Underground Bee

Ebony Bones at Green Dolphin

2010-02-07T23:23:00.002-06:00

The British singer who calls herself Ebony Bones put on quite a show Saturday night (Feb. 6) at Green Dolphin Street ... after a seemingly interminable series of DJ sets and opening bands. I'm not much into the dance club scene, so that last hour of barely distinguishable electronic beats pounding into my head wore a little thin, but then Ebony Bones and her band finally take the stage around 2:15 a.m. She turned out to be worth the wait.

In an Ebony Bones press release, she describes herself as follows: "I am Cleopatra reincarnated, in search of KFC." I'm not even sure what the means, but that conveys something of the spirit of how she dresses and her goofy, bouncy stage presence. Her whole band was decked out in quasi-African or kitschy ancient Egyptian style outfits. And for the first half of the show, Ebony Bones was in a dress with the world's biggest shoulder pads... or collars... or something jutting out, anyway. Her backup singers wore face makeup that seemed like a satire of the way "savages" used to be portrayed, and they clinked spoons against whiskey bottles for percussive effect.

Ebony Bones is one of those musical dynamos who barely ever stops moving during the course of a concert, and she was a wonder to behold. Her songs sounded good, too, the sort of electronic dance music with just enough quirks and smart touches to stand out above most mainstream pop. The set included cool covers of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" and the Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog." And then, around 3 a.m., a long night of music at Green Dolphin Street came to an end at last.
www.myspace.com/ebonybones

The only opening act that won me over was the R&B duo He Say She Say. Their soulful songs sounded like they have some good potential. Now they just need to put out a record. (They mentioned during their set that they don't have any record out, due to "technical difficulties." Whatever those difficulties, He Say She Say should overcome them.)

Photos of Ebony Bones and He Say She Say.

Explode Into Colors

2010-02-06T11:44:00.004-06:00

I was looking for something new and different to see Friday night, and I found it — an exciting all-female trio from Portland, Ore., called Explode Into Colors. This group doesn't even have a proper album out yet, just a cassette and some singles, but it's already making very lively, percussion-heavy rock. When I heard that they were an all-girl trio from the Pacific Northwest, I immediately thought of Sleater-Kinney. Explode Into Color's music is more out there, more experimental than S-K, though there's a similar sense of energy.

The Explode ladies put on a really good show Friday (Feb. 5) at Subterranean. Although the songs sound like they're anchored by bass lines, that's actually lead singer Claudia Meza's baritone guitar. And no wonder the recordings sound like they have a lot of drums — Lisa Schonberg drums while Heather Treadway is a triple threat on drums, keyboards and vocals. The three of them were lined up across the front of the Subt stage. When a band doesn't hide the drum kit in back, that's always a sign that you're going to hear some music with interesting percussion, and that turned out to be the case Friday night. Explode Into Colors does not apparently have a lot of songs yet, and the trio played a fairly short set during this show, which was their first appearance in Chicago. Hope they're back soon.
www.myspace.com/explodeintocolors

Alas, the bracing set by Explode Into Colors was a sharp contrast with the cheesy opening sets by two Chicago groups. I hate to tear down any aspiring local musical act with harsh criticism, and I'll note that both of the opening bands did draw a decent number of fans. But it's a shame Subterranean didn't find more appropriate openers to go with Explode Into Colors.

Photos of Explode Into Colors.

Chicago Underground Duo

2010-02-03T22:30:00.003-06:00

Technically speaking, the Chicago Underground Duo isn't exactly based in Chicago anymore. These two jazz musicians, Rob Mazurek and Chad Taylor, spend most of their time now living elsewhere. But they've kept Chicago in their band name, and they still record for that fine Chicago label, Thrill Jockey. And they were back on their old home turf Wednesday night (Feb. 3) for a free show at the Chicago Cultural Center.

It was a superb set, filled with really nice moments from both players. Mazurek was a master at getting different tones out of his cornet, using various mutes and aiming his horn at various angles to the microphone. When Mazurek got quiet, it was like his cornet was whispering or crying out at a great distance away. Meanwhile, Taylor's drumming was far more than mere time keeping. He squeezed expressive sounds out of those drums, playing quirky patterns and making the rhythms seem almost melodic. He also played the vibraphone (sometimes simultaneously with the drums), including some hypnotically repeating series of notes that laid the groundwork for Mazurek's solos.

The fact that these guys call themselves "underground" might lead you to think they're experimental or, well, "difficult." And yes, there is an experimental spirit to their collaborations, including the excellent new record Boca Negra. But what was striking about Wednesday's performance was just how accessible this music is to anyone listening with open ears. You'll get another chance to see the Chicago Underground Duo soon, when they play a CD-release party Feb. 20 at the Hideout.

Photos of the Chicago Underground Duo.

Nouvelle Vague at Lincoln Hall

2010-01-31T13:59:00.004-06:00

The idea behind the band Nouvelle Vague is to play songs from the new wave and early punk era like bossa nova or Brazilian lounge music, with sexy French ladies handling the vocals. Nouvelle Vague (the brainchild of French producers Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux) has recorded some lovely, quirky covers on its three albums, although the whole concept is pretty gimmicky. The shtick wears thin after a while, but it's enjoyable for a song or two or three.

The touring version of Nouvelle Vague came to Chicago Friday night for a show at Lincoln Hall. And how can you go wrong when you've got a couple of sexy French ladies singing cool old songs that we all like? (Well, a lot of like those songs, anyway.) It was fun hearing songs like XTC's "Making Plans for Nigel," the Clash's "Guns of Brixton" and Buzzcocks' "Ever Fallen in Love?" done up in this style.

The group records in the studio with a revolving cast of singers, but it had just two on tour. I don't believe they ever got introduced during the show, which seems like a weird oversight. Or maybe they were supposed to be sort of anonymous? I'm told these two were Helena Noguerra and Karina Zeviani. Whoever they were, they did a fine job singing these songs, shaking their hair and striking poses, while the band played light versions of these tunes that used to rock hard. It was quite entertaining for a while, although it was still, in the end, a bit of a gimmick.

Nouvelle Vague was nicely paired with an opening act that sings some songs in French, Clare and the Reasons. As in previous Chicago gigs, this delightful trio delivered cool, jazzy pop music with some funny stage banter and a lot of personality in between the songs. It was too bad to hear that their vehicle was broken into during this visit to Chicago. Hope they don't get scared off from visiting again soon.

Photos of Nouvelle Vauge and Clare and the Reasons.

UPDATE/CORRECTION: I'm informed that one of the two singers I referred to above as French ladies (Karina Zeviani) is actually Brazilian.

Tape and Mountains

2010-01-30T16:36:00.002-06:00

Thursday (Jan. 28) was a night of instrumental and mostly mellow music at the Empty Bottle. All three acts on the bill played slow-moving, ambient music, the sort of stuff that makes you meditate more than it makes you dance. It was a fairly cool evening of chilling out (with frigid temperatures outside).

The headliners were Sweden's Tape — four musicians playing a laptop, guitar, drums and keyboards, with a bit of harmonica thrown in. Despite the electronic elements, the music sounded almost organic, with some bits that were almost like folk music mashed together with washes of electronic texture.

The show also featured the Brooklyn ambient duo Mountains. Playing without any pause during their set, Mountains played acoustic instruments like guitars, harmoniums and melodicas, processing them through a mound of electronic equipment until they were virtually unrecognizable, making waves of echoing, reverb-heavy chords.

Appropriately enough, the first act of the night was the Chicago duo David Daniell and Douglas McCombs, whom I've seen numerous times and written about here previously. This time, they played without any percussion, but they still created beautiful, glacial sounds with their two guitars.

Photos of Tape, Mountains and David Daniell & Douglas McCombs.

Best films of 2009

2010-01-24T21:56:00.003-06:00

A SERIOUS MAN (Joel Coen) — In this brilliant black comedy, the Coen Brothers pose philosophical questions as they drag their poor protagonist through one humiliation after another, ending it all with a beautifully enigmatic shot.

THE WHITE RIBBON (Michael Haneke) — A haunting portrait of a small town in Germany on the eve of World War I, where mysterious cruel acts go unexplained and unpunished.

LORNA'S SILENCE (Luc and Jean-Paul Dardenne) — Yet another compelling movie from the Dardenne brothers about people living on the margins of society in Belgium, filmed and acted so realistically it looks like a documentary. A horrifying story that builds to an oddly rapturous climax.

