The Antlers @ Do Division -- 6/03/2012 (photo by Sarah Frankie Linder)

We covered over 200-concerts in the past year on BV Chicago(!). Most of that coverage included pictures from the show, shot by a slew of contributing photographers. Today, the last full day of 2012, we're listing our favorite live music photos of the year, snapped by names that frequently appear on the site. You may have met some of these folks at shows; they're all fantastic people and huge music fans, who do their best to discreetly document live performances. Our favorite live music photos of 2012 continue below.

Continue reading "BVChicago's favorite Live Music Photos of 2012 ------------------- (that we took)"

by Zach Pollack

Conor Oberst at BCoPA on 9.22.2012

Brilliant Corners of Popular Amusements continued on Saturday night (9/22) at the Riverfront Theater, with performances by Conor Oberst and Van Dyke Parks. Oberst performed songs both solo and with the Mystic Valley Band, and was joined by Klara Söderberg of First Aid Kit (who play Metro on Monday (9/24)) for "Southern State" and "Lua."

More pictures from Day 2 of BCoPA (Day 1 can be found HERE), Conor's full setlist, and some videos are below...

Continue reading "Brilliant Corners of Popular Amusements in pics: Night 2 --- (Conor Oberst & Van Dyke Parks)"

photos by James Richards IV, words by Jenn Ross

Alabama Shakes @ Metro on 8.01.2012

On Wednesday night (8/1) Alabama Shakes, First Aid Kit, Dry the River, and Filligar played a pre-Lollapalooza, Nelarusky fundraiser at Metro.

It's 6:37 at the Metro and I'm copping a squat up on the balcony waiting for the magic to happen. Me...and the 57 other people who caught the early bird special to take advantage of this four band lineup - all to really check out the first Lollapalooza "after" show, the Alabama Shakes.

Filligar kicked off the night with some country-blooded rock 'n roll. The foursome hit the stage like the place was packed and managed to wrangle in a few stragglers waiting by the door.

...Time out momentarily to acknowledge this organization, Nelarusky. Had they not been around, this show wouldn't be possible. Check out their website and note their awesome charitable work. Tonight's show raised $40,000 to help support the Special Olympics. Special thanks to their Global Messenger, Christine Maxwell, for coming out to thank all of the supporters and promoting her own practice in 19 different competing sports...

Dry the River pulled together a huge range of styles (Fleet Foxes meet Elliot Smith-slash-male Warpaint in my mind) to create something cohesive and new.

I went into this show only having heard that First Aid Kit is "awkward live." Being an awkward female myself, I was intrigued by how strange this trio could really be. They did come off as being a bit lifeless in their body movements, but were far from awkward musically. Their upbeat folk-rock and powerful vocals sounded at home in the mid-sized venue, which they'll be headlining next month.

After a brief set changeover, headliners the Alabama Shakes took the stage. They blew through about twenty songs before their three song encore, including all of Boys and Girls and both sides of their Live At Third Man Records 7". Frontwoman Brittany Howard lead the roots rock team with Janis Joplin-like force, but it's only a vague likeness. To the fellow-concertgoer I spoke with, I shall see your Otis Redding and hold there. Her tones and temperament ranged from the softest whisper to raging screams, impressively displaying her raw sense of self. Inside every Shakes song there seems to be this personal struggle of insecurity and self-doubt, but then this convulsion of confidence comes over Brittany and she pushes through, not giving a shit what anyone says.

All in all? Four bands, one very strange tasting beer, two new friends, one new t-shirt, zero photo booth pics, and a helluva good night at the Metro. See? Good things do happen to those who give back. Thank you Nelarusky. And Christine Maxwell. And all the bands that made the evening possible. And the fans who donated to the cause...

More pictures from the 8/1 Metro show continue below...

Continue reading "Alabama Shakes, First Aid Kit, Dry the River & Filligar played Metro (pics, review)"

by Parker Langvardt, photos by James Richards IV

The sun baked the lawns and wide streets of downtown Chicago's Grant Park as Lollapalooza 2012 started off on Friday with bands on all stages minus the two main stages at either end of the park. Aside from the stages, fences, booths, and some Lollapalooza signage, the park remained fairly untransformed for the festival.

I caught the very end of First Aid Kit's set, and at the time entirely forgot the duo's Swedish nationality due to the accent they sang with, closer to a mild Southern US drawl. The softness in their voices gave way to an excited and slightly jarring scream before one of the final choruses. I walked to the south end of the park for The Growlers. Vocalist Brooks Nielsen's nasally twang was the constant as they shifted through relaxed and eclectic styles of rock.

