Month: August 2007

I have to admit that I’ve been on the fence about Earlimart. Missed out on the early records and still haven’t heard them. I was a little underwhelmed by Treble & Tremble when it came out in 2004, and then I had the odd experience of seeing Earlimart on the second half of a double bill at Schubas with Okkervil River. Okkervil blew the roof off the place and then Earlimart killed my buzz with too much mellowness. I probably would have liked it much better if the order of the bands had been switched that night.

All that being said, I do like the new Earlimart record, Mentor Tormentor. Maybe the band is just growing on me. They played last night (Aug. 30) at Schubas, and the show seemed to have a lot more punch than that 2004 gig, at least based on what I remember. Plus, they had a “String Dream Team” (including Andra of the 1900s) playing behind them last night, which made the pretty parts sound even prettier. I wish Ariana Murray would sing lead vocals more often – that song she sings on the new CD, “Happy Alone,” is one of my favorites – but there isn’t much else I can complaint about. The show seemed weighted pretty heavily toward songs from the current album, which was fine with me. See my photos of Earlimart.

Opening act Patrick Park put on a superb show, too. Just him and his acoustic guitar and some very bright lights (until the heat got to him and he asked Schubas to dim things down). I enjoyed Park’s 2004 record Loneliness Knows My Name and I saw him open for someone at the Empty Bottle back then. I just picked up the new Park album, Everyone’s in Everyone, after the show last night. It sounds good so far, though I have to say I think I prefer hearing Park play his songs unvarnished in a live performance to the studio versions – not that the studio versions are super polished or anything, but the pure acoustic versions that he does live are the real thing. A vocal contingent of Park fans requested songs and then applauded loudly at the end of his set. A very rare event then occurred – the opening act performend an encore. He deserved it. See my photos of Patrick Park.

Even though the Papercuts were the headlining band last night (Aug. 29) at Schubas, I got the feeling that more attention was being lavished on the first of the three bands playing, the Bowerbirds. For one thing, Spin was there to cover the band, and then the Chicago Tribune listed the Bowerbirds as a critic’s pick for the day. I can’t say I knew much about any of these bands, but after listening to some songs by the Bowerbirds on their web site – and after streaming the Papercuts’ latest album – I decided this would be a good show to see. Despite my expectation that a hype-inflated crowd might show up for Bowerbirds, it turned out to be a respectable but far-from-sold-out-size crowd.

Bowerbirds played some beautiful and quiet music, with high crooning male vocals over acoustic guitar, accordion, violin and drums. No drum kit, though – just a bass drum pounded with fuzzy mallets, and a high-hat with tambourine attached, which the guitarist stomped with a foot pedal. I liked the basic percussion, and the songs seemed quite good on first impression, enough that I headed over to merch table to buy a copy. See my photos of Bowerbirds.

I’ve seen the funny if somewhat pretentious and unwieldy band name Casiotone for the Painfully Alone listed many times on concert posters and ads without ever seeing or hearing the band – er, guy. It was pretty much what you would expect, a guy playing old Casio keyboards and such. Not bad, really, with some decent songs and a sense of humor, even if it wasn’t quite my thing. See my photos of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone.

Papercuts took the stage in darkness and the stage pretty much stayed dark. (I mention this mostly because it made it frustrating to take photographs.) With lots of 12-string guitar and reverby vocals, Papercuts reminded me of those 1980s bands that mined 1960s psychedelia, like the Rain Parade. It was dreamy, a nice trip overall. See my photos of Papercuts.

Ida is a wonderful little band that doesn’t get all that much attention. I’ve seen their music described as “sadcore” and “slowcore.” Those are just fancy terms for pretty folk and pop music played very softly. (They sound similar at times to Low or the quieter moments of Yo La Tengo – and all three bands feature husband-wife couples.) Playing in Chicago for the first time in a couple of years, Ida came to Schubas last night (Aug. 28). It’s also been a couple of years since the last Ida record, 2005’s Heart Like a River. Ida played some new songs last night, from an album that is apparently finished and coming out sometime soon.

