BLACK’S BACKBONE

“Black’s Backbone is not just a band, it’s a f***ing art project .”

Band members Blizzle and NAE have spent the past two years merging their original songs in an interactive concert where audience members can play the visuals.

Band leader Blizzle found his groove by rebelling against his classical upbringing and pursuing jazz – a path unheard of in his family of Grammy-winning classical virtuosos. Hundreds of transcriptions and hours spent listening to 60’s and 70’s vinyl prepared him to start writing slammin’ grooves and eventually collaborating with lyricist Patrick “Sully” Sullivan.

NAE met Blizzle as he was chilling outside his recording studio sipping a Guinness and she told him about her most recent obsession: writing synth pop music about synthetic plants in shopping malls, the subject of her experimental video art. From there, one of the several collaborations that have defined Black’s Backbone was forged. Blizzle and NAE have since been working alongside award-winning Creative Coder Nathan Glynn (Starcraft, Rocket Cat, Coca-Cola, Marriott).

Black’s Backbone has been featured in The Chicago Tribune, has collaborated with local art exhibitions at Parallax in Pilsen and Carlson Tower Galleries at North Park University, as well as with Artists of the Industry, The Artist Space, The Wilmette Theatre, Synth House Chicago Museum, The Wilmette Public Library, Chicago House musicians, and youth songwriters from local Park District summer camps. Their performances and outreach bring creativity in music, art, and coding to the community. Their art has been described as a “pop opera” that is quirky, theatrical, and “s*** I’ve never seen before.”

SAM COCKRELL BAND

The Sam Cockrell Band (SCB) is a hard hitting Funk/R&B/Soul/Blues band from Chicago lead by Singer/Bassist and Chicago Blues Hall-of-Famer Sam Cockrell.

SASQUATCH

Sasquatch is a rock band from Los Angeles, CA. They tend to sip on influences from 70’s metal, rock, and psychedelia. Their songwriting approach is clear-cut; keep the focus on the hook.

The band was born in Philadelphia in 2000 and moved to Los Angeles in 2001 after Keith Gibbs (guitar, vox) joined up with Detroit natives Rick Ferrante (drums) and Clayton Charles (bass). Upon Clayton’s departure in 2007, the guys recruited Chicagoan Jason Casanova (Behold! The Monolith, Tummler) to join the fold. We arrive at 2017 and Dr. Craig Riggs (Roadsaw, Kind, Antler) is now shellacking the kit when he’s not brewing coffee or watching the Red Sox.

The band’s music has been featured on a variety of movies, television shows, and video games including the reissue of Clerks, FX’s original hit series Sons of Anarchy, A&E’s Dog The Bounty Hunter, Jersey Girl, CW’s The Supernatural, and MTV’s Viva La Bam, Bam’s Unholy Union, and Rob and Big, NHL 2005, American Chopper, and Monster Garage.

After shaking some walls with not one, but two, closely packed studio albums (the self-titled debut and “II”) in 2004 and ’06, the power trio went subterranean until 2010 before resurfacing with a new lineup and propulsive third opus, “III”, followed up by the straight-ahead rocker, “IV”, in 2013.

The band’s latest album, Maneuvers, was released in June 2017 and features the work of Riggs behind the kit. This is the band’s most concise work to-date. Extended jams were stripped down to the meat and potatoes. Short and sweet is the path looking forward. Andrew Schneider (NYC) returned behind the boards this round. You may recognize the name as he also provided the mixes on “II”. What fans hear is arguably the gents most mature and inspired song-set released, chunked with both heartwarmingly familiar moments – but all of it heavy on the heavy, as they say…always. Unprecedented attention was also devoted to spinning new yarns out of those evergreen rock and roll stories about love lost, hate found, relationships built and lives trashed, homes wrecked, etc.

Coming off their first Australian tour, look for the band to be gearing up for extended US dates later in the Summer of 2019 and its next European tour in the early Spring of 2020. All’s fair in Love and Doom.

HOT DOGS HALF OFF

While working together, Tony and Nathan recognized that they had similar musical tastes. After numerous conversations, Hot Dogs Half Off was born. Reigning in Lansing, IL Nathan and Tony bring in 10+ years of musical experience. A combination of Techno, Comedy and Rock, together they satisfy your musical needs.

Rob Moir

ROB MOIR

With a heart filled with passion and a head full of stories Rob Moir delivers his most unique music to date. After five years of fronting the Toronto indie-punk band Dead Letter Dept. (Underground Operations/Universal Music), Rob embarks on his first solo venture as a performer.

FORCED INTO FEMININITY

A splatter fetishist’s rereading of punk or industrial…a gut-punch of synthetic rhythm sickeningly warbling out of control. ” Ryan Maesteller, Tabs Out

THE BABY MAGIC

A trio of hyperactive yet hyper-articulate musicians bangin’ out the sexiest new-wave/no-wave jams you’ve ever heard, The Baby Magic enthralls the listener on their newest record “Rent a Place in Hell”. Their songs conjure up the best moments of Beat Happening, Talking Heads, and Death From Above 1979 without sounding redundant. Rather, they’re a harbinger for a new, enlightened, fun time.

LYDIA LUNCH VERBAL BURLESQUE

LYDIA LUNCH VERBAL BURLESQUE

Verbal Burlesque
Lydia Lunch Voice
Weasel Walter Drums
Tim Dahl Bass

Verbal Burlesque combines the dynamic spoken word histrionics of Lydia Lunch, one of the genres most controversial performers with the improvisational virtuosity of Weasel Walter and Tim Dahl to create an intimate, terrifying and emotional evening of musical verite.

Lydia Lunch is passionate, confrontational and bold. Whether attacking the patriarchy and their pornographic war mongering, turning the sexual into the political or whispering a love song to the broken hearted, her fierce energy and rapid fire delivery lend testament to her warrior nature.

Queen of No Wave, muse of The Cinema of Transgression, writer, musician, poet, spoken word artist and photographer, she has released too many musical projects to tally, has been on tour for decades, has published dozens of articles, half a dozen books and simply refuses to just shut up. She performs in a variety of mediums, is a rabid collaborator and continues to release new music as well as re-issuing classic material such as her spoken word indictment against patriarchal idiocy, The Conspiracy of Women through Nicolas Jaar’s label Other People.

Seven Stories Press will release her latest anthology So Real It Hurts on July 11, 2019.

Weasel Walter (first name, last name) is a Brooklyn, New York based multi-instrumentalist, composer and improviser best known for leading the seminal punk-jazz/no-wave/brutal-prog band The Flying Luttenbachers between 1991 and 2007 on 16 full-length releases.

Seamlessly uniting the intensity and abstraction of improvised music with the nihilist aesthetics of extreme rock forms, Walter is committed to violent momentum, idiomatic unpredictability and rapid articulation.

Expert in the underground music scene of the late 1970’s, Walter has lectured at various Universities including Bard, San Francisco Art Institute, University of Chicago in Paris, and penned the introduction for Marc Masters book NO WAVE, seen as the definitive history of the New York movement from which Lydia Lunch emerged in 1977 with her first group Teenage Jesus and the Jerks.

