photos by Cory Dewald

Big Boi // Killer Mike at Park West on 5.01.2013

On Wednesday night (5/1), Big Boi brought his Shoes For Running tour with fellow Dungeon Family member Killer Mike through Chicago for a performance at Park West. The show was originally set to take place at the Vic Theatre, but was moved to the smaller and nearby venue at the last minute. Aside from his great solo material, Big Boi's 25-song set also featured many OutKast favorites, including "So Fresh, So Clean," "Ms. Jackson," and "The Whole World." He brought out Killer Mike for the latter of those three, which was fitting as the track threw much attention Mike's way when it was released in 2001. Did you make it out to Park West? If so, how was it? A set of pictures and Big Boi's full setlist from the 5/1 show are in this post. More below...

Continue reading "Big Boi & Killer Mike played Park West (pics, setlist)"

Devendra Banhart @ MHoW in February (more by Fred Pessaro // BBG)

Devendra Banhart welcomed his very solid, eighth studio album, Mala, last week via Nonesuch Records. If you haven't gotten around to listening yet, the LP is available on Spotify. You can also stream the album tracks "Never Seen Such Good Things" and "Mi Negrita" at the bottom of this post.

Banhart will be embarking on a North American tour in support of Mala this May. That tour includes a performance at Park West on May 31. Ticketing information for the Chicago show is forthcoming, but check JAM Productions' website for updates.

All Devendra Banhart tour dates and those song streams are below...

Continue reading "Devendra Banhart playing Park West on North American tour"

photos by Kirstie Shanley

Aimee Mann at Park West on 11.14.2012

On Wednesday night (11/14) Aimee Mann kicked off a two-night stand at Chicago's Park West with support from tourmate Ted Leo. The singer-songwriter is currently on the road in support of her recently released LP, Charmer, which she played more than half of last night. Ted Leo joined Aimee and her band for the album cut "Living a Lie," a track that features vocals from James Mercer.

They do it again tonight (Thursday, November 15) at Park West; tickets are still available. Check out some more pictures and the setlist from the 11/14 show at Park West below...

Continue reading "Aimee Mann & Ted Leo played Park West (Night 1 pics, setlist)"

M. Ward @ Park West in May (more by Sarah Frankie Linder)

M. Ward, who recently visited Chicago to play Park West with the Lee Ranaldo Band, is beginning to announce a fall tour. Aside from his performances at October festivals like Austin City Limits and the Corona Capital Festival, Ward has a show in Los Angeles on October 21 and a show at Chicago's Park West on October 25. Unlike last time he played the venue, this performance will be a solo gig. Tickets go on sale this Saturday (9/8) at 10AM CST.

Ward's most recent record, A Wasteland Companion, hit stores in April via Merge. Take a listen to the LP and check out all known tour dates below...

Continue reading "M. Ward touring, playing a solo show at Park West"

Michael Kiwanuka @ Prospect Park in June (BKLYN) (more by Jessica Amaya)

UK soul singer Michael Kiwanuka is headed to Chicago in August to perform on Friday (8/3) of Lollapalooza. The talented vocalist hit the US earlier this year and played a few East Coast shows. Kiwanuka will be returning to the US in September for a proper North American tour, which winds its way to Chicago on September 26 for a show at Park West. Bahamas and YUNA will act as support, and tickets go on sale this Saturday (7/14) at 10AM CST.

All Michael Kiwanuka dates are listed below, along with a music video.

Continue reading "Michael Kiwanuka playing Park West on fall tour"

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 James Richards IV

On Thursday night (5/17), Mayer Hawthorne & The County played Park West with their Stones Throw labelmates The Stepkids. A full set of pictures from Thursday night's show (including one of the setlist) below...

Continue reading "Mayer Hawthorne & The County and The Stepkids @ Park West (pics)"

As mentioned, TBS' Just for Laughs comedy festival is set to take place from June 12-17 at venues throughout the city. The fest has added a bunch of new performers to the schedule, which already includes Stephen Merchant, Kevin Smith, Patton Oswalt, John Oliver, Jeff Ross, Aziz Ansari, Mike Birbiglia, Brian Posehn, Hannibal Buress, Nick Offerman, and others.

It now also includes Sarah Silverman, Janeane Garofalo, Scott Adsit, Jon Glaser, Kevin Dorff, and Jet Eveleth...

June 13 - Janeane Garofalo, Kyle Kinane @ UP Comedy Club

June 13 - Scott Adsit, Jon Glaser & Kevin Dorff @ iO Theatre

June 14 - Scott Adsit, Jon Glaser & Kevin Dorff @ iO Theatre

June 15 - Scott Adsit, Jet Eveleth @ iO Theatre

June 16 - Sarah Silverman @ The Chicago Theatre (Early & Late)

As announced, TBS' Just for Laughs comedy festival is set to take place at venues throughout Chicago from June 12-17. To the fantastic initial lineup of Stephen Merchant, Kevin Smith, Patton Oswalt, John Oliver, Jeff Ross, Aziz Ansari, Mike Birbiglia, and others, the fest have added a bunch of new performances.