It was a hushed, intimate show. Man, was it quiet – not just the music, but the repectful crowd, too. I took far fewer photographs than I normally do because the clicking of my shutter suddenly seemed blaringly audible. One member of Ida, Karla Schickele (who plays bass and keyboards and sings and writes a few songs) was absent, having just given birth, so this show featured the husband-and-wife duo at the core of Ida, Daniel Littleton and Elizabeth Mitchell, plus Jean Cook on violin. Cook, who seemed to be suffering from a cold, also played a small harmonium with her feet on some songs. Littleton is an engaging personality on the stage, joking around with the rest of the band in a way that makes a concert seem more like a gathering of friends.

The songs both old and new were absolutely beautiful, and it was nice to see a nearly full house of fans, including many people who had favorite Ida songs on their wish lists. The opening band was the Young Neils, which was exactly what you might guess – a Neil Young cover band, playing for the first time, supposedly assembled for this gig at Ida’s request, if you can believe the stage banter. The Neil songs were a perfect appetizer for Ida’s main course.

See my photos of Ida.

Magnolia Electric Co. just released a superb box set called Sojourner – no less than four discs of music and one DVD. Magnolia main man Jason Molina is one prolific songwriter, and given the fact that all of this was recorded more than a year ago, you have to wonder how much other material he has waiting to be released. Molina and his bandmates put on one of the best shows I’ve seen them do, playing longer than they usually do (a whopping 82 minutes, compared to their typical hour or less), with plenty of fine songs off the box set as well as some old favorites. As they played “Riding With the Ghost,” it struck me again how phenomenal that song is. One of the best songs of the decade? I think so. The lyrics never fail to grab me, and neither does that “oohing” chorus. Molina mentioned that he has moved out of Chicago (just before singing, “It broke my heart to leave the city…”) to London. It’s too bad he isn’t a local guy anymore, but I’m sure we’ll be seeing and hearing a lot from him.

Opening act Golden Boots put on a pretty decent set. They reminded me of Dr. Dog, without the same sort of cartwheeling energy and a little more shambling, with songs that petered out as the band seemed ot be fishing around for that elusive final chord. And I don’t mean that in a bad way. I also thought of Souled American. They’re from Tucson, and I liked them enough that I bought their EP for $5. Sure enough, it’s on Dr. Dog’s label, Park the Van records, and they sound even more like Dr. Dog on their studio recordings, which have a lot more of a ’60s pop vibe.

See my photos of Magnolia Electric Co. and Golden Boots.

I’ve seen a few shows since my last post, starting with Au Revoir Simone on Friday (Aug. 17) at the Abbey Pub. Frankly, I’m not that familiar with this female trio’s pop music. I listened to some songs before seeing the concert. The group has its moments, but for the most part I found its keyboard-based pop tunes a little on the precious side, and they all started to sound the same after a while. Some rabid fans were in attendance, though, including some repeatedly yelling “I love you!” with vocal-cord-stretching vigor. I showed up at the Abbey in time for David Singer, the second of the four act playing on Friday. (What’s with the four-band lineups over there?) Singer, who also ran the Intonation music festivals in 2005 and 2006, plays ’70s-style pop music rooted in piano chords. The next band was Oh No Oh My from Austin, who were a pleasant surprise – upbeat indie pop. Clearly, a lot of Oh No Oh My fans were in the crowd, which gave them a pretty enthusiastic reception. They were my favorites of the night.

See my photos of Au Revoir Simone, David Singer and Oh No Oh My.

On Saturday night (Aug. 18), I checked out the CD release party for Marvin Tate at the Hideout. I interviewed Tate a few years back, when he was still leading a band called Marvin Tate’s D-Settlement, a slightly peculiar mix of spoken-word poetry, soul and rock. They put on a jammin’ performance one afternoon at the old Tower Records store on Clark Street, drawing stares from passers-by. Tate just put out first solo record, Family Swim, and it’s equally baffling (baffling in a way that’s not bad). There are a couple of spoken poems on the record, plus Tate engaging in moody Tom Waits-ian numbers, plus some rockers that are more like soul and gospel music. Ex-Wilco member LeRoy Bach produced the record, and he played in Tate’s band Saturday night (along with Emmett Kelly) for a rousing performance.

