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Tia Ewing Claps Back After Getting Trolledon February 29, 2020 at 5:50 am

Zack’s Media Blog

Tia Ewing Claps Back After Getting Trolled

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Tia Ewing Claps Back After Getting Trolledon February 29, 2020 at 5:50 am Read More »

Indie-rock sidemen Jim Becker and Joe Adamik partner up in Lanzonon February 28, 2020 at 7:22 pm

Jim Becker and Joe Adamik are resolute sidemen and longtime fixtures of Chicago’s live-music scene. The former often plays fiddle, guitar, and banjo in rootsy settings, both straight and twisted, while the latter appears most often these days drumming with jazz and improvisational combos. Their partnership began in 2000, when they were both members of polymorphous rock band Califone, and carried on when Iron & Wine recruited most of Califone in 2010. They started playing together as a duo while on tour with those projects, during the downtime that’s an inescapable part of life on the road. In 2014 they began taking the stage as Lanzon, and they started recording shortly afterward–but it’s taken them until now to release their self-titled debut LP. The record’s six tracks display their stylistic reach as well as the full range of their multi-instrumentalism. Each man plays electric keyboards, electronic effects, and percussion; Adamik proves himself a more than adequate guitarist on the rustic “Mescalina” and the bristling, funky “Arc Minute,” and his reeds confer melancholic dignity upon album closer “Lhasa.” On the album, Adamik and Becker played all the instruments themselves, but they’ll be joined onstage by drummer Glenn Kotche, bassist Matt Lux, clarinetist Asher Waldron, and trumpet and flugelhorn player Katie Samavoa. v

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Indie-rock sidemen Jim Becker and Joe Adamik partner up in Lanzonon February 28, 2020 at 7:22 pm Read More »

Two dangerously catchy local pop legends, Green and the Joy Poppers, celebrate releases new and oldon February 28, 2020 at 7:41 pm

When I contacted Jeff Lescher of legendary mod/glam/punk/power-pop band Green to find out what his set would be like for this special gig, he responded quickly and kindly, but added, “One ‘angle’ that I hope you’ll avoid in your reportage is the overworked and untrue ‘Green was a group that should have been big but never were.'” I’ve gotta admit it’s hard to not go there, as it’s a bit of a head scratcher to me that Chicago bands such as Veruca Salt, Urge Overkill, and Local H got signed to major labels while the beloved Green didn’t (in 1991 the Reader’s Bill Wyman dubbed them “Chicago’s Great Green Hope”). However, we’ll shift focus here, per Lescher’s request. It’s worth noting that Green predated the 90s Chicago alterna-rock explosion (and all the aforementioned bands). They released their first EP in 1984 and their self-titled debut LP in ’86, both on their own Ganggreen label. Lescher continually reinvented the band with an influx of new musicians, and Green’s brilliant second album, 1987’s Anglophilic Elaine MacKenzie (Pravda), featured their second and perhaps most crucial lineup: bassist Ken Kurson (of Circles and later the Lilacs) and drummer Rich Clifton. The raw, jangly 1989 album White Soul and 1992’s gooey, hook-filled The Pop Tarts were stellar too, and Green released their seventh and most recent LP, The Planets, in 2009. The band have soldiered on since then, at varying levels of activity, and Lescher has pursued a solo career as well. In November he dropped his first solo album, All Is Grace–a wildly varied affair that includes mellow acoustic ditties as well as full-on punky glam rock. At this gig, Lescher will focus mostly on solo material, but he says there will also be a “proverbial ‘smattering’ of Green songs, and a cover or two,” with Clay Tomasek on bass, Jason Mosher on guitar, John Holoman on drums, Preston Pisellini on keys, and Mark Durante (formerly of KMFDM and Revolting Cocks) on pedal steel. Opening the show are the similarly underrated Joy Poppers, who’ve been at their brand of sticky-sweet pop since 1993. Their sound recalls power-pop greats such as Big Star, Badfinger, Piper, and Todd Rundgren, and the core of the group is lead songwriter Tom Szidon (who’s also played with Scott Lucas of Local H fame in his band the Married Men, to come full circle) and brilliant percussionist, singer, and guitarist Jason Batchko (who’s played with Lucas, Jonny Polonsky, Caviar, and others). The duo will be joined for this show by Marc Sloboda (guitar) and Dani Malloy (bass), and will focus on the 25-year-old Zoomar! album. It’s a rare treat for these near pop legends to be playing at all, let alone playing a mix of new material and classics, so this intimate gig is not to be missed. v

