Review: Model/Actriz Set the Bar High at Thalia Hall
As someone who attends a plethora of concerts every year, it can be easy for shows to get lost or jumbled in my subconscious.However last Saturday night’s show with the […]
Preview: Farewell to the Orion Ensemble after 35 Years
This and next weekend, the Orion Ensemble will be performing their last concerts together. For 35 years, this quartet of clarinetist Kathryne Pirtle, violinist Florentina Ramniceanu, cellist Judy Stone, and […]
Review: Gelli Haha Brings an Adorable Circus to Schubas Tavern
Dolphin balloons. Boxing matches. Bubble guns. Plastic pig masks. Hula hoops. That’s just a sample of the delightful craziness Gelli Haha brought to Schubas Tavern on Saturday night. It was […]
Review: Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Wind Ensemble Excels Under Duress at Mandel Hall
London-based chamber orchestra the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields performed at the University of Chicago’s stiflingly hot Mandel Hall rcently. The group was founded in 1958 by Sir […]
Review: Going Bacharach at the Apollo Theater—When the Cheese Overpowers the Craft
Burt Bacharach’s music is famously hard to play and all‑too‑easy to cheapen. The show’s excellent Chicago‑based band proves the former with dazzling precision, while the production ladles on the latter […]
Interview: Kenny Wayne Shepherd Revisits His Debut Album
Blues rocker Kenny Wayne Shepherd wasn’t always a guitar god. After all, he didn’t start playing until the ripe old age of seven. His debut album, Ledbetter Heights, followed at […]
Review: The Elgin Master Chorale and Director/Conductor Andrew Lewis Produce a Masterful Performance of Stacy Garrop’s Terra Nostra in Elgin
I was first blown away by Stacy Garrop’s oratorio Terra Nostra when Cedille Records released it in 2024. In three parts, Garrop tells the story of our planet, starting with […]
Interview: Waxed is Ready to Melt Faces at Reggies
Four years after releasing their debut album Give Up, Nashville’s Waxed is back with The Continental Way, 44 minutes of face-melting, riff-driven rockers. The band, which opened for no less […]
Review: Pianist Evgeny Kissin Joins Andre Boreyko and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for an Excellent Concert at Symphony Center
Almost a year after his amazing solo recital in May 2025, and a month before his recital as a soloist, pianist Evgeny Kissin returned to Symphony Center on Thursday. Instead […]
Review: Melancholy Never Sounded As Good As It Does With the Antlers and TOTH
There are few things deeper than the emotional connection that you make through music. Especially if that music touches a nerve and refuses to let go. Such is the case […]
Review: Snail Mail Welcomes Spring at the Riviera Theatre
Snail Mail, the acclaimed indie rock moniker of singer-songwriter Lindsey Jordan, made their second stop on their North American tour at the Riviera Theatre last Saturday night. Jordan has proven […]
Keeping C2E2 Local with Lizzie Baumgartner and Brian Rowe of Emo Social Club
With C2E2 happening last weekend I took my time to steer away from the drama surrounding its owners, ReedPop, and instead decided to focus on the people building communities locally. […]