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Sunday, September 2, 2012

ChiIL Live Shows Saturday At North Coast Music Fest #photo filled feature




Check out ChiIL Live Shows Photo Filled Recap of North Coast Music Festival 2012--Saturday







We're rockin' NCMF for the 3rd year.   Of course the people watching is prime.





 

  





We ran into old friends and made a few new ones.   



Predicted thunder storms held off for the most part.   Hope we're as lucky for  Sunday.

   

  The sets we caught were Future Rock, The Rapture,  Atmosphere, Girl Talk and Umphrey's McGhee.


We had another annual Shreddy Shirt Boy (AKA:  Mat with 1 T) Sighting!



Even the Sheeple got in on the action!!

Highlights were The Rapture, who blew away the Coast Stage with sweet sax, cow bell, and rockin' vocals reminiscent of P.I.L.  We really dug them live and would catch them again in a second.  

 




Girl Talk wasn't as stellar as the last time I saw him, but his sets are always a big dance parTAY, and yesterday was no exception.   He hand picks dancers throughout the day, to join in on stage, so there was an enthusiastic, colorful crew of eye candy.



UM played a rockin' fest finale that was the icing on the cake.   We've watched them grow over the years from a semi-interesting, minor jam band to a force to reckon with.   

NCMF hosed us this year, and instead of all access & pit photo passes like the past 2 years, we were stuck with GA.   There have been some management changes behind the scenes at NCMF and they seem to have forgotten who their friends are.   So, we don't have any close headliner shots this year--their loss.   

We do, however, have loads of close pit photos of Umphrey's McGhee from Summer Camp Music Fest 2011 & 2012 we'll work up into an all UM feature and share here, with our readers.   So, if you're an old UM fan or someone new whose mind they blew last night, check back with ChiIL Live Shows like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often.   We'll have more sweet, photo filled features, tour news, free downloads, and reviews for you, in the very near future.

The line for the Groupon Silent Disco was massive.   And we didn't see too many people over doing it on the party favors to the point of needing a police escort or an ambulance ride.   We only saw a few children, less than past years, despite the official party line-- kids welcome-under age 10 free.   

I must say though, the NCMF litter was crazy over the top and we hit a LOT of music festivals.    Despite a recycling nod on the NCMF site and signage, the crowd trashed Union Park and seemed to not use the garbage and recycling cans much at all!    That said, there was a huge lack of garbage cans outside of the VIP lounge and by Groupon, so people were just dropping their empty cups and food trash in piles.

We split the headliners, catching half a set of Girl Talk and half Umphrey's McGhee.   A huge, enthusiastic  crowd was gathered for both.   There were more "toys" at UM--glowing poi balls, hoops, and the ubiquitous glow finger glove wielders.  
 

Seems like even the newbies without spinning talent can now get in people's faces and wiggle their fingers around, and find an appreciative audience.  We got some stellar hoops shots this year.








We'll be back today covering NCMF from Mathien and IndigoSky at 2:30, till the final notes of Pretty Lights fade out at 10pm.   Check out our must see list right here and our sweet Camaro SS loaner from Chevy--NCMF12 Sponsors, right here. See you out there.   And once again, check back like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often.   We'll have loads more NCMF recaps, Riot Fest previews and features, and more.

Saturday, September 1, 2012

ChiIL Live Shows, Camaro SS & North Coast Music Fest--Life Is Good! @northcoastfest #NCMF #chevy #ourtownourheroes




 

Thanks Chevy!  The red-orange Camero SS Convertible ROCKS!!   So stoked I get to drive it for a week.   Thanks to all our readers, friends, & family who voted for me as one of GM's Our Town Our Heroes finalists.   Swing by and see the Chevy street team at North Coast Music Fest and nominate your own hero for a shot at winning a week in a car of your choice for the hero AND the nominator!

CHI, IL LIVE SHOWS ON OUR RADAR: Greensky Bluegrass at Abbey Pub 9/8




Greensky Bluegrass Perform Abbey Pub on 9/8 - Release 192g 2xLP Version of New Album, Handguns

Offer Fans Free Streaming 5-Song EP taken from New Album

3420 W. Grace St. Chicago, IL | www.abbeypub.com | with Sexfist | $15 advance & $18 doors | ages 21+ | 8:00PM | two sets


As a bonus for all, Greensky Bluegrass is giving away half of Handguns for free. This five-song Handguns EP is available on the Greensky Bluegrass website for anyone who wants to listen. 
 

