Stage Buzz
Franz Nicolay preview
Franz Nicolay Empty Bottle, Chicago Saturday, January 17, 2009 The House Cafe, DeKalb Sunday, January 18, 2009 Craig Finn may be The Hold Steady’s undisputed attention-grabber thanks to his ability to transform everyday, mundane events into bar-rockin’ anthems and a unique, free-form spoken-word delivery, but HS keyboardist Franz Nicolay’s solo record makes a solid case […]
Hot Heels Records preview
Hot Heels Records Goose Island, Chicago Saturday, January 17, 2009 Our advice to Hot Heels Records? Lose the name; keep the music. You’re confusing people, guys. Illinois Entertainer editor Steve Forstneger is a – generally – sharp guy, but even he thought your new album, Bullet Rain, was actually a compilation CD of bands on […]
Lil Wayne preview
Lil Wayne United Center, Chicago Saturday, December 27, 2008 Lil Wayne does a lot of impish cackling on Tha Carter III (Cash Money), and with good reason: His album was the biggest of ’08, an improbable feat.
Scott Weiland preview
Scott Weiland House Of Blues, Chicago Thursday, December 18, 2008 There’s a scene during the fifth season of HBO’s “Entourage,” when the series’ Hollywood heartthrob worriedly asks his agent, “Do you think I’m a good actor?” The rep, played by Jeremy Piven, hesitates. “I think you’re a movie star.”
Kuma’s Doomfest preview
Kuma’s Doomfest Double Door, Chicago December 20-21, 2008 Kuma’s Corner (great burgers, great beer, great heavy metal) is finally throwing the two-day metal extravaganza we’ve been promised for so many months. It definitely appears worth the wait.
Nocturnal Fear
Nocturnal Fear Metal Shaker, Chicago Saturday, December 20, 2008 On the back of the promotional copy of Nocturnal Fear’s Code Of Violence, Moribund Records describes the Detroit band as “the ultimate in modern U.S. thrash metal.” Ironic, given most the album is throwback German thrash metal.
Yourself And The Air preview
Yourself And The Air Bottom Lounge, Chicago Sunday, December 21, 2008 Forgive this Chicago band their name: Yourself And The Air clearly spent more time writing and arranging their stormy, agit-indie than worrying about what to call it.
Mercury Rev preview
Mercury Rev Martyrs’, Chicago Thursday, December 11, 2008 Jonathan Donahue and Dave Fridmann’s ties to The Flaming Lips have always influenced the way people perceive Mercury Rev more than is fair. Indifferent to the desire to be pop stars (though they were, briefly and unexpectedly, in the U.K.), the band’s albums were widescreen before the […]
Dark Dark Dark preview
Dark Dark Dark Heaven Gallery, Chicago Thursday, December 11, 2008 In 1998 the just-reunited and rejuvenated Kiss released an album called Psycho Circus. It sucked. Dark Dark Dark sound nothing like Kiss, but if any band deserves to call a record Psycho Circus, it’s Dark Dark Dark.
Monte Montgomery preview
Monte Montgomery Morse Theatre, Chicago Friday, December 12, 2008 Here’s why Monte Montgomery is playing at the newly reinvented Morse Theatre in front of sophisticated jazz connoisseurs instead of Joe’s on Weed Street for drunk, “oh there’s a band playing?” Lincoln Parkers: He can play the guitar like an S.O.B.
Longwave preview
Longwave Double Door, Chicago Wednesday, December 17, 2008 Other than local New York music papers, at IE we have the sneaking suspicion we’re the only magazine to have had Longwave on our cover. Granted, they were one of four bands in a now-embarrassing “next big things” buzz article (hey, we got Interpol right), but there’s […]
Civet preview
Civet Subterranean, Chicago Thursday, December 4, 2008 Judging from Hell Hath No Fury (Hellcat), Civet is awfully fond of The Distillers. Let’s hope that’s the case, at least, because the Southern California quartet is surely hearing plenty of comparisons.
The Gates Of Slumber preview
The Gates Of Slumber Metal Shaker, Chicago Friday, December 5, 2008 Apparently, we can’t deal with high expectations at Illinois Entertainer, because that’s exactly what we had for The Gates Of Slumber’s newest album, Conqueror, and either it failed us or we failed it.
Q-Tip preview
Q-Tip, 2K Sports Bounce Tour House Of Blues, Chicago Saturday, December 6, 2008 Some critics are trying to equate the timing of Q-Tip’s long-awaited sophomore album to the first time we met him, as a member of A Tribe Called Quest, as if he’s here to save hip-hop again. The Renaissance (Universal Motown) is pretty […]
Harry Connick, Jr.’s coming to town
Harry Connick, Jr. Chicago Theatre, Chicago December 10 & 11, 2008 What better way to slip into the holiday mood than four original tracks sprinkled among a 15-song collection and German football superstar Michael Ballack on the cover?
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