Here's some festival updates:

Kyle Kinane is performing at UP Comedy Club on June 12.

Pete Holmes and Brian Posehn's The Nerd Show visits UP for an early and late performance on June 13, as well as a show on June 14.

Patton Oswalt gets a late show (10PM) at the Vic on June 14. His early show (7:30PM) is sold out.

Hannibal Buress has been added to the fest, with a June 14 show at Park West.

TJ Miller's Performance Anxiety is happening late night at UP from June 14-16.

Kelly Carlin's A Carlin Home Companion takes place at UP on June 15.

Nick Offerman (aka Ron Swanson)'s American Ham hits the Vic on June 16.

AND Bill Burr, Steve Byrne, and Angelo Tsarouchas were added to Vince Vaughn's comedy showcase, taking place at The Chicago Theatre on June 17.

words by Jenn Ross, photos by James Richards IV

Of Monsters & Men @ Park West

it takes a pretty great band to get me to head into the dank, black pit of chicago's park west. this is my least favorite of all the windy city's hoppin' venues, and it is a shit show at it's finest. i feel like christian bale is going to come tearing around the corner with a butcher knife and a fingernail of coke at any moment ala american psycho. not a very fitting vibe for most bands, really, but they continue to book shows here and call it historic, and if of monsters and men is playing there (on 3/30), then there i must go. (and when in doubt, cover everything in white christmas lights - they fix most evils.)

first, let me give some credit to the wee bit of humble pie that opened for monsters. lay low is another icelandic vocal beauty, though you couldn't pay her to know it. her songs were sweet and simple. she seemed to stumble over her english when she was speaking, but you couldn't help but love her sheer modesty. her emotions were dripping down her tim burton-esque black and red striped guitar strapped sleeve as she coerced the audience to buy her cd...per her managers request. so honest. so pure. quite the gem of an opener. if you like lisa hannigan, you'd dig her.

lay low timidly started the sing-along that would continue throughout the night, with "the backbone," and got everyone's mouths churning for the la-la-la-ing and hey! hey!-ing that was to follow. enter side note: singing along at shows is quite the pet peeve of mine, but even i broke my rule and joined in on the fun for "little talks."

of monsters and men sold out the park west based nearly entirely on a four song lp released in december 2011. this snippet of songs may be the four poppiest of their first full-length album 'my head is an animal,' but the rest of the album pulls together the range of their sound. many thanks to npr for selecting 'animal' to preview prior to it's longed-for release date of april third; not to mention the rest of the online music sharing sites like spotify and pandora, that even brought in an adorable vest-clad couple all the way from alberta, canada to catch a glimpse of these guys. this show exemplified eleven of the albums tracks, plus one surprise flashback in their encore. i will return to this when the time is right. (hey! hey!)

the show opened with "dirty paws," a new song from 'animal,' and started like any other standard concert (tuning, lights, crowd, clapping, song, intro)...and immediately took a turn for the unique when the band paused to acknowledge a front-row super fan with his face donned in a monster mask. not only did they stop to have a chat, but guitarist, Brynjar. actually pulled out his camera and took a pic of this guy. this was only a sign of things to come...

"finner" followed, hyping the crowd to the familiar track and nanna's and raggi's sweet sounds. hyping the crowd, in this case, was pretty amusing on its own. recap: all-ages, sold-out, i'm two rows back on the floor...this was the most docile and polite, yet exuberantly awe-struck head-bobbing audience i've ever seen. there was at least six inches of space between every person on the floor, no dirty looks, no thrown elbows, no tripping on beer bottles. somehow monsters brought their icelandic charm to the park west and through vocal osmosis made everyone behave like civilians...and we all had a great time.

in case you weren't one of the nine hundred folks who made it through these doors, nanna's style epitomizes what urban outfitters yearns to accomplish. between her hot pink dr. marten ankle boots, black tights, denim button-down shirt, and signature patterned wool cardigan and hat, she tops it all off with a loose side braid that seems to actually be a cover for a buzzed left side of her head and moderately gauged ear piercings. she's indie-folk at it's finest. essentially the band appeared like a rummage sale gone right.

aside from their album-quality sound on stage, their perfectly careless attitude really cherried this sundae. singing along to themselves, swaying slightly to their own beats, they floated along like fishing bobbers down a river. genuine appreciation was written all over their consistently baby-soft faces, and if there was any doubt how much they like their fans, arni's mom even knitted little monster keychains for them to hand out along the way. dude-in-monster-mask deservedly received one, followed by (at the band's request) asomeone wearing red socks. somehow a brunette in gray stripes managed this, but nonetheless - who gives out homemade chotchkies at a show? this band! i'm officially in it for the long haul with 'em...

