Music

As proven by Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut, the intersection between the ever-changing music that we’ve dubbed “folk” and “indie” continues to be interesting. The problem with this intersection, and defining it, is that these two …

Jane Boxall has been in Champaign-Urbana just long enough to prove her worth as one of our greatest musicians and teachers. She arrived in town over three and a half years ago to pursue her …

If you haven’t heard, records are making a strong comeback. Actually, vinyl never went away, but renewed interest in the LP format in recent years has breathed new life into this medium. A new generation …

Late Tuesday night, local band Bellcaster reunited for one last show after falling off the radar for roughly two years. What could bring a band back from the dead? A good friend of theirs, Bobby …

A concept album is an ambitious venture for any band; thinking of a worthy idea is difficult enough, and then there’s the matter of producing an entire album’s worth of quality material that is thematically …

Say it ain’t so, Bellcaster. After almost a full year hiatus, downtown rockers Bellcaster will hit the stage again tonight at the last indie venue standing, Mike N’ Molly’s. And then, they will hang it …

In case you hadn’t realized already, the Mike N’ Molly’s beer garden is truly the place to be for live local music in downtown Champaign these days. It’s spacious and inviting, the PA won’t destroy …

One gallon of gas north of Champaign-Urbana is Backbeats, a used records and books store situated inconspicuously on the main strip in Rantoul. It is, in a literal sense, a mom-and-pop shop. Don Boskey runs …

Country-rocker Shooter Jennings will appear with his band, the 357’s, tonight at the Canopy Club in Urbana. It’s a 9:00 p.m. show, and American Bang and local up-and-comers Number One Sons are slated to open. …

Upon first hearing “Highly Suspiscious,” from My Morning Jacket’s newest LP Evil Urges, one of the — what do you call them? Singles? Whatever a band releases to the internet to preview its forthcoming record …

One of our finest bands has suffered a bit of a set back this week, as Nic Dillon of Casados was injured by a falling tree during some rough thunderstorms last weekend. According to bandmate …

Psych lovers, beware: If this article is introducing you to The Black Angels, there is reason to heed a real fear that, in the very near future, you won’t be removing this record from the …

Fiery Furnaces and Raconteurs at The Pageant, St. Louis, June 12 Note: Not for the first time, I was one of the only audience members caught obeying the club’s strict “no cameras” policy, and so …

This is the first in a series of video profiles highlighting local bands, how they view the music scene and where they think it is going. The interview transcript appears after the jump. Enjoy! “Good …

The first installment in an anticipated series of articles on local music stores William: In the Feb. 28 issue of Buzz magazine, readers’ choice winners for Best of C-U in the “best place to buy …

In the pleasantly muddled world of indie music, there are a handful of not-so-descriptive terms that are often branded onto select acts. “Piano rock” is one that gets thrown around a lot, as well as …

Richard Swift is a shapeshifter, a musical sorceror of mythical proportion. Each of his releases shows a mastery of a different affect of pop music, and each one is unique in its own way. Pending …

We Midwesterners have to stick together. Broken Spindles is the solo project of one Joel Peterson, a member of The Faint and the one-off project Beep Beep, all out of Omaha, Neb. The music is …

Gazelle is the new super group project between Jeff Dimpsey, a veteran of such legendary Champaign bands as Hum, Honcho Overload and Poster Children (just to name a few) and Adam Fein of Absinthe Blind, …

Authors’ note: A fellow rock scholar who happens to buy music for the Urbana Free Library asked us to write an article for their blog, to suggest music the library should purchase and to help …

Better than any high school reunion could hope to be, the 1993 Revisited reunion show this Sunday is set to be an exciting time for those who can say they were there. Musicians and friends …

Jim McHugh is buying coffee in Austin, Texas, and asks that I call him back in five minutes so he’s not the guy waiting in line on his cell phone. I appreciate this and gladly …

During the original flourishing of what is often referred to now as Americana or “old-time” music, the American south was rife with a musical integration that stood in sharp contrast to the strictest segregation in …

There seems to be a tradition in early baroque and classical music of taking another composer’s piece and rewriting it to demonstrate your superior writing, deriving masterful variations from the other composer’s weaker theme. The …

Caffe Paradiso, occasionally a venue and always the hippest place to grab a cuppa joe this side of Starbucks, is looking for “low-key” musicians to perform for the lunch crowds on Saturday afternoons. This addition …

