Giraffage @ BV-SXSW 2013 Official Showcase (more by Amanda Hatfield)

San Francisco-based beatmaker Giraffage and Chicago's Mister Lies will be joining forces for a summer North American tour. That tour kicks off with a performance at Schubas on June 18. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (4/26) at noon CST, and one more opener is TBA.

All Giraffage // Mister Lies dates, a tour poster, and Giraffage's new remix of Owl Eyes' "Closure" are below...

Continue reading "Giraffage & Mister Lies beginning summer tour at Schubas"

Split Single

Split Single is the project of Evanston, IL native Jason Narducy (of the Bob Mould Band, Verbow, ex-Telekinesis, etc.). Narducy entered the studio in the summer of 2012 to track a full-length LP with Britt Daniel (Spoon, Divine Fits) on bass and Jon Wurster (Superchunk, Mountain Goats, Bob Mould Band) on drums. There aren't many details available regarding that album, but Narducy recently began streaming three tracks from it. You can sample his sunny pop by checking out "Fragmented World," "Waiting For The Sun," and "Last Goodbye" at the bottom of this post.

Split Single have a lone upcoming show at Schubas on July 27. Narducy will be joined by Tim Remis (of Sweet Cobra) on bass and Neil Hennessy (of The Lawrence Arms, Smoking Popes) on drums. The trio recently completed a mini-Midwest tour with Divine Fits. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

Those Split Single song streams are below...

Continue reading "Jason Narducy's Split Single playing Schubas in July, prepping debut LP (song streams)"

Guards @ NYC's the Slipper Room, November 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

NYC outfit Guards welcomed their super catchy, debut full-length LP, In Guards We Trust, earlier this year and did quite a bit of touring in support of it. After they play Coachella this weekend (and next), Guards will hit the road once again, with UK group Palma Violets. As discussed, that tour includes a performance at Schubas on May 1. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are still available. Both acts will also be back in Chicago on Sunday, August 4 to perform at Lollapalooza 2013.

All Guards dates and their brand new video for the LP track "Ready To Go" are below...

Continue reading "Guards opening for Palma Violets at Schubas (before they both play Lollapalooza)"

Still Corners @ Mercury Lounge during CMJ 2011 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

UK group Still Corners are gearing up for the release of their second album, Strange Pleasures, which is due out on May 3 via Sub Pop. Today, they've shared the music video for the LP's lead single "Berlin Lovers." Check out the video and download the track (via a widget in exchange for your email address) at the bottom of this post.

Still Corners will be embarking on a summer North American tour after Strange Pleasures hits stores. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on June 7 with a TBA opener. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (4/5) at noon CST.

All Still Corners tour dates, and that music video // download widget are below...

Continue reading "Still Corners playing Schubas on summer North American tour"

Steve Mason, who was the frontman of British outfit The Beta Band, is set to welcome his new, politically-charged solo album, Monkey Minds in the Devil's Time, next week (on 4/9) via Domino imprint Double Six. Get a feel for the LP by checking out the music videos for tracks "Oh My Lord" and "Fight Them Back" at the bottom of this post. Steve Mason will be touring North America in support of his forthcoming album later this month. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on April 30. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

All Steve Mason tour dates and those videos are below...

Continue reading "former Beta Band frontman Steve Mason playing Schubas, releasing new LP"

Smith Westerns @ MHoW, January 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Smith Westerns are gearing up for the release of their third album, Soft Will, which is due out on June 11 via Mom + Pop. In order to test out some of their new material, they'll be playing a last-minute, all ages show at Schubas this Friday (4/5). Tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

Take a listen to Soft Will's lead single "Varsity" below...

Continue reading "Smith Westerns playing Schubas this Friday (on sale now)"

photos by Milos Markicevic

Darwin Deez at Schubas on 3.22.2013

Darwin Deez (aka Darwin Smith) brought his current tour in support of Songs For Imaginative People through Chicago this past Friday (3/22) for a sold-out show at Schubas. Caged Animals and Rites opened the show, and pictures of all three acts are in this post. More below...

Continue reading "Darwin Deez, Caged Animals & Rites played Schubas (pics)"

Secret Chiefs 3 @ NYC's Terminal 5 in 2009 (more by Zach Dilgard)

San Francisco-based instrumental collective Secret Chiefs 3, led by former Mr. Bungle // Faith No More guitarist Trey Spruance, are beginning to announce a spring North American tour. So far, only a handful of dates have been announced, including a performance at Schubas on May 21. The show is being billed as "An Evening With... Secret Chiefs 3," and tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (3/29) at noon CST. Get weird.

UPDATE: They'll also be playing the Beat Kitchen on May 22. Tickets go on sale this Saturday (3/30) at 10AM.

