Live: The Forms & Cloud Cult @ Schubas

Posted on 26 April 2008 | 1 Comment

Alright. So last night I braved the elements and checked out The Forms and Cloud Cult at Schubas. Despite vocalist/guitarist Alex Tween acknowledging that he was sick and his voice wasn’t in tip-top shape, New York City’s The Forms blazed through a tight-as-hell set that included all my favorites off of The Forms like “Knowledge In Hand,” “Red Gun,” and “Bones” plus a cover of Nirvana’s “All Apologies.” The band’s thick and heavy (almost mathy) sound was more dynamic and powerful that it is on their records and made for a hella great show.

I actually didn’t realize that the show was sold out until just before Minneapolis’ Cloud Cult came on, so when they did, the crowd pretty much erupted. You might think that since I have this here music blog that I would have been familiar with Cloud Cult, right? Not so much. So when the lights started flashing and Craig Minowa and his band of merrymakers started making noise I was floored. Why had I never paid any attention to Cloud Cult before? My bad. It won’t happen again. My advice to you; see this band live, you won’t regret it.

Filed Under: Live

Official Lollapalooza 2008 Lineup

Posted on 8 April 2008 | 1 Comment

Lollapalooza 2008

So the 2008 lineup for Lollapalooza is finally official. Who are you most-stoked about seeing thins time around?

Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Nine Inch Nails, Kanye West, Wilco, The Raconteurs, Louis XIV, Love and Rockets, Gnarls Barkley, Bloc Party, The Black Keys, Broken Social Scene, Lupe Fiasco, Flogging Molly, Mark Ronson, Cat Power, The National, G. Love & Special Sauce, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Explosions in the Sky, Brand New, Gogol Bordello, Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Dierks Bentley, Okkervil River, Amadou & Mariam, Blues Traveler, John Butler Trio, Girl Talk, Your Vegas, CSS, Eli “Paperboy” Reed & the True Loves, Battles, Steel Train, Jamie Lidell, Bang Camaro, Butch Walker, The Blakes, Mates of State, Tally Hall, Spank Rock, White Lies, Brazilian Girls, Magic Wands, Chromeo, Electric Touch, Duffy, Innerpartysystem, The Kills, The Postelles, Rogue Wave, The Parlor Mob, The Go! Team, Bald Eagle, Mason Jennings, Krista, The Gutter Twins, Ha Ha Tonka, Yeasayer, Witchcraft, Grizzly Bear, We Go To 11, MGMT, Sofia Talvik, The Weakerthans, Booka Shade, Santogold, Black Kids, Black Lips, Dr. Dog, Nicole Atkins & the Sea, The Ting Tings, Kid Sister, Office, The Cool Kids, What Made Milwaukee Famous, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, The Whigs, Manchester Orchestra, Foals, Uffie, The Octopus Project, Cadence Weapon, Ferras, De Novo Dahl, Noah and the Whale, Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s, K’NAAN, Serena Ryder, Newton Faulkner, (& more TBA, I’m sure).

Filed Under: Live

Say Hi - Live @ Beat Kitchen

Posted on 25 February 2008 | No Comments

Last Friday I headed downtown to see the Seattle indie pop group Say Hi; a decision that was made largely in part because of their excellent new album The Wishes And The Glitch. It was an early all ages show and when then band took to the stage front man Eric Elbogen commented that it was probably hard to be sufficiently buzzed this early in the evening. He was joined by drummer Westin Glass and some friendly robots that supplied some additional backing tracks. They played most of the songs from the new album which was great since it is the only Say Hi record I’m really familiar with. The songs rocked a little (or a lot) more than on the record which translated into a buoyant sing-a-long set that was loads of fun. Say Hi finished up on a high note with Eric doing a solo rendition of “Let’s Talk About Spaceships” and then I drove home.

MP3 | Say Hi – Let’s Talk About Spaceships Numbers & Mumbles

Filed Under: Indie Rock, Live

Lucero/Hot Water Music - 2/1 @ Metro

Posted on 5 February 2008 | No Comments

Un-freaking-believable. That is what Lucero opening for the first of two Hot Water Music reunion tour shows in Chicago was. It was actually quite strange to see Lucero in an opening slot. Instead of their usual 2 hour + sets, they played an economical 45 minutes but were still awesome. The touring pedal steel player added a little extra twang and a little extra awesome as well.

