Q&A: Zoofunkyou

The new year has only just begun, but Zoofunkyou has already entered 2018 in full swing. On January 19th, the Chicago-based jam band will be embarking on their first extended tour starting with a hometown show at Chop Shop. The tour covers most of the Midwest and a number of funk-infused cities across the south and follows their first 2018 release; a live album recorded during their October 27th show at Bottom Lounge.

Vocalist and guitarist Derek Dare, guitarist Bryan Scheinkopf, bass guitarist Matthew Coglianese & the band’s manager Andy Boyd gathered in their practice space at Kildare Studios to share their tour details and to discuss the rest of their plans for 2018.

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Profile: Like Language

Major changes for bands, such as a new name, often mark a step in rebranding. It’s a chance to set new goals, build a new foundation and prepare for a new adventure. While new endeavors are definitely a desire for Like Language, formally known as Wilder, their name change had less to do with an extreme evolution and more to do with differentiating themselves from other artists.

We changed our name because there are too many Wilders,” says Matthew Murray, one half of the Chicago-based pop duo. “When we chose the name [Wilder], we wanted one word, something simple. As time went on, I was on Spotify browsing an indie new artist playlist and I saw Wilder was on there and I was like, ‘Oh man, this is the best day of my life. People are noticing us!’, and then it ended up being the another Wilder.”

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Q&A: Matthäus

Forming an 8-person band with members in two states whose music blends pop, folk and contemporary concert music may not sound like the most logical road to successful, but so far, the nontraditional approach has been working in favor for Matthäus. The band, with members in both Chicago and St.Paul, started as a small project from composer Ben Montalbano, adding bold horn sections, piano lines and other intricate instrumentations to a variety of folk-rock tunes. The group has since grown into a collaborative chamber collective made up of Ben Montalbano, Joe Meland, Justin Peters, Lars-Erik Larson, Samuel Peters, Alex Blomarz, Hugo Seda and Chris Shuttleworth.

With a new music in the works and a December 14 show at Schubas just days away, Montalbano, Peters and Meland gathered in a cozy window seat at Wicker Park’s Wormhole to discuss the band’s plans for the rest of the winter and the new year.

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Q&A: Honey & the 45s

It’s not easy to make a name in a music scene as large as Chicago’s. With so many talented bands, solid music and a strong lineup simply aren’t enough to push through the noise. On top of delivering unique works, a band needs dedicated members who are constantly pushing boundaries, an important quality that members of Honey & the 45s know all too well.

Five years and three albums later, drummer Dave Brandwein, lead vocalist Kristina Cottone, guitarist Jon Gould, keyboardist Sonya Major and bassist Sean Tatum are continuing to find success in their blend of R&B, soul and rock with their latest EP Speak, a collection of four empowering songs exploring connection and authentic relationships.

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Premiere: The Inventors- “Fire”

The last couple of months have been a time of evolution for The Inventors. The Chicago rock band comprised of lead vocalist Joe Mango, bassist Nicholas Kieta and lead guitarist Ray Skamay have turned their trio into a foursome with the addition of drummer Tommy Mendoza, taking Mango off mandatory double duty. They’ve also been working on putting together new music and have recently released their first of three singles, “10’s and 9’s” via Amplify Music. The singles are part of their debut full-length LP Counting Backwards, set for release this coming winter. The album was recorded by Matt Cerritos at Shirk Studios in Chicago.

Their second single, “Fire” opens with a beautifully simplistic guitar line before being joined by light percussion and vocals. The energy takes off entering into each round of the chorus, looping the lines “You’re on fire baby/ You are/ You are”. The piece is an easy listen and look into the new direction of The Inventors.

 

Check out our profile on The Inventors from earlier this year to learn more about the band.

Album Review: Friends of the Bog- Lyra

Chicago’s indie folk rock band, Friends of the Bog is following up their 2016 EP with a debut album Lyra. The album, named after the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, explores many correlating themes such as love, loss, death, time and longing. It’s comprised of songs that instrumentally, feel optimistic and upbeat, but are filled with poetic lyrism touching on dark and slightly sinister topics.

A round of finger picking on guitar opens the album with the song “Darkness”. The piece tells a familiar story of losing love and the awkwardness of moving forward. While the lyrics fall well into the song’s title, the instrumentation builds in a lively manner with bright synth lines and an upbeat percussion section. It’s easy to get lost in the sounds but words such as “my darkness became your darkness and it filled you up with regret” bring a heaviness to the tune.

The melancholy subject matter continues with “Always”. The slower tempo of the piece makes it dreamy with a hint of mandoline underlining the female vocals. Again, the instrumental lines give the illusion of happiness, but the good-hearted feeling is sunken with lyrics like “I’m an empty vault and you cleared out the last few riddles inside”. This faux positivity is upheld in “Faith”, a song pushed by strong rhythmic lines and a catchy chorus of “Faith/Faith/ Faith, I am telling you to go/ Go/ Go/ My mind is not your home, no.”

There’s a shift in energy as the album’s title track approaches. Two female vocals take over underlined by finger-picked strings. A thudding bass drum comes in to close out the first verse as the vocals reach for a higher register. The sound is both dark and pretty as it transitions into the accordion opening of “Dead Friends”. Right away the rawness of the lyrics standout; “James’ mom died/ didn’t want to write a song about/ felt fucked up to cash in on somebody else’s pain.” The song goes on to explore the realm of death and how people stay in the minds of friends after they are gone. It’s a sweet song propelled by vocal harmonies into an instrumental buildup of mandoline, guitar and accordion.

