Photo: Perou

By Arvo Zylo

The first thing to know about lead musician Genesis Breyer P-Orridge is that s/he (the preferred non-gender identification) is a combination of two people who address themselves as “we.” Breyer P-Orridge had a longstanding, fruitful and intimate relationship with a woman named Lady Jaye. In search of a way to consummate their love for each other and unsatisfied with simply saying “till death do us part,” they wanted to actually consume one another. And, in essence, they did. They went to plastic surgeons and exchanged each other’s skin, made each other’s cheekbones look alike, got breast implants for the same size cup, and so forth. Since Lady Jaye passed on from stomach cancer in 2007, Breyer P-Orridge considers h/erself an embodiment of both people, and to some extent, a connection to Lady Jaye’s place on the other side. Breyer P-Orridge and Lady Jaye called their project “Pandrogyne,” and part of the intent was to transcend the trappings of the body and to nullify the concept of gender. Some people consider themselves to be a man stuck inside of a woman’s body, or a woman stuck inside of a man’s body, but to Genesis, s/he is simply “stuck in a body.” It’s not transgender as much as it is post-gender. Read the rest of this entry »

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The Rapture is coming your way, and you better be ready to dance. The New York indie rockers pioneered dance-punk in the early 2000s under the producer’s eye of a pre-LCD Soundsystem James Murphy, with songs like 2002’s “House of Jealous Lovers.” They were at the forefront of experimenters that melded house and disco influences into rock songs, interspersing vocal hooks and guitar riffs with synth, cowbell and saxophone, looping and mixing them together with a hefty dose of funk. When they sing “People don’t dance no more” on their 2006 single “Whoo! Alright, Yeah… Uh Huh,” they’re throwing down a challenge.  Read the rest of this entry »

Mark Farina

RECOMMENDED

The “Mayhem at The Mid” event series presents its “Windy City All Stars” edition on Friday night, during which both of the venue’s rooms will be overwhelmed by the sounds of Chicago house music. The artist lineup ranges from classic to cutting-edge, from Mark Farina and Specter, to Justin Long and Tyrel Williams. Farina, the force behind Mushroom Jazz, is celebrating a birthday, which would make for a sold-out show on its own. Audio Soul Project, the brainchild of Fresh Meat Records honcho, Mazi, will deliver a live performance that, following the praise of last year’s “Hip Shake Heartache” album, just might be the event’s defining moment. Farina and Mazi both specialize in the swinging rhythms and chunky beats derived from the collision of funk, deep house and jazz. Justin Long and Tyrel Williams exert some left-field influence on the affair, bringing the tech-inspired sound of their .dotbleep residency (Smart Bar) to the decks. Tetrode co-founder and loft-party veteran, Specter, adds his ambient-fused house style to the lineup, which also includes All About founder Luis Baro and Mid residents Just Joey and John Curley. (John Alex Colón)

March 25 at The Mid, 306 North Halsted, (312)265-3990. 9pm. $10 advance, $20 door.

RECOMMENDED

Simultaneously garnering props from music industry hotshots and technology aficionados, Moldover’s 2009 debut album was more than an Internet flashpoint, it fostered the growth of a paradigm shift in live electronic stage acts: controllerism. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes of a dysfunctional MacBook, Moldover’s work catapults the stoic, laptop-based events of years past into a new era of rockstar idolatry, with the software controller in the driver’s seat. An unmistakable rock influence pervades his musical efforts, which deftly run the gamut from rapid, techno-fused breakbeats to glitch-inspired funk. Moldover will be supported by the DJ skills of Chicago favorites Striz, Magpie and Duke Shin. (John Alex Colón)

March 11 at Darkroom, 2210 West Chicago, 9pm, free before 10pm, $6 after.

