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Category Archives: Live Show Recaps

North Coast Videos

A few snippets from last night’s unbelievably fun party.

God bless the children who rage (ATB @ NCMF).

 

Gogol Bordello was intense.  Everyone and your mom was dancing and singing and at one point I feared the crowd would push down the barricade.  Even the folks in the photo pit couldn’t help but get swept up.

 

Returning to the fest was Benny Benassi who ended his set with one of my favorites.  The best part was watching the security guy lose his shit (you can see part of that on the far right side of the screen).

 

Here’s the intro to Thievery Corp‘s “Lebanese Blonde” which has quite possibly the catchiest sitar hook ever.

 

 

 

Lolla Day 1: A Beautiful and Frightening Thing

Day 1 was aces all around  Random thoughts from poorly scribbled notes.

The additional 10k people at the festival could be felt.  I did like the idea of having all the food on one boulevard away from the stages.  It made for less of a clusterfuck in the food area; unless you were in line waiting for a burger from Kuma’s the food lines moved quickly and easily.

Taste-A-Palooza

Young the Giant’s Sameer Gadhita left a piece of his soul on the Bud Light Stage.   Los Bunkers, despite sound issues that plagued the Play Station stage all afternoon, were a delight with their 60′s pop soaked tunes.  They also can take credit for having one of the biggest crowd swells of the day.  I saw several kids walk by the Play Station stage on their way to the bar and they’d stop and join the crowd to dance to Los Bunkers.  Grace Potter & The Nocturnals brought their blues-rock to the Bud Light stage.  Despite the howling and Tina Turner-like dance moves, Potter seemed much more subdued than at last year’s North Coast Festival.  I caught the beginning and end of Les Butcherettes who were one of the most intense experiences I’ve had a festival ever.  Teri Gender Bender throws her raw fuck-all energy in your face and you can do nothing but stand in awe.  Gabe Serbian (drums) almost didn’t make it through their last song and at the end of their set puked on stage.  Rock ‘n-fucking-roll, kids.  I heard and saw a good chunk of Smith Westerns and they’ve remained the same: very polished performance, slowly coming through with band chemistry and audience banter.  The Kills were fierce; Allison Mosshart growled and Jamie Hince didn’t even break a sweat.  I wandered over to the south end of the park where the crowd was dense.  I sat for most of Two Door Cinema Club’s set and was surprised by just how big a crowd they drew and each person jumped and danced along.  A Perfect Circle was one of the few bands I was really excited to see and despite their reworked cover of John Lennon’s “Imagine” (which fell flat) the rest of their set was note perfect.  How you imagine a big power rock festival band to sound.   At this point things took a turn for the very weird.  I finally found The Naughty Librarian in one of the south baseball fields.  We caught the last half or so of Skrillex who turned Perry’s tent into a dance party, Afro Jack (whose set started late) continued the party.  Festivals are all about the people watching and at Perry’s I had a blast sitting and watching/observing/judging/laughing.  That’s where this video happened:

We stuck around for some of Girl Talk before heading home.  The weather was gorgeous, the heat wasn’t oppressive, the kids had a great time and a few made a mess of things – not a bad Day 1.  Here are a couple more pictures from yesterday but the full lot will be up on the Facebook Page.

Teri Gender Bender

Jamie Hince

 

P4K Day 2: Easy Breezy Beautiful Pitchfork Girl

Today was the easy day.  I didn’t get to Union Park until 4pm, just in time for No Age.  I decided to wander for a bit at the start of their set and bumped into LA Seitz for a hot second before heading towards the area in front of the screen between the Red and Green Stages and that was where I spent the rest of the afternoon.  You’ll be able to tell because today’s pictures are extra crappy.

No Age

No Age

This "look" happened more than once

Dancing Hippies

It was definitely a ton more crowded today so navigating between various stages in the sun and heat was just not going to happen for me today, I plan to torture myself with that routine tomorrow.  Like I said, today was the easy day.  No Age delivered one of, if not THE, fiercest set of the festival.  I wrote in my notes, “if the rest is like this – then fuck to the yes!” (I really do write like that.)  I was ready to get taken higher and then Destroyer happened.  I really tuned this one out because I had dumb stuff like text messages and emails to respond to (I’m soooo cool, I know) but honestly, after the high energy set of No Age, it was really hard to come down from that high with a set that relied heavily on a saxophone.  Again, saxophone.  Sorry, maybe if someone else had preceded Destroyer it would have been a different experience.

