Live Reviews
The Beatles’ “Love” reviewed
Beatles: Love Mirage, Las Vegas Saturday, July 14, 2007 The controversey surrounding “Love” is understandable if you haven’t seen the production. Select, high-profile Beatles songs have been either remixed or replaced with demos for the Cirque De Soleil to dance to, all for the most discriminating of audiences: Las Vegas showgoers. Next month: flogging Pope […]
Pitchfork Festival review!
Pitchfork Music Festival Union Park, Chicago Friday, July 13 – Sunday, July 15, 2007 Last year the second Pitchfork Music Festival (the 2005 Intonation Festival was curated by pitchforkmedia.com and booked by the same promoter, so technically it was the first Pitchfork Fest) made the jump from one of the also-rans of Chicago’s summer fests […]
Maxïmo Park live!
Maxïmo Park Double Door, Chicago Monday, July 16, 2007 “This is turning into a comedy act,” Maxïmo Park singer Paul Smith noticed Monday at the Double Door. “We’re very serious — from England. The Northeast in fact.”
Built To Spill live!
Built To Spill Vic Theatre, Chicago Tuesday, July 17, 2007 Doug Martsch and Built To Spill are slowly getting used to this whole rock ‘n’ roll thing. The Boise guitar band — tonight a quintet — began playing Metro-sized venues nearly 10 years ago behind their total-freedom major-label contract and never acted as if they […]
The Black Crowes live!
The Black Crowes Grant Park, Chicago Friday, July 6, 2007 The “greening” of Chicago took on a different meaning when noted marijuana advocates The Black Crowes accepted their invitation to this summer’s Taste.
Apostle Of Hustle live
Apostle Of Hustle Schubas, Chicago Wednesday, June 27, 2007 The clattering sonic wake of Broken Social Scene has never been useful when trying to account for its parts. It’s hard enough to track the contributions of Leslie Feist or Stars or Metric — forget lesser-known quantities like Andrew Whiteman, aka Apostle Of Hustle.
T.I. live!
T.I. Riviera, Chicago Wednesday, June 20, 2007 While not marketed as a “secret” show, the location of rapper T.I.’s free MySpace performance wasn’t made available until the day before. But that didn’t stop his fans from arriving in throngs — lining up the entire stretch of the 4700 block of Magnolia around Lawrence, all the […]
Deftones live!
Deftones Riviera, Chicago Friday, June 15, 2007 For a fair amount of time, the Deftones were facing their share of setbacks. Frontman Chino Moreno’s battle with alcoholism while touring behind the group’s celebrated 2000 release, White Pony, was hardly a secret. And tensions were said to run high within the Deftones camp during 2003’s self-titled […]
Robert Earl Keen/Tift Merritt live!
Robert Earl Keen Joe’s, Chicago Saturday, June 16, 2007 Tift Merritt Old Town School Of Folk Music, Chicago Sunday, June 17, 2007 It goes without saying us hipsters in the upper Midwest prefer a more interesting brand of country music. But often shut out of our system are fringe players who aren’t radical enough for […]
Straylight Run reviewed
Straylight Run Metro, Chicago Thursday, June 14, 2007 It might seem like an imposing paradox, but Thursday night at the Metro Straylight Run demonstrated how to straddle the line between bombast or pomp and a clearly visible and always vulnerable staggering sense of earnestness.
Roger Waters live!
Roger Waters United Center, Chicago Saturday, June 9, 2007 On Saturday fans at the United Center got treated to two shows for the price of one: One by rock legend Roger Waters, and one by an adept cover band.
The National live!
The National Metro, Chicago Thursday, June 7, 2007 Midway through The National’s 80-minute set on Thursday, frontman Matt Berninger crooned “We’re half-awake in a fake empire.” He was half right. An ineffective sound mix reduced his band’s subtle dynamism into mumbling incoherence.
Average White Band live!
Average White Band House Of Blues, Chicago Wednesday, June 6, 2007 After flying under the radar for the last several years, Scottish funk/R&B-tinged rockers the Average White Band is creeping back into limelight. Between being sampled by hip-hoppers like Diddy, Public Enemy, Ice-T, and even Janet Jackson, the recent resurgence on the road of other […]
The Faint live!
The Faint Metro, Chicago Tuesday, May 22, 2007 There are a few sure-fire signs summer has begun to hit Chicago. Parking dries up around Wrigley Field, Clark Street gets torn up from the Loop to Lincoln Park, and going to see a show at most indoor venues becomes an endurance test, thanks to the ever-present […]
The Arcade Fire live!
The Arcade Fire Chicago Theatre, Chicago Friday, May 18, 2007 Toward the end of the first night of a three-night stand, Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler made a rather crafty, self-conscious joke: “Well, we’ll see you tomorrow night!” Part of it was disbelief he could sell-out such a hall for a weekend; the other half […]
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