CHI, IL LIVE THEATRE: Chicago Improv Festival Finds The Funny

Chi-Town's 15th annual Improv Festival is in full swing with a multicultural medley of improvisors from around the world.   Check out an array of great acts through this Sunday.   I came from an improv background and founded and directed a troup at Miami University (No, directing improv is not an oxymoron, contrary to popular quips!).   So, I know how challenging, fresh and fun the genre can be.  Check in soon for our review of the highly recommended, hilarious Improv Play at DCA Storefront Theatre through May 20th. 

We also have an exclusive video interview we'll be running soon, from the CIMMfest opening of High Road.   ChiIL Live Shows interviewed the
director, Matt Walsh, who was a founding member of Upright Citizens
Brigade.   We also spoke with actors and caught the Q & A.   So
check in with us like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often for great
entertainment news!

High Road:  Director, Chicago native Matt Walsh (The Hangover, Upright
Citizens Brigade, HBO’s upcoming Veep), joined by actors Lizzy Caplan
(Mean Girls, Bachelorette), Joe Lo Truglio (Wanderlust, Superbad), Joe
Nunez (Bridesmaids, Neighborhood Watch), James Pumphrey (Players) and
Zach Woods (NBC’s The Office, Damsels in Distress)…

This year’s CIF is themed 

“Celebrating the Art of Play”

We've got friends incoming from that state that's hi in the middle and round on both ends.   Don't let their name fool ya.   ChiIL Live Shows will be documenting See You Thursday's daring dramatics SATURDAY night at The Playground.

We're jazzed that more than 75 improv
groups from 16 U.S. cities and countries as far away as Russia and
Norway are descending on Chicago from April 23-29 for the 15th annual
Chicago Improv Festival. But we're also setting our sites a little closer to home.  See You Thursday will be the only Ohio troupe represented on the 2012 CIF performance roster, a program that includes Eastbound & Down's Ike Barinholtz and Comedy Central’s Key & Peele. See You Thursday will perform 8:30PM Saturday, April 28 at Chicago’s Playground Theater, 3209 North Halsted Street.  2012 Show Dates: through April 29 , Tickets: $10-$20

 

We're particularly jazzed for Thursday night at Annoyance Theatre

**@ Annoyance Theater, 4830 N. Broadway, 10:30PM, $15/$10
1) Messing with a Friend (Chicago) [special guest Lance Baker]
Tickets are available at Annoyance (773.561.4665) or ONLINE

@ The Playground Theater, 3209 N. Halsted St.
7pm, $15/$10
1) Harri Olli Improvised Theatre (Zurich)
2) WiseSnatch (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE
9pm, $15/$10

1) pH Productions (Chicago)
2) Mullaney Chain (Chicago/New York)
 Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE

Friday, April 27
 

ImproTOP - Mexico City
@ Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 1, 2936 N. Southport Ave.
7:30pm, $20/$15
1) Curtains (New York)
2) BASSPROV (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE
 
9pm, $20/$15
1) Classy D (Chicago)
2) Matt Naas & The Sing-a-long Singers (Detroit)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

10:30pm, $20/$15
1) Claymore (Chicago)
2) Last Action Movie (Minneapolis)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

@ Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 2, 2936 N. Southport Ave.
7pm, $20/$15
1) SAM (Chicago)
2) The Mighty They (Detroit)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

8:30pm, $20/$15
1) Improv Stands Up! (Chicago) [w. guest comic Dan Telfer]
2) The Amie and Kristen Show (Philadelphia)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE
10pm, $20/$15
1) Out of Character (Chicago)
2)North Coast (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

@ Athenaeum Theater, Studio 3, 2936 N. Southport Ave.
7:30pm, $20/$15
1) Almost ATLANTA (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

9pm, $20/$15
1) Awkward (Kansas City)
2) New England (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

10:30pm, $20/$15 
Jorak and Jorak Do Movie (Austin)
Pimprov (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