In 2012, Weasel Walter began working with Lydia Lunch as musical coordinator and lead guitarist for RETROVIRUS, a retrospective, which spanned the spectrum of her musical legacy from No Wave Skronk to bludgeoning Hard Rock and sleazy Jazz Noir to propulsive Psychedlia. RETROVIRUS also features Bob Bert (Sonic Youth, Pussy Galore, Chrome Cranks) and Tim Dahl and continues to tour Europe, America, Australia and South America.

Tim Dahl is a composer and professional electric and double bass player, vocalist, keyboardist and composer living in New York City. He is best known as the front man and bass player of the noise-rock band Child Abuse and the defunct avant-jazz group The Hub. He also writes and performs for the jazz ensemble Pulverize The Sound. Dahl has toured extensively throughout North America, Europe and Japan, Australia and South America and performed with many notable musicians, composers and performers including Yusef Lateef, Archie Shepp, Eugene Chadbourne, John Zorn, Kool Keith, Marc Ribot, Elliot Sharpe, Tatsuya Yoshida and Stanley Jordan.

 

CRIMSON MOONLIGHT

Crimson Moonlight from the depths of Sweden was formed 1997 as an Old Schooled Black Metal project. After recording a demo during the summer of 1997 the band decided to go on and develop into a more melodic and symphonic direction. Now more than 20 years later the band has released four albums and played over 100 gigs in Europe and the US. Since 2011 the band is active with a mystical and explicit chaotic form of extreme metal. The music has the framework and concept of Eastern Mystical Theology, a mixture labeled as: Liturgical Black Metal of True Trinitarian Orthodoxy. In 2016 the band released their fourth full length album; Divine Darkness. (Endtime Productions). The album has got excellent reviews around the world and been described as dedicated, bestial and furious in the vein of Marduk, Mayhem and Dark Funeral. Last year new songs were recorded in the same, yet more brutal direction. Do not miss the change to experience Crimson Moonlight LIVE! There will be a show to remember!

Marital Sax

MARITALSAX

Co-Founders of McKinney Music LLC | The World’s First Husband & Wife Sax Duo

Experience the soulful fusion of R&B, Neo-Soul, and Jazz as Marital Sax debuts their highly anticipated CD! This release party promises a one-of-a-kind musical experience. Limited seating—get your tickets before they’re gone!

Taylor Kelly

TAYLOR KELLY

Taylor Kelly has a voice that blends both the smoothness and rhythmic nature of jazz, soul and funk. Her tasteful songwriting tells tales of truth in hopes to inspire many to love, live and let go. Also a trumpet player, she proves the importance of a strong horn section and hot horn lines and strives for an instrumental-vocal approach, a rhythmic phrasing and an improvisation that is reminiscent of many of her trumpet playing influences (Chet Baker, Roy Hargrove and Miles Davis to name a few). Her musical stylings are reflective of Erykah Badu and Stevie Wonder as they possess what she believes to be the true essence of music- harmonic complexity, strong melodic contour and lyrical honesty with an absolutely relentless underlying groove. Taylor has shared the stage with Moonchild, Becca Stevens, Bahamadia and Georgia Anne Muldrow. She released her third studio album, DO U FEEL ME, in June 2017 and is currently working on her next full-length album “Up Up and Away” that will be released sometime next year.

The Corcoran Brothers Band

THE CORCORAN BROTHERS BAND

The Corcoran Brothers Band are a five-piece Alternative Blues-Rock Band with soulful intentions and funky aspirations from Chicago, IL.

BULLET TO THE HEART

Hailing from Chicago, IL, Bullet To The Heart blends a unique mixture of modern metal and soaring melodies to create a defining sound within the alternative metal scene. Drawing inspiration from the trials and tribulations they have faced throughout their lives, Bullet To The Heart will put their experiences, and their trauma on display to the world in their upcoming EP, titled “trauma.”, as they spread their message of acceptance and support. With over 500,000 streams of their last EP titled, “Death, Oddities, and Romance”, and over 20,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, Bullet To The Heart has developed a dedicated fanbase, known as The Bloodline, that is more family than fanbase. Bullet To the Heart isn’t just a band, but a multifaceted emotional journey that not only transcends but blurs the boundaries between story telling, musical prowess, and good old fashioned music to bang your head to. Join The Bloodline today.

am Samstag

AM SAMSTAG

Am Samstag is a rock band formed in September 2018. Drawing on influences from the bands that gave birth to the grunge movement in the early 90’s, the band wishes to prove that grunge is not dead, it was just asleep for a while.

6 months later, Am Samstag releases its first EP “1”, produced and mixed by legendary producer Jack Endino in Seattle (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Babes In Toyland, Screaming Trees). Composed of broken vocals, distorted guitars, heavy bass lines and aggressive drums, this first release is a travel to the Seattle underground scene.

Misty Bliss

MISTY BLISS

Misty Bliss is a Swiss rock band formed in 2017.

The band’s music is a wave of melodies made to move all calm souls and all those who want to stimulate their senses through music. A sort of time machine that goes from blues to psychedelic, from garage to alternative rock.

Distorted riffs, powerful voices and daring energy on stage, is what characterises Misty Bliss. The band doesn’t waste time with trivia and gets straight to the point. Each of its member has her own story and shares different musical influences, which allows them to mix approches and emotions.

Released in July 2018, Misty Bliss’s debut EP “MB” received positive reviews from around the world, allowing the band to
perform in a few venues in Geneva, Lausanne and neighbouring France.

In December 2018 the band starts composing songs for a first album, with an expected release date in 2020. The songs will be recorded in September 2019 at Electrical Audio Studio in Chicago with legendary producer Steve Albini (PJ Harvey, Nirvana, Pixies), who will also be in charge of the production and mixing of the album.

LOLLYGAGGER

Lollygagger is a heavy stoner-punk Chicago power trio defined by whip-smart lyrics and riffs as fast and technical as they are accessible.  Their 2019 Self-titled Video album was followed up by Chirp Radio’s Best of 22 Album, TOTAL PARTY KILL via What’s for Breakfast Records. Razorcake Magazine said “This, I can definitely fuck with… the lyrical content is smart, topical, and biting, the performances are on point, the delivery is charged as hell, and there’s just enough “weird” to it all to keep any potential meathead proclivities at bay“.  Maximum Rock and Roll called it A righteous, sex-fueled party is crammed into the grooves of the debut LP… This act is fronted by a snot-nosed punk who hates boss, hates system, hates cops, loves screaming, loves exposing hypocrisy. Total punk attitude, total stoner metal groove”  The pristine sounding record was engineered by the legendary Sanford Parker (EYEHATEGOD, VOIVOD, YOB), but their live skills are not to be missed, catch them ASAP!

The Anna Maze

THE ANNA MAZE

The Anna Maze is comprised of two core memebers, Anna Maze and Jim Licka (Umbra and the Volcan Siege) with a rotating cast of other musicians. This band is a refreshing mixture of dark indie country, and the blues; think Jonny Cash and June Carter, if they were from Chicago. The soulful vocals of Anna Maze combined with the haunting cries of Jim Licka are sure to leave you wanting more. New album ‘That’s What I Want ‘Em To Say’ out now on all digital streaming platforms.

