Buy Nothing Day Sharpens Its Claws

In response to the "Black Friday" retail madness that has come to embody the Thanksgiving holiday experience every bit as much as the Turkey dinner itself, for the last 20 years Kalle Lasn and the Adbusters Media Foundation have attempted to counter the rampant blind consumerism with Buy Nothing Day. However, this year, Lasn and the Adbusters crew have decided kick things up a notch with what they're calling a "Wildcat General Strike." It seems they're worried that their anti-holiday is in danger is "losing its edge," and it's time to "reanimate it with new intensity, purpose and scale." Here's the synopsis: 

We want you to not only stop buying for 24 hours, but to shut off your lights, televisions and other nonessential appliances. We want you to park your car, turn off your phones and log off of your computer for the day. We’re calling for a Ramadan-like fast. From sunrise to sunset we’ll abstain en masse, not only from holiday shopping, but from all the temptations of our five-planet lifestyles.

Taking a break from phones, computers and cars sure sounds like a lot more enjoyable way to spend a day off than fighting lines at a mall to me, why not give it a shot? Of course, a whole day without "nonessential appliances" would also mean no iPods or home stereos. Have you ever went a 24 hour fast from prerecorded music? I don't think I have, but I'm rather intrigued by the notion. Might be a great excuse to dig out that acoustic guitar in the closet or dust off the piano and devote a day to practicing some chords and learning new songs!

RFC TV: Califone - "Funeral Singers"

califone - funeral singers from Califone on Vimeo.

Get on the List: Black Friday Door Buster Savings

Today on RFC we're giving you real door buster savings this Black Friday Buy Nothing Day by hooking you up with a chance to get on the list for your choice of two post-holiday indie rock shows: Sam Roberts headlining a 17+ show at  Subterranean or The Ataris headlining a 17+ show at Beat Kitchen.  Just drop us a line at radiofreechicago(at)gmail.com with "Black Friday Madness" in the subject line and your show preference in the body for your chance to get on the list with a +1. Good luck!

Here's Where The Big Story Begins

Dreamy indie pop quartet, The Sundays, had a uncanny knack for crafting charming, innocent and introspective tunes in the early 1990s. The band was formed in London in 1987 by mutual friends and partners, Harriet Wheeler and David Gavurin at the University in Bristol. The Sundays were heavily influenced by The Smiths and The Cocteau Twins with Wheeler's airy, school-girl vocals and tender prose and Gavurin's free-floating guitar melodies. "Can't Be Sure," the band's first single topped John Peel's Festive Fifty in 1989. While, The Sundays' second single, "Here's Where the Story Ends" a sweet, strummy smash hit that paid homage to The Smiths' "Cemetery Gates," scored big with listeners at #1 on the U.S. Modern Rock Charts. Reading, Writing and Arithmetic went gold in the U.S. as did the band's follow-up, Blind, which featured the pleasantly poppy, "Love" and the wonderful rendition of "Wild Horses," which was later featured in a pretty, horsey Budweiser commercial.

Can't Be Sure

Here's Where The Story Ends

Love

Wild Horses

Your Pre-Thanksgiving Plans Are Set

Free admission, and free booze...for reals??

The Wednesday, November 25th edition of Cinema 16 is being held at one of Chicago's most unique and intimate independent venues, Wicker Park's Chopin Theatre. Admission and cocktails will be complimentary, courtesy of Drambuie, the fabled Scottish spiced whiskey. 

Chandeliers, a Chicago-based musical collective that has garnered much critical acclaim, will score three sensational and ominous short films, inaugurating the last installment of five Cinema 16 soirees.

RSVP here

RFC TV: Ola Podrida's "This Old World"

This Old World - OLA PODRIDA from Zellner Bros. on Vimeo.

Texas folkie Ola Podrida has just released his sophomore album, Belly of the Lion, and to commemorate, Podirda's put together a video for the disc's closing track, the understated, lo-fi "This Old World". Tour dates are sure to come soon, so do your homework on Ola Podrida before he makes his way to the Midwest.

Another New Track from Capgun Coup

Radio Free Chicago is no stranger to Capgun Coup, having posted their song "Bad Bands" earlier in the fall. Now that the Omaha native's sophomore effort has finally hit the shelves, the band's wasted no time in hitting the road and getting more tracks on to the internet for mass consumption. Following the raw, fun track "Bad Bands", Capgun Coup has brought us "Sitting on the Sidewalk", which together show quite a bit of promise for their latest release, Maudlin. 

Vaguely reminiscent of the messy, DIY rock and roll of local boy Ezra Furman with a dash of surf and Ramones-era punk thrown in, "Sitting on the Sidewalk" has served it's purpose for me by becoming a nice break in the acoustic and folk monotony I often get stuck in when Autumn in the Midwest rolls around.

In the "Awesome Tour" department, Capgun Coup is hitting the road with Cursive this fall. Don't get excited yet, though, Chicagoists, the closest the pairing is getting to your hometown appears to Iowa.

Capgun Coup - Sitting On The Sidewalk

RFC Interview: MMW's Chris Wood

Together now for nearly two decades, experimental jazz trio Medeski, Martin and Wood continue to push the boundaries of their collective sound in surprising new directions. Renowned for their improvisational dexterity and expansive musical vocabulary, the band's exploratory live performances have always been central to their creative process. For their latest project, The Radiolarian Series, the band reversed the usual recording cycle, challenging themselves to compose and develop three albums of new material through a series of tours before entering the studio. Released throughout 2008 and '09, the resulting Radiolarians albums are infused with the energies and influences of the trio's long experience traveling and creating music together.

Medeski, Martin & Wood - Undone

Medeski, Martin & Wood - Trinity Workshop Improv