@ Chemically Imbalanced, 1420 W. Irving Park Rd., 10:30pm, $15/$10
1) Dead Parrots Society (Bellingham)
2) Droppin’ $cience (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the CIT (773.865.7731) or ONLINE

@ Laugh Out Loud Theater, 601 North Martingale Road, Schaumburg
7:30pm, $19/$12
1) Border Patrol (Bellingham & Edmonton)
2) Laugh Out Loud (Schaumburg)
Tickets can be bought at LOL (847.240.0386) or ONLINE

9:30pm, $19/$12
1) Border Patrol (Bellingham & Edmonton)
2) Laugh Out Loud (Schaumburg)
Tickets can be bought at LOL (847.230.0386) or ONLINE

@ The Playground Theater, 3209 N. Halsted St.
7pm, $20/$15
1) King Friday (Philadelphia)
2) Weekend of Regret (New York)

Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE
8:30pm, $20/$15

1) The Bully Union: Local 128 (Baltimore)
2) Magnet Theater Touring Co. (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE

10pm, $20/$15

1) Danger Snack (Los Angeles)
2)My Grandma's a Fat Whore in Jersey (Chicago & Los Angeles)


Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE

@ The Second City Skybox, 1618 N. Wells, 4th Floor

7pm, $20/$15

1) Process (Chicago)

2)Twinprov (Oklahoma City)

Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

8:30pm, $20/$15
1) We're From Here (Toronto)
2)TBA (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

10pm, $20/$15
1) 2-Man No-Show (Toronto)
2) ImproTOP (Mexico City)
Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

---

Saturday, April 28


 

Hello Laser - New York

@ Annoyance Theater, 4830 N. Broadway, 11:59pm, $10/$5
1) Mullaney Chain (Chicago & New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Annoyance (773.561.4665) or ONLINE

@ Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 1, 2936 N. Southport Ave.

7:30pm, $20/$15
1) B.F.F. (New York)
2) BASSPROV (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

9pm, $20/$15
1) Border Patrol (Bellingham & Edmonton)
2) JR Varsity (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE


10:30pm, $20/$15
1) Hello Laser (New York)
2) Pimprov (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE


@ Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 2, 2936 N. Southport Ave.

7pm, $20/$15
1) Improv Nerd (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

8:30pm, $20/$15
1) Rapid Fire Theatre (Edmonton)
2) The Minneapples (Minneapolis)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

10pm, $20/$15
1) Local Honey (Dallas)
2) Stage Fright: A Tribute to Hitchcock (Philadelphia)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE


@ Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 3, 2936 N. Southport Ave.


7:30pm, $20/$15
1) Maat Naas & The Sing-a-long Singers (Detroit)
2) Bootsy Collins (Los Angeles)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

9pm, $20/$15
1) Harri Olli Improvised Theatre (Zurich)
2) The Shelter (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

10:30pm, $20/$15
1) Brick (New York)
2) Skinny Jeans (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the Athenaeum (773.935.6860) or ONLINE

@ Chemically Imbalanced 1420 W. Irving Park Rd., 10:30pm, $10/$5
1) Indie Cage Match UCB (New York)

Tickets can be bought at CIT (773.865.7731) or ONLINE
@ Laugh Out Loud Theater, 601 North Martingale Road, Schaumburg

7:30pm, $19/$12
1) 2-Man No-Show (Toronto)
2) Laugh Out Loud (Schaumburg)

Tickets can be bought at LOL (847.240.0386) or ONLINE

9:30pm, $19/$12
1) 2-Man No-Show (Toronto)
2) Laugh Out Loud (Schaumburg)
Tickets can be bought at LOL (847.240.0386) or ONLINE
@ The Playground Theater, 3209 N. Halsted St.

