We've been talking New Year's Eve for quite some time, and since the world didn't end last week, all the great shows and parties we told you about are still happening.

Refresh your memory below...

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"The Screaming Eagle of Soul" himself, Charles Bradley, will be visiting Chicago for a two-night stand at Lincoln Hall on December 30 & 31. Advance tickets are still available for both shows, and though his New Year's Eve performance will cost you twice as much as the 30th, you'll receive complimentary drink tickets, appetizers, and a Daptone Records drop card for a free digital sampler.

Speaking of Lincoln Hall, their sister venue Schubas will be hosting Maps & Atlases on December 30 & 31. Gypsyblood will act as main support on the 30th, Santah will open the show on New Year's Eve, and advance tickets for both shows are still available. There's also a two-show pass for sale.

Screeching Weasel are celebrating their 27th anniversary with a two-night run at Reggie's on December 30th & 31st. Though Night 1 (with The Queers, The Manges, and Vatican Junkies) is sold out, advance tickets for Night 2 (with The Queers, The Manges, and They Stay Dead) are still available.

Local H are playing the Beat Kitchen on December 30 (with State & Madison) & 31 (with All Eyes West). Their NYE show is sold out, but tickets are still available for their 12/30 performance.

Tilly and the Wall are yet another act that will be playing two Chicago shows during New Year's Eve weekend. You'll be able to find them at Subterranean on December 30 (with California Wives) & 31 (with My Gold Mask and DJ CC Rider). Advance tickets for both shows are still available.

Butch Walker and Dick Prall are also playing two nights in Chicago. They'll appear at the Double Door on December 30 and at the Bottom Lounge on December 31. Both shows are sold out.

The Eternals will be performing "the Espiritu Zombi Suite," a piece written for a larger group-version of the band, at the Hideout on New Year's Eve. As discussed, core members Damon Locks, Wayne Montana, and Areif Sless-Kitain will be joined by six additional musicians on vibes, coronet, flute, saxophone, and more. Chandeliers will act as main support and will also play a DJ set around midnight. Advance tickets are still available.

"The Queen of Rockabilly," Wanda Jackson, will be headlining the Double Door on New Year's Eve. JD Wilkes and the Dirt Daubers, Burlesque le' Moustache, and Soul Summit DJs will open the show. Advance tickets are still available.

Alejandro Escovedo and his band The Sensitive Boys are set to play SPACE in Evanston, IL on New Year's Eve. Nicholas Tremulis will open the show, and advance tickets are still available.

Naked Raygun and The Dwarves are playing the Cobra Lounge on New Year's Eve. Though advance tickets are sold out, there may be a small amount available for purchase at the door.

Denton, TX's The Marked Men are playing the Empty Bottle on December 31 with Bad Sports and Terrible Twos (tickets). As discussed, Marked Men side project Mind Spiders are playing the Bottle on December 29 with The Novice and Dumpster Babies (tickets).

Speaking of the Empty Bottle, they're also presenting Mucca Pazza, White Mystery, and Jon Drake & the Shakes at the Logan Square Auditorium on New Year's Eve (tickets). They're also doing "New Year's Eve: Two Thousand Turnteen" with The Hood Internet, Moon Boots, Only Children, and DJ Esquire at Beauty Bar (tickets).

JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound are set to play the final show of 2012 at Mayne Stage on December 31. Advance tickets for that show are still available.

The Airborne Toxic Event and On An On play Metro on New Year's Eve. Tickets are still available, and don't forget: Neurosis, Bloodiest, and The Atlas Moth play the venue on December 30 (tickets).

Magic Milk, Rabble Rabble, Vamos, Kodiak Farm Boys, The Electric Dollhouse Groove Buggy, Don't Forget Your Dinosaur, and The Sueves are ALL set to play Quenchers on New Year's Eve. Tickets will be available for purchase at the door.

Outer Minds, The Hello Hello, and Absolutely Not will be performing at The Burlington on December 31.

South Loop dive bar Cal's are closing on New Year's Day. They'll be throwing a farewell // New Year's Eve show, featuring performances by Mercy Mercy, Demerits, and Larroquettes.

Hannibal Buress is playing three shows at Zanies on New Year's Eve. Advance tickets for his three NYE shows in Chicago are sold out, but the Zanies box office might be holding onto some.

Perhaps you're looking for something a bit more electronic? Porter Robinson is coming to Chicago for a two-night stand at the Congress on December 30 & 31. Hardwell and Deniz Koyu will act as main support on the 30th, and Mat Zo and The M Machine will open the show on the 31. Advance tickets for both nights are still available. Paul Oakenfold is also playing Castle Nightclub (tickets).

ALSO: You'll be able to ride the CTA from 10PM - 4AM on New Year's Eve for 1¢. For more information on how that works visit the CTA's website.