The first group of the night, Eyes Ears Nose, were a singular sensation… If there is a genre that defines what they do, maybe it would be “goofball rock.” You knew you were in for something weird when they started off their first song with sliding notes on a metal whistle – the sort of sound effect you might hear in a Three Stooges film. The guys and gal in this group frequently swapped instruments and leapt about a lot. The music, on first impression, seemed pretty good. The energy level was great.

Adam Fitz played the middle set of the night, performing some new songs of his own, with soulful hollerin’ and amped-up pop-rock. He tossed in a couple of covers, including a really nice rendition of one of my favorite M. Ward songs, “Fool Says.”

See my photos of Marvin Tate, Eyes Ears Nose and Adam Fitz.

On Sunday, I was at the House of Blues for Crowded House. I’ve always liked Crowded House’s hits, but I’ve never delved too deeply into their catalogue. It was a pretty good show, though a lot of it veered too much into adult-contemporary territory for my tastes. The final encore of the night transformed into a cover of “A Day in the Life,” which I thought was awfully cool. “Don’t Dream It’s Over” sounded good… except it bugged me to hear that great organ part supplanted by a Melodica solo. I mean, come on. An actual keyboard was sitting right there. Play the darn thing. That’s my favorite part of the song.

Crowded House was preceded by a solo set from Liam Finn, son of Crowded House leader Neil Finn. Liam is certainly a talented guy, as he proved by using a looping pedal to play guitar and drum solos on top of his own rhythms. In fact, I’d venture that he was a having a little too much fun for his own good with all of the looping trickery. It started to feel more like a novelty than a useful tool. Still, he showed a ton of energy and promise. Liam also sat in with Crowded House, strumming some acoustic guitar and doing backup harmonies. Maybe the Crowded House set would have been a little livelier if they’d unleashed this kid on the drums.

The first band of the night was 16 Frames, not to be confused with the Frames. They were the epitome of generic pop-rock, even down to their stage moves and corny banter. A bunch of pretty boys from L.A. with a record coming out on Arista. They seemed like a TV-show version of a band more than a real band.

(Sorry, no photos from the Crowded House concert.)

Finally, last night (Aug. 20) I saw Mark Olson, former member of the Jayhawks, at Schubas. It was quite a nice little show (a little short and a little sparsely attended, unfortunately) with Olson singing a bunch of songs off his new CD The Salvation Blues, some stuff from his Creekdippers albums and a few Jayhawks classics, including one of my favorites, “Blue.” Listening to that song again, I thought: Man, what a classic composition. Giving the concert an international flair, Italian violinist Michele Gazich (that’s a man) played some mean fiddle solos, while Norwegian Ingunn Ringvold did a nice job on harmonies, percussion, keyboard and guitar.

The opening act was a low-key folk duo from Omaha called McCarthy Trenching. (Or is it really just the one guy with a side musician? I couldn’t tell…) Their songs were quite nice, and the crowd listened with quiet respect.

See my photos of Mark Olson and McCarthy Trenching.

The concert I saw last night was free, but even the lack of an admission charge apparently was enough of an incentive to draw a crowd. The Logan Square Auditorium wasn’t exactly empty, but it was a crowd small enough to fit into a more intimate venue like Schubas. I counted about 70 people in the place while Bound Stems was playing, then the audience thinned out even more by the time Head of Femur was into its set. (And why was it free? Because it was paid for by Camel Cigarettes. Ugh.) Oh, well… It was a decent show anyway.

First band was Dirty on Purpose, who I had wanted to see at SXSW. This group seemed to fall firmly within the shoegazer genre, based on what I saw and heard last night. Some instrumental songs, a singing drummer, polished waves of guitar. See my photos of Dirty on Purpose.

Bound Stems played second. I like this Chicago band’s enthusiasm, but their songs don’t always click with me. I’ve still got open ears, though. See my photos of Bound Stems.