IN THE LOOP (Armando Ianucci) — The year's funniest movie, this sharp political satire from Britain features hilarious streams of bile flowing from the mouth of Peter Capaldi.

THE HURT LOCKER (Kathryn Bigelow) — Tense, realistic and sharply focused, this is what action movies should be.

POLICE, ADJECTIVE (Corneliu Porumboiu) — This Romanian film is a sort of deconstruction of cop movies: A stakeout where not much of anything happens. The climax, if you can call it that, is a cop looking up words in a dictionary. Slow-paced but absorbing, it's a thoughtful exploration of exactly what we mean by law and order.

REVANCHE (Götz Spielmann) — This Austrian film has some of the elements of a crime caper or thriller, but it's also a moral and philosophical drama, with superb acting and filmmaking.

SÉRAPHINE (Martin Provost) — Yolande Moreau gives one of the year's best performances in this lovely film, starring as the French naïve painter Séraphine de Senlis.

ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL (Sacha Gervasi) — A great documentary about what it's like to be in a rock band year after year without making it big. Funny and surprisingly heartwarming.

ADVENTURELAND (Greg Mottola) — A cool coming-of-age story that captures all the frustrations and awkwardness of being a young person groping toward romance and adulthood. (Awesome soundtrack, too.)

11. The Baader-Meinhof Complex (Uli Edel)
12. Bright Star (Jane Campion)
13. The Informant! (Steven Soderbergh)
14. Where the Wild Things Are (Spike Jonze)
15. Tulpan (Sergey Dvortsevoy)
16. Broken Embraces (Pedro Almodovar)
17. Eastern Plays (Kamen Kalev)
18. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Terry Gilliam)
19. The Beaches of Agnes (Agnes Varda)
20. Goodbye Solo (Ramin Bahrani)
21. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson)
22. Julia (Erick Zoncka)
23. 35 Shots of Rum (Claire Denis)
24. Sita Sings the Blues (Nina Paley)
25. Tokyo Sonata (Kiyoshi Kurosawa)

HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Nymph (Pen-ek Rantanarung)
Face (Tsai Ming-Liang)
Avatar (James Cameron)
Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno (Ruxandra Medrea Annonier and Serge Bromberg)
The Headless Woman (Lucrecia Martel)
Gomorrah (Matteo Garrone)
An Education (Lone Scherfig)
Apres Lui (Gäel Morel)
Cropsey (Barbara Brancaccio and Joshua Zeman)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (David Yates)
In Search of Beethoven (Phil Grabsky)
O'Horten (Bent Hamer)
Patti Smith: Dream of Life (Steven Sebring)
The Eclipse (Conor McPherson)
The Girl on the Train (Andre Techine)
Up (Pete Docter)

Happy Birthday, Pravda

2010-01-24T18:51:00.002-06:00

Chicago's Pravda Records has been in business for 25 years now, which is reason enough to celebrate. Not many independent labels stay in business that long. Pravda's musicians and fans partied Friday night at the Abbey Pub to mark the occasion.

Three of the label's early groups got back together for this special show: Boom Hank, the Slugs and the Service. Boom Hank started off the night with some country-tinged rock. And The Service — the band that really started the whole Pravda label — finished off the night with tuneful alternative rock and power pop songs, including a cameo appearance by soul singer Andre Williams.

Playing on the middle of the bill, the Slugs were the highlight of the show for me. I saw the Slugs a number of times back when the band was still together, and those shows were always a fun time. The fun feeling was back on Friday night, with some highly catchy rock songs, funny stage banter from lead singer Dag Juhlin and, of course, a lively rendition of "Hooked On a Feeling," complete with those silly "ooga-chuckas."

Photos of Boom Hank, the Slugs and the Service.

Hideout helps out Haiti

2010-01-19T11:17:00.003-06:00

You can always count on the Hideout to get behind a good cause. Within days after a devastating earthquake struck Haiti, the Hideout put together a benefit show to raise money. Two of Chicago's stalwart bands, Eleventh Dream Day and the Waco Brothers, played rousing sets Monday at the club, raising almost $8,000 for Partners in Health. Sally Timms of the Mekons was one of the key organizers of the event, which also featured a bake sale and a bake sale organized by My Vegetable Blog and a poster sale by Kathleen Judge of Judgeworks. If you didn't make it to the sold-out show, you can still help out by buying one of the posters shown here. (Poster sale proceeds will go to Doctors Without Borders and Partners and Health.)

Eleventh Dream Day played first, delivering the sort of hard-charging rock we've come to expect — including three songs that have not yet been released, "Satellite," "More Than Luck" and a tune with the phrase "Fades Away" in the chorus. All sounded like they'll be great additions to the EDD catalogue — whenever the band gets around to recording them. It was also cool to hear EDD playing music from its classic album Beet.

The Waco Brothers did their thing, and they did it very well. They're easy to take for granted, since they play so often and since they make it all look so easy, but they're about as much fun to watch as any group in Chicago. Hideout owner Tim Tuten was absent (working at his day job in Washington, D.C.), but Jon Langford read a few text messages from Tim aloud to simulate a classic Tuten introduction. And then the Wacos kicked their way through several of their best-known tunes and favorite covers, including Neil Young's "Revolution Blues," the Bobby Fuller Four's "I Fought the Law," T. Rex's "20th Century Boy" and the Undertones' "Teenage Kicks." Bassist Alan Doughty accidentally knocked out the venue's trademark Christmas lights, which adorn the ceiling, when the lights got tangled up in his bass. Near the end of the show, Langford asked the crowd, "How late do you want us to play? We've got to wake up early and overthrow the government."

Review: 'Killer Joe' at Profiles

2010-01-19T10:00:00.002-06:00

You can't say you weren't warned. As you walk into Profiles Theatre, it's hard to miss all the signs announcing that the play Killer Joe includes graphic violence, nudity, gunfire and sexual situations. The theater even suggests that sensitive audience members shouldn't sit in the front row. And if you've ever heard anything about Tracy Letts' play, you probably have some idea that this is going to be a dark and violent drama.

Despite all those warnings, this production of Killer Joe still manages to shock. It's a bracing, jolting work of theater, with some moments that may leave you feeling sick. It's not for the faint of heart. If you can take it, it's an exciting show that roots around in the depths of human depravity, with a lot of black humor to keep it all from feeling too oppressive.

For those of us who missed Killer Joe when it premiered in Chicago in 1993, this is a great opportunity to catch up on the early writing of Letts, who has since gone on to win the Pulitzer for his family epic August: Osage County (which is coming back as a Broadway in Chicago touring show in early February). Killer Joe seems like the work of a different playwright, with some of the twisted humor and violence of a Coen Brothers low-life crime caper, although there are some parallels between the dysfunctional families in Killer Joe and August.

The small stage at Profiles has the authentic look of a ramshackle home somewhere in Texas, and there's even a dog barking outside the door during much of the play. Steppenwolf ensemble member Rick Snyder directs this production of Killer Joe at Profiles, with a strong cast (Darrell W. Cox, Claire Wellin, Somer Benson, Kevin Bigley and Howie Johnson). Although the actors' Texas accents were a little unsteady, they made these characters feel vivid. Perhaps a little too vivid for some audience members. I suggest following that advice about not sitting in the front row.

Killer Joe continues through Feb. 28 at Profiles Theatre, 4147 N. Broadway, Chicago. www.profilestheatre.org (And also don't forget to check out Tracy Letts' work as an actor. He's great in American Buffalo, which continues through Feb. 14 at Steppenwolf.)

Tomorrow Never Knows

2010-01-18T09:25:00.003-06:00

The Tomorrow Never Knows festival got bigger this year. It used to be a series of mid-January concerts at Schubas. This year, it was five nights of shows simultaneously happening at both Schubas and its new sister venue, Lincoln Hall. January is generally not all that exciting of a month on the concert calendar, but the TNK fest brought a good selection of up-and-coming indie-rock bands to Chicago.

I attended two of the shows during the festival. Last Thursday (Jan. 14) at Schubas, the headliners were Surfer Blood, a young band from Florida that's been getting some buzz lately. I like what I've heard of Surfer Blood's studio recordings. It might be a little too polished and amped up, but the power-pop single "Swim" is pretty darn catchy. The band has inspired some wild comparisons to other groups. Time Out Chicago said they sound like a mix of Asia and Brian Eno. Friends I follow on Twitter mentioned the Fixx and Boston. I was thinking more along the lines of the Ponys and OK Go. As a live act, Surfer Blood needs some practice. The band wasn't bad, but songs that would have been appealing as three-minute pop singles got stretched out twice as long as that, until the repetitive chord progressions just got boring. Then again, "Swim" sounded really strong without all that heavy compression and reverb on the studio record. Surfer Blood abruptly ended its set with drum-set-smashing antics... ensuring that there would be no encore.