SC3 don't have any new music to share at the moment, but 2004's Book of Horizons has been said to be the first part of the Book of Truth trilogy. Look for additional parts to arrive in the near future.

All known Secret Chiefs 3 tour dates and a couple of videos are below...

Continue reading "Secret Chiefs 3 playing Schubas & Beat Kitchen on spring tour"

MS MR @ BV-SXSW 2013 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

NYC duo MS MR, who played a BrooklynVegan day party during SXSW, have announced that they'll be embarking on a spring North American tour in May. They'll first act as main support for Jessie Ware on a few of her April tour dates, and then will bring their headlining run through Chicago for a performance at Schubas on May 19. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

All MS MR tour dates and a couple of videos are below...

Continue reading "MS MR playing Schubas in May"

As seen on BrooklynVegan, wildly influential New Zealanders The Bats will be headed to the U.S. at the tail end of May to perform at Chaos in Tejas and NYC Popfest. After those festival dates, they'll tour their way to Chicago for a performance at Schuabs on June 9. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now, opener TBA. You may find yourself asking, "Who ARE The Bats?" Well, they formed in 1982, have kept the same four-member lineup since then, and have released eight studio albums and seven EPs, most of them via New Zealand's celebrated Flying Nun Records.

All Bats tour dates and a few videos are below...

Continue reading "New Zealand's The Bats playing Schubas in June"

UK quartet Peace are gearing up for the release of their debut LP, In Love, which is due out on March 25 via Columbia Records. That's its cover art above, and you can check out music videos for the LP tracks "Follow Baby" and "Wraith" at the bottom of this post. It's all pretty infectious rock in the same vein as Foals and Palma Violets.

Peace will be heading to the U.S. next week to perform at SXSW in Austin, TX, where they'll be playing a BrooklynVegan day party on Saturday (3/16) in the old Emo's space. They'll be back in the states again to play Sasquatch Festival in May, and are beginning to reveal some tour dates surrounding their appearance. One of those dates is a performance at Schubas on June 6. Ticketing information for the Chicago show is forthcoming, but check Schubas' concert calendar for updates. UPDATE: Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (3/8) at noon CST.

All Peace tour dates and those videos are below...

Continue reading "Peace playing Schubas in June, prepping new LP (streams)"

Lady Lamb the Beekeeper @ Knitting Factory (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Brooklyn's Lady Lamb the Beekeeper (aka Aly Spaltro) welcomed her great new album, Ripely Pine, last week via Ba Da Bing. You can take a listen to the LP in its entirety at the bottom of this post. The music video for Ripely Pine's "The Nothing Part II" is also below. Lady Lamb is set to head out on a North American tour in support of Ripely Pine with Xenia Rubinos this May. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on May 14. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (3/1) at noon CST.

All Lady Lamb the Beekeeper tour dates, a stream of Ripely Pine, and the music video for "The Nothing Part II" are below...

Continue reading "Lady Lamb the Beekeeper playing Schubas in May"

photos by Stan Golovchuk

The Residents at Schubas on 2.15.2013

This past weekend, art rock weirdos The Residents came through Chicago on their celebratory 40th anniversary tour for a pair of shows-- Schubas on February 15 and Lincoln Hall on February 16. Did you catch either of the two sold-out performances? Were they absolutely bonkers? We've got a set of pictures from their Friday night (2/15) show, live footage of "Mahogany Wood," and their full setlist from Lincoln Hall the following night in this post. More below...

Continue reading "The Residents played Schubas (pics, video)"

Widowspeak @ Kidrockers, January 2013 (more by Jessica Amaya)

Brooklyn (via Tacoma and Chicago) duo Widowspeak just recently welcomed their sophomore album, Almanac, via Captured Tracks. A complete stream of Almanac can be found at the bottom of this post. Widowspeak will be heading out on a North American tour in support of the LP this March. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on April 13. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

All Widowspeak tour dates and a stream of Almanac are below...

Continue reading "Widowspeak playing Schubas on North American tour"

White Mystery @ the Hideout, November 2012 (more by Sara Pieper)

Garage rock and Valentine's Day go hand-in-hand, right? If you just so happen to be of that school of thought, catch White Mystery, Absolutely Not, Twin Peaks, and Post Honeymoon at Schubas on Thursday, February 14. Advance tickets are on sale now, and the show is a benefit for the Chris Saathoff Foundation.

Brother-sister duo White Mystery are set to self-release their new album, Telepathic, on April 20. They've already shared "Jungle Cat," "Secret Garden," "Break a Sweat," and "Fun Times" from the LP, and all four tracks are available to stream at the bottom of this post. Telepathic is up for CD/LP preorder via the band's webstore.