I feel similar about Head of Femur. They’ve impressed me at times with their big, quasi-orchestral sound, while at other times their songs seem a little too fussy or twee. I liked their set last night. I picked up more of an old-style R&B or ’60s vibe on some songs, and I look forward to hearing their next recording. See my photos of Head of Femur.

Cal’s is a strange little venue in Chicago’s South Loop. That in itself is strange. How many places downtown feature live music at all, other than maybe a guy playing piano in a restaurant? Cal’s Liquors is a package liquor store and tiny bar that has become a place for loud, unadulterated rock. There’s no stage, just a spot on the floor where the bands play, right next to the bar. The soundboard is a little piece of equipment sitting on the counter behind the band. There are no lights to speak of, which makes it challenging to photograph musicians at Cal’s. You’ll get a little bit of the street light coming in through the window next to the band, but that’s about it. There’s a wall covered with old set lists.

Cal’s was hosting its annual Cal’s Fest this weekend, and I missed most of it, but I did show up Sunday night (walking from Millennium Park, where I had just seen gospel great Mavis Staples) for a set by Mannequin Men. This Chicago band has a strong record called Fresh Rot coming out Sept. 18 on Flameshovel Records. The opening track, “Private School,” has a chorus that’s catchy in the way old Mission of Burma records were catchy. I’d never seen Mannequin Men live, and they put on a loud, passionate show Sunday night.

(Photographic notes: After shooting in daylight for Mavis Staples, I had to switch to my low-light secret weapon, the 50mm 1.4 f stop lens for this gig. I sort of wish I’d thought to bring my 28mm lens, which would have given me a little wider view of things. I spent the first part of the show sitting on a bar stool three feet from lead singer Kevin Richard’s face. And then I was out in the crowd, trying to get shots from in between audience members. This was strictly an ISO 1600 kind of night.)

Somehow, Cal’s seems to have legal permission for its patrons to stand out on the sidewalk on Van Buren Street and drink beer out there, so I hung out there for a while before heading home. Among other bands I missed later in the night, the Dials were playing. Can’t see everything.

See my photos of Mannequin Men.

The “Great Performers of Illinois” weekend at Millennium Park closed last night (Aug. 12) with someone who more than lives up to that title, one of the all-time great gospel singers, Mavis Staples. She gave a rousing performance, belting out traditional songs as well as some well-chosen covers (the Band’s “The Weight” and Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth”). She has a way of pausing in her singing, sputtering a little bit as if the emotion has overcome her, making it impossible for her to go on, and then bursting out with a holler that’s more intense than what came before. She told stories about her days playing in the Staples Singers with her dad, Roebuck “Pop” Staples, finishing up the show with the very first song Pop taught his children to sing, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.”

See my photos of Mavis Staples.

The Taylor Street Festa Italiana seemed like a strange place to spend a day watching alt-country bands, but the street fair had a pretty stellar lineup yesterday (Aug. 11), so it was definitely the place to be me for me.

Nora O’Connor played at 3:30 p.m., facing into a bright sun and working up a sweat (maybe a sunburn, too)… She’s one of the Chicago alt-country scene’s unsung heroines, as far as I’m concerned. I sure wish she’d do another record, but from what I gather, parenthood has kept from spending too much time on her music. With the always-reliable Scott Ligon playing some fab guitar licks, O’Connor played songs from her one solo album as well as some interesting covers. “Vanishing Girl” by the Dukes of Stratosphear?!? That was unexpected – one of my favorite obscure tunes ever. O’Connor’s kid danced in front of the stage at one point. She apparently has another on the way. She joked, “You made a pregnant woman jump twice.” See my photos of Nora O’Connor.

Another artist who deserves more success, Chris Mills, played next. His solo show at Schubas last summer was decent enough, but he’s better when he has a full quasi-orchestral rock band playing behind him, which he had yesterday, including the ubiquitous keyboardist/trumpet player Dave Max Crawford and the just-as-ubiquitous cellist Fred Lonberg Holms. See my photos of Chris Mills.