Also on the bill Thursday, Freelance Whales played buoyant songs from its forthcoming debut LP, Weathervanes. The record's not out until March 16, but this band is already building a solid following. Freelance Whales also opened recently for Fanfarlo at Schubas, and Thursday's appearance was another energetic performance of the catchy songs on Weathervanes.

Thursday's show started out with the annoyingly named Lasers and Fast and Shit. With dramatic back lighting and lots of fog, the group hammered its way through some hard-edged post-punk. A couple of the songs had good hooks, but others sounded like run-of-the-mill rock.

And sandwiched in between all those bands was Bear in Heaven. A couple of the musicians in this Brooklyn band played in avant-garde guitarist Rhys Chatham's metal band, but Bear in Heaven doesn't play that sort of drony music. Its songs were ominous and dramatic, however.

On Saturday night, I was at Lincoln Hall for the triple bill of Julie Doiron, the Rural Alberta Advantage and Bowerbirds. Although the show was sold out, the room did not feel quite as jam-packed as I would have expected. I get the feeling some fans were there just for one band or another — and maybe some folks with festival passes were shuttling back and forth between Lincoln Hall and Schubas.

I saw Doiron play twice last year, once with a band and once solo. Saturday's show was like a hybrid of those, since she had just one musician accompanying her, William Kidman on guitar. She didn't talk as much as she during her last solo show (it would be hard for anyone to talk that much again), delivering a tighter set of some great songs, including at least one new composition and one very nice cover, Sam Cooke's "Bring It On Home to Me."

The Rural Alberta Advantage were the middle band on the bill Saturday, but judging from the energy of their performance and the fan turnout, they should have been the headliners. This Canadian trio put out an excellent record in 2008 (when I discovered it on emusic), which then got wider release in 2009. Their music reminds me of Neutral Milk Hotel, probably because the band's singer-songwriter Nils Edenloff sings in a strong tone similar to NHM's Jeff Mangum. The songs sounded lively Saturday night, thanks to the powerful drumming of Paul Banwatt and the many touches provided by multi-instrumentalist Amy Cole. Edenloff was suffering from a cold, and his vocals were ragged on some of the songs, especially when he belted out notes. I winced a few times at hearing Edenloff's voice crack, but he deserves a gold star for giving the music his full effort despite his illness. The RAA played a couple of new songs (which sounded like promising additions to the band's repertoire), and two covers: Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" and the theme of the Canadian kids' TV show, "The Littlest Hobo."

Bowerbirds finished off the night with a pretty performance of the band's folk-rock ballads. This Raleigh, N.C., band's 2009 record, Upper Air, really grew on me over time, with a lot of compositions that stick in the mind. In concert, Phil Moore's vocals and guitar blended beautifully with Beth Tacular's accordion and harmonies (though I wish Tacular would sing even more). All that being said, it was a very mellow set for midnight, lulling the crowd rather than rousing it. Maybe the Bowerbirds' set would have worked better earlier in the evening.

Photos from Tomorrow Never Knows. (I'm still waiting to get my camera from the repair shop, but I managed to get a few photos at these shows, thanks to the kind friends who let me use their cameras.)

Best plays of 2009

2010-01-11T11:05:00.002-06:00

We're already 11 days into the new year, but I'm still catching up on my "best of 2009" lists. I'm waiting a week or so before I do a list of the year's best films, since I'm still seeing some 2009 movies. (And as always, some films from the previous year straggle into Chicago after Jan. 1, raising the question of whether they belong on last year's list.) Here are my picks for the 12 best plays I saw in Chicago in 2009.

ROUW SIERT ELECTRA (MOURNING BECOMES ELECTRA) by Eugene O'Neill, directed by Ivo Van Hove, at the Goodman Theatre. (Photo by Jan Versweyveld.) Eugene O'Neill translated into Dutch with supertitles? Sounds esoteric, but the acting by the Toneelgroep Amsterdam troupe was so visceral it felt like a slap in the face.

AN APOLOGY FOR THE COURSE AND OUTCOME OF CERTAIN EVENTS DELIVERED BY DOCTOR JOHN FAUSTUS ON THIS HIS FINAL EVENING by Mickle Maher, Theater Oobleck at the Chopin Theatre. (Photo by Kristin Basta.) This existential black comedy made terrific use of a basement performance space, making audience members feel like they were part of some strange ritual.

THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY by Kristoffer Diaz, directed by Edward Torres, at Victory Gardens Theater. (Photo by Liz Lauren.) This was more fun than any show in 2009, even for someone like me who hates wrestling.

THE MYSTERY OF IRMA VEP by Charles Ludlam, directed by Sean Graney, at Court Theatre. (Photo by Michael Brosilow.) Another blast of fun, with lots of quick-change comedy by the marvelous Erik Hellman and Chris Sullivan.

THE OVERWHELMING by J.T. Rogers, directed by Kimberly Senior, at Next Theatre. This smart political drama set in Africa built to a climax with a hair-raising feeling of danger.

ANIMAL CRACKERS by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind, music and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, adapted and directed by Henry Wishcamper, at the Goodman Theatre. (Photo by Eric Y. Exit.) Completely retro, and highly entertaining. The next best thing to seeing the actual Marx Brothers.

BLACKBIRD by David Harrower, directed by Dennis Zacek, at Victory Gardens Theater. (Photo by Liz Lauren.) A disturbing two-character drama starring two superb actors, Mattie Hawkinson and William L. Peterson, at their best.

DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS by Eugene O'Neill, directed by Robert Falls, at the Goodman Theatre. (Photo by Liz Lauren.) Epic in all the right ways. Part myth, part fever dream.

ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD by Tom Stoppard, directed by Michael Halberstam, at Writers' Theatre. (Photo by Michael Brosilow.) An excellent production of Stoppard's classic transformed existential despair into thought-provoking humor.

AMERICAN BUFFALO by David Mamet, directed by Amy Morton, at Steppenwolf Theatre. A strong production of one of Mamet's best plays, with exciting acting from the entire cast.

OH, COWARD!, words and music by Noël Coward, devised by Roderick Cook, musical direction by Doug Peck, directed by Jim Corti, at Writers' Theatre. (Photo by Michael Brosilow.) This delightful revue feels like a cocktail party in a ritzy penthouse, where three talented singers deliver a command performance of witty and wistful tunes.

THE ARABIAN NIGHTS written and directed by Mary Zimmerman, at Lookingglass Theatre. (Photo by Sean Williams.) Zimmerman once again brought a sense of wonder and humor to the world of ancient myths.

My Gold Mask at the Hideout

2010-01-10T20:49:00.004-06:00

My Gold Mask makes a lot of sound without much gear. The Chicago duo is Gretta Rochelle (who sings while she plays the drums, standing up) and Jack Armondo (who plays a nylon-string guitar, cranking it up much louder than a classical guitarist ever would). The two of them headlined at the Hideout on Saturday night (Jan. 9), selling out the place and filling the room with some enthusiastic fans.

Rochelle and Armondo sounded vibrant as they played songs from a new EP, A Thousand Voices, as well as their self-titled debut from last year — and one cover, Kim Carnes' "Bette Davis Eyes." The two of them are clearly having fun as they perform, and the fun is pretty catchy. One highlight was the new song, "Violet Eyes," which features some cool effects on the guitar and call-and-response vocals.

At the end of the set, My Gold Mask returned to the stage for one more song, naïvely asking, "Can we play another?" (Of course you can, guys!) It was apparently the first time My Gold Mask has ever had the chance to do an encore. It won't be the last.
www.mygoldmask.com
www.myspace.com/mygoldmask

The first act of the night was also quite impressive. Violetness is a female singer-songwriter from Chicago. Doesn't even have a record out yet. She's working on an EP, and she has a couple of songs posted at www.myspace.com/violetnessmusic. (Of the two posted tracks, the one I like is "Perfect Love Flow.") In concert, she was accompanied by a drummer and a cellist, and she played keyboards on some of the songs. In enjoyed the minimal arrangements. Her first song was just singing and drumming, which reminded me a bit of what the Swedish duo Wildbirds & Peacedrums does. Violetness has a strong voice, and she sometimes sings with a throaty tone and a jazzy swagger, with maybe a touch of Nina Simone. I can't wait to hear what she does in the studio.