The Drugstore Gypsies

THE DRUGSTORE GYPSIES

These guys might just be the most rock ‘ n’ roll rock ‘ n’ roll band in America.

In an industry beset by guarded calculation and repressive risk-avoidance, this band goes “all in” with every bet they make. Their infectious self-confidence permeates their music and fuels their road-hardened lifestyle. When they roll into your town you’ d best be prepared. They’ re the bull in the china shop. The hair of the dog. The storm after the calm.

They are…The Drugstore Gypsies.

Drawing on distinctively Southern influences like Blackberry Smoke, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers, and The Black Crowes, The Drugstore Gypsies also combine many of the sensibilities of worldwide riff rock heroes like Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones. You don’ t fly that flag in 2016 because of focus testing or market research. It’ s got to be who you are!

Founded in 2014 by wildly entertaining frontman Duke Ryan and guitar extraordinaire Dillan Dostal, the band quickly locked in on the right duo in the rhythm section, adding drummer Rey Chapa and bassist Korey Davis. The Gypsies have already played in excess of 200 shows throughout Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, and have recently added John Wilson to play Hammond organ and rhythm guitar, completing the band’ s classic Southern sound.

​In mid-2015 the band attracted the attention of Edgewater Music Group, a Sony/RED distributed music production, artist management, and music distribution company based in Houston. The band arrived at Edgewater Studios in December of that year to begin work on their self-titled, debut album. The record features a dynamic body of rip-roaring rock ‘ n roll from start to finish.

Songs like “Black Label Boogie”and “Show Up Show Down” highlight the band’ s wall of guitar-laden power. “Breakin The Law,”“Drugstore Gypsy,”and “Live The Life” are loads of fun and feature a three-piece horn section backing the band’ s enigmatic sound. “Running To”and “Indian Summer” trend into organic Americana rock.

“The Drugstore Gypsies” explores what it means to be an impetuous young American male living life to the fullest in the heart of the South. Tales of humorous conquest blend into battles with burgeoning demons. Stories of love and betrayal lay bare the band’ s undeniable maturity as writers, hidden just beneath a convincing veneer of youth and bravado.

This is a band people will make movies about. In fact, you’ d be hard-pressed to craft a more captivating story for a morecompelling cast of characters in a Hollywood writer’ s room. In their own words, they are intent on to bringing to you, “Some of the greatest music of the modern day!” Experience a Gypsies’ show and you’ ll be consumed by their irrepressible enthusiasm and innate humor. Know them and succumb to their down-home charm. They are intent on taking their rightful place in the annals of rock ‘ n’ roll history, side-by-side with all the great American rock bands who have come before. Treasure their record and bear witness to their rise. What’ s their ultimate destiny?

Tyler Cassidy

TYLER CASSIDY

For the longest time, Tyler Cassidy, formerly known as Froggy Fresh, formerly known as Krispy Kreme, formerly known as Tyler Cassidy, was an enigma – having blurred the lines between who he is and his elaborately written character. The franchise was one of textbook Youtube legacy, a self-produced project that earned hundreds of millions of views, John Cena endorsement, Tosh.0 appearance, and survival of a rebrand and a follow-up album that charted 3rd on the Billboard Comedy chart. However, everything you thought you knew about Froggy Fresh was wrong. In a later self-retrospective, it was revealed that the project was birthed in Tyler’s feeling lack of attention to the preceding original music he had made.

In 2017 – almost five years to the date of the first YouTube upload – Froggy Fresh surprised fans with a live tour, playing to packed venues across every crevice of the continental US. The tour was a swan song of the Froggy Fresh project as Tyler had grown out of it (and feared being stuck throughout his career as what he described as a Pee-Wee Herman type character). The formative life-experience of extensive travel through touring and connecting with fans, re-ignited Tyler’s creative flame as he taught himself to compose and perform on the piano.

The initial offerings were solemn tunes of love, loss and redemption – written for a concept album. Now the listener, who had extended a Kleenex for Froggy’s nose in the Baddest, would use it for their own eyes. While these songs would earn Tyler critical acclaim and more millions of likes and views, his biggest hit would stray from the more serious, heart-wrenching material and land a spot on the cover of Reddit.

Garnering the attention of major players in the music industry, Boyfriend rivaled the virility of any video from the Froggy Fresh project with one major difference – the video was a simple iPhone shot of him performing the song on his grandma’s piano, and finally his songwriting was recognized on its own. Additional material followed which features sultry tales, irreverent streams of consciousness, and a healthy dose of millennial “fuckitol” in response to this age of doom and confusion. Froggy Fresh was Tyler’s Trojan horse and he’s emerged with multiple albums of material plus a high-energy backing band…. and this born entertainer is just getting started.

Astillian

ASTILLIAN

“Formed in 2016 by Chicago area melodic metal veterans, Âstillian began as a project to cast a vision upon Dark Age inspired metal. Utilizing unique elements of Scandinavian folk combined with blistering melodic death metal, Âstillian created a powerful sound that captures the Saxon’s rage with infectious hooks and unforgettable soaring melodies.


Their self produced debut album, Waves at Dusk, (2017) is a concept album inspired by G.K. Chesterton’s epic tale, “The Ballad of the White Horse,” other Anglo-Saxon writings, and Norse sagas. This album captures the inescapable misery and undeniable hope of the early middle ages; raiding hordes, mass migrations, and kingdoms rising through the discord. The album features a hardwood Anglo-Saxon lyre and other folk instruments alongside a three-pronged electric guitar assault and viscerally blasted rhythms. Waves at Dusk also features a Saxon war cry historically used on the battlefield against the vikings.”

 

Painted Canyon

PAINTED CANYON

Painted Canyon is an Americana rock trio hailing from Chicago. They draw on influences such as Wilco, Tom Petty, Old 97’s, Hiss Golden Messenger, and Josh Ritter, among others. They seamlessly blend passionate heartland rock with expansive Americana tones. Formed in the summer of 2019, they recorded their professional demo EP at Audiotree Studio in Wicker Park. This helped kick things off for summer shows in the strong Chicago Americana music scene. The band’s members (Evan Burns, Eric Gannon, and Dan Powell) then had a busy second half of 2019 playing shows in the Chicago area, Central Illinois, and Wisconsin. They broke into the scene performing at famous Chicago-area venues such as FitzGerald’s, Reggies, Law Office Pub, Tonic Room, Carol’s Pub and Urbana’s historical Rose Bowl Tavern, to name a few. They’ve shared bills with other national touring artists such as Jesse Dayton, Jason Hawk Harris, Volk, Goodnight Texas, and The Dirty Streets.

Painted Canyon’s start to their debut album began in January of 2020 with a release that was originally scheduled for mid-2020. Like so many other artists and bands, the pandemic delayed studio recording and mixing sessions. Working closely with the studio recording engineer, Mike Hagler of Kingsize Sound Labs (Chicago) and mastering engineer, Chris Frasco of Master Frasco (Nashville), Painted Canyon was able to finally finish and release their debut album in 2021.

Together, this trio has developed a dynamic and uplifting sound, which has been best described as classic American rock with an indie/roots-inspired twist.

Their first full-length album Permanent Reflection is available now.

