IPO - Chicago Kicks Off This Friday

The 20th Annual International Pop Overthrow - Chicago kicks off this Friday for a nine-day run at Montrose Saloon on the city’s north side. CFO/Founder David Bash has over 60 acts lined up, many of which I’ve enjoyed at previous IPO - Chicago shows. Named after Material Issue’s stellar debut album, the festival was born in Los Angeles back in 1997, and over the years, Bash has staged versions of International Pop Overthrow at venues around the world. His focus for each location is on local talent, but for bigger markets such as Liverpool and Chicago, it’s not uncommon to find out-of-town, and occasionally out-of-country visitors.

The Chicago area bands 92 Degrees, The Idea, and The Critics performed on opening night of that 1997 festival in Los Angeles, and some of the musicians who made that trek will be performing this Friday at Montrose Saloon. Phil Angotti from The Idea has a solo set that will likely showcase songs from his latest and impressive album Once Around Again. Angotti is known for his Beatles tribute shows on the local club scene, and his original material shows he’s learned well from the masters. Mike Galassini from 92 Degrees will be performing with Magnaphonic, the band he co-founded with his wife Marianne Galassini a number of years ago. Magnaphonic carries on the 92 Degrees tradition of crafting irresistible pop, but often with an unusual twist in the lyrics. I’ve also been informed that Magnaphonic guitarist Todd Rusin played bass with The Critics at IPO’s debut in Los Angeles.

This Friday night’s IPO lineup also features Alpine Subs. The six-member band has released three albums of easy-going melodic pop since 2019, with last December’s Through The Blinds being the latest. Custard Flux is an ambitious prog rock project from Gregory Curvey, who is well known for his years with the ambitious prog rock band The Luck Of Eden Hall. Last year’s 16-track Phosphorus album from Custard Flux is an imaginative psychedelic adventure. Highlights include the melodic title track and “The Man In Blue Wants Out Of His Suit.” From what I gather, this will be a rare Chicago club performance for him.

The Spindles have spent several years on the Chicago club scene perfecting their British Invasion flavored power pop. Their 2018 CD Past And Present was an entertaining mix of originals and well-chosen covers, including “Look Through Any Window” by The Hollies and “Santa Fe” by The Elvis Brothers. 45 Souls added a touch of blues to songs such as “Bad Cat, Bad Rat” and “Here With Me” on their 2019 album Free, but also did well with the melodic rock of “Dear Kate” and “It’s Another Day.” They released the more acoustic country flavored album River that same year, which means they’ll probably keep the audience guessing about what comes next at Montrose Saloon this Friday.

I’m hoping to provide previews of other IPO - Chicago lineups, if time and my off-kilter freelance schedule allow. The full list of bands involved can be found on the International Pop Overthrow website with links for most of the acts.

Saturday Slumgullion

RSD Release: Ivy - Apartment Life Demos

Record Store Day and International Pop Overthrow - Chicago, two major reasons for looking forward to April each year, have almost arrived. RSD, the annual one-day celebration of vinyl, takes place at record stores around the globe next Saturday, April 22, and IPO kicks off the night before at Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side.

A list of all the limited-edition vinyl releases coming out on Record Store Day can be viewed on the official website. As usual, major acts in virtually every genre of music will be included. Also, keep an eye out for in-store performances at some of your favorite record stores.

International Pop Overthrow, a traveling festival that features power pop and indie rock, will run from April 21 through 29. As with stops in other cities, the Chicago version concentrates on local talent, although out-of-town, and occasionally out-of-country visitors are not uncommon. Each night at Montrose Saloon will offer a showcase of at least five (more often six) acts, and there are additional afternoon showcases on Saturday and Sunday. Several of this year’s performers have earned loyal followings, and it’s also fun to discover new favorites. I’m hoping to offer more detailed previews prior and during IPO’s Chicago run, but that will depend on the whims of the freelance proofreading gods.

Phil Angotti And Friends will continue their popular Beatles Brunch series by performing a UK/USA mashup of With The Beatles/Meet The Beatles at 12:00 pm tomorrow, April 16 at City Winery Chicago.