I missed Blue Mountain recently when they played at Schubas the same night I saw the Wrens, so I was glad to make up for that missed opportunity with yesterday’s show. I never saw Blue Mountain back in the day. They put on a pretty solid show this time, rocking more than I expected from their records. They played a couple of new songs and promised a new album by next year.See my photos of Blue Mountain.

The Old 97’s were the headliner, but frankly, they were the group that interested me least yesterday. I’m a fan of many likeminded bands, but I’ve never really gotten into the Old 97’s or Rhett Miller. I’m sure they’ve got some good songs that I’m missing out on, but from what I’ve heard, they lack a certain grit that I usually need in my alt-country. They attracted a big audience, in sharp contrast to the sparsely attended shows earlier in the day (well, Blue Mountain got a decent-sized turnout), but I just couldn’t get into it. I stuck around long enough to get some photos, but I didn’t stay until the end. See my photos of the Old 97’s.

They’re local legends, but the Shoes are also a rather elusive band. Cult favorites among power-pop fans, the Zion, Illinois, group has been pretty much dormant in recent years. They play once every few years, and I’ve never had the chance to see them. Today (Aug. 10), the Shoes made a rare appearance, and it was in an unusual place. They were featured in a mini festival of “Great Performers of Illinois” that Millennium Park hosted. The early-evening show – it started at 5 p.m. and lasted until a few minutes past 6 p.m. – was not at the park’s big Pritzer Pavilion, but rather on a temporary stage right over by Michigan Avenue.

I don’t know how often the Shoes rehearse, but they did not sound the least bit rusty. The songs were tight, with strong drumming, dead-on riffs and catchy melodies and harmonies. That’s what power pop is all about. The performance wasn’t flashy, but it was just what it needed to be.

See my photos of the Shoes.

I’ve also posted some photos from a gig I saw on Aug. 2, the night before Lollapalooza (although it was oddly billed as a “Lollapalooza after party”) featuring Sparklehorse and the Ladybug Transistor at the Empty Bottle. The Sparklehorse set that night was pretty similar to the one I saw later at Lollapalooza, though it was harder to photograph, given how dark the Bottle is. The Ladybug Transistor plays the sort of pretty ork-pop that I would normally like, but something about the band’s music leaves me a little cold.

See my photos of Sparklehorse.

See my photos of the Ladybug Transistor.

Well, the big festival is finally over… You can see my overall review of Lollapalooza is on the Pioneer Press Web site here.

Click on the links below for my photos from Sunday:

White Rabbits

The 1900s

David Vandervelde and the Moonstation House Band

Rodrigo y Gabriela

Amy Winehouse

Iggy Pop and the Stooges

Yo La Tengo

Modest Mouse

My Morning Jacket

Tv on the Radio

Pearl Jam

Note: I showed up too late at My Morning Jacket to shoot photos from the pit, and I did not have access to the photo pit during Pearl Jam, either, so I did the best I could shooting a few pictures from out in the crowd.

Click here to see my photos of Matt and Kim, Tokyo Police Club, the Satin Peaches, Tapes ‘n Tapes, Aqueduct, Rhymefest, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and the Hold Steady.

Click here to see my photos of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Patti Smith and Interpol.

I was dreading Lollapalooza in some ways – worrying about the heat, fretting about what sort of access I would have to the photo pits, thinking about all of that walking. As it turned out (for Friday at least), I had quite a fun time and no problems to speak of. So far, so good with this year’s festival. It is indeed a long walk from one end of the park to the other – leave a good 15 minutes in your schedule if you need to make that trek, which will undoubtedly mean missing some music – but somehow, it seemed to go faster than it did last year. It is strange to see the swarms of people walking in both directions around Buckingham Fountain, all heading to see one band or another.

I felt similar to the way I did at the recent Pitchfork festival – a little too peripatetic for my own good. Rushing all over to catch as many bands as I could, both to get photos and because I wanted to hear all that music. It was nice when I could settle down and just listen to an entire set by a band, as I did with the Black Keys. Was there a breakout band on Day 1, someone that excited the crowd more than anyone else? That’s always such a tough thing to judge. Most of the performers had an enthusiastic bunch of people up front, but then as you walked farther back, you found yourself surrounded by people who were lazily enjoying the Grant Park setting, treating the whole thing like a picnic and (seemingly) not paying that much attention to the music. Or enjoying it in a way that was a little more passive.

