Interesting Rock Formations

Dating back to the days of Crosby, Stills and Nash and Blind Faith, it’s always been fascinating to discover the chemistry that happens when members of various bands join together to start a new project. In Chicago, the recently formed trio Sunshine Boys comprises Freda Love Smith from Blake Babies; Dag Juhlin from The Slugs; and Jacqueline Schimmel from Big Hello. Blue Music, their debut release of hard-hitting but consistently melodic songs is due out early next year and they open for Poi Dog Pondering (another band Juhlin is part of) on December 30 at City Winery Chicago. Back in 2015, members from the Love Me Nots and Wooly Bandits joined forces for an impressive and fun new garage rock band called Motobunny.

More recently, Vicki Peterson from The Bangles; John Cowsill from The Cowsills; and actor/producer/musician Billy Mummy forged Action Skulls. Their debut album Angels Hear is now available and it’s filled with sparse, roots and garage rock tunes with twangy guitars and an adventurous mix of vocals from all three members. Highlights include the catchy “Mainstream” and gospel influenced “Feed My Hungry Heart.”

The Small Square combines Paul Chastain, who co-founded The Velvet Crush with Ric Menck, with John Louis Richardson who currently performs with Shoes. The resumes for both musicians include time spent with Matthew Sweet, Tommy Keene, Susanna Hoffs, Joey Molland, Ric Menck, Roger McGuinn, and Mitch Easter. The Small Square’s new single “Open Up”  is a power pop gem gleaming with the unmistakable presence of guest musicians Jeff Murphy, John Murphy, and Gary Klebe from Shoes.

Scaring Up Some More Fun

The Scary Ferry  - A Maritime Masquerade On The Chicago River and Lake Michigan will feature Archie Powell And The Exports, who’ve racked up some rave album reviews here on Broken Hearted Toy, along with Family Of Geniuses, and Band From The Back Porch this Friday night. In addition to live music, there will be costumes and prizes. The fun starts at 7:30 p.m.

Here’s an addition to yesterday’s You Be Me For A While post about upcoming tribute band shows: The Fab Four will be performing Beatles songs this Friday, October 27 at Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville, IN. It’s not related to Halloween, these guys do this stuff all the time.

A super hectic schedule last week decimated my blogging output, resulting in missed opportunities for promoting some worthwhile events. I even neglected to mention Elgin’s annual Nightmare On Chicago Street Halloween Festival, which was held in the city’s downtown area on Saturday, October 21. Jeff Kelley and Dave Metzger once again created a zombie-related comedy/thriller to be screened as part of the festivities. I have a small part in their new The Elgin Dead film, which makes my failure to mention it here even more glaring. At least I can say that The Elgin Dead can now be seen on YouTube.

You Be Me For A While

Halloween will soon be upon us, and along with costumes, trick or treating, and apple bobbing, that means several local bands will be doing tributes to rock stars in local clubs. At least in Chicago. Here’s a quick look at who’s becoming who this weekend and through All Hallows Eve. I’m pretty sure there are more tribute shows than I’m listing below, and if I find out about them (or someone contacts me), I’ll be sure to post them.

Halloweekend, a two-night event with at least four bands doing short sets each night, lands at Montrose Saloon this year, after having been staged at Martyrs’, The Abbey Pub, Quenchers Saloon, and other locations in the past. On Friday, October 27, Shoeless Joe Jackson will perform as Joe Jackson; Statutes Of Liberty rock out as Grand Funk Railroad, Phil Angotti will lead a pack of musicians performing as The Animals; Rachel Drew will cover The Pixies; and The Big Parade & Ary Jeebie wrap up the evening as Alice Cooper. On the Saturday night, Decoy Prayer Meeting pays homage to Tom Petty; The Webstirs will be The Guess Who; Androgynous Moustache performs as Crowded House; and you might as well face, Charlie Short will be Robert Palmer. Montrose Saloon is located 2933 W. Montrose.