It was (however) obvious from the get go that everyone was there to see Hot Water Music. And why not? This was one of four (two in Chicago) “reunion” shows that the band was playing to promote their new release Till The Wheels Fall Off. Anyhow, Hot Water Music knocked my socks off and played for 1:45 and ripped through all the songs that I wanted to hear; “Hard To Know,” “Don’t Say You Lost It,” “Better Sense,” “Alachua,” and more. After the show Andy, Amy, and I all commented that we felt way younger than our true ages. I can only hope that this is the beginning of a new chapter in the HWM story. The pix below are (for the most part) courtesy of my wife Amy.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Josh English/Ben Nichols/Chuck Ragan - 1/31 @ Schubas

Posted on 5 February 2008 | 1 Comment

Yes I did head downtown last Thursday night during the blizzard to catch what was an unbelievable show featuring Joshua English, Ben Nichols (of Lucero), and Chuck Ragan (of Hot Water Music) at Schubas Tavern.

Because of the snow it took me 1-1/2 hours drive the 12 miles from work to home and another hour + to get downtown so I (unfortunately) missed Joshua English’s set, but everyone who saw it said he was great. His latest record Trouble None is fantastic so I’m sure that live it would have been awesome.

MP3 | Joshua English – No Ready Answer, No Ready Reply
MP3 | Ben Nichols (Lucero – The War
MP3 | Chuck Ragan – See Yourself To The Door

I (however) only walked in the door as Ben Nichols was starting his set. As anticipated, it consisted of mainly Lucero songs, but Ben and the crowd were having a great time and loving every minute of it. It was nice to hear the songs in a more intimate setting with only Ben’s whiskey-soaked voice acoustic guitar, and a pedal steel accompaniment. It was simply fantastic.

Then came Chuck Ragan. He played songs from his assorted 7 inch records and from hsi full-length Feast Or Famine. It was amazing. Chuck was accompanied by fiddler Jon Gaunt from Whiskey and Co. (who Ben embarrassingly called Whiskeytown) on a number of songs in addition to his own gruff voice and snappy harmonica playing. Chuck also managed to play a few Hot Water Music songs (“God Deciding” and “Old Rules”) as well as “Bleeder” out of the Alkaline Trio’s catalog.

Despite missing Joshua English and spending over four hours in the car that evening, it was a great show that I’m glad I didn’t bail out on.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Lucero & Bobby Bare Jr. show review

Posted on 16 November 2007 | 2 Comments

Last Friday night we headed out to the Metro in Chicago to catch one of our favorite live acts, Lucero. We the missed the openers Whiskey & Co. but arrived just in time to see Bobby Bare Jr. and his band of Young Criminals tear up the stage. Augmented by a drummer, Deanna Varagona on baritone sax and (perhaps) the world’s greatest keyboard player (does anyone know who this guy is?), he and his band impressed the hell outta me and the rest of the audience as well.

Lucero then proceeded to play a Jameson (note the bottle at Ben’s feet in the picture below) & Jagermeister fueled set that lasted well over two hours. They played just about every song everyone wanted to hear and it was amazing. And just like every one of the other half dozen or so times we’ve seen the band, they brought out the rowdy hooligans and a fistfight erupted right in front of us.

The band was joined onstage for their entire set by the mysterious bearded keyboard player from Bobby Bare Jr.‘s band. His awesome playing provided just enough extra oomph And while I can’t remember their exact set list, it was very comparable to the one from the show below that they played about a week and a half earlier in Richmond, VA. Go see ‘em on tour if you have the chance.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Jeff Tweedy - Live at the Vic 3.05.05

Posted on 13 November 2007 | 2 Comments

The MP3’s below are a repost Jeff Tweedy’s sold out solo performance at Chicago’s Vic Theatre on March 5th, 2005. It was easily one of the best shows I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot). Tweedy played over 35 songs both old and new and was even joined on stage for the final few songs by all his Wilco band mates. It is amazing to hear just how quiet 1200+ people can be at times during the show. Did I mention that the sound quality is also totally amazing. Here it is for your enjoyment, or the original post can be found right here.