Another Chicago act, the Bitter Tears, played in between Violetness and My Gold Mask. The Bitter Tears are rather hard to categorize, a bit alt-country and a bit ... glam? Well, maybe I just think glam rock when I see how they dress. The Tears like to put on makeup and outrageous outfits. The main singer was in drag Saturday night, with white makeup smeared all over his face, horror-movie-style. Tasteless jokes and provocative remarks were part of the Bitter Tears' stage shtick. This is a band that likes to push people's buttons. The music wasn't bad, but it was overwhelmed by the spectacle.
www.myspace.com/thebittertears

Exploding Star Orchestra

2010-01-10T10:38:00.004-06:00

Exploding Star Orchestra's concerts aren't quite as rare as a comet's appearances, but they don't happen all that often. Band leader and cornet player Rob Mazurek (who splits his time between Chicago and Brazil) was in town this weekend, though, conducting a nine-piece version of the orchestra Friday and Saturday (Jan. 8 and 9) at the Green Mill.

This is one jazz group that doesn't rely too much on solos. Yes, it's true that many of the fine musicians on the Green Mill stage did get a few minutes in the spotlight with a solo on Friday night, but more often than not, the whole ensemble was playing Mazurek's compositions at full throttle. Drummer John Herndon (who also plays with instrumental rock band Tortoise) and bassist Matt Lux propelled the music forward, keeping up their rhythmic attack almost all night long.

Exploding Star occasionally used electronic effects, giving the music a tinge of space rock. And the combination of Nicole Mitchell's amazing flute runs with Jason Adasiewicz's chiming vibes was a beautiful thing to behold. The group sounded especially powerful when all of the horns and woodwinds joined together — Mazurek, Mitchell, Matt Bauder on reeds and Jeb Bishop on trombone. Damon Locks added Beatnik-style vocals, and last-minute lineup addition David Daniell sat in on guitar — adding some "spice," as he told me.

I'm looking forward to hearing another album by Exploding Star Orchestra. The group's debut, We Are All From Somewhere Else, was a sci-fi concept album, but without lyrics. You just have to listen to the music to imagine the story that the band is supposedly telling. According to a press release, it's "a story involving an exploding star, cosmic transformation, a sting ray, the travels of the sting ray, intelligent conversations with electric eels, the destructive power of humans, the death and ascension of sting ray, the transformation of sting ray ghost to flying bird, and the transformation of bird to phoenix to rocket to flying burning matter to a new-born star."

I'm not sure that's exactly what I pictured on Friday night as I heard the orchestra playing pieces from that album and a few new compositions, but there was something transformative about the music.

www.myspace.com/explodingstarorchestra
www.thrilljockey.com/artists/?id=10140

Starting off a new year of concerts

2010-01-05T09:57:00.004-06:00

December and January tend to be fairly quiet months for concert-going in Chicago — but there's always something good going on out there if you look hard enough. For the most part, I've been lying low lately, but I did see a few cool shows.

One of my final concerts of 2009 was the Dec. 28 performance at Schubas by Rock Falls, with opening acts Royal Osprey and Roommate. It was nice to hear Roommate paying tribute to the late Vic Chesnutt with a cover of his song "Sponge," not to mention another fine cover, Guided By Voices' "Smothered in Hugs." Rock Falls delivered another fine performance of her folk rock, concluding the show with a lovely a cappella version of "On the Street Where You Live" from "My Fair Lady." This was the last of four Monday night showcases in December for the local label Cardboard Sangria.
www.myspace.com/rockfalls
Photos of Rock Falls, Royal Osprey and Roommate.

And then I closed the year out on Dec. 30 with the Fiery Furnaces at Schubas. The band's Matt Friedberger is playing guitar these days in concert rather than organ or electric piano, which is an improvement in my book. The band sounded as tight and as strange as ever, with Eleanor Friedberger reciting her usual river of surreal poetry. As much as I prefer hearing the band use guitar over keyboards, it would be even better if the Fiery Furnaces varied their sound within a show. The music is rich and multifaceted, but it can get monotonous when the Furnaces lock into one sound for the whole show. Opening act Cryptacize is known to drive some folks crazy, but I've liked their dadaist, disconnected songs. This time, they sounded a little less discombobulated than before (recombobulated?) Primary Cryptacize singer Nedelle Torrisi sounded strong and alluring. (Sorry, no photos — I gave my camera the night off.)
www.thefieryfurnaces.com
www.myspace.com/cryptacize

I did not see any live music on New Year's Eve, but I did start off 2010 with a free afternoon gig by Philadelphia singer-songwriter Kurt Vile at Permanent Records. The shop was crammed full of people as Vile sang and played acoustic guitar behind the counter with his music enveloped in very heavy reverb. Vile has been writing some cool songs, and he's also part of the excellent band the War on Drugs. The guy barely showed his face during the performance, letting his long hair hang down in front. Hence, the scarcity of photos. But I did post a couple of photos of Kurt Vile, including one shot of him talking after the performance.
www.myspace.com/kurtvileofphilly

Swedish singer-songwriter Jens Lekman played three sold-out shows in a row at the Empty Bottle, starting on New Year's Eve. I did not see any of those concerts, but I picked up a ticket when he announced a fourth gig — performing solo at the Viaduct Theater Sunday evening (Jan. 3). Lekman has a fairly enchanting stage presence, weaving humorous stories into his songs. The set started out with just vocals and guitar, but then Lekman began using backing tracks from a laptop. Eventually, he played a song or two karaoke-style, dancing around as he sang to the music on the laptop. A minute later, he apologized. "I'm sorry this show degenerated into some sort of vaudeville there for a second. I just feel it really deep." At another point, Lekman got the audience to play the "feather game" — keeping a feather aloft by blowing at it — while Lekman played "A Handful of Feathers." There was a strong feeling of connection and friendship between the audience and the artist.
www.jenslekman.com
www.myspace.com/jenslekmanmusic
Photos of Jens Lekman.

Alas, my camera stopped working halfway through the Lekman concert. Hoping to get it fixed soon.

R.I.P. Lhasa De Sela

2010-01-03T21:54:00.004-06:00

The music world has lost another one of its great artists, singer Lhasa De Sela. I felt like she never received the attention she deserved, perhaps because her music was hard to categorize. She released only three albums over the past 12 years, but all three of them were gems, and I highly recommend them all.

I had one chance to see her in concert, on Oct. 3, 2005, at the HotHouse in Chicago. Here's what I wrote at the time: "Lhasa did not disappoint in concert, commanding the attention of a crowded room of quiet listeners as she sang with just two musicians backing her up, mostly on guitar and cello. She told a few lengthy stories as introductions to her songs ... such a heartfelt and compelling speaker. I love the way she looks when she sings, raising her left hand next to her head, sometimes making a fist and scrunching up her eyes as if she were squeezing the notes out of her head. Simply amazing music." One of my photos from the concert is above.

Lhasa released her most recent album, titled simply Lhasa, in 2009, and I ranked it at No. 4 on my list of the year's best records. I was alarmed when I heard that she'd canceled most of her tour dates, citing a serious health issue.

Lhasa's Web site confirmed her Jan. 1 death with a press release today: "The singer Lhasa de Sela passed away in her Montreal home on the night of January 1st 2010, just before midnight. She succumbed to breast cancer after a twenty-one month long struggle, which she faced with courage and determination. Throughout this difficult period, she continued to touch the lives of those around her with her characteristic grace, beauty and humor." The press release ends with a poetic note that Lhasa herself probably would have appreciated: "It has snowed more than 40 hours in Montreal since Lhasa's departure."

My favorite record by Lhasa is 2004's The Living Road, and with the news of her death, the haunting song that runs through my mind is the final track on that album, "Soon This Space Will Be Too Small." Here are the lyrics.

SOON THIS SPACE WILL BE TOO SMALL

Soon this space will be too small
And I'll go outside
To the huge hillside
Where the wild winds blow
And the cold stars shine

I'll put my foot
On the living road
And be carried from here
To the heart of the world

I'll be strong as a ship
And wise as a whale
And I'll say the three words
That will save us all
And I'll say the three words
That will save us all

Soon this space will be too small
And I'll laugh so hard
That the walls cave in

Then I'll die three times
And be born again
In a little box
With a golden key
And a flying fish
Will set me free

Soon this space will be too small
All my veins and bones
Will be burned to dust
You can throw me into
A black iron pot
And my dust will tell
What my flesh would not

Soon this space will be too small
And I'll go outside
And I'll go outside
And I'll go outside

(You can hear the song here.)