Destroyer

Destroyer

Ugh...

This. Ugh.

It was back to the Green Stage for the Dismemberment Plan who were fun and woke up some of the crowd.  At this point I was distracted by a fool (some random dude) running around in an old glory thong.  As if that wasn’t disturbing and distracting enough, various people decided to go up to him and pose for pictures.  At one point he bent over to put his beer down and his ass was not too far from my face.  No me gusta culo.

Dismemberment Plan

D-Plan

Hipsters...

I want to see the whole thing - this was nuts

No. Just No.

Next.

DJ Shadow was the business.  A huge white orb sat in the middle of the stage and we were supposed to see visuals projected onto the orb but the sun was very much out and it was hard to make out what was going on.  Not even half way into the set, the orb opened to reveal DJ Shadow mixing with three cameras inside giving the fest-goers a close up of what was going on.  This set got real.  I saw a few people crowd surf and he packed it in, apparently he won the faceoff with Zola Jesus who didn’t have as big a crowd over on the Blue Stage.  No Age was good but DJ Shadow was damn good.

DJ Shadow greeting the crowd

A look inside the orb

A peek inside

The night came to a close with a beautiful set from Fleet Foxes.  This year’s Helplessness Blues was such an intimate album that like with Thurson Moore, I had concerns about how it would translate to a big festival setting.  Where Thurston failed, Fleet Foxes succeeded.  Their harmonies were perfect and angelic, each song beautifully executed and full of soul.  I was a happy Bee in heaven and rode that wave all the way home.  2 down, 1 to go!

Fleet Foxes

FF

Sigh...

 

P4K Day 1: Abed from Community and Jim DeRo made my day

These shoes happened

Pitchfork’s annual music festival got off to an interesting start for yours truly.  After suffering through two unbelievably long lines to get in, I made my way over to the first highlight of my day: tUnE-yArDs.  I worship at the feet of Merril Garbus – this we know but I was concerned as to how her loops and building of each song would translate in a large outdoor festival setting.  She was spectacular.  I arrived during soundcheck and that alone got people pumped and ready.  She’s so charismatic and has such a huge personality and magnetic stage presence.  During this set I got a chance to meet and have a quick chat with Jim DeRogatis where I let him know how much I appreciated the OFWGKTA coverage and the support he has shown for domestic abuse and rape victims advocacy groups.  We talked tUnE-yArDs and on my merry way I went.

tUnE-yArDs sound check

Merril Garbus

I made my way to the Green Stage and caught the end of Battles.  Several people I spoke to told me it was a fun and energetic set.

A shot of Coterie Chicago & Chirp Record Fair

Hula girls

Tapes and other "goods" for sale

Battles

Battles, again

I plopped my ass on the grass and waited for Guided By Voices.  In the meantime, I watched Thurston Moore on the screens but could I hear him? Nel pastel (that’s “no” if you don’t speak Beaner).  I was with a lovely group of kids who took in this stray and I gotta tell you, even when the crowd was quiet it was very hard to hear was was going on over at the Red Stage.  It’s odd that P4K organizers would place Moore on during that time of day to play what is basically an intimate acoustic album.  He had an acoustic guitar, was accompanied by another, a violin and harp.  That’s it.  Judging by the folks who flocked towards the Green Stage for GBV, looks like the set was a snooze.

TM

G-to-the-B-to-the-fucking-V

That "Che" shirt happened at GBV

The kids doing a fine job of entertaining themselves

Tried to get full dog face but alas...

This feather happened

There are two reasons I went to Pitchfork: tUnE-yArDs and Guided By Voices.  For a bunch of real old bastards those fuckers knew how to rock.  Seriously.  25 years old wish they had that much energy.  The line up and set list were a fans dream.  This was my happy place until the kids in the mosh pit got a little too close for comfort so I left my cushy spot near the front at center and headed for safer pastures.  This set also boasted one of the most diverse audiences with people ranging from very young to very wise (ahem).  Below is a short video of the mosh pit.  Next post I’ll throw up the opening song from this set that featured Neko Case.

GBV

GBV feat. Neko Case

oh yes

Rock this bitch!

*swooooon*

I started to head to the Blue Stage to check out James Blake but the crowd was so dense it was impossible for my 5’0″ self to find a decent spot to raise my camera for a picture.  Sad to have missed Blake but bonus was seeing Abed from Community(!!!!!!!) (Danny Pudi) walk by – it is not my mission to document his presence at Pitchfork on film.

the cigar, the cuff, I can't even with this one

I found a spot on a bench and watched Neko Case on the screen.  Super double bonus: while sitting I did the one thing I love to do more than anything at fests – people watch/photograph.

