Post-hardcore Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows (D.R.U.G.S.) is back with a new full-length album, ‘DESTROY REBUILD,’ their first release since 2011’s acclaimed self-titled debut album. Craig Owens is once again at the project’s helm and has again orchestrated a band and record that is sure not just to catch your attention but also keep it. The new release, ‘DESTROY REBUILD,’ offers listeners the uniquely nostalgic D.R.U.G.S. sound they have been craving while also exploring new territories making ‘DESTROY REBUILD’ the perfect progression and exciting new chapter.
When Owens got to writing, he described Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows’s signature sound as “fast, to the point, syncopated rhythms with a melody on top.” The aggressive melodies are paired with low-tuned guitars and introspective lyrics to create the nostalgic alternative rock sound that we all grew up with and have come to crave. To capture this sound, Owens connected with A-List producer Howard Benson whose past work with My Chemical Romance and The All American Rejects heavily influenced the modern alternative rock world. Benson’s raw talent for recording helped shape the structures and harmonies of the album. Owens found this collaborative process cathartic and embraced his newfound flow of creativity.
Owens’ knack for creating sincere lyrics shines through while touching on topics like destiny, perspective, and redemption on ‘DESTROY REBUILD.’ It is a physical manifestation of the course he has taken in his musical career and encapsulates each step along the way. “Everything that we are today is because of yesterday, and this depicts where I have been, but also where I’m going.” It is a bright reflection of one’s life and actions, and it encourages the listener to do the same in their own life.
“DESTINY,” the first single off of the record, is a solid bridge between the first D.R.U.G.S. self-titled record and ‘DESTROY REBUILD.’ Is it a hard-hitting track that expertly blends the nostalgic alternative rock sound with enough modernity that’s sure to appeal to many different listeners. Another track off the album, “The Arm,” is a collection of melodies, lyrics, and hooks eloquently constructed together. It is known as the “anomaly” of the album due to its organic nature of origin and leans toward the band’s future.
‘DESTROY REBUILD’ is an exciting new beginning for Owens. It is a way for him to connect with fans to share life experiences, and he is hoping the album will help them cope with whatever they are dealing with and experiencing. “This album is my first step forward without thinking of running back,” Owens stated. “I hope it can leave a mark and grow with people.”
Chicago. In a city brimming with classic blues and jazz divas, Lynne Jordan stands apart. Not only do her soaring vocals dip effortlessly into blues, jazz, funk, rock and even country but her bawdy personality wins over any crowd. Her talent so dazzled the Second City that the late Chicago film critic Roger Ebert declared her his “favorite diva.” Backed by her sizzling band The Shivers, Jordan quickly developed into a Chicago institution, playing jazz and blues clubs, swanky lounges, and even the charity circuit throughout the country. She brought her special brand of storytelling, raw humor, and performance to New York, DC, and Atlanta with her sold-out show, “A Musical Tribute To Nina Simone.”
She has recorded with Tom Waits; The Punk group Urge Overkill; Alligator Records Blues artist Toronzo Cannon; featured amongst Taj Mahal, Etta James, and Koko Taylor on Blues Down Deep: A Tribute to Janis Joplin and her own CD’s: Bit o Fun and Holiday Shivers. Lynne performed in Jazz Operas in Europe, performed her own one-woman show, and is a featured vocalist with Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues.
Lynne has traveled the world with her band the Shivers including a life-changing performance in Kyiv, Ukraine in Freedom Square before an audience of 250,000. Jordan has performed her works at numerous Live lit (storytelling) shows in Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Moscow, Rio, Riga, and Paris and is featured in the book: Chicago Storytellers, From Page to Stage. Because she is a popular entertainer in Chicago, she has honed her storytelling skills with every song, in every concert and event, and created a one-woman show “A Great Big Diva” that includes her wonderful stories and music.
Lynne is a 3Arts Make a Wave Artist, and recipient of the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago: Outstanding Achievement in Music – Rhythm & Blues award in 2017-2018. She is currently enjoying a “Diva Residency” as an artist in residence at the Raue Center for the Performing Arts in Illinois. Lynne is presently working on two new recordings: one includes original material from Corky Siegel, Toronzo Cannon, and John Cameron Mitchell and the other is exclusively classic blues tunes from the ’20s, ’30s, and ’40s.
Krallice is an American black metal band formed by New York City musicians Colin Marston, Mick Barr, Nick McMaster and Lev Weinstein. They play an experimental, highly technical style of black metal.
