ChiIL Mama's CIMMcity & Awards Thursday and Friday Photos #CIMMfest

We've been having a blast at CIMMfest with loads more to come for Saturday and Sunday.  Click here for all our top picks (in red) and the full schedule and venue listings/addresses.



Nice of CIMMcity to do up the walls to match our blog headers, eh?!



We made it to CIMMcity twice so far--to pick up press credentials and network and to attend the Artists' Reception for Women in Film. It was catered by one of our neighborhood favorites, Friendship Chinese! 

Check out our photo recap below including the coolest film fest awards "trophies" ever. 





Full slide show is here. Favorites are embedded below.

CIMMcity

1439 N. Milwaukee Ave. 

April 28 - May 4, 12pm - 10pm

Stop by and pick up your passes and VIP badges at CIMMcity, the hub of the hive!  Mix and mingle with other special guests, drop in for impromptu performances, peruse our pop art up gallery featuring unique awards over the years from artist David Facchini. Live music, music videos, performance art installations, Bloody Mary's in the morning and cocktail parties at night - CIMMcity!

Day 1-Instagram Fun

 

Thanks to fest promoters for going above and beyond. Here's my 10 year old daughter, Sagezilla, modeling her rockin' CIMMfest2014 tee shirt! They also gave us buttons (from Busy Beaver Button Co--another of our neighborhood favs) and sweet swag bags with goodies & coupons from loads of luscious locals (Threadless, Friendship Chinese, IV Lab, Arabesque Chicago, Restaurant Sarajevo) and snacks from Milk & Honey (Rick Bayless's Mexican Mix!), Popchips & Kind bars.

I even got to sample Crafthouse premixed cocktails, served by the Co-Owner of Subterranean before I headed over there to shoot the opening night show. I only had time to check out the grapefruit one, but it was excellent. I'm dying to try the other 2. Vita Coco was in the house with loads of flavors of coconut water including a new lemonade. CIMMcity also had soft drinks for the underagers & others not partaking in the booze bonanza.  

**Be sure to click here to check out our LIVE show shots/photo recap from Thursday's opening night concert at Sub T.**

Day 2-Women in Film Reception/Awards Pixs

CIMMfest Artist Reception  @CIMMcity  1439 N. Milwaukee Ave.  5pm - 7pm This year, CIMMfest partnered with Women Working in Mixed Media, Boxx Magazine, and Women in Film Chicago to celebrate the fact that we have more female filmmakers at the fest than ever before in our history. Join us to celebrate film, music, progress and partnership with food by Friendship Chinese, CIMMfest Signature Cocktails, live performances, and more.

Day 2-Coming soon... our original live show shots/video footage from Black Bear Combo at Moe's Friday night.

Check back with ChiIL Mama & ChiIL Live Shows like we vote in Chi, IL... early and often for news, reviews, giveaways, original content & lots of photo & video filled features.

Balkan Night @Moe's Tavern 2937 N. Milwaukee Ave.  10pm - 2am Follow the screening of Brasslands with a Balkan night at Moe's Tavern. Black Bear Combo, Balkan food, and raffle of Parni Valjak

PHOTO RECAP: CIMMfest 2014 Thursday Subterranean Shows #CIMMfest

ChiIL Live Shows was there... were you?! 

THURSDAY Photo Recap: Tall Walker + Mighty Fox + North By North Live at Subterranean.  This show kicks off the Chicago International Movies and Music Festival (CIMMFest) 

Check out our full set of LIVE Show Shots from 5/1/14 in the Slide Show Here:
(Favorites are embedded below. **(Click here for ChiIL Live Shows' SmugMug site, to see them broken down by band. Check out thousands of our original photos from these & lots more sweet shows & music fests.)**

http://chiilliveshows.smugmug.com/gallery/showoff.mg?AlbumID=38924601&AlbumKey=nLhdFC&ImageID=3217841745&ImageKey=zm3MPHn

Tall Walker:

Listen on iTunes: https://itun.es/i66z6vQ.  Like what you hear?  Show 'em some vote love. 

Tall Walker is a top 10 finalist for the Chicago RedEye's Rock N' Vote competition! Please VOTE and SHARE with all your friends so they can play Lincoln Hall AND Taste of Chicago! Thanks for everyones support! 

VOTE HERE: http://goo.gl/yvWmnN

200 bands entered, 10 made the cut. Meet the finalists for our 11th annual Rock 'n' Vote contest and vote for your picks! http://bit.ly/1pOo1cQ

The top 4 will headline a show at Lincoln Hall on May 22. Tickets, here: http://bit.ly/RNVtickets 

Mighty Fox: 

These guys were a sweet surprise, with great energy, enthusiasm, moves, and the musical talent to back it all up.  The comparisons to early U2 are apt. Check out these local boys. They're particularly fun live, with beautiful ballads and a pogoing punk edge. 

Mighty Fox isn’t just a musical project but rather a journey. As an up-and-coming group based in Chicago that has already gotten industry professionals stirring, it’s clear that this project is more than just a “band” but rather a way of life for the musicians involved. Each song has the listener noticing the many different artists that influence Mighty Fox and how they’ve effected the lives of the members. With bands like Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, U2, Mumford & Sons, and Go Radio being considered substantial influences, Mighty Fox has a very well rounded sound that anyone and everyone can relate to and enjoy. Don’t let the names fool you though. Mighty Fox has definitely found a sound of their own which translates incredibly to their live show.

North By North: 

This is the trio we came to see. We dug the advanced press copy of their new release and what we've heard on line. So, we've been trying to catch these Chicago locals live for months. They just came off a mini tour, playing Nashville, and are heading for NYC. Word is, there's a decent label scoping them out! Catch 'em while you can, so you can say you saw them first.  Ones to watch.

Hey New York peeps:  They're heading your way this week and will be headlining The Rock Shop on Wednesday, May 7th. Also performing will be Old table,Huge Pupils, and The Judy Blooms. 

The Fox & The Hounds:

It was a fox filled evening, with 2 foxcentric bands on the bill, though we preferred the mighty.  Congrats to The Fox & The Hounds, Battle of the Bands winners. We first caught them last Friday at Moe's for the championship round. They finished in a dead heat with our friends, When Flying Feels Like Falling (who are more to our taste), so ultimately it came down to who brought the biggest audience to the finals. 

The lead singer has a decent voice, but the rest of the band is fairly unremarkable, and they seem to be relying more on skimpy costumes than song writing of any substance. Still, they're young, so it's soon to say. They may evolve into something buzzworthy. We did dig the bare feet!