CITY guide
chicago
illinois
Chicago isn’t just wind, pizza, and John Hughes movies. The scrappy city also has
one of the coolest music histories from blues and the hot jazz scene, to the birth
of house music in the early ‘80s. With alt rock bands like Smashing Pumpkins,
Wilco, Liz Phair, and Urge Overkill putting Chicago on the map in the ‘90s, the
city has attracted and produced some of the country’s best indie artists. It's also
home to internationally renowned festivals, such as Lollapalooza and Pitchfork.
Dusek’s / Clayton HaucK
Mike Kinsella
(Owls, Owen, American Football)
Chances are you really like one of his
bands and strongly dislike the others. Or
it’s likely you love/hate everything he’s
ever done. Either way, this man embodies
art in its most pure form. Mike, as well as
his brothers Tim and Nate, has been at the
nucleus of the Chicago indie art pop scene
for over 20 years and will continue to
release polarizing records for another 20.
Disappears
This unsung “superband” blankets each of
its records in heavy shadows of auditory
macabre hypnosis in the most masterful
way. To some they may come off bloodless
and cold, but that’s just because they are
eternal and they don’t have time to pander
to those of us that will expire. This is the
real immortal deal.
The Life and Times
If there is such a thing as paying dues
in rock music, TLAT has no outstanding
debts. In fact, they could probably do
some collecting. Since their inception
circa 2002, these Midwest bo ys have
been watermarking their sound with a
massively lush, overblown subtlety. Their
latest release, Lost Bees reflects the
realness in how aggressively beautiful
melodic rawness can be.
Twin Peaks
These druggy dream garage poppers
are crushing the post-teen scene on
that charming youth edginess tip with
tunes from their creamy delicious LP
Wild Onion.
Bailiff
The dark-blues pop of windy city
workhorses Bailiff has been haunting
Chicago’s finest venues and festivals
for the better half of a decade. With
ethereal tone choice, intelligent design,
and supreme musicianship, they own
their craft. They released their latest LP
Remise in early 2014.
Lili K
The silky satin youth in 23-year-old jazz/
R&B songstress Lili K’s voice is garnishing
a good deal of well deserved praise from
her contemporaries. She is slated to
release her debut self-produced album
Ruby this April.
Bloody Mary at Lula / Shelby Alison
Dusek’s in Thalia Hall / Clayton Hauck
Meat Wave
Dirty, filthy, stinkin’ lo-fi
energy. Oh, and pop hooks,
lot’s of yummy punkish-pop
hooks. A nice throwback to
the raw side of tasty treats
when these kids were…
well, pre-kids. The protein
wave of these grungy uptempo crushers will get dat
azz shakin’.
Recommended hotel
Bailiff: The W on Lakeshore.
Lili K: The Dana Hotel. A friend of mine
stayed there while he was on tour, and
a group of us hung out in his room after
their show. It’s so fancy shmancy, and I
love it.
Springtime Carnivore: The Drake
The Life and Times: Longman and Eagle
[industrial and steampunky tavern
specialising in whiskey]
The W: 644 North Lake Shore Drive; The Dana
Hotel: 660 North State Street; The Drake: 140 East
Walton Place; Longman and Eagle: 2657 North
Kedzie Avenue
Ryley Walker
Walker gives up wellcrafted floaty acoustic
stories of a 24-year-old
with a touch of classic
psych-folk songwriting to
add to the already deep
pool of Chicago Americana.
Springtime Carnivore
Washy pop chanteuse Greta
Salpeter offers catchy
feels of pop delight flowing
about like a beached-out
Aimee Mann. Springtime
Carnivore offers the sun
on even the most grey of
Chicago winter days.
Bailiff / Melissa Lin Ellis; Disappears / Zoran Orlic; Lili K / Dakota Harper; Mike Kinsella (Owls, Owen, American Football) / Matthew Kellen; Meat Wave/
Katie Hovland; Ryley Walker / Dusdin Condren; Springtime Carnivore / Eddie O’Keefe; The Life and Times / courtesy of artist; Twin Peaks / Pooneh Ghana
Longman and Eagle / Clayton Hauck