RIFT NAPALM & MEATY OGRE
DEEPSPACE (VITAMEN D AND JAH SAFE)
DJ PRATT
THE COMPOSURE
THE VIOLET EYES
THE BUMPUS HOUNDS
ATTACK THE SOUND
AVERAGE HOES
UNPLUGGED AND REBORN
I AM THE LORAX
CALICO RADIO
BETH CHIN
MAN IN LOVE
BAD BAD MEOW
Critics have compared Bad Bad Meow’s style with the likes of Violent Femmes, The White Stripes, and The Pixies—all revolutionary artists in their own right, and an honor to be mentioned among. But where many artists fall victim to replicating their musical predecessors, Bad Bad Meow emulates only the vision and approach required of a Jack White to continue breaking boundaries.
Using an array of auxiliary instruments coursing over hook after catchy hook, BBM straps the boots on once again to kick down a few more walls with their third release, EP “Run Through the Middle.” Recorded at Chicago’s world-renown Engine Studios (Andrew Bird, Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse), this collection of tracks starts with a kick, downshifts and then kicks even harder. Bad Bad Meow has solidified its voice since bringing some Carolina twang to the Chicago scene, and it’s not an inside voice.
EAST SIDE WILDCATS
Little is known about these hooligans other than they rock and you better stay off of their turf. Rumor has it they met in a juvenile detention center on the east side of Chicago in the late 70’s. Their live performances are legendary often ending in the band being taken off the stage in handcuffs by the authorities. The Illinois supreme court has ordered that the fire marshall must attend all their shows in case he has to shut them down for overcrowding and rioting. The only thing they respect is Rock n Roll.
LA ARMADA
La Armada’s focus is to leave their mark on heavy music. A punk band at heart, they utilize elements of Afro-Caribbean rhythms and metal to create a style as unique as their story. Formed in the Dominican Republic in 2001 from where they dominated the Caribbean scene for years, the band opted to take a leap and relocate to Chicago in 2008, where they still reside.
Influenced by bands ranging from the Bad Brains to Death, they take elements from their native Island’s music to conjure a unique recipe; explosive live energy, and a clear cut narrative that highlights the effects of neo-colonialism on vulnerable communities.
Whether headlining tours throughout the world or supporting the likes of Sick of it All, Propaghandi, Strung Out, Death by stereo, and more, La Armada has come to bring a vibrant spin to the scene.
PRAYERS FOR ATHIESTS
Prayers For Atheists (PFA) is the first punk band signed to Strange Famous Records (SFR), the independent Rhode Island music label owned by renowned hip hop artist, Sage Francis. Fronted by longtime SFR affiliate, Jared Paul and Providence song writer, Alan Hague, PFA delivers the well-crafted and thought provoking lyrics that listeners have come to expect from Strange Famous. Thrashing rapidly between mid-80’s hardcore punk, counter-culture victory anthems, and politically-slanted hip hop, Prayers For Atheists gracefully snake in and out of genres while escaping lazy categorization. Using creative concepts to address pressing topical issues, the music remains fueled by the message, while the band demonstrates a sense of victory and hope. These songs are labor testimonials, dance jams, and anti-war hymns executed with heart, craft and integrity. PFA’s 2009 self-titled 8 song EP was a forceful opening statement for a group who intends on shaking things up while having fun doing it. It’s not macabre music. And it’s not cynical. That would be too easy.
SALEM BITCH TRIALS
We first got together to play a riot grrl cover show and continued to form a band out of it. Our name has a radical history behind it, it came from the witch trails. Many people don’t realize that even today, witch hunts still occur, mostly in Africa. Over 40,000 women were killed. Witch hunts were patriarchal and ended up being a gendercide. Women were targeted as witches if they were open about their sexuality, poor and asked for resources but could not return any, practiced medicine without consent from the church/men.
AHLEUCHATISTAS
EMERSON STREET RHYTHM BAND
MYSTIC SOUL
TORCH SINGER
VIDEOTAPE
MATT REED & TGP
KHIL
WE ARE THE O TOUR
YOUNG LOVES
THE HIT BACK
ELECTRIC BOOGALOO
THE STONE SUGAR SHAKEDOWN
The Stone Sugar Shakedown, a 5-piece Funk, Rock, Jam band from Saint Louis, Missouri, was united by a love of musical exploration, improvisation, & getting soulfully nasty. Among the members is a shared vision of pushing musical boundaries, all while embracing the legacy of Jazz and Jam Bands.
THE EMPTY SPACES
NATE Z
THE SOUNDWALLS
DAVE MATTHEWS BAND ‘CRASH’
ALANIS MORISSETTE “JAGGED LITTLE PILL”
RUN & PUNCH
LES ANIMAUX
Les Animaux [LEZZ ANNIE-MO] bring the worlds of punk, surf, garage, indie rock and ska together to deliver new life to the sounds you already know without succumbing to the stereotypes. You may have heard these sounds before, but not all together and never like this.