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Two dangerously catchy local pop legends, Green and the Joy Poppers, celebrate releases new and oldon February 28, 2020 at 7:41 pm Read More »

Roberto Fonseca blends the sounds of past and present into dynamic Afro-Cuban jazzon February 28, 2020 at 8:11 pm

I had a chance to see Roberto Fonseca play at the 2015 Fes Festival of World Sacred Music in Morocco, in a duo collaboration with Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara. In his thrilling, visceral performance, the Havana-born musician, composer, and bandleader embodied the multifarious musicality of Cuba’s best jazz pianists. Blessed with access to the island’s customary classical music training, which often begins in elementary school, Fonseca began playing jazz festivals at age 15 and later obtained a master’s in composition from Havana’s prestigious Instituto Superior de Arte. He’s well-versed in Cuban folkloric styles such as rumba as well as its dance genres, including mambo, timba, and reggaeton. His heady, masterful compositions are enlivened by his musical prowess, his precision, and his ability to create unendingly varied ripples of notes. He accompanies his playing with wordless vocals and chants, influenced by his mother, Mercedes Cortes Alfaro, a renowned bolero singer who was once a dancer at the legendary Tropicana Club in Havana. Fonseca is currently on tour supporting his ninth solo album, Yesun (Mack Avenue), whose title blends the names of two Yoruban deities: Yemaya, the goddess of the sea, fertility, and maternity, and Oxun, the god of the river. Throughout Yesun, his pieces transition from one style to another, flowing freely in a kaleidoscope of progressive, dynamic Cuban musical forms; as he put it in a 2019 interview with Jazz Times, his songs are a call to “a party so nice it will fill your soul completely.” Fonseca will perform with bassist Yandy Martinez Rodriguez and drummer Raul Herrera, with whom he recorded Yesun and with whom he plays weekly gigs at Havana club La Zorro y el Cuervo; this concert is a rare opportunity to witness the vanguard of 21st-century Afro-Cuban jazz. v

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Roberto Fonseca blends the sounds of past and present into dynamic Afro-Cuban jazzon February 28, 2020 at 8:11 pm Read More »

LA fusion group and Anderson .Paak collaborators the Free Nationals step out on their ownon February 28, 2020 at 8:21 pm

Best known as Anderson .Paak’s backing band, the Free Nationals are masters of fusion, with the ability to blend various strains of pop music past and present into mellifluous tracks that dependably set a chill mood. On their 2019 self-titled debut (released by OBE/Empire), they refashion modern funk, boogie, and yacht rock into a backdrop for a revolving door of popular rappers and vocalists, including .Paak, Syd of the Internet, Daniel Caesar, Mac Miller, Kali Uchis, T.I., Conway, and Westside Gunn. Too often, Free Nationals feels like it’s aimed at listeners who’d prefer to hear the band back their favorite MC rather than take center stage–but the group’s refined recontextualization of retro and underground pop styles deserves a real shot on its own terms. The Free Nationals showcase their versatility throughout the album, but usually they mold their sound to fit the personalities of the guest vocalists rather than foregrounding their own talents and tastes. Even within these self-imposed limitations, though, they can crank out electric performances–particularly when they aim to make the suavest sounds imaginable. On the blue-eyed soul number “Apartment,” featuring the gently lilting vocals of Dutch pop artist Benny Sings, the Free Nationals’ easygoing, luscious melodies create a heartening glow. v

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LA fusion group and Anderson .Paak collaborators the Free Nationals step out on their ownon February 28, 2020 at 8:21 pm Read More »