With modern punk bravado, scorched guttural vocals, meaty hooks aplenty, and serious musical chops that sometimes lean into elements of crossover and metal, No Consent pour their attention on the ills of society with a powerful vengeance and conscience. For people who gravitate towards the anthemic anger of Rise Against, The Casualties, and MDC, this will be a top-notch affair. For instance, tunes like the surging “No Escape” tries to tear down the self-enclosed safe spaces around people in order to expose the police as well as the ecosystem of greed, corruption, and brutality that makes the dire dysfunction all possible. “Fuck All Cops” needs no introduction: the slower, but highly-charged tempo is a backdrop to their belief that cops have become class traitors who disgrace and traumatize communities: with a crushing tempo and gruff vocals, they emphasize the dire need to reform the system that legitimizes brutality in the name of so-called safety. Without arming themselves with loads of leftist books, they make a plainspoken case in the harrowing, uptempo “Division of Wealth” that the money world has reached a tipping point, an inflection: the credit card debt, and the seething gap between the have and have-nots, are not sustainable and are a recipe for piling up grievances against injustice, forced poverty, and exploitation. The band’s politics of despair and disorder, raw insight and basic intelligence, are bolted to each word, and none of it feels like a classroom lesson. Other tunes like “Sugarloaf” depict the small-town, fucked-up kids of the gutter-prone night, riddled with pain and alienation, rejection and loser status, while “Alone” feels like a rage against the human machines: the people who try to block, subvert, and repress our wills and energies. Those same enraged sentiments and outlooks also pervade “Live Free,” which is a testament to free agency in the middle of a new American authoritarianism. It’s a throaty shout-out to a burning desire to shred the plans, inherited ideas, and roles placed on us. And not to be missed, “Bastard Nation” assails “the home of god, hate, and slavery,” a dark inherited American history whose myth begins to crumble under the weight of observation, in which the politics of red and blue are just another kind of dope. It’s a weighty tune about the power of dissatisfaction, the false promises of a system baring its problems daily, and the fear of an overarching government whose policies are worrisome, at best.
THE DOORS “L.A. WOMAN”
L.A. Woman is the sixth studio album by the American rock band the Doors, released on April 19, 1971 by Elektra Records. It is the last to feature lead singer Jim Morrison during his lifetime, due to his death exactly two months and two weeks following the album’s release, though he would posthumously appear on the 1978 album An American Prayer.
SOMEONE’S VILLAIN
We are a 3 piece cover band based out of Downers Grove Il.
K-Man & The 45s, where Ska meets Rock and Roll. One of Canada’s most well-known and loved Ska bands. Their relentless touring and hyper active live shows keep turning heads.
Their critically acclaimed Self-Titled album came out in 2016 and there’s been no slowing down since (barring the pandemic blip). Fan favorite songs such as I Don’t Mind and Space Thriller cemented them in the scene while festival plays and relentless touring brought them to the four corners of the globe. Playing alongside greats like the Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Planet Smashers, The Original Wailers, Big D and The Kids Table, The Slackers levelled up their fanbase and live show.
With the release of Stand With The Youth the band was solidified in the National and now international Ska and Punk scenes. Things were going great! Now they were not only playing Canada but The USA and Europe as well. Everything was going great!
Then the Covid call came in and everything shut down.
Completely devastated, beaten by a pandemic and divorce, K-Man spent his time in a little house isolated on the side of a mountain by a lake. Here he wrote the songs for Primed To Go. Self reflection let to the realization that life is just better on the road (a major them of the album). There were moments of fun and light heartedness during these times shown in songs such as The Girl Likes Heavy Metal, Daytime Drinking and Regroup on Planet X. The latter features Efrem Shultz of the Voodoo Glow Skulls, Death By Stereo and Manic Hispanic.
There is also an element of soul searching showing a more personal lyrical tone in some songs which are a new thing for the band. K-Man Style Way depicts the loneliness that can occur while spending so much time on the road. The song Silhouette is a slower moody ballad and departure in style featuring the lovely Lea Keeley doing a duet with K-Man on vocals and musical moods that reflects the love and obsession romance depicted by the words.
Primed To Go feels like a more complete album than their past efforts and shows the growth of the band. Always energetic and just as refreshing this new album tips its hat to the original Ska genre with the band’s signature Rock and Roll attitude front and center.
Festivals, Canadian, US and European tours are all booked and K-Man & The 45s keep moving!
For fans of: The Specials, The English Beat, Mad Caddies, The Planet Smashers, Sublime
“The band creates a contagious proposition from a fusion of ska and rockabilly spiced classic rock ‘n’ roll with plenty more involved, a recipe providing their finest feast of sound yet within their self-titled full-length.” – RingMaster Mag
“With a fantastic horn section playing catchy melodic lines and blazing solos over an energetic rhythm section, they switch naturally from ska to rock and punk, with surf sounds often not far behind.” – XS NOIZE
Chicago four-piece Brain Repair’s exuberant sound brings audiences to their feet. With a tip of the hat to American punk touchstones like Dead Kennedy’s and TSOL, the band’s high-energy performances blend acerbic lyrics, razor-sharp riffs, and a rhythm section that kicks harder than Mrs. O’Leary’s cow.