Filed Under: Live

Jeff Tweedy - Live at the Abbey Pub 1.25.06

Posted on 9 November 2007 | No Comments

The songs from the sold-out Jeff Tweedy show at Chicago’s Abbey Pub back on January, 25th 2006 are reposted here by request. The other two Tweedy shows I have will also be reposted sometime in the next few weeks. If you really want to, you can even view the original posting of these tunes here.

Also, if yr going to see Lucero at the Metro tonight, I’ll see you there. Should be a blast.

Sizzling tracks

The Painter Lyrics Usher	Watching Airplanes Lyrics Gary Allan
I Don’t Know What It Is Lyrics Kylie Minogue	Friday Night Lyrics Craig David
Winner At A Losing Game Lyrics Rascal Flatts	No Touchin’ Lyrics Mya
Daylight Lyrics Kelly Rowland	I Will Be Lyrics Leona Lewis
Face Off Lyrics Bow Wow	Honey Lyrics Erykah Badu

Get your own here.

Filed Under: Live

Elizabeth Mitchell and family

Posted on 27 August 2007 | 3 Comments

Amy, Hailey, and I went up to Ravinia this weekend to catch a rare Chicago performance from our favorite children’s artist Elizabeth Mitchell. She performed songs from all three of her albums including many from her latest, You Are My Little Bird. For those that don’t know, she (along with her husband Dan) are both members of the superb indie-pop band Ida when they aren’t being parents and singing kids songs.

Elizabeth performed a few songs with a full band, but was mainly accompanied on stage by Dan and their daughter Storey who managed to pull off a few great harmonica riffs. Anyhow, the kids were dancing, laughing, clapping, and (of course) crying. We briefly talked to Elizabeth and Dan after the show and (much to our amazement) she sang a little lullaby of “Ladybug Picnic” directly to our visibly exhausted daughter Hailey. It was a wonderful little moment that made us love Elizabeth as a person as well as a performer. Support these wonderful musicians by buying their albums and seeing them live. They totally deserve.

MP3 | Elizabeth Mitchell – Freight Train You Are My Flower
MP3 | Elizabeth Mitchell – Ladybug Picnic You Are My Sunshine

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Killswitch Engage Warped Tour Pix

Posted on 16 August 2007 | 1 Comment

Of all the bands at the 2007 Warped Tour, I was most excited to see Killswitch Engage. And although their set was only 30 minutes long, the reigning kings of metalcore did not disappoint. And (yes) Adam D is totally hilarious. In between songs while the rest of the band was trying to get him to shut up, he said things like, “All you metalheads, turn to the emo kid next to you and punch him in the dick,” and “Emo kids, what are you crying about?” I almost peed my pants.

Filed Under: Blog, Hardcore & Metal, Live

Bad Religion Warped Tour pix

Posted on 6 August 2007 | No Comments

How cool is it that the guys in Bad Religion are still rocking well into their forties? If you’ve heard their latest album New Maps Of Hell and if you saw them at Warped Tour, you’d know that they show no signs of slowing down.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Alkaline Trio Warped Tour pix

Posted on 5 August 2007 | No Comments

Personally, I don’t think these Warped Tour picture posts are ever gonna end. These are of Chicago’s own (and new Epic Records artist) Alkaline Trio. They have certainly come a long way since the days when they crashed at our apartment in Indianapolis back in ’98.

MP3 | Alkaline Trio – Off My Mind (Smoking Popes Cover) ALK3/Popes Split 7”

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Bayside Warped Tour pix

Posted on 5 August 2007 | 1 Comment

Here are some more pictures from last weekend’s Warped Tour in Chicago. These are of New York pop-punk/hardcore group Bayside as they play songs from their latest album The Walking Wounded.