Evan Burns – Guitar, Lead Vocals
Eric Gannon – Bass, Vocals
Dan Powell – Drums, Vocals

J.D. PINKUS

Jeff ‘J.D.’ Pinkus is an American bassist best known for his work with American punk band Butthole Surfers from 1985 to 1994 and since the 2009 reunion.

In 1990, he and Butthole Surfers’ lead vocalist Gibby Haynes released Digital Dump, the only album from their psychedelic house music side project The Jackofficers.

Upon leaving Butthole Surfers, Pinkus worked full-time with the Austin trio Daddy Longhead, which he had assembled during his waning months in the band, and which included longtime Atlanta associate Jimbo Young on guitar and Rey Washam on drums. Daddy Longhead retired after 10 years, leaving Pinkus free to explore other projects including Skinny Leonard and Areola 51. Pinkus played with Helios Creed on his albums ‘NUGG: The Transport'[1996] and ‘Activated Condition’ [1998], and has also collaborated with Bad Livers frontman Danny Barnes several times in a live setting.

He currently appears with Honky and has in the past played weekly on Monday nights at the Jackalope, in Austin, Texas, with an assortment of other musicians called the Guit Down Syndrome.

Pinkus also performs with Pure Luck,who released a self-titled release in 2017 on Heavy Feather Records. He leaves his bass to play Banjo and Guitar in this project.

On their 30th anniversary tour in 2013, Pinkus joined the Melvins[3] in place of Jared Warren (on paternity leave) as well as performing with the opening Honky. He subsequently joined the Melvins full-time, touring with them in 2014 in support of the album Hold It In, which also featured Butthole Surfers founder Paul Leary, and again in 2015. He also plays on the song “Captain Come Down” which was first released in 2015 on Chaos as Usual, a split release with Le Butcherettes, and later included on the 2016 album Basses Loaded.

In 2018, J.D. Pinkus released a solo album, “Keep on the Grass” on Cassette tape on Minner Bucket Records and Compact Disc on Heavy Feather Records. It was recorded entirely on banjo and features a rendition of the song “Bride of Crankenstein” from the Melvins album Hold It In. The C.D. release show is with Sleep in San Pedro on September 15th 2018.

On February 12, 2018, the Melvins announced that Pinkus would be joining them, alongside current bassist Steven McDonald (Redd Kross), on their next album and subsequent tour. Released on April 20, 2018, the aptly titled Pinkus Abortion Technician features both bass players and four songs written or co-written by Pinkus.

I YA TOYAH

I Ya Toyah is a Chicago – based one woman army of Polish descent that blends chaos and balance with familiar, yet unknown vibe of industrial electronica sound. Her music melts the smooth, cutting edge vocals, surreal guitars, hypnotizing beats and multiple electronic elements into dark arrangements that, combined with storytelling lyrics, respond to the paranoia of everyday reality.

King Hammond

KING HAMMOND

Grammy award winning skinhead reggae artist / producer from the UK. Ex- Bad Manners & The Selecter.

DJ SET BY WIRED SESSIONS

Connecting cultures through electronic music.This project is about cultural and musical pluralism, where different artists, producers, composers and musicians from around the world collaborate under an electronic music format, without having to sacrifice their own particular identities.Instrumental wise it’s the opposite of an “unplugged”.The majority of the instrumentation used in these musical compositions would be electronic instruments, such as conventional synthesizers, modular synthesizers, drum machines, digital machines, samplers, processed acoustic instruments, processed vocals, software, etc.The word “Wired” refers to the electricity in music, but also to the interconnection between cultures.We are all connected and “wired”to each other in some way.The delivery format would be a series of short films where the guests perform together a musical piece in a particular location. This location could be a home studio, a recording studio, a music venue, outdoors, etc.The process of creation or story behind the creation of these musical pieces will be documented as well and used as part of the film (interviews, life experiences from the guests, footage from the locations/trips where the sessions are filmed, etc)The performances will be also professionally recorded, mixed and mastered, and later released in digital platforms.When the opportunity comes, the project would give emphasis to political or environmental problems.The project would also approach the involvement of governmental, intergovernmental and non profit organizations.

NO DJ SET BY RUBEN ALBARRAN (CAFE TACUBA)

Known internationally for being the frontman of one of the most important Mexican bands Café Tacvba, Rubén Albarrán adds to his list of alternative projects (Caribe All Stars / Hoppo! And more) his project NO DJ Set. Being a consolidated artist, activist, mystic and designer is also a music lover and true enthusiast of vinyl records.
 
NO DJ Set is a tour of the music and artists that have influenced, moved and inspired in his life, with the aim of sharing it with his followers and friends, a party with a tonality of intimacy and closeness breaking with the stereotype of unattainable artist , therefore, could be interpreted as a conviviality with music, enjoyment, good vibes and celebration in the company of more than a celebrity, a friend with good musical taste.
The Dead Bolts

THE DEAD BOLTS

Growing up as musicians in their neighborhoods on the South Side of Chicago, Eddie Hennessy (Vocals/Guitar), John Rolence (Vocals/Guitar), Matt Paske (Lead Guitar), James Ryan (Drums), and Tyler Hancock (Bass Guitar) eventually found each other to form The Dead Bolts in the summer of 2018. The band started out playing shows in crowded neighborhood bars, garages, houses, blocked off streets, and basically anywhere they could draw a crowd. With influences from Chicago’s prominent Blues, Rock, and Alternative music scene, as well as every other genre they happen to listen to, the band never put a label on their sound. All still enrolled in college or working, the band pieced together their first EP “Part Time” during the same summer, which they released in September of 2018.
The band hit the road come fall 2018 and debuted for the first of its many shows outside of their usual spots on the South Side, playing the college bar scenes of Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois. Gaining the approval from packed and rowdy crowds, they’ve booked shows all over while piecing together their first full album “Pretty and Burnt Out” which came out in 2021. As good as they sound on record, they’re better live and they like it that way. Give’m a follow on the social medias.
Wind Rose

WIND ROSE

Wind Rose is a power metal band born in Italy in 2009. The band gained notoriety in 2017 with the release of the third album “Stonehymn”, featuring the single “To Erebor” which scored millions of views on Youtube and Facebook.
The main themes of the lyrics are inspired to the fantasy world of Tolkien and in particular to the Dwarves, the fictional race that also inspires the costumes and the look of the band.
The band is also actively touring since 2013 and gained a lot of live experience being invited to tours with Ensiferum, Eluveitie and Wintersun in Europe and Japan. The longest ride so far was the Ensiferum’s “Path to Glory Tour”, 38 European shows in April/May 2018.
Wind Rose is currently working on the fourth studio album which will be released in 2019.

Metsatoll

METSATOLL

On 24 February 1999, three men held a meeting at the borders of the Pääsküla bog, in the singer and guitar player Markus’s basement, one of whom could play a little bit of guitar, another who knew how to play a little bit of drums, and a third who had come up with a sufficiently ancient-sounding name that would be just right for a heavy metal band – ’Metsatöll’ (the name “Metsatöll” is an ancient Estonian euphemism for wolf).The thought soon turned into reality and over the next few days four or five songs were composed and a couple of months later there was an entire album-full of them. The demo album Terast mis hanging me hinge was released in the autumn of 1999. Soon afterwards, Lauri joined the band, bringing with him a second guitar, the torupill, kannels and flutes.