Best films of the decade

2009-12-31T17:38:00.002-06:00

THERE WILL BE BLOOD (2007, Paul Thomas Anderson, U.S.) — A masterpiece on many levels: Visceral cinematography that makes you feel like you're out standing there in the landscape by those oil wells. That amazing performance by Daniel Day-Lewis as a despicable, yet somehow charismatic man with just a few glints of humanity shining through. Brilliant use of archaic styles of speaking. An opening 20 minutes without any dialogue, a superb example of my favorite sort of filmmaking. Johnny Greenwood's striking, dramatic musical score. And the feeling that this movie plunges us straight into another time and place. There's surprisingly little exposition or explanation about what's happening, but Anderson tells his story through the drama of individual moments. This is one of cinema's definitive stories about American capitalism, religion, family and violence.

THE WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES (2000, Bela Tarr, Hungary) — When Tarr took audience questions after a screening of this film at the Chicago International Film Festival, someone asked what all of the symbols in the film stood for. "There is no symbolism," Tarr responded, sounding characteristically cranky. "There is only what you see on the screen." It's hard to know whether Tarr really believes that, since this film is filled with surreal, seemingly symbolic sequences. Like other films by Tarr, Werckmeister moves very slowly at times, but the way his camera moves makes it all mesmerizing. One weird thing happens after another in a Hungarian town, when a circus shows up, hauling a big whale and a mysterious "Prince" with it. The exact meaning of those "symbols" doesn't matter so much as the events they spark — mob mentality springing out of paranoia and fear.

MULHOLLAND DRIVE (2001, David Lynch, U.S.) — One of Lynch's best films. Originally made as a TV pilot, then rejected, then expanded, Mulholland Drive feels stitched together at times, with lots of loose ends, but somehow, that all works for the better, making this movie feel genuinely strange and disturbing. There's a dazzling sense of dislocation and disorientation when that big plot twist comes in the middle of the film, and people are still debating what exactly it's all about.

BLOODY SUNDAY (2002, Paul Greengrass, U.K.) — This is one of two films by director Paul Greengrass that make my top 10. (See No. 7 for the other.) Greengrass is a master of making feature films that look and sound like documentaries of the actual events he's portraying. In this case, Greengrass took us to the tragic and appalling violence of the notorious "Bloody Sunday" incident in Northern Ireland. He dispenses with almost all back story behind the characters we're watching, simply showing them in the moments of that day as it happened. It feels shocking when the Northern Irish protestors realize the British soldiers are firing bullets, and the emotion of the final scenes is almost overwhelming. Bloody Sunday is also an important look at how confrontations between police or soldiers and protestors can go awry - and how violence confrontations have lasting consequences.

CACHE (HIDDEN) (2005, Michael Haneke, France) — Austrian director Michael Haneke makes movies about the dark side of humanity, presenting his stories in a matter-of-fact style that's very chilling. A haunting sense of guilt runs through Cache, and Daniel Auteuil is terrific as a man who keeps on denying his responsibility for something that happened long ago, during his childhood. It's a metaphor for the guilt that entire countries and societies carry for their past actions, but it also works as a story about this one man and his family. Cache is also a film about film, with surveillance videotapes taking a major role. It contains one of the decade's most shocking scenes, and the ending is an enigma. Make sure you pay close attention to the crowd scene that's on the screen as the credits roll — not that it will explain everything.

ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004, Michel Gondry, U.S.) — Filmmakers who mess around with our perceptions of chronology and memory often end up with a big mess. Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman somehow succeeds at making movies that are challenging but coherent when he does it. (Also see No. 8 on my list.) Eternal Sunshine presents the heartbreaking spectacle of a man's memories of a romance being erased from his brain. It's a beautiful depiction of the sort of mental and emotional gymnastics most of us human beings go through when we're wracked with love and its aftermath.

UNITED 93 (2006, Paul Greengrass, U.S.) — As in Bloody Sunday, Greengrass uses a straightforward, documentary approach to an event from the news. In this case, it's the most catastrophic event of recent decades, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Seeing this film in a theater was such an overwhelming and emotional experience that I wasn't sure I could see it again. I did watch it one more time recently, just to make sure the film's quality stood up. And it certainly did. The world-shifting uncertainty of that day came rushing back. The scenes involving air-traffic controllers and military officials struggling to respond to the terrorism (starring some of the actual people as themselves) show just how unprepared the United States was, how bureaucracy and miscommunication got in the way of an effective response. The scenes on United Airlines flight 93 effectively dramatize the situation those passengers faced when they realized their plane was being used as a missile. It makes you think about what you would feel or do in such a dire situation.

SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK (2008, Charlie Kaufman, U.S.) — Screenwriter Kaufman made his directing debut with this film, a phantasmagoria whose story keeps on slipping out of our grasp. It all feels like a fever dream, or the hallucinations of a dying man. I've seen it twice so far, and the film seemed to grow richer and more complex on second viewing. It's a great film about the creative process, carrying on the tradition of Fellini's 8 1/2. It also ranks up there with movies about the slipperiness of human perception and memory, including the aforementioned Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the original British miniseries of The Singing Detective and Alain Resnais' Providence. (I haven't seen Providence in a long time, so I wonder now if it's as great as I remember. It's not easy to find on home video.)

TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE (2003, Sylvain Chomet, France) — In a decade when computer-assisted animation made all sorts of breakthroughs, the best animated film was a somewhat old-fashioned cartoon. There's barely any dialogue at all in this delightful French film about bicycling, dogs and mysterious bad guys, but you don't need words to connect with these characters. Their repetitive quirks become charming personality traits as you immerse yourself in the peculiar world of Belleville.

MEMENTO (2001, Christopher Nolan, U.S.) — Another excellent film about memory. On one level, it's a clever mystery, but it's also an eloquent piece of existentialism. How much do you really remember about what's happened to you?

11. Russian Ark (2002, Aleksandr Sokurov, Russia)
12. Pan's Labyrinth (2006, Guillermo Del Toro, Spain)
13. A Serious Man (2009, Joel and Ethan Coen, U.S.)
14. Man on Wire (2008, Philippe Petit, France)
15. Le Fils (The Son) (2002, Luc and Jean-Paul Dardenne, Belgium)
16. All or Nothing (2002, Mike Leigh, U.K.)
17. Yi Yi (A One and a Two) (2000, Edward Yang, Taiwan)
18. Silent Light (2007, Carlos Reydagas, Mexico)
19. Almost Famous (2000, Cameron Crowe, U.S.)
20. Brand Upon the Brain! (2006, Guy Maddin, Canada)
21. Lights in the Dusk (2007, Aki Kaurismaki, Finland)
22. Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (2000, Jim Jarmusch, U.S.)
23. Songs From the Second Floor (2000, Roy Andersson, Sweden)
24. Spirited Away (2001, Hayao Miyazaki, Japan)
25. High Fidelity (2000, Stephen Frears, U.S.)

Favorite albums of the decade

2009-12-30T12:36:00.004-06:00

I'll keep this simple. Here are a dozen records from the past decade I've listened to and enjoyed more than anything else. I considered posting a longer list, but I found myself agonizing over which albums deserved to be in, say, a top 50 or top 100. There's so much listening still to do, so much more to discover. I had much less trouble deciding on my top 12. Quite simply put, these are collections of great songs that have stood the test of time for me.