MP3 | Bayside – Duality The Walking Wounded

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Paramore Warped Tour pix

Posted on 2 August 2007 | No Comments

You are probably tired of all these pictures from the Warped Tour. That’s just too bad since there are a bunch more to come. These are of the fun and energetic Hayley Williams from Paramore.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Hot Rod Circuit Warped Tour pix

Posted on 31 July 2007 | No Comments

Seriously, there are way more pictures from the Warped Tour that I need to post here. These are of Hot Rod Music’s amazing set on the Hurley stage.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

FFAF & Pepper Warped Tour pix

Posted on 31 July 2007 | No Comments

Here are some pictures of Funeral For A Friend and Pepper.

Funeral For A Friend

Pepper

Filed Under: Blog, Live

A few Warped Tour pictures

Posted on 30 July 2007 | 3 Comments

Here are a few pictures from the Chicago date of the 2007 Vans Warped Tour. In addition to these, I also took pictures of The Starting Line, Tiger Army, Biffy Clyro, Just Left, The Vincent Black Shadow, Funeral For A Friend, Hot Rod Circuit, Alkaline Trio, Paramore, New Found Glory, Coheed & Cambria, Pepper, Bayside, Bad Religion, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, MxPx, and Killswitch Engage. All these coming soon…

Amber Pacific

Kaddisfly

Bleed The Dream

Revolution Mother

Thieves & Villains

Filed Under: Blog, Live

The Dismemberment Plan escapes (again)

Posted on 25 May 2007 | 1 Comment

Here is the second of the two reunion shows that The Dismemberment Plan played about a month ago at The Black Cat in Washington, DC. The first one is two posts down. The shows were both put together to raise money for Callum Robbins. The exact date of this one was Saturday, April 28th, 2007.

Filed Under: Live

The Dismemberment Plan escapes

Posted on 24 May 2007 | 1 Comment

So I’ve been sad for almost four years now. That’s how long the wonderfully quirky D.C. band The Dismemberment Plan has been broken up. I’ve been really sad since April, 27th 2007. That’s when The Plan played the first of two reunion shows at The Black Cat in Washington, DC that I was (super unfortunately unable to attend). Damn I loved The Dismemberment Plan.

The shows were concocted to benefit Callum Robbins (son of producer extraordinarie J. Robbins). He suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy and although I won’t go into details here (for that go here) he is a little guy that needs your help. You can make a donation or buy this 2xCD of which 100% of the proceeds go to Callum’s care fund. We bought the CD and hope that you will show the same love that The Dismemberment Plan plan did just about a month ago.

The MP3’s below make up The Plan’s set from the first night (4/27). I’ll have the second show (4/28) up in the next few days.

Filed Under: Live

Roll me under New Madrid

Posted on 17 May 2007 | 12 Comments

So a little over a month ago Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy (as he does from time to time) played a sold-out solo show at Chicago’s Vic Theater. I unfortunately didn’t make it to the show (thanks to the $100 ticket price) but it was for a good cause (a benefit for the Montessori school his kids attend) and I still have my memories from his solo outing at the Vic back in March 2005.

With Sky Blue Sky out this past Tuesday, this offers a few of those songs presented in a different and stripped-down fashion as well as older Wilco, Uncle Tupelo, and Golden Smog material along with a few covers. Plus his stage banter is hilarious. Grab all the songs in a .zip file or pick your poison below. Enjoy.

Filed Under: Americana, Live

Pretending to be something else

Posted on 25 April 2007 | 1 Comment

I think it is probably a known fact that the wife and I are (were) big Hot Water Music fans and (thus) fans of both ex-HWM projects The Draft and Chuck Ragan’s solo project. Something about the earnest post-hardcore that HWM played just struck a nerve with us and so many other people. And while I like The Draft quite a bit, I was always partial to Chuck’s voice over Chris Wollard’s. A bit more gruff and just a bit more powerful.

Chuck Ragan has a new live solo album called Los Feliz that will be released May 8th on Side One Dummy and it is full of gut-wrenching songs played by a guy (that’s Chuck) with only his acoustic guitar for cover. You can hear Chuck’s passion in every heartfelt breath.

Now rather than posting something from Chuck’s forthcoming Los Feliz album, here is an entire live set from sometime in 2006 at LA’s Troubadour. Cheers!

