Around the turn of the century, Philadelphia was on drugs. Or so it seems any way. Evidence points to the huge uprising of bands that willfully gave themselves a “psychedelic” tag, culminating in the compilation …
To be quite honest, the didjeridu is a musical instrument to which I’ve not given much thought over the years. But when confronted with its deep, reedy tones when listening to the music of Tree …
With work, family and High School Musical 3, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors here at Smile Politely have taken …
A crisp fall evening seems all too perfect for a warm audience, and a scorching lineup of hip-hop’s best and brightest. Rhymesayers’ “Paint the Nation” tour hit the Canopy Wednesday evening, in a smattering of …
Can you believe the spookiest night of the year is here? Halloween is truly a great holiday and when it lands on a Friday night it only gets better. There is some great live music …
I like to think I’ve led a bit of a charmed life. I believe that we all think that to a certain degree; one can’t look ahead to each day without holding on to a …
For some, music is simply a way to pass the time – a few sound waves slipping through the headphones to entertain their ears. For Jake Fleischli, music is audio nicotine, filling a craving for …
I was walking back to my apartment after class today and I realized it was suddenly fall. In my mind, that is. It may have been fall for weeks now; I just haven’t really been …
Slug and Ant of Atmosphere respect their audience. They’re not going to spurt bodily fluids onto their sweaty fans, rap about Kanye-esque bloated consumerism bullshit or waste time small talking over the mic. They will …
Rising musician, Benji Hughes is not your typical pop star – the hair, the music, the lyrics, etc. Sure he may sing songs about love gone awry and girls in tight t-shirts, but what makes …
Jonathan Richman and Tommy Larkins at the Highdive 25 October 2008 William: Before the show, sitting among the smallest crowd I’ve ever seen in the Highdive, I wonder how Jonathan Richman would feel about fans …
The loose collective known as Noiz Assembly plays their annual WEFT Sessions pre-Halloween gig tonight at 10 p.m. on WEFT-90.1 FM. You can also stream it online at weft.org. After the jump, the fine folks …
A few choice regulars braved the storm Thursday night to see New Ruins, The Championship and Tractor Kings play an intimate show at Mike ‘n Molly’s. I was branded on the way in as an …
With work, family and High School Musical 3, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors here at Smile Politely have taken …
Last night Cowboy Monkey hosted a show featuring Post Historic, Oh My God and Elsinore. The opening band, Post Historic, was okay. They had some very strong points, but it only came every other song. …
Like most children, I gravitated to the things I was not allowed to pursue. For music, that meant at least two of every five songs that we heard on MTV. My folks, bless their hearts, …
From Joe Six-pack to Joe the Plumber to Joe Rock-oriented-music-enthusiast, when the term “Jazz” is brought up images are conjured of either 15 minute, unintelligible free form jams or of smooth but insufferably boring elevator …
Blue’s Clues was one of those children’s shows that was watched by a lot of people who did not fit into its targeted demographic. Though specifically designed around child development research to be the ideal …
It has been a big couple of months for The Uglysuit, an emerging band from Oklahoma City. They have recently signed onto the Chicago-based label, Quarterstick/Touch and Go, and are gaining a notable amount of …
Before GWAR was one of the most outrageous metal bands known to Mankind, there was nothing. The supreme being of the universe was bored and therefore created the members of GWAR to wreck havoc on …
A great recent album I’ve discovered is titled The Greatest Hits So Far by Learning Music – a band whom I had never heard of. What I learned is that Learning Music is a group …
For me, one of the only surprises nicer than a fresh good album by a band I didn’t know existed is to discover that the songwriting, performing, production, and even the kick-ass cover art is …
Tonight at 10 p.m. the local six-member collective of World’s First Flying Machine will play into the ether on WEFT Sessions. Tune in 10 p.m. on WEFT-90.1 FM to catch the performance. WFFM are: Ben …
With work, family and judging your neighbors based on yard sign political endorsements, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors here …
The New Year, Uglysuit and Sunset Stallion will take the stage in the opposite order in which they were just listed Sunday night at the Highdive. The New Year may not be a band you …