SECOND CITY CITIZENS
Chicago’s very own Trifecta of Mic Wreckers, the Second City Citizens, have not slept much in 2011. Since voltroning in 2010, the alternative hip hop trio has toured relentlessly in the Midwest—playing notable shows with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, C Rayz Walz of Def Jux, Mac Miller, Blueprint, CunninLynguists, Mac Lethal and many others. Emcees Rich Jones, Swords the Ronin and Troy Boy have released a combined 5 projects—filled to the snapback brim with fun storytelling, clever lyrics and twenty-something sight and sounds—headlined by the compilation album Spliff Notes. With a project with renowned producer Tony Baines (Supertrap) on the horizon, SCC is ready to spread their love for hip hop and energetic live performances to the masses—in the Second City and beyond.
WERMONE
THE WILD ONION PEOPLE
HALFMOON MAD
Halfmoon Mad is an alternative rock band based out of Chicago, Illinois. Its members include Joanna Stanielun (vocals, guitar), Maxwel Perna (drums), George Kolovos (guitar), Steven Perna (bass) and Rachel Atlas (keyboards). Inspired musically by bands like Incubus, Porcupine Tree, Alanis Morrisett, and many others; and lyrically by the beauty and difficulty of life, Halfmoon Mad brings together rock melodies and insightful lyrics, striving to bring truth to music. Having gone through multiple line up changes over the past few years, HMM has settled into a group with undeniable chemistry that shines through in the music, and the performance.
In a world of music that is auto-tuned, tells you you’re a firework and lacks substance, Halfmoon Mad stands out as both musically and lyrically deep. Their songs are created to reach in and grab your soul, toss it around and make you think about who you are and the world we’re living in. Halfmoon Mad has an alternative rock sound with progressive hints and is sure to appeal to a wide range of listeners. This is what people don’t know about but want to hear.
I.DEVISE / UNDADOG RECORDS
AFRICOULEUR
COJACK
XV
CASEY VEGGIES
Casey Veggies (né Casey Jones) may be young but he definitely knows the value of prioritizing. Although this ’90s baby (born July 18, 1993) entered high school with hoop dreams, playing shooting guard for the varsity squad of Inglewood High School’s Sentinels, the Los Angeles native’s interest in rapping soon eclipsed his passion for basketball.
Back in ninth grade, the young MC had been recording songs and posting them on his MySpace page just for fun. But after receiving positive feedback on a few of his early tracks, Casey Veggies began to re-evaluate his relationship with music. “I was just writing and writing but then when I began recording things just started to fall into place,” says the emerging breakout star. “The response I got made me take it more seriously.”
While Casey Veggies originally started out as one of the founding members of the hip-hop supergroup Odd Future (OFWGKTA), he decided to strike out on his own following the release of his first mixtape, 2007’s Customized Greatly Vol. 1, which he dropped at the age of 14. “I just had a different vision for my own rap career,” Veggies says, explaining his decision to go solo. “I wanted to do my own thing.”
With the release of 2009’s Customized Greatly Vol. 2, Veggies not only proved that he had the potential to be more than just another MySpace star, but he also began to work closely with friends Joshton Peas and Anwar Carrots to establish a merchandise and artist management company called PNCINTL, better known as Peas & Carrots International. In an interview with The Madbury Club, the remarkably entrepreneurial teenager demonstrated a strong head for business as he discussed how “strategic sponsorships, limited merchandise, organic partnerships, social presence and influence ability have proved fundamental in the success of Peas & Carrots and thus, Casey Veggies.”
Indeed, Casey Veggies’ grassroots approach to marketing and promotion has not only garnered him more than 75,000 Twitter followers and over a million views on YouTube, but also scored favorable press coverage from a multitude of influential blogs and magazines, including complex.com, missinfo.tv, RapRadar.com, vibe.com, xxlmag.com, thesource.com, worldstarhiphop, and MTV’s RapFix blog.
Shortly after graduating high school in the spring of 2011, Casey Veggies joined Mac Miller as an opening act on his Blue Slide Park tour. Since then, he has performed with West Coast heavy hitters such as Nipsey Hussle, Dom Kennedy, Kendrick Lamar, and Hodgy Beats of MellowHype, as well as his friends from Odd Future, Tyler, the Creator and Domo Genesis, plus pop star Rita Ora, in addition to collaborating with artists such as YG, Rich Hil, Chip Tha Ripper and Raheem Devaughn.
In 2011, Delicious Vinyl helped with digital distribution of Casey Veggies’ independently released full-length debut album, Sleeping In Class, which he followed up a year later with his latest mixtape, Customized Greatly Vol. 3, released on April 9, 2012. Next, the prolific young rapper who supported Big K.R.I.T. on summer 2012’s Live From the Underground Tour has a new mixtape called Life Changes in the works. “I’m moving a little away from the volumes,” says Veggies. “I want to prove to people that I can put together a full package.” As with all of his releases, Veggies’ forthcoming projects are sure to be ripened to perfection.
Veggies are good for you and so is his music. Live and grow.