Filed Under: Americana, Live

Seeing people you don't expect to

Posted on 15 April 2007 | 6 Comments

Friday night we checked out Lucero and Catfish Haven at Otto’s in Dekalb. Nothing like $2 long islands to get you in the mood to rock, but (really) with those two bands on the bill it didn’t take much. Everyone was out to the Lucero show including our friends Andy & Julia and (much to my surprise) Ryan from Muzzle Of Bees and his girlfriend. Was a great great time.

Catfish Haven pounded out raw and sweaty soul-punk tunes from their latest album Tell Me and even snuck in a killer new song. Definitely check them out if you get the chance!

MP3 | Catfish Haven – Crazy For Leaving Tell Me

Then (as if Catfish Haven wasn’t enough) Lucero played about two hours worth songs about drinkin’ and girls. It was awesome. After the show some drunk fool even tried to pick a fight with Ben from Lucero. How typical.

MP3 | Lucero – I Can Get Us Out Of Here Tonight Rebels, Rogues, & Sworn Brothers

Thanks to Sarah for snapping the following picture of Amy and Emily with Ben. Ain’t they cute?

Filed Under: Americana, Blog, Live

Pay to c'mon into the world of jah

Posted on 5 January 2007 | No Comments

Formed in 1979, Washington DC’s Bad Brains juxtaposed the fury of hardcore punk with the spiritual groove of reggae and although the original lineup of the band is still together today, it is (to me at least) not the same band that existed in the early eighties and is largely credited with establishing hardcore punk.

Their recently released DVD and accompanying CD Live At CBGB 1982 (however) does a great job capturing the band at their best, right in the middle of what most fans consider their most vital period of 1979-1986. The jarring transitions from warp-speed hardcore to their Rastafarian jah anthems are evident here as well. It is a testament to the power of the music Bad Brains created that (despite mediocre sound quality and the notable absence of the song “Pay To Cum”) their visceral energy still smarts.

1982 at CBGB, with Bad Brains, what could be better than that? Not much, really. This was recorded before the band became (at least IMHO) a watered-down version of what they began as. Now I fully realize that most bands (Bad Brains included) attempt to “move forward” artistically, but nothing that they have recorded since 1986 packs the same punch that their early material did.

Zach Baron at Pitchfork (of all places) almost perfectly sums it up by saying, “The audience for this kind of creaking document is clear: Those who wish they’d been there, those who were and want to look back, and those who just really, really love the Bad Brains.” I am one of those who wishes they were there to see Bad Brains during their glory days. Hell, I was four years old in 1982 and only discovered of the band much much later (via Thrasher magazine I think). Live At CBGB 1982 for me (and many others) is as close as we’ll get. The DVD and CD are out now on MVD.

MP3 | Bad Brains – Destroy Babylon Live At CBGB 1982
MP3 | Bad Brains – Jah The Conqueror Live At CBGB 1982

Filed Under: Live, Punk, Ska

Lucero and friends

Posted on 5 November 2006 | 3 Comments

What an exhausting/awesome weekend. On Friday night, my wife and I met up with my sister and her boyfriend for some Thai/sushi and then to the Metro to see the Lucero show. Two of my favorites, William Elliot Whitmore and Rocky Votolato, opened the show and (as usual) Lucero was amazing They played for nearly two hours, which was long enough for the crowd (and the band) to get a few drinks in ‘em. Quantity and quality ain’t such a bad deal. Here’s a few sounds and pictures.

MP3 | William Elliot Whitmore – The Chariot Song Of The Blackbird

Rocky Votolato

MP3 | Rocky Votolato – Portland Is Leaving Makers

Lucero

Ben from Lucero

Ben w/Rocky

MP3 | Lucero – I Can Get Us Out Of Here Tonight Rebels, Rogues, & Sworn Brothers

Ben (again)

Oh yeah, the following morning (after minimal sleep and severely hung-over) I went down to the University of Illinois with my Dad and my brothers to see some Big Ten football. Surprisingly, the Illini actually looked somewhat respectable against the #1 ranked OSU Buckeyes and only lost by 7. I’m tired just writing this.