It’s a safe bet that most (probably all) the audience members at this past Thursday’s sold-out Susanna Hoffs appearance at the Chicago Humanities Festival came away happy. It was held at the Chop Shop, a mid-sized, multifaceted venue on Chicago’s north side, and the friendly staff kept things running smoothly. Sharing the stage with interviewer Mark Bazer from The Interview Show, Hoffs discussed her recently released debut novel This Bird Has Flown, as well as her career with The Bangles.

Hoffs exuded a genuine charm throughout, and shared a number of laughs with the well-prepared Bazer, who added just the right touch of wit to his questions. Before ending with questions from the audience, the 90-minute show seamlessly incorporated Hoffs strumming guitar and singing “Eternal Flame,” “Manic Monday,” and “September Gurls,” as well as The Rolling Stones’ “Under My Thumb” and The Cure’s “Friday I’m In Love.” The Deep End, her new album of cover versions, is now available on CD and streaming sites.

Freda Love Smith, whose impressive music career started with the Boston-based Blake Babies in the mid-1980s, and later included Some Girls, and the Chicago-based Sunshine Boys has a book coming out on September 19. It’s titled I Quit Everything - How One Woman’s Addiction to Quitting Helped Her Confront Bad Habits and Embrace Midlife.

Author Jen B. Larson will read from her new book Hit Girls: Women Of Punk In The USA at the GMan Tavern on April 27. Jill Hopkins will host at Question and Answer session with Larson afterward.

Defiance Part 1, a brand new album by Ian Hunter, comes out next Friday, April 21. In addition to being a founding member of glam rock pioneers Mott The Hoople, Hunter has been a successful solo artist. Special guest musicians on Defiance Part 1 include Ringo Starr, Mike Campbell, Dennis Dibrizzi, Jeff Beck and Taylor Hawkins.

If you still have a copy of yesterday’s Chicago Tribune around the house, check out writer Doug George’s 88 Concerts for Summer feature story in the Arts and Entertainment section. It’s an eclectic list of upcoming shows from today through September.

Ken Stringfellow from The Posies recently announced that he’s just completed his fifth solo album. He promises to provide details in the coming weeks.

Jagged Little Pill – The Musical, which is based on the Alanis Morissette album, opened to positive reviews a few days ago at the James M. Nederlander Theatre. It’s scheduled to run for two weeks at downtown Chicago venue.

Three separate dance troupes—two local, one from New York–will join forces in the Rhythms Of Resistance: Dorrance Dance, The Trinity Irish Dancers, and M.A.D.D. Rhythms show coming to the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago on April 22. Posts on social media regarding this event promise a “never before seen evening of percussive dance.”

The 95th Academy Awards Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All At Once will be shown on August 29 as part of the Millennium Park Summer Film Series. The Summer Of Soul (. . . Or When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised) concert film will be shown on August 1.

With the Barbie film coming out July 21, it’s not surprising to discover a Malibu Barbie Cafe pop-up restaurant/store will be opening on June 7 at a top secret location in Chicago. Tickets are $35 for kids, and $50 for adults, and as Miriam Di Nunzio reported in the Chicago Sun-Times, they will be available starting April 19 at bucketlisters.com.

The 39th Chicago Latino Film Festival opened this week at the Landmark Century Center at 2828 N. Clark St and will run through April 23. The event will include 51 features and 35 short films.

A new exhibit titled Dark Testament: A Century Of Black Writers On Justice is now open at the American Writers Museum in downtown Chicago. In addition to highlighting the work of Black American writers, the exhibit will feature original artwork by Chicago artists.

Last Night And The Night Before, written by Donnetta Lavinia Grays and directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton, opened yesterday at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago and will run through May 14.

The 10th Edition of EXPO CHGO - The International Exposition Of Contemporary and Modern Art opened this past Thursday at Navy Pier and will run through tomorrow (Sunday). This year’s event features 170 galleries from 90 cities around the world.

The music venue Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights will present The Cellar - Cultural Zenith Of Arlington Heights on April 25. The Cellar, a teen club back in the 1960s, booked the best local rock bands, as well as The Who, The Yardbirds, Cream, The Byrds, MC5, Buffalo Springfield, and other world-famous acts. Tickets range from $40 to $15.

Tickets are now on sale soon for the Chicago Critic Film Festival being held May 5 – 11 at the Music Box Theatre on the city’s north side. 

