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Psuedo-bubblegum brit-pop hipsters The Candyskins definitely were a flash in the pan, but such a great treat for a cheesy nostalgic indulgence on a Friday morning. The Oxford-based quintet hit the ground running and were showcased on MTV's 120 Minutes back in the early 1990s with "Submarine Song;" and a year later put an album of sweet sunny 60's pop with some great jingly-jangly guitars on the Space I'm In. The album featured a great cover of a Buffalo Springfield's peace chant, "For What it's Worth" as well as the simply stated love song "Never Will Forget You." The band's success was overshadowed by legal wrangling over song rights on their first album. However, the Candyskins later prevailed with the anthemic brit-rock gem, "Feed It," which was featured in the movie, Waterboy featuring Adam Sandler. Bobby Boo-Shay, "You Can Do It."
Bear Hands recently stopped by Chicago, opening a sold-out show for Scotland's We Were Promised Jetpacks. The Brooklyn band melds maracas, African samples, and percussion with early Ted Leo and Tapes 'n Tapes rhythms that reinforces the indie rock revival in that concrete New York jungle. RFC was thrilled to speak with bassist and percussionist, Val Loper, on the SXSW experience, what's bubbling in Brooklyn, and festival atmospheres.
5 words and sinus infections. Two extraordinarily memorable elements in capacity crowd leg of the 'Every Never Is Now' Chicago tour date on Thursday night. If you added the flowers, Ronald Reagan solo, and thumb wars, an individual with no preconceived notions of the night would not have guessed a rap show was behind those dividing doors between the restaurant and the venue.
Continue reading "P.O.S., Dessa and Astronautalis @ Bottom Lounge 3/18/10" »
by Ron Saemann
Catherine Wheel's debut album Ferment still seems to mesmerize me with its dead-on drumbeats, distilled vocals and chill, swirly guitars. The shoegaze quartet from Great Yarmouth, UK best known for its haunting yet bombastic single, "Black Metallic," got the juices flowing like a Pink Floyd renaissance with My Bloody Valentine. At times, nothing quite summed up the 90's with ethereal beauty that fell so low and yet cranked guitar feedback so high; almost like an alarm clock waiting to hit the much-hated early day of light. Simply stated songs like "I Want To Touch You" and "She's My Friend" screeched and squealed all the wet joy out of space rock. Yet still leaving something to be sucked out and savored by late afternoon and into the dark of night. Damn, this is still so good! And yes, it's okay to strum the hell out of your air guitar, my friend. More reverb, please.
Earlier this month, the Tribune had an article about a Toronto restaurant with an all Wilco-themed sandwich menu. Here in Chicago, however, there's a coffee shop that's offering a sandwich with even more rock cred.
Introducing "The Albini," one of the offerings at new Edgewater spot Kitchen Sink. Loaded with hot sopressata, fresh mozzarella, roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, arugula, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar, shop proprietor/sandwich artisan Jeff Fox says, "it tastes like his music sounds...salty, spicy, tangy and peppery."
And as most hardcore Albini-heads I'm sure are already aware, Shellac are playing a sold out gig this weekend at Lincoln Hall. If you haven't secured your ticket yet, perhaps you can convince one of your friends to give you their extra by promising to buy a round of Albini sandwiches before the show.
Lincoln Hall beat all expectations Thursday night, not only with the bands, but the venue itself. A stellar addition in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, Schuba's younger bigger brother has an exceptional new venue smell; clean, multiple bars, an enviable dining menu…and coat hooks! A far flung collection of indie rock stopped by; NYC's Bear Hands, Washington's The Lonely Forest and Scotland's We Were Promised Jetpacks.
Continue reading "Bear Hands and We Were Promised Jetpacks @ Lincoln Hall 3/11/10" »
I wish some junebug would have brought Mark Linkous some luck on some March afternoon with the sun and moon. But as it was, "some sorry Captain Howdy, scattered his bones for the lambs" and we are a little more softer in the soul, quite devasted by his early exit in life. Linkous aka Sparklehorse was one of the most influential and truly gifted storytellers of the low-fi indie rock movement of the late 1990s. His ability to paint a crippled Southern landscape into a twisted yet undeniably beautiful world is beyond words. Linkous spoke to me on his second album, "Good Morning Spider," which echoes a bit of his own trouble mind and tortured soul after touring with Radiohead on his record, "Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot." On the upbeat rocker, Chaos of the Galaxy/Happy Man, he screams "All I Want is to be a Happy Man" and we certainly do to. Beneath the crackling effects and acoustical guitars on the sad song, "Hey, Joe," Linkous professes "There's a Heaven, And There's A Star for You." Yes there is, and we thank you so much for your special gift and we celebrate your wonderful life. By the way, Mark, we are "Sick of Goodbyes" and we feel the "Painbirds," but we can't forget the ghost of your smile. Please feel free to share your most intimate Sparklehorse moments, as we would love to hear your thoughts on one of our most treasured artists.