Filed Under: Americana, Blog, Live

Review: My Morning Jacket - Okonokos (or) fifteen miles down the road

Posted on 5 October 2006 | 1 Comment

Raise your hand if you were one of the many people that had My Morning Jacket’s phenomenal album Z near the top of your ‘Best of 2005’ list. I was, and I’m happy to report that the band is back (sort of). They have a new double live CD called Okonokos that came out two weeks ago with the DVD scheduled to be released on Halloween. The CD is great. What it lacks in stage banter, it more than makes up for in stellar performances and showcases the band’s amazing live show.

The album is out now on ATO/RCA records and the band will be on tour all of November, plus Jim James is playing solo at Vegoose. Stop whatever you are doing and go buy tickets to see them live. Go buy the CD (or wait for the DVD). I saw them live for the first time at this year’s Lollapalooza and was blown away. You will not be disappointed.

MP3 | My Morning Jacket – Wordless Chorus (Live) Okonokos
MP3 | My Morning Jacket – Gideon (Live) Okonokos

Filed Under: Album Reviews, Just Plain Rock, Live

Ooh baby baby ooh baby baby

Posted on 6 September 2006 | No Comments

For more pictures of Mr. & Mrs. Pishko and the mayhem that was their reception/party, visit my Flickr page. For another Lawrence Arms video, just watch below.

Filed Under: Blog, Live, Punk

Congratulations Andy and Julia

Posted on 5 September 2006 | 5 Comments

Earlier this summer my old friend Andy and his (then) girlfriend Julia took a road trip and (much to everyone’s surprise) ended up getting married in Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico. Their quasi reception just happened to be last night at Chicago’s Liar’s Club on Fullerton. And in true Pishko fashion, the beer choices from the bar were Pabst Blue Ribbon or Bell’s Oberon. I think everyone had a great time.

Amy and I drank a little with my brother Kurt and his fiancee Kelly and got to see a lot of old friends and acquaintances including Andy, Kris, KP, Bill, Chad, Nolan, and probably a bunch more that I’m forgetting about. The nostalgia is slowly creeping back.

They also had Chicago’s finest wedding band to entertain the lot of us. Earlier this year the wedding band released their fifth proper full-length on Fat Wreck Chords, but last night they played cover songs from the likes of Salt N’ Pepa, Journey, REO Speedwagon, Tiffany, The Mushuganas, Scorpions, Jawbreaker, Cutting Crew, and more… Fuckin-a-right!

Since this is a music blog, watch a video snippet of their performance and also the original song.

MP3 | Jawbreaker – Bad Scene, Everyone’s Fault Dear You

Filed Under: Blog, Live, Punk

Show me a little bit of gratitude

Posted on 9 August 2006 | 4 Comments

So after leaving Lollapalooza on Sunday evening, I headed over to a great little venue called Schubas to meet my wife for an intimate little show featuring The City On Film, Attention, and Jonah Matranga.

Coincidental or not, both Kevin and Justin have both already written about Jonah’s latest project: a split 12” with Englishman Frank Turner, but I will also. Jonah delicately covers my favorite Billy Bragg song “A New England” and Babybird’s “All I Want,” while Frank Turner takes on The Lemonheads’ classic “The Outdoor Type” as well as “You Are My Sunshine.” This is well worth your hard earned money. It is out now on Welcome Home Records.

Anyhow, up first was The City On Film. It is the solo project of Bob Nanna (formerly of Braid and Hey Mercedes). Accompanied with nothing more than acoustic guitar (and guest vocals on two songs), Bob played a great (but short) set that was both poetic and humorous. He even played a few of the 92 songs he has written for Threadless shirts.

MP3 | City On Film – I Hate Stripes Threadless Songs

Next up was the on again/off again Minneapolis foursome Attention. I only say that because they feature ex members of both The Stereo and Gratitude as well as the current bass player Samiam. Their pop-punkish rock-n-roll was loud, melodic, and impressed me quite a bit. I’d never heard them before so I was very pleasantly surprised. I’m also amazed that they haven’t had way more success here in the US.

MP3 | Attention – Stay Tour EP 2006

The night’s headliner was one of my favorite contemporary songwriters Jonah Matranga. I’ve written about Jonah and his previous bands (Gratitude, New End Original, Onelinedrawing, Far) before, but he is such an amazing songwriter/vocalist/performer and his praises need to be sung. Amy and I talked briefly with him before and after the show and were amazed with what a great and generous person he was.