The Martyrs’ venue, at 3855 N. Lincoln Avenue, has five bands doing tributes on Saturday, October 28. The Cells will be performing as The Smithereens; Craftwerc will have fun fun fun on the autobahn doing a Kraftwerk tribute; Phil Angotti and Friends will perform as Squeeze, The Differents will be playing AM Radio Hits; and John San Juan will be doing the songs of Eddy Money. On Halloween night at Martyrs, Creampuff Warriors will perform as The Grateful Dead, and Murley will be The Allman Brothers.

On Friday night, Subterranean (2011 W. North Avenue) is hosting a benefit/tribute fest for the Intonation Music charity. The Handcuffs will be playing George Harrison tunes; Dayton will play The Rolling Stones; The Good will perform as Queen; Kid Million will do Jane’s Addiction; The Cell Phones will play Lesley Gore; and Que Rico will perform as Toto.

If you’d rather be the one belting out tunes by famous (albeit no-longer-with-us) musicians, then FitzGerald’s in Berwyn would be the place for you on Saturday. That’s when the venue is holding a Ghosts Of Rock Stars Past Halloween Costume Party – Lip Sync Battle And Dance Party.

The Old 97s At Durty Nellie's

The Old 97s have visited the Chicago area several times over the years, but this past Saturday night’s performance at Durty Nellie’s was their first in suburban Palatine. Likewise, Durty Nellie’s doesn’t often book nationally known, critically acclaimed acts like The Old 97s. This rare occurrence worked well for both parties, as a packed house enjoyed 90 minutes of rollicking country flavored alternative and garage rock.

Hearing audience members singing along to the fun and catchy “Barrier Reef,” it seemed likely long-time fans had traveled from afar to catch this show. Newcomers were no doubt easily converted as The Old 97s tore through a mix of high-speed rock songs and boozy ballads drawn from their latest effort Graveyard Laughing and 11 previous albums. Lead vocalist-guitarist Rhett Miller was a charismatic frontman who consistently fed off the crowd’s enthusiasm, while guitarist Ken Bethea provided plenty of firepower and twang.

Opening act Lily Hiatt, daughter of John Hiatt, joined the quartet (bassist Murry Hammond and drummer Philip Peeples are the rhythm section) for “Good With God” from Graveyard Laughing, swapping vocals with Miller. (Brandi Carlile sings on the recorded version.) The set also included “Champaign, Illinois,” a funny tune that has received a lot of airplay on Chicago station WXRT. The Old 97s returned for a trio of encores that kicked off with the touchingly romantic “Question” before blazing away on “Let’s Get Drunk And Get It On” and “Time Bomb.” After The Old 97s had finished, a guy standing nearby turned to me, and with a childlike sense of urgency said, “I want more!” Exactly.

P.S. Due a dinner engagement, I didn’t arrive at Durty Nellie’s until after Lily Hiatt’s opening set, but I did talk to her at the merch table and she was very friendly and cool.

Saturday Slumgulion

The Old 97s are performing at Durty Nellie’s with Lily Hiatt as their opening act in Palatine tonight. Despite its first-rate acoustics and a classy décor, this venue relies too much on local cover bands. So an adventurous move like this should be rewarded with a packed house.

Led by lead vocalist Rhett Miller, the band formed in Dallas, TX back in 1993 and has released 11 studio albums. The online rock publication Paste describes The Old 97s as “one of the few bands that have never really put out a bad record.” Their latest non-bad effort, Graveyard Whistling, came out earlier this year.

This Is This, a local band that took its name from The Deer Hunter and who recorded a couple of albums of catchy originals, will be doing its final show tomorrow night at the new Buffalo Creek Brewing venue in Long Grove.

Last night’s Slumgullion had to be postponed because I was at at Filament Theatre watching Tellin’ Tales Theatre’s original Halloween-style musical comedy Six Stories Up – In Haunted Chicago. It concerns middle school kids encountering some famous Chicago ghosts while on a field trip ad wraps up its run this weekend. Filament Theatre is located at 4041 N. Milwaukee Avenue.

The 53rd The Chicago International Film Festival  s running through October 26 at AMC River East 21, just north and east of downtown run area.

The Dayna Clay Project will host the Unplugged: A Survivor’s Story In Scenes And Songs Book And Album Release - Benefit Show this Sunday, October 22 at City Winery Chicago. The event starts at 1:00 p.m. According to the Chicago Tribune, the book was inspired Kurt Cobain.

