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This Week in Great Music: 11/1 – 11/7

Sarah — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 15:10:48 +0000

Good morning, friends. While I’m still trying to process my Epic Mumford Roadtrip, have a list of great shows coming up this week. The list’s a little overwhelming to me right now, as I weigh my need for sleep against my need for More Live Music.

Monday, November 1
Ezra Furman, Ligon and McDonough, Pretty Good Dance Moves DJs; Schubas. 8 pm, $6
The Glorious Veins, Kristen Ford, Chicago Winter, Brent Amaker and the Rodeo, Stephanie Picarra; Elbo Room. 8 pm, $7

Tuesday, November 2
Eisley, Ives the Band, Christie DuPree; Lincoln Hall. 7 pm, $15
Band of Heathens, Flame Shark; Schubas. 8 pm, $10

Wednesday, November 3
Sara Bareilles, Cary Brothers, Holly Conlan; House of Blues. 6:30 pm, sold out
Steven Page, Kate Miller-Heidke; Park West. 7:30 pm, $25
Greg Laswell, Harper Blynn, Kim Taylor; Lincoln Hall. 8 pm, $15

Thursday, November 4
Horse Feathers, Anais Mitchell; Schubas. 7 pm and 10 pm, $10
Jay Farrar, Bobby Bare Jr.; SPACE. 8 pm, sold out
Wakey!Wakey!, Jenny Owen Youngs, Young Buffalo; Lincoln Hall. 9 pm, $12-14

Friday, November 5
Ben Folds, Lady Danville; the Riviera. 7:30 pm, $35
Richard Thompson Band; the Vic. 8 pm, $32.50
Chicago Roots Collective Festival; Elbo Room. 8 pm, $10
Yonder Mountain String Band; House of Blues. 9 pm, $23-28

Saturday, November 6
Jake Shimabukuro, Boulder Acoustic Society; Old Town School of Folk Music. 7 pm and 10 pm, $24-28
Los Lobos, Backyard Tire Fire; the Vic. 8 pm, $35
Chicago Roots Collective Festival; Elbo Room. 8 pm, $10
Yonder Mountain String Band; House of Blues. 9 pm, $23-28
Reverend Horton Heat, Split Lip Rayfield, Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers; Metro. 9 pm, $18-20
Azure Ray, Tim Fite, James Husband; Schubas. 10 pm, $15
Junip, Sharon Van Etten; Lincoln Hall. 10 pm, $15

Sunday, November 7
Meh.

This Week in Great Music: 4/19 – 4/25

Sarah — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 15:51:57 +0000

So my last week was a little bit absurdly busy, to the point where I just couldn’t make it to a show I’d planned to go to on Sunday, and just slept instead. I felt bad about it, because I’ve been looking forward to having a chance to see Eliza Gilkyson for a long time, but I figured that falling asleep mid-show (or, more likely, falling asleep on the Brown line and not actually even making it to the Old Town School) would be more rude than just not using the ticket.

But it looks like I’ve got a chance to make up for that, as Eliza is playing at the Hideout tonight along with Robbie Fulks for his Monday night residency. So looks like I’ll (finally!) be heading out to the Hideout for a show! (It’s only taken four years of living here for me to make it out there…) I’ll also be checking out the Antlers at Lincoln Hall on Thursday, and Gogol Bordello at the Congress on Friday. I’m actually going to that one more to see Devotchka than anything else, but oh well. It will be an adventure.

Monday, April 19
Robbie Fulks, Eliza Gilkyson; Hideout. 7 pm, $10 suggested donation
Ben Folds, Kate Miler-Heidke; The Vic. 7:30 pm, sold out
Hot Chip, The xx; the Riviera. 8 pm, sold out

Tuesday, April 20
Ben Folds, Kate Miler-Heidke; The Vic. 7:30 pm, $35
JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound; Lincoln Hall. 8 pm, $5 (DVD release party for Fish Out of Water)
Blue October; House of Blues. 9 pm, $28-30

Wednesday, April 21
Ben Folds, Kate Miler-Heidke; The Vic. 7:30 pm, sold out
Charlotte Gainsbourg, AM; Park West. 8 pm, $30

