Delicate Steve @ 4Knots Fest 2012 (more by Chris La Putt)

As seen on BrooklynVegan, Delicate Steve will be embarking on a spring U.S. tour. That tour includes a stop at South by Southwest in Austin, TX, and will tag Chicago for a performance at Subterranean on March 25. Like Pioneers will open the show, and advance tickets are on sale now.

All Delicate Steve dates and the music video for "Redeemer" from 2012's Positive Force are below...

Continue reading "Delicate Steve playing Subterranean on tour"

The Promise Ring @ Metro in February (more by Grant MacAllister)

As mentioned, The Promise Ring are one of the many acts performing at Riot Fest Chicago 2012 next weekend (September 14-16). Tickets for the festival are still available. TPR will also be playing an aftershow at the Bottom Lounge on September 15, with Like Pioneers. This will serve as their second Chicago club show since reuniting in late-2011. Advance tickets are on sale now.

All known Promise Ring dates and a stream of their 1997 LP, Nothing Feels Good are below...

Continue reading "The Promise Ring playing Bottom Lounge during Riot Fest"

by Bill Pearis

Chicago's own Like Pioneers, a supergroup (well, we think so) featuring members of Bound Stems and Chin Up Chin Up, released their new album Oh, Magic this week which you can stream below. You can hear it -- or most of it, maybe all of it -- live tonight at the band's record release show at The Burlington Bar with The Runnies. $5 at the door, starts at 10PM.

The band will then pack up their gear and head east for their first ever NYC shows. Good luck! Album stream is below.

Continue reading "Like Pioneers released 'Oh, Magic' (stream), playing record release show tonight at The Burlington"

photos by Matt Ziegler, words by Zach Pollack

Hum @ A.V. Fest

Saturday (9/10) afternoon, the A.V. Club's inaugural A.V. Fest kicked off in a block party style setup, steps from Hideout.

I arrived about halfway through Chicago-based band Like Pioneers' set and enjoyed what I heard of their careful mix of indie and roots rock. The small, early crowd was mostly milling about grabbing lunch from the gourmet food trucks inside of the fest, and actively searching for a shady spot to park it. It wasn't until Maritime started to play around 2:30PM, that the festival grounds became hoppin'.

Maritime was formed in 2003 out of the ashes of two beloved bands: The Dismemberment Plan and The Promise Ring, but rather than just repeating their past, the group bring forth some infectious indie pop with a slight dance-y tinge to it. With only six bands on each day, A.V. Fest is able to both stack the lineup full of amazing acts, and give each band a full hour or more on stage. Toting 4LPs and 1EP to their name, Maritime were able to make great use of the large chunk of time they had been given. The crowd grew larger and larger as their set went on, and everyone watching appeared to be very into it (myself included).

Up next was the Clem Snide frontman Eef Barzelay playing a set of mostly Journey covers, fashioned in his own way. To preface this very strange sounding happening, note that Barzelay previously covered Journey's 1983 power ballad "Faithfully" for A.V. Club's 'Undercover' series. Though I can't say I was really interested in the Journey aspect of things, his smooth voice really carried the performance through for me. He played some of his own songs too, all on a ukulele.

In a major turn of mood, genre, and mostly volume, Chicago's Disappears, who also played Lollapalooza this summer, were next (complete with semi-recent addition Steve Shelley of Sonic Youth on drums to help fill out their massive sound). They blend shoegaze and garage rock like no other, featuring the shouting vocal stylings of frontman Brian Case (ex-90 Day Men/The Ponys). Their face-melting, tight-as-could-be set went by so quickly that I didn't even realize an hour or so had passed. The band's most recent LP Guider, came out this past January via Chicago's Kranky Records. Stay tuned for what these guys have in store for the future. They are not a band to miss.

The Thermals

Hutch, Kathy, and Westin, formally known as The Thermals began their knock out set at 7PM last night. They began by playing their awesome 2010 record Personal Life from start to finish, then hitting the crowd with a few b-sides, followed by some older tracks. The power trio cranked out every ounce of energy they had in order to make their set memorable and exciting. The musicianship of all three members really shone through, especially when just about the entire crowd was moving to their songs. Before jumping into their last song of the set, frontman Hutch Harris told the crowd how psyched they were to play right before Hum, and shortly after, that's exactly what we got.

After watching stagehands load massive amps and gear, the reunited Hum took to the stage at 8:30PM. The Champaign band have been pretty quiet for 10 years, but Chicago is spoiled. Hum returned at the beginning of 2009 for a couple of reunion shows at Double Door and then again in 2010 to play a free Memorial Day show in Millennium Park - a big treat for Chicagoians then, and now (let's keep the yearly tradition going!). Formed in 1989, Hum bring 90s alternative rock and post-hardcore to the table and are still good at it. The band sounded full and tight, while the massive crowd ate up every note that poured out of the speakers. No word on if the band will do a full reunion tour like Pavement and Sunday fest headliners Archers of Loaf, (review coming soon), but they did play High Dive one night before A.V Fest, and they'll be playing at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin in November.

Hum's two Illinois show setlists and more pictures from most of Saturday, below...

Continue reading "A.V. Fest Day 1 in pics & review (Hum, The Thermals, Disappears, Eef Barzelay, Maritime & more)"

Joan of Arc @ The Market Hotel in 2008 (more by Leia Jospe)

today in Chicago
* Joan of Arc, Azita @ SummerSonic
* Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival (Day 2)
* JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, Lou Pride @ SPACE
* Death Ships, Like Pioneers, Blasted Diplomats @ Schubas
* Corrosion of Conformity, Coliseum, The Atlas Moth, Hunters @ Reggie's

What else?

As previously announced, the A.V. Club will be throwing their own festival in the outdoor space near Hideout on September 10th & 11th.

The two-day fest; simply dubbed A.V. Fest has now seen the lineup additions of Hum(!), Maritime, Call Me Lightning, and Like Pioneers (who will be playing out this weekend).

Previously announced acts include: Archers of Loaf, The Thermals, Tokyo Police Club, Eef Barzelay of Clem Snide, and Telekinesis.

They've promised an update (set for next Thursday) announcing the final three acts, splitting the lineup into two days, and debuting information on ticketing for the event.

Stay tuned.

The Cave Singers

today in Chicago
* Wye Oak, Callers @ Schubas
* Two Door Cinema Club @ Park West
* The Cave Singers, Lia Ices @ Lincoln Hall
* She Rides, Soy City Stranglers @ Treasure Town
* Cults, Magic Kids, Superhumanoids @ Empty Bottle
* Todd Barry, Neil Hamburger, Brendan Walsh @ Hideout (Late Show)
* Todd Barry, Neil Hamburger, Brendan Walsh @ Hideout (Early Show)
* World/Inferno Friendship Society, The Stranger, The Fuckers @ Reggie's
* Mannequin Men, Lover!, Hollows @ Viaduct Theatre (Free Show w/ RSVP)
* Like Pioneers, BOAT, The Buddyrevelles, Milagres, Creeping Weeds @ Double Door

What else?