Based on what I could see, POLYPHONIC SPREE generated a fair amount of excitement with its big spectacle of a show. It was not as outlandish as last year’s extravaganza of a show by the Flaming Lips, but there was a similar spirit of putting on a performance that was both big in size and freewheeling in spirit (freewheeling mostly in the form of frontman Tim DeLaughner). I’m of two minds about Polyphonic Spree: I find their concerts incredibly fun, but I’ve never found their records nearly as compelling. Maybe I need to see it as well as hear it to get the whole feeling. The last time I saw the Spree, they were still wearing those white robes. They’ve switched to dark uniforms, which makes them look less like a cult and more like a USO troupe or something.

The first band I saw on Friday was THE FRATELLIS, who played a fairly spirited set. Maybe not as spirited as they would have been later in the day. One of them remarked, “We’ll wake up by the end of the set.” Funny, they sounded awake to me.

I headed to south end of the same field for the next show, which was Austin’s GHOSTLAND OBSERVATORY. Never heard a note before. Well, maybe I did, but I couldn’t recall hearing anything by them until now. I suppose this would be categorized as electronic, though the duo did play some guitar and actual drums. Dance music, in any case, and it seemed pretty creative and lively to me. The drummer/electronics dude was dressed like Count Chocula. The other guy had a ponytail and very tight clothes and he jumped around a lot.

TED LEO AND THE PHARMACISTS played next (well, they were the band that I saw next, forgoing a show at the other end of the park by Son Volt). You can count on Leo to put on a strong show, and he did once again. He also sings with such force and passion.

I caught a couple of songs by VIVA VOCE, an excellent wife-on-guitar/husband-on-drums duo from Portland, Ore., whom I saw opening several months ago for the Shins. The songs I saw were catchy as well as energetic. Then I headed north for the aforementioned POLYPHONIC SPREE.

I stopped by one of the smaller stages, the BMI stage, for POWERSPACE, a young suburban Chicago pop-punk band, who were pretty impressive. These kids have their sound down pat, and they also know how to look like they’re having a ton of fun onstage.

I had just seen SPARKLEHORSE the previous night at the Empty Bottle, so I was planning to skip their Lollapalooza set. However, it was just too tempting to get some photos of Sparklehorse in actual light, so I headed over to the stage for a couple of songs. It was a decent performance, like the one the night before, though Sparklehorse main man Mark Linkous seemed a little distracted at both shows. He’s a very good songwriter, and most of those songs come off pretty well in concert, but he is not the most exciting performer. I tried zipping over to the nearby PlayStation stage to get some photos of ELECTRIC SIX, but I showed up just as the band was finishing its third song, the point at which the security guys say vamoose to those of in the photo pit. I wasn’t too thrilled with the Electric Six music I was hearing, so I rezipped back over to Sparklehorse and enjoyed the rest of that concert. Where I was standing (halfway up that paved area at the Petrillo bandshell), the crowd seemed a little apathetic.

At the far north end of the park, M.I.A. was next on the lineup. I’ve never really seen her, other than about one song at SXSW two years ago and I suppose that doesn’t count. The knock on her has been that the live show didn’t live up to the record. I don’t know. It sounded quite good yesterday, I thought. I like the uniquely Indian beats and patterns of her hip-hop. And heck, she was fun to photograph. As I left after the third song, I did notice that she was having some sort of technical difficulties. Or was that just a lull in the show? M.I.A. made some remark about an aborted beat, saying it would sound better in a club. Hmmm.

SILVERSUN PICKUPS was playing on one of the smaller stages, and I caught a few songs, complete with gymnastic guitar solos, but then I headed over to see BLONDE REDHEAD. This is a band I like but don’t (yet) love. Enough of my friends rave about them that I feel like I may end up loving them eventually, after I listen more to their music. They did sound great last night. On the surface, their new album 23 strikes me as indie pop with an electronic sheen, but in concert, they emphasize the shoegazer intensity of the music.