Thursday, April 22
Corinne Bailey Rae; The Vic. 8 pm, $26
Passion Pit; Congress Theater. 8 pm, $25
The Raveonettes; Cubby Bear Wrigleyville. 9 pm, free with RSVP to RedEyeEvents@tribune.com
The Antlers, Phantogram; Lincoln Hall. 9 pm, $13-15
Horse Feathers, Caroline Smith and the Good Night Sleeps; Schubas. 9 pm, $8-10

Friday, April 23
Gogol Bordello, Devotchka, Jessie Malin, St. Mark’s Social; Congress Theater. 7 pm, $27.50-29
Marie Digby, Jessica Robbins; Schubas. 7 pm, $12
Las Guitarras de Espana, SPACE. 8 pm, $20-32
Martin Sexton, Ryan Montbleau Band; Park West. 8 pm, $27
Semi Precious Weapons, Subterranean. 8 pm, $10-12
Carbon Leaf, Alex Band; Lincoln Hall. 9 pm, $15

Saturday, April 24
Natalie Merchant; Art Institute of Chicago (Rubloff Auditorium). 7 pm, $45
Yonder Mountain Duo; Old Town School of Folk Music. 7:30 pm, $18-22
BB King, Rachel Cantu; House of Blues. 8 pm, $76-78
Umphrey’s McGee; Lincoln Hall. 8 pm, sold out
The Polkaholics; Atlantic Bar & Grill (5062 N Lincoln). 9 pm, free
Melissa Auf Der Mar; Beat Kitchen. 9:30 pm, $12 Cancelled due to volcano.
The Infamous String Dusters; Martyrs. 10 pm, $15

Sunday, April 25
Sia, Girl in a Coma; The Vic. 7:30 pm, $22.50
BB King, Rachel Cantu; House of Blues. 8 pm, $76-78
The Album Leaf, Sea Wolf; Lincoln Hall. 9 pm, $14

Chatroulette Hilarity Strikes Again

Sarah — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 20:58:22 +0000

I’ll spare you the description of what ChatRoulette is, but if you’ve managed to miss out on this newest piece of internet WTFery, this Daily Show clip pretty much explains it all.

So a couple of weeks ago, this random, semi-anonymous viral video popped up on the internet, of ”Merton”, a vaguely nerdy guy in a hoodie doing some piano improv while on ChatRoulette. It is, needless to say, really impressive, and with three million views, the internet is all over this video. It might perhaps be the best use of ChatRoulette yet. Way better than dudes masturbating, at any rate.

This guy’s ability to do improv is pretty amazing. And while I’m not a huge fan of Owl City’s ten-zillion-firefly-hugs song, the fact that “Merton” here can just bust out with the song on request impressed me.

After I watched it, I was reminded of Ben Folds, for the piano geekery and the improv. Well, apparently Ben Folds was reminded of Ben Folds, too, because, well… just check it out:

Tip of the hat to Drowned in Sound for the Ben Folds link.

Album Review: Ben Folds Presents: University A Cappella!

News & Links – February 25

Sarah — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:57:56 +0000

Now that Mumford and Sons have released Sigh No More in the US, there are tons of great reviews coming out for it. My Old Kentucky Blog, John (of Meandre and Radio Free Chicago) and Popdosehave all weighed in. I love the album, no question about it, as it was one of my top CDs of 2009. Maybe I will cheat and name it a top album of 2010 as well, in honor of its US release date. The band will be appearing at the 2010 Bonnaroo festival; I’m hoping they stick in a few more tour dates, perhaps one in, oh, say, Chicago, en route to the festival.

Popdose has also a look at Butch Walker’s latest, I Liked it Better When You Had No Heart, which is currently sitting around, calling my name on my desk at home.

Next to it on my desk is the Preservation Hall benefit album, which Popdose has also reviewed. Short review on my part: I loved it. Go buy it. Longer review forthcoming.

Two more reviews of St. Vincent’s all around stellar performance earlier this month at Metro, this time from Uniform Grey and Gapers Block.

If bootlegs are your thing, here’s an audience recording of Ben Folds’ February 13th show with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

Dawn Landes stops by HearYa for a quick set. MP3s and video are available.

Suburban Chicago’s Daily Herald profiles Justin Townes Earle, who plays at Lincoln Hall on Saturday.

