Stage Buzz
Lissie preview
Auditorium Theatre, Chicago Thursday, November 12, 2009 For those of you hoofing it to the Ray Lamontagne show on Thursday, might we intrude a bit to introduce the opener before you doze off during the headliner’s set — and she’s from Rock Island, no less.
Monsters Of Folk preview
Auditorium Theatre, Chicago Friday, October 30, 2009 Supergroups have less allure than they used to, because today everyone plays on everyone’s records. In the ’60s and ’70s, many Draconian industry contracts codified label monogamy (at least if you wanted credit); now, comparatively, indie rock and hip-hop are like Playboy-mansion orgies. So what if M. Ward, […]
Thao With The Get Down Stay Down preview
Empty Bottle, Chicago Friday, October 30, 2009 Thao Nguyen appears to love obstacles — especially the kind you can stack. Already challenged in the heart department, confronting her are the dreaded sophomore-album slump, having to refresh her melancholic-sunshine milieu, and making a concerted stab at being more mature. Good luck.
Simian Mobile Disco preview
Metro, Chicago Wednesday, November 4, 2009 Simian Mobile Disco were already dead once, so it’s probably useless to alert them of their suicide mission.
The 69 Eyes preview
Reggie’s, Chicago Saturday, October 24, 2009 Rock ‘n’ roll has come a long way since “The Monster Mash,” incorporating all manner of ghosts and ghouls — even spawning a genre called “heavy metal.” But attempts at ferocity grew proportionately with ridiculousness, which has opened the door for levity via Alice Cooper, Gwar, Rob Zombie, and […]
David Bazan preview
Lincoln Hall, Chicago Saturday, October 24, 2009 For years, David Bazan was the bane of Christian rock. Not because of pointed, Christopher Hitchens-styled atheistic attacks or a hyper-commercialized bastardization of their idiom. Bazan, as Pedro The Lion, was the rare God rocker with credibility outside the genre and, to outsiders, the only “good one.”
Chromeo contest!
Chromeo are in town on Friday, October 30th at Congress Theatre with Crystal Castles and Boys Noize, and we have a pair of tickets to give away. All you have to do is e-mail us at ed [at] illinoisentertainer.com and see be the first to correctly guess our favorite Chromeo song, and you’re in! Deadline […]
Rain Machine preview
Double Door, Chicago Saturday, October 17, 2009 TV On The Radio’s Kyp Malone wants to keep a low profile. His solo project carries the Rain Machine pseudonym, his beard obscures his face like one of those zany beekeepers, and the artwork on his debut looks like an Outkast album done up in Crayon.
Grand Archives preview
Schubas, Chicago Saturday, October 17, 2009 A common complaint about The Beatles’ reissues is how poorly protected the CDs are, ready for a new scratch each time they’re removed from the digipack cases. Granted, they aren’t the only band doing this, but Grand Archives have pillowed Keep In Mind Frankenstein (Sub Pop) in a sleeve.
Elliott Brood preview
Schubas, Chicago Tuesday, October 20, 2009 Mountain Meadows, the second full-length album from Canadian trio Elliott Brood, was inspired by a 19th-century massacre that took place in Utah. Using this bloody and haunting event as their launching point, the band take their âdeath-countryâ to a sophisticated level.
Riot Fest preview
Riot Fest weekend shifts into seventh gear tonight as NOFX headline Congress Theatre and Dead Milkmen bring out the Punk Rock Girls at Metro. Beat Kitchen, Subterranean, and Cobra Lounge will also don Riot gear.
Japandroids preview
Schubas, Chicago October 9 + 10, 2009 Nearly 20 years ago, Mac McCaughan adenoidally howled “Slack Motherfucker” above a din that was only just being recognized as indie rock. He, on Superchunk’s essential single, was chiding a lazy, fellow Kinko’s employee. Japandroids, using two mouths to pierce essentially the same din, are now singing about […]
Lou Barlow preview
Vic, Chicago Thursday, October 15, 2009 Lou Barlow’s inability to get a song in edgewise for J. Mascis Band, a.k.a. Dinosaur Jr., led to both his ouster and some fantastic sides for his burgeoning Sebadoh project. After some songs spent blasting Mascis, becoming Folk Implosion, ditching Sebadoh, going “solo” . . . he’s back in […]
The Wiitala Brothers preview
The Wiitala Brothers Schubas, Chicago Tuesday, October 6, 2009 Before we dig into influences and who brings what to the table, let’s get one thing out of the way: Chicago’s Wiitala Brothers have not hitched their wagon to moniker-punctuation ’09, a.k.a. the double “i” bands like Miike Snow and Sliimy. Maybe they’re Finnish (slick-skating defenseman […]
Poco preview
Cubby Bear, Chicago Friday, September 25, 2009 Despite being a hitching post for a number of big-time ’60s and ’70s rockers and an important torchbearer during country rock’s lean years, few people really know Poco, much less know to seek specific info about the version popping up at Cubby Bear on Friday: Who’s in it?
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