Monthly
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.
Spin Me Round
ION TTUSB Turntable If you plan to purchase a turntable to play records several hours a week, you could find better models in the Technics, Sony, or Stanton lines. But if you’re looking to convert your vinyl to digital, Ion, one of the early pioneers of USB turntables, should be at the top of your […]
Hell Of A Box Set?
Not to say “told you so,” but it’s right there in my July ’07 Black Sabbath The Dio Years CD review: “The Dio Years would make more sense as a box set with remastered versions of each album.” As much as I’d like to think Rhino read my review and realized the error of its […]
Local CD Reviews
“Around Hear” is a monthly feature where a stable of IE writers review albums sent to us by local musicians. If you are interested in having your CD (must have a minimum of three songs) reviewed and are Illinois-based, mail it and any other media materials to 657 A W. Lake St., Chicago IL, 60661. […]
Around Hear Page 2
While there’s no denying the sincerity or songwriting talents of singer Thomas Pace, his fourth self-released album, New American Way, leaves a bit to be desired. Sweet, tuneful tracks such as “60 Seconds Wasted” and “The Damage Is Done” are just a couple of the extremely well-crafted songs here, but overall, the end product is […]
Cover Story: Judas Priest
Judas Priest Nostradamus: Priest’s Prophetic Project Who could have predicted a band who’ve been around since the beginning of time (more precisely, since the inception of heavy metal) would produce such an audaciously ambitious project? Judas Priest’s Nostradamus is a 23-track, double-CD concept album. Unlike the central figures in other such releases like Pink Floyd’s […]
Trouble interview
Trouble Unlucky Number Seven By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work — Genesis 2:2 It’s a story that should be familiar to readers of hard rock and heavy metal news: Eighties legends kick off their big reunion twice […]
Lair Of The Minotaur interview
Lair Of The Minotaur Reign In Blood At 11 p.m. July 5th, while rowdy teenagers shot off their remaining fireworks, Lair Of The Minotaur frontman/guitarist Steve Rathbone sat indoors with family. The violent flashes they sought were to be found in the premiere of his band’s video for “War Metal Battle Master,” the title track […]
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