Favorite concerts of 2009

2009-12-29T23:32:00.004-06:00

1. BONNIE "PRINCE" BILLY, March 14 at the Vic. ... Beginning in a hush, one song built to a dramatic crescendo, and Oldham looked as if he was being transported by the magic. ... it become clear that this was one show where the performer was pouring everything he had into his songs. He did not let up, either. A little while later, as he let the band play an instrumental break in "Even If Love," Oldham raised his eyes toward the ceiling. He seemed to be shaking all over. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

2. THE FEELIES, June 29 at the Pritzker Pavilion. ... a young man danced his way into the empty area between the front row and the stage, twitching with the sort of spastic moves that looked perfect for the jerky sounds of songs from the first Feelies album, Crazy Rhythms. A park security guard led this fellow away, but he came back a minute later and continued dancing. That seemed to open the flood gates, as people jumped to the front area of the pavilion and started twitching along. Feelies lead singer and guitarist Glenn Mercer seemed to revel in the moment, coming out to the edge of the stage for guitar solos inches away from the upraised hands of fans. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

3. VIC CHESNUTT, Nov. 5 at Lincoln Hall. ... At moments, Chesnutt was singing and playing all by himself as the audience quietly listened to each and every creak of the guitar strings and bend in his voice, almost like sitting in Chesnutt's living room and attending an unplugged performance. And then the songs would erupt as the guitars, keyboards and bowed bass came in, making mountainous, majestic chords. And Chesnutt would rear back his head from the microphone and shout his words up to the mountaintop. (And now alas, Chesnutt is no longer with us. The emotional impact of his Dec. 25 death makes the two concerts I saw by Chesnutt in 2009 feel all the more special.) READ THE FULL REVIEW.

4. PJ HARVEY & JOHN PARISH, June 12 at the Riviera. ... Even in minimal moments, she seemed like a lively presence on the stage. And then, the contemplative music gave way to outbursts of ferocity — as on the new record's lacerating title track. Harvey dropped her voice to dramatic depths or let it soar to lovely highs, as the characters from her lyrics seemed to possess her.READ THE FULL REVIEW.

5. ECCENTRIC SOUL REVUE, Nov. 7 at Lincoln Hall. ... The evening was a real blast. A younger soul group, JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, served as the house band, keeping the music going almost nonstop for more than two hours as various singers stepped up to the mike. There was barely a pause as the horns kept blowing and the funky guitar chords kept twitching. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

6. ANDREW BIRD, Dec. 14 at Fourth Presbyterian Church. ... The most extraordinary moments of this show were the very quiet ones — Bird making a little clicking noise with his music to build a rhythm track, or plucking at his violin strings. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

7. FANFARLO, Nov. 9 at Schubas. ... They play with a sense of communal spirit, switching instruments frequently, adding extra drum beats, raising all their voices high in chorus. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

8. FAIZ ALI FAIZ, June 18 at Pritzker Pavilion. ... More often than not, Faiz Ali Faiz sang with such full-on force that his face contorted and turned red with exertion. As he sang, his hands were in constant motion, making gestures that seemed almost like a game of pantomime. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

9. MÚM with Sin Fang Bous and Hildur Gudnadottir, Oct. 28 at Logan Square Auditorium. ... Múm's records have sublime hymn-like harmonies, when it sounds like this is a bunch of Icelanders getting together in a little room somewhere and singing to their heart's content... And so it was at the concert. There was a lot of joyous singing. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

10. DEAD MAN'S BONES, Oct. 21 at Schubas. ... The celebratory show had some of the zany sense of humor and the "let's try something weird" attitude that animated the Flaming Lips at their best. It was certainly a very memorable night. READ THE FULL REVIEW.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

The Jesus Lizard, July 17 at the Pitchfork Music Festival
Sonic Youth, June 27 at the Riviera
The Vaselines and the 1900s, May 16 at Metro
The Flat Five, Dec. 11 at the Hideout
The Poster Children, Lonely Trailer, the Outnumbered and Cowboy X, May 24 at the Highdive, Champaign
St. Vincent, April 9 at the Hideout and June 8 at Pritzker Pavilion
Jeff Tweedy, Feb. 14 at the Vic
The Dirty Projectors, June 22 at Pritzker Pavilion
Os Mutantes, Sept. 27 at Subterranean
The Sadies, Nov. 28 at the Hideout
Mount Eerie, Nov. 8 at Lakeshore Theater
The Vertebrats, Oct. 3 at the Highdive, Champaign
Choir of Young Believers, Oct. 26 at Schubas
Rural Alberta Advantage and The Love Language, Sept. 26 at Schubas
The Fiery Furnaces, July 11 at Millennium Park
Oumou Sangaré, July 2 at the Pritzker Pavilion
Jonathan Richman and Vic Chesnutt, June 11 at the Empty Bottle

Favorite photos of 2009

2009-12-29T12:38:00.003-06:00

I've posted a gallery of my favorite photos that I took at concerts in 2009. Visit www.undergroundbee.com/2009/bestphotos/best.htm to take a look.

So long, Vic

2009-12-25T21:22:00.005-06:00

The Constellation Records Web site reported the tragic news this afternoon:

"Surrounded by family and friends, Vic Chesnutt died in Athens Georgia this afternoon, Friday 25 December at 14:59. In the few short years that we knew him personally, Vic transformed our sense of what true character, grace and determination are all about. Our grief is inexpressible and Vic’s absence unfathomable. We will make more information available according to the wishes of Vic’s family and friends. Don and Ian"

I "knew" Vic Chesnutt only a short time myself — and I only knew him musically. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I did not pay much attention to his music for years, belatedly discovering only this year how great he was. The two concerts I saw by him in 2009 — a solo set opening for Jonathan Richman at the Empty Bottle, and a set with a full band at Lincoln Hall last month — were two of the strongest performances I saw by anyone in the past year. (And a friend tells me Chesnutt put on yet another top-notch performance in 2009 when he came through town with Elf Power as his backup band.)

My memories of those two shows are still so vivid that it feels as if they just happened — as if I were still standing there in Lincoln Hall, a few feet away from Vic, snapping some photos of him as he sat there in his wheelchair. I loved the quirky wisecracks he made in between songs, and how he gave full voice to his vulnerable, heartfelt lyrics during the songs. When Chesnutt and his band were playing the song "Coward" at Lincoln Hall, the naked emotional power and musical drama of the song literally gave me goosebumps, and I remember thinking at that moment, that it was surely one of the best performances of a single song I had seen in a long while.

I'm only beginning to discover everything Chesnutt accomplished — relearning to play the guitar after becoming quadriplegic in a car accident at the age of 18, releasing 15 albums, collaborating with many varied musicians — but I have no doubt that his death is a great loss.

The exact circumstances of Chesnutt's death haven't been officially confirmed, but I fear that his mounting debt for medical bills played some role in it. He discussed this during the recent interview with Terry Gross. The guy owed tens of thousands of dollars, and he was putting off an operation. How sickening that he was in this situation ... and ended up dying just as the U.S. Senate was voting on health-care reform.

Chesnutt's friend, singer Kristin Hersh, set up a fund on her Web page to "accept donations on behalf of his family to defray the expenses associated with his recent hospitalizations and death."

Hersh also says: "What this man was capable of was superhuman. Vic was brilliant, hilarious and necessary; his songs messages from the ether, uncensored. ... I don't think I like this planet without Vic; I swore I would never live here without him. But what he left here is the sound of a life that pushed against its constraints, as all lives should. It's the sound of someone on fire. It makes this planet better..." (Read more of her tribute here.)

Flirted With You All My Life

2009-12-25T10:07:00.004-06:00

"Flirted With You All My Life" by Vic Chesnutt (from To the Cut)

I am a man.
I am self-aware.
And everywhere I go
You're always right there with me.
I flirted with you all my life,
Even kissed you once or twice
And to this day I swear it was nice
But clearly I was not ready.

When you touched a friend of mine,
I thought I would lose my mind.
But I found out with time
That really, I was not ready, no, no.
Oh, death. Oh, death.
Oh, death. Really, I'm not ready.

Oh, death, you hector me,
Decimate those dear to me.
You tease me with your sweet relief.
You are cruel and you are constant.
When my mom was cancer-sick,
She fought but then succumbed to it.
But you made her beg for it.
"Lord Jesus, please I'm ready."
Oh, death. Oh, death.
Oh, death. Really, I'm not ready, no, no.
Oh, death. Oh, death.
Oh, death. Clearly, I'm not ready, no, no.

(Free download of the song.)

Vic Chesnutt

2009-12-24T16:14:00.007-06:00

Terrible news: Singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt is in a coma. Only two days ago, I listed his album At the Cut at No. 2 on my best records of 2009... And the two shows I saw by him in 2009 rank among the year's best performances. He's an amazing musician, and I really, really hope we all have the chance to see him perform again.

Update (12/25/09, 2 a.m.): According to sources including Spinner, Vic Chesnutt is dead. What a loss.