What did we miss?

Heading to Austin or New York? We also have a list of shows that are happening in both of those cities.

Happy (almost) New Year!

photos by Carmelo Espanola

Negative Approach @ Cobra Lounge

After a matinee with Salvation at Albion, Hoax played support for the legendary Midwest hardcore band Negative Approach alongside Kontaminant (mem Sin Orden) and Violent End (mem Raw Nerve/Vile Gash)at Cobra Lounge on 9/9. The show was one of a few headlining shows for NA before they head out on a larger tour with OFF and The Spits. More pictures from Cobra Lounge are below.

Continue reading "Negative Approach played Cobra Lounge with Hoax, Violent End & Kontaminant (pics)"

Dan Deacon @ BCoPA 2011 (more by Zach Pollack)

Electronic oddity Dan Deacon welcomes his new album, America, today (8/28) via Domino. It's his first for the label and you can stream it in its entirety at the bottom of this post. A video for the LP single "True Thrush" is also below. Deacon is set to embark on a massive international tour in support of America this week, which reaches Chicago on Saturday, September 1 for a performance at the North Coast Music Festival. His set is from 2:45 - 3:45PM on the Coast Stage. Dan will also be DJing at the Cobra Lounge that night, as part of an official festival afterparty with Team Bayside High and DJ La Jesus (tickets).

The full North Coast Music Festival schedule is listed below. Single-day tickets are still available, and you still have time to enter to win a pair of 3-day passes from us.

All Dan Deacon tour dates, a stream of America, and the full NCMF schedule are below...

Continue reading "Dan Deacon streaming new LP, playing Cobra Lounge and North Coast this weekend (full festival schedule)"

Duchess Says @ Public Assembly in Brooklyn earlier on tour (more by Chris La Putt)

Montreal dance punks Duchess Says are on tour and will hit Chicago this Sunday (8/26) to play a FREE show (21+) at the Cobra Lounge with their current tourmates Minneapolis' The Blind Shake, E.T. Habit, Terrible Twos, and Fake Surfers. The event is part of the ongoing City Build concert series, and will kick off at 2PM. It'll actually be taking place in Cobra Lounge's parking lot, featuring a slip 'n slide (remember those?) and free food / beer. Live music will begin at 4:30PM and set times are listed below.

Speaking of The Blind Shake, they've recently announced a fall North American tour which will bring them back to Chicago for a Halloween (October 31) show at the Empty Bottle. Football, Outer Minds, and Paul Cary are also on the bill, and ticketing info is forthcoming.

Set times for City Build, all Blind Shake dates, and song streams from all acts are below...

Continue reading "Duchess Says, The Blind Shake, E.T. Habit, and others playing free show at Cobra Lounge this Sunday"

As mentioned, Riot Fest is taking place in Humboldt Park and at the Congress Theater, who host the opening night, from September 14-16. Two-day passes and single-day tickets are still available. (Avoid service charges by purchasing passes at The Music Garage and/or The Alley).

They've also just announced a few festival aftershows. Here's a full list of them:

Friday, September 14
Alkaline Trio, Brendan Kelly @ Empty Bottle
Naked Raygun, Dan Vapid & The Cheats @ Subterranean
Frank Turner @ Cobra Lounge

Saturday, September 15
NOFX, The Casualties, The Adicts, The Dickies @ Congress Theater
Fishbone @ Cobra Lounge

Full festival lineup-by-day is below...

Continue reading "Riot Fest 2012 announce aftershows (on sale now)"

Negative Approach @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2011 (more by Fred Pessaro // BBG)

After Power of the Riff happens in NYC and before they head out on tour with OFF!, Double Negative, and Power Trip, hardcore punk pioneers Negative Approach will visit Chicago for a performance at the Cobra Lounge on September 9. Hoax, The Ropes, and Violent End will act as main support, and advance tickets are on sale.

Negative Approach's most recent release arrived in 2011 via Taang! Records. It's a 53-song compilation, called Nothing Will Stand In Our Way, and can be purchased via Taang!'s webstore.

All Negative Approach dates and some videos are below...

Continue reading "Negative Approach playing Cobra Lounge in September w/ Hoax, The Ropes & Violent End"

Pitchfork Fest begins today (7/13), which means so does Sailor Jerry's annual and free Cobrafest. A couple more artists have been announced since we last spoke (that's the updated flyer above). RSVP is still open.

More King Tuff & Natural Child tour dates HERE.

Another Saturday night Pitchfork Fest afterparty happens at Bottom Lounge with a DJ set from Danny Brown (and others).

Not going to the fest today? Stream it online.