A few streams from White Mystery's forthcoming LP are below...

Continue reading "White Mystery, Absolutely Not, Twin Peaks & more playing Schubas on Valentine's Day"

Palma Violets @ NYC's Pianos, 1/28/2012 (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

UK group Palma Violets, who recently made their Chicago debut at Schubas, have announced a spring North American tour surrounding their appearances at Coachella 2013. That tour will see the band headlining Schubas a second time, on May 1. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (2/08) at noon CST.

All Palma Violets tour dates and a couple of videos are below...

Continue reading "Palma Violets playing Schubas on North American tour"

DOWNLOAD: Doldrums - "Anomaly" (MP3)

Doldrums @ MHoW, September 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Montreal's Doldrums is set to release his new album, Lesser Evil, on February 26 via Arbutus Records. Grab Lesser Evil's lead single "Anomaly" at the top of this post and/or take a listen to the track below. Doldrums is beginning to reveal a spring North American tour in support of his forthcoming LP. Though only a few dates have been announced thus far, we do know that he'll headline Schubas on April 4 with support from Sean Nicholas Savage. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale TODAY (Friday, 2/01) at noon CST.

A stream of Doldrums' "Anomaly" is below...

Continue reading "Doldrums playing Schubas, releasing new LP (MP3)"

Brooklyn outfit Vietnam formed in 2004 and subsequently dissolved around 2008. On February 26, they'll release the follow-up to 2007's VietNam, titled an A.merican D.ream, via Mexican Summer. You can take a listen to their new single "Kitchen Kongas" at the bottom of this post. an A.merican D.ream's cover art and tracklisting are also below.

Vietnam wil be embarking on a spring U.S. tour in support of their forthcoming album. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on May 15. Ticketing information for the Chicago show is forthcoming, but check Schubas' concert calendar for updates.

All Vietnam tour dates, a stream of "Kitchen Kongas," and album info. for an A.merican D.ream are below...

Continue reading "Vietnam playing Schubas, releasing first LP in six-years"

DOWNLOAD: Colin Stetson - "High Above A Grey Green Sea" (MP3)

Experimental saxophone master Colin Stetson is set to release his new album, New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light, on April 30 via Constellation Records. Four of the album's 11-tracks feature guest vocals from Justin Vernon, who Stetson plays in Bon Iver with. Grab the album's lead single "High Above A Grey Green Sea" at the top of this post and/or stream it below. New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light's cover art and tracklisting are also below.

Colin Stetson will be supporting his forthcoming LP with a large international tour. That tour includes a performance at Schubas on May 16 with Justin Walter. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (2/01) at noon CST.

All tour dates, a stream of "High Above A Gray Green Sea," and album info. for New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light are below...

Continue reading "Colin Stetson playing Schubas, releasing new LP (w/ guest vocals from Justin Vernon)"

Marissa Nadler @ the Hideout, September 2011 (more by Ben Rodig)

Boston singer-songwriter Marissa Nadler has a few upcoming U.S. dates on her current 2013 tour schedule. One of those dates is a performance at Schubas on February 19 with support from Jesse Sykes & Phil Wandscher and one TBA opener. Advance tickets for the Chicago show are on sale now.

Nadler is currently working on the follow-up to her 2012 album The Sister. Back in November, she shared a great new demo called "You've got it all wrong." It's unclear if the track will appear on her forthcoming LP, but you can check it out below. She also recently teamed with Chicago songstress Angel Olsen for a cover of Richard and Linda Thompson's "My Dreams Have Withered and Died." That track is also available to stream at the bottom of this post.

All known Marissa Nadler tour dates and a couple of song streams are below...

Continue reading "Marissa Nadler playing Schubas with Jesse Sykes & Phil Wandscher"

Tickets for Autre Ne Veut's March 2 show at Schubas go on sale this Friday (1/25) at noon CST.

Tickets for Parenthetical Girls' March 30 show at the Empty Bottle go on sale this Friday at 10AM.

Tickets for Sky Ferreira and How To Dress Well's March 30 show at Schubas go on sale this Friday at noon.

Tickets for The Joy Formidable's April 2 show at the Vic go on sale this Saturday (1/26) at 10AM.

Tickets for Talib Kweli's April 13 show at the Double Door are on sale now.

Tickets for Akron/Family's April 16 show at the Empty Bottle go on sale this Friday at 10AM.

Tickets for Black Angels' April 19 show at the Vic go on sale this Saturday at 10AM.

Tickets for Wax Idols' April 20 show at the Empty Bottle go on sale this Friday at 10AM.

Tickets for The Besnard Lakes' April 20 show at Schubas go on sale this Friday at noon.

