Columns
Spins: Radiohead
Radiohead Kid A/Amnesiac/Hail To The Thief (Capitol) Where were you on October 3rd, 2000? Did you raise a glass to pop music as it tied a kerchief to a stick and set off down the tracks? Look around you now: Nothing has been the same since.
Around Hear: October 2009
Local Band Reviews Add American Draft to Chicago’s instrumental rock pedigree. The band’s second full-length release, the eight-track Hawk On Coachhouse, is like a less frenetic Mastodon minus the vocals. The title track showcases its multi-layered guitar attack, with variations on a soaring/airy riff. Harder-rocking tracks like “Diet Of Worms” and “Tree Of Woe” are […]
Media: October 2009
Pod-A-Palooza Steve Dahl unveiled his new weekday webcast September 8th (www.dahl.com), just after deadline time. The CBS Radio-sponsored show allows Dahl a chance to talk to his fans – something he hasn’t been able to do since CBS took him off WJMK-FM (104.3) late last year, and he won’t be able to return to the […]
Sweet Home: October 2009
Delmark Delivers Blues History Chicago remains a blues mecca, even in the face of distracting new-millennium antics of Chi-town musicians like Kanye West and R. Kelly. Despite this and a lengthy gospel, R&B, and jazz legacy, Chicago’s blues heritage towers over them all. It Ain’t Over (Delmark) showcases exactly why this is, a DVD packed […]
Caught In A Mosh: October 2009
The Seven Wonders Planet Metal can do no wrong. Fifteen months after launching, founder Chris Black (Superchrist, Pharaoh) has yet to put his label’s logo on a bad or even so-so album. Everything is gold. O.K., I haven’t heard PM001, Sentenced‘s “The Glow Of 1000 Suns/ Amok Run” 7-inch, but PM002 through PM007 are scalding. […]
DVD Zone: October 2009
Listen. I’m gonna drop a little knowledge on you. It may seem a bit controversial, perhaps even scandalous, but you need to hear it: Summer is overrated.
Hello, My Name Is Jimi
Hello My Name Is Jimi Q&A with Survivor’s Jimi Jamison IE: What did the city of Chicago mean to you during the Survivor days and how about now? Jimi Jamison: Chicago is such a blessing and I didn’t realize what a great city it is until I joined Survivor. People in Chicago are the most […]
File: September 2009
Les Was More We’ve strained, but we can’t think of an adequate parallel to Les Paul‘s notoriety vs. his actual impact. (Somehow Ben Franklin and bifocals just don’t capture it.) Despite the guitar body that made his name an emblem, Paul’s greatest contribution to music wasn’t his attachment to Gibson Guitars’ iconic slab of wood. […]
DVD Zone: September 2009
I Love You, Man Warner Bros. Face it guys, we’ve all been there. The wife or girlfriend states her desire to stay in and watch a movie. Out of some sort of supposed kindness, she lets you offer up a token suggestion or two as to what might be on the bill for the evening. […]
Caught In A Mosh: September 2009
Decibellwether One of the highlights of my month (besides unveiling “Mosh” to my adoring readers) is the day Decibel magazine arrives. Between my mailbox and front door, I’ve generally already thumbed through the pages to find out what the Hall Of Fame entry is. I’m either livin’ a pretty pathetic life or Decibel Editor-In-Chief Albert […]
Sweet Home: September 2009
Blues Blowout August and September brings a cavalcade of activities for blues fans. From a rare Pinetop Perkins appearance, to a Chicago blues challenge and classic record reissues, blues lovers can enjoy a blues blowout over the coming weeks.
Media: September 2009
‘JBTV’ Needs An Angel Watch “JBTV” this week (beginning September 3rd) with featured guests Tim Hiatt and Steve Forstneger from IE. Check www.jbtvonline.com for air times. “I’m still here rockin’, but I need a sponsor,” says “JBTV” host/owner Jerry Bryant, who’s been bringing alternative-music videos, concert footage, and free-form interviews to the Chicago airwaves since […]
Around Hear: September 2009
Around Hear Local Band Reviews September 2009 Though the title, Jam Tarts In The Jakehouse (Carrot Top), is a bit odd, it’s also an obtuse description of the 10 tunes on The Bitter Tears‘ sophomore release. The band’s music, while not entirely random, is all over the place: e.g., the straightforward indie pop of “Bachelors […]
DVD Zone: August 2009
Reliving The Cold War Watchmen Warner Bros. After the glut of superhero movies over the past few years, you would think that the public would be starting to tire of the whole genre. Yet the success of Iron Man and The Dark Knight means it isn’t going away anytime soon. Don’t get me wrong, it’s […]
File: August 2009
THE WOODSTOCK EXPERIENCE Amid the spate of 40th-anniversary Woodstock product (see “Spins”), Sony’s Legacy arm believes five two-disc sets by acts who performed that long-ago weekend at Yasgur’s farm stand out. Listing at $19.98 apiece, each one comes with an original, and in most cases classic, 1969 studio album (no big deal, as those albums […]
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