Come check out Greensky Bluegrass rockin' everything from mandolin to dobro, banjo to guitar – all of them are very skilled pickers! (so much so that Sam Bush sat in with them on 2 songs at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in June!).

They're touring in support of their new album, Handguns, which we'll be reviewing here at ChiIL Live Shows in the near future.   (released as a special, 192-gram double-vinyl). 

As their name might suggest, Greensky Bluegrass utilizes traditional bluegrass instruments – dobro, banjo, guitar, upright bass and mandolin. However, the music that they make is anything but reversionary and the new album, Handguns is a brave expression of what separates their original music from the rest of the bluegrass genre.

Handguns was recorded in between tours this winter as the band holed up in a studio in their home state of Michigan, committing the songs straight-to-tape on the exact recording console that originally birthed Lynyrd Skynyrd’s infamous track "Free Bird” decades earlier. Matching the warmth of the analog sound, vintage microphones were utilized alongside state-of-the-art studio equipment to create a truly blended and artful sonic experience.

Greensky has continued to gain national momentum since they won the Telluride Bluegrass Festival’s coveted Band Competition in 2006 and have been invited to play at last summer’s Northwest String Summit, Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival and NPR’s Mountain Stage, while also playing at Bonnaroo, Bumbershoot and Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. As these diverse festivals would suggest, they’re a bluegrass band but they’re not. Bluegrass doesn’t have distortion, or horns for that matter. Greensky does.

Of course, none of this happened overnight or without sacrifice. Greensky is just as much a grit of the asphalt band as they are a salt of the earth band, having played over 160 shows nationwide, every year, for the last six years.  It was by winning over folks on the band’s never-ending tour that got them where they are today – not by a label, syndicated radio play or being on the shelves at big box stores.

The motive? To be heard.  For musicians, the model has changed with satellite radio where the F word flies free and name-your-own-price record releases. One thing remains true, however: when the music is great, people will listen.

Greensky Bluegrass is Anders Beck (dobro), Michael Arlen Bont (banjo), Dave Bruzza (guitar), Mike Devol (upright bass) and Paul Hoffman (mandolin).

Act Out: Reduced Gold Star Tickets To Highly Recommended Sweet and Sad and Susan Swayne and the Bewildered Bride

We caught both of these excellent productions on their opening nights and highly recommend checking them out.   Read our recap of Susan Swayne and the Bewildered Bride right here.    

Explore the Ever-Changing State of the Nation in Sweet and Sad

Profiles Theatre (Chicago, IL)
Full Price:$35.00 - $40.00
LEARN MORE
Our Price:$17.50 - $20.00
Experience Swashbuckling Susan Swayne and the Bewildered Bride
Lincoln Square Theatre (Chicago, IL)
Full Price:$20.00
LEARN MORE
Our Price:$10.00

ChiIL Live Shows Streaming California Wives Art History HERE In Entirety #tour dates #album release Lincoln Hall 9/12




Check out Chicago's own new-wave quartet California Wives, upcoming debut full length Art History, arriving on September 4 via Vagrant.  Working with producer Claudius Mittendorfer (Interpol, Neon Indian, Wild Nothing), Art History is eleven tracks presenting a cohesive gallery of modern-day pop portraits framed with a retro '80s fit.



Art History tracklisting: 
1. Blood Red Youth 
2. Tokyo 
3. Marianne 
4. The Fisher King 
5. Los Angeles 
6. Photolights 
7. Purple 
8. Better Home 
9. Twenty Three 
10. The New Process 
11. Light Year 



Their album release party is 9/12 at Lincoln Hall, the guys will support the LP on a nationwide tour with STARS and Diamond Rings this September and October.

