Alright kids, time to do some soul searching, and perhaps some well-needed crate digging. French producer Onra is a mysterious individual, to say the least. In the greater league of vinyl jockeys and drum machine …
Mike ‘n Molly’s will be the place for you to see one of the better under-the-radar bands from the midwest tonight. The Silent Years, from Detroit, make a stop to perform alongside local punk stalwarts …
Local indie pop sensations Headlights dropped their sophomore album today on Polyvinyl Records, entitled Some Racing, Some Stopping. The band was generous enough to give Smile Politely the exclusive rights to the video for the …
Common Loon’s first official release is a two song 7”, out now on Berkeley, CA based label Ideal Utopia. At a very stripped down level, the duo that make up the band, Matt Campbell and …
Wayne Hancock is sort of the ultimate No Depression cover story, and an exemplary member of the Bloodshot Records cast. More than his record label or membership in any perceived country-rock insurgency, it is Hancock’s …
House parties once ruled the CU music scene. On any given weekend in the late 90’s, there were at least 2-3 shows happening, usually in Urbana, before WUNA decided that rock music was a bad …
Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you. If what you seek are Valentine’s jollies, come to a rock show at Mike n’ Molly’s. For those who really want to …
Bufo Alvarius is Eric Gross, a C-Uite who has honed his skills across two very different records — 2006’s instrumental seven drops from the wax and 2003’s brash mix of cartoonish, sometimes vulgar hip-hop, Comedy …
Those who want to be generous in advance of Valentine’s Day and also want to taste a smattering of some of the more radical local bands around, stop by The Canopy Club this evening for …
A local all-girl a capella group is under investigation by authorities today as a video has been leaked to the media containing horrific scenes of abuse and violence. The group known as The Girls Next …
Music fans, like voters, tend to love a “uniter,” not a divider. For practically the entirety of his career, Californian Ben Chasny, under the nom de plume of Six Organs of Admittance, has brought together …
The popularity of instrumental music is growing every year, and it’s truly amazing how people respond to solely music playing with no words. It’s like having no words takes the music down to its bare …
Ah, the pretentious joys of kooky academes. Though tonight may end in a foot of snow on the ground and the requisite feelings of trapped hopelessness, there are those among us who can think of …
Reds as Depeche Mode, “Waiting for the Night” Our videographers capture the best of each performer’s set. After the jump: Mad Mardigan as Cream, Roberta Sparrow as Descendents, JigGsaw as Rancid, Darling Disarm as Portishead, …
The third and final night of this year’s Great Cover-Up has come and gone, so let’s get straight to work. Reds (above) took the stage in a swell of smoke and colors, playing Depeche Mode’s …
Thirty-five years ago, something big started. With the critical, overflowing mass of disenfranchised people packing themselves into already overcrowded neighborhoods, something had to give. The outcry was deafening, but no one listened. It was too …
After a long year of what seemed to be uninspired performances, poor album sales and a very public rocky romance, Mike Ingram and his band proved to be victorious at Sunday night’s Great Cover-Up performance …
Monster Honkey as Deftones, “Change” Our videographers capture the best of each performer’s set. After the jump: New Ruins as Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Chemicals as The Velvet Underground, Terminus Victor as Elliott Smith, Tractor …
[Ed. note: Special thanks to our writers, photographer, and videographers who are going above and beyond while “covering the Cover-Up” this year, turning over their articles, (analog!) photography and video very quickly in the wee …
Kilborn Alley as MC5, “Kick Out the Jams” Our videographers capture the best of each performer’s set. After the jump: Brother Embassy as White Zombie, Krukid as Kanye West, Curb Service as The White Stripes, …
[Ed. note: Special thanks to our writers, photographer, and videographers who are going above and beyond while “covering the Cover-Up” this year, turning over their articles, (analog!) photography and video very quickly in the wee …
We’d love to tell you which bands you’ll see tonight at The Highdive, but we have no idea ourselves. The 17th Annual Great Cover-Up, where notable local bands transform into “cover bands” for one night …
It was announced today that five legendary “vintage” local bands will reunite at The Highdive over Memorial Day weekend: Driver Has No Cash Corndolly The Moon Seven Times Menthol Honcho Overload Order new copies of …
Local darlings Headlights, anticipating the Feb. 19 release of their second LP, Some Racing, Some Stopping, have posted the new single “Cherry Tulips” on their MySpace page. The song is charming and fresh, featuring the …
Johnny and the Moon is another offshoot of the ever-productive Wolf Parade crew. Where the music of Handsome Furs and Sunset Rubdown are sonic cousins to the Wolf Parade output, this time the lesser-known guitarist …
