Bangles For Sale

The Bangles’ July 27th and 28th shows at City Winery will be the first time the band has performed in Chicago in at least a couple of years. Their first date here falls on the same weekend as my birthday, and since I’ve already purchased my tickets, I can count on a particularly fun celebration this year. This was very thoughtful of them.

Other destinations on The Bangles’ itinerary include The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA on June 7th; the LA Pride Festival in Los Angeles, CA on June 8th; City Winery in Napa, CA on June 27th; Slim’s, an all-ages venue run by soulful crooner Boz Scaggs in San Francisco on June 28th; Eastside Cannery and Casino in Las Vegas, NV on July 12th; and City Winery in New York on October 6th. Other dates will be added in the near future.

In addition to performing together as The Bangles, Susanna Hoffs, Debbi Peterson, and Vicki Peterson continue to pursue various side projects. Hoffs once again collaborated with Matthew Sweet on a decade-centric Under The Covers CD—Vol. 3 takes them up to the 1980s. She also recently did a solo gig at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival in California. Debbi Peterson performs solo and has joined forces with John Wicks of The Records for a series of live gigs and possibly some recorded material. Vicki Peterson will soon release a CD by Psycho Sisters, her collaboration with Susan Cowsill from The Cowsills. The two also performed together in Continental Drifters, along with Peter Holsapple of The dB’s. Continental Drifters contributed a cover of “I Can’t Let Go” to the Hollies tribute CD, Sing Hollies In Reverse. “I Can’t Let Go” being the song with the line, “I’m the brokenhearted toy you play with.” Funny how it all comes together.

The Bangles will be appearing on the Queen Latifah TV show on May 19th.

CD Review: Brett Newski - American Folk Armageddon

American Folk Armageddon proves to be an apt title for Brett Newski’s second full-length release, as the singer-songwriter embraces and subverts the folk genre over the course of 10 acoustic-based tracks. Newski composed these songs while touring Viet Nam, South Africa, and America, and his sharply drawn lyrics reflect a need to find one’s place in life. The hard-edged folk approach on American Folk Armageddon also incorporates a variety of vocal inflections and consistently melodic arrangements.

The careening “Dirt” evokes Jack White as Newski spits out lines like, “I’m aware my head thinks things that it don’t mean” and “I got some flaws buried in my code.” On the slower “Sooner Than Now,” he advises, “Take things as they come my dear/The rules change but every year.” “No Anchor” has a vintage folk feel along with a shot of alienation that recalls Bob Dylan, and Newski’s cover of Jon Shaban’s “The Maths,” a song that questions the value of faith, has an effective, coffeehouse arrangement. On the high-speed “I Want My Best Friend Back,” Newski explores the frustration of losing a buddy to a new girlfriend, and comes up with a song that’s both traumatic and funny.

Brett Newski will be performing with a full band at Quenchers Saloon in Chicago on May 23rd.

Variations On The Sounds Of Summer

The recently released schedule for Sounds Of Summer, Palatine’s Wednesday and Friday night outdoor concert series at the Fred P. Hall Amphitheater, serves up some longtime favorites and a few surprises. The Beatles tribute band American English and classic rock copy band 7th Heaven will open and close the season on June 13th and August 1st, respectively. They’re two of the biggest acts on the local outdoor festival circuit. Palatine Concert Band, a collection of several talented musicians who play classical and big band pieces, along with the occasional march or soundtrack medley, has three Wednesday night slots, and the local guys of Triadd will be performing classic rock with an emphasis on harmony vocals over a mix of electric and acoustic guitars on July 25th.

The five teenage girls of Serendipity will be playing contemporary hits their classmates would love, along with some vintage rock and soul classics on July 16th. They also perform original material and have their own CDs available for sale at their gigs. Motor City Music Machine, (sorry, I couldn’t find the website) scheduled for June 20th, mines the 1960s Motown era for hits from The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and Marvin Gaye, while Hillbilly Rockstarz (June 25th) cover current and earlier country music stars.

Classical Blast might be the most interesting booking of Palatine’s 2014 Sounds Of Summer series, so it’s hard to figure why they were scheduled on a Wednesday instead of a Friday. The quartet blends cello and violin with guitars and drums while performing songs like Cream’s “The White Room” and Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb.” Founder/cellist Petar Kecenovici has worked with Dennis DeYoung from Styx, classical superstar Andrea Bocelli, and Cheap Trick. He’s also performed in Broadway musicals. Violinist Jimmy Chaos is a classically trained musician and instructor; guitarist David Kav is also a member of the duo KAVUS and has performed in local productions of Tommy and Man Of La Mancha; drummer Glen Kosche has logged time with JP and The Cats, Tom Carey Band, and Kickbend; and guitarist Bill Syniar was a founding member/producer of Tantrum, and has worked with Survivor, The Doobie Bros., and Steve Walsh of Kansas. Classical Blast performs on July 23rd.