California Wives on tour:
9/20 - Portland, ME - Port City Music Hall
9/21 - Boston, MA - Paradise
9/22 - New York, NY - Webster Hall
9/23 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
9/25 - Charlottesville, VA - Jefferson Theater
9/26 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
9/27 - Charlotte, NC - Visulite Theatre
9/28 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
9/29 - Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge
10/2 - Louisville, KY - Headliners Music Hall
10/3 - Cincinnati, OH - 20th Century Theatre
10/4 - Indianapolis, IN - Deluxe @ Old National Centre
10/5 - St. Louis, MO - Plush
10/6 - Columbia, MO - The Blue Note
10/9 - Lawrence, KS - The Bottleneck
10/10 - Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom
10/11 - Little Rock, AR - Revolution Music Room
10/12 - Houston, TX - Fitzgerald's Upstairs
10/13 - Dallas, TX - Granada Theatre
10/17 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues
10/18 - Los Angeles, CA - Mayan Theater
10/19 - Santa Cruz, CA - Rio Theatre
10/20 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore



*All dates with Stars and Diamond Rings 










Wed.SEP122012
Wednesday, September 12 2012 8:00 PM
18+ $10.00

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“I felt like I was asleep for years,” says California Wives’ lead vocalist / keyboardist Jayson Kramer of his decision in 2009 to leave behind a promising career in medicine for a professional go at music. Jayson's first experience with music began at age 6, playing classical piano up until he was 16. Along the way he started writing songs as hobby, taking influence from bands like The Smashing Pumpkins and Oasis, and later electronic music such as Autechre and Aphex Twin. The hobby continued through his undergrad years at Boston University as a pre-med student until, "a weird thing happened when I finished my MCAT and all the studying stopped. I was completely honest with myself for the first time in my life and recognized that I had no desire to go on to medical school. This is when I took a more serious turn toward music, which is something I realized I should have been doing all along." Around this time he moved back to his hometown of Chicago where he was introduced to drummer Joe O'Connor and bassist Dan Zima, who had be playing together since high school. 
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Friday, August 31, 2012

ChiIL Live Show's Must Sees--North Coast 2012 #NCMF @northcoastfest



It's here!!   And so it begins.   North Coast Music Festival 2012.   For the next 3 days, we'll be sending summer off in style and rockin' Union Park.   

*Remember, this year kids under 10 are free with a paying adult (down from 12 and under last year-boo!)    Still, they've got Riot Fest beat.   They're only admitting punk kin under 5 for free.   Boo and hiss.   So get your little hippies & house freaks outta the house and introduce them to some of your favorites before they're a bar-worthy 18+ or 21+ and would rather die than go to a music fest with their PARENTS!   

3 day passes (except VIP) and Sunday single day passes are SOLD OUT. 

There are so many sweet choices.    We'll be shooting all 3 days, catching a bunch of sets and even more crowd shots.  Unfortunately--Murphy's Concert Law applies and multiple bands I want to see equally badly are up against each other.   We'll see how things play out or catch some half sets.

I'm a bit old school in that it's more fun to shoot a band than a DJ--How many floating head/macbook shots can you really see before it gets boring.    I dig bands with instruments.    That said, we do plan to catch Girl Talk for sure.   We have some jam friends from back in the Grateful Dead and Phish Phreak days who are now completely obsessed with Pretty Lights.    So we may check them out live, too.    We ditched em at Summer Camp Music Festival for burlesque and Jane's Addiction, so since that's not an option here....maybe this time.  

We've seen and shot both Girl Talk, Umphrey's McGee and Van Ghost (numerous times) at Summer Camp Music Festival and elsewhere and recommend catching them all this weekend.   We're especially stoked to finally catch Mathien live.   We were in the middle of a video interview with ALO and missed 'em at Summer Camp.   Mathien plays the Dos Equis Stage at 2:30 PM Sunday.   Check 'em out.