7pm, $20/$15
1) DMNK (Chicago)
2) The Garys (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE

**8:30pm, $20/$15
1) See You Thursday (Columbus)
2) Kiss*Punch*Poem (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE

 

10pm, $20/$15
1) Ted Dangerous (St. Louis)
2) Chet Watkins (New York)
Tickets can be bought at the Playground (773.871.3793) or ONLINE
@ The Second City DeMaat, 1618 N. Wells, 3rd Floor


7pm, $20/$15
1) Formal Apology (Chicago)
2) The Era (Chicago)

Tickets can be bought at the SC DeMaat (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

9pm, $20/$15
1) Just Ben (New York)
2) The Playboys (Chicago)

Tickets can be bought at the SC DeMaat (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

10:30pm, $20/$15
1) Simply Coney (Detroit)
2) Twinprov (Oklahoma City)
Tickets can be bought at the SC DeMaat (312.337.3992) or ONLINE
@ The Second City Skybox, 1618 N. Wells, 4th Floor

7pm, $20/$15
1) Improv Boston (Boston)
2) Sheila’s Sister (Chicago)
Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

8:30pm, $20/$15
1) Mayor Karen (Philadelphia)
2) The Improvised Shakespeare Company (Chicago)

Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

10pm, $20/$15
1) STACKED: All Girl Musical Improv (Chicago)
2) ImproTOP (Mexico City)
Tickets can be bought at the SC Skybox (312.337.3992) or ONLINE

About CIF: The Chicago Improv Festival,
founded in 1998 promotes and teaches improv as a true form of art. Over
the last 15 years, the festival has featured some of the biggest names
in comedy today: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Seth Meyers (SNL), Horatio Sanz,
Neil Flynn (The Middle) and more. CIF is now seen as the largest and
most prestigious improv festival in the world and has already presented more
than 850 acts from 15 nations and 45 cities; had improv workshops
taught by more than 50 instructors; and has given various awards to 45
improv artists.

Click here for all the 2012 acts.
Click here for tickets and performance schedule.
Click here for Chicago Improv Fest's main site, full schedule, tickets and more.
Follow CIF on Facebook here.

Sandman The Rapping Cowboy at Hideout Tonight #Album Review

Only merch table I've ever seen selling silk screened pillow cases!!   Check out an even odder assortment of one of a kind merch (beaver skull & birds nest anyone?) and more standard fare here.

We gave you a "save the date" heads up, last month, and today's the day.   The Sandman (AKA:   Chris Sand or The Rappin' Cowboy) will be playing tonight at Hideout!   He opens for local fav, Tony Rogers.   We'll be there to shoot the show and are setting up interviews as well.

Sandman's father to a recent baby girl, Stevie!

We got permission to repost this gorgeous shot of Sandman's wife, Hana,
and new daughter, Stevie....Yes, there's life after birth, and tattooed
parents rock!!

Check out our Pinterest Board all about How Creatives Parent and How Parents
Create, for our original video interviews with parents in bands,
theatre and other creative fields, on how they strike a balance and how
becoming parents influences their creative work and vice versa....http://pinterest.com/chiilmama/







Tony Rogers
Sandman

Thu 4/26
9:00 pm

21+

$8-$10

Come on out for some hilarious folk-rap-country that defies description.    Chris Sand's documentary screened at Facets last year and he gave a mini concert in conjunction with the film.   Here's our film review and photo filled feature about Roll Out Cowboy in particular here  And more prior coverage.

We thoroughly enjoy his 2008 CD, Rough Notes from Otter Cove.   Sandman is pretty prolific and has a number of CDs out, but he said this is a good one to start with and kicked us a copy.  It has some kid appropriate tunes and more mature, irreverent material as well.   Purchase your own copy here or at Hideout tonight.

Rustic and playful. Highly listenable lo-fi production by Froseph Kujawa. Includes a limited edition 24-page lyrics booklet, handset and pressed on a 130-year-old print machine.

Tracklist


1. Crazy Animals

2. The Hermit

3. PO Box 7

4. Addie Paul

5. Artesian Lover

6. I Love Everyone

7. Natty Joy

8. Shelly The Sea Turtle

9. Wedding Song Man

10. Unabomber

11. End Of America

My kids adored Shelly The Sea Turtle and Crazy Animals, but at ages 8 & 11, they dug the silly, dark ones like Unabomber just as much.   There's nothing too over the top.  Addie Paul and my favorite, Natty Joy, are catchy and likely to get stuck in your head, when your brain goes into screensaver mode and you're not actively thinking of something else.   