Chiptune quartet Anamanaguci played at the shaded Google Play stage, with a recorded keyboard backing their synthy guitars. Their instrumental electro-punk would make a great soundtrack for a pixelated arcade racing game.

Yellow Ostrich's upbeat indie rock was made slightly more diverse by drummer Michael Tapper's focus on clean drum sounds (no snare buzz) and rattling auxiliary percussion. Alex Schaaf began one song by creating a slightly off-putting guitar loop, which he managed to fit a pleasant vocal melody over before the instruments transitioned into their usual style.

Back at the north end of the park, The Black Angels vamped on heavy southern blues rock as vocalist Alex Maas shook a tambourine and sang with a slight Southern accent and a bit of vibrato. The guitars were dirty when loud, and psychedelic when soft or soloing. They touched on standard blues progressions with choppy, reverb-soaked guitar.

Tame Impala

Tame Impala's floating melodies are vaguely similar to a variety of classic rock and pop bands, but their choice of tone obscures it in a psychedelic haze. They performed their hard swinging new single "Elephant", which twists through strange transitions in what is definitely their most complex and heavy work yet, though it did not sound as thick as the recording. There were some minor technical difficulties - Kevin Parker's guitar seemed to short out and he mentioned that he thought one of his pedals was melting (presumably the electronics inside), though his tone remained similar to their recordings.

Perry's electronic stage, upgraded from it's previous tent status, was packed all day with mainstream electronic offerings. Considering the bass dropped every time I walked by, it was fitting that SBTRKT's set took place at the Google Play stage instead, with their chilled tones - largely created live on keyboards - and varied rhythms, which were often played on drums by producer Aaron Jerome. Sampha contributed vocals throughout the set.

Passion Pit

Though they cancelled a few shows, Passion Pit returned to Chicago to play a club show at House of Blues and a set at Lolla on Friday. Frontman Michael Angelakos appeared in good spirits as he greeted the crowd. They opened with the pulsing drums and bold synth of "Take a Walk," which sounded like a near-reproduction of the recording. I then traversed the festival grounds to catch The Shins, who were in fine form. They took some songs a slower pace than I anticipated. James Mercer embellished some of his vocals when he wasn't accompanied by lead guitarist Jessica Dobson's singing.

Five minutes prior to Black Sabbath's set, Ozzy Osbourne's laugh was heard over the PA, followed by sounds of rain. Unfortunately, what followed were only videos of the band and brief samples of their music. Ozzy was heard once again, and the curtain raised for three-fourths of the original Black Sabbath to play classic doom metal piece "Black Sabbath". It was slightly slower than Ozzy seemed to want to take it, hedging ahead at times. His cries of "Oh no, God, please help me" were convincing enough, though I'm not sure he could ever recreate the terror in his voice that was first heard over 40 years ago, especially in sobriety.

Ozzy played harmonica throughout "The Wizard", and urged the crowd to clap during the time-shifting "Behind the Wall of Sleep," saying, "Come on, you fuckers!" They wrapped up their Black Sabbath portion of the set with "NIB," beginning with Geezer Butler's wah'ed out bass. Tony Iommi played masterfully throughout, leading off the vaguely Latin sludge of "Into The Void" with precision. He used more modern sounding effects on "Electric Funeral", which were paired by Bill Ward replacement Tommy Clufetos' clicky drums. The former Alice Cooper, Ted Nugent, and Rob Zombie drummer was given a drum solo prior to "Iron Man," which he blasted through on his two bass drums. I felt this was kind of a slight to Ward, and totally unnecessary as many drum solos are, but it did hype up the crowd, who weren't loud enough for Ozzy. "I can't fucking hear you!", he screamed more than once. And that was the end of the first of three long, hot days in Chicago.

Check out Black Sabbath's setlist HERE. Check out more pictures from Day One, The Afghan Whigs, Metric, and M83 included, HERE. Pictures from Day Two are HERE. More about the fest, and day three pictures, coming soon.

Lollapalooza 2012 has revealed the full schedule for their 3-day festival, set to take place from August 3-5 in Grant Park. Check it out HERE.