The Chicago Toy Show’s 50th Anniversary season takes place next Sunday, April 23 at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles, IL. It’s a fun place to browse a wide range of toys from antique to brand new, and come across the occasional rock and roll collectible.

Tekki Lomnicki, a performer/writer/producer who’s well known on the Chicago entertainment scene through her Tellin’ Tales Theatre productions, is offering a free Master Class for people with a disability who’d like to create a one-person performance piece. The workshop will take place on Zoom from April 18 through May 30, and there will be a live show at the Greenhouse Theater Center in early June. Anyone interested can contact Lomnicki (a former co-worker of mine) at tekki@TellinTales.org.

Avid fans of 21st Century Druid Music who want to support the genre should check out the whitewolfsonicprincess IndieGoGo campaign. Band members Carla Hayden and James Moeller, who always use their supernatural powers for good, promise some cool perks will be available.

Incoming

Congratulations to R.E.M. on the anniversary of their groundbreaking debut album Murmur, which was released on this day 40 years ago. Produced and engineered by Mitch Easter and Don Dixon, it was a mystifying and irresistible collection of songs such as “Catapult,” “West Of The Fields,” “Moral Kiosk,” and of course, “Radio Free Europe.” I saw R.E.M. perform these songs and other tracks from Murmur during a show at Park West shortly after the album’s release. The quirky opening set by the Mitch Easter led Let’s Active made me a life-long fan of that band as well.

Congratulations are also in order for my nephew Joe Flamm on snagging Second Place in the Best Chef category in the Chicago Reader’s annual Best Of Chicago issue. Joe’s restaurant Rose Mary continues to be be a popular dining spot in the city.

The long-time Chicago-based free publication has a Best Of Chicago Celebration coming up on June 1, according to a full-page ad in the current issue. As a Chicago Reader subscriber, I was notified by email today where it’s taking place, but I’m not sure if the general public is supposed to know yet. 

Ken Stringfellow from The Posies recently announced that he’s just completed his fifth solo album. He promises to provide details in the coming weeks.

Susanna Hoffs’ promotional tour for her debut novel This Bird Has Flown brings her to the Chicago Humanities Festival tomorrow night at Chop Shop on North Avenue. I’ve read the first five chapters and it’s a fun rock and roll flavored comedy with satiric bits I suspect come from the author/musician’s own experiences with The Bangles. Hoffs is scheduled to discuss This Bird Has Flown and other aspects of her career with Mark Bazer from The Interview Show, and perform a few songs. A message on the Chicago Humanities Festival’s website states the show has sold out.

Three separate dance troupes—two local, one from New York–will join forces in the Rhythms Of Resistance: Dorrance Dance, The Trinity Irish Dancers, and M.A.D.D. Rhythms show coming to the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago on April 22. Posts on social media regarding this event promise a “never before seen evening of percussive dance.”

With the Barbie film coming out July 21, it’s not surprising to discover a Malibu Barbie Cafe pop-up restaurant/store will be opening on June 7 at a top secret location in Chicago. Tickets are $35 for kids, and $50 for adults, and as Miriam Di Nunzio reports in today’s Chicago Sun-Times, they will be available starting April 19 at bucketlisters.com. The official trailer for Barbie is pretty clever, although younger viewers should be warned that a number of baby dolls (dolls that are babies, not baby doll dresses) were destroyed in the filming of this trailer.

The 39th Chicago Latino Film Festival opens tomorrow at the Landmark Century Center at 2828 N. Clark St and will run through April 23. The event will include 51 features and 35 short films.

Freda Love Smith, whose impressive music career started with the Boston-based Blake Babies in the mid-1980s, and later included Some Girls, and the Chicago-based Sunshine Boys, has a book coming out on September 19. It’s titled I Quit Everything - How One Woman’s Addiction to Quitting Helped Her Confront Bad Habits and Embrace Midlife. In a Facebook post she describes it as, “this strange, experimental memoir about how I quit booze, weed, sugar, caffeine, and social media during the pandemic, got kinda addicted to quitting and ended up quitting my academic job and my musical career.”

A new exhibit titled Dark Testament: A Century Of Black Writers On Justice is now open at the American Writers Museum in downtown Chicago. In addition to highlighting the work of Black American writers, the exhibit will feature original artwork by Chicago artists.

