International Pop Overthrow - Chicago just finished a weekend of live music at Montrose Saloon on the city’s north side, but there are still seven showcases to check out this week. See my April 18 post here on BHT for a preview of tonight's lineup.
Looking ahead, IPO - Chicago 2024 will wrap things up at Montrose Saloon this weekend with a six-band showcase on Friday night, and a pair of six-packs (afternoon, and evening) on Saturday. All acts scheduled for Friday are from Chicago unless otherwise noted.
Friday night will kick off with Dolph Chaney And The Phins, most likely playing songs from his latest album Mug. “Californiagain,” the first single, showcases Chaney’s ability to inject humor into guitar-driven, catchy pop songs. He was also a major player on the “Airwave Hello” single recently released by power pop super group The Electromagnates. Custard Flux is an ambitious prog rock project from Gregory Curvey, who is well known for his years with the prog rock band The Luck Of Eden Hall. He’ll perform six of the adventurous songs from his latest album Einsteinium Delirium, including “Right Now Here In Time” and “Peace In Time.” On his Bandcamp page, Curvey states, “This album is a little different than our first four albums. It’s no holds barred electric!” It’s always fun when out-of-town visitors come to Chicago for International Pop Overthrow, and with a high energy album like This Time Next Year . . ., San Francisco garage rockers The Seagulls are certainly welcome. The quartet states their “hook-laden sound draws from S. London,” which might explain why “Coraline” has an energetic ska feel. Other tracks, like “Sunday Afternoon Drinking” and “Big Bad Beautiful World,” offer an overpowering blend of guitars, drums, and organ.
Penthouse Sweets is the first of two bands performing this night that include Montrose Saloon boss Eric Chial in their lineups. (He’s also a founding member of The Bon Mots, who played this past weekend.) They’ve been offering an intriguing blend of country and alt rock during fun and occasionally wild shows on the Chicago rock scene for over 20 years. In The House Of The Penthouse Sweets, the most recent effort among their singles and albums, features gems such as “Shelly Brown” and “Whiskey Winged.” They’ve performed at IPO - Chicago a number of times. Who’s This Mary? define themselves as “celebrated globe-trotting power pop sons” who intend to perform “Britpop powered gems” at Friday’s IPO - Chicago show. Sorry for resorting to quotes, but this is pretty imaginative stuff from their Facebook post. The trio of Niko Twist Action, Tony Long, and Eric Chial specializes in originals and covers of The Cars, The Buzzcocks, and other post-punk and new wave acts. The Pickpockets have two decades of experience playing Brit and American post-punk and indie rock on the Chicago club scene, and released their debut album in 2011. The songs on their 2021 The 1 Dream EP are augmented with horns and strings.
Check the official International Pop Overthrow website for the full Chicago schedule. You’ll also find links for just about all the acts who’ll be participating in Chicago this year. Even if you can’t attend in person, it’s a great way to discover new music. Many of the acts have Bandcamp pages, so it’s possible to already have some favorite songs before you've even seen the band play.
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