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North Coast Music Festival: Day 3 Recap

Liz Smyth — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 20:12:04 +0000

The last day of The North Coast Music Festival is over, and I survived three days of naked glittering torsos, Camelbak packs as far as the eye could see, furry knee-high boots, neon tutus and stumbling, semi-coherent concert goers. Would I do again? Hell yes.

From the top left: log rolling at the Dos Equis booth, crowd-made video game icons, Gogol Bordello, Bassnectar, Benny Benassi, Latyrx, ATB, Of Montreal, and more Bassnectar

Paper Diamond was the first act I caught. His music is an interesting mix of driving beats with electronic and house melodies. It reminded me a little of 90s trip-hop, but with more energy. He’s working on a new EP with the label Pretty Lights Music, and what I heard from it was great.

On a friend’s recommendation I stayed for part of Latyrx‘s set, a hip-hop duo that also employed a DJ and drummer for this performance. They’re from Oakland, and to me their sound had the bay area vibe of laid-back, soul and funk influenced hip-hop. If you’re into that sort of thing, I think they would be perfect accompaniment to Labor Day barbecues!

After Latyrx I checked out Loyal Divide at the local stage, having heard them last week on this blog. The formula of each song seemed to be as follows: pounding electronics, then an atmospheric guitar riff layered in, followed by overpowering, sometimes screeching vocals. Oh, and they had a sax player, which gave it a creepy, David Lynch vibe that I dug. I actually really enjoyed this set, when the singer wasn’t screaming out of key. His softer, gentler voice was a little Thom Yorke mixed with Hamilton Leithauser (of The Walkmen). If you like Foals or Battles then you should definitely look up Loyal Divide.

The next few hours were a blur of ATB, Of Montreal, Gogol Bordello, Benny Benassi and Bassnectar. What sticks out to me now is firstly Of Montreal: I’ve seen them before but their live show always amazes me. They had (in no particular order): balloons, an inflatable row-boat for crowd surfing, WWE-style wrestlers, dancers with augmented body parts, and shiny silver women with wings. I wondered how they played such a solid set with all that happened around them. Of Montreal ended with a fiddle tribute to America that had the audience square dancing. Awesome. Their 70s and 80s influenced pop-rock wasn’t exactly my style, but they were completely entertaining.

Benny Benassi was amazing. I’m not even into house music that much, but he combines it with dubstep and who knows what else in a way that had the crowd freaking out. It was so packed at the Red Bull Grove Stage during his set that I could barely get close enough to lose the bleed-through from the other stages. I am finding his future shows and attending, stat.

And then there was Bassnectar. His music is sick (do people still say that?) and intensely bass-laden, but he somehow still comes across as wholesome. He’s like the vegan surfer next door who is secretly a chess champion, but if you ask him about it he’ll say it’s not a big deal. Bassnectar humbly accepted the duty of closing out the festival, and then amazed us all for an hour and a half. What a great way to end the weekend!

Wow, That’s a Good Song: Gogol Bordello on NPR’s Tiny Desk Series

Sarah — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:05:02 +0000

[ The North Coast Music Festival kicks off today. In the time leading up to the festival, I'm going to introduce you to some stand out songs from bands, both local and further afield, who will be making appearances during the weekend's events. ]

For me, perhaps one of the biggest highlights of the North Coast Music Festival would have to be Gogol Bordello. They’re a band who I never quite warmed to in regards to their studio albums, but after much prodding from people at last year’s Lollapalooza, I decided to check them out. Live, their gypsy punk finally made sense to me. The raw energy and enthusiasm of Eugene Hutz and company comes across loud and clear on stage. This collection of multicultural musicians are incredibly talented, not to mention some of the hardest working people on stage today. Below, check out their performance as part of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Series. I guarantee you’ve never quite seen anything like it.

Gogol Bordello plays on Sunday, September 4th at the North Coast Music Festival. You can see them at 7:30 pm on the The Named After Groupon Stage.

The North Coast Music Festival is September 2nd – 4th in Union Park (1501 W Randolph). Three day passes have been sold out for a while now, but single day tickets ($50 for Friday, $60 for Saturday or Sunday) are still available.

