Slumgullion

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

Considering Dolly Parton’s immense talent and success, it wasn’t surprising to see a flood of social media posts mourning the news of her passing away. What’s more impressive is how many people equally appreciated her music, her down-to-earth friendliness, open mind, and extensive charity work. Reading those heartfelt tributes served as a terrific encore to all the joy Parson brought to us over several years.

Rock and roll photographer Henry Diltz will be the Special Legacy Guest at The Monkees Fan Convention being held September 4 – 6 at The Clarion Inn Hotel in North Haven, CT. The event aims to honor the “60 years of fun, music, and friendship” The Monkees have given us, and will include concerts, special guests, authors, and vendors. Diltz will have signed prints for sale.

Oops! This should have been included in yesterday’s Weekend Reminders post. An impressive variety of acts will be on hand at the Edgewater Music Fest being held tonight through Sunday at Broadway and Thorndale on Chicago’s north side. Ted Leo And The Pharmacists; NNAMDÏ; Maps And Atlases; Spitalfield; Mucca Pazza; Naked Brunch; Cult Canyon; Dianogah; and North By North are among the performers.

The Roger Daltry - A Great Night Out! North American Tour is now under way and will run through September 29 in Medford, MA.  Fans in the Midwest can choose New Lenox, IL on September 12 or Milwaukee, WI on September 15.

Theater Of The Mind, the imaginative adventure crafted by David Byrne from Talking Heads and writer Mala Gaonkar, has been extended through October 25 at the Reid Murdoch Building at 333 N. LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. Theater Of The Mind is a Goodman Theatre production. 

“Casablanca,” an energetic song that immediately catches your ear, is the first single from an upcoming album of new material from Bangles founding member Susanna Hoffs. It’s available to download on various sites; the entire album, titled The List, is due out on September 18. Hoffs has a solo gig at The Old Town School Of Folk Music on September 14. It’s a co-presentation with Chicago Humanities. A week later, Hoffs has a five-night engagement at the Café Carlyle at the Carlyle Hotel in  New York.

Vicki Peterson (another Bangles founding member) and John Cowsill of The Cowsills (and later The Beach Boys) have been touring in support of their Long After The Fire album, and recently announced three October dates: on the 10th in Port Arkansas, TX; the 11th in Austin, TX; and the 14th at Avenel, NJ.

Trap Door Theatre, an award winning company that has performed in venues throughout Europe as well as in its hometown of Chicago, will stage Andrei Kureichik’s eccentric play The Man Who Fell with the Rain starting on September 3. The play was translated by John Freedman, adapted and directed by Kay Martinovich; and the cast includes former Mary-Arrchie Theatre artist director Rich Cotovsky as the Old Man with Enormous Wings. The Man Who Fell with the Rain is scheduled through September 26; Trap Door Theatre is located at 1655 W. Cortland Street in Chicago.

The Smashing Pumpkins will embark on The Rats In A Cage Tour a little less than a month from now with a concert at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on September 19. Billed as Two Unique Sets Celebrating Mellon Collie At 30 And Nearly Four Decades Of Unruly Hits And Dark Treasures, the tour will include an October 14 gig in Chicago at United Center. Other cities on the tour include Boston, MA; Brooklyn, NY; Hamilton, ON; Montreal, QC; Madison, WI; Nashville, TN; Austin, TX; and Denver, CO. See the official website for all the tour dates.

Chicago singer-songwriter Paige Kizer has released a single in advance of her upcoming new album Unconditional. Available on Spotify, “Your Voice” offers an uplifting message embellished with a three-woman choir and lush arrangement. Kizer will likely showcase more songs from Unconditional at her all-ages matinee show on Sept. 27 at the Epiphany Center for the Arts in Chicago.

International Pop Overthrow will continue its world tour with a September 3 – 5 showcase at the Lana Lou’s venue in Vancouver, BC. Sixteen acts will perform over three evening; see the official IPO website for the full schedule.

The applications deadline is August 31 for those hoping to perform at YippieFest 2026, which will take place October 9 – 11 at The Conservatory venue on Chicago’s north side. The event’s organizers are open to various types of shows, although shorter ones have a better chance of being included. This year’s YippieFest will not include bands, but there will be a few acoustic sets. Variety acts involving puppets, dance, and performance art are particularly encouraged. The application form can be found at (https://www.yippiefest.com/participate.asp)

Jeff Tweedy has a third outdoor solo acoustic show coming this fall at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn, IL. He’s now scheduled to perform on September 23, with Max Subar as his special guest. The addition comes after Tweedy sold out his FitzGerald’s gigs on September 24 with special guest Official Claire and September 25 with special guest will be Henry True.

Over The Rhine will celebrate the 10th Anniversary of its Nowhere Else Festival on the weekend of September 4 – 6 in Clinton County, Ohio. The critically acclaimed alt rock/Americana band promises there will be a variety of entertainment, including songwriters; workshops; art; poetry; children’s workshops; an open jam; and camping spots.

Following the success of its Lin Brehmer Scholars Fund Benefit at Metro yesterday, radio station WXRT is now offering Lin Brehmer Your Best Friend in the Whole World Charity Merchandise via its website. It’s a great way for those of us who weren’t able to attend the benefit to still support the Lin Brehmer Scholars Fund. Just as a suggestion to WXRT, I think a lot of his loyal fans would love to have an official Lin Brehmer coffee mug. 

UK rockers Wolf Alice have released The Clearing B Sides, a seven-inch vinyl record of three songs that didn’t make the final cut of their latest album The Clearing. In an earlier Facebook post, the band stated the songs “are ones we love very much” and “we’re happy to have found a home for them for you to hear.”

Singer-bassist Herb Eimerman will perform original songs during a solo acoustic set at 3:00 pm at the On The Rocks venue at the Waukegan Harbor in Waukegan, IL on September 13. The band Hindsight will also perform that afternoon. One of songs Eimerman performs will likely be “Designed By You,” a new single he recorded with his grandson guitarist Gavin Eimerman. It’s now available as a free download on the Egomaniac Music Bandcamp page.

Read ‘em and keep. I recently received my copy of Issue #23 of Second Scene, which includes articles on The Monochrome Set; Joan As Police Woman; The Lemon Twigs; The Dream Syndicate; The Long Ryders, and numerous other bands. If you enjoy getting rock and roll information via printed indie rock music newspapers with colorful, eye-catching layouts, this Pittsburgh, PA publication, led by editor-in-chief Tim Thomas will make you smile. Second Scene is available through its Bandcamp page.

Sleater-Kinney and Fandiem have joined forces to support Sweet Relief, the non-profit organization that helps people in the music business cope with medical, age-related, and other hardships. Fans who donate to Sweet Relief via the official Fandiem website have a chance win a trip to Chicago and see Sleater-Kinney and Liz Phair perform at The Salt Shed on September 17. The prize includes airfare and hotel accommodations, along with meeting the band backstage; having exclusive side stage viewing; and receiving a merch pack. Other stops on the tour include Los Angeles; Denver; Brooklyn; Philadelphia, and Boston.

Montrose Saloon has done a splendid job hosting the annual International Pop Overthrow - Chicago for a few years now, so it’s no surprise the north-side Chicago venue has come up with its own multi-act festival. The End Of Summer Music Fest will present 15 bands over the course of two nights—September 11 and 12. The participating acts include Kent Rose; Esmerelda’s Boys; Who’s This Mary?; The Bon Mots; Go Time!; The Thin Cherries; and The Spindles.