Slumgullion #37

Following on the heels of the Nowhere Boy flick that depicts John Lennon in his teen years, PBS station Channel 11 in Chicago is airing the Masterpiece production of Lennon Naked this Sunday night at 8:00PM. The film should interest Brit sci-fi fans as well as Beatle maniacs as it features onetime Doctor Who actor Christopher Eccleston as Lennon and Naoko Mori from Torchwood as Yoko Ono. Lennon Naked covers the early days of the controversial couple’s relationship.

Rolling Remount. Aftermath, the Signal Ensemble Theatre’s critically acclaimed play about the early days of the Rolling Stones, has returned but sold out its entire run faster that you can say “Get Off Of My Cloud.” The play has now been extended through January 23rd, 2011. Show times are currently Thursday through Saturday at 8:00PM and Sunday at 3:00PM; but there will be no Thursday shows after January 7th.

Michael Lux, who has done some impressive strumming with the multi-faceted rock band Hollus steps out on his own with a self-described punk surf side project called Michael Lux and The Bad Sons. “Saturdays Boys,” which is available for download on the Michael Lux and The Bad Sons website, is an energetic track with ringing guitars. Lux has a free EP on the way, with the cool ad slogan, “All songs written in 30 minutes or less or your money back.” Meanwhile, Hollus continues to promote its latest effort, the Part One EP with a gig next Saturday night at The Metro.

Maple Mars has the lead-off song on the new A Kool Kat Khristmas compilation. The wistful but guitar-driven “Christmastime In The City” is a melodic mid-tempo number about coming home for the holiday, that features Rick Hromadka’s classic power pop vocals and some glorious harmonies.

Damn Right I Got The Drumstick. I know I used that headline for this same event last year, but I kind of like it. SOPRO will sponsor its 28th Annual Thanksgiving All Star Blues Revue on Saturday, November 27th, featuring The Chicago Horns, vocalist Deb Seitz, harmonica player Doug Lee, vocalist-guitarist Billy King, and guitarist-vocalist Joe Jammer. Held on SOPRO’s sout’ side home turf at The Voodoo Lounge (6501 W. 79th Street in Burbank, IL), the revue will also include bassist John Falstrom, guitarist-vocalist Joey Drada, drummer Scott Bonshire, and keyboards player Greg Wolfman. There will be special prize giveaways and CDs and autographed photos for sale.

Local actor Guy Schingoethe is best known for his work with the edgy New Millennium Theatre, but he was also once in my old comedy group, Famous In The Future. I’m forever grateful to him for the bang-up job he did as the lead vocalist in my musical satire Damn Andersen, which was based on the Arthur Andersen/Enron crisis. Schingoethe is now the lead vocalist for a new hard rock band called Faith In The Fallen. You can check out the band’s three songs on its ReverbNation page.

Former Off Broadway vocalist Cliff Johnson’s new double disc, 30 year retrospective Razors And Rose Petals is now available on CDBaby. Johnson promises his Facebook friends that “Within the next two weeks, it will be available on every download site in the world.”

People involved in the rock business who are looking for a unique Christmas card to send to friends and clients should check out Karen Cannon’s selection at Art Strings Publishing. I particularly liked the one with the two electric guitars by the Christmas tree. Cannon states that being a guitarist has greatly influenced her art. Several of her music-related cards, holiday and non-holiday, are available at The Music Room store in downtown Palatine.

The Mint Julep Room, also in downtown Palatine, will welcome back the jazz and pop music of the Together Again Trio tomorrow night, and will present The Wiggle-O’s, who mix comedy and vintage rock, next Saturday night, November 27th. On Sunday, November 21st, The Palatine/Inverness Arts Council is hosting a High Tea at The Mint Julep Room with a musical guest acoustic guitarist Merv Collins. Info at 847-963-6451.

Know anyone who wants a Bill Murray action figure for Christmas? You can make their wish come true with The Ghostbusters Collector Set, which is currently on sale at Toys R Us for $49.99. The set also includes Harold Ramis, Dan Ackroyd, and Ernie Hudson figures. Can a Bill Murray gopher-hunting Carl Spackler figure from Caddyshack be far behind?

CD Review: Hollus - Part 1

Photo from Hollus Facebook page.

It’s getting more and more difficult to pin a label on the Chicago band Hollus. Its 2009 effort Joker and The Queen landed squarely in early 1970s classic rock territory, evoking The Faces and Led Zeppelin III. Then Hollus performed at International Pop Overthrow in Chicago, and seemed to absorb some of the festival’s more pop-oriented vibes.

Earlier this year, Hollus tapped into the musical Hair for its video of “Songs That You Love,” a melodic tune with chiming guitars and lush harmonies that sounded like a vintage hit single by The Byrds. “Songs That You Love” is included on Part One, the first of two EPs the band intends to release in the coming months. “Lucy Grey,” a spooky tale that could have been inspired by the William Wordsworth poem of the same name, is another melodic track, although with a definite hard rock edge.

Part One finds Hollus using more sophisticated arrangements while still exuding an adventurous spirit. The songs consistently benefit from the one-two punch of singer Jamison Acker and guitarist Michael Lux. On the aptly-named hypnotic blues rock number “Midnight,” Acker shows a Bono-like versatility that ranges from a haunting whisper to soaring vocals. Lux adds assorted nuances, including the lonely twang of a James Bond theme on “Midnight,” and cuts loose with a rampaging solo on “Lipstick.”

Hollus will have an EP release party for Part One at Reggie’s Music Joint on south State Street in Chicago on November 11th at 8:30PM.

Hollus Brings Classic Rock To Martyrs' Club

Art taken from the Hollus Facebook Page

Hollus has a 9PM Roots Rock Evening show at Martyrs’ on Chicago’s north side this Friday, August 21st. The club is located at 3855 N. Lincoln Avenue, (773) 404-9494. As you might guess from the cool retro poster being used to promote the gig, this band is deeply into classic rock.

After I likened Hollus to early Rod Stewart in a preview of this year’s International Pop Overthrow that I wrote for the Illinois Entertainer, the band’s blog insisted that a more precise comparison would have been Stewart’s 1970s band, The Faces. Fair enough. Hollus rocked The Abbey club at their IPO appearance, winning over an audience that had come to hear power pop music. Lead vocalist Jamison Acker and lead guitarist Michael Lux-Sauer are an impressive one-two punch and the rest of the band provides solid support.

The group’s latest CD, Joker and the Queen has plenty of good material, which you can see Hollus performing live on videos at myspace.com/hollusmusic The clever Live On The Latest Show Ever clip for “Hold On” is particularly good. Hollus will also be at the Harvest Jam in Chicago on September 19th.