Monthly
Media: October 2012
I recently had a driveway moment while listening to Loyola University’s WLUW-FM (87.7). The host was doing an in-depth, hour-long retrospective on Daft Punk – whom I’d never heard. Yet I couldn’t stop listening. The way the show’s host, Steve Damien, used live and pre-recorded interviews with full-length versions of songs to tell the story […]
Studiophile: October 2012
Following the untimely death of legendary Grammy-winning songwriter and studio boffin Joe South, the owner of SONGWERKS RECORDING in Addison, Robert Mackey, took time to reflect on his professional friendship with South (pictured above left, with Mackey) who performed on his band’s (AVM) cover of “Hush,” (made famous by Deep Purple), recorded at Songwerks. “It […]
Sweet Home: October 2012
With the decidedly testosterone-filled focus of contemporary blues, it’s easy to forget that the genre was popularized at the beginning of the last century by a handful of spirited women. Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Ethel Waters, and Ida Cox all helped usher in the era of recorded blues records and Memphis Minnie, with her finely-honed […]
Slash pics
Slash dusted off his trusty top hat for a set at The Riviera on Sept. 28. We’re starting to wonder if his talented fingers are telepathically connected to the dapper accessory. (All photos by Timothy Hiatt.)
Riot Fest 2012 day three photos
Iggy Pop and Elvis Costello on one stage. It can only happen at Riot Fest.
Riot Fest 2012 day two photos
Day two of Riot Fest saw sets by Cursive, Frank Turner, Gwar, Hot Water Music, Andrew W.K., Gaslight Anthem, Coheed and Cambria, Dropkick Murphys, Decendents, and Rise Against.
Riot Fest 2012 day 1 photos
You couldn’t have asked for a better weekend to stage an expanded, outdoor version of Riot Fest.
Kiss live shots!
Members of the Kiss Army united on Sept. 7 to watch the painted road warriors blast through their hits at Tinley Park’s First Midwest Bank Amphitheater. The rock ‘n’ roll jaunt shut down long before sunrise, but these fellas are keeping their promise to party at least every other day. All photos by Curt Baran.
Cover Story: Riot Fest
It will be hard for Riot Fest to sneak up on people this year – though unlike for Cinderella teams in sports, that’s a good thing. Due to its previous construction as a multi-venue, à la carte/elective smorgasbord, Riot Fest gained higher esteem among punk aficionados and outsiders than average Chicagoans. No more. By taking […]
Interview: Shoes
There was a sense of déjà vu as the three members of Shoes gathered in vocalist-guitarist Gary Klebe‘s home recording studio in Kenosha, Wis. to discuss Ignition, their first release in 18 years. And it wasn’t simply because this writer was the same one who interviewed the band about its Stolen Wishes album 20-plus years […]
Interview: James Iha
Ask ex-Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha why it’s taken him 14 ponderous years – an eternity in showbiz – to release Look To The Sky, the follow-up to his 1998 debut Let It Come Down, and you’ll get a long pause in response. Then a wry chuckle. And then an innocent, “Umm . . . […]
Hello, My Name Is Elliot
IE: How difficult is it to collaborate with your sister [Natalie Bergman] in Wild Belle? Isn’t the point of growing up to escape your relatives? Elliot Bergman: There’s benefits and drawbacks because we’re very close. We’re pulling from all the same reference points. We grew up knowing all the same songs. She grew up stealing […]
50 years of the Rolling Stones in pictures
Veteran music journalist Hanspeter Kuenzler can pinpoint the exact date The Rolling Stones came rushing into his life with the bravado and swagger that still defines the iconic rock band.
Sweet Home: September 2012
There’s no question that the blues serves as the foundation for traditional American music genres, but it’s easy to forget that it doesn’t necessarily have to take a musical form. The blues can flow through words, movements, and sensibilities. It can inform literature, dance, visual art, and theater. The eta Creative Arts Foundation illustrates this […]
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