Rocky Votolato talks to Popmattersabout depression, success, and the truth. Votolato plays Schubas on Friday.

Famed opera singer Renee Fleming is releasing an album of covers. Dark Hope is due out on March 18th, and tackles songs by Muse, Arcade Fire, Peter Gabriel, and, of course, Leonard Cohen. This is either going to be great, or a train wreck.

Gapers Block looks at Tinariwen and their unique brand of desert blues. The group is at the Old Town School of Folk Music this weekend, performing two concerts on Saturday and one on Sunday, as well as a guitar and percussion workshop on Sunday.

Small Chicagois a new web series presenting three songs, performed live and taped for the internet’s viewing pleasure. First up is Coltrane Motion.

Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore did an instore show in a Lexington, Kentucky CD Central. You Ain’t No Picasso offers a review, photos, and MP3s of the set.

Antony Hegarty, of Antony & the Johnsons, talks to Stereogum about two recent shows he did in Japan, where he performed alongside dancer Yoshito Ohno, whose father Kazuo is the Butoh dancer on the cover of The Crying Light.

Josh Rouse’s latest album, El Turista, streams for free at KCRW through March 22.

While the review is from much earlier in the month, Consequence of Sound takes a look at Movits!New Year’s Eve show at Schubas. Sounds like it was a great show. You can’t go wrong with Swedish jazz/hip hop/awesomeness.

Album Review: Ben Folds Presents: University A Cappella!

Sarah — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 18:52:00 +0000

Ben Folds Presents University A Cappella

Technically, this probably would have made my Best of 2009 So Far list… if I’d managed to listen to it in time to compile that list. Like I’ve said, I am so dreadfully behind on listening to new music this year that its really sort of sad. So my album reviews here are really more of “things that have finally made it into my CD drive” rather than “new and fresh off the presses”. Oh well, that’s life.

Anyhow, this CD brings together two things that I have perhaps a bit of an irrational soft spot for: Ben Folds and his quirky piano rock, and college a cappella groups. I could go into a lengthy discourse about how I’m still sad that I never went to a college with any a cappella groups, but I won’t. Suffice it to say, sometimes I think, well, if I go back to school for another degree, maybe I can join one then!

The CD is a nice romp through Folds’ musical catalog, from his own take on “Boxing” (from 1995′s Ben Folds Five) to “You Don’t Know Me” (2008′s Way to Normal). I don’t think a better set of great Ben Folds songs could have been assembled, really. This album is essentially a best-of collection for Folds, despite the fact that he only sings on two of the tracks. He’s left the fourteen other tracks to be desconstructed and rebuilt by college a cappella groups across the country, hand picked by Folds to appear on the recording. A cappella might get mocked in the mainstream, but don’t be fooled: these kids have some serious talent. In a world dominated by endless studio sessions and AutoTune, this album is simply talented young people standing around microphones, singing their hearts out. In fact, though it pains me a bit to say it, I’d say the weakest spots on the CD are the two tracks that Folds arranged and performed himself a cappella. It’s not like they’re bad tracks by any means, they just don’t seem to sit well with the rest of the album for some reason to me. (Although I do like the fact that he performed “Boxing” from his first album and “Effington” from his most recent. Whether he did it on purpose or not, I don’t know, but it’s a nice little full circle moment.)

Tracks that stand out in particular for me: The Spartones’ “Not the Same”, The Washington University in St. Louis Mosaic Whispers’ “Still Fighting It” (the last line of which, “you’re so much like me, I’m sorry”, just always kills me, no matter who is singing it), and The Washington University in St. Louis Amateurs’ “The Luckiest”, the arrangement of which is just hauntingly beautiful.

Ben Folds Presents: University A Cappella! was released April 28 on Sony Records.
Check out Ben Folds’ official site, or buy the album.

Concert Review: Lollapalooza, Day 1

howsmyliving — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 23:31:27 +0000

Lollapalooza Friday review, in bite-sized updates.