In early 2001, the original bass player was replaced by Kuriraivo. A year later, a single and video for the song Hundi loomine were released.

Metsatöll’s current line-up was finalised in 2004, when Atso took up the place behind the kit. At that same year, the album Hiiekoda was released, which multiplied the number of the band’s fans several hundred times, crushed all previous sales records for an Estonian metal artist and won Metsatöll the Best Metal Act 2005 award at the Estonian Music Awards ceremony.

In 2006, the same award was won for the album Terast mis hangund me hinge 10218, a re-recorded and re-arranged version of the band’s demo album. The live DVD See You On The Battlefield! was recorded during the album’s presentation show, and it won the title of Best DVD 2006. At that very same year Metsatöll and the Estonian National Male Choir composed an arrangement of Veljo Tormis’s magnum opus, Raua needmine; a DVD was released in Estonia and Germany of the show that took place in the ruins of the Pirita cloister.

Metsatöll’s third album, Iivakivi, released in February 2008, won the band the now familiar Metal Act of the Year award from the Estonian Music Awards ceremony. At the same year, Metsatöll signed a contract with Universal’s Finnish subsidiary, Spinefarm Records.

To celebrate the band’s 10th birthday, a 2DVD/CD Kõva Kont (2009) was released, which will be Metsatöll’s final release published with the band’s own resources. More than five hours of stuff to watch and listen, from between the years 2000-2008, it provides a thorough overview of the band’s history – from rehearsals recorded in a basement and the very first gigs attended by both of their fans, to the show at the Rabarock festival, cheered by a stadium full of people, and the concert Märkamisaeg, which was attended by an audience of more than 100 000.

In the autumn of 2009, Metsatöll joined Ensiferum (FIN) for an European tour of 31 shows in 11 countries. By today, the band has played more than 350 shows in Europe and the US, and has sold more than 50 000 albums.

On 15 january 2010, the online-single and video Vaid vaprust was released, a first taste of Metsatöll’s fourth album Äio, due out on 3 March. All the music and lyrics on the album were conceived in the isolation of a small farmstead in Hargla, South Estonia. This provided the songs with a breath that, according to the guys themselves, cannot be achieved in a big city. Äio was recorded in Finnvox studios in Finland and Sinusoid studios in Estonia. The album was mixed by the legendary producer and sound engineer Mikko Karmila.

In 2012, Metsatöll gave concerts in Estonia, Finland and Latvia. In autumn, the band toured with Korpiklaani (FIN), Tyr (FRO) and Moonsorrow (FIN) for a month in North-America, where a total of 26 shows were given. The DVD Tuska, which was recorded at the Tuska Open Air 2012 in Helsinki, was released.

The year 2013 took off to a flying start – Metsatöll gave two gigs for the soldiers of Estonia, USA, UK and Denmark in Afghanistan, at the Helman province. Followed by a trip to Southern Asia, the band went on a European tour with Korpiklaani (FIN) – 40 shows were given in 15 countries.

To this day, Metsatöll have given more than 490 performances and have sold more than 100 000 records.

* Metsatöll uses the chronology of the local natural religion. It begins with the Billingen catastrophe of 8213 before Common Era, when the Baltic ice lake broke its way into the ocean and most of the current territory of Estona appeared from under the water.

THRUSH

Thrush “Robby’s handpicked Rush setlist”
performed by:
Chris Siebold
Tom Heslin
Greg Rapp
Kerry Divine
Fister

FISTER

Hailing from the confluence of infectious disease, arbitrary violence, and rivers of industrial filth that is St. Louis MO, FISTER have been sublimating their brutally toxic environment into a deliberate and belligerent challenge to the eardrums since 2009. Comprised of drummer Kirk Gatterer, guitarist/vocalist Marcus Newstead, and Kenny Snarzyk on bass and vocals, this trio converts an eclectic swarm of extreme metal influences into the sonic analogue of trench warfare. Concussive, bloody, exhausting. Honed to grisly sharpness through years of performance, they have shared countless stages with countless musicians, including supporting sludge icons Eyehategod and Crowbar and appearances at the SXSW, Psycho Las Vegas, and Roadburn festivals. Pairing their seismic live offerings with more than a dozen releases, they have literally poured their blood into the work along the way – for their 2012 EP ‘Violence’, the band members had blood drawn and mixed with the ink used to print the liner notes.

From the hazy bulldozer bongripping of debut LP ‘Bronsonic’ to 2015’s impossibly dismal ‘IV’, a gruesome and lysergic 44 minute long single track that tests the limits of adjectives like heavy or bleak, their sound is continually (d)evolving. Consistently finding new ways to hit bottom in a sequence of splits with fellow underground juggernauts Dopethrone, Primitive Man, and Teeth among others, FISTER has emerged as one of the nastiest strains of doom metal, adept at fusing the narcotic tension of drowning in misery with the planet-splitting intensity of devout amplifier worship. Producing metal so poisonous, polluted, and nihilistic that sludge-doom-funeral-death are the only labels that can hang, the midwestern outfit are overpowering and relentless at city-leveling volume like a Sisyphean artillery brigade cursed to push two hundred tons of speaker cabinets uphill forever.

Shed

SHED

Shed is a five-piece stoner metal band from Chicago.

Blake

BLAKE

BLAKE is a fuzz band from Chicago, IL. Formed by longtime musicians, Peter Norman and Danny Burke, in 2015. After several months as a guitar/drum duo, a third member, Nick Cvijovic, was added on bass. From there, the trio began practicing maticulously and playing myriads of shows, perfecting their hooky, tasty, fuzz licks. As early ’17 rolled in, Spencer Quigley joined as rhythm guitar, turning this trio into a full, SG shreddin’ quartet. Catch a show!

Iyac

IYAC

Sophisticated metal from Chicago

Eve Black

EVE BLACK

Chicago post-punk band Eve Black combines dark, driving grooves with delay-drenched guitars and soaring vocals to deliver a sonic experience that is equal parts catchy and crushing. Since 2019, the band has explored a range of shadowy sounds and textures, shaped by influences like The Cure, Protomartyr, The Chameleons, Siouxsie and the Banshees, classic deathrock, and a variety of high-drama goth bands. Returning to the stage with new music, a new lineup, and plenty of pent-up energy, Eve Black brings a DIY ethos and an infectious energy that exhilarates audiences and brings them back for more. 
 Ryan Bryant – vocals/guitar Hector Huizar – drums Jorge Lopez – bass Thomas Wells – guitar

JOHN LENNON/PLASTIC ONO BAND

John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band is the debut solo album by English musician John Lennon. It was released in 1970, after Lennon had issued three experimental albums with Yoko Ono and Live Peace in Toronto 1969, a live performance in Toronto credited to the Plastic Ono Band. The album was recorded simultaneously with Ono’s debut avant-garde solo album, Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band, at Ascot Sound Studios and Abbey Road Studios using the same musicians and production team and nearly identical cover artwork.

John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band is generally considered one of Lennon’s finest solo albums. In 1987, Rolling Stonemagazine ranked it fourth in its list “The 100 Best Albums of the Last Twenty Years” and in 2012, ranked it number 23 in “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time”.

