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Around Hear Page 2
Singer/multi-instrumentalist Dominic Harris sounds like he’s aiming for a streetwise Lou Reed on his new CD, Ride, but it often sounds forced. A more natural delivery and sharper lyrics would have made the full-length disc more accessible. There are good things going on here, like the soulful, catchy strings Harris arranged for the pretty love […]
Around Hear Page 3
With his How It Be mixtape, Broadview’s Quesne (pronounced Cain) drops hip-hop inspired by both the crunk of Atlanta and the chopped-and-screwed styling of Houston. Because he mostly borrows beats (from Mike Jones, Ludacris, etc.) and emulates the vibe of those tracks, it’s tough to tell what this west suburban rhymer represents. Although sonically, he […]
Reptoids’ Sweet Sides
Doro Pesch, the iconic German power metal songstress, will hate Reptoids, or at least her publicity team will hate Reptoids. I had Doro penciled in for this column as far back as December (she is playing the Pearl Room in March) but in mid-January I received Reptoids’ three-song Slayed EP, threw it on, listened to […]
In The Pocket
Digidesign Mbox 2 Micro In their aim to imbed a ProTools software chip in the back of every musician’s neck, Digidesign‘s USB flash drive-sized Mbox 2 Micro shows they’re serious about making music tools in increasingly smaller recording packages until they’re the size of dust mites.
TV, The HDTV Switchover, & You
They can’t give us universal health care. They can’t fix the subprime mortgage problem. They can’t even find Osama bin Laden. But at least they can subsidize our TV viewing. The government is spending some $1.5 billion on its digital converter switchover program, which will ensure people with analog TVs can continue to watch over-the-air […]
Clean ‘N’ Sober
Death is described as the great rock career move, but surviving serious drug addiction might be a better choice. Especially when, decades later and clean ‘n’ sober, you get to regale the public with tales of your sordid past in best-selling books. Among a raft of such having-one’s-cake-and-eating-it-too tomes by rockers touting their tales of […]
Beat Of His Own Drum
Ten years on the road with blues great Lonnie Brooks helped drummer Patrick Doody hone his chops as a professional musician before dabbling in recording. It was actually Brooks who spurred Doody to broaden his career aspirations when he toyed with the idea of retiring back in 2000 and told his fun-loving drummer to start […]
Deep Down In Alabama
Honeydripper is the latest film by independent filmmaker John Sayles (The Brother From Another Planet, Return Of The Secaucus Seven, Sunshine State). Sayles has created a musical fable – a compelling mixture of blues, myth, and history woven beautifully by a novel-like script, surrealistic camera angles, and a stellar ensemble cast.
Cover Story: Steve Earle
Steve Earle Goes Through The Wire Any viewer tuning into the last season of David Simon’s brilliant HBO series, “The Wire,” probably did a double-take as the credits rolled. That bearded ex-junkie informant Waylon was actually played by folk-rocking firebrand Steve Earle? Yes, it’s true, says the singer of his weaselly alter ego, a recurring […]
Bell X1 interview
Bell X1 Delayed Flight Situated knee-deep among T-shirts and other band paraphernalia (monogrammed teapots anyone?), Bell X1’s Paul Noonan dreams of the great American landscape while tirelessly sorting through pre-holiday merchandise orders. Such is the life of a Dublin-based DIY musical outfit. Appearing: March 19th at Schubas in Chicago.
Chris Walla interview
Chris Walla Homeland Insecurities It comes as no surprise that certain artists set themselves up as lightning rods for controversy. Britney Spears’ ongoing crusade to become the new Courtney Love stands as the most obvious example right now. Still, others go out of their way to create and sustain mischief, which is actually even sadder. […]
The Atari Underground
Atari Returns! Dance Dance Reinvention Before video game consoles could play Blu-ray movies, display Web sites, boot Linux, or offer unlimited headset smack talk, they were good for one thing and one thing only: video gaming. When the 1.19 MHz Atari 2600 console was first released in 1977, it had two main settings: “b&w” and […]
The Goldstars feature
The Goldstars Lord Of The Ringers In some alternate universe, The Goldstars are a god-sized juggernaut. Frontman Sal — just “Sal” — is a true star, a wizard conjuring garage rock hurricanes to cleanse and purify the sodden masses.
Prime interview
Prime Backbone Of The Middle Ground Dre Vasquez, the MC better known as Prime, is arguably one of the most recognized independent hip-hop artists in Chicago. For a decade, this North Side resident’s craft and liveliness have earned him a spot on a live HBO MC battle, a track with Slug from Atmosphere (“Lambslaughter”), and […]
Hello, My Name Is Shannon
Hello, My Name Is Shannon Q&A With Shannon Wright IE: You’ve just welcomed a new baby. Were you musical as a kid? Shannon Wright: My grandma bought me a guitar when I was 9, but I hated it because it made my fingers hurt. My parents liked music a lot, but neither of them played […]
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