The Line: I felt like I might as well have just walked out of my apartment and gone a few blocks east to the lake to find the end of the line, we were that far north. Alright, it wasn’t that long, but it seemed like forever. A+ to the friendly Bonnaroo-going hippies in line in front of me, F- to the clump of assholes who wanted to try to cut in line. Don’t think so, kids. Other amusing things about the line: the disclaimer stating that entering the premises allows C3 to use your image in perpetuity, across the universe, forever and ever. Also, awesome to get to see the back of the modern wing of the art museum – I never have reason to go back in that direction, so I haven’t had the opportunity to check out the new addition.

The Security Check: lulz. I think my expectations were too high. Security dude barely even peered into my bag. (Somehow, I had been expecting much more intense security. Whenever I went to Grant Park for Obama’s Election Day rally, there were metal detectors and x-ray machines and everything. Sure, Security of the President-Elect trumps Security of Drunken Fratboy Festival-goers, but, you know, whatever.

The Weather: Can it be both a fail and a win at the same time? One thing that’s kept me away from Lolla in the past has been my lack of desire to stand outside in upper-90s temperatures, so it was a nice surprise to not feel like I was going to instantly die of heatstroke. However, being soaked to the bone (despite the umbrella) and shivering on an August day got to be a little bit ridiculous after a while.

Behind the jump: Reviews of the actual music! April Smith, Hockey, Manchester Orchestra, Gringo Star, The Knux, The Gaslight Anthem, Bon Iver, Ben Folds, Fleet Foxes, The Decemberists, Andrew Bird, and Kings of Leon.

April Smith: Unsigned artist from Brooklyn. I wasn’t able to catch all of her set, mostly just bits and pieces as we wandered around the area of the BMI stage, but I was incredibly impressed with what I heard. She’s got a very strong voice and some catchy songs. For being the first artist to take the stage on the northern end of the festival, her music was very commanding of attention. I hope to hear more from her in the future. Her music is available on iTunes, Amazon, and CD Baby, for those of you who, like myself, still prefer to be able to hold a CD in hand.

Hockey

Hockey: New-wave quintet from Portland. Way, way better than I had expected from anything described as new-wave, as I usually shy away from that genre. They had a great energy, and managed to persevere through some initial technical difficulties. While I had never heard of their music, before, I enjoyed myself immensely… until the power went out a few songs into their set. The drummer filled the space with an extended drum solo… but still no power. The band members ended up tossing free beer from backstage out into the crowd while waiting. The power came back up for another song and a half or so, and then, fzzt, out again. Technology fail. I was definitely impressed by their music, though, and would probably consider going to see them again, hopefully at a show not marred by loss of power.

Manchester Orchestra: Too much screaming, not enough to keep my attention. Maybe they’re better on CD, I don’t know. I ended up wandering off in search of food and merchandising and things that didn’t involve listening to Manchester Orchestra.

Gringo Star: What I expected: Spanish-language covers of Beatles songs. What I got: Alt-country-poppy tunes. Pretty good, wish I had stuck around to see more. Will definitely be checking them out.

The Knux: The Knux are a pair of brothers originally from New Orleans, displaced after Hurricane Katrina. They’ve got a great energy, pulling fans up onto the stage to dance with them and everything. I’m not a huge rap fan, but these guys certainly kept me, and the whole crowd, entertained and engaged.

The Gaslight Anthem

The Gaslight Anthem: A very pleasant surprise for me. I’ve heard of this New Jersey rock band, but I don’t think I ever bothered listening to their music before. They put on an incredibly enjoyable show – only slightly dampened (pun vaguely intended) by the rain that kept pouring down throughout their set. The energy and enthusiasm from the crowd was apparent even despite the rain and the fact that we were way in the back of the field. The dude next to us kept singing and playing air guitar along with the songs, it was that kind of exciting. This was their first big outdoor festival, and the singer/guitarist noted how fabulous they thought Chicago and the festival in general was. I wound up picking up their CD later on that day – trust me, that’s high praise coming from me.

Bon Iver: I still stand by my assessment that Bon Iver just doesn’t work at a huge outdoor festival like Lollapalooza. Maybe Pitchfork or Hideout’s block party or something, a festival that’s a little more niche-oriented. But not Lollapalooza. While I enjoyed the music, and while I think it would have been more enjoyable up front in the crowd instead of on the back fringes, between the Playstation and Budweiser stages, it’s hard to get into it when everyone else around you is talking/drinking/not paying attention. Regardless, Bon Iver’s music is just downright beautiful, and somehow made even more poignant by the falling rain. I would love to see him in an intimate little club or something, where his work is going to be more generally appreciated.

