enthusiasm or new musical instruments and sound/recording gear at the NAMM Show in Anaheim, California last month. Here are a few of our favorites.
Local CD reviews
It’s tough to be negative about Brown Like Fiasco, a band so friggin’ happy on tracks like “Lovely Day” and “Somewhere” from Superstar. But the group’s Mr. Rogers outlook on life sucks all the power out of its power pop. Nothin’ wrong with feel-good jams, but these guys could write a cheery song huddled in […]
Metallica live!
Metallica Allstate Arena, Rosemont Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Click here to view more Metallica pics! Hours before Metallica completed their two-night Allstate Arena stand, IE contributor Mike Meyer said, “You’re not going to see Metallica – you’re going to see Disney.” He wasn’t being disrespectful, rather trying to underscore the change in a band who […]
Funeral For A Friend preview
Funeral For A Friend Metro, Chicago Friday, January 30, 2009 Welsh screamo act Funeral For A Friend never broke through in the States the way they have in the U.K. Which is a shame, as the group craft smarter, catchier, and overall better songs than most their harder metalcore peers on this side of the […]
Mumiy Troll preview
Mumiy Troll Empty Bottle, Chicago Friday, January 30, 2009 At first glance, “Mumiy Troll” looks like a trainwreck of an attempt by a foreign band to craft an intimidating English name. But a) the name is actual Russian and b) beginning from behind the Iron Curtain, it’s possible the group never harbored hopes of reaching […]
Yo Majesty preview
Yo Majesty Empty Bottle, Chicago Sunday, February 1, 2009 Yo Majesty’s backstory is so intriguing in itself it hardly seems necessary to even listen to Futuristically Speaking . . . Never Be Afraid. Though, if you don’t, you’re missing out on music as intriguing as the musicians behind it.
Combichrist preview
Combichrist House Of Blues, Chicago Wednesday, February 4, 2009 I could easily break off a bunch Wikipedia knowledge or poach the last-updated-in-Spring-’07 biography on the band’s official Web site and make it sound like I have some sort of working knowledge of Combichrist. Truth is, though, I’d never heard of them before Today We Are […]
Franz Ferdinand reviewed
Franz Ferdinand Tonight: Franz Ferdinand (Domino) It took nearly four years for Franz Ferdinand to decide more bass, less guitar.
The Killers live!
The Killers UIC Pavilion, Chicago Tuesday, January 20, 2009 Is Brandon Flowers a fan of “Lost”? Judging by the set design at The Killers’ sold-out Tuesday night performance at UIC Pavilion, somebody in the Las Vegas-based band’s camp certainly harbors affection for John Locke. Flanked by plastic palm trees wrapped in white twinkle lights, Flowers […]
Lambchop preview
Lambchop Old Town School Of Folk Music, Chicago Saturday, January 24, 2009 It’s in keeping with Lambchop’s hard-to-define style that the band is both a perfect and poor fit for the Old Town School. Kurt Wagner’s whimsical lyrical prose belongs in a storyteller atmosphere, but the score behind it on the band’s latest album, OH […]
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