Update (12/25/09, 9:37 a.m.): I'm wondering now what the actual situation is with Chesnutt. It appears that Billboard reported he had died, and then changed it story back to saying he is in a coma. Here's a rundown of what various sites reported: http://trueslant.com/leorgalil/2009/12/24/vic-chesnutt-reported-dead/

In any case, the situation looks grim for Chesnutt fans. I highly recommend listening to the "Fresh Air" interview with Chesnutt from last month, in which he talks about previous suicide attempts and his struggles to pay medical bills. In spite of it all, Chesnutt sounds optimistic in many ways in this interview, talking about how he wasn't ready for death.

Update (12/25/09, 12:51 p.m. CST): Spinner changed its Vic Chesnutt story. (I'm not sure exactly when.) "his label … confirms [he] is still in a coma."

Best CDs of 2009

2009-12-22T16:44:00.002-06:00

1. NEKO CASE: MIDDLE CYCLONE (Anti) — Neko Case has been the one of the decade's best artists, with a string of sublime records that blur the lines between country, folk, rock and Girl Group pop. Her career peak so far is 2006's Fox Confessor Brings the Flood. Coming after that subtle masterpiece, just about anything might seem disappointing, but Middle Cyclone turns out to be another excellent collection of Case's artfully written, arranged and performed songs. Case's songs never overstay their welcome, ending after just the right number of verses and choruses. Case deservedly gets a lot of attention for her voice, but don't overlook her interesting choice of words — or the unusual structures she employs in some songs. For example, in "People Got a Lotta Nerve," a guitar solos with a rising melody after the first chorus. After the second chorus, Case sings the same melody, hitting a breathtaking high note (while Kelly Hogan, Rachel Flotard and Nora O'Connor are singing lovely backup vocals). That sort of creative touch draws you back into these songs again and again. And yes, her voice is as impressive as ever, whether she's softly cooing or belting out a note with almost fearsome strength.
www.nekocase.com
www.myspace.com/nekocase

2. VIC CHESNUTT: AT THE CUT (Constellation) — The long-revered singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt released two records this fall. The other, Skitter at Take-Off, is a fine collection of unplugged songs, but At the Cut lifts Chesnutt's vulnerable songs to another level. Working for the second time with a backup band that includes Guy Picciotto of Fugazi and members of the Montréal band Silver Mt. Zion, Chesnutt transforms some of his quiet little songs into sweeping epics. Opening track "Coward," one of the year's best songs, practically erupts with force and passion. And then on the next track, "When the Bottom Fell Out," Chesnutt sings an indelible melody in a fragile falsetto over nothing about acoustic guitar. Throughout the record, Chesnutt sounds wise and wistful as he sings songs drawn from his life experiences.
www.vicchesnutt.com
www.myspace.com/vicchesnutt

3. ST. VINCENT: ACTOR (4AD) — On the year's most colorful album, St. Vincent (a.k.a. Annie Clark) sounds like a choir, an orchestra and an electric-guitar goddess, all rolled into one. The musical landscape constantly shifts behind her, with a startling variety of sounds coming and going. Clark also proves herself to be an expert storyteller and poet with these evocative songs, which often seems like glimpses of some strange film.
www.ilovestvincent.com
www.myspace.com/stvincent

4. LHASA DE SELA: LHASA (Nettwerk) — Lhasa de Sela (or simply Lhasa, if you prefer) is a terrifically talented singer-songwriter who puts out records far too seldom. She's had three albums so far, with six-year gaps in between. Of Mexican descent, she lives in Montréal, and she has some experience as a traveling circus performer. Her previous album, 2003's The Living Road, is one of my favorites of the decade. On her new CD, Lhasa sings all of her lyrics in English for the first time. (Previously, she alternated between English, Spanish and French.) Mixed by Thierry Amar of Silver Mt. Zion, Lhasa is an intimate solo performance, often featuring little more than piano or guitar as Lhasa sings honest songs of delicate beauty tinged with sorrow but also a sense of wonder at the world. Her music is indefinable, existing somewhere in a hinterland beyond world music, indie rock, folk and cabaret. It's a shame that her record received barely any attention this year. (And let's hope Lhasa is recovering from the unspecified "serious health issue" she cited as the reason for canceling some 2009 tour dates.)
http://lhasadesela.com
www.myspace.com/lhasadeselamusic

5. SONIC YOUTH: THE ETERNAL (Matador) — As the members of Sonic Youth grow older, they aren't losing any of their creative spark. The venerable New York noise-rock band has released some top-notch records in recent years, including Murray Street and Rather Ripped, and the winning streak continues with this strong set of energized rockers. Sonic Youth's unconventional guitar tunings and peculiar song structures are still evident, but the band channels those quirks into concise and even catchy songs. After many repeat listens, it becomes clear that Sonic Youth is still going at full strength.
www.sonicyouth.com
www.myspace.com/sonicyouth

6. FANFARLO: RESERVOIR (Atlantic/WEA) — In some ways, this group from London seems like a typical indie-rock ensemble of the moment. It's one of those big, sprawling groups with musicians who switch around their instruments, join their voices together in big choruses, and drum along with the drummer. Yes, we've seen that done before, but Fanfarlo brings its own distinct personality to this template, beautifully arranging each song with the perfect number of elements. As folk-rock strumming artfully blends with circling synthesizer lines and lead singer Simon Balthazar's dulcet vocals, you'll find yourself joyfully singing along to the smart lyrics.
www.fanfarlo.com
www.myspace.com/fanfarlo

7. THE ANTLERS: HOSPICE (Frenchkiss) — The year's most emotional album, a song cycle about a girl dying in a hospice. Listeners may either find it unbearably sad (especially if they follow along with the lyrics booklet) or powerfully cathartic. It's rare to hear any pop music take such an unblinking look at the subject of death and how to deal with it. The Antlers' lush art-rock arrangements are an appropriate setting for this musical novel, and Antlers front man Peter Silberman's falsetto tells the story with compassion.
www.antlersmusic.com
www.myspace.com/theantlers

8. CHOIR OF YOUNG BELIEVERS: THIS IS FOR THE WHITE IN YOUR EYES (Ghostly International) — Scandinavia just keeps putting out more and more good music in recent years. The region's latest delightful export is Danish singer-songwriter Jannis Noya Makrigiannis (yes, he has a Greek name), who performs orchestral pop under the moniker Choir of Young Believers. His/their debut album is filled with tuneful songs that deserve to be popular. The arrangements are dramatic, maybe even melodramatic, as the melodies swoop or brood, depending on the mood of the moment. And Makrigiannis carries it all with his charismatic voice.
http://ghostly.com/artists/choir-of-young-believers
www.myspace.com/choirofyoungbelievers

9. DIRTY PROJECTORS: BITTE ORCA (Domino) — Believe the hype. This band created some of the smartest and most unusual music of 2009 — and somehow managed to make all of those weird, artsy chord progressions actually catchy and accessible. The serpentine guitar lines show the influence of African music, but Dirty Projectors actually do something interesting with those influences, unlike other world-music imitators such as Vampire Weekend. And the vocal harmonies are downright startling. (Even more amazing was the way Dirty Projectors duplicated those intricate vocal patterns at a concert this summer at the Pritzker Pavilion. This is no mere studio trickery.) No wonder David Byrne and Björk are hanging out with Dirty Projectors.
www.myspace.com/dirtyprojectors
http://dominorecordco.us/artists/dirty-projectors

10. TINARIWEN: IMIDIWAN: COMPANIONS (World Village) — These guitar-playing Touareg nomads from the Sahara Desert have released four excellent albums now, all of them filled with trance-inducing grooves. It will take more listening to determine whether this is their best record yet, but it certainly ranks up there. Thankfully, as Tinariwen has attracted a larger following around the world, it hasn't changed much about the way it makes music. These recordings are clean and uncluttered, and the vocals have never been stronger or more compelling. There's even a chant that sounds something like low-tech nomad hip-hop on the track "Tenhert." Take some time to read the English translations of the lyrics. Like beautiful poetry, the simple words describe desert life and call for a revolution to make the world a better place.
www.tinariwen.com
www.myspace.com/tinariwen

11. VARIOUS ARTISTS: DARK WAS THE NIGHT (4AD) — A who's who of indie-rock stars contributed a slew of new songs for this two-CD Red Hot Compilation, which raises money for the fight against AIDS. Aaron and Bryce Dessner of The National did a superb job putting together one of the best various-artists records of recent years. It's a strong testament to the versatility and creativity of today's musicians.
www.darkwasthenight.com
www.myspace.com/darkwasthenight