Click below to check out the new single "DDF" from Loyal Divide's forthcoming Summer 2010 release. The Chicago via Columbus boys are heading down to SXSW this year, if you happen to be making the trek to Austin yourself, you can catch them next Friday afternoon (3/19) at The Tap Room.
Opens Friday, the 19th from 7-10 pm with DJ sets by A Grape Dope and Spectronix (John Herndon and Dan Bitney of Tortoise). More info here.
I was snooping around on the Internet, and I ran across Gemini Club, a project put together by former Columbia students, including a friend of mine from high school, who I haven’t seen in a few years. (Tom and I took some creative writing classes together and rocked a bunch of open mics. Oh, open mics in the suburbs! Those were the days.) Well, it looks like they are doing very well for themselves and have a slew of shows coming up.
If you’re into the Chicago electro indie pop scene, the
likes of Kid Color, the Hood Internet, Junk Solo, or Prep School,
these might be some tracks to rock you through the spring.
The neo-psychedelic pop quartet, The Church, hailing from Sydney, Australia finally found minor commercial success with its eighth album, Starfish in 1988. Riding on the strength of its only Top 40 hit, "Under The Milky Way," the band crafted some smart and accessible tunes that fared well with fans. The Church recorded the album far from home in Los Angeles amongst much pressure from record producers under tight time constraints and uncomfortable studio arrangements. Despite the band's challenges and overall disdain for the city, they managed to evolve their sound and push their musical stylings on tracks such as, "Reptile" and "A New Season." This year marks the 30th year anniversary of the band, which will play acoustically to audiences worldwide.
Brooklyn-based indie trio, The Acrylics, played its easy-breezy rock to a half-packed crowd at Schubas on Wednesday night. The band was touring in release of its debut EP, All of the Fire, which was spearheaded by Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear on Terrible Records. Lead singer Molly Shea had listeners truly engaged, exchanging vocals and bass riffs with guitarist Jason Klauber on dreamy pop songs, such as "Molly's Vertigo"; her vocals a dead-ringer for Neko Case at times, were heartfelt and sincere with a smooth slide guitar twanging in the distance. Klauber had his glow in the spotlight as well, showcasing his cool 80's Elvis Costello swagger or even a modern day nod to Chris Owens of The Girls. Either way, the band delivered the sonic goods and the upcoming SXSW should garner more support from new fans. Also, look for the band's upcoming daytrotter session from March.
Continue reading "Acrylics and A Sunny Day in Glasgow @ Schubas 3/3/10" »
To clear the air, I have been listening to Cursive since before the Metro went smoke free - those days when you distinctly stunk leaving the venue. Yet as bands became more colorful with Chicago's ban, the calendars turned and my seeing Cursive live count still was a lowly zero. After years upon years, the equivalent of "the one that got away" finally was put to rest as climbing up those staircases into the Metro-nearly nine years in. Better late than never, eh?
The announced bill of Cursive and Alkaline Trio was a direct challenge to a prior attempted attendance years ago; Cursive, Murder By Death and The Blood Brothers. Both sold out in dramatic fashion, leaving people venturing in vain to land tickets in Wrigleyville. Despite a set lacking much crowd conversation, Kasher confirmed every burgeoning expectation I had construed in the near decade wait in a mere 30 minute set. Starting with the middle of the set's "Let Me Up" as an example, his vocals are unmatched dynamically from ethereal whispers to stunted cries of angst. And yes, still no cello as in my early listening years, but multi-instrumentalist Patrick Newbery brass had the drew the same attention during the crashing, bright "Big Bang" that followed.
Continue reading "Cursive and Alkaline Trio @ Metro 2/28/10" »