Atlas Moth @ Union Pool in June (BKLYN) (more by Markus Shaffer)

Psychedelic metal outfit The Atlas Moth are gearing up for a big weekend. They'll kick off Saturday (7/14) of the Pitchfork Festival with a 1PM set on the Blue Stage. Not headed to the fest and/or want to see a club show from the Chicago mainstays? They'll play the Ultra Lounge that night with support from Why Intercept, Jar'd Loose, and Encrust (tickets).

The Atlas Moth are also touring down to the Hopscotch Festival in late-August with Ireland's Altar of Plagues, which kicks off at the Ultra Lounge on August 31. Ticketing info is forthcoming.

In other Atlas Moth news, frontman Stavros Giannopoulos' side project Chrome Waves are set to make their live debut at the Cobra Lounge on August 10 (tickets). CW is a supergroup of sorts, featuring Bob Fouts (The Gates of Slumber, Apostles of Solitude) and Jeff Wilson (Nachtmystium, Wolvhammer). They released their debut EP in late-January, which you can stream four of six tracks from at the bottom of this post. Mares of Thrace, Pilgrim, Primitive Weapons, and Like Rats are also included on the bill.

All Atlas Moth dates are listed below, along with some some song streams.

Continue reading "Atlas Moth playing Pitchfork & Ultra Lounge Saturday before tour w/ Altar of Plagues; Chrome Waves making live debut"

Like they did last year, Sailor Jerry will return to Cobra Lounge (235 N Ashland) for three nights of Pitchfork Fest afterparties, and if you can't tell from the killer (free!) lineups listed in the flyer above (...White Mystery, Human Eye, King Tuff, Natural Child, Psychic Paramount, Coathangers, Heavy Cream...), each night is going to rock very hard. We predict packed houses of Sailor Jerry intoxicated fans, great music and trouble getting to Union Park on the following days in time for the Pitchfork Fest opening bands go on.

Oh, and more bands are still TBA! July 13-15, 9 p.m., FREE with RSVP, 21+

As mentioned, two-day hardcore festival The Rumble is set to take place on April 27 & 28 at the Bottom Lounge. Two-day passes and individual tickets are still available for the all ages event.

Friday's lineup consists of Detroit hardcore legends-Negative Approach, Murphy's Law, Coliseum, Ensign, Rotting Out, Focused Minds, and locals Sweet Cobra. Doors open at 4:30PM.

Doors open at noon on Saturday, allowing the lineup to include twice the amount of bands that are booked for Friday. 100 Demons, Death Threat, Trapped Under Ice, Cruel Hand, Wisdom in Chains, The Mongoloids, Harms Way, Palehorse, Rock Bottom, Wrong Answer, Empire of Rats, Argonauts, Agitator, Beware, Withdrawal, Everything Went Black, and No Regrets will all play.

There are also afterparties taking place on each night at the Cobra Lounge. Friday night features The Killer, When Tigers Fight, All to Hell, and Alcohol Poisoning. Saturday night has the roast of Jim Grimes (formally of straight edge hardcore band Extinction) with Black 'n Blue and more TBA. Advance tickets are on sale for those not attending the festival. With your Rumble wristband, entry is a discounted fee at the door.

Who are you excited to see this weekend? Some videos below...

Continue reading "The Rumble is happening this weekend (afterparties too)"

Anatomy of Habit @ Saint Vitus in Brooklyn (more by Mariah Karson)

Local doom favorites Anatomy of Habit recently lost their longtime bassist/drummer, but show no signs of slowing down.

Next Saturday (April 21), they're headlining The Burlington with support from Man (aka Sean Patrick Riley of Bloodiest). As always, shows at The Burlington run on a suggested donation-basis (this one says $8). You can also catch the band at the Hideout on May 12, joined by Chord and Jon Mueller. Advance tickets are on sale.

Speaking of Chord (which features Pelican guitarist Trevor de Brauw), Anatomy of Habit have been added as one of the openers on his other band Pelican's June 29 show at Lincoln Hall. Redgrave are also included on the bill, for which tickets are (somehow) still available. Pelican's new EP, Ataraxia​/​Taraxis, just hit stores yesterday via Southern Lord.

A few days before they open for Pelican, AoH will act as main support for NYC trio RØSENKØPF's June 22 show at the Cobra Lounge. Maledicere and Sun Splitter are also on the bill; advance tickets are on sale. Just yesterday, RØSENKØPF released a new track from their forthcoming debut LP for Wierd Records. Stream the song, titled "Burning Spirits," over at BrooklynVegan.

As mentioned, AoH entered Soma Studios in January to track their forthcoming album with Tortoise drummer/producer to many John McEntire. The band recently revealed that test pressings are just a few weeks out and will once again be mastered and cut by Chicago Mastering Service's Bob Weston (who's also the bassist of Shellac).

Stream AoH's debut LP below...