Check out the artists' sites here, for song samples, merch and more.   

Chris Sand

Tony Rogers



Check out The Hideout's main site here for tickets and further information.

Witchburn LIVE Show Shots-Opening for Prong at Cobra Lounge

ChiIL Live Shows original live shots-Witchburn at Cobra Lounge opening for Prong, Chicago 4-20-12


Check 'em out!   Great for your METAL HEALTH...





Band Bio from their main site:

Heavy, down tuned, southern fried, whiskey soaked sabbra cadabra. Their live show pulsates with seething and sultry, sweaty energy. Bringing as much groove as brutal thunder, the music is like a hammer straight to your soul, crashing down through the sky... only you welcome its impact the moment they tear into their first song. 

Spilling their guts on every stage they play, they've opened for Slipknot, Helmet, Crowbar, Saint Vitus, Blue Cheer, Mudvayne, Fu Manchu, 3 Inches of Blood, Trouble, Zeke, Pentagram and Valient Thorr, to name a few. 


 


 

Featuring the soaring, soulful vocal power and prowess of Jamie Nova and the monster riff-crafting of Mischa Kianne on guitar and occasionally violin, 

 
 
along with the unmatched low-end heaviness of Jacy Peckham on bass coupled with the bone-crushing, rock solid anchor provided by Dana Sims on drums, 



Witchburn is the sound of rebellion in the voice of a hate-child conceived during a mythical orgy between Black Sabbath, Janis Joplin, Ronnie James Dio and Heart.




 
Witchburn delivers passionate, moody southern metal, made even more potent by the band's fierce energy and considerable musical chops. The smoky grooves are deep and heavy, tapping into a classic rock vein with gritty guitar lines, seamlessly blending vintage rock influence with that of modern metal. Their ready-for-battle anthems, apocalyptic overtones and dirty, doom-laden riffs keep your ears glued while confirming that these are dedicated musicians with genuine love for all that is heavy. 

 

Singer Jamie Nova is also well known for her former role as lead vocalist in the all female AC/DC tribute band Hell's Belles, in which she portrayed Bon Scott and Brian Johnson with her surprisingly expressive vocal range. 
 













Seeing what else this band is capable of becomes even more attractive when the black-dreadlocked guitarist trades her Les Paul for a violin on a song or two. 



Their mighty riffing, powerful vocals and kick ass, shout-along choruses completely galvanize even the most skeptical listeners, sending them promptly into blissful abandon as they surrender to pumping their fists in the air.

In the summer of 2010, the band independently released their first full-length album, This Is How We Slay Our Demons... which features 13 original tracks and was produced by Seattle's legendary Jack Endino (Nirvana, High on Fire, Zeke, Valient Thorr, 3 Inches of Blood to name but a few). They followed the release with aggressive touring throughout the western half of the US that summer, the following winter, and into the spring. 







They were also featured in the line up of Northwest summer festival concerts PDX Rockfest and the KISW Pain in the Grass 2011 alongside Korn, Queensryche, Chevelle, Hinder, Five Finger Death Punch, All That Remains and more, as well as Bumbershoot 2011 in Seattle with Pentagram, Valient Thorr, Red Fang and more. The band completed a European tour of in the fall of 2011 and are about to head to Hawaii for just a couple of dates before they hit the road to tour the states again in both March and April.





Witchburn has also garnered strong support from radio, including KISW in their native Seattle. The opening track on their debut offering, "Bleed the Stone", was featured in the KISW 9 O’clock Cockfight with Jolene, where it went on to win the maximum 7 times in a row before the song was placed in the Cockfight's "Hall of Fame". The station has also featured Witchburn as BJ Shea's Loud and Local Band of the Week on two separate occasions. 

 

Plans to record the follow up to their debut album are quickly coming together for the band to enter the studio with Jack Endino once again. Both the band and Endino are excited to work together again and the record’s completion is expected sometime in late spring or early summer, 2012. 