The Sounds Of Summer outdoor concert series once again ends too early this year. Palatine does have its annual street festival in mid-August, but that’s no reason to abandon Fred P. Hall Amphitheater while the weather is still accommodating. I’d like to see some lesser-known acts, performing all original material, given an opportunity to use the space. It would be beneficial to the musicians and give Palatine some desperately needed indie rock cred. 

CD Review: King Of Prussia - Zonian Girls … And The Echoes That Surround Us All

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer.

Singer-guitarist Brandon Taj Hanick has been a globe-trotting musician for some time now, composing songs in Barcelona and recording them with musicians from Spain, France, and the United States. As the founding member of King Of Prussia, he’s created exquisite pop and indie rock over the course of three CDs, dating back to 2008. The recently released 20-song Zonian Girls … And The Echoes That Surround Us All is being marketed as a double album, and just might be the band’s masterpiece.

It’s difficult to discern a running theme on Zonian Girls other than that most of the songs are about relationships and have gorgeous melodies. Theoretically, each lighter track on Side One has a darker twin on the second half. The material ranges from the acoustic beauty of “From The Vine” to the hard-hitting blues rock of “Chain Smokin Woman.” King Of Prussia is at its best though on a song like “1,000 Leagues,” where lines like, “She comes to Earth by way of the sea/And carries with her something that strikes me” are couched in an irresistible power pop arrangement. Zonian Girls also has Country & Western gems like “Another Whitewashed Afternoon,” as well as the funny and imaginative dream sequence “Old Masks.”

Slumgullion

The Bangles are coming back to Chicago. Photo from The Bangles Facebook page.

CIMMfest No. 6 continues through this weekend. I wasn’t able to do a preview yet for Saturday and Sunday, so be sure to go to the CIMMfest website to check out all the movies and music this increasingly popular festival has to offer.

As I post this, the critically acclaimed power pop band Archie Powell and The Exports are blasting out  (and I do mean blasting) songs from their new hard-edged album Back In Black at their Release Show tonight, May 2nd at Subterranean. In my recent review of Back In Black here on BHT, I noted that the band, “uses harder arrangements and a fair amount of primal screaming to focus on the devastating effects of unrequited love,” and “Powell sometimes swaps his usually clever lyrics for cryptic images of insanity or self-destruction.” I wasn’t entirely sold on the new approach, but there are a number of high energy, good songs on Back In Black that are likely to be even more impressive live.

The Palatine Concert Band doesn’t sound like AC/DC or any other rock group, but it is a talented collection of musicians that performs classical, big band, marches, and soundtrack medleys, and it’s doing a free concert at Cutting Hall at 3:30 on Sunday afternoon. Palatine Concert Band will also be performing at the Fred P. Hall Amphitheater on June 11th, July 19th, and July 30th, as part of Palatine’s Sounds Of Summer outdoor concert series.

Also at Cutting Hall in Palatine, Theatre Nebula will be performing Spamalot from May 10th though June 15th. 

Hard-edged power pop trio The Viaducts, fresh from their performance at International Pop Overthrow - Chicago, have a gig at Penny Road Pub in Barrington tomorrow night, May 3rd. 

The Bangles are performing tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 PM at SunFest in downtown West Palm Beach. And according to their website, they have tour dates coming up at the LA Pride festival in West Hollywood Park on June 8th (Jennifer Hudson and Azalea Banks will also be appearing) as well as The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano; Slims in San Francisco; Cannery Casino in Las Vegas; and City Winery in Napa and Chicago. The Tour page on The Bangles website was malfunctioning when I tried to get further information, but hopefully it will be fixed soon.

Meanwhile, The Three O’Clock—members of The Paisley Underground with The Bangles—have a gig with The Brian Jones Town Massacre on May 10th at The Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles.

Whitewolfsonicprincess, led by Carla Hayden and James Moeller, will be part of a triple bill tomorrow night, May 3rd at Jerry’s Sandwiches in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. The other acts are The Dark Room Men (Pat Über-Critic McDonald and Nick Allen) and Christopher Rock. The music starts at 10:00 PM.

My interview with Colin Blunstone from The Zombies is the print version of the May issue of the Illinois Entertainer. I’m told it will be online too, perhaps closer to his May 15th solo show at City Winery in Chicago.

According to the English website Cultbox, former Doctor Who star Matt Smith has signed on for a major role in all three parts of a new Terminator trilogy.

You’ll feel a whole lot better while they’re playing. Eric Chial from Penthouse Sweets and Bon Mots will be joining Phil Angotti in a tribute to The Byrds at 27 Live in Evanston on May 17th.