Jagged Little Pill – The Musical, which is based on the Alanis Morissette album, recently opened at the James M. Nederlander Theatre in downtown Chicago and will run for two weeks.

Slumgullion

The Happy Author

Depending on when you see this, you might still be able to catch part of the triple bill tonight at The Outta Space venue in Berwyn featuring  Mrs. Smith And The Present, The Handcuffs, and Brother Derek. Mrs. Smith And The Present will get the entertainment going at 8:00 pm, followed by The Handcuffs at 9:00 pm.

Classic rock fans in the northwest suburbs might still be able to watch Big Brother’s Vinyl, starting at 8:00 pm tonight at Peggy Kinnane’s Irish Restaurant and Pub in Arlington Heights. These guys specialize in songs you’ll immediately recognize, but ones that aren’t played very often by cover bands.

Cowboy Junkies are performing at the second of their two The Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago gigs tonight.

The new Allan Clarke I’ll Never Forget CD I ordered from Amazon arrived this morning, which seems pretty quick since it was just officially released today. (The vinyl version I ordered from Clarke’s official website has been shipped.) The former Hollies lead vocalist has gone the solo route before, most recently with Resurgence in 2019, but this is his first effort on which fellow Hollie Graham Nash helped out. Nash wrote the album’s first single, “Buddy’s Back,” and played guitar and sang harmony on it. He added harmony vocals to 9 of the 11 tracks. I’m hoping to review this in the near future.

That box from Amazon also contained my copy of Susanna Hoffs’ debut novel This Bird Has Flown. The Bangles singer-guitarist is a well-established songwriter and has been impressive as a journalist in recent magazine articles. I’ve haven’t started reading her fiction effort yet but title isn’t the only rock and roll reference. Several chapters are named after hit singles. Hoffs is currently on a promotional tour, which brings her to the Chicago Humanities Festival next Thursday, April 13. A message on the festival’s website states that the show has sold out. She’ll discuss This Bird Has Flown, sign copies, and perform a few songs.

The previously mentioned Graham Nash has a solo effort titled Now coming out on May 19, and will embark on a tour that includes five concerts, starting on April 25, at Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago.

Jagged Little Pill – The Musical, which is based on the Alanis Morissette album, will have a two-week run at the James M. Nederlander Theatre in downtown Chicago starting next Tuesday, April 11.

The 39th Chicago Latino Film Festival opens next Thursday, April 13 at the Landmark Century Center at 2828 N. Clark St and will run through April 23. The event will include 51 feature films and 35 short films.

Last Night And The Night Before, written by Donnetta Lavinia Grays and directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton, opened yesterday at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago and will run through May 14.

Music for friendly strangers in black sedans. The Ides Of March Featuring Jim Peterik Stories And Songs Show will take place at SPACE in Evanston on next Wednesday, April 12. I think I’ve mentioned this a few times, but Jim Peterik was the first musician I ever interviewed. It was via telephone and for the Chicago Illini (University Of Illinois - Chicago) weekly paper. I remember him as being outgoing and informative.

The acts for this year’s Blues Festival were announced earlier this week and include Bobby Rush, Los Lobos, Mud Morgenfield, Lil Ed And The Blues Imperials, and Blind Boys Of Alabama. The events will take place in Millennium Park on the long weekend of June 8 – 11.

Describe The Night, a new time traveling thriller written by Rajiv Joseph will finish its run at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago this Sunday, April 9.

Tickets are still available for The Who’s Tommy at the Goodman Theatre in downtown Chicago. Prices range from $30 to $100, depending on what day you choose and where you sit. That’s actually less than I expected. The musical, with book by Pete Townshend and Des McAnuff, and directed by McAnuff, will run from June 13 to July 23.

The 10th Edition of EXPO CHGO - The International Exposition Of Contemporary and Modern Art kicks off next Thursday, April 13 at Navy Pier and will run through next Sunday. This year’s event will feature 170 galleries from 90 cities around the world. If you happen to be in downtown Chicago, check the publications boxes on street corners for an official guide. Note: The April edition of New City magazine comes packaged with a copy of the EXPO CHGO guide.

Record Store Day takes place on April 22. The list of all the limited-edition vinyl available for just that one day can be viewed on the official RSD website. As usual, major acts in virtually every genre of music will be included. Also, keep an eye out for in-store performances at some of your favorite record stores.