Celebrated guitarist Jeff Parker builds electrifying jazz songs out of experimental demos on Suite for Max Brownon February 28, 2020 at 8:32 pm

Chicago music remains interesting and vital partly because of how local subcultures overlap and intersect. The city has plenty of tight communities of musicians focused on specific sounds, but the borders around those communities are porous; improvising multi-instrumentalists collaborate with rappers, hip-hop producers take in jazz gigs, and rock musicians immerse themselves in hardware-centric underground dance scenes. This cross-pollinating ecosystem owes its continued existence to figures such as Jeff Parker. He’s famous as a jazz guitarist, a member of Tortoise, an in-demand sideman, and a free improviser, but he also has less well-publicized talents: his DJ sets at defunct Wicker Park club Rodan attracted jazz fiends and arty hip-hop producers who’ve since built up Chicago’s blossoming beat scene. Parker moved to Los Angeles in 2013, but he’s kept Chicago close to his heart. In January, he put out Suite for Max Brown, his second solo album for celebrated local label International Anthem (in partnership with indie heavy Nonesuch). As he did for 2016’s The New Breed, Parker shaped the new album’s songs by experimenting with hip-hop production and synth hardware, fleshing out his early demos into lush recordings that retain the electricity and feel of a dusty, eccentric vinyl sample hiccuping through a hip-hop cut. Parker handles much of the instrumentation on Suite for Max Brown himself–he plays guitar, piano, drums, and a semi-modular Korg synthesizer on the whimsically unsteady “Build a Nest,” which sounds complete thanks to the surefooted vocals of emerging Chicago talent Ruby Parker (who’s also his daughter). On other tracks, he taps into his extensive network of musician friends to bring his material home; drummer Makaya McCraven and bassist Paul Bryan help give “Go Away” its thrilling combination of slinky riffs, bustling rhythms, and mesmerizing atmosphere. v

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Celebrated guitarist Jeff Parker builds electrifying jazz songs out of experimental demos on Suite for Max Brownon February 28, 2020 at 8:32 pm Read More »

Baltimore indie group Lower Dens use synths to navigate a complex world on The Competitionon February 28, 2020 at 8:42 pm

Lower Dens emerged out of Baltimore’s fertile underground music scene in 2010, and they’ve since built a catalog of immersive, slow-boiling indie rock elevated by Jana Hunter’s inviting, resonant vocals. During the first half of the 2010s, they dropped three albums, which makes the four-year gap between 2015’s Escape From Evil and last year’s The Competition (Ribbon Music) feel like an eternity. Just before releasing Escape From Evil, Hunter wrote a Tumblr post identifying as genderfluid and discussing their history of struggling to fit into the gender binary; in the ensuing years, they underwent testosterone therapy, and Hunter now uses they/them and him/his pronouns. The band re-emerged with a newly streamlined lineup, slimming down from the five musicians involved in Escape From Evil to a duo of Hunter and drummer Nate Nelson on The Competition. The album’s dreamy songs employ a battery of synths that gives them a new-wave sparkle, while Hunter dishes out lyrical dissections of the current socioeconomic hellscape. When Hunter sings about impending societal collapse under capitalism atop an ersatz symphony of grand synths on “Empire Sundown,” their sharp, defiant vocals suggest that we can find solace in one another–and that we’ll have to. v

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Baltimore indie group Lower Dens use synths to navigate a complex world on The Competitionon February 28, 2020 at 8:42 pm Read More »

Paloma Mami is reggaeton’s newest and youngest staron February 28, 2020 at 9:15 pm