 
Pouring their whole hearts into their own bluesy brand of sultry Sabbath sludge, Witchburn commands you to throw your metal horns up high!

  
www.witchburnrocks.com
www.facebook.com/witchburn
www.reverbnation.com/witchburn
www.myspace.com/witchburn
Email: witchburn@hotmail.com  

 

En Masse Live Show Shots-Opening for Prong at Cobra Lounge

ChiIL Live Shows original show shots


En Masse opened for Prong at Cobra Lounge, 4-20-12. 

Here's their deal, according to their FB Page:

Hometown: Batavia, IL

Genres: Metal / Metal / Metal

Label: N/A

Members: Don/Vocals, Parrot/Drums, Tony/Bass, Mike/Gutiar

A metal band. From the Chicago land area. They formed in 2010 to create a mixture of traditional Thrash/Death Metal with old school Hardcore and made a new mix. If you are a fan of Obituary, Cannibal Corpse, DRI, Slayer, Deicide, Pantera, Pestilence, Lamb of God, Possessed and Death, then you will like the fast hard hitting beats, riffs and vocals that they produce. They are an In Your Face band that will be sure to melt your face in the pit.

Prong Video Interview With ChiIL Live Shows & Live Show Shots From Cobra Lounge, Chicago #Album Review

ChiIL Live Shows caught up with front man, Tommy Victor and drummer, Alexei Rodriguez, before their 4/20 set at Cobra Lounge, Chicago, for an exclusive video interview.   We talked about everything from their new album, to that crazy chaos that's parenting and touring as a musician.   Tommy and Alexei both have daughters on either end of the age spectrum-about to graduate from high school and 20 months old.   They had some insights for our continuing series on How Creatives Parent and How Parents  Create.   Check it out here.

 

Prong is back with a vengeance.  Their 8th studio album, Carved Into Stone is just released and their recent 4/20 Chi-Town show at Cobra Lounge sold out!  Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we've been giving Carved Into Stone a listen repeatedly, and can't get enough.   Hopefully Tommy's serious when he says they're writing new material and want to put out back to back albums, and ride the momentum of this sonic boom, Carved in Stone, instead of slipping back into oblivion, and releasing another album in 5 years.    This album, the first all new material in 5 years, indeed, is an amalgam of the best of Prong's past and fresh new fury.   

These 11 tracks of rage will bring joy to metal fans world wide.  There's not a weak link in the bunch, but Revenge_Served Cold will warm hearts.   This album comes out swinging with Eternal Heat, and doesn't ease up.   Ammunition, State of Rebellion, and List of Grievances (likely our favorite) provide plenty of rebellion ragers.   We also really dig Keep on Living in Pain and Eternal Heat.  Even the slower title track, Path of Least Resistance and Reinvestigate which close out the album, are strong and full of sweet riffs.  Carved into Stone is a metal must have. 
  

On 4/20, we caught a little of En Masse and Witchburn's whole set and were super impressed with Witchburn in particular.   We'll have live show shots from both bands up in the very near future.  We'd seen some past Witchburn clips online that were interesting enough, but they just don't do their live show justice.   Check 'em out when you can!

During Prong, the pit was so frenetic and outta control they had to send in the bouncers and toss a few bodies out of the club.   I got smashed into the side of the stage a half dozen times and eventually had to duck behind the merch table fast.  I spent a few days limping, but my camera gear all survived.   Despite the near brawl, it was a welcome reunion and the band sounded great!   They've still got that legendary power to stir things up. 

*Tony Campos is presently touring with Soulfly.   Phil Zeller (Toxic Holocaust) is on bass

Tommy Victor began as a sound guy for CBGBs, and formed the first incarnation of the band with bassist Mike Kirkland who was CBGB’s doorman.   In the past 20+ years, Prong has been through many incarnations and weathered the death of their bass player, ex-Killing Joke bassist Paul Raven, at age 46.   They've been on tour with many of the big boys like
Sepultura, Pantera, Soulfly and Fear Factory, among others.   Tommy took a hiatus from Prong around 2000 and played with Danzig and Ministry.   He'll be back out again in May with Danzig Legacy.   Check Prong's site for dates/cities.