Ben Folds: A solid set, as usual. The rain and relative lack of enthusiasm of the crowd around me put a bit of a damper on the show. I would have loved to have been closer to the stage for this one, in the midst of the crowd. He opened with the leak version of Bitch Went Nutz — something tells me that the songs from the fake/leaked version of Way to Normal are more popular than the ones from the album itself. There was a good mix of new songs and old favorites, including “Army” and “Narcolepsy”. I always enjoy Ben’s shows and his enthusiasm and his crazy, crazy piano playing, and all things considered, this was no exception.

Fleet Foxes: I only stayed for the first few songs of their set, as I was cold and hungry and needed to use the bathroom, and I knew I would be seeing them the next night at Metro anyway. Their harmonies are absolutely divine, though, and the crowd was way excited to see them. (Their show on Friday at Metro, by the way, was fantastic. There were drawbacks, of course: everything started late and it was about a million degrees inside Metro, but definitely a quality show.)

The Decemberists

The Decemberists: Performed the whole of The Hazards of Love. A+++ so glad they did. It might be a bit blasphemous, but I think I prefer Hazards to a lot of their other material. Shara Worden pretty much rocks my world. One review I read mentioned that they didn’t think that she had much of a stage presence — I don’t know what show that reviewer was watching, because Worden was all over the stage, dancing and jumping and generally kicking ass at conveying the character of the Queen. All of the band members played their parts well, since Hazards really is a story more than anything else, with each member having a role to play. I left the area after “The Rake’s Song” so I could make my way through the crowd to get to Andrew Bird’s set, but I could still hear the rest of the Decemberists set from across the field, and it was as amazing as I would have expected it to be. I’m sad that I missed seeing “The Queen’s Rebuke/The Crossing”, because it sounded amazing from where I was, but thankfully Youtube has allowed me to play along at home.

Andrew Bird: If I had it my way, I pretty much would have camped out in front of the Playstation stage all day in order to be right up front for this set. The desire to do so was lessened by the fact that I managed to be within arm’s length of Andrew Bird when I saw him at Schubas on Thursday. Besides, I don’t know how I would have dealt with going to the bathroom or eating, so maybe it’s for the best that I didn’t enact my plan.

Andrew Bird

Anyhow, Bird, as usual, is a complete maniac on stage. The way in which he wholeheartedly throws himself into his show is always amazing to watch. He ripped through a set of new and old songs, the first half comprised largely of songs off of Noble Beast, and the latter with old favorites. (Setlist, for the curious: Fiery Crash / Masterswarm / Opposite Day / Fitz and the Dizzyspells / Oh No / Effigy / Not a Robot, But a Ghost / Anonanimal / Imitosis / Scythian Empires / Tables and Chairs / Fake Palindromes.) The addition of “Not a Robot, But a Ghost” was met with much enthusiasm from the crowd; as I’ll mention in my Schubas review, he said that he rarely performs it live, but after the reaction he’s been getting, hopefully it will make more appearances in the future. The last four songs were absolutely epic in intensity and excitement. While I love the more sedate environment you get from other venues, there’s definitely something to be said for jumping up and down and shouting out Bird’s esoteric lyrics with thousands and thousands of other fans. (As an aside, there were sign language interpreters on stage for Bird’s set: I really, really want to know how in the world they interpreted things like radiolarians and troglobytes.) Bird promised that there would be snacks (a reference to a lyric in “Tables and Chairs”) and he provided them in great multitudes.

Kings of Leon: While I missed a good deal of their set, what I heard was very strong. I’d never paid a whole lot of attention to them in the past; for some reason their music never really resonated with me, but I’ve been enjoying their new album, and their live show definitely had the crowd pumped. After hearing their show, though, it’s got me motivated to check out more of their music.

There’s not much I can say about them, though, as I spent a majority of their set waiting in line at the FYE autograph tent to meet Andrew Bird. Yes, I did, in fact, buy a CD I already own just so I could get a spot in that line. Anyhow, it was a little difficult to focus on Kings of Leon when I was busy running over and over in my mind what, exactly, I wanted to say. Eventually, after waiting forever, I finally got to the front of the line and managed not to trip over my words and turn into a blubbering idiot. I told him simply that I feel like it’s a privilege to see him perform, every single time. It’s the honest truth, really, and I was rewarded with a sincere grin and a thank you, which was worth more to me than an autograph or anything else.