A bunch of official aftershows have also been announced, happening from August 1-5. Here's a number of them (more TBA, including unofficial shows):

August 1
Alabama Shakes, First Aid Kit, Dry The River, Filligar @ Metro
Delta Spirit, FIDLAR @ Lincoln Hall

August 2
Passion Pit, GIVERS, Kishi Bashi @ House of Blues
Kids These Days, Overdoz @ Schubas
Dr. Dog, Kevin Devine, The Dunwells @ Lincoln Hall
Zedd, Gus K, DJ Gordo, DJ Torio @ The Mid

August 3
Bear in Heaven, YAWN @ the Empty Bottle
NERO (DJ Set), Die Antwoord, Anamanaguchi @ Congress Theater
Frank Ocean @ Metro
tUnE-yArDs, Washed Out @ House of Blues
The Black Angels, Night Beats @ Double Door
The War on Drugs, Milo Greene @ Schubas
Blind Pilot, Kopecky Family Band @ Lincoln Hall
Porter Robinson, Madeon @ The Mid
The Growlers, JEFF the Brotherhood @ Subterranean
Paper Diamond, Minnesota @ Bottom Lounge

August 4
White Rabbits, Dum Dum Girls, Oberhofer @ Cubby Bear
Doomtree, Naledge of Kidz In The Hall @ the Empty Bottle
Zeds Dead, Big Gigantic, Midnight Conspiracy, Big Chocolate @ Congress Theater
The Afghan Whigs @ Metro
Of Monsters & Men, Yellow Ostrich @ House of Blues
Trampled By Turtles, The Devil Makes Three @ Double Door
Childish Gambino @ the Vic
The Temper Trap, Poliça @ Park West
Gary Clark Jr., LP @ Schubas
Twin Shadow @ Lincoln Hall
Calvin Harris, Nathan Scott @ The Mid
The Big Pink @ Subterranean
Bombay Bicycle Club, Hey Rosetta! @ Bottom Lounge

August 5
Chairlift w/ Alt-J @ the Empty Bottle
The Walkmen @ Lincoln Hall

photos by Sarah Frankie Linder

First Aid Kit @ Lincoln Hall on 4/06/2012

On Friday night (April 6), First Aid Kit and their current tour mates Peggy Sue hit Chicago's Lincoln Hall for a sold-out show. A full set of pictures are in this post. If you missed First Aid Kit this time around (and/or when they made their Chicago debut at the Vic), you'll have another chance to see them at Lollapalooza 2012. More pictures below..

Continue reading "First Aid Kit & Peggy Sue played Lincoln Hall (pics)"

As seen on BrooklynVegan, this year's Lolla lineup includes everthing hinted on the #LOLLA ads, and much more....

Continue reading "Lollapalooza 2012 lineup announced (Black Sabbath, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Shins, Passion Pit, JC Brooks, much more)"

First Aid Kit @ the Vic 11/14/2011 (photo by Brandon Lee)

Currently on tour with Lykke Li, fellow Swedes First Aid Kit kicked things off last night (11/14) at the Vic Theatre in Lakeview.

Time Out Chicago was there:

It was a veritable Swedish invasion at the Vic Theatre Monday night, as two of the nation's most melodious exports took turns onstage. Sisterly folk duo First Aid Kit started the evening out, debuting tracks from an upcoming record produced by Bright Eyes' Mike Mogis. Joined only by a drummer, the duo fleshed out their acoustic guitar and keyboard-driven arrangements with beautiful two-part harmonies. A new song entitled "The Lion's Roar" was the set's high point--a ballad featuring pastoral lyrics atop a bed of lucious mellotron. Though little more than a taste of things to come, First Aid Kit's set was a delicious tease of what seems destined to be Sweden's next big thing to hit American shores.

Check out their new video for "The Lion's Roar," and all tour dates below..

Continue reading "First Aid Kit played the Vic, announce show @ Lincoln Hall"

Lykke Li @ Metro in May (more by Josh Darr)

Lykke Li recently toured though Chicago on the heels of her newest LP Wounded Rhymes, and has just today announced plans to return in the fall.

The Vic will play host to the Swedish songstress, and tour mates First Aid Kit on November 14th. Tickets will go on sale shortly.
Tickets go on sale this Saturday, at 10AM CST.

Lykke will also be in Chicago next week to perform on Saturday (8/6) of Lollapalooza, and play an aftershow the previous night at the House of Blues with Foster the People.

Before heading to Chicago, she'll perform the Wounded Rhymes track "Youth Knows No Pain" on the August 4th edition of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

You can view all 2011 tour dates, and more here.