The Surfrajettes are a four-piece instrumental combo from Toronto, ON, Canada. Since forming in late 2015, the band has charmed audiences with their clever mix of psychedelic rock and reverb-drenched surf music, sky-high beehives, go-go boots, and eyeliner as thick as their guitar strings.
The band achieved viral online notoriety from their home-made performance videos and their feature by Norman’s Rare Guitars in LA. The debut 45 single “Party Line / Toxic” released late 2018 on Hi-Tide Recordings to immediate success. The band has toured extensively in its support, including performances on The Beach Boys Cruise, The Melissa Etheridge Cruise, at Nashville Boogie, Wild O Fest in Mexico City, The New England Shake-Up!, Surf Guitar 101 Convention, Tiki Oasis & Hi-Tide Summer Holiday: Asbury Park.
The band released the follow up single “Hale’iwa Hustle / Banzai Pipeline” in 2020, supported by a festival appearance at Hi-Tide Winter Holiday: Pittsburgh. The group spent the rest of 2020 and most of 2021 writing and recording their debut LP “Roller Fink” – in stores NOW from Hi-Tide Recordings.
The Surfrajettes are guitarists Shermy Freeman and Nicole Damoff, bassist Sarah Butler, and drummer Annie Lillis. When not on tour, the group is busy woodshedding in their secret beach hut, sewing new miniskirts, debating vintage gear, and daydreaming about performing in a Quentin Tarantino movie.
ALESSANDRO DEL VECCHIO (Hardline) – Lead Vocals
RYO OKUMOTO (Spock’s Beard, Asia, Chris Squire) Keyboards
MIKE KENEALLY (Frank Zappa, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani) – Guitar & Vocals
PETE GRIFFIN(Zappa Plays Zappa, Edgar Winter) – Bass, Pedals, Guitar, Keys & Vocals
JONATHAN MOVER (GTR, Marillion, Satriani, The Tubes) – Drums, Percussion, Samples & Vocals
Look for ProgJect to perform a two-plus hour set of Prog classics & epics such as “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway”, “The Cinema Show,” “Karn Evil 9”, “Roundabout,” “Long Distance Runaround,” “21st Century Schizoid Man,” “Lark’s Tongues In Aspic”, “Hell’s Bells”, “Xanadu,” “Red Barchetta,”“Have A Cigar,” “Wish You Were Here,” “Solsbury Hill” and “Living In The Past,” to name only a few.
ProgJect – The Ultimate Prog Rock Expereience is the brainchild of drummer Jonathan Mover and came to fruition out of his childhood love of Prog. “Prog Rock is the reason I play drums,” Mover explains, “but by the time I turned pro, Prog in the classic sense was over. And, although I got to work with some Prog-associated artists–GTR (Steve Hackett and Steve Howe) and Marillion–my career took a decidedly different, though incredibly fortunate path, with artists such as Alice Cooper, Joe Satriani, Aretha Franklin, The Tubes, Shakira, Julian Lennon and others. That being said, I never lost my desire to play the Prog I grew up listening to.”
He adds: “The idea and inspiration came in 2019 from my getting a last-minute rescue call to play with the Genesis tribute band, The Musical Box. That not only relit my childhood fire and desire, but made me realize: in the tribute world, if there’s an audience for Genesis, and an audience for Pink Floyd, and YES, and Rush, there must be an audience for King Crimson, Gentle Giant, U.K., Bruford, and Jethro Tull, too. So, why not play them all, since I love them all, and assemble a team of extraordinary musicians that feel the same as I? So I did. And they, like me, wanted to play a wide variety of Prog from all our favorite bands, and therefore thought more of the concept of a legacy ‘homage band’, instead of a tribute band.”
Mover says that “the chemistry and dynamics of ProgJect are amazing” and “we’re all very excited to hit the road again, especially now with Alessandro singing; with his four-and-a-half octave range, there are no limits to what we can cover. We love playing this music so much and know how much prog fans love it too, and now more than ever, since most of our prog heros are either gone, or simply not touring anymore.”
What is the enduring appeal of Prog? “It’s music that you really listen to, and in some ways, live in,” says Mover. “It’s not music to be played in the background. When you’re into Prog, you’re not only really into listening, but often times, attached to it as well. It’s the same for seeing it played live. It’s more than just a music performance–it’s an experience.”
A very special photo exhibition by David Tepper. Over 50 portraits of Chicago’s Blues Artists and Icons. Portraits will be on display on both floors.