 

The following track, “What Got You Here”, falls flat in comparison with the rest of the album, but things pick up again with the bass line leading into “Who Really Cares”. It’s a quick moving piece with a fun layering of vocal lines and an uppity rhythm section. Something in the drive of the song is reminiscent of Americana music, making a smart choice leading into “Hudson”. The vocals of “Hudson” are silvery with the slightest hint of twang as lyrics taper off at the end of each line. It’s bright and hopeful for a song about time, wondering if memories are all that is left.

The album falls back into despair with “Barton Springs”. The heavy moving bass line and single chord strums on guitar keep an eerie tone over the piece. Instrumental lines are added into the build-up of the chorus “You hold my hand when the telephone rings/ Sarah’s brother drowned in Barton Springs”. Even with its minor spookiness, it’s a catchy song with a good groove.

Closing out the band’s first complete record is “You Didn’t Deserve This”. It’s one of the more beautiful songs on the album as the male vocals calmly sing over drones and light instrumental pings. Guitar and percussion lines slowly come in with the second verse, really filling out the sound before it fades out to wrap up the record.

Friends of the Bog’s next show will be on Friday, November 17 at Quenchers Saloon. The night will also include performances from Laura Wolf, Lizdelise and Boo Baby.

Live Review: Two Sets of Eyes/ Gazebo Effect @ Tonic Room (11/13)

Monday nights in the middle of November are often dreary, but thanks to performances from Two Sets of Eyes and Gazebo Effect on Monday, November 13 at Tonic Room, this particular night was more than just tragic cold and rain.

The night kicked off with the progressive rock trio, Two Sets of Eyes. Having had their first performance only a month ago, it’s evident the band is new to playing live shows together as the three took some time before falling into the groove of the show. While the band may be young, the musicians are well-seasoned artists with a great sense of musicianship over their respective instruments. They ran through songs from their upcoming self-titled debut (out November 25). The vocals on a few of the songs were rough, but most of the pieces where instrumental heavy, creating dynamic arcs with guitars and synth. A standout tune was “Sunshine, You’re Standing in My Sunlight”; an eerie and almost psychedelic instrumental piece that builds around an ear-bending synth melody.

It’s rare to find a band with a kickass guitarist who understands the art of soloing. What’s even rarer is finding three such guitarists on a single stage as part of the same band. Each guitarist from the nights’ second band, Gazebo Effect, shared lead duties and did an amazing job coloring the songs with intricate riffs throughout. Not only did the band exhibit amazing guitar lines, the rhythm section, as well as the vocals, were superb. The band played the songs from the 2017 EP Turtle Rock, with a standout piece being “Laraway Drive” as it encompasses everything the band does right from killer guitar riffs, steady rhythms and catchy choruses. Aside from providing a rich sound, Gazebo Effect’s stage presence exhibit passion and energy without overdoing it.

Two Sets of Eye’s next performance will be on Saturday, November 25 at Quenchers Saloon.

Gazebo Effect’s next performance will be on Friday, January 26 at Co-Prosperity Sphere.

Profile: Elk Walking

One of the upsides to attending an art college as a dedicated artist is being surrounded by other talented individuals who are willing to indulge in creative projects. It’s a great place to build working relationships, and sometimes those relations grow into solid professional structures. As Savanna Dickhut and Julian Daniell of Elk Walking share before their performance at the SubT Lounge, it was a chance meeting during college that pushed the two songwriters to pursue a career in Chicago’s music scene.

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Live Review: The Million Reasons/ The Shades @ Township (11/2)

Sometimes the best shows in Chicago are the ones played during the week in the back rooms of small bistros and bars. This was precisely the case on Thursday, November 2nd as a small touring act opened for two local bands at Township located in the heart of Logan Square.

The night started off great with a solid performance from The Hacky Turtles of Grand Rapids, Michigan opening for The Shades of Chicago. The local pop trio shined as always with their beautifully arranged 3-part harmonies and catchy tunes. They treated the audience to a few covers including their creatively original approach to Chance The Rapper’s “Sunday Candy” while also highlighting songs from their recently released record Miles Made of Inches. 

Headlining their first show The Million Reason took the stage last. The 4-piece rock band took full advantage of their space, utilizing every inch of the stage from the back corner to the right side runway. The second the first note sounded, the jittery crew bounced about in true rockstar fashion, breaking guitar strings and all. Standout pieces included “Hooked” opening with its catchy guitar riff before leading into Scott Nadeau’s grungy vocals singing “You’ve got me hooked/ with just one look,” and “Earlybird” with it’s driving rhythm section and a touch of southern rock twang. As The Million Reasons closed out their set, the crowd cheered for an encore. Nadeau announced the band had already played through all their originals so they opted for a rendition of Wolfmother’s “Joker and the Theft”, ending the night with the same energy and enthusiasm in which they started.

Album Review: Sedgewick- Collapse

Roughly two years after the release of their debut EP Gardens, a record praised by the local press for its dream-pop melodies and folk instrumentation, Sedgewick (Sam Brownson, Oliver Horton and Jake Hawrylak) has released their first full-length album Collapse. The new compilation perfectly responses to the bands’ early work, building from the calmness of the first album into fully orchestrated pieces complete with a large range of sounds and colors.

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