International Pop Overthrow - Chicago will once again take place at Montrose Saloon on the city’s north side. The annual festival, which features power pop and indie rock, will run from April 21 through 29. Each night offers a showcase of at least five (more often six) acts, and there are additional afternoon showcases on Saturday and Sunday. This year’s lineup includes The Spindles, Phil Angotti, Magnaphonic, The Red Wigglers, The Shake Ups, Kerosene Stars, The Queue, Mark Watson, Custard Flux, The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club, Penthouse Sweets, Freetoed, The Unswept, Phil Yates and The Affiliates, The Thin Cherries, Hannah Frank, TAFKAVince Band, Golden Richards, The Embryos, Dolph Chaney and The Phins, Too Much Saturn, Go Time!, Michael Steven Cohen, Rollo Time, The Jeremy Band, The Jay Goeppner Band, The Band Calderisi, Forbidden Kingdom, and Vee Sonnets.

Evan Dando will perform at City Winery on April 24.

Local musician Phil Angotti’s popular Beatle Brunch series continues at City Winery with an event on Sunday, April 16.

Ian Hunter, a founding member of glam rock pioneers Mott The Hoople, as well as a successful solo artist, has a new album titled Defiance Part 1 coming out on April 21. Special guest musicians on the album include Ringo Starr, Mike Campbell, Dennis Dibrizzi, Jeff Beck and Taylor Hawkins.

The music venue Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights will present The Cellar - Cultural Zenith Of Arlington Heights on April 25. The Cellar, a teen club back in the 1960s, booked the best local rock bands, as well as The Who, The Yardbirds, Cream, The Byrds, MC5, Buffalo Springfield, and other world-famous acts. “This show will tell the story of the rise and fall of the Cellar,” the website explains. “with pictures, witnesses, recordings made live at the Cellar, and a group of great young musicians playing live many of the songs that rocked the Cellar in its heyday.” Tickets range from $40 to $15.

Chicago-based filmmaker Michael Smith’s short film Paper Planes will have its premiere on the weekend of April 15 and 16 at the After Image Film Festival in St. Charles, IL.

Tickets are now on sale soon for the Chicago Critic Film Festival being held May 5 – 11 at the Music Box Theatre on the city’s north side. 

The Chicago Toy Show’s 50th Anniversary season takes place on April 23 at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles, IL. Presented within various buildings on the grounds, this is a fun place to browse a wide range of toys from antique to brand new. I’ve also come across the occasional rock and roll collectible, such as a Cheap Trick semi truck and a die-cast Beatles Rubber Soul London Taxi officially licensed by Apple Corps Ltd.

Tekki Lomnicki, a performer/writer/producer who’s well known on the Chicago entertainment scene through her Tellin’ Tales Theatre productions, is offering a free Master Class for people with a disability who’d like to create a one-person performance piece. The workshop will take place on Zoom from April 18 through May 30, and there will be a live show at the Greenhouse Theater Center in early June. Anyone interested can contact Lomnicki (a former co-worker of mine) at tekki@TellinTales.org.

Avid fans of 21st Century Druid Music who want to support the genre should check out the whitewolfsonicprincess IndieGoGo campaign. Band members Carla Hayden and James Moeller, who always use their supernatural powers for good, promise some cool perks will be available. 

Best Wishes To The Birthday Boy And The Birthday Book (And Other News)

As you may have noticed via social media posts, today is former Hollies lead vocalist Allan Clarke’s birthday. How interesting to see an email this afternoon stating Mr. Clarke is sending me a present from his official store. Actually, I paid for his new vinyl LP I’ll Never Forget and the signed art card that comes with it, so the message was to inform me they have been shipped. Happy Birthday, Allan!

Clarke has reason to be in a party mood. If there was a candle on his cake for every time “Buddy’s Back” from the new album has been played on radio stations over the past few weeks, he’d have a hard time blowing them all out. The song was composed by Graham Nash, Clarke’s lifetime friend and fellow Hollies founder. It’s just one of the tracks Clarke and Nash sing together on I’ll Never Forget.