They were signed by Epic in 89 and unceremoniously dropped in 96 after the album Rude Awakening turned eerily prophetic, and proved a rude awakening for the band, indeed, when it didn't sell as well as anticipated.   In our interview, Tommy conceded that for a while after that he wanted nothing to do with Prong, but eventually ran out of money and decided to give it another go.   We hate to sound all schadenfreude (happy about the misfortunes of others), but the metal world was not finished with Prong, and we welcome you back with bursting ear drums and head banging mosh pits.    Your cash flow problems = our gain.   And failure, struggle and loss make for great material.

With fresh material in mind, Prong tapped producer, Steve Evetts (Dillinger Escape Plan, Suicide
Silence), who worked them relentlessly to make Carved Into Stone as good as it gets.   Tommy and Alexei spoke humorously, heatedly, and at length about the whole brutal recording process.  As so often happens, we had our best conversations off camera, once the lens wasn't pointed at the band.   Suffice it to say, all the hard work paid off and they're pleased with the final result.

Evetts was a great fit for polishing up Carved Into Stone, so all the raw power, energy and emotion come through, combined with technical prowess.    They may have hated the tedious retakes, but with high production values and a perfectionist streak, plus a healthy ear toward not overproducing, Evetts earned his excellent reputation and did right by the band.

 

Here's Prong's take on Carved Into Stone off their home site:

What becomes an iconoclast the most? Carved Into Stone sums up what
Prong stands for. This is an album slaked in hostility, personal
detachment and seething with the urban paranoia that's long been the
mark of this sonic triad. It's eleven tracks that don't merely settle
into the New York City-born band's cannon of material that has yielded
post-metal classics including Beg To Differ and Cleansing. It exceeds
it.

"I hate nostalgia," says mainstay, vocalist and guitarist Tommy Victor
whose musical and personal outlook belies his current Los Angeles
environs. "But this record literally has every strand of Prong's DNA
spliced together in a way that feels more exciting than it has in some
time."

Produced and mixed by Steve Evetts (Dillinger Escape Plan, Suicide
Silence), Carved Into Stone picks up where Prong's classic albums left
off. Opener "Eternal Heat" sets things off at a blistering pace fueled
by drummer Alexei Rodriguez and bassist Tony Campos' formidable rhythm
section. Meanwhile, the likes of "Revenge…Best Served Cold" is absolute,
classic Prong: a huge riff slaked with bitter sentiments.

Tommy Victor admits that Carved Into Stone is the first time Prong has
taken direction from a producer in the studio. "It's also the hardest
I've ever worked on a record," he says of working with Evetts. "I'm
happier with the way it came out more than almost anything I've ever
done but there were points during it I wanted to kill myself and
everyone around me."

Prong emerged from the New York City underground of the late 80's,
quickly setting themselves apart from the conformist culture of the
city's hardcore and metal scenes. They were recognized internationally
for their first two independent releases: Primitive Origins and Force
Fed. When Prong's dalliance with the outer limits of the mainstream
acceptance came via Epic Records, it proved more successful than the
underground-bred trio ever expected. The band's "Snap Your Fingers Snap
Your Neck" from Cleansing became Prong's calling card.

"It felt like the world had finally caught up with us," says Tommy.
Prong's influence was being felt in the scene around them. Bands from
the likes of Pantera to White Zombie to Korn were taking notice of
Prong's purposeful, creative riffing and making that the template for
platinum selling success. "I wasn't jealous," Tommy recalls. "But I
could take a royalty check or two."