  

**Click the daily schedule links here to hear a sample of each band, read band profiles, set up your own schedule, sync with your friends, and more.**




Here are the Major players
NCMF 2012

PRETTY LIGHTS · GIRL TALK · STS9 · UMPHREY'S MCGEE
AXWELL · STEVE ANGELLO · KNIFE PARTY · ATMOSPHERE
STEVE AOKI · EXCISION · ALESSO · PAUL OAKENFOLD
BIG BOI · THE RAPTURE · EOTO
DIGITALISM · CHUCKIE · TOMMY TRASH · YELAWOLF
MODESTEP · FELIX DA HOUSECAT · FUTURE ROCK · MORD FUSTANG · 
BEATS ANTIQUE · YACHT · DAN DEACON · GRAMATIK · REBIRTH BRASS BAND
BOOMBOX · DIGITAL TAPE MACHINE · MAYA JANE COLES · MIDNIGHT CONSPIRACY
KING KHAN & THE SHRINES · THUNDERCAT · PAPADOSIO · NiT GriT · TWO FRESH
SAVOY · MINNESOTA · VAN GHOST · COM TRUISE · PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS · ZION I
Mr. MFN EXQUIRE · AUTO BODY · THIBAULT · WYLLYS & THE NY HUSTLERS ENSEMBLE · ZEBO
ABDECAF · FAMILY GROOVE COMPANY · TEAM BAYSIDE HIGH · STRANGE ARRANGEMENT
STRATUS · LOBOUNCE · GENTLEMEN HALL · NORDJS · PAUL UNIVERSE · MARIO FLOREK
KID COLOR · DJ SOLO · PROBCAUSE · ORVILLE KLEIN · BUHAY · MATHIEN · JAMIE LONO
ARTS of LIFE BAND

and many, many more including the best in local djs in the Groupon Silent Disco!


Here's the daily line ups break down with who we're stoked to see featured in red.    We'll be adding loads more as we go and running photo filled band features.

Today we've got kids in school & team gymnastics so we can't make it till the headliners.   But Saturday and Sunday are a whole different matter!   Tonight we're all about STS9.




Friday August 31st - NCMF 2012 DAY 1

STS9
Axwell
Knife Party
Paul Oakenfold
EOTO
Yelawolf
Mord Fustang
Midnight Conspiracy
King Khan & The Shrines
Papadosio
Two Fresh
Minnesota
Auto Body
Abdecaf
Team Bayside High
Gentlemen Hall
...and many more!


Saturday September 1st - NCMF 2012 DAY 2

Girl Talk
Umphrey's McGee

Atmosphere
Excision
Alesso
The Rapture
Tommy Trash
Felix Da Housecat
Future Rock
Beats Antique
YACHT
Dan Deacon
Gramatik
NiT GriT
People Under The Stairs
Mr. MFN Exquire
Thibault
Zebo
Family Groove Company
Strange Arrangement
LoBounce
NORdjs
ProbCause
...and many more!
Sunday September 2nd - NCMF 2012 DAY 3

Pretty Lights
Steve Angello
Steve Aoki
Big Boi
Digitalism
Chuckie
Modestep
Rebirth Brass Band
BoomBox
Digital Tape Machine
Maya Jane Coles
Thundercat
Savoy
Van Ghost
Com Truise
Zion I
Wyllys & The NY Hustler Ensemble
Stratus
Mario Florek
DJ SOLO
Mathien
IndigoSun
...and many more!




Thursday, August 30, 2012

PLAY LOCALLY TONIGHT: Cole Degenova Album Release With Sidewalk Chalk Opening at Lincoln Hall



ChiIL Live Shows will be there shooting stills tonight.   Come on out.   18+/Just $10.


Thursday, August 30 2012
9:00 PM
18+ $10.00





Cole DeGenova & The Peoples Republic is a group of musicians from around the country brought together to bring the people together. With a high energy mix of soulful melodies, heavy grooves, virtuosic flair, and inspired words, The Peoples Republic is equipped to move any audience.

This emcee, singer, trio of keys, bass, and drums, horn section of trumpet and trombone, and tap-dancer are the evolution of Hip-Hop, Soul and Jazz superbly packaged into sounds that you've quite possibly never heard before. The legend Sam Cooke once sang, "Change is Gonna Come." Musically, change is already here. Upon the heels of the release of their debut full-length album, "Corner Store" (released 3/6/12 and co-produced with Greg Magers of Lupe Fiasco's The Cool), Sidewalk Chalk has already proven themselves worthy of a listen. They're sure to satisfy the cravings of anyone in love with music and hungry for something different.


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