Tickets for Clinic's April 24 show at Lincoln Hall go on sale this Friday at noon.

Tickets for Goat's May 2 show at the Empty Bottle are on sale now.

photos by Stan Golovchuk

Todd Barry @ Schubas on 1.23.2013

NYC comedian Todd Barry likes to riff on and banter with the audience. As part of his current US tour, dubbed the Crowd Work Tour, he's doing a whole lot of that. Barry hit Schubas on Wednesday night (1/23) for his first of two sold-out shows with support from C.J. Toledano. Were you there? How was it? A set of pictures from the show are in this post. More below...

Continue reading "Todd Barry brought his Crowd Work Tour to Schubas ------- (night 1 pics)"

Brooklyn's Autre Ne Veut (aka Arthur Ashin) is set to welcome his new album, Anxiety, on February 26 via Software Recording Co.. Anxiety's great lead single "Counting" was released back in November, and features Mykki Blanco. Mykki also appears in the music video for "Counting," which you can check out at the bottom of this post. Anxiety's tracklisting is also below.

Autre Ne Veut will be going on a North American tour with Majical Cloudz, which kicks off on Anxiety's release date in Philadelphia, PA. That tour includes a Chicago show at Schubas on March 2. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (1/25) at noon CST.

All Autre Ne Veut tour dates, Anxiety's tracklisting, and the video for "Counting" are below...

Continue reading "Autre Ne Veut releasing 'Anxiety,' touring, playing Schubas"

photos by Zach Pollack, words by Shelby Shaw

Chelsea Wolfe @ Schubas on 1.19.2013

For the fourth night of Tomorrow Never Knows 2013, Schubas hosted an evening of acoustic and jam-rock heaviness with first openers Sabers, followed by King Dude, The Amazing, and headliner Chelsea Wolfe.

Sabers, a quintet of jeans and buttoned shirts, kicked off the show around 9PM. Their output oscillated between lighter indie rock and something more ramped up ala Arctic Monkeys. I wish the vocals were a little clearer though, because while they put on a good show, there was something missing in the lead's clarity.

King Dude (aka TJ Cowgill) took the stage next to perform his blackened americana with help from collaborator Nicholas Friesen. With a large, tattered American flag strung on two poles behind them, Cowgill sang with a likeness to Johnny Cash that had most people in the audience commenting on just how low his voice could go. When Cowgill wasn't singing as deeply as ever, his voice rested comfortably at a mild twang. King Dude seemed casually pleased with performing, which made his set all the more enjoyable.

When King Dude's stage-spanning flag was removed, Sweden's The Amazing began to set up their gear. The quintet spoke to each other in Swedish on stage and relied on frontman Christoffer Gunrup's anxious, accented English to talk to the crowd. He said at one point, "We're not drunk, we're just very tired," and I suppose that was to explain for what read as confusion between songs, between bandmates. But it was, overall, a successful set. Their paisley-coated jams seemed to sit well with the packed Schubas crowd.

As midnight approached, headliner Chelsea Wolfe and bandmates Ben Chisholm (synth) and Andrea Calderon (violin) launched into their acoustic performance. Wolfe apologized early in her set, saying she was sick and that her voice "has a mind of its own." Despite her apology and use of a throat spray between songs, Wolfe was spot-on with excellent clarity. The trio performed stripped down versions of tracks from The Grime and The Glow and Apokalypsis, as well as numbers from her latest, Unknown Rooms: A Collection of Acoustic Songs. Their headlining set was intimate and incredibly captivating. Wolfe returned to the stage alone for an encore, and played a cover of Sibylle Baier's "The End."

Pictures and some videos from the 1/19 Tomorrow Never Knows show are below...

Continue reading "Chelsea Wolfe, The Amazing, King Dude & Sabers played Schubas (pics, review, video)"

Sky Ferreira @ Public Assembly for BV-CMJ 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Like-minded pop artists Sky Ferreira and How To Dress Well (aka Tom Krell) have announced that they'll be heading out on a spring, co-headlining North American tour. That tour begins on the East Coast in March, and will visit Chicago for a performance at Schubas on March 30. Tickets for the Chicago show go on sale this Friday (1/25) at noon CST. All dates are listed below.

Sky scored a bit of a hit in 2012 with her Ghost EP single "Everything Is Embarrassing." The track was co-written with Dev Hynes (who produced Solange's True EP) and Ariel Rechtshaid, and was just recently remixed by Twin Shadow. You can stream both versions of the track at the bottom of this post.

All Sky Ferreira // HTDW tour dates and streams of "Everything Is Embarrassing" are below...

Continue reading "Sky Ferreira and How To Dress Well announce tour, playing Schubas"