Coming off a sold-out double bill with 21st century druid practitioners whitewolfsonicprincess this past Tuesday at Evanston SPACE, The Handcuffs have announced another Chicago area show. They’ll perform an all-ages, free show as part of the Dovetail Brewery’s
10-Year Anniversary Celebration on August 8. The band goes on at 6:00 pm, and will have new t-shirts, vinyl and CDs for sale.
Chrissie Hynde: On Canvas, a new exhibition featuring The Pretenders vocalist-guitarist’s paintings, will open tomorrow at the Harvey And Woodd gallery in Edinburgh, and run through August 28th.
The Kinks: Brothers, a new exhibition created by Ray and Dave Davies of the band and artist Christian Furr, is now open at London’s Gibson Garage.
Lenny Kaye, whose impressive resume includes being a member of The Patti Smith Band; a successful producer; and a connoisseur of garage rock, will drop by the Gman Tavern in Chicago on September 18. As noted by Gman Tavern boss Joe Shanahan in a Facebook post, Kaye will promote his debut album and will be joined by onstage by local singer-songwriter Nora O’Connor.
The August issue of the splendid UK rock magazine MOJO (with The Rolling Stones on the cover) features journalist David Fricke’s extensive interview with Lenny Kaye, along with a lot of cool photos.
The Liverpool techno band Ladytron recently released its new album Paradises, and has concerts coming up December 15 in Manchester, December 16 in London, and December 17 in Glasgow. The Miki Berenyi Trio, led by the founding member of Lush, will be the special guest for the first two concerts; the special guest for Glasgow hasn’t been announced yet.
The 93XRT Record Release Show for Michael McDermott and The Arsonists will take place on August 11 at GMan Tavern in Chicago’s Wrigleyville neighborhood. The new album is titled Flowers From The Graveyard.
An upcoming album titled David Bowie - The Shel Talmy Recordings will feature previously unreleased material produced by the legendary Talmy back in 1965. The album will be available on September 18 in CD, LP, digital, and limited-edition vinyl formats. The release will also feature extensive sleeve notes by musician/music historian Alec Palao.
Singer-songwriter Jules Klee will no doubt perform her new single “He Don’t Know A Thing” when she opens for the double bill of West Texas Exiles and The Rusty Pickups this Monday at The Atchison venue in Bloomington, IL. “He Don’t Know A Thing” is a heartfelt country ballad with a genuine twang arrangement.
The schedule for International Pop Overthrow - Los Angeles, which will run from August 7 through August 16, is now available on the official IPO website. Several acts, including Plasticsoul; Lori Garrote And The Chaos; Kerosene Stars; The Jeremy Band; and Rick Hromadka, will perform at the Redwood Bar and Corbin Bowl venues. The IPO website is a good way to discover new music since many of the participating acts listed have links to their Bandcamp pages.
As noted in a recent Facebook post from International Pop Overthrow founder David Bash, the IPO Vol. 27 compilation is now available for pre-order from Omnivore Recordings. The CD features several acts who have performed at IPO events around the globe.
“Designed By You,” a new single from long-time Chicago area bassist-vocalist Herb Eimerman and his grandson guitarist Gavin Eimerman, is now available as a free download on the Egomaniac Music Bandcamp page. Australian musician/indie label founder Joe Algeri produced the song, along with mastering engineer: Oleg “Yorshoff” Yershovindie.
U2 has released a video of a new single titled “Street Of Dreams” that’s available to view on the Rock Cellar website. The song is showing up on radio stations such as WXRT in Chicago, and has a classic U2 arrangement and inspirational message about following your dreams. It’s an enticing preview of a full album the band promises will be released in the near future.
Push Puppets will likely showcase songs from their 2025 album Tethered Together when they perform at Hey Nonny! in Arlington Heights, IL on August 7. The Chicago area band specializes in melodic, well-crafted indie rock.