DELTAPHONIC

Deltaphonic is a New Orleans rock n’ roll band that blends fingerpicking blues, funk, and roots rock into a surprisingly big sound.

Warish

WARISH

Imagine if Incesticide era Nirvana were crossed with Static Age era Misfits. You’d have sinister low budget horror rock with a visceral, twisted weirdness

Tvaer

TVAER

A.C. – Guitar, Vocals
M.H. – Guitar
E.C. – Drums
C.D. – Bass

We had been sullen
in the sweet air that’s gladdened by the sun;
we bore the mist of sluggishness in us:
now we are bitter in the blackened mud.

Eneferens

ENEFERENS

Beautiful metal from the north.

Jori Apedaile – All instruments + vocals

LUTES-NOLDEN EARGASM

Lutes-Nolden Eargasm interpret Tenacious D & Ween

OZZUARIO

Industrial Black Metal From Chicago

JEREMY ZUCKER

Before entrancing listeners across the world, 21-year-old singer, songwriter, and producer Jeremy Zucker had been quietly carving out his distinct sound from a bedroom in suburban New Jersey. A fusion of organic airy beats, lush soundtrack-style soundscapes, and biting tumblr-worthy lyricism, Zucker’s catalog is eclectic: equally care-free and effortless as it is introspectively cathartic. A self-described “social introvert,” Zucker cites Jon Bellion, Blackbear, EDEN, Bon Iver, and Wet among his strongest influences.

In the summer of 2015, Zucker released his first official EP entitled “Beach Island.” The project saw a small amount of success and from there Zucker steadily began to build a dedicated fan base. Later that year he released a stream of singles that would eventually be packaged together as an EP titled “Breathe.” The project’s breakout single “Bout It” quickly garnered millions of streams as it organically spread across Soundcloud and Spotify, drawing the attention of curators and fans across the world. In 2016 Zucker released his third EP, “Motions,” which featured “Heavy,” a song that was later remixed by the recording artist Blackbear who reached out to Jeremy after stumbling across his music on Soundcloud. The remix, “Make Daddy Proud,” was released on Blackbear’s latest LP “Digital Druglord.” 2017 continues the upward trend for Zucker; he recently signed with Republic Records and is currently gearing up for his major label debut.

BIRD STREETS

“I used to write about finding ways out of the darkness,” says John Brodeur, the New York songwriter and musician behind 2018 NPR Music Slingshot Artist Bird Streets. “Now I’m more interested in exploring and creating a map of that place. In some ways, adopting the Bird Streets name allowed me to write more openly about myself.”

In need of a creative rebirth after many years in the New York music scene, Brodeur reached out to his longtime friend, producer and multi-instrumentalist Jason Falkner, to suggest they record together. The album yielded by this pairing is both fresh and familiar–a dynamic collection of introspective indie-rock and power-pop that draws liberally on the music of decades past without being bluntly nostalgic, with Brodeur’s voice like an old friend you’re meeting for the first time. The Falkner-produced debut, simply titled Bird Streets, is out now on Omnivore Recordings.

Over a career that’s spanned nearly 20 years, John Brodeur has independently produced and released several solo albums, including 2013’s Little Hopes; fronted rock trios The Suggestions and Maggie Mayday; and worked as a touring and studio musician for scores of acts, including The Morning After Girls, Freedy Johnston, and White Hills. He has shared stages with Fountains of Wayne, They Might Be Giants, TV On The Radio, The Whigs, Glenn Tilbrook, Cracker, 311, Lemonheads, Scud Mountain Boys, Greg Laswell, Asteroids Galaxy Tour, O.A.R., Sloan, Todd Park Mohr, and many more.

The name Bird Streets springs from a tony real-estate enclave in the Hollywood Hills, which Brodeur first discovered when the recording sessions were first getting underway — but also references his one-time hometown of Albany, N.Y., which provided the characters and inspiration for some of the album’s 11 songs.

Recorded in Los Angeles between 2014 and 2016, Bird Streets is the product of equal measures tenacity and patience. After a series of setbacks derailed touring plans for his last solo album, Brodeur decamped to L.A. for a few months, waiting for a hole to open in Falkner’s schedule. Once they were in the studio, the kindred creative spirits hit it off immediately, producing the song “Direction” in a single session. What started with a song turned into an EP and then a full-length album. Working during the short gaps between Falkner’s touring and production commitments, with Brodeur shuffling between coasts for studio dates, the pair moved quickly, arranging and tracking entire songs in a day or two, sharing instrumental duties throughout. Brodeur brought few complete ideas into the sessions, instead composing in the studio with Falkner, lyrics often being finished as the record button was pressed.

Lyrically, these songs draw heavily on internal conflict — self-doubt, anxiety, depression — with an overarching feeling of wistful resignation rather than blind optimism. On “Spaceship,” the album’s introspective centerpiece, Brodeur reflects on his history with alcohol as “having the time of someone else’s life,” before admitting, “we’ve got a long way to go.” The inertia of addiction hangs heavy over “Same Dream”: “So many places that you’ve never been / But all you want is to be there again.”

Something as seemingly inconsequential as writer’s block is experienced as a mortal struggle on the spooky “Pretty Bones.” Brodeur notes, “I got locked out of my friend’s place in Hollywood the evening before we had to cut the vocal, and I didn’t have a lyric yet so I wandered around for half the night, beating myself up for not having anything to say — which turned out to be decent lyric material.”

Periodically difficult themes are delivered via unshakable melodies, a dichotomy that recalls the tightrope walked by artists like Elliott Smith and David Bazan/Pedro the Lion. In album opener “Carry Me,” Brodeur celebrates “new beginnings and bitter ends” over a bright, bristling bed of electric guitars, then laments the end of a friendship that was once “tighter than Steely Dan” in the eminently catchy “Betting on the Sun.” From there the album jumps between epic power-ballads (“Stop to Breathe”) and British Invasion-flavored power-pop (“Thanks for Calling”), the George Harrison-via-Radiohead melancholy of “Heal” and the grungy jangle of “Until the Crown.”

“Jason helped to bring the right batch of tunes out of me,” says Brodeur. “Each time we finished one, he knew exactly what kind of song needed to come next.”

Falkner fans will enjoy some genuine guitar-hero moments on Bird Streets, including the soaring solo work on “Carry Me” and “Direction,” and the subtle melodic counterplay of “Bullets.” Moments of guitar interplay, tracked simultaneously by the pair, give songs like “Betting on the Sun” and “Stop to Breathe” a live-band energy, even though many of the songs had never been performed prior to being recorded.

Once the duo wrapped up recording and mixing, the album was sent to mastering engineer Jon Astley, with the vinyl lacquer to be cut at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London. Soon, the album caught the attention of Cheryl Pawelski at Omnivore, who made Bird Streets one of the label’s select few new artists.

An 11th-hour revamp gave the album its striking cover image, Brodeur having scrapped the original packaging altogether upon seeing the new photo in a friend’s Instagram feed. “It’s really just a pile of bricks, but it reminded me of the absurd beauty of the Hollywood Hills, and all the struggle and sadness and poverty that goes toward maintaining that façade — those massive homes, teetering on the cliff’s edge, while people are sleeping on the sidewalk a half-mile away.”

