Live Reviews
Dead Man’s Bones live!
Schubas, Chicago Wednesday, October 21, 2009 Chalk it up to the season, proximity to an Academy Award-nominated heartthrob, or a gaggle of irrepressible, singing children dressed up in facepaint as ghouls, but Dead Man’s Bones (already carefully treading the line between shtick and valid art form) passes the test . . . at least during […]
David Foster & Friends live!
Rosemont Theatre, Rosemont Wednesday, October 21, 2009 He’s arguably the most successful pop-music producer in history and has worked with every major player since the ’70s. Between Whitney Houston, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Barbara Streisand, Celine Dion, Cher, and Josh Groban, his work has helped sell so many millions of albums it should fall to NASA […]
Two Dethklok/Mastodon reviews!
Mastodon/Dethklok/Converge/High On Fire Roy Wilkins Auditorium, St. Paul Friday, October 16, 2009 A curious bill of artists mixing an odd hodgepodge of metal styles, a fictional band brought to life, and a psychedelic astral journey set to prog-metal made for an astounding, exhausting night of music.
Maxwell live!
United Center, Chicago Thursday, October 8, 2009 R&B singers have so many options, it’s at once understandable and frustrating how they get locked into one category and spend a lifetime there. Maxwell, whose Blacksummers’night (Columbia), has some comparing him to Marvin Gaye, used Thursday’s show to push back at the shrinking boundaries.
Kylie Minogue live!
UIC Pavilion, Chicago Wednesday, October 7, 2009 Whoever originally booked Kylie Minogue at the Congress Theatre either had no appreciation for her ability to sell out a week’s worth of arenas in the one city overseas or the fact that she’s an underground club hero in America. Granted, the less-educated side of her U.S. audience […]
Yo La Tengo live!
Vic, Chicago Tuesday, October 6, 2009 As the Hoboken-based indie-rock veterans Yo La Tengo cruised through “Sugarcube” Tuesday night, it was hard not to think of the song’s video and think that this band still haven’t learned to rock properly.
5th Annual Pygmalion Music Fest live!
Various clubs, Champaign-Urbana September 16-19, 2009 Begun in 2005, Pygmalion takes advantage of assets that often remain unrelated: the University Of Illinois’ 40,000 students; two cities — Champaign & Urbana — located within a three-hour radius of Indianapolis, Chicago, and St. Louis; a thriving local music scene; two prominent record labels, Polyvinyl and Parasol; […]
Ellnora Guitar Festival review!
Krannert Center For The Performing Arts, Urbana September 10-12, 2009 For its third biennial guitar festival, Krannert Center For the Performing Arts on the University Of Illinois campus has changed the name. The Festival formerly known as “Wall to Wall” is now called “Ellnora: The Guitar Festival.” With that name change came a subtle focus […]
U2 live!
Soldier Field, Chicago Saturday, September 12, 2009 For the longest time, the mega arena rock show was a tired cliche. The symbol of bloated excess reserved for a rock hierarchy that had not only lost touch with the fans, but seemed to see touring as a cash grab. However, with 1991’s Zoo TV tour, U2 […]
Pet Shop Boys live!
Chicago Theatre, Chicago Monday, September 14, 2009 Pet Shop Boys have endured for so long that they’ve seen the electronica era in its original incarnation, persevered through its unfashionable years, and are right back in style now that the scene’s found a steady resurgence. Just ask The Killers, Scissor Sisters, or Fischerspooner who’s inspired the […]
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs live!
Old Town School Of Folk Music, Chicago Saturday, September 12, 2009 Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs dropped by The Old Town School Of Folk Music for a pair of gigs last Saturday night in support of the two Under The Covers albums they’ve recorded as Sid & Susie, a side-project that features their renditions of […]
Pharcyde, Souls Of Mischief, Camp Lo, Ugochi live!
Washington Park, Chicago September 5 – 7, 2009 Forget the ’80s revival. The ’90s were back in full force when an array of 90s alt hip hop groups played the African Festival Of The Arts on Saturday. Pharcyde, Souls Of Mischief, and Camp Lo served up jazzy beats and free-flowing rhymes to eager fans, celebrating […]
Nine Inch Nails’ farewell!
Aragon, Chicago Friday, August 28, 2009 It proved apparent from the start that Nine Inch Nails’ Friday night show was anything but routine when the band took the stage to “Pinion,” an instrumental selection off an EP from 17 years ago. It also served as a sign that all bets were off, as Trent Reznor […]
Solillaquists Of Sound live!
Subterranean, Chicago Saturday, August 22, 2009 Solillaquists Of Sound calls its show a celebration, and with the unadulterated energy this quartet often brought to Subterranean’s compact stage, there’s not much to dispute.
Pearl Jam live!
United Center, Chicago Sunday, August 23rd, 2009 “We got a lot of emotion to get through tonight.” That was Eddie Vedder’s declaration to open Sunday night’s show, the first of two consecutive nights for Pearl Jam at the United Center. For Vedder, it wasn’t just another arena-rock show, but it also marked his return […]
Recent Comments