TOO BROKE TO SEE MUSIC by AC KETTERING

TOO BROKE TO SEE MUSIC

BY AC KETTERING

FEB 19-25 : Van Halen @ United Center ?

With the money you would spend on this one concert you could see all the other shows happening in Chicago and have money for more than just PBR. In 2012 Refused and At The Drive-In have re-united to play shows so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Van Halen is touring on a new album (A Different Kind of Truth) but who the hell is actually excited about this???

SERIOUSLY… there are some great shows happening this week.

Tonight in fact we have the haunting Zola Jesus at Lincoln Hall supported by the noise rock duo Talk Normal and Chicago's own Chris Connelly (of Revolting Cocks and Ministry). I think Talk Normal would definitely be worth seeing if you can dig the vibe at LH.

Or if your feeling nostalgic (if I was that is) you could catch the aging Promise Ring at the Metro with Joan Of Arc. If this seems like a strange pairing remember that Davey played in Cap'n Jazz. DUH. Just forget it. Wood/Water is still a decent record damn you.

Then again if you're like me and can't spare the $15 bucks to see such a high profile show there's always the donation based DIY option if you can even find the venue.

This Saturday one of my favorite local groups Wume a drums/synth duo are playing at the Dell's. Wume's spaced out jamz album Distance has been a friend to my record player for a couple months and live the drumming of April is always interesting and grooving. Keep your ear to the ground for this one.

OR Swan King & Anatomy of Habit at the Hideout (not a DIY space) would be a good one for Saturday if you can't find the Dell's or if you want to get heavy. Killer.

JANUARY 26TH @ THE BURLINGTON = ROCK AND ROLL

You know, as the curator and chief correspondent of one of Chicago's most underwhelming-slash-barely-tolerated blogs in the entire blogosphere (or is it pronounced "blog-ESP-hire"?), I truly see it as my responsibility to share different and exciting new forms of media, and to write about a menagerie of entertainment. It would be self-indulgent to just write mindless (and parenthetically prominent) movie reviews, and simply insisting you watch the things on Netflix Instant I tell you to is just sheer flatulence (sp?). So with that note, and your best interest for original material in mind...I'm going to write another blog promoting a rock and roll show I am playing in!!! Go creative expressionism!

But in all seriousness (BECAUSE I'M VERY SERIOUS), tomorrow, THURSDAY THE 26TH, there is going to be an all-night audible assault on the senses of rock music, heavy vibes, screeching feedback, and a healthy dose of chords and mash. KILLER MOON, THE MULTICOLOURED MIRRORS, and THE CLAMS @ 9:00 pm, THE BURLINGTON 3425 W. FULLERTON. It's only 5 bucks (or maybe 7? The invite is certainly not clear), so if you don't have anything else going on, you owe it to yourself, your friends, and your ears to get the fuck down The Burlington, buy a few beers, and shake your head till your neck hurts with some no good burnt out psych-nics. Let's get our hands dirty shall we?

The Clams, a groovin' Chicago local rock band I have had the pleasure of playing with before, are starting off the night with healthy doses of DRONE, DRUMS, AND DIG. Their songs span decades with countless influences and infusions of sounds, but never stays too comfortably in one genre. But don't misread me when I say these fuckers rock, because they do. But within their tripped out jams drenched with plenty of screeching goodness, they can still surprise you with droney audio panoramas and thrashing, unforgiving drums that put their own interpretationon psychedelia and garage rock. I like to just close my eyes and let the rush of their rock and roll vibrate through the walls and the floors and me all at the same time.

The Multicoloured Mirrors (THAT'S THE BAND I PLAY IN) is a sonic train wreck of sounds. Local Chicago DJ (Name Deleted Upon Request of DJ…although I promise she DEFINITELY isn't sleeping with one of the band members) said, "Seeing the Multicoloured Mirrors is like waking up from sleep paralysis. You've tried so hard with other bands, but you can finally move it and shake it to some rock and roll that isn't afraid to push the limits of the sound barrier. This shit is loud and fresh." (Ohh, isn't that nice? Thanks Alli.)

The Mirrors in 2009. Oh. We're hammered by the way. Also, don't be alarmed by the whole "GSMD" thing. 2009 was a much more free and loving time.

The Mirrors have grown out of my altar-ego, The Sea Green, over the past few years. Personally, I love playing with those sons of bitches. Gets my dick wetter than a fire hydrant. But things like stressful work schedules, lack of funds, bombardments of previous commitments, lead singers leaving the country for a year and a half, and one member's (who shall remain private) sex-change operation, have kept The Mirrors from being a consistent act in the Chicago (or at least Logan Square) psychedelic rock scene. But with more shows like this one we plan on changing that. Then we plan on having sex with your face and ears and body via our loud-ass music.