Love the headphones

I wanted a bag!

These shorts happened

This whole outfit happened

Anycrazyhipsters, Neko was the perfect.  She took the stage as the sun was beginning to set and the cool breeze that had teased us all day was really kicking up – a lovely summer moment.

 

First time seeing her live was a delight

Sigh...

Halfway through that set I wandered over to a spot near the screen in preparation for Animal Collective.  At this point I was pretty much done.  I’d been up since 5.30am, put in almost a full day at the day job, stood in a ridiculously long line just to get to the festival gate and I smelled like a farm animal.  Real talk.  I gave it a real go during Animal Collective but I just couldn’t muster up the strength to stick it out.  The crowd was getting bigger and pushier and smellier by the second and all I wanted was a shower.  Halfway through that set I bailed because frankly they started to bore me.  And with that Day 1 came to a close.

The lone crappy shot of Animal Collective

Saw some great stuff (tUnE-yArDs, Guided By Voices, Neko Case), missed some I had hoped to see (EMA, James Blake) but overall a nice day to the start of what is promising to be a fantastic festival.

Off to bed I go.

Elvis Costello & The Imposters @ The Chicago Theatre

Last night, Elvis Costello & The Imposters rolled into the Chicago Theatre with the “Spectacular Spinning Songbook.”

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tUnE-yArDs / Prussia / Buke & Gass @ Lincoln Hall

Prussia.


Buke & Gass.


tUnE-yArDs.

A serious contender for concert of the year in my book.

Grab a drink and settle in kiddies because this post is going to go on for a bit.

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Jeff Tweedy @ The Vic…Sorta

Super personal so skip it if you’re like me and can’t deal with feelings.

Requisite shot of the Marquee

Last week was a total asskicker.  It was one of those weeks that completely drains and exhausts and I couldn’t reach for a white flag to wave in defeat fast enough.  It was a week where I was ready to just quit.  The bright spot was seeing the following entry in my calendar for Friday: “Jeff Tweedy @ Vic – 7.30pm – The Naughty Librarian”.  This kept me going through one of the most trying weeks I’ve ever had and through the exhaustion and the “leave-me-the-fuck-alone” of it all.

This.

My love affair with all things Jeff Tweedy began post-high school in the early to mid-aughts when I was just another stupid kid trying to move out of my parents’ house, dating a guy I had absolutely no business dating and just sorting my way through the world and finding my place in it.  I felt a strong attraction to Wilco’s music but especially to the introspective lyrics of a man who, like me, suffered from debilitating migraines, depression and anxiety.  Here was a man living with an awful pain that often went misunderstood and many people didn’t believe he even had.  He was my kind.

So when I tell you that what happened Friday night was nothing short of magical I hope you believe I’m not just giving in to my predilection for hyperbole.

Tweedy was playing two nights at The Vic with proceeds of ticket sales benefiting The Chicago Lighthouse, a charity he told the audience had done great things for his father-in-law who is blind (these concerts were organized by his wife Susie.)  Had The Naughty Librarian and I known that the first 30 people waiting outside in line would be asked for requests we would have dropped everything and camped out all day in the rain because we are at that level of hardcore bitch when it comes to boys with guitars who make us swoon.

It was a gorgeous show with Tweedy center stage flanked by about half a dozen guitars.  Simple and perfect.  And! And it was damn fun and funny.  He playfully poked fun at some of the requests and we were close enough to catch all sorts of facial expressions we wouldn’t have caught sitting further back or upstairs.  Such a charmer…that one – had you been at The Vic you would have seen my heart explode out of my chest with love and gratitude.

I meant to write a proper review of the show and talk about the set list and mention my disappointment that no one requested Muzzle of Bees because I would have asked for it because I remember the first time I heard it and the chills I felt but that’s not really the kind of mood I’m in.  I just wanted to write and say that Friday night with Jeff Tweedy was exactly what I needed.  How do you thank someone you’ve never met for helping you through many a teary-eyed night alone?  How do you thank someone you’ve never met (and will probably never read this) for being so open about struggles with anxiety and depression because just knowing that someone else out there experiences similar waves in mood has made your own experience a little less lonely and isolating?  And trust, I’m not the type to put celebrities on a pedestal or claim them to be role models of any kind.  Friday night was exactly what I needed because it reminded me of why after a long and full week at work I still muster up the energy to leave my comfortable couch and daughter and husband and spend money and time with an artist or band.  Because of the way it makes me feel.  Because it makes me feel.  Because for a couple hours you can leave all the bullshit of your crappy week behind and lose yourself in music and it’s ok.  Everything is going to be ok.  Friday night was exactly what I needed and it took Jeff Tweedy on a stage flanked by half a dozen or so guitars to make it ok.