Marshall Crenshaw’s Fall 2026 Tour, with special guests Sarah Borges with Eric Ambel, will start October 27 in Toronto, ON and continue through November 23 with a concert in New York, NY. The tour will bring Crenshaw to The Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago on Halloween night.
Clinard Dance, based in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, will present a Flamenco Quartet Project at Evanston SPACE in Evanston, IL on August 10.
Chicago-based blues legend Buddy Guy’s Celebrate The Legend Tour recently kicked off in Toronto, ON, and will run through October 29 with a concert in Memphis, TN. Guy will celebrate his 90th birthday at Madison Square Garden on October 1.
The 9th Annual Chicago Blues Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on August 16 at Buddy Guy’s Legends venue in the south end of downtown Chicago. A post on the official Chicago Blues Hall Of Fame notes that tickets will only be sold in advance.
Issue #23 of Second Scene includes articles on The Monochrome Set; Joan As Police Woman; The Lemon Twigs; The Dream Syndicate; The Long Ryders, and numerous other bands, is available through its Bandcamp page. Led by editor-in-chief Tim Thomas, the Pittsburgh, PA indie rock music newspaper presents its reviews and articles within a colorful, eye-catching layout.
LaRue DeVille, an offshoot of long-time Chicago club band Red Wigglers, along with punk rock cover band Horse And Sparrow, will share a double bill at Double Clutch Brewery in Evanston on August 13. Both bands that night will feature vocalist Erica Loftus, whose impressive resume also includes The Right Tidys and The Collectors. There’s no cover charge.
A trio of UK acts comprising Colin Blunstone of The Zombies; new wave stars The Fixx; and musician/producer Peter Asher will tour America throughout the month of September. The 19 stops will include New York, NY; Washington, D.C.; Minneapolis, MN; and Waukegan, IL.
Custard Flux, AKA musician Gregory Curvey, will weave his prog music magic at a Chicago Alternafest! event at the Underground Lounge on August 15. Piper No; Oh My Lover; and Mystic Mulberry will also be on the Alternafest! bill.
This year’s Hometown Celebration - A Benefit for The Lin Brehmer Scholars Fund at Metro will take place on August 16. The featured acts will be The Linburgers (Tributosaurus members Matt Spiegel & Curt Morrison); Dag Juhlin; Michael McDermott; and Heather Lynne Horton. Brehmer will always be remembered as one of Chicago’s best-friendliest and knowledgeable radio personalities, especially for those of us who met him in person. It’s great to see this benefit taking place again.
Vicki Peterson and John Cowsill’s month-long, six-date tour continues tomorrow in Mahomet, IL and wraps on August 30 with a show at The Rhode Island Folk Festival in Riverside, RI. Plus, the duo recently announced three October dates: on the 10th in Port Arkansas, TX; the 11th in Austin, TX; and the 14th at Avenel, NJ.
Vicki Peterson fans can pick up a cool souvenir while helping to support a worthy cause by ordering a limited-edition tumbler she designed for Joey’s Song, an organization that supports epilepsy research. It’s available, along with other special items, on the official Joey’s Song website.
Theater Of The Mind, the imaginative adventure crafted by David Byrne from Talking Heads and writer Mala Gaonkar, will run through August 30 at the Reid Murdoch Building at 333 N. LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. Theater Of The Mind is a Goodman Theatre production.
Upcoming concerts at the 2026 Summer Concert Series at the Riverside Park venue in Aurora, IL include UB40 Featuring Ali Campbell on August 9; The Beach Boys on August 14; and Poi Dog Pondering on August 15.
They started out with Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Spencer Davis Group respectively, and have gone on to create classic rock and roll in various ways over several decades. The Celebrating 2 Legends John Fogerty and Steve Winwood The Legacy Tour kicks off in Tinley Park, IL on September 3 and will include stops in Boston, MA; Atlantic City, NJ; Vienna, VA; and Charlotte, NC.