Killer Moon (or The Killer Moon to their friends) headline the night with what is sure to be another explosion of the darkest, heaviest psychedelic sounds to ever smash your head into an oblivion. I love Killer Moon, I party with Killer Moon, I live with Killer Moon, I have already written about Killer Moon on this blog. Read about it here. Everything I said is still true.

So come get weird with us at The Burlington. There is a pretty good chance you won't regret it that much at all.

Two Awesome Rock Shows: December 20th in Chicago

Tomorrow, December 20th, a Tuesday (normally the day of the week I reserve for seeing half price movies at the Regal Cine, and, coincidentally, also the day I normally reserve for sitting alone in a dark public place while crying and masturbating), will be dedicated all over the city of Chicago (read: pretty much just Wicker Park) for something more important. And that is two awesome rock shows happening from some of the best bands I know (read: Bands I am either in, or my best friends are in. Nepotism WHAT). Let's check out where the rock and roll (rock 'N roll if you're super cool) is going on tomorrow.

Scary Christmas with CREEPY BAND and KILLER MOON @ The Subterranean, 8:30 pm, 21+, $8

Good friends of mine, Creepy Band, are headlining a huge lineup of rock bands (also including KILLER MOON, Fort Wilson Riot, and No Hay Banda) all celebrating a wonderful cause: the birth of Zombie Jesus. Described playfully and sincerely (by a crazy woman) as "a combination of a demented undead Jim Morrison and a demon possessed Dazig fornicating in the depths of hell," Creepy Band was born as a Halloween act, intended to scare and wail simultaneously. However after discovering their love for the eerie, dissonant rock tones, they kept the creepiness going full time, scaring and skeeving us out all year round (really, they creep me out. They're creepy, just look at that drummer.)
Also a band that you should have your legs broken for missing, KILLER MOON. This psychedelic rock trio (sometimes quartet, sometimes cadre), is a fucking atom bomb of heavy, trippy riffs, pounding drums, and a constant march of bass that goes inside your head and makes you fuckin' groove. Their constant onslaught of sights and sounds create an entire experience for at least four of the five senses (though I do encourage you to taste any of the members as well). These motherfuckers play hard, and if you ain't seen them destroying venues all over Chicago, you should get on it. Also, it doesn't hurt that everyone in the band is super attractive.
See?

OH! AND I PLAY IN THE BAND SOMETIMES TOO! NOW YOU OBVIOUSLY WANT TO GO EVEN MORE! LOOK AT ME SHAKING THAT TAMBOURINE I LOOK SO COOL!

So even though I said you should have your legs broken for not going to the SubT (AT LEAST have your legs broken, sheesh), there IS a way to get out of it! The only acceptable reason to not get creepy and killed at the Subterranean is THE GREAT SOCIETY MIND DESTROYER'S RECORD RELEASE SHOW @ The Empty Bottle, 9:00 pm, 21+, $8 (free with RSVP)The Great Society Mind Destroyers (accompanied by Rodeo, Velocicopter, and T'Bone) have long since been one of the main authorities of psychedelic rock and roll in the city of Chicago. They play with conviction, spewing out jam after jam of eclectic 60's psych sounds that have been dragged through the dirt and mud to create a whole different sound, new to both that era and the one we live in now. A Great Society Mind Destroyer show starts with you in one place, and ends with you in a completely different place altogether, one that normally feels like you were taken to by way of spaceship.

And with the release of their new LP SPIRIT SMOKE, featuring favorites like Divinorum and Kamsara Drag (haha), all the bullshit I said can be proven when you take it home and listen to it. The Empty Bottle is practically a second home to the Destroyers, and if you are guaranteed to see them play a fucking great live show anywhere, this is it.
I cannot tell you what show to go see tomorrow. I don't want that responsibility. What if you go to the SubT and your significant other runs into a former lover (one with way better abs than you), sparks fly, and she dumps your sorry ass for him (or her, gender equality, respek)and you are left broken-hearted, crying into your overpriced gin and tonic while KILLER MOON shreds explosions of Sabbath-like noise over your head. I'd feel terrible. I'D FEEL TERRIBLE IF SHE LEFT YOU. But on the other side of the same coin, what if you go to The Empty Bottle and are sexually harassed by someone like this guy? Once again, I'd feel just horrible. So make your own decision. You can't go wrong with either show.