Paloma Rocio Castillo Astorga, better known as Paloma Mami, was only 18 when she released her debut single, 2018’s “Not Steady.” Lugubrious and resoundingly confident, the song made clear she wasn’t callow: “I don’t change for no dick,” she declares over a soft-edged dancehall beat whose nocturnal aura sets the tone for a night spent wisely (yet sadly) alone. The Chilean-American artist was signed by Sony Latin on the strength of that one single, and since then she’s gained worldwide popularity. Castillo decided to pursue music seriously after watching reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny perform live, and the stage name she chose was inspired by Drake’s Instagram handle, @champagnepapi. Paloma Mami shares those artists’ love for woozy, melancholy atmospheres, but she has no use for their querulous and self-loathing attitudes: On “Fingias,” she rails against an ex-lover over a moody reggaeton beat, her breathless delivery conveying a melange of bitterness, despondency, and longing. Then on “Mami” she plays the role of femme fatale, declaring that she’s “more powerful than two Nefertitis” and commanding her lover to keep calling her “mami.” Though she’s only released a handful of singles so far, Paloma Mami has already proved herself one of reggaeton’s brightest new stars–and at her Chicago debut, she’ll be able to win over a new audience. v

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Paloma Mami is reggaeton’s newest and youngest staron February 28, 2020 at 9:15 pm Read More »

Best Coast deliver a clear, optimistic vision of rock ‘n’ roll on Always Tomorrowon February 28, 2020 at 9:36 pm

California duo Best Coast are a long way away from the bite-size stoner love songs and sun-drenched slacker tales of their 2010 debut album, Crazy for You. On their brand-new fourth LP, Always Tomorrow (Concord), singer-songwriter and guitarist Bethany Cosentino and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno pair beefed-up power chords with clear-eyed observations, a newfound sense of optimism, and an ambitious look toward the future. It’s the band’s most straightforward rock ‘n’ roll record to date, but it still has echoes of the SoCal skater vibe and lo-fi pop-punk warmth that defined their breakthrough tunes, such as Crazy for You’s “When I’m With You” and “Boyfriend.” Cosentino and Bruno have honed their one-two punch of 60s melodies and laid-back rhythms (“True” will surely tug at the heartstrings of Best Coast purists) while trading fuzzy distortion for bold, slick riffs and snappy percussion. Cosentino’s mighty vocals flavor “Graceless Kids,” “Rollercoaster” and “Make It Last,” which balance new life lessons and “work in progress” reality checks (she got sober in 2017) with the overwhelmingly positive vibes emanating from the album as a whole. While 2015’s California Nights portrayed a lovestruck woman afraid to let go, Cosentino has better topics to address now: becoming the master of her own mind, getting tired of writing about the same old unhealthy behaviors and relationships (“Seeing Red”), and finding the power in shedding her former self (“Different Light”). Culminating with “Used to Be,” a slow-burning, shoegaze-tinged anthem that nods to the band’s arena aspirations, Always Tomorrow showcases Best Coast’s evolution and sharpened focus–and Cosentino finally seems ready to sing a different kind of song. v

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Best Coast deliver a clear, optimistic vision of rock ‘n’ roll on Always Tomorrowon February 28, 2020 at 9:36 pm Read More »

Bob Weir shines in his stripped-down trio the Wolf Broson February 28, 2020 at 9:52 pm

Every member of the Grateful Dead played a vital role in the band: Jerry Garcia was the spaced-out leader, Mickey Hart was the shamanic spiritual guide, and Phil Lesh was the giant brain. Rhythm guitarist and vocalist Bob Weir–the spry youngest member–was the group’s heart and soul. His obtuse, jazzy chord structures drove the Dead’s most mind-expanding jams, and his infectious enthusiasm and joyful playing brought out the freewheeling spirit of their best material. The 2015 reunion of the Grateful Dead revitalized interest in the band, and no member has capitalized on it more than Weir. That year he joined Hart and the group’s other longtime drummer, Bill Kreutzmann, to found the unstoppable Dead & Company (fronted by Weir and John Mayer), and in 2016 he released his first solo studio album since 1978, Blue Mountain. Over the past couple of years he’s assembled a new trio, the Wolf Bros, with Les Claypool cohort Jay Lane on drums and rock producer Don Was on bass. They’re a stripped-down group, especially compared to early-70s iterations of the Dead–which at times had up to eight members onstage–but they can tear through rock standards and Dead classics. As he settles into his 70s, Weir is shining in his late-career renaissance. v

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Bob Weir shines in his stripped-down trio the Wolf Broson February 28, 2020 at 9:52 pm Read More »