Monthly
Mixing It Up
Few people would describe the Linder Avenue Recording Web site as “striking.” The design is skeletal, white text on a black background, and the information minimal, a list of services, an e-mail address but little else.
Bad Radio Hurts Musicians
“When my life and my income and my profession are affected by media consolidation, we don’t need to make a move any further in the wrong direction,” George Jones said at a recent Federal Communications Commission media ownership hearing in Nashville. Jones was one of several country musicians – including Naomi Judd – who testified […]
Gettin’ Handsy
“Gear†will run as a web-only column this month, but will return to print next month. SOURCE AUDIO Hot Hand Source Audio‘s wireless guitar-effect system is a unique ring-controlled unit that communicates with a floor pedal to create weirdness previously only heard in a recording studio setting.
Abyssinian Funk
Distinctive, yet filled with familiar accents, Ethiopian contemporary music draws upon a vibrant ancient history as well as an unlikely mix of modern sounds. With a history that can be traced to King Solomon and Abyssinian glory and a present plagued by war and famine, Ethiopia’s music reflects the unpredictable nature of life.
Local CD Reviews
After a four-year hiatus, The Baldwin Brothers drop Return Of The Golden Rhodes (TVT), a deliciously sexy album crackling with juicy beats, deep grooves, and their unique fusion of electronic funk. Smooth vocal flow and quirky rhymes make “A Matter Of Time” a slinky ass shaker, while “Air Is Invisible” is bred from Underworld’s mindwarping, […]
Around Hear Page 2
Indie stalwart bassist Griffin Rodriguez (a.k.a. Blue Hawaii) and drummer Chris Powell are the braintrust duo behind Icy Demons. Their second full-length, Tears Of A Clone, cuts a wide-ranging swath of recorded electronica, pinballing between the insouciance of mid-’70s Zappa, the eternal ambience of Brain Eno, the percussive minimalism of Steve Reich, and all rock […]
Cover Story: Essential Local Albums ’96-’06
The 25 Essential Local Albums Of The Last 10 Years The January 2001 Illinois Entertainer cover story was “25 Essential Local Albums,” a difficult task if there ever was. Prone to being picked apart. No Little Walter? Elmore James? Technically, Donny Hathaway was born here. Herbie Hancock completely changed jazz in his own way, but […]
File: January 2007
THE BEST OF 2006 Here’s our staff’s lists of the best the past year had to offer in albums, singles, concerts, and DVDs!
Headlights interview
Headlights And Then There Were Three Somewhere along the path less traveled most people get turned around, detoured, or just get off altogether. For Erin Fein, 24, of indie pop group Headlights, after the breakup of the band’s prior incarnation, she almost became one of those people. “The last year before Absinthe Blind broke up […]
The Hush Sound interview
Hush Sound Burbing Over The suburbs can be a dismal place to hang out from the teens to early 20s, but then again, they can also be the perfect grounds for a band hoping to beat the boredom. Though members of The Hush Sound had already experimented with other musical entities before teaming up, their […]
Iomos Marad interview
Iomos Marad Schooled “I call myself the social worker of rhymes.” These are the words of South Side native Iomos Marad (born Marcus Singleton), the MC who introduced himself to the public by rapping and drumming on CTA platforms. Ever since he officially entered the rap game with his anti-materialistic single, “Deep Rooted,” in 2000, […]
Psalm One interview
Psalm One Droppin’ Science “What was the question again?” Cristalle Bowen, known to hip-hop heads as Psalm One, asks this more than once while being interviewed in the Abbey Pub’s basement. It isn’t because the Englewood-raised rapper is absent minded. It’s more that, luckily for IE, she truly attempts to answer each question as thoroughly […]
Russian Circles interview
Russian Circles The Heavy To ask Mike Sullivan who his fans are is like asking him if he went to prom in high school. “We don’t get rabid young girls screaming at us because we’re hot dudes. That’s not the case, unfortunately,” he says. The 26-year-old guitarist of Chicago’s Russian Circles is the kind of […]
DVD Zone: January 2007
Little Miss Sunshine Fox Searchlight We’ve all been on road trips with the family. And, as one gets older, nine out of 10 people will probably tell you there’s hardly anything more taxing. That’s why the cross-country trek with the relatives is such fertile ground for filmmakers.
Global Blues – Live!
There was a time when live recordings were considered inferior to studio sessions because of the poor sound quality, the somewhat annoying concentration of applause, and the possibility the artist would turn in a less-than-perfect performance.
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