Magic Kids & Cults @ Empty Bottle

Magic Kids

This is super late but what can you do, right?

Umm...

Last Thursday the Empty Bottle had a damn fine line up with Superhumanoids (a band I forgot to photograph and record but were delightful – brain fart!), Magic Kids (who were a ton of fun) and Cults (who debuted new songs that were phenom).  I’m uploading video of Magic Kids and Cults.

 

Omar Rodriguez Lopez @ Bottom Lounge

Omar Rodriguez Lopez Photo (c) J. Calvo – Used with Permission

Last Sunday west Loop venue Bottom Lounge hosted Omar Rodriguez Lopez with Zechs Marquise opening.  I missed Zechs Marquise but heard they kicked off a night full of psychedelic rock in right fashion. You can check out some of their music HERE.

I arrived about 30 seconds before Omar Rodriguez Lopez took the stage to much cheering from the enthusiastic crowd.  ORL was in Chicago last September with the Omar Rodriguez Lopez group but since it was at Congress and I’m terrified of dying in that joint I skipped out and hoped he’d return again.  He knocked my socks off with a roughly 90 minute set that was pure psychedelic funk jam band goodness.  He controlled the mood of the room/crowd; while the guitar released a swirl of sound, ORL bounced around the stage and the crowd reacted with cheers and hollers.  With a mere note, held over a few seconds he calmed them and brought them back down from the high he was taking them on.   How about instead of telling you, I give you a 90 second video preview.

 

Wanda Jackson @ Lincoln Hall

Last night found me in rockabilly cholita heaven.

The night started off with the Dex Romweber Duo and not to toot my own horn but Dex totally wants me.  (If you were at the show I was the girl he kept pointing and singing to throughout the set.)  Dex Romweber on guitar and his sister Sara on drums ripped through a 45 minute set of country, rock and blues, previewing new music from their forthcoming album.

After a quick set change Tennessee’s Heath Haynes & The Hi-Dollars took the stage warming up the impatient and boisterous crowd.  There were great covers of Buddy Holly, Elvis (a big theme of the night) and Muddy Waters to name a few.  The crowd chanted for Wanda and when she finally appeared even my too-cool-for-school ass lost it as she began with Riot On Cell Block #9.

Wanda Jackson is a real classy and brassy broad.  At 73 she is on tour following the success of her 8th studio album, The Party Ain’t Over, produced by a certain youngin’ from Detroit.  She shook her fringe and even danced on stage.  She’s 73.  At 73 she has more energy and spirit than heifers 1/3 her age.  She shared some choice anecdotes spanning her long and legendary career.  Before launching into a couple of Elvis songs (her rendition of “Heartbreak Hotel” was boss), she talked about Elvis with a deep and genuine affection when she spoke of the brief time they dated and summed him up with one statement: “he was a great kisser” but she said she found someone who was an even better kisser and married him (GET IT WENDELL!) to much hootin’ and hollerin’ from the crowd.  Elvis was the one who encouraged Wanda to try her hand at Rock & Roll, where she found some of the biggest hits of her career and sighed when she commented on their romance ending when Elvis went to Hollywood to make movies – a decision that apparently wasn’t his idea.

A trio of local horn players were brought out on stage during the part of the show that found Ms. Jackson performing songs off The Party Ain’t Over.  After being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2009, Ms. Jackson assumed her career would be winding down but instead a phone call from Jack White changed her game plan.

Her voice has not changed much in the 50 years since she started singing; her voice still sounds youthful but can be gritty and gravelly.  This is never more apparent than on songs like “You Know I’m No Good”, “Nervous Breakdown” or “Heartbreak Hotel.”  She introduced “I Saw The Light” by talking about the gospel albums she released in the 70s after finding Jesus and the impact this has had on her life.  She closed out the show with “Let’s Have A Party” and returned for a 2 song encore: “Whole Lot of Shakin’” and a reprise of “Let’s Have A Party.”

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