Now Jonah’s set was one of the most impassioned performances I’ve ever seen. It seems like he means every word he sings like his life depends on it. His music (especially now after seeing him live) just resonates with me. Between songs he mentioned that he is at a point in his life now where he is doing things the way he wants to do them and in ways that make him comfortable. At points I felt (and it sounds almost funny) that he was speaking directly to me. Jonah’s performance was easily one of the best I’ve ever seen, but wait… it gets even better.

MP3 | Jonah Matranga – A New England Jonah/Frank Turner Split 12”

About 3/4 of the way through, Jonah invited the other three members of Gratitude (JT and David from Attention and a guy named Bob) to join him on stage. What? Now even though they are officially kaput, these guys brought the house down. Amy and I love the Gratitude album and were ecstatic to be able to hear them play a few (5) songs.

MP3 | Gratitude – Sadie (Acoustic) Drive Away CDS

We couldn’t have been happier. It was a more than perfect way to end a great music-filled weekend.

Filed Under: Emo, Folk, Just Plain Rock, Live

Lollapalooza day three recap

Posted on 9 August 2006 | 1 Comment

I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of my sister’s completely untrained 3 year old German shepherd barking like a dog possessed. That’s not relevant to my Lollapalooza coverage, but thought I’d mention it anyway.

So after a smoothie and a brief ride back to the festival grounds, I went to the AMD stage to go see Austin’s What Made Milwaukee Famous. The early crowd bounced around to all their indie pop goodness. I was impressed. After most of their set, I raced over to the BMI stage for Chicago’s own Catfish Haven and met up with Ryan from Muzzle Of Bees (check out his pictures of all these bands since I was sans kamera).

After some minor microphone issues, Catfish Haven proceeded to rock the shit out of everyone that stopped to watch (me included). They played my favorites off their Please Come Back EP and also new songs from their forthcoming full-length (due Sept. 12). Instead of just the three-piece I expected, they were joined on stage by two backup singers, saxophone, trumpet, keys, and a guy playing electric guitar. Woah! I can’t say enough about how great Catfish Haven was. They are playing a record release show on September 16th in Chicago so check their website for details.

From there, we walked to see The Hold Steady. I’d never seen the band before and had only ever heard a few tunes. Their straight up rock-n-roll was powerful, humorous, and just plain awesome. Their latest album Separation Sunday (see Muzzle Of Bees) is next on my “must have” list of albums.

From The Hold Steady we (with Frank from Chromewaves also with us) went off to see Hot Chip. I really like both their albums, but I was surprised at how much soul they brought to their electro-pop tunes in a live setting. I was also a little surprised at just how much bass they pumped out and thumped out. If you wanted to dance, this was the band to see.

Then it was off to see Andrew Bird, who performed with just one additional drummer/musician. It was astounding to watch him play his violin and guitar while also whistling, singing, and working his loops. I truly have no idea how he pulled it off live. He was great, but I think that less than 20% of the people watching had any idea who he was. That was their loss.

The Shins played next and were a bit more up tempo and “rock” than on their albums. They were good, but I just expected a little bit more. I then raced the 8 blocks back to the other end of Grant Park to get some water and catch some of Matisyahu, who’s Jewish reggae/hip-hop I was pleasantly surprised with. I am still not sure if he is for real. It seems kinda gimmicky.

At the recommendation of my wife, I then went to find the stage that Reverend Horton Heat was playing on. It was a rockabilly party. Despite not being a huge fan of that genre, the Rev certainly puts on a helluva show. Quite a lot of fun.

Next on the seemingly endless agenda was another old favorite of mine, Poi Dog Pondering. I’ve been a Poi Dog fan since I was 15 or so but haven’t seen them live for probably 10 years or so. They aren’t the same band that they were back then and despite putting on a good show, lacked (IMHO) a lot of the energy I remembered them having.

So I then waded through the sea of people who were ready to watch Wilco play to the massive hometown crowd that had gathered. As usual, Wilco did not disappoint. They played the old favorites and even some new songs (click here for more setlist details). One of the new songs they played was “Impossible Germany” (listen below courtesy of Chromewaves).