GERRY HUNT’S LEGENDARY ONE-MAN BAND
Gerry Hundt is a wunderkind of a blues and old-timey music multi-instrumentalist who plays as many roles as he does instruments, performing as a bandleader as well as a sideman, in full bands, quartets, trios, duos and solo.
But his “Legendary One-Man Band” has become Hundt’s alter ego, just as, say, Spiderman is Peter Parker’s. And to see him in action on his guitar/harmonica/bass drum/snare rig one wonders if Hundt was bitten by a radioactive boll weevil in his youth, enabling him to tear it up on his own terms, transforming from merely Gerry Hundt, musician, into “Gerry Hundt the Legendary One-Man Band,” sprouting stringed instruments, rack attachments and foot devices, and bursting into a set of hot, rag-time blues. I mean, I don’t know, but then there was that time he “went to Colorado,” and came back a full-fledged one-man-band-kind-of a musician. I’m just sayin’.
Katie Toupin has found home in her role as a solo artist after leaving the critically acclaimed alt-country band, Houndmouth, in 2016. Toupin had enormous success with Houndmouth after releasing their sophomore album, “Little Neon Limelight”. The single, “Sedona”, reached #1 on Billboard’s Triple A Chart. Toupin made multiple appearances on David Letterman and Conan as well as toured internationally during her time with the band.
Toupin has since released a live EP, “Moroccan Ballroom”, a self produced album “Magnetic Moves, and her newest creation, a mini-album, “Little Heart”, releases July 9th, 2021. She has spent time touring nationally gaining her praise from outlets like Paste, Pop Matters, American Songwriter, and more. Her solo collaborators have also been noteworthy, including Grammy winning engineer for Cage The Elephant, Jeremy Ferguson, who co-produced her newest release, “Little Heart”.
Toupin’s solo live show does not disappoint as she blends her entire discography into an energetic, full band experience. It appears that after a thirteen year career, Toupin is just getting started.
Hello Darling is a Nashville Alternative Folk outfit led by Grace Russell and Patrick Armould. The band met in 2020 at Lipscomb University. The profound complement of Russell and Armould voices and songwriting style segued into the recording of their self titled debut EP in 2021. Taking influence from artists like The Avett Brothers, Lord Huron, The National, and Gregory Alan Isakov, Hello Darling has painted a diverse landscape creatively that exists in between Alternative Folk and Indie Rock.
The band has toured with acts such as The 502s, Magic Giant, The Arcadian Wild, Vista Kicks, Brother Brothers, Dylan Leblanc etc. As they embark on their second EP with producers Zack Green and Louis Johnson, Hello Darling will continue to forge their trail as one of the most exciting young bands to watch. “In a time when many critics agonize over the state of music, Hello Darling serves as a comforting reminder — the kids are going to be alright.” – Nashville Scene
Hello Darling is Patrick James Armould, Grace Russell, Riley O’Donnell, and Amber Sawyer.
Brothers Matt & Kyle, brothers-in-law Victor & Drew and brother from another mother, Tom, form Illinois Joy, an American rock & roll band.
“Chicago-based Illinois Joy have just released their new, self-titled EP. From it, we have received “Yours To Lose,” the first track you’ll hear once you dive into this fresh body of work. And friends, you really want to hear this thing. The vocals enter, full of rasp and grit and perfectly reminiscent of Caamp or The Lumineers– a style which cannot be learned, but solely granted by the gods of folk music.
We loved “Yours To Lose” so much that we had to keep listening. The EP’s closer, “Cincinnati Rain,” is an upbeat anthem for dusty roads. You’ll find many of the same elements in this one that we heard in the previous, and it is a fine piece of good-old Americana. The vocals, again, completely hit and are delivered via over-driven tubes, providing so much vintage flavor that you will taste it in your coffee. Ladies and gentlemen, as the evidence suggests, Illinois Joy are the real deal.” – Up To Hear Music
Come fall in love with Odesa, Ukraine, the Pearl of the Black Sea! Kommuna Lux brings you the heritage music of their beloved hometown. Klezmer, Balkan, and Urban Chanson, with a dash of Ukrainian Folk and powered by rocket fuel, Kommuna Lux impacts the crowd with a nostalgic, high-energy Big Band sound from the bygone days of speakeasies and rum runners. When Volodymyr Gitin raises that clarinet to his lips, he becomes the only man in the room—you can’t help but utterly fall into his virtuoso arms. “Heavyweight Champion” Oleg Vasianovich holds his accordion like it’s light as a feather, while he develops the foundation of each melody. Layers of complexity are added by the bold, bright trumpet of Andrei Okhramovich and the sassy, playful trombone of Yaroslav Besh. Viktor Kirilov never stops dancing as he plays his acoustic guitar, and you never know when Sergei Poltorak will pause on the percussion to punk the rest of the band with a sly prank. At center stage is sultry powerhouse Bagrat Tsurkan, whose hot buttered voice and nonstop energy compel everyone to the dance floor.