If you’ve seen Susanna Hoffs from The Bangles handing out cigars, it could be to celebrate the birth of her first book. Her This Bird Has Flown novel was officially released yesterday, and she’s about to travel the country promoting it. Hoffs has been impressive as a journalist in recent magazine articles, so it will be interesting to see how she does with fiction. Early reviews have been positive. Her tour brings her to the Chicago Humanities Festival next Thursday, April 13, where she’ll discuss This Bird Has Flown, sign copies, and perform a few songs.

The Handcuffs are part of a triple bill coming to The Outta Space venue in Berwyn this Friday night. The band’s latest album Burn The Rails has been garnering a lot of airplay on indie rock stations. There’s a lot to choose from, but my favorite track has to be “I Cry For You.” Brother Derek and Mrs Smith And The Present are the other two acts that night.  And just in case I’m not the only one who gets them mixed up, The Outta Space venue in Berwyn and the Out Of Space festival taking place in Evanston this July are two different things.

Cowboy Junkies will be performing at The Old Town School of Folk Music this Thursday and Friday, April 6 and 7.

The Muddy Waters 110th Birthday Blues Jam featuring the great blues artist’s son Mud Morgenfield takes place at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines this Friday, April 7.

Morgenfield is among the recently announced acts for this year’s Blues Festival in Millennium Park on June 8 – 11. As reported by Miriam Di Nunzio in yesterday’s Chicago Sun-Times, the list of headline acts also includes Bobby Rush, Los Lobos, Lil Ed And The Blues Imperials, and Blind Boys Of Alabama.

Last Friday, I mentioned the Chicago-based Made Of Stone group will pay tribute to The Stone Roses as part of Jim Ryan’s Classic Albums Night at Reggies Music Joint on May 25. Here’s another example of current musicians honoring worthy acts other than The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, etc.: The Joe Cocker Tribute Band will perform The Joe Cocker Mad Dogs And Englishmen - Joe Cocker Career And Fillmore East Tribute in a show this Saturday night at the Metropolis Performing Arts Center in Arlington Heights. The only other Joe Cocker tribute I’ve ever seen was John Belushi on Saturday Night Live.

Describe The Night, a new time traveling thriller written by Rajiv Joseph will finish its run at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago this Sunday, April 9. It’s being directed by Austin Pendleton, who like Joseph, is a Steppenwolf ensemble member.

Tickets are still available for The Who’s Tommy at the Goodman Theatre in downtown Chicago. Prices range from $30 to $100, depending on what day you choose and where you sit. That’s actually less than I expected. The musical, with book by Pete Townshend and Des McAnuff, and directed by McAnuff, will run from June 13 to July 23.

Incoming

Tickets are now on sale for the June 10 Material Reissue and Frisbie show at Schubas on Chicago’s north side. That might seem like a bit of advance notice, but considering the two bands involved, there’s a strong chance this gig will sell out. Material Reissue features original band members Mike Zelenko and Ted Ansani, with Phil Angotti now on lead vocals and guitar. Frisbie is closing in on 25 years of creating catchy rock tunes and is best known for its Subversive Sound Of Love and New Debut albums.

Out Of Time: The Material Issue Story, director Balin Schneider’s riveting documentary about the Jim Ellison-led amazingly successful but short-lived original lineup, was recently screened in venues around the country, with Schneider, Zelenko, and Ansani joining in a discussion afterward. The band gave the world classic songs like “Valerie Loves Me,” “Diane,” “Eko Beach,” and “What Girls Want,” starting with their debut International Pop Overthrow in 1991.

 

The above-mentioned Phil Angotti will be at The Hideout performing his latest album Once Around Again at 9:00 pm this Wednesday. In my BHT review of Once Around Again on August 11, I noted, “Nearly all the songs clock in with a mid-1960s hit single length, and there’s a noticeable emphasis on craftsmanship.”

Tickets are now on sale soon for the Chicago Critic Film Festival being held May 5 – 11 at the Music Box Theatre on the city’s north side. 

Chicago’s multitalented David Bowie tribute band Sons Of The Silent Age has announced on social media that due to circumstances beyond their control, they will not be performing at the BowieCon event coming up in New York on June 17 and 18.