Jonathan Rundman has a new CD called Look Up coming out this Summer, which he notes is his first release of all new material in 10 years. It will include some of his favorite songs by Partheon Huxley, Daniel Levitin, and Brent Bourgeois Music.

CAKE, The Chicago Alternative Comic Expo will be held at Center on Halsted on May 31st and June 1st. Admission is free, and special guests will include Anya Davidson, Edie Fake, and Tony Millionaire. Organizers promise, “a weekend celebration and marketplace of independent comics.

Eclectic Choices For CIMMfest No. 6, Day 2

As CIMMfest No. 6 moves toward its second day, this annual mashup of movies and music has been garnering a fair amount of attention in the Chicago media. There are 17 different shows tomorrow night, May 2nd—mostly spread around the city’s north side. From a film about Led Zeppelin to live disco music, with options for comedy, blues, and techno music, the schedule reflects the eclectic vision of the festival’s organizers. Here are a few suggestions. Check out the CIMMfest website for all the details.

Pleased to Meet Me exemplifies CIMMfest’s mission to find common ground between rock and film. It’s an 80-minute comedy-drama directed by Archie Borders about an unlikely band comprised of aspiring musicians who responded a classified ad posted by a veteran rock star. The newly assembled band’s goal is to make the most of a one-day opportunity in a recording studio. The offbeat and fascinating cast includes Aimee Mann, John Doe of the Los Angeles punk band X, Karin Bergquist of the alt/country rock band Over The Rhine, Loudon Wainwright, and Joe Henry. Pleased to Meet Me will be shown at 9:25 PM at the Logan Theatre, with a Q and A session with Archie Borders. Admission is $10. 

It’s a complicated and most likely funny matter of What Is And What Might Have Been in Jeff Krulik’s film Led Zeppelin Played Here. The issue is whether the heavy metal band performed for about 50 people at a Maryland youth center on the night of Richard Nixon’s inauguration in January, 1969. Krulik attempts to discern which of the locals he interviews have the most accurate memories of that evening. Led Zeppelin Played Here will be shown at 7:15 PM at the Logan Theatre, with a Q and A with Jeff Krulik. Admission is $10.

Chicago is justifiably proud of its blues heritage, so when one of its adopted sons snags a prestigious honor, it’s time for a celebration. CIMMfest and Orman Music aim to give saxophone player Eddie Shaw a joyous send-off to Memphis, where he’ll be inducted into The Blues Hall Of Fame. Shaw first came to Chicago in 1957, and went on to perform with Muddy Waters, Otis Rush, Howlin’ Wolf, and other blues luminaries in the city. Shaw will be backed by The Wolfgang when he performs at 6:30 PM at Rosa’s Lounge, and at 7:30 PM, there will be a screening of Gary Vincent’s TV show Down to the Crossroads, which features Shaw, George Thorogood, and Morgan Freeman. Admission is $15.

CD Reviews: Franck and Yankee

Note: These reviews originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer.

Also, on yesterday’s post, I mentioned that members of the local bands The Hushdrops and The Chamber Strings will be performing under the name Candy Store Prophets at the Celebrate The Songs Of Boyce And Hart show at the Logan Theatre Lounge at 6:15 PM tonight, May 1st. I’ve since been informed that singer-guitarist Phil Angotti will also be part of the new-version Candy Store Prophets. (The name was originally used by Boyce and Hart’s backup band in the 1960s.) Celebrate The Songs Of Boyce And Hart is part of CIMMfest No. 6, and will be followed by a showing of Rachel Lichtman’s documentary Boyce And Hart: The Guys Who Wrote Em at 6:45 PM in the Logan Theatre.

Now, on to the reviews.

Singer-songwriter Jenny Franck unleashes a lot of raw emotions about troubled relationships on her full-length debut, Beautiful Lies. Working with bassist Mike Orr, drummer-guitarist-keyboards player Jaben Perrell, and a few guest musicians, she’s at her most powerful on energetic, melodic songs like “I See You” and “Colorscreen.” “I look inside myself/I’m full of nothing well,” Franck sings on “Disease,” a guitar-driven song with intriguing tempo shifts. A few of the slower songs have generic arrangements, but Franck’s razor sharp observations keep them interesting.

Yankee is a deceptively nondescript name for a duo that yearns to crack people up with lyrics about condom use and mass murder. Humor is subjective, but there’s no doubt that Josh V. and Caleb P. know how to craft catchy arrangements and airtight harmonies on their self-titled CD. After the throw-away noise of “Hey-Na-Na,” Yankee connects with the rapid-fire rhymes of “Must Be.” “Buddy,” an indie rock lament about a party guest who keeps spilling and dropping things, could be the funniest track, depending on one’s sense of humor.