These conservatory-trained musicians started out playing flash mobs in the markets, piers, and streets of Odesa, and quickly moved up to local and national stages. After winning Germany’s “Iron Eversteiner” prize for folk music, they began touring the world, but had a falling-out with their vocalist. They soon discovered “Baggi” singing background for another band, and knew they’d found the perfect front man. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the band went into shock along with the rest of their countrymen. One musician even left to join the army. But the others soon decided that they could do more good with their instruments than guns, and began touring Europe in earnest to raise money and support for Ukraine. They raised thousands of dollars that summer, and became the “go to band” for Klezmer music in both Germany and Poland. Their first USA tour in Fall 2023 was so successful, they founded a 501-c3 nonprofit to make it even easier to support Ukraine. People don’t just listen to Kommuna Lux. They fall in love! No one can resist these playful, passionate Ukrainian musicians, who have so much fun on stage that you get caught up in their joy.
Introducing ++, a female-fronted doom-gaze band from Chicago, formed in 2022. The group features Abigail (bass and vocals), Dove (guitar), Ethan (drums), and Hunter (synth). The ++ sonic palette is a fusion of doom metal, post-punk, and shoegaze, a unique blend that sets them apart in the musical landscape.
At the core of ++ is Abigail, whose gripping bass lines and heart-wrenching vocals serve as the emotional anchor of the band. Paired with Dove’s low fuzzy guitars, Ethan’s thunderous drumming, and Hunter’s ethereal OP-1 synth textures, the collective energy of ++ delivers a visceral punch that leaves listeners immersed in a realm of intensely beautiful melancholy.
KURNUGIA is an old-school Death Metal band from Ohio that is heavily influenced by Death Metal bands from the early ’90s. Founded by ex-and current members of Decrepit, Embalmer,NunSlaughter, December Wolves, & Delusion.
Advent Horizon is a project of pure creative passion. The brainchild of artist/producer Rylee McDonald and drummer Mike Lofgreen, Advent’s goal is to bring a new, fresh sound to the Progressive Rock/Metal world.
Advent Horizon’s third full length studio album “A Cell To Call Home” is now streaming!
Plastic Crimewave (Steve Krakow) is a Chicago-based illustrator, writer, avant-garde musician and music historian. He is the editor of Drag City-published magazine Galactic Zoo Dossier, eponymous front man for Plastic Crimewave Syndicate, founder of the Million Tongues Festival, and Vision Celestial Guitarkestra. He writes and illustrates the “Secret History of Chicago Music” comic in the Chicago Reader and co-hosts WGN-AM’s Secret History of Chicago Music series. He runs the Drag City imprint label, Galactic Zoo Disk.
Embracing a multicultural language, while investing in a variety of disciplines within the music itself, Mexican born, and Chicago based composer, bandleader, drummer and lyricist Gustavo Cortiñas continues to surpass himself in the breadth of his work. “Cortiñas’ music is uplifting, robust, melodic, and gets your body moving; it’s an exciting blend of the artist’s musical influences from jazz and Latin America, including his native Mexico” (DOWNBEAT). This can be heard on his four records as a leader, “Snapshot” (2013), “ESSE” (2017) “Desafío Candente” (2021), “Kind Regards / Saludos Afectuosos” (2022) and “Live in Chicago” (2024), “the culmination of a decades worth of music” (The Arts Fuse). “Cortiñas and band revel in a live setting. They not only demonstrate their intimate knowledge of the compositions, but express their evident joy at melding their musical skills with Cortiñas’s continuing commitment to encouraging social change through music.” Cortiñas gives life to music that attempts to build bridges and understanding in times of borders and ignorance; words that focus on our feet and the dust on which they walk, instead of the stars under which they dream. Through his participation in more than 30 discographic productions, “Cortiñas’s deft touch reaffirms his status as one of the great drummers in the City’s new guard.” (ChicagoReader).
A graduate of Loyola University New Orleans (BM Jazz, Minor in Philosophy), and Northwestern University (MM Jazz), Gustavo Cortiñas has developed a successful career in the US for over a decade, leading and accompanying ensembles in renowned stages and festivals in North America, South America, Asia, Oceania, and Europe. During his time in Chicago, Gustavo has become one of the most sought out drummers, performing and recording with Javier Red’s Imagery Converter, Matt Peterson, Kitt Lyles, Erik Skov, Emily Kuhn, Michael Hudson-Casanova, Chuchito Valdés Trio, Roy McGrath, Kyle Madsen, and the Carla Campopiano Trio, among other ensembles. Cortiñas is a member of the Chicago Jazz Composer’s Collective, performing regularly for their monthly residency at Chicago’s very own Green Mill. Gustavo Cortiñas is a proud endorser of Canopus Drums & Bosphorus Cymbals, and has been recipient of grants from the Mexican National Endowment of the Arts (FONCA), the Illinois Arts Council (IACA), the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), and Pathways To Jazz. His album Desafío Candente, a sprawling meditation on Latin American life and struggles, earned a well-deserved spot in Jazziz Magazine’s list of the 2021’s Best Releases, and was listed among the Jazz Journalist’s Association Top Latin Jazz Albums of 2021, among other critical praise.