Now, after years in the making — and decades on the outside looking in — Bird Streets is giving Brodeur a renewed creative energy, and a shot at reaching a larger audience.

Russo

RUSSO

Russo are an American rock band formed in 2018 in Los Angeles, California. The group consists of Cailin Russo (lead vocals), Tyler McCarthy (lead guitar), Hayley Brownell (drums, backing vocals) and Sean Ritchie (bass).

Frontwoman Cailin Russo was raised in San Diego, California. Her father is Scott Russo, lead-singer of rock-band ‘Unwritten Law’. Cailin’s father exposed her to rock-music at an early age and she released various tracks under her own name, before following in her father’s footsteps and joining Tyler, Hayley and Sean to form Russo.

Russo initially began rehearsing in Echo Park, Los Angeles and played their first gig supporting Jessie Ware on 19th April at Belly Up in Solana Beach, California.

Russo’s debut project ‘A House with a Pool’ is scheduled for release in June 2018.

Bad Suns

BAD SUNS

The third full-length from L.A. band Bad Suns, Mystic Truth gets its title from a piece of art that vocalist Christo Bowman stumbled upon while visiting London’s Tate Modern on tour. Created by Bruce Nauman in 1967, the neon-and-glass piece spells out a possibly paradoxical statement in blue spiraled cursive: “The True Artist Helps the World by Revealing Mystic Truths.”

“I thought that connected back to the message of the record, which is about finding the extraordinary in very simple things, even though we’re living in a very dark time right now,” says Bowman, whose bandmates include guitarist Ray Libby, bassist Gavin Bennett, and drummer Miles Morris. “Instead of succumbing to that darkness, I think you’ve got to try to hold onto some optimism, and try to uncover those simple miracles so you don’t lose the plot of what’s really important.”

Produced by Dave Sardy (The Head and the Heart, The Black Angels, Oasis), Mystic Truth channels that searching quality into songs with a powerful sense of purpose. In creating the album, Bad Suns recorded at the legendary Sunset Sound and at Sardy’s home studio, building on the melodic brilliance first glimpsed on their debut album Language & Perspective—a 2014 release that hit #24 on the Billboard 200 and led to massive tours supporting Halsey and The Neighbourhood. At the same time, the band amps up the intensity of their 2016 sophomore effort Disappear Here (praised as their “most dynamic and introspective work yet” by Alternative Press), giving way to a more emotionally urgent merging of rock & roll, post-punk, and pop.

Unto The Earth

UNTO THE EARTH

Inspired by a diverse group of influences like Monster Magnet, Fu Manchu, Kyuss, Hum, Elder, and others, as well as giants such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd, Unto the Earth writes songs that feature heavy riffs, soaring guitar harmonies, and droning, melodic vocals, interspersed with atmospheric interstitials and psychedelic interludes that all combine to take the listener on a cosmic journey.

The Sweet Lillies

THE SWEET LILLIES

The Sweet Lillies’ high-energy, melodic tunes have quickly captured the hearts of fans in Colorado and beyond. The band, formed in November of 2013, credits its appeal to the original and compelling songwriting of three women who share an unwavering commitment to life on the road. The magnetic combination of Julie Gussaroff on the upright bass, Becca Bisque on the viola, Melly Frances on percussion and lead vocals and Dustin Rohleder on acoustic guitar gives this band a rare and alluring sound. As testament to their appeal, The Sweet Lillies have already shared the stage with the likes of Peter Rowan, George Porter Jr., Steve Kimock, Vince Herman of Leftover Salmon, Kyle Hollingsworth and Jason Hann of The String Cheese Incident, Andy Hall of The Infamous String Dusters, Jeff Austin, and Bridget Law (founding member of Elephant Revival). Based out of Colorado’s Front Range, The Sweet Lillies are continually expanding their audience and reach with a contagious love of music and a get-up-and-dance attitude that spreads lots of love and smiles.

K.D. Lang Live By Request

K.D. LANG “LIVE BY REQUEST”

Live by Request is a live album by k.d. lang, released in 2001 (see 2001 in music). The album was recorded during the taping of the television show Live by Request on the A&E Network. The performance was on December 14, 2000 at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Midtown Manhattan.

K-TEL MUSIC EXPRESS “SOFT ROCKIN 70’S”

In 1966, Philip Kives released the company’s first compilation album, a collection of 25 country songs entitled “25 Country Hits. “ Every copy was sold. The idea of compilation albums was new, and the venture’s unexpected success led to further releases. K-Tel’s second release, “25 Polka Greats,”sold 1.5 million copies in the United States

K-tel recruited Australian Don Reedman (twin brother of Peter Reedman, who was already working in the Australian office) to set up the UK-based division of K-tel Records in the early 1970s. Ian Howard was the Managing Director of operations.

The company built the business of releasing compilation albums that combined material from a number of popular artists onto a single theme album using the tag line “20 Original Hits! 20 Original Stars!”. The company negotiated directly with artists and labels for the rights to reproduce their original recordings, in the process also securing a long-term asset through adding those recordings to their catalog.

Fashion Week

FASHION WEEK

Fashion Week is an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Joshua Lozano and Bassist Carl Eklof in Brooklyn, New York in 1987. Fashion Week went through a succession of drummers, the longest-lasting being Carson Kehrer, who joined the band in 1990, after the disbanding of DC hardcore legends “Shout”.
In the late 1980s Fashion Week established itself as part of the New York noise scene, releasing its first album Clorox for the independent record label Under Pop in 1989. The band eventually came to develop a sound that relied on dynamic contrasts, often between pummeling verses and loud, catchy choruses. After signing to major label David Muffin Records, Fashion Week found unexpected success with “Smells Like Old Spice”, the first single from the band’s second album Fuhgeddaboudit (1991). Fashion Week’s sudden success widely popularized alternative rock as a whole, and as the band’s frontman Lozano found himself referred to in the media as the “spokesman of a generation”, with Fashion Week being considered the “flagship band” of Generation X. Fashion Week’s third studio album In Uterus (1993), challenged the group’s audience, featuring an abrasive, less-mainstream sound.
Fashion Week’s brief run ended following the death of Josh Lozano in 1994, but various posthumous releases have been issued since, overseen by Rodriguez, Eklof, and Lozano’s widow Catherine Lust. Since its debut, the band has sold over 25 million albums in the United States alone, and over 50 million worldwide. Eklof went on to form the highly acclaimed “Food Fighters”, and Rodriguez has pursued a career in politics, and wedding crashing.

Eye Flys

EYE FLYS

East coast noise rock

BROTHERS OF INVENTION

Brothers Of Invention featuring The Legendary Ike Willis playing the music of Frank Zappa.

THE VAUDETTES

The Vaudettes are a dynamic, sultry, empowering dance troupe based in Chicago, Il. They‘ve been dazzling crowds with their electric, floor-pounding routines since 2015. Every performance promises a spectacle of original choreography; ranging from classic kick-lines, playful shimmies, dark seductions, and sexy rock-and-roll burlesque. Let’s get VAUDY!