Guest Post: Seven Albums That Came Out in 2010 That Mike Listened To and Enjoyed the Most

Sarah — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:05:27 +0000

Hey, it’s Mike again, you know the friend of Sarah’s from way back who occaisionally fulfills her need for a list of albums because she spends 90,000 hours agonizing over her own. (Do I really like this Andrew Bird album more than this other Andew Bird album?) Ha. I keed. So I did this thing last year, and since I mentioned Paper Route, and Gavin (Paper Route’s drummer) tweeted a link to the site, I gave Sarah a bunch of traffic, so she owes me, and that’s why you get the:

Seven Albums That Came Out in 2010 That Mike Listened To and Enjoyed the Most

Devo – Something For Everybody
Devo’s first foray into the world of music since Smooth Noodle Maps was met with much ado (mostly by the band itself who used focus groups and a lot of fake promotional material to choose everything from what songs appeared on the album, what order they were in, what type of outfits Devo would don, and of course what color the new Energy Domes would be). Hoopla aside, this is actually a really awesome album. What We Do and Don’t Shoot (I’m a Man) are worth the price of admission alone.

Something For Everybody was released June 15.
Devo: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

Chromeo – Business Casual
This is my pick for album of the year. Nobody is able to mix 80s beats, Roger Troutman Voicebox, and fun better than chromeo, and this album is nothing short of spectacular. I don’t think its possible to not like this album. From start to Huey Lewis finish, this album is nonstop fun.

Business Casual was released September 13.
Chromeo: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

Gogol Bordello – Trans-continental Hustle
Gogol Bordello’s music is absolutely nuts, and their latest album continues the trend. With all this punk-polka it leaves me to wonder if there are any Mariachi Punk bands out there. That would be truely amazing, but I digress. [See Mariachi el Bronx. -S]

Trans-continental Hustle was released April 27.
Gogol Bordello: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

The Soft Pack – The Soft Pack
It’s been a while since I’ve heard such awesome surf music. Plus these guys use organ. That alone puts these guys up there with Man or Astroman? as surf punk greats.

The Soft Pack was released February 2.
The Soft Pack: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter

Frank Turner – Sleep is for the Week
I really like this album, but it’s just songs about being hungover, so thats probably why. This guy is either the English equivalent of me, or he just reads my mind, and makes songs that I like.

[ Sleep is for the Week was released in 2007, apparently, but I'll let it slide. This time. -S]
Frank Turner: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

Balkan Beat Box – Blue Eyed Black Boy
Rarely do you get a mix of ska, dub, rap and disco, and even more rarely is it any good. Balkan Beat Box manages to pull it off, though. This is great music to cruise around to in your convertable. Especially in suburban areas where there are few Israelis.

Blue Eyed Black Boy was released March 29.
Balkan Beat Box: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

The National – High Violet
My love of The National’s music can only be compared to my hatred of their live show. High Violet is moody, emotional and beautiful.

High Violet was released May 11.
The National: Official Website | MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | Store

Honorable Mentions
Butch Walker – I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart. Maybe it’s just cause Butch is now 40 but this is his most mature album to date. That said, there aren’t any real rockers on this album, so it falls short of my list.

Gorillaz – Plastic Beach. I didn’t like this album as much as I liked Demon Days, but Stylo and Superfast Jellyfish are awesome.

Maroon 5 – Hands All Over. Maybe its because the first time I heard Misery I was in the middle of a break up and the person in question didn’t answer any of my texts that day, or maybe it’s just cause I have a secret love of Maroon 5.

And of course the Worst album of the year.
This year it goes to Katy Perry for Teenage Dream. I am no snob to popular music, as many people I work with will tell you how disturbing it is for me to sing along to Kelly Clarkson and Miley Cyrus when it comes on over the muzak, but Teenage Dream is just beyond garbage. It’s not great dance music, its not great pop music, and there’s a song about penis. Well, that’s not bad in itself, but it makes it seem like its really hard for a girl like Katy Perry to see dong. Though maybe it was in regards to Elmo, who ran away from her the entire Sesame Street skit that was yanked due to cleavage issues.

[ While not compiling Best Of lists for me, Mike can be found at landofabsurdity.com. ]

Scheduling for Lollapalooza is so hard.

Sarah — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:50:48 +0000

I am having a love/hate relationship with this year’s Lollapalooza schedule. It’s not like last year, where I was able to fill every inch of my day with bands. But maybe that’s a good thing — more time for aimlessly wandering from stage to stage, more opportunities to discover something new.