Born and raised in Mexico, son to a Uruguayan university professor and a Mexican elementary school teacher, Cortiñas grew up surrounded by books of all kinds, ranging from religion and philosophy, to history, economics and art. Music was just as diverse: be it through voice of Chavela Vargas, Wagner’s operas, the revolutionary cry of Rock en Español, or the soothing songs of Edith Piaf, music of all kinds was always there. At age 10, he fell in love with the drums, and was soon seduced by the syncopated and improvised beat of Jazz. This love inspired a journey far from home. First traveling to New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz, and later Chicago, the place he now calls home. This journey set the foundation for his work: Latin American folklore, classical music, and jazz; philosophy, religion and the Latin American cry for justice. These experiences and streams of inspiration forge the unique voice of an expansive artist who will continue to defy categorization in many years to come.
Cortiñas has relased four albums as a leader, in which he acts as drummer, composer, arranger, bandleader and producer. “Snapshot” (2013), “a Smörgåsbord of the moods and nuances that make up the human experience,” (Jazziz); “ESSE” (2017) “a fascinating musical realization, exploration, and distillation of the works of Hegel, Aristotle, Descartes, Plato, and other brilliant minds” (AllAboutJazz); and “Desafío Candente” (2021), “a musical palimpsest that carries the weight of the history of colonialism and neocolonialism of the entire southern part of the Americas” (LatinJazzNet). On his latest release, “Kind Regards / Saludos Afectuosos”, Cortiñas takes on the role of lyricist in a bilingual song set that focuses on building bridges of empathy and understanding, in times of border walls and ignorance. “Kind Regards triumphs both as a bearer of a message that can’t be heard enough and as purveyor sophisticated acoustic pop of arresting beauty” (LATINO MAGAZINE).
Gustavo is extremely thankful of all the great musicians, mentors, and human beings he has been privileged enough to learn from along the way. Some that stand out are Gabriela Fouilloux, León Cortiñas, Andrés Cortiñas, Andrés Suárez, Agustín Yela, Anne-Marie Garas, Santiago Fortson, Rodrigo Jiménez, Hernán Hecht, Wayne Maureau, Johnny Vidacovich, John Mahoney, Tony Dagradi, Janna Saslaw, William Horne, Victor Goines and Willie Jones III.
Cortiñas is invested in giving this back and sharing what he has learned. He started as the drum set instructor at the Edron Academy in Mexico City in 2004. Since then, Gustavo has had an extensive private studio, and also taught master classes in Mexico, Puerto Rico, China, Ecuador, Argentina, and around the US. He has been teaching at Flatts & Sharpe Music Academy since 2014, and has been a guest artist with the jazz small ensembles at Northwestern University. From 2019-21 Cortiñas worked as a Jazz Director at the Midwest Young Artists Conservatory. Since 2018 Gustavo has been an assistant conductor of the jazz combos and jazz orchestras at Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire. IL and currently teaches drums at the prestigious Chicago High School for the Arts.
Born and raised in Chicago, Harold started doing Comedy in 2022. Co-hosts a weekly open mic on Tuesdays where the audience members can write roasts about the comics on-stage. He performs all over Chicago and surrounding suburbs and has done stand-up in Austin and Memphis with those good ole folk.
Courtney is a local Chicago Comedian and co-host for Chicago’s longest running open mic: Power Hour! Her highlights include opening for Maria Bamford and Andrew Santino. She’s been seen at Zanies, Laugh Factory, and Roast Battle.
Camden, New Jersey’s own Sol ChYld, may be relatively new to the game but is already making her mark on hip-hop through inventive rhymes, throwback beats, and all the remarkable determination of the greats.
Blazing her path, Sol moves with a razor-sharp tact and intelligence well beyond her years, following in the footsteps of fellow Garden State rap icons like Rah Digga, Queen Latifah, and Lauryn Hill; after releasing her debut album, “For the Sol,” in 2019, Sol took the road to promote the release – independently routing a series of shows and open mics throughout the East Coast. After 2022’s sophomore effort, “Eyes Toward The Sun,” with a 14-city, 24-show tour to reach thousands of new fans in person, she continued on this highly ambitious independent musical crusade.