MP3 | Wilco – Impossible Germany (Live) Live At Summerfest 2006

Finally there was Broken Social Scene. They came with the entire 15-member group and (like everyone has said) were totally fantastic. I (however) left a little early to meet my wife at Schubas to see three more bands that weren’t on the Lollapalooza bill. It was a great weekend during which I saw many great bands for the first time and met many great people for the first time. If next year’s lineup is anything like this one, you can bet I’ll see you there.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

Lollapalooza day two recap

Posted on 8 August 2006 | 3 Comments

So after taking the train back to Grant Park on Saturday morning, I headed straight over to catch Be Your Own Pet, and (as I expected) they were a glorious mess. Sounding just like snotty teenage chaos does, they looked like a band coming apart at the seams.

Be Your Own Pet

From there I dashed over to see Rainer Maria play a bunch of excellent tunes from their new album Catastrophe Keeps Us Together. Despite relocating to Brooklyn from Madison, WI, they are one of the last remaining bastions of true Midwestern emo. Caithlin’s vocals were gorgeous.

Rainer Maria

I then decided to catch a little bit of Austin’s St. James and their breezy country pop songs complete with soaring pedal steel.

St. James

Then back to the AMD stage to be blown away by Cold War Kids. I’d listened to their EP’s and wasn’t sold but had also heard their live show was great. It certainly was. They brought so much energy to the stage and have given me a reason to spin them some more.

Cold War Kids

It would have been hard for anyone to top Cold War Kids, but The Go! Team managed to do just that. Watching these multi-instrumentalists prance around the stage was like watching a mad dash for the last remaining chair once the music has stopped. Their performance exhausted me so I can’t even imagine how they felt. Definitely a highlight of weekend!

The Go! Team

And (again) back to the AMD stage for Oh No! Oh My! and more great indie pop.

Oh No! Oh My!

Then I rushed over to see Built To Spill, but missed the start of their set so I was a 1/4 mile from the stage.

Built To Spill

As with any large festival, they are perfect for people with ADHD. For a little while (at least) I seemed to be more doing more running around than watching bands. Just for my brother I caught a few songs from Coheed and Cambria and have to say he wasn’t missing much. The Aussies in Wolfmother were up next and I watched them just long enough to see 3 people get pulled out from the front and taken for medical attention. It was crazy. Then I caught a little Lyrics Born and also Calexico as I headed over to see Sonic Youth. They were (as I had expected them to be) great.

Sonic Youth

Then 8 blocks back to the other end of the festival to have a few beers with Ryan and watch Gnarls Barkley sound exactly like their album. Lip synch anyone?

Then came the reformed Smoking Popes. They played a bunch of old favorites and even two great new tunes that Josh said would be on the “next Smoking Popes album.” Singing along to “Writing A Letter” and “Pretty Pathetic” brought back the memories.

Smoking Popes

Then my camera died.

So when I was done being rocked by the Popes, I booked it back to the other end of the stage for The Flaming Lips. All I can say is holy shit. Aliens, Santa Clauses, balloons, confetti, and streamers were just eye candy to go along with their ear candy. Totally phenomenal. Wayne & company were in top form and were urging the crowd to sing loud enough to stop traffic on Lake Shore Drive as they closed their set with “She Don’t Use Jelly.”

The New Pornographers, Kanye West, blah, blah, blah… I was (at this point) totally out of energy and headed off onto the brown line and over to my sister’s place for pizza and beer.

What a great freakin’ day.

Filed Under: Blog, Live

A much needed rest for the feet

Posted on 7 August 2006 | No Comments

It’s finally over, and what a weekend it was! Lollapalooza 2006 was the biggest festival I’ve ever been near, and I have to give a big thumbs up to the organizers for putting on one hell of a well-organized event with tons of fantastic music to boot! Even after missing most of the early performers on Friday afternoon, I managed to still catch all of part (at least 4 songs) of 32 different bands/artists.

Needless to say, I’m beat. Saturday and Sunday were both great (more soon) and it was great to meet the likes of