At the beginning of the 2000's, Tommy put Prong aside for a time to
play with Danzig and Ministry. It was a much-needed time for Victor to
refocus his energies. When Prong finally twisted itself back into form,
they toured exhaustively both headlining and supporting the likes of
Soulfly and Fear Factory. Slowly but surely, the songs and ideas that
would become Carved Into Stone began to take form. "The songs I was
writing felt more like Prong than anything I had written since Raven was
in the band," says Tommy, recalling the era when the recently deceased
ex-Killing Joke bassist Paul Raven was one of his co-conspirators.

Prong's Long Branch Records/SPV debut Carved Into Stone isn't merely
another chapter in the band's many-storied career or the much clichéd
"return to form". It's the sound of Tommy Victor and Company stating
exactly who Prong is. Like it or not, they aren't about to go away any
time soon.  

Like Tommy said in our interview, they're busy gorging on Beg To Differ on those long stretches in the van, so they'll be ready to bust it out in May for their European Tour.


Check out Prong's main site here.

Revocation Original Pit Photos Ultra Lounge 4/23/12

4-23-12 Revocation Headlines Ultra Lounge, Cannabis Corpse opens

Revocation...kickin' ass and makin' faces at Ultra Lounge, Chicago

We caught up with Revocation at tiny but mighty Ultra Lounge in Chicago in April of 2012.    They bring it on stage with a vengeance, and leave the fans loudly chanting "One more song!"    These boys are ones to watch.  We saw them open for Eluveitie at Bottom Lounge a couple months before that, in February, and it was great to catch them playing a longer set as headliners.   Cannabis Corpse provided support.

After the show, ChiIL Live Shows got an exclusive video interview with the guys.  They're unpretentious, friendly, and quick with the come backs.    If metal doesn't pan out, these guys are a shoe in for the comedy circuit.   It's one of the most amusing interviews we've done recently.  I seriously wanna throw these guys on a tour bus with Red Fang and shoot a reality show! 

For the time being, they're traveling the country in a van that keeps trying to kill them.  So far this year, when they've come through Chi-Town, they've rocked Bottom Lounge, Ultra Lounge, Reggie's Rock Club, and Cobra Lounge so who knows where they might show up next!  

Come on back to ChiIL Live Shows like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often, and you'll be one of the first to know where they're heading.   If metal's your medicine, check 'em out.  Highly recommended!

Circus in Progress An Evening of Daring New Work

Following sold-out performances of Lost & Found: A Recycled Circus, the next production at The Actors Gymnasium focuses on the development of new acts.  Circus in Progress - An Evening of Daring New Work features professionals from the Chicagoland circus community as well as advanced students from The Actors Gymnasium's own classes.  Get a sneak peek at some of Chicago's most exciting new works of circus art.    
 
Performers include Evanston Children's Choir, Evanston Dance Ensemble, Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi, Jill Heyser, Lauren Hirte, Will McGowan, Shaw Nigro, Matt Roben, and Meredith 'Tommy' Tomlins.
 
Two Shows Only - Saturday May 19, 2012 - 4:30 and 7:30pm
 Tickets available online at www.actorsgymnasium.com or by calling 1-800-838-3006.  
 
The Actors Gymnasium is located at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes Street, Evanston, IL - just off of the Noyes purple line 'L' stop. For additional information on The Actors Gymnasium's innovative programming, please visit www.actorsgymnasium.com or call 847-328-2795.



Check out ChiIL Mama/ChiIL Live Shows photo filled feature and review of Lost & Found right here.
 
About The Actors Gymnasium
The Actors Gymnasium is dedicated to bringing a new physicality to the American Theatre. Encouraging ground-breaking theatrical exploration, The Actors Gymnasium teaches circus arts, physical theatre and multi-disciplinary performance to children and adults; produces original, daring works of circus-theatre; and serves as a talent resource, providing performance opportunities to our students and innovative professional event entertainment for a wider audience. At The Actors Gymnasium, people Learn To Fly - physically, emotionally, intellectually and creatively.

The Actors Gymnasium
at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center
927 Noyes Street ~ Evanston, Illinois 60201~ (p) 847-328-2795 ~ (f) 847-328-3495
©1995 - 2011 The Actors Gymnasium. All Rights Reserved