Spending her time in 2023 focused back on content creation, Sol saw massive online growth due to a series of viral TikToks that helped take her budding career to the next level. Proving that good music can indeed go viral, 2023’s “NBC” launched her third album effort, “Something Came To Me,” one of the best underground releases of the year – garnering support from Dissect Podcast, Annabelle Kline, Team Dreamville, and many more for carrying on the mantle of elite, lyrical female hip-hop. This meteoric rise was hardly overnight but certainly will not be the last you hear of the flows of New Jersey’s Sol ChYld.
“Cinematic metal from the Depths of Chicago, Illinois. Incorporating progressive styles, Nu-Metal, Metalcore, Black Metal, and many other infused elements. Creating a unique sound with no boundaries, no limitations, and a one-of-a-kind exhibition. Alenia, fighting against all odds and defying the laws of nature with a raw and merciless energy. Delivering a powerful message of brutality, empowerment, and survival through the sounds of metal from an ethereal point of view. Made from something different, and made from something real”
“H1Z1 is a Milwaukee-based nu-metal band with a wide range of influences, incorporating early 2000’s nu-metal, thrash, groove, and rap to create an exciting, high energy sound that is a creation all their own. H1Z1 is: Marq Pointer on lead vocals, Patrick Gunderson playing guitar, Jake Fromkin on drums, and Leaf Wruk on bass.”
Introducing Super Tease–a funk-inspired pop band spreading groovy melodies and great vibes all over the Midwest. From classic crowd favorites, like Stevie Wonder and Beyonce, to catchy original tunes, Super Tease brings a captivating experience to every audience looking for a great time.
Based in Chicago, Super Tease comprises Alora Rose on lead vocals and keyboard, Brandon Marshall on guitar, Christian George on bass, and Miro Hernandez on drums.
Nashville based soul singer-songwriter Jed Harrelson has found a way to fuse sounds of Soul, Rock and R&B. Music connects and he carries that into the center of his work, leaving both a euphoric and familiar presence. While he’s independently released 10 songs in the last two years, he is working on a debut project right now. All of his music is recorded in house with his brother Hank as the audio engineer.
Being from Texarkana, Arkansas instilled a drive to hone in on his craft though the lack of music scene caused him to move where he could really express his artistic message which took him to Fayetteville, Arkansas. This is where he cut his teeth in the Northwest Arkansas music scene. Now living in Nashville since January 2020, Jed is independently touring the country with his band in a gold van called ‘The Loaf”.
By achieving and producing what feels good in his art, Jed just might help listeners do the same.
The Ska-punk nom de plume of audio engineer/multi-instrumentalist Joey Weisenritter, Dang!t calls on their listeners to live with empathy and compassion, fueled by skanky guitars, walking bass, synthesizers, and gang vocals.
Joey releases all of Dang!t’s music DIY, Writing, arranging & recording everything himself. To hear what he’s released so far, check out a streaming service, youtube, or “The Shape of Ska Punk to Come Vol. II” by Bad Time Records (featuring the track “Kind of Life”).
Stacked Like Pancakes (SLP) is a hugely energetic ska-punk/rock band.
Beginning in 2007, Stacked Like Pancakes was founded on an idolization of artists like Reel Big Fish, Streetlight Manifesto, and Less Than Jake. Following the 2011 debut ska album We’re Not Insane, SLP has since proven to maintain a thick sonic texture through a synthesis of inspirations including Reel Big Fish, Blink-182, Green Day, Foo Fighters, Cage the Elephant, twenty one pilots, and Less Than Jake.
Stacked Like Pancakes found their niche in music festivals beginning with a supporting role opening for Kid Cudi at Towson University’s Tigerfest in 2012. In 2014, SLP won the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands competition, earning their first appearance on the Vans Warped Tour. The following year began with a sold out Baltimore show for their fan-funded 2015 sophomore album entitled This Is Us. In 2016 SLP hit the road on their first official nation-wide tour with ska idols Reel Big Fish.
The Pancake Nation community fanbase is hungry for their band to grow. Their unwavering support includes three successful crowdfunded albums. The most recent of which raised over $100,000 to work with multi-platinum record producer Matt Squire for the release of Strange Creatures in 2019.
Stacked Like Pancakes epitomizes a tough DIY band despite a meaningless band name, and are rightfully on the rise to claim an international stage of their own.
Sometimes planets align. Sometimes planets collide…
MarsVenusMoon proves that both are true with an explosive union of seasoned Chicago music scene veterans. Comprising Dan “The Fox” Edwards (The Krinkles, The Millions) on lead vocals and guitar, Matt “Sal” Favazza (The Krinkles, The Bama Lamas, The Goldstars) on drums and backing vocals, and Johnny Million (Big Hello, The Millions, Convoy) on bass guitar and backing vocals, this trio showcases a profound dedication to their craft.