I forgot to mention this in my recent April, Rock She Will post, but the first event of the Chicago Toy Show’s 50th Anniversary season takes place on April 23 at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles, IL. Presented within various buildings on the grounds, this is a fun place to browse a wide range of toys from antique to brand new. I’ve also come across the occasional rock and roll collectible, such as a Cheap Trick semi truck and a die-cast Beatles Rubber Soul London Taxi officially licensed by Apple Corps Ltd. 

April, Rock She Will

Photo from the official Graham Nash Facebook page.

I thought my April, Rock She Will post was a long-running, annual tradition here on Broken Hearted Toy, but it looks like I’ve only done it a few times. At any rate, it’s back, Simon And Garfunkel reference and all, as a guide to the many cool things that happen in April around Chicago and other places. The following is just a sample of the events that will be taking place.

C2E2 opened yesterday and runs through tomorrow at McCormick Place in Chicago. In addition to having an opportunity to meet with celebrity guests, fans can browse several aisles of toys, t-shirts, gadgets, costumes, etc, inspired by sci-fi, horror, and fantasy media. The cosplay participants and comic artists selling their work are also among the highlights.

Graham Nash will have a Question and Answer session regarding his new album Now on the Talk Shop Live’s Rock And Roll channel on April 4 at 7:00 pm EST. He’ll be selling autographed copies of his album as part of the event. Nash will embark on a tour that includes five concerts at Old Town School Of Folk Music, starting on April 25.

Allan Clarke, who like Graham Nash, was a founding member of The Hollies, has a new solo album titled I’ll Never Forget coming out April 7. Nash wrote the nostalgic “Buddy’s Back” and sings along with Clarke on that track and others on the album.

Michael Rikfors, former lead vocalist for the late 1960s Swedish band Bamboo, and for a short time, The Hollies, has a live CD with some new songs coming out this month.

Cowboy Junkies have concerts at The Old Town School of Folk Music on April 6 and 7.

The Muddy Waters 110th Birthday Blues Jam featuring the great blues artist’s son Mud Morgenfield takes place at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines on April 7.

Last Night And The Night Before, written by Donnetta Lavinia Grays and directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton, runs from April 6 through May 14 at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.

Jagged Little Pill – The Musical, which is based on the Alanis Morissette album, will have a two-week run at the James M. Nederlander Theatre in downtown Chicago April 11 – 23.

I’ll be at my dentist having a crown and bridge put in on April . . . oh wait, I’m looking at the wrong calendar.

Record Store Day takes place on April 22. The list of all the limited-edition vinyl available for just that one day can be viewed on the official RSD website. As usual, major acts in virtually every genre of music will be included. Also, keep an eye out for in-store performances at some of your favorite record stores.

EXPO CHGO - The International Exposition Of Contemporary and Modern Art returns to Navy Pier on April 13 and will run through April 16. This year’s event will feature 170 galleries from 90 cities around the world.  

Susanna Hoffs’ in-person book tour for her debut novel This Bird Has Flown will include stops in New York, San Diego, and Los Angeles. Her April 13 appearance at the Chicago Humanities Festival is the first event of this year’s festival. Hoffs will also perform at the event.

International Pop Overthrow - Chicago will once again take place at Montrose Saloon on the city’s north side. The annual festival, which features power pop and indie rock, will run from April 21 through 29. Each night offers a showcase of at least five (more often six) acts, and there are additional afternoon showcases on Saturday and Sunday. It’s a great way to discover new bands and touch base with long-time favorites.

Chicago-based filmmaker Michael Smith’s short film Paper Planes will have its premiere on the weekend of April 15 and 16 at the After Image Film Festival in St. Charles, IL.

Local musician Phil Angotti’s popular Beatle Brunch series continues at City Winery with an event on Sunday, April 16.

Evan Dando will perform at City Winery on April 24.

Ian Hunter, a founding member of glam rock pioneers Mott The Hoople, as well as a successful solo artist, has a new album titled Defiance Part 1 coming out on April 21. Special guest musicians on the album include Ringo Starr, Mike Campbell, Dennis Dibrizzi, Jeff Beck and Taylor Hawkins.

The Ides Of March Featuring Jim Peterik Stories And Songs Show takes place at SPACE in Evanston on April 12.

Chicago sports fans who’d like to share their vision of what a new home for our football team should like can drop by the Build-A-Bears-Stadium pop-up store in Arlington Heights at 10:00 am today. Sorry, I had to work in at least one April Fools Day joke.