Live Reviews
Portishead live!
Portishead‘s first Chicago show in well over a decade was often magnetic without an excess of on-stage motion. This British group, which stood at the forefront of the trip-hop/down-tempo ascension in the early ’90s, played it cool and composed while revisiting its three-album catalog on October 12th.
Dierks Bentley live!
Dierks Bentley rolled into Chicago Sunday, led by Illinois State Troopers and followed by more than 300 bikers.
Bryan Ferry live!
As the singer of Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry’s already earned seminal status in the glam, art-rock and new-wave worlds, though he continues to make sophisticated strides in his solo career. Touring behind his first non-covers collection in eight years, Olympia (Virgin), marks a suave and soulful evolution for the veteran, who through two hours, spellbinded […]
Toby Keith live!
Toby Keith and his marketing machine hit town Saturday for a one-day blitz. Coming in after a Friday night gig in St Louis, he kicked things off by signing bottles of his new Wild Shot Mescal at a local Beverage Depot.
Jane’s Addiction live!
The record industry loves to gauge success by numbers. How many units did it move? At what spot did it debut? How many weeks did it stay on the charts? But you never see the intangibles on the spread sheet, specifically influence.
Lindsey Buckingham live!
Lindsey Buckingham‘s a great, albeit underrated, guitarist and he knows it. Perhaps that’s why he opened the Chicago stop of his Seeds We Sow tour with a one-man acoustic set that amply showcased his nimble (though occasionally self-indulgent) frethand and well-persevered vocal pitch.
Erasure live!
Touring before a CD drops is generally a challenge, and though Erasure swung through Chicago more than two weeks before Tomorrow’s World (Mute) bows, the material previewed during the first of two shows was so infectious, it was impossible not to dance along. Rather than treading the nostalgic route, Andy Bell and Vince Clarke were […]
Blondie live!
Unlike several veteran bands that cling to a repertoire of old hits, Blondie entertained a capacity crowd at House Of Blues Wednesday night with several tracks from its latest release, Panic Of Girls.
Pearl Jam 20 review!
As career choices go, rock ‘n’ roll isn’t exactly the most reliable path. Failure is the rule not the exception. So any time a band reaches any sort of recognizable milestone, it’s usually cause for celebration. When that benchmark is two decades, well, a simple Hallmark card isn’t going to do it.
Guster and Jack’s Mannequin live!
Between the constant rain, empty spots in the pavilion and lawn, and complete mid-set power outage, Chicagoland’s famed outdoor venue Ravinia wasn’t real kind to Guster and Jack’s Mannequin on Saturday night, as both bands played their debut show there. Fortunately, neither group let those challenges affect their sets.
Taylor Swift pics online
Head to our photo site for a full gallery of Taylor Swift pics by Curt Baran at Allstate Arena last week!
Steely Dan live!
The idea of centering a tour around a classic album is nothing new, but it’s a concept that always seems to attract both the radio browsers banking on the hits and more studied aficionados craving deep cuts. Few have perfected the formula better than Steely Dan, who first tested it out in 2009 during multiple […]
Kids These Days, Gold Motel, + Maps & Atlases backstage @Palooza
To call Kids These Days sudden upstarts on the scene would be an understatement. The group began turning heads earlier this year on high profile blog-curated bills at SXSW, and have been making moves ever since. IE caught up with the group’s Liam Cunningham, Vic Mensa, Nico Segal, and Macie Stewart backstage at Lollapalooza to […]
Deftones backstage interview @Palooza!
Following a serious car accident in late 2008, Deftones bassist Chi Cheng entered a coma, with his current condition described as “minimally conscious.” In the aftermath of Cheng’s tragedy, longtime friend of the band and previous musical collaborator Sergio Vega, formally of Quicksand
Sade live!
Ten years is a lifetime to wait for new music in this age of instant-gratification media like iTunes, YouTube, and Facebook. With maximum and constant exposure as the mantra for most artists, a musician who dares to ignore this doesn’t stand much of a chance. Unless of course, you are Sade.
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