Slumgullion

See yesterday’s Weekend Reminders post for events taking place this weekend.

Presale tickets went on sale today for the Sea. Hear. Now. festival taking place in Asbury Park, NJ on September 13 and 14. Participating acts include Inhaler; Hozier; LCD Soundsystem; Alabama Shakes; ZZ Top; De La Soul; UB40; Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue; Blink 182; Lenny Kravitz; Sublime; Public Enemy; Spoon; and 4 Non Blondes.

Go Time! and The Spindles, longtime Chicago power pop bands that have each recently given fans reason to celebrate with new albums, will be part of a four-act showcase at Montrose Saloon on March 29. The hard-edged songs on X (as in the Roman numeral) find Go Time! once again adroitly bridging the gap between hard rock and power pop; while Wavelength showcases The Spindles’ expertise at energetic pop on originals as well as a few covers. They’ll be joined at Montrose Saloon by veteran folk/country/rock singer-songwriter Kent Rose, and The 321’s, a young trio that’s rapidly developing a solid reputation on the local club scene.

The Regrettes, a Los Angeles quartet that impressed critics as well as numerous fans over the course of three albums, broke up a little over a year ago. Earlier today, former lead vocalist and main songwriter Lydia Night sent out an email stating she’s finished recording a solo album that will be out soon. It’ll be interesting to see if Night continues The Regrettes’ formula of mixing punk energy and alienation, flavored with bits of Motown and the 1960s girl groups sound.

Singer-songwriter Steve Dawson has garnered praise for his work with the Dolly Varden indie rock/Americana band, as well as for his solo albums. Members of Dolly Varden—Diane Christiansen, Mike Bradburn, Matt Thobe, Alton Smith—will join Dawson onstage for his Annual Birthday Bash at Simon’s on Chicago’s north side on April 6.

Congratulations are in order for music industry veteran Dean Brownrout, whose No Big Deal nabbed a bronze medal in the Memoir/Biography category at the recent Axiom Business Book Awards. Brownrout has described No Big Deal as “a humorous and nostalgic journey through this seminal time in the music industry.”

A recently remastered and expanded version of director Cameron Crowe’s 1982 film Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party can now be viewed via the Paramount+ streaming service. The documentary had previously only been seen once on MTV. 

Autographed copies of Mike Campbell’s Heartbreaker memoir are now available for pre-order from the talkshoplive and Premiere Collectibles websites. Campbell was a founding member of Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, and currently leads the band The Dirty Knobs.

The recently released single “Bullet Proof” is the first new music we’ve heard from Chicago rock scene veterans Kevin Lee And The Kings since 2022. The hard-edged song takes aim at high society via Lee’s strong vocals and a guitar-driven arrangement. Fans can check it out on Soundcloud.

 

Aimee Mann has a 22 1/2 Lost In Space Anniversary Tour with guest Jonathan Coulton coming this summer. It opens on June 5 in Cranston, RI and wraps up at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago on June 27.

The Handcuffs will likely include a few new songs they’ll be recording soon for their 5th album when they open for for fellow Chicagoans The Steepwater Band at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn, IL on April 25. The Steepwater Band has recorded a series of albums filled with hard-hitting Americana rock.

Graham Nash fans can enter to win the signed Fender acoustic CD-60 guitar he gave to Fandiem by making a donation to help raise funds to provide relief to musicians and music industry workers affected by the Los Angeles fires. Donations range from $10 to $500, with the highest amount bringing the most amount of entries. The entries must be received by April 21.

Chicago-based label Pravda Records will release a remastered, reissue of The Chamber Strings’ 2001 album A Month Of Sundays this summer. Vocalist-guitarist Kevin Junior, who passed away in 2016, was the guiding force on what Pravda describes as, “a beautiful album from a beautiful soul.”

Theo Epstein and Peter Gammons’ annual Hot Stove Cool Music is set for April 12 at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston. The event will feature Cheap Trick; Greg Hawkes and Eddie Japan performing songs by The Cars; and the Hot Stove All-Stars (Peter Gammons, Theo Epstein, Bill Janovitz, Kay Hanley, Will Dailey, and MLB Legends). 100% of the proceeds will go to the Foundation To Be Named Later Gammons College Scholarships fund.

Tickets are now on sale for The Color Purple - The Musical coming to the Goodman Theatre in Chicago starting June 21. The production will be directed by Lili-Anne Brown, with book by Marsha Norman, and music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Alee Willis, and Stephen Bray.

Shaky Knees - The Music Festival is scheduled to take place at Piedmont Park in in Atlanta, GA from September 19 through 21. Scheduled acts include Lenny Kravitz; Pixies; Spoon; Inhaler; Cage The Elephant; Johnny Marr; The Beaches; Vampire Weekend; Devo; Wet Leg; Franz Ferdinand; and Stereophonics.

International Pop Overthrow - Chicago 2025 will be held from April 25 through May 3 at Montrose Saloon, and the schedule is now available on the official IPO website. CFO/Founder David Bash has brought his multi-act showcase to a number of Chicago venues over the years, and Montrose Saloon is a particularly good fit. I believe this is its fourth year of hosting. Per tradition, each night will bring a set of at least five acts; and there will be afternoon and evening sets on April 26, 27, and May 3.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is based on the U2 vocalist’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, will stream on May 30 on Apple TV. According to an online post from Billboard, director Andre Dominik’s film will include footage of Bono performing some of the songs he’s made famous with U2.

Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin will celebrate Pete Townshend’s birthday on June 21 at the Hey Nonny venue in Arlington Heights, IL. Townshend was born on May 19, which is why this event is being billed as a (Belated) Birthday Bash. Understandable since Narducy and Juhlin have a busy schedule these days.

The Miki Berenyi Trio, led by Lush founding member Miki Berenyi, has its first album Tripla coming out in digital and vinyl formats on April 4.

Adventurous prog rock musician and The Luck Of Eden Hall founding member Gregory Curvey, AKA Custard Flux, has a new album titled Enter Xenon coming out on June 1. It can be pre-ordered on Bandcamp, and the first three tracks are already available to purchase and download.

Former WXRT radio personality Richard Milne will once again book the musical talent for the annual Lakeview East Festival of the Arts. The event takes place on Sept 13 and 14, and as Milne stated in a recent Facebook post, he’s “not looking for tribute or cover bands although covers mixed in with your originals are perfectly acceptable.

Pravda recording artist Nathan Graham is known for mixing classic blues with Americana music, and he’ll likely showcase songs from his Saint Of Second Chances album during his April 4 gig at the Thornton Distilling Co in Thornton, IL. Falling Stars, who gave us catchy indie rock songs on their recent Garden Variety EP, will be the opening act.

Lovely Stuff, the first new studio album from the Chicago-based indie rock band Smoking Popes in seven years, is due out on April 4.

Congratulations to vocalist Gerald McClendon, who’ll receive the Bobby Blue Bland Award when the 25th Annual Jus’ Blues Foundation holds its Night Of The Living Legends event on July 30 in Biloxi, Mississippi. Many of us in Chicago are familiar with McClendon because of his superb performance of “My Sweet Lord” at a number of My Sweet George events at the Martyrs’ venue on Lincoln Avenue.

Fans of Chicago rock and roll circa the mid 1960s might have a willingness to check out The New Colony Six on May 23 at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights.

Tickets for the September 9 Supergrass concert at The Riviera in Chicago are now on sale. The Oxford, England trio is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its terrific debut album I Should Coco with concerts in the U.K., North America, and Mexico. Supergrass will perform their entire first album along with other hits.