Here’s where you’re most likely to find me this year:

Friday
B.o.B, 11:30-12:15, adidas MEGA stage. Not gonna lie, I really like that song “Airplanes”.
Los Amigos Invisibles, Playstation stage, or The Walkmen, adidas MEGA stage, 1:00-2:00. I’m torn on this one. I’m dragging my husband with me to Lolla this year, and he, like Los Amigos Invisibles, is Venezuelan, so we kind of want to see them. But boy, would I like to see the Walkmen.
Mavis Staples, 2:00-3:00, Budweiser stage. She’s a legend, and her new album is full of fellow Chicagoans like Jeff Tweedy, Kelly Hogan, and Nora O’Connor.
Drive-By Truckers, 3:00-4:00, Playstation stage. I missed them earlier this year because of my dislike of the Vic. Not going to miss out on them this time.
The New Pornographers, 4:00-5:00, Budweiser stage. Last time I saw them, Neko Case had just dropped out of the tour because she broke her foot. TNP with Neko >>>> TNP without Neko.
Lady Gaga, 8:00-10:00, Parkways stage. Shut up, I am totally excited to see Gaga. Don’t you judge me.

Saturday
Who’s got two thumbs and might be sleeping in on Saturday? This girl. I’m going to spend some time over the next couple of days getting to know the morning acts to see if there’s anything that really interests me. Otherwise, I may just be wandering aimlessly until the afternoon. And then, of course, from the afternoon on, my day turns into a mess of needing to clone myself to see everything I want to see.
Blues Traveler, 1:45-2:45, Parkways stage. I love me some harmonica.
Stars, 2:15-3:15, Budweiser stage.
Dan Black, 3:00-3;45, BMI stage.
Gogol Bordello, 3:45-4:45, Parkways stage. I didn’t make it to their show at the Congress earlier this year. I will not be thwarted this time.
Deer Tick, 5:00-6:00, Sony bloggie stage.
Metric, 5:15-6:15, Playstation stage.
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, 6:30-7:30, Sony bloggie stage.
Green Day, 7:45-10:00, Parkways stage.
Phoenix, 8:30-10:00, Budweiser stage. The good thing about the headliners not starting at the same time is that I’ll be able to see a little bit of Green Day’s set before wandering back to Phoenix.

Sunday
The Antlers, 12:15-1:00, Budweiser stage, or Nneka, Parkways stage. I’m so torn! I love both of them, I’ve seen them both live before, so I’ve got no idea where to go.
Blitzen Trapper, 2:00-3:00, Budweiser stage.
Mumford & Sons, 3:00-4:00, Playstation stage. After Lady Gaga, they may just be the band I’m most excited to see, even though I just saw them a few months ago. I love these guys. I’m just sad they’re not going to hang out at the autograph tent, although this may be for the best, because I may have a hard time containing my excitement otherwise. (I did manage to have the self control to not pounce Andrew Bird last year, but my restraint is not infinite.)
Erykah Badu, 5:00-6:00, adidas MEGA stage. Let’s see what kind of crazy shit she comes up with.
The National, 7:15-8:30, Playstation stage. To be honest, I’ve never really loved their live music, from the bootlegs I’ve heard. Maybe this will change my mind.
Arcade Fire, 8:30-10:00, Budweiser stage. I’m also not a huge Arcade Fire fan, but I’m really not interested in seeing Soundgarden, so indie-hipster-whatever central it is.

This Week in Great Music: 8/2 – 8/8

Sarah — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:08:44 +0000

So, there’s this little festival called Lollapalooza rolling into Grant Park this weekend. Maybe you’ve heard of it? I’ll be there all weekend, Tweeting and taking bad photos bitching about the heat and the crowds, and hoping my phone doesn’t run out of battery. (I swear, I’m actually fun to be around! Honest!) I’ll have my rundown of bands I’m excited about seeing, later this week. For now, here’s a picture of my picks for this week’s otherwise very slow concert lineup.

Monday, August 2
Portland Cello Project; Millennium Park. 6:30, free
Robbie Fulks; Hideout. 7 pm, $10 suggested donation
Matthew Perryman Jones, Kim Taylor; Schubas. 8 pm, $10

Tuesday, August 3
New York Songwriters Circle: Chicago Showcase, featuring Nelken, Donnie Biggins, Rachele Eve, Sabrina Chap, Matt Crews and Andrew Francis; Schubas. 8 pm, $10

Wednesday, August 4
The Constellations; Metro. 5:30 pm, $13
Tributosaurus, tribute to Johnny Cash; Martrys. 7 pm and 10 pm, $15

Thursday, August 5
The Boxer Rebellion, Wild Beasts; Apple Store (679 N Michigan). 6 pm, free
Devo, Dirty Projectors; Congress Theater. 7:30 pm, $35
The New Pornographers, The Dodos; Metro. 9 pm, sold out
Phosphorescent, J. Tillman, Ceiling Stars; Empty Bottle. 9:30 pm, $12