MarsVenusMoon unites the future and past of Rock and Roll into a magnetic blend of hard rock, power pop, glam, and garage. Their music is a fusion of raw emotion, infectious melodies, and energetic stage chemistry.
As they continue to explore the uncharted territories of their musical universe, MarsVenusMoon invites you to join them on their journey. Prepare to be moved by the sonic mastery of a band that takes their art seriously and leaves an indelible mark on the world of rock.
The Tracies bring a storm of Latin-Rock-Psychedelia everywhere they go. Hailing from the suburbs of Chicago, the four lifelong friends keep things fresh and nuanced while still remaining familiar to the ears of all lovers of everything heavy, dirty, funky and melodic.
Cellar Dwellar is an art-rock band from Columbus, Ohio. Born and bred out of the DIY house show scene, the band is now expanding into new sonic territory having just released their sophomore LP, “In the Shape of a Swan” which takes inspiration from classic sci-fi and various accounts of esoteric “high-strangeness” The sextet aims to play with as much conviction as possible, spreading their message through ritualistic performance to both shock, awe & inspire their audience.
Hey, howdy! We’re Constant Headache, a Folk Punk band from Chicago! We released our first official EP ‘Greetings From’ back in September of 2022, and since then this project has grown beyond what anyone could have imagined. Now bolstered by a roster of seven musicians, performers, and friends, we pride ourselves in our ability to always put on an energetic show brimming with emotion! We can’t wait to meet you and scream and dance and party together!!!
Willie Dixon once said, “The blues are the roots and the other musics are the fruits.” As true as that is, it still doesn’t explain the blues, because the blues cannot be explained.
When one thinks of the blues it’s easy to think of Robert Johnson, B.B. King, John Lee Hooker, or Muddy Waters. Connoisseurs of the genre will mention Son House, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and Leadbelly. Others will mention Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Paul Butterfield, and Eric Clapton. All would be correct.
The blues is raw. It knows no culture. Its brutally honest and uncompromising. It’s your worst feelings and your best moments all at once.
The blues will never apologize.
Nor will Frank Bang. And he doesn’t need to. He is the nicest guy you’ll ever meet, but when he picks up a guitar, he’ll slice your throat, woo your woman, make you cry, and might even make you dance. Ultimately, he will just make you feel. Something or everything. The real shit.
Born with the Bohemian Irish name of Frank Blinkal into two generations of Chicago police officers and a mother that often worked three jobs, Frank learned at an early age about the grit and sometimes stark reality of the world he was born into and turned that into his own brand of the blues – weaned from years of trying to learn everything he could by putting himself into the middle of everything that the Chicago music scene had to offer. And it paid off.
In his twenties, Frank found himself working at Buddy Guy’s Legends club, while making a name for himself fronting bands of his own. He was soaking up invaluable knowledge from the clientele and getting an education that not many have a chance to experience. Numerous touring bands came through the club, but amongst the club’s regulars were Junior Wells, Otis Rush, and Lonnie Brooks.
And then he became Buddy Guy’s touring guitar player for five years. No late night conversations with your heroes will prepare you for that, if you don’t have the chops to pull off the gig. You have to work your ass off, which Frank did as an employee of Legends, while working through the ranks.
As Buddy’s guitar player, his work ethic paid off. Hard work is a big part of what makes up Frank Bang, He never stops playing. He never stops honing his craft. And he never takes any bullshit. Some of that was learned from his environment at Legends, but most of it has been ingrained in him since he was born.
With Buddy, he toured the world and shared the stage with the likes of Robert Plant, The Rolling Stones, and Eric Clapton, but that’s only semantics that make up pieces of a scene.
As a solo artist, Frank has released four critically acclaimed albums under the names Frank Bang and the Secret Stash and Frank Bang and the Cook County Kings. He currently has 14 songs in regular rotation on B.B. King’s Bluesville Station on Sirius/XM.
Whether it be dirty blues that sounds like Led Zeppelin through a beautifully blown speaker or the faithful tribute to his hometown Chicago blues, Frank Bang knows how to read a room.
And there’s a good chance that on any given night in America, you might find yourself in a room where Frank Bang is making you feel something. Or everything.
It’s the roots and the fruits. It’s rock and roll. And it’s definitely the blues.
The Children’s Crusade is an electronic/industrial rock band based in Chicago, Illinois that takes influence from bands like Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, Bjork, and Prince. Show-goers have called us “Goth Pop” or “Black Leather Pop.” The Children’s Crusade is a one man project in the studio and a full band in live settings. We have played four shows so far, one at Concept Saves in Humboldt Park, twice at Rat’s Pizza Records’ “Abnormal House” in Bridgeport, and once at The Fallen Log at Kictchen 17 .