Continue reading "Anatomy of Habit have upcoming shows w/ Man, Chord, Pelican & RØSENKØPF"

photos by Tim Griffin

Chicago band Gypsyblood are currently working on the follow-up to 2011's Cold In The Guestway and have scheduled an April 14th headlining show at the Cobra Lounge. Advance tickets are on sale. Hamburglars and Hammerdown will act as main support.

Gypsyblood were one of the many bands featured on our bvChicago stage at Hotel Vegan. Above are two new pictures from the Wednesday (March 14), day party. Check out a full set of all acts (including FIELDED, Maps & Atlases, JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound) HERE.

Gypsyblood song streams and videos below..

Continue reading "Gypsyblood announce show @ Cobra Lounge; here's a few more pics from bvChicago-SXSW"

Anatomy of Habit @ Saint Vitus in Brooklyn (more by Mariah Karson)

As discussed, Anatomy of Habit said they weren't going to play any shows this month, then they added just one, and now it seems they can't stop adding gigs to their schedule.

The first brand new show will take place on February 25th at the Hideout, with support from Arriver and The Swan King. Look out for tickets to be posted. Next, is the Cobra Lounge on March 23rd with Alma Negra and Electric Hawk. Look out for tickets on this one, too. AoH will then play The Burlington on April 21st, support TBA. Yup, you guessed it, ticketing info is forthcoming for this show as well.

Speaking of Arriver, The Swan King, and Alma Negra, they've all got upcoming gigs of their own. This Friday (1/13), Lovely Little Girls, Arriver, Alma Negra, and Never We See play the Cobra Lounge. Alma Negra also play Stavros Giannopoulos (of The Atlas Moth)' Heavy... Weekly at Ultra Lounge on February 15th. They'll share the bill with Himalayan, which consists of the owners of Chicago's Emperor Custom Guitar Cabinets and are former members of the band Raise the Red Lantern. Stay tuned for a split 12" from the two bands. As mentioned, The Swan King are playing The Burlington this Saturday (1/14) and have now added a February 11th performance at the Empty Bottle, with support from Bridesmaid, Sun Splitter, and Oyarsa. Tickets are on sale now. Two more noteworthy Cobra Lounge shows take place on the 20th and 28th and those are: Harpoon, Sweet Cobra, Head of Skulls, Jar'd Loose and then Ringworm, Keelhaul, Hate, Making Ghosts, and The Infected.

Did we miss any? Please let us know!

photos by Carmelo Espanola

Cro-Mags

Our Riot Fest coverage so far includes a review of the Descendents show and some Helmet pics.

On Saturday night (10/8), one of the secret Riot Fest shows that happened was a late night one with NYHC legends the Cro-Mags (who replaced the Business) and The Crombies at the Cobra Lounge.

A set of pictures from the show continues below...

Continue reading "Cro-Mags & The Crombies played a 'secret' Riot Fest show @ Cobra Lounge (pics)"

oOoOO with Butterclock @ PS1 Warm Up (more by Erez Avissar)

today in Chicago
* Block Party @ Cobra Lounge
* Braid, All Eyes West, Fires @ Metro
* Hollows, Radar Eyes, Runnies @ Hideout
* Lost in the Trees, Thin Hymns @ Lincoln Hall
* Houses, Pet Lions, Prussia @ Schubas (Late Show)
* Release The Sunbird, The Glory Singers @ Schubas (Early Show)
* oOoOO with Butterclock, Glitter Bones, Supreme Cuts @ Empty Bottle
* Blah Blah Blah, Sidewalk Chalk, Buckman Page, Magic Milk, The Queue @ Double Door

Hurricane Irene is wreaking havoc on live music, on the East Coast. Note all show cancelations on BrooklynVegan.

What else?

!!! @ Sasquatch 2011 (more by Josh Darr)

FRIDAY
!!!, Yourself And The Air, and Clique Talk are playing the Bottom Lounge.

The War on Drugs, Caveman, and Tammar can be found at Schubas.

Great Lake Swimmers, Snowblink, and The Lumineers are playing SPACE.

Questlove will play a DJ Set at The Mid.

Ghostland Observatory are playing Metro.

SATURDAY
oOoOO with Butterclock, Glitter Bones, and Supreme Cuts will play Empty Bottle.

Braid, All Eyes West, and Fires will play Metro.

Zach Rogue (of Rogue Wave)'s new project Release The Sunbird will play an early show at Schubas, with support from The Glory Singers.

Hollows, Radar Eyes, and Runnies will play Hideout.

Houses, Pet Lions, and Prussia will play a late show at Schubas.

Cobra Lounge are hosting a 3PM - 3AM blockparty, flyer below.

SUNDAY
Peter Bjorn & John will play their 3rd recent Chicago show at Schubas, with support from Bone & Bell.

Continue reading "Weekend Show Roundup (8/26 - 8/28)"