Destinos, the first Chicago International Latino Theater Festival continues this weekend, and runs through October 29 at various venues in town.

The Power Pop Shoppe Showcase Vol. 2 and The Old 97s This Weekend

WNUR 89.3 radio personality Kirk Fox will bring the second installment of The Power Pop Shoppe Showcase to the Elbo Room on Lincoln Avenue tomorrow (Friday) night. Fox plays a variety of artists on his Power Pop Shoppe program, and so far, the live shows have been adventurous as well. Last March, The PPSS gave us a triple bill of singer-guitarist Phil Angotti, the quirky band The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club, and The Sunshine Boys—a new energetic, politically aware trio comprised of music scene veterans.

The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club, whose latest album Don’t Buy This Record follows in the tradition of fellow Midwestern acts Wilco and The Webstirs, are coming back for The Power Pop Shoppe Showcase Vol. 2. Two of the other bands on the bill, The Addisons and The Peeves, lean more toward an aggressive punk band, while The Mark Watson Band draws on Cheap Trick and Fountains Of Wayne for influences. It will be interesting to see if Fox once again requests that each act perform a cover of a power pop classic. The Showcase kicks off at 8:00 p.m.

Alt rock fans in Palatine and neighboring northwest suburbs have to be thrilled to find The Old 97s are booked for Durty Nellie’s this Saturday night. The venue has first-rate acoustics and a classy décor, but generally makes its bread and butter on local cover bands. This is definitely a bold move that should be rewarded with a packed house.

Led by lead vocalist Rhett Miller—who’s also released a few solo efforts—the band formed in Dallas, TX back in 1993. Over the course of 11 studio albums (and a few live ones), they crafted critically acclaimed alt rock/country classics like “Timebomb,” “Buick City Complex,” “Barrier Reef,” and “What We Talk About.” The online rock publication Paste describes The Old 97s as “one of the few bands that have never really put out a bad record.” Their latest non-bad effort, Graveyard Whistling, came out earlier this year.

An Amazing Night At Martyrs'

Photo from The Amazing Heeby Jeebies Facebook page.

The Martyrs’ venue on Lincoln Avenue has been on a roll lately, with upcoming shows like The Vulgar Boatmen, Walter Salas-Humura from The Silos, and The Sunshine Boys on Thursday, October 19; Expo ’76 with The Total Pro Horns, Robert Cornelius and Susan Voelz on October 20; and a Halloween show featuring The Cells as The Smithereens, Craftwerc, The Differents, and Phil Angotti and Friends as Squeeze on October 28.

A recent four-band showcase proved to be a major success for each of the acts involved. On a bill that already offered a variety of musical styles, Samson The Aviator jumped from one genre to another within a single set. Fronted by powerful vocalist Aubrey Thornton, the quartet embellished heavy  songs with serious jamming, but also did well with alt rock numbers.Thornton was particularly impressive on a rapid-fire punk song.

The Amazing Heeby Jeebies offered original rockabilly/garage rock tunes, and also covered songs by Little Richard, The Sonics and Roky Erickson. Ary Paloma Jeebie is a versatile lead vocalist, with a stage presence that taps into 1960s a-go-go with a hint of Salome. Guitarists Bob Hyatt and Tommy “Boss X” Klein provided loads of firepower on songs like “Bad Feeling” and “She’s Just A Woman.” The Amazing Heeby Jeebies have a new album coming out soon.

Lead vocalist Chloe F. Orwell jokingly complained about following the charismatic Amazing Heeby Jeebies, but The Handcuffs, which also includes drummer Brad Elvis, easily won over the crowd with energetic and catchy tunes like “Miss You On Tuesday.” Orwell engaged the crowd in some raucous call-and-response singing on “Everybody Waves Hello” and “Gotta’ Problem With Me?” The Handcuffs are currently working on a new album.

Unfortunately, I had to leave in order to catch a bus and train back to Palatine, so I only saw one song by sci-fi rock band Tomorrow The Moon. But it was a prime example of the imaginative and powerful rock they’ve created on their recordings, and I’m hoping to catch a full set at some point.