Friday, August 6
The Walkmen, Warpaint; Double Door. 10 pm, $22-25
MGMT; House of Blues. 11 pm, $80 (benefit for the People’s Music School)
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Freelance Whales; Lincoln Hall. 11 pm, sold out

Saturday, August 7
Toby Lightman, Aslyn; Schubas. 7 pm, $12
Melissa Etheridge, The Chicago Theatre. 8 pm, $38-103
Gogol Bordello, Ryan Olson; Subterranean. 10:30 pm, sold out
The National, The Antlers; House of Blues. 11 pm, sold out
The Black Keys, The Morning Benders; Metro. 11 pm, sold out
Minus the Bear, Miniature Tigers; Double Door. 11 pm, $20
Blitzen Trapper, Avi Buffalo; Lincoln Hall. 11 pm, $20

Sunday, August 8
Switchfoot; House of Blues Back Porch Stage. 10:30 pm, free
Phoenix, Toro Y Moi; House of Blues. 11 pm, sold out

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

Lollapalooza 2010 Lineup

Sarah — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 16:14:40 +0000

In case you took an internet hiatus overnight, here’s some “news” for you: Lollapalooza’s lineup for the 2010 festival has been released in full, including all the letters and &s and *’s, because god forbid they write out Fuck Buttons on their website. The lineup had, of course, already been guessed to about 90% completion by the internet, thanks to leaks about the headliners and all those handy letters that Lolla put out for their Wheel of Fortune-esque teasers.

Aside from the fact that I’m always conflicted about Lollapalooza (I’ve lived here since 2006 and finally got around to dragging myself to the festival last year for the first time), the lineup seems a bit “…meh” to me. The headliners overall aren’t as huge as I’d come to expect from the festival, and the supporting tiers seem a bit thin. There aren’t a whole lot of acts who I’m dying to see, and a lot of the acts I’m excited about are actually ones who I’ve already seen (or will have seen by the time Lolla arrives). And I’m sure someone else can analyze this more in-depth, but there’s a huge lack of local music on the line-up. Lolla’s never made any pretense about being a local music festival — it’s a huge (inter)national festival which just happened to find its home in Chicago — but it would be nice to see some more nods towards its host city in its programming.

But, I’ll admit it, even though half of the internet is all OMG LOLLA SOLD OUT, I’m pretty excited that Lady Gaga is one of the headliners. Go ahead, take away any music street cred I had left, but I am absolutely going to be at her set. There, yeah, I said it. (Also, it will be interesting to see how she adapts her notoriously over-the-top stage show to fit the throw-and-go nature of Lollapalooza.)

So now, of course, we just have to wait (and wait, and wait) for the set schedules to come out. (Consequence of Sound has an unconfirmed day-by-day break-down.) Because, knowing my luck, all of the bands I want to see will be playing at the same time.

The lineup is under the jump for your perusal, in case you still haven’t seen it.

Soundgarden, Green Day, Lady Gaga, Arcade Fire, the Strokes, Phoenix, Social Distortion, MGMT, Jimmy Cliff, Hot Chip, the Black Keys, the National, Spoon, Devo, Cypress Hill, Cut Copy, the New Pornographers, Erykah Badu, Slightly Stoopid, Grizzly Bear, Gogol Bordello, Chromeo, Wolfmother, Yeasayer, X Japan, MUTEMATH, Metric, Dirty Projectors, AFI, Mavis Staples, Matt & Kim, the xx, Drive-By Truckers, Blues Traveler.

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, the Temper Trap, Jamie Lidell, Frightened Rabbit, F Buttons, Deer Tick, Blitzen Trapper, Stars, Raphael Saadiq, the Cribs, Minus the Bear, Switchfoot, the Walkmen, Mumford & Sons, Wild Beasts, Rogue Wave, Los Amigos Invisibles, the Big Pink, the Dodos, Hockey, Cymbals Eat Guitars, B.o.B, Dawes, Warpaint, the Antlers, the Soft Pack, Rebelution, Balkan Beat Box.

Wavves, American Bang, the Ike Reilly Assassination, Company of Thieves, Nneka, Harlem, the Constellations, Miniature Tigers, Mimicking Birds, the Kissaway Trail, HEALTH, Javelin, the Morning Benders, Foxy Shazam, Violent Soho, Royal Bangs, NEON TREES, Freelance Whales, Semi Precious Weapons, Dan Black, The Band of Heathens, Dragonette, My Dear Disco, Shawn Fisher, Neon Hitch, Skybox, The Ettes, Jukebox the Ghost, These United States, MyNameIsJohnMichael.