Al pastor is a taco consisting of pork, cilantro, and pineapple. Al’s Pastor, on the other hand, is a rock band—one that took its name from the group’s dietary mainstay at Allende in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Not easily stuffed into a single genre, the quartet blends vintage-y pop with adventurous, often dark forays into instrumental post-rock. Wailing guitar solos, nimble drum work, pretty piano melodies and propulsive bass are go-to ingredients in a quirky and diverse catalog.

Founded at DePaul University in 2006, Al’s Pastor started as Alex Lemon on guitar, Chris “Blue” Tomke on drums, and Chris Noth on bass. The group recorded its debut EP, The Conundrum, two years later as a mostly-instrumental trio. Singer Zeb Allen came onboard in the winter of 2009, bringing piano and songwriting chops with him. The band is currently putting the finishing touches on its sophomore release, Another Dusty Day, which was recorded and mixed at Buena Park’s I.V. Labs. “After more than a year of hard work, we are extremely excited to get these songs out there. It’s been a long time coming and this album really feels like a big step forward for the band,” says Noth. With the new album due out in April–the first full-length studio offering from the band–Al’s Pastor is excited for a big year of shows and is ready to please hungry fans in Chicago and beyond.

With a signature sound of dreamy, lush instrumentation combined with pensive lyrics, a unique blend of art-rock has emerged. Hailing from East Nashville, Tennessee, Auto Defiance is led by enigmatic songwriter Bradley Boyer. Joining to build this ornately complex wall of sound is a small collective of passionate musicians who share a love for playing heavy-yet-atmospheric songs, which take you on an adventure from high-energy anthems to melodramatic ballads.

Calli Dollinger was born in East Texas, the swampy industrial wasteland also responsible for the howls and hisses of the late Janis Joplin.  Described by Time Out Chicago as “the back room ghost of a classic rock chanteuse”, Calli developed her swamp-rock meets psych-pop sound, while growing up in Austin, Texas, and later, as a student at Emerson College, in Boston, Massachusetts.

Calli Dollinger is based in Chicago, IL and will release an EP later this year, produced by the Grammy award winning, Stuart Sikes, who has previously worked with country legend Loretta Lynn, Cat Power, Jack White, and Modest Mouse.

“…Young Rapids are, for the moment, true to their name. The genesis of the up-and-coming band reaches back three years…they’ve spent the time since then carving out a colorful and dynamic blend of art rock…a sound that’s preserved on DAY LIGHT SAVINGS, it’s often stunning debut.” – Brightest Young Things (Interview with BYT)