THE BLACK KEYS were one of my favorite performers all day. I can’t say they did anything I haven’t heard them before, but they’re such monsters of the guitar and drums. I love the loopy, curling sound of those bluesy riffs. I didn’t have anywhere else to zoom for a while, so I was able to sit down and actually listen for a change. Ahhhh.

The next time slot offered a difficult choice, between LCD Soundsystem and FEMI KUTI & THE POSITIVE FORCE. I went with Kuti. I love his father’s music, and I recently saw his brother, Seun, play at Millennium Park. This seemed like an opportunity I couldn’t miss, while I figured I can always see LCD Soundsystem again. Kuti got the crowd dancing with his band’s infectious grooves, not to mention the dancing girls onstage. It occurred to me that it was too bad Kuti couldn’t play to the same folks watching that other dance band on the other side of Buckingham Fountain (LCD, that is).

Speaking of which, I rushed south past the fountain (passing a very, very squashed rat on the pavement, which was just lying there like a pancake as thousands of people walked by)… hoping to catch a little bit of LCD Soundsystem. I heard their music as I went passed, but by this time I had to hurry to get a spot in line to photograph DAFT PUNK. I was photographer no. 46 out of the 50 allowed in the pit. Phew! But then… well, I can’t say I’ve ever been a Daft Punk fan. When LCD Soundsystem (an electronic dance band I actually like, which does music more to my speed) dropped their name in a song (“Daft Punk is Playing at My House”), I thought I really should take a remedial course in what this band is all about. Well, I’m still not getting it. I guess I’m just allergic to certain (but not all) forms of techno. A black curtain on the big stage fell away to reveal the two Daft Punk dudes in their standard robot helmets, way up at the top of a pyramid (the part were the eye would be in that dollar-bill picture)… doing whatever it was they were doing. For all I could tell, they were just playing one of their CDs. The crowd (or at least the crowd in front) was having fun, moving and clapping to the music. But… eh. Such simplistic beats and melodies just don’t do much for me. The light show and stage were cool, but they were also pretty cold. Maybe it was cold in an ironic way – “Hey, look at us, we’re robots!” – but it was boring either way.

See my photos of the Fratellis, Ghostland Observatory, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Viva Voce, Polyphonic Spree, Powerspace and Sparklehorse.

See my photos of M.I.A., Silversun Pickups, Blonde Redhead, the Black Keys, Femi Kuti and Daft Punk.

Day 1 of Lollapalooza’s over. My review’s coming soon. First, here are the photos. I’ve set up two galleries…

See my photos of the Fratellis, Ghostland Observatory, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Viva Voce, Polyphonic Spree, Powerspace and Sparklehorse.

See my photos of M.I.A., Silversun Pickups, Blonde Redhead, the Black Keys, Femi Kuti and Daft Punk.

For several years now, Two Cow Garage has seemed like the little band that could. Just some guys from Columbus, Ohio, who tour like hell and play loud, garage-y alt-country rock with a lot of passion. They have some loyal fans, but they’ve yet to really break through to a big audience.

They arrived at Chicago’s Subterranean last night (Aug. 1) with the groan-inducing news that their drummer, Dustin Harigle, had quit earlier in the day, just as Two Cow was embarking on a tour for its new record, III. Faced with the prospect of playing without a drummer, the rest of the band considering calling off the shows, but decided to go through with it anyway. And so, we unexpectedly saw what amounted to an unplugged Two Cow concert.

The evening was charged with emotion, as guitarist Micah Schnabel and bassist Shane Sweeney openly voiced their frustration and bitterness about Harigle’s decision, as well as their determination to carry on as Two Cow no matter what. They made it clear that they love doing what they’re doing, and that they’re in it for the long haul. Backed by a keyboardist, their songs actually sounded quite good in this stripped-down setting. It wasn’t the rock show that the audience had been expecting or that the guys probably wanted to play, but it was a cathartic way to announce that Two Cow survives.

See my photos of Two Cow Garage.

…There were a couple of opening bands. I’ll just say, the less said, the better.