Thanks to student organization, Starcourse, the Toronto super group Broken Social Scene will be making its way to Champaign-Urbana this Sunday, October 19. Brendan Canning, co-founder of the band, took time out of his busy …
There was a headline in an old issue of No Depression that read “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?” (referencing the great Waylon Jennings tune) on a feature about some up-and-coming cowpunk. I …
With summer waning, there are few things left to keep the warm sun firmly in place. For me, one of them is to keep listening to The Lassie Foundation’s split CD with Duraluxe, I Duel …
A law school student and a maker of dental bridges seems like an unlikely pairing for an ethereally hypnotic band. Then again, Common Loon isn’t your run-of-the-mill pair. Their band is only one piece of …
For a man who has two to three tons of expectations just in the last two words of his name, Justin Townes Earle bears his burden pretty lightly. Son of country-rock icon Steve Earle, namesake …
It’s not a controversial statement to say that the end of the CD is near. It may be only a couple years until they completely disappear – one could even argue it’s already happening. Our …
This Thursday is a wonderful opportunity to experience an intimate performance from some of the heaviest hitters in free and improvised music, well, for free. In the second installment of this semester’s Sudden Sound Concert …
Three years ago I fell in love with Emiliana Torrini’s Fisherman’s Woman. Her lyrics were soft, mournful and pretty. The album, however, never got much press and its most famous song, “Sunny Road,” was the …
Mason Jennings is what he is, and he seems completely at peace with that. And he should, considering how well being himself has treated him lately. After singing two well-received songs (“The Times They Are …
Sometimes proper rock leads to improper spelling, according to Dan Hubbard (he of the Humadors noted above). “A couple years ago I was on a drinking bender most of the time with my best friend …
With work, family and encore presentations of Planet Earth, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors here at Smile Politely have …
Last Thursday night at the Highdive, Robert Pollard and his new band, Boston Spaceships (“don’t call us ‘THE Boston Spaceships’, even though I sometimes do,” he requested from the stage) blasted through more than two …
This fall semester, the Red Herring Vegetarian Restaurant has kept its doors open later on the weekend and started hosting live music once again. Yes, one the sun goes down and the moon is on …
After watching a poorly attended but completely incendiary performance by the upstate New York band Hopewell on Friday night, I was inspired to start digging out some of my other favorite Catskill Mountains musicians. One …
Top five concerts (in no particular order): Modest Mouse w/ The Walkmen at The Rave in Milwaukee during summer 2004: I was burned multiple times by cigarettes and did not notice. Wilco w/ Deer Hoof …
Danny, the one and only member of Coco Coca, should have named his new album “Space Country”, the eighth track off of Black, Black, Black. I can’t think of any other music I would prefer …
There’s not much more that Radio Maria could do to coax in guests. If you’re not stricken by the smooth ambiance, variety of Spanish tapas and exquisite fusion food, maybe you should check your pulse …
Ever wonder how the touring bands that play shows in Champaign-Urbana wind up here? Well, one of the driving forces in the C-U live music community is Ward Gollings, an independent promoter who books concerts …
Surprisingly, Fujiya and Miyagi’s latest album, Lightbulbs, was released rather quietly early last month. I say surprisingly because I find this album to be their best yet, and it took me two weeks after the …
If you’ve ever watched the first season of “The Wire,” then you’re already familiar with the music of the Blind Boys of Alabama, whether you realize it or not: The Blind Boys’ version of Tom …
In Catch-22, fighter pilot Yossarian “had decided to live forever or die in the attempt.” For the local band of the same name, the stakes weren’t quite as high on Saturday night as they made …
Cristy: In spring 2007, we saw Ben Folds at ISU’s Braden Auditorium. Midway through, he announced a new song that he’d written on the way to Normal from St. Louis—a tribute to a little town …
With work, family and pretending to watch Cubs playoff games, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors here at Smile Politely …
Mercury Rev, the once-proclaimed “weirdest band on planet Rock,” performed alongside local heroes HUM at the old Blind Pig in 1995, just after the major label signing spree that included almost half a dozen of …
