Recent Articles
Richie Havens preview
Richie Havens Beverly Center, Chicago Saturday, September 6, 2008 If there is a God and he’s male, he probably speaks English like James Earl Jones. And when he sings? The heavens thunder like Richie Havens.
James Jackson Toth preview
James Jackson Toth Schubas, Chicago Wednesday, September 10, 2008 James Jackson Toth has one of those voices that places him smack in the middle of a classic rock radio station’s playlist regardless of the year. Like The Black Crowes, it doesn’t matter that the singer-songwriter’s first solo record, Waiting In Vain (Ryko), hit store shelves […]
The Fratellis & Airborne Toxic Event preview
The Fratellis, Airborne Toxic Event House Of Blues, Chicago Wednesday, September 10, 2008 If they rely too much on the calculated cool of their two albums, The Fratellis stand to be overrun by openers Airborne Toxic Event.
Slipknot reviewed
Slipknot All Hope Is Gone (Roadrunner) Certain pockets of heavy metal fandom insist Slipknot are nothing more than goons in expensive Halloween masks whose over-the-top image, not the music, sells their records. If costumes sell CDs, though, why don’t Gwar go platinum? Why aren’t Mushroomhead playing arenas? Looking forward to the new Lordi record? Still […]
Young@Heart Chorus reviewed
Young@Heart Chorus Mostly Live (Rhino) Though technically not the Young@Heart soundtrack, without the visuals, this companion to the retirement-age music documentary still gets by, occasionally offering some contender-esque interpretations of modern rock and R&B.
Cover Story: Eagles
Eagles Packin’ Em In It’s hard to think of a band whose members have had more time to themselves than the Eagles. A 14-year breakup from 1980 to 1994 allowed them to recharge their nerves, and even then they didn’t have to really do anything but tour and make appearances. Last fall, 13 years after […]
Million Dollar Show
The Million Dollar Quartet Lives Move over Jersey Boys. There’s a new sweet-sounding gang of four rolling into town — this time from the South. Million Dollar Quartet brings to life the extraordinary afternoon on December 4th, 1956 when Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins all converged on the birthplace of […]
Steve Cropper interview
Steve Cropper Staxing The Deck Once a music journalist has been around the block a couple times, it’s inevitable that certain patterns emerge. For example, it’s a sure bet at some point a baby band will sound uncannily like “Nuke” LaLoosh in Bull Durham: “Well, we’re just going to tour really hard and hope our […]
David Vandervelde interview
David Vandervelde Back To Front In a storybook world, David Vandervelde’s Chicago-to-Brooklyn-to-Nashville wanderlust would make him the ideal Dylanite troubadour. Sprung from the clutches of Holland, Michigan, he would crush our feeble intellects with a slapdash, rustic urbanity and cut a straight path through the hyper-media mire, grooming himself for a biopic to premiere in […]
Record Spree!
Passing Out Needles, Or: How To Stop Worrying And Love Your Vinyl Again Record Collectors: Start Your Engines Undoubtedly, you’ve heard vinyl is back. Maybe, to you, it never went away. There were rumors, however, that the traditional LP was a relic, abandoned for much shinier and more-portable storage units called compact discs. Fifteen to […]
Hello, My Name Is Susan
Hello, My Name Is Susan Q&A With Susan Carr IE: So how did you get into this area, screaming, of vocal training? Susan Carr: When I was going to school for my degree — I have a degree in vocal performance and also in vocal pedagogy, which is the study of voice — I started […]
File: September 2008
Mr. Poularity This just in from Atlantic Records: Rapper T.I. now has more than 2 million Myspace friends! In an unprecedented, “record-breaking” accomplishment, the Atlanta rapper blew past the milepost, prompting his label to tell press the news. It really is amazing, if you think about it, because it’s not like just anyone can be […]
DVD Zone: September 2008
Shine A Light Paramount After 45 years, countless live albums, and several live films and videos, it was only a matter of time before The Rolling Stones hooked up with Martin Scorsese. It’s a natural: The biggest band in the world teams with the most acclaimed director since Kurosawa, who seems to be contractually obligated […]
Whole Lotta Lovin’
On July 20th in front of an adoring crowd of roughly 4,000 fans, blues icon Buddy Guy took to the stage of Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavilion and received the first annual Great Performer Of Illinois Award. As Chicago Cultural Affairs Commissioner Lois Weisberg presented Guy with the award, the audience exploded into “Buddy! Buddy! Buddy!” […]
The Morning After
For WKQK-FM 101.1 listeners, the morning drive is now an awful lot like the afternoon drive. On August 11th, the former afternoon team of Brian Sherman and Steve Tingle took over the morning slot after Alan Cox and Jim Lynam‘s “The Morning Fix” was given the ax.
Recent Comments