New Year’s Eve proved to be a little harsh on local MC/rapper Edwin “Krukid” Ruyonga, who indisputably won the title of “Most Inebriated.” Our sources say that good ol’ Eddie, much like his “Barcrawl Anthem,” …
Radiohead do not make B-sides, they make non-album tracks (listen to the stuff that didn’t make Kid A, Amnesiac or OK Computer). In Rainbows (Disc 2), a 30 minute mini-album, includes various tracks recorded and …
For those interested in the vibrant and rich music scene in our humble little towns, these two bands need no introduction: both Temple of Low Men and Lorenzo Goetz helped define the musical landscape until …
For those of us who will be skipping the Spice Girls reunion tour this winter—join us at Jennifer North in downtown Champaign tonight. Cowgirl cutie (née punk rocker) Angie Heaton, Headlights siren Erin Fein, Marla …
In an event similar to what happened to Milli Vanilli in 1989, local funk and soul group Beat Kitchen received a stunning backlash from fans at their concert earlier this month after an apparent “audio …
Do yourself a favor and head out to the Cowboy Monkey and catch some of the brightest and most talented original songwriters in the land. Ryan Groff headlines this “early” show that is sure to …
We are saddened to report the death of musician Dan Fogelberg, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 56, after battling prostate cancer for three years. Born in Peoria in 1951, he eventually …
Tunnels / New Ruins / Shipwreck / Headlights I walked into the largest starting crowd of the Fall Showdown thus far with Tunnels, the first band of the night’s great lineup, on stage. Tunnels is …
Curb Service / Common Loon / (The Living Blue) / (elsinore) The third night of the local music showcase started off with Larry Gates, the former lead singer of local legends Lorenzo Goetz. Now Gates, …
The Beauty Shop / The Chemicals / Darling Disarm / Books Died On Starting their set with what would be described as an empty room, Books Died On played a pleasing set of electro-acoustic pop …
Okkervil River fans in the Champaign-Urbana area: in case you didn’t already know, your new favorite eclectic rock n’ roll band not only recently stopped by at Daytrotter for a quick recording session (downloadable for …
Local rockers Shipwreck complete their utter and total domination of the West Coast… 11/14/2007 Mappy wanted to write today’s entry. So here it is: “01010010100100100100100100010010110101110101011101 101010000101001001001010010010111010100100010101010 100111101010010000101001001000001010111010010010010 010000100111100110100100100101001001010101111010010 010100101010100101010010011100100101010010101001010 10010101010010101010010100100010” Owned! Face! You gonna take …
Tonight through Saturday, December 15, The Canopy Club will be hosting bills featuring a total of sixteen local or area musicians. All for a moderate 5 bucks a night ($7 after 10pm), that’s only $1.25 …
In the last seven years I’ve promoted four shows for DJ Logic. One with his band Project Logic, another with Dirty Dozen Brass Band, another with Bob Weir & Ratdog and one with the John …
Stepping up to the stage with a new collection of songs, Lupe Fiasco rolls through town Sunday before his new album, The Cool, drops on Dec. 18. The Chicago MC (né Wasalu Muhammad Jaco), who …
The Canopy Club’s Void Room filled up relatively quick with a couple dozen friends of all three local bands. For a late show, this was a surprisingly big and encouraging turn out. Collusion was the …
Thursday, November 29, 2007 at 7:30 p.m. Krannert Art Museum will present the Sudden Sound Concert featuring bassist Yosef Ben Israel leading an all-star, Chicago-based, progressive jazz ensemble featuring keyboardist Robert ‘Baabe’ Irving III, saxophonist …
It feels like it has been forever since the release of the last Tractor Kings album, Gone to Heaven. In the time that passed, frontman Jake Fleischli managed to assemble one of the strongest lineups …
The town of Neoga, Ill sits just south of Lake Mattoon on I-57. Anyone who has been to the man made lake that dominates the culture around those parts has a good understanding of Neoga’s …
One might ask Sunset Rubdown’s principle singer and songwriter, Spencer Krug, “How baroque is too baroque?” He might have difficulty providing a straight answer. Sure, most Sunset fans have managed the difficult transition from the …
While home for Thanksgiving break, I didn’t expect to see one of the best indie-rock shows to come to town in a long time booked at a bar downtown, closer to the smaller private Illinois …
September 1994 : Sordyl’s House of Music (Springfield, IL) At age 16, I took my first electric bass guitar to Ralph Sordyl’s House of Music in Springfield for an electrical check-up. I explained my issue …
Champaign, IL – The subject of international offshore outsourcing has been widely debated by marketing experts. The idea of sending local work to cheap labor in developing countries such as Mexico, India and Malaysia is …
Although often grouped with the Devendra Banhart gypsy-folk circus, Bowerbirds’ Hymns For A Dark Horse is nowhere near as bloated or tangentially indulgent as all of Banhart’s records. Instead, Bowerbirds sound like they are coming …
