Review: Dashboard Confessional Gave Reggie’s Their Best Chicago Set
I’ve been a Dashboard Confessional fan since I was 12, listening to their albums in my room as a moody teenager, door shut, scribbling their sad girl lyrics onto notebooks […]
Bach’s Mass in b-minor Got Audience Hosannas at Music of the Baroque Season Opener
The Mass in b-minor is often described as Johann Sebastian Bach’s valedictory masterpiece. It certainly received a masterly treatment by the Music of the Baroque Chorus and Orchestra, whose season-opening […]
Review: Joe Pug Returns to Chicago with The Flood in Color at the Hideout
If he didn’t have family back east, Joe Pug would live with us in the Windy City. “They’re fucking up shit in the rest of the country. Chicago’s still got […]
Review: Sugar Candy Mountain Mesmerizes at Beat Kitchen
These days, psychedelia has crept back into music like it never left the ‘60s and ‘70s. We have Tame Impala playing arenas. We have Drugdealer sounding best on vinyl. We […]
Riot Fest 2019: Day 2 in Review
My second day at Riot Fest was another one of firsts—first time that I used the port-o-potty at the festival, first time I rode a divvy bike into oncoming traffic, […]
Riot Fest 2019: Day 1 in Review
I’ll get this out of the way up front. I’m a Riot Fest virgin. In fact I have only been to one festival in my life, when I covered Pitchfork […]
Review: Into the Spirit World with Ceremony and Choir Boy
I keep ending up at Thalia Hall. It’s my siren. Calling and cooing me in yet again. On the heels of my review of The Hold Steady I find myself […]
Review: Lomelda and Hovvdy Co-headline The Empty Bottle
On a night highlighted by Lomelda and Hovvdy, there’s a third act to set to open the night, fresh off of dropping their new record Ghost Orchard. Sam hails from Grand Rapids, Michigan and […]
Review: Alex Lahey and the Cowboys & Rocketmen of Our Time
“It’s like Rocketman up here tonight!” A glowing Alex Lahey proclaimed to the bustling Lincoln Hall crowd Tuesday night, “Well, maybe less queer… but only by a little.” All things […]
Your Chicago Curated Weekend: 8/29 – 9/1
It’s Labor Day weekend! While the season has a couple more weeks to go, it’s looking pretty clear that summer is on its way out. The kids are back in […]
When Forever Came Crashing: Converge, Cloud Nothings at House of Vans
House of Vans, we meet again for one last summer show. This venue exists as a fascinating place that’s a weird mixture of commerce and art. It goes without saying […]
Rock ’n Roll’s Don Quixote: A Night with The Hold Steady
I wanted to begin with my history with The Hold Steady as a jump off point referencing high school girlfriends, the record store I worked at in college, and driving […]