the enormity of the bad is completely lost in their sound. though i only know them to have six members, a seventh joined on stage for the duration and several members played multiple instruments throughout the twelve-song set. no sound ever became overwhelming, with the exception of arnar's drums midway through "beneath my bed," that seemed a bit ferocious for the song...but passionately so. he quickly regained his ohm and beat away the rest of the show smoothly. i've heard them consistently compared to arcade fire - probably due to the similarity in size, but if i had to compare them (which i'm so fond of doing) to anyone i'd say they're more like an indie-folk-pop icelandic female-led mumford and sons.

now that i've chatted my way through the essence of the show, i'll close with their encore - an unexpected cover of the cure's "close to me." raggi's tender voice initiated a completely different tone, and the band as a whole so successfully recreates this classic that i almost forgot how it originally went. they did to 'close to me' what jose gonzales did to the knifes' "heartbeats." sans sony bravia commercial. wrap it all up with "lakehouse," watch nanna scour stage for sweater, cue lights, enter lobby, purchase awesomely discreet band t-shirt for twenty bucks, and head home...

--

Of Monsters & Men are now out on tour, and if you happen to be reading this on 4/5, note that their show from Brooklyn tonight will be streaming live.

More pictures and the setlist from the Chicago show, below...

Continue reading "Of Monsters & Men played Park West w/ Lay Low (pics, setlist), streaming NYC show online (tonight)"

Gotye

When his North American tour dates were first announced on BrooklynVegan, Gotye's Chicago show was set for April 3rd at Park West. He's since sold out the 900-capacity venue (no surprise there) and has been moved to the much larger Riviera Theatre. The date will stay as is, all Park West tickets will be honored, and more go on sale this Saturday (2/4), at 10AM CST.

An updated list of 2012 tour dates and video footage from a recent KCRW session, below..

Continue reading "Gotye sold out Park West, moved to the Riv (updated dates)"

these are only SOME of Mucca Pazza's members...

Chicago's self proclaimed circus-punk marching band Mucca Pazza are kicking off a string of scattered summer, and fall dates starting tonight in Minneapolis, MN.

As part of this tour, they'll play three hometown shows by the time mid-October rolls around. The first of three, is an August 19th performance at Lincoln Hall as supported by fellow Chicagoan Daniel Knox. Then they'll play a free show at the IL Centennial Monument in Logan Sq., with Lord of the Yum Yum on September 18th. The third, is a brand new show (tix not on sale as of yet) at Park West on October 13th.

Tickets for Lincoln Hall are on sale now. The RSVP is also open for their ILCM show.

You can view all 2011 tour dates below..

Continue reading "Mucca Pazza are touring, playing 3 Chi. shows by mid-Oct."

photos by Josh Darr

Donald Glover @ Park West

On the heels of his lastest; the Childish Gambino EP, Donald Glover played Park West on May 18th. Offered as a FREE download via his website (IAMDONALD.com), the EP drummed up a mass of support for a full on US tour.

Dubbed the 'IAMDONALD TOUR', the month-long jaunt hit all of the major cities including: New York, LA, Austin, Philly, Boston, Toronto, Chicago, and MORE!

According to an exclusive interview Donald did with TheHipHopUpdate.com, a Childish Gambino LP will be released this coming September. Check out the video below.

Photographer; Josh Darr was in attendance to photograph his Park West performance.
Head below to view some more of his shots...

Continue reading "Donald Glover(aka Childish Gambino) played Park West (pics)"

Beans - End It All LP cover

today in Chicago
* Emilie Autumn @ Metro
* The Dan Band @ House of Blues
* The Bridge, Galactic @ Park West
* Bobby Long, Julia Klee @ Schubas
* Wild Nothing, Abe Vigoda, The Field Auxiliary @ Lincoln Hall
* Beans, Serengeti, Tomorrow Kings, Skech185, DJ Uncle El @ Subterranean

UPDATE: Emilie Autumn has been canceled due to illness. The show is rescheduled for 3/13, and all tickets will be honored.

What else?

Gang of Four @ Webster Hall 2/8/2011 (more by Chris La Putt)

today in Chicago
* The Church @ Park West
* Gang of Four, Hollerado @ Metro
* Brilliant Pebbles, J+J+J, Windbreaker @ Empty Bottle
* Robyn, Diamond Rings, Natalia Kills @ Riviera Theatre
* Soft Speaker, Coupleskate, Astro Fang @ Beat Kitchen

According to Robyn's Website, she had to cancel her two most recent shows (2/8 in Columbus, OH), and (2/9 in Detroit, MI) due to health problems. I hope that the extra days off before her show at the Riv will lead to an amazing performance.

What else?