12. DEATH: ...FOR THE WHOLE WORLD TO SEE (Drag City) — Recorded in 1974, this powerful proto-punk album by an African-American band from Detroit did not see the light of day until 2009, when it finally escaped the attic thanks to the Drag City label. The jagged riffs are punctuated by expertly placed pieces of silence, and the passionate singing still rings true after 25 years. "Politicians in My Eye" emerges here as a long-overlooked classic of punk rock with a political conscience.
www.myspace.com/deathprotopunk
www.dragcity.com/products/for-the-whole-world-to-see

THE REST OF MY TOP 50
13. PJ Harvey & John Parish: A Woman A Man Walked By
14. Mount Eerie: Wind's Poem
15. Múm: Sing Along to Songs You Don't Know
16. Bonnie "Prince" Billy: Beware
17. Oneida: Rated O
18. Camera Obscura: My Maudlin Career
19. Girls: Album
20. Brakes (a.k.a. BrakesBrakesBrakes): Touchdown
21. David Daniell and Douglas McCombs: Sycamore
22. Woods: Songs of Shame
23. Jarvis Cocker: Further Complications
24. I Was a King: I Was a King
25. Megafaun: Gather, Form & Fly
26. Jay Reatard: Watch Me Fall
27. Marianne Faithfull: Easy Come Easy Go
28. The Low Anthem: Oh My God, Charlie Darwin
29. A.A. Bondy: When the Devil's Loose
30. Magnolia Electric Co.: Josephine
31. Andrew Bird: Noble Beast
32. Loney Dear: Dear John
33. Amadou & Mariam: Welcome to Mali
34. M. Ward: Hold Time
35. MV & EE: Barn Nova
36. The Love Language: The Love Language
37. Handsome Furs: Face Control
38. Phosphorescent: To Willie
39. DRMWPN: Bright Blue Galilee
40. Yo La Tengo: Popular Music
41. Dead Man's Bones: Dead Man's Bones
42. Smith Westerns: Smith Westerns
43. Alela Diane: To Be Still
44. Sin Fang Bous: Clangour
45. Flaming Lips: Embryonic
46. Human Highway: Moody Motorcycle
47. The xx: xx
48. Cotton Jones: Paranoid Cocoon
49. Bowerbirds: Upper Air
50. Warsaw Village Band: Infinity

AND EVEN MORE MUSIC I LIKED IN 2009
Some runners-up in alphabetical order. (If you don't see a record listed here somewhere, that doesn't necessarily mean I hated it. I didn't hear everything, and there are plenty of records I might have listed here if I'd had more time to listen.)

Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavilion / Art Brut: Art Brut vs. Satan / Dan Auerbach: Keep It Hid / Bat for Lashes: Two Suns / The Bats: Guilty Office / Capsula: Rising Mountains / Vic Chesnutt: Skitter at Take-Off / Chicago Underground Duo: Boca Negra / Dan Deacon: Bromst / The Dead Weather: Horehound / Espers: III / The Fiery Furnaces: I'm Going Away / Great Lake Swimmers: Lost Channels / Grizzly Bear: Veckatimest / The Handsome Family: Honey Moon / A Hawk and a Hacksaw: Délivrance / Heavenly States: Delayer / Here We Go Magic: Here We Go Magic / Lokai: Transition / Malajube: Labyrinthine / Cass McCombs: Catacombs / Marissa Nadler: Little Hells / A.C. Newman: Get Guilty / Oniric: Sin Técnica / The Pains of Being Pure at Heart: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart / The Pink Mountaintops: Outside Love / The Reigning Sound: Love & Curses / Scotland Yard Gospel Choir: ...And the Horse You Rode In On / Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros: s/t / Telekinesis: s/t / Tiny Vipers: Life on Earth / John Vanderslice: Romanian Names / Kurt Vile: Childish Prodigy / The Warlocks: The Mirror Explodes / Patrick Watson: Wooden Arms / Wilco: Wilco (the Album) / Wildbirds & Peacedrums: The Snake / Woodpigeon: Treasury Library Canada c/w Houndstooth Europa / Wye Oak: The Knot

Daniell, Lemos, McCombs and Shelley

2009-12-17T09:45:00.003-06:00

Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley was in Chicago last night (Dec. 16), sitting in with three great local performers for an improvised set of instrumental music. Guitarists David Daniell and Douglas McCombs have been doing similar sets for a couple of years now, and they recently released a cool collection of their work called Sycamore on the Thrill Jockey label. They've played with various drummers, and each percussionist adds a different sense of rhythm and texture to their layers of guitar. For this show, in addition to Shelley, they were joined by Jeremy Lemos of the Chicago drone group White/Light.

Lemos played electronic stuff for part of the show, and then he unplugged one of his equipment cords and pushed the live end of the plug against his amp, creating small crescendos of feedbacks. In an interesting way, it was almost as if Lemos was providing the sort of distorted noise you'd normally expect to hear from the electric guitars, while the two guitarists were making more subtle shades of sound.

The set began very quietly, with Daniell and McCombs making tick-tock clicking sounds and tiny notes with their guitars. Some people in the bar did not seem to realize the performance had begun, chatting over this understated music, but the club quickly fell quiet as audience members concentrated on the music. For the first 10 minutes or so, Shelley was also listening intently. He sat at his drum kit without making any beats at all for a while, and then he cautiously felt his way into the music. At one point, the music took an unexpected country-folk lope, reminding me a bit of something Souled American might do, but channeled through the more ambient music of Daniell and McCombs. Later, the ensemble slid into more of a rock-music groove, giving Shelley a chance to stretch out on the drums. After cascading and falling a couple of times, the uninterrupted performance faded down. One by one, the musicians stopped playing until it was just Lemos, making some low squelches with his table of electronic gear.

Daniell tells me the four musicians did not get a chance to rehearse together before sitting down at Wednesday's concert, which makes the performance all the more impressive.

Photos of David Daniell, Jeremy Lemos, Douglas McCombs and Steve Shelley.

Andrew Bird in Church

2009-12-14T23:21:00.004-06:00

A beautiful setting can make a concert feel extra special — and that was the case on Monday night (Dec. 14), when Andrew Bird played the first of four shows this week at Chicago's Fourth Presbyterian Church. I've seen Bird play four times in the past year and a half, and each venue was pretty cool — the intimate, comfy room at the back of the Hideout, the sweeping skyline views of the Pritzker Pavilion, the opulence of the Civic Opera House. And now, the towering cathedral backdrop of Fourth Presbyterian.

Bird played all by himself, although as usual, he used looping pedals to build what sounded like an orchestra or at least a string quartet with his violin. As promised, Bird played a fair amount of instrumental music at this show. He said it was sort of like the sessions where he plays at his barn in rural Illinois. "I don't have the crickets here tonight, but I'll do my best," he added. Bird played a few works in progress, introducing one piece by saying, "This isn't a song. It's just an idea." Bird played a couple of songs from Useless Creatures, the companion EP to his most recent album, Noble Beast, "Carrion Suite" and "You Woke Me Up."

Bird, who was limping because he twisted one of his legs in a concert the other night, sat down throughout the performance. He didn't use any P.A.s, piping all of the music through his trademark horn-shaped speakers. Unfortunately, some of Bird's equipment picked up bits of radio from the John Hancock Tower across the street, and a few snippets of WNUA's New Age jazz broadcast surfaced at times during the concert, most noticeably in between songs. "Let's just pretend it's a transmission from another world," Bird suggested.

The most extraordinary moments of this show were the very quiet ones — Bird making a little clicking noise with his music to build a rhythm track, or plucking at his violin strings. In addition to the instrumental performances, which demonstrated Bird's chops as a classical musician as well his folkier and rock sides, Bird did sing. The songs included "Natural Disaster," Self-Torture," "Nomenclature," "Scythian Empires" and the Handsome Family cover "Giant of Illinois." Bird also played one really cool cover, the original Sesame Street song "Capital I." Bird revealed that he wanted to record that tune for his "Weather Systems" album, but the people at Sesame Street wouldn't give him permission, so he ended up writing his own song about the capital I.

For the encore, Bird turned off some of his equipment to play the songs "old-school" — and he did a lovely version of the Bob Dylan-Jacques Levy song "Oh, Sister," making it sound almost like an Andrew Bird song, with one perfectly sung a cappella verse. For his very last song of the night, Bird played one of his older tunes, "Some of These Days." Those fans who are lucky enough to have tickets for one of the other Bird concerts this week are in for a treat.

Photos of Andrew Bird.