Overall verdict on Lollapalooza: much better than anticipated, with plenty of nice surprises for me. Will I go next year? Maybe. I’d need an incredibly strong lineup (like Friday’s) to get me to go out again, let alone go out for all three days. But despite the rain and the fact that my legs still sort of hurt from all of that standing, there were enough priceless moments during my Lollapalooza day that I don’t have any real complaints.

Lollapalooza-palooza.

Sarah — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 04:09:28 +0000

After three+ years of living in Chicago, and three+ years of avoiding the gigantic festival that takes over Grant Park for a weekend, I’m finally caving in and going this year. Only one day, though! Friday’s lineup pretty much bowled me over, but given that I’m not interested in any of the actual headliners, and that the other days didn’t have that same wow factor as Friday, I decided to skip them. I’ll introduce myself to Lolla and its gajillions of sweaty drunken people slowly.

I’ve realized that I’m essentially going to be living at the Budweiser and Playstation stages, which is okay with me — at least I know I won’t have to do the “sprint across Grant Park in order to get to the next set you want to see” thing that I was sort of afraid of. The morning of Lolla is kind of free space for me, though, so I’ll be cramming all of my eating/exploring/going to the bathroom time in there. And then I’ll just hope I don’t need to do any of the above from 3:oo on. (Okay, yes, I’m a smarter festival goer than that; I promise I won’t avoid eating/refreshing/etc. for the next 7 or so hours.)

And, of course, the aftershows. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth over the fact that the Andrew Bird at Schuba’s show sold out in just about thirty seconds (thirty seconds!! okay, I’m still a little bitter, not going to lie), I’ve managed to content myself with the other shows I did manage to score tickets to: The Decemberists on Thursday night and Fleet Foxes on Saturday. There’s also a non-Lolla-related show from Brian Wright and Joe Firstman on Friday night at Martyr’s which I keep trying to tell myself that I’m going to check out, but I’m not too optimistic about being able to manage it. And some genius decided to schedule the Lincoln Park Arts & Music Festival for the same weekend, which means that while I’d love to rest my exhausted self on Sunday, I’ll instead be trekking out to see Over the Rhine play.

So, my Lolla!lineup, or something like it:

April Smith, BMI Stage, 11:15 — I’ve never heard of her, but I was listening to her music on her artist page on the Lolla site and was pretty impressed. I want to swing by her set to see what she sounds like live.
Bon Iver, Playstation Stage, 3:00 — Never seen him perform live, so I don’t know what to expect. I’m not sure how his relatively low-key, ambient music is going to translate to a huge, open-air festival setting.
Ben Folds, Budweiser Stage, 4:00 – Ben always puts on a fabulous show, I’m sure this will be no exception. I haven’t had the chance to see him since 2005, so I’m looking forward to seeing the new music.
Fleet Foxes, Playstation Stage, 5:00 — I will probably get to this one late and check out early, as I’ll be seeing them them on Saturday night.
The Decemberists, Budweiser Stage, 6:00 — While I’m seeing them on Thursday, the rumor is that the Thursday show is an all request show, which leads me to believe that their Lollapalooza set might just be the whole of The Hazards of Love. The album is just under an hour long, so it’s possible. Regardless, I might skip out towards the end to head over to the other stage for…
Andrew Bird, Playstation Stage, 7:00 – my pretend musician boyfriend. I’ll put it out there right now, it’s going to take something epically spectactular to eclipse this as the highlight of my day.

In fact, the only thing that might eclipse what is sure to be an amazing Andrew Bird set will be managing to get through the autograph line at the FYE tent to get my 30 seconds of security-approved face time with the man. (In those thirty seconds, I would ideally like to convince him that we should totally be BFFs who can together be socially awkward and uncomfortable with interacting with people.)

We’ll see. All I know is that by the end of the weekend, I’m going to need about a dozen good, long showers.

What about you? Are you Lollapalooza-ing? What acts are you most looking forward to?