Sleepy downtown Urbana is a diamond in the rough around these parts. The fact that you can always get a table at Crane Alley or squeeze into the Iron Post for a jazz show may …

Lincoln Square Village will be crawling with hundreds of audiophiles starting as early as doors will allow, this Saturday, May 17 at 8 a.m. The annual Vintage Vinyl sale begins at the crack of dawn …

Have you heard that in the voting booths this year, the members of Elsinore are casting their ballots for Tom Selleck’s mustache? Or that Snowsera’s favorite horror film is monster movie The Host? Then you …

In my younger days, I used to be affiliated with the underground metal scene in Champaign-Urbana. In the partying, drinking and recreational times, I had many run-ins with a guy named “Brother Rich.” Brother Rich …

There are fundamental questions to ask before opening a discussion of The Felice Brothers, namely regarding what many consider to be “throwback” music: when an artist creates music that strongly hearkens to music of the …

Some artists are just going to become popular, simple fact, and The Ting Tings are going to experience a rush — right about now, actually — especially after the push forward from their latest iPod …

The folks at the Canopy Club love local music. And so do we. Tonight the Canopy will host an evening of local performances, dubbed “A Tribute to Local Bands.” The schedule features nearly everyone that …

To compare M83’s proprietor Anthony Gonzalez to Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine is perhaps old hat, but what’s now the most remarkable aspect of this comparison is how Gonzalez continues to nurture Shields’s influence …

With effort, the two-member set of Mit’n have furthered their experimentation with bizarre musical compositions since I saw them last at the Man Man concert at the Courtyard Cafe. I don’t remember much of a …

Anyone who grew up in these “twin towns” knows about the Chester Street Bar. During Reagan’s first and second terms, when tolerance about the LGBT lifestyle was far lower than it is now, the bar …

What could get you out and about tonight, despite the thunderstorm warnings? How about a show at friendly downtown hub Mike ‘N Molly’s? How about local hip-hop hero Krukid (feat. The Sugargliders) headlining, following sets …

The Link Gallery at Krannert Art Museum is exactly that: a hallway that essentially serves as a link between the School of Art + Design and the art museum that houses the university’s permanent collection, …

The genre tags on Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s MySpace read “Indie/Psychedelic/Alternative.” Rarely do these meaningless little signifiers communicate so effectively a band’s inherent dilemma. Peter Hayes, Robert Turner, and Nick Jago have spent their career …

Programming at the Urbana Free Library never ceases to amaze me. Tonight Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion’s nationwide tour brings them to town to perform a free concert a part of the library’s “Heroes” …

Cristy: Ah…the mid-1990s. Before Nickelback and Limp Bizkit clogged up radio with generic tattooed sludge, the rock that rose from Nirvana’s Pacific-Northwestern ash was everywhere. Exquisite Sunny Day Real Estate. Mellow Toad the Wet Sprocket. …

Tribal drums rain down, town folk flock over, bass and saxophone debate, but in the end, get together. Afro-Cuban drumming meets free jazz and flirts with electronica. And the ensemble is constituted of 11 members. …

To all the patrons of the local music scene who keep looking for a way to make a difference: here is a way to make a difference. High Anxiety Music Center — where local bands …

When I was a kid, I loved Star Wars. I had pretty much every collectible known to man. I had the movies, the soundtracks on vinyl, the action figures, bed sheets, curtains, talking Ewoks…all of …

A show like this, on the surface, sounds like something of a novelty: hip-hop and indie rock? Together? This is the stuff that gets pulled off on major festival circuits, but how will it fare …

Food, Sex, and Death… and Insects (2007) directed by John Edginton William: The Venus 3—Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Bill Rieflin (formerly with Ministry) and Scott McCaughey (leader of the Young Fresh Fellows)—have been playing together since …

The most open-minded fans of experimental or avant-garde music will — in their most private moments — admit they know precisely why the great majority of music-listeners tend to shy away from their chosen genre. …

I always like going to shows at the IMC. The space is inside the old historic Urbana post office building, which is a neat old structure, and the couches and paintings are very nice and …

[The Highdive, Saturday, April 19] Cristy: Power pop—the candy aisle of rock. You got your classic Hershey’s chocolate (Big Star); tangy Smarties (Weezer); and sparkly gold Werthers caramel (Matthew Sweet). If you’re a power pop …