HAPPYBIRTHDAYCALVIN

Happy Birthday Calvin employs the powers of a highly active imagination to magnify the scope of hip-hop. The 18-year-old Chicago rapper/producer went from scribbling down his dreams word-for-word and penning poems in middle school to shining at ChiArts: Chicago High School of the Arts. While there, he began racking up countless streams on Soundcloud. Born and raised in a single parent home, Calvin developed a fascination with poetry and eventually hip-hop sparked by Lil Wayne, Kanye West, G Herbo, Tyler, The Creator, and Kid Cudi, to name a few. In high school, he turned his rhymes into music, crafting beats and recording himself on FL Studio. In late 2018, he caught the attention of Peezy of At The Studio, an independent Chicago label and has since flourished. Since teaming up, he’s released the “No Friends” mixtape that racked up over 25 million streams and has him slated to be one of the most exciting new acts on the rise.

Hollis Brown

HOLLIS BROWN

Hollis Brown is an American Rock ‘n’ Roll band.  Named after a Bob Dylan song (“The Ballad of Hollis Brown”), the band was formed by Queens-natives and songwriters Mike Montali (lead vocals/guitar) and Jonathan Bonilla (lead guitar).  Both 2nd-generation immigrants (Italian-American and Puerto Rican-American, respectively), they soon found their musical brethren across America, recruiting Andrew Zehnal (drums) from Cleveland, Adam Bock (keyboard/vocals) from St. Louis, and Scott Thompson (bass) from Boston.

Hollis Brown’s latest vinyl EP, Cluster of Pearls (Alive Naturalsound Records), was chosen as one of the 300 select releases throughout the world for Record Store Day 2016.  Pressed on Starburst Vinyl, the record is limited to 800 copies and features four previously unreleased tracks and two songs released on vinyl for the first time. Cluster of Pearls follows up the 2015 release of Hollis Brown’s third album 3 Shots (Jullian Records/RED), featuring the Bo Diddley collaboration “Rain Dance,” and the duet “Highway 1” with acclaimed alt-country songstress Nikki Lane. The edgy, roots-rock indie band from Queens, NY, known for its adrenaline fueled performances, recently wrapped 40+ amphitheater shows across America supporting Counting Crows and Citizen Cope last Summer/Fall, followed by a month-long headline tour in the UK and Europe.

The independent act has achieved a significant amount of success since their formation in 2009.  They released their debut album Ride On The Train on Alive Naturalsound in 2013 (produced by Adam Landry), garnering song and video premieres from Rolling Stone, Paste, and American Songwriter, along with music placements on Direct TV’s “Kingdom,” Showtime’s “Shameless,” MTV’s “Real World,” and the Willem Dafoe/Matt Dillon film “Bad Country”.  Following a Lou Reed tribute concert in NYC, Alive Naturalsound asked the band to record a tribute to the Velvet Underground’s classic album Loaded, as a limited-edition vinyl release for Record Store Day 2014.  Hollis Brown Gets Loaded took on a life of its own, with airplay on influential radio stations, resulting in a full CD & digital release.

The band has toured extensively in America and Europe, headlining and supporting such bands as The Zombies, Jackie Greene, Heartless Bastards, Rich Robinson of Black Crowes, and Jesse Malin, and building an impressive fan base on both continents.

Blackstar_(Front_Cover)

DAVID BOWIE “BLACKSTAR”

Blackstar (stylised ★) is the twenty-fifth and final studio album by English musician David Bowie. It was released worldwide through ISO, RCA, Columbia, and Sony on 8 January 2016, coinciding with Bowie’s 69th birthday. The album was largely recorded in secret between The Magic Shop and Human Worldwide Studios in New York City with Bowie’s longtime co-producer Tony Visconti and a group of local jazz musicians.

UN

Clayton – Monte – David – Alex

Seattle Aetherical Doom.

Pulley

PULLEY

SoCal melodic punk rock staple PULLEY has returned with its first new material in over five years. “No Change in the Weather” marks the band’s 20th Anniversary and is set for a November 18th release via Cyber Tracks.

“We’ve written new music over the years that we were sitting on,” explains vocalist and Los Angeles Angels’ bullpen coach Scott Radinsky. “The lack of a label and having to put it out ourselves had slowed things down the past few years, but the desire to get into the studio has always been there,” he adds.

Pulley wrote and arranged the music themselves before laying it down with Matt Hyde (Deftones, Slayer, Strung Out) behind the console and Ryan Greene (Megadeth, NOFX, Bad Religion) behind the mixing console. From the anthemic “No “I” in Team” to the stellar harmonies in “Different” to the throbbing drums and guitar solos in “Farewell” to the dueling guitars in “The Other Side of Silence” – Pulley has picked up where they left off with their classic SoCal punk rock formula.

Pulley initially formed after Scott Radinsky departed from Ten Foot Pole. Their initial lineup consisted of Radinsky, Mike Harder, Jim Cherry and Jordan Burns (Strung Out) and Matt Riddle (Face to Face) Epitaph Records released their debut album Esteem Driven Engine in 1996. After a few years of personnel changes, Pulley’s current line-up solidified in 2001 with Scott Radinsky (vocals), Mike Harder (guitar), Jim Blowers (guitar), and Tyler Rebbe (bass), Drummer Chris Dalley joined the band in 2014.

Pulley Discography: Esteem Driven Engine (Epitaph 1996) 60 Cycle Hum (Epitaph 1997) Pulley (Epitaph 1999) Together Again for the First Time (Epitaph 2001) Matters (Epitaph 2004) The Slackers / Pulley Split (Do Tell Records 2005) Pulley Beyond Warped (Immergent Records 2005) The True Story of an American Punk Rock Band DVD (X-Members Records 2007) Time-Insensitive Material (X-Members Records 2009) The Long and the Short of It (X-Members Records 2011) No Change in the Weather (Cyber Tracks 2016)

Kevin Lamont

KEVIN LAMONT

Deonte Baker

DEONTE BAKER

Deonte Baker was raised on the west side of Chicago and has been singing since he was seven years old. He grew up in a big family with six brothers who are all singers and musicians. Deonte received formal training from The Chicago West Community Music Center located in the Garfield park golden dome and Columbia College Chicago Deonte began his professional singing career at the age of 12 performing around the world with his family’s gospel group, jazz bands, R&B bands, gospel choirs and more. He has done many local singing competitions , weddings, parties and was featured on Windy City Live. In 2018, Deonte was a contestant on the hit tv show American Idol , making it to the solo rounds in Hollywood and being featured on 3 episodes on ABC networks.

Deonte is currently working in Chicago as a full time professional singer and is Drop his first album in October 2024 has worked for many singer’s including the Grammy nominated R&B singer Miki Howard. Deonte’s mission is to spread joy and inspiration through his music and live performances.

PSIONIC

PSIONIC

psi·on·ic
sīˈänik/adjective
relating to or denoting the practical use of psychic powers or paranormalphenomena.

psi·on·ics
sīˈäniks/noun
the study of paranormal phenomena in relation to the application of electronics. The term comes from psi (‘psyche’) and the -onics from electronics (machine). There is no scientific evidence that psionic abilities exist.

a poltergeist for your speakers.