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Techno hyphenate Matthew Dear has been a regular visitor to Chicago over the years, most recently back in October with his full live band at the Metro in support of 2010′s excellent “Black City,” Dear’s third full-length album. While some fans might be less engaged with his recent pompadoured, crooning Morrissey act, and maybe wish he’d just show up with a bag of records and DJ, you have to give Dear credit for constantly evolving his performances. This time around, Dear revisits the Big Hands project he debuted back in 2007 at the Empty Bottle. Opening for Dear is local electro-psyche-rock outfit Loyal Divide, who recently remixed Dear’s “Slowdance.” Following the live performances, DJs will take over, with local favorites Orchard Lounge and former Chicagoan Lee Foss commandeering the decks. Foss has made plenty of waves since leaving Chicago for LA, debuting on Resident Advisor’s vaunted Top DJ poll for 2010 at #38—the highest debut this year. His avalanche of recent productions—both solo and with Jamie Jones as Hot Natured—reflect the same formula he’s been using to construct his sets for years: combining deep house and techno influences with the playfulness of disco and nineties R&B. Foss doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon, with his latest collaborative project, Pteradactil Disco (Jones, Foss, Robert James and FB Julian) dropping the “Big Ass Biscuit/Clive’s Alright” EP next week on Hot Creations (Foss & Jones’ label, natch) and his anticipated “Your Turn Girl” EP dropping later in February. A cool customer behind the decks, we wouldn’t expect too many hands-in-the-air freakouts. Set phasers for: tastefully restrained and boogie-tested for a more discerning dance floor. (Duke Shin)

January 28 at The Mid, 306 North Halsted, (312)265-3990. 10pm-4am. $12 presales.

Canceled due to illness

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Chicago’s latest splash in clubville might occupy the same space as Rive Gauche/Mannequin, but you have to hand it to The Mid for garnering a fair amount of excitement for its lineups. House, techno and electro-rocked bookings from high-profile guests are sure to shake up dance-floor denizens’ night-move destinations, but landing hip-hop pioneer and godfather of electro-funk Afrika Bambaataa behind the tables just might be the DJ equivalent of having the Dalai Lama bless a new temple. His history is one of legend, turning street gangs to his famed Zulu Nation, and pushing the b-boy elements of hip-hop culture with boy and girl dance crews, DJs and graffiti artists. But by the time Bambaataa started making global waves in 1982 with the electro-funk party starter “Planet Rock,” Bambaataa was now backed by the Soulsonic Force and would follow up his Kraftwerk-sampled smash with “Renegades of Funk” (which enjoyed a later rebirth thanks to Rage Against the Machine) and “World Destruction” featuring John Lydon’s caterwauling vocals. Bambaataa would enjoy continued success and club relevance in the nineties working with Westbam and in 2000 with the release of “Afrika Shox,” his collaboration with Leftfield. Tonight, the legendary producer, DJ and musical innovator will be joined behind the decks by local support from Intel, Maker and Trew, along with San Francisco’s Shred One. “Party people, can y’all get funky?” (Duke Shin)

January 26 at The Mid, 306 North Halsted, (312)265-3990. 10pm-4am. $12 presales.

RECOMMENDED

Freakeasy’s two-year run in the underground loft scene is over but the vibe lives on in a post-Thanksgiving soiree at Metro that features Deee-lite’s former songstress, Lady Miss Kier. The Freakeasy 2nd Anniversary Freakin’ Ball celebrates the continued tenure of the fabled Freakeasy initiative and rumor has it this won’t be the last time it visits Metro. Expect the finest underground sounds from the illmeasures DJs, including Striz and Justin Reed, a live set from Brad Miner, Radiohiro and MC Zulu. Additional highlights include live art installations around the venue to complement the musical performances. Presale tickets are available at http://freakeasy.net. (John Alex Colón)

November 26 at Metro, 3730 North Clark, (773)549-4140. 8pm. Tickets $20-$30. 18+.

RECOMMENDED

Soul Foundation’s monthly Saturday affair at the House of Blues continues with a visit from the inimitable Diz, a veteran Chicago DJ whose early achievements and funk-laden approach to house music are matched only by his enthusiasm for the city itself. With an impeccable ear and innate sense of arrangement, Diz turned his skills on the decks into vinyl treasures for the masses. As a longtime resident at Boom Boom Room, he delivers the grooves with a nod to his teeth-cutting nights on the loft circuit. Joined by Soul Foundation mainstays, Frique and Brenda D., Diz provides the soundtrack for your house music sanctuary this weekend in the House of Blues Foundation Room. Proper casual attire is required for this event. (John Alex Colón)

September 25 at House of Blues Foundation Room, 329 N. Dearborn, (312) 923-2000. 10pm. Free.

RECOMMENDED

The British are coming! (but this time it’s good news). Kele Okereke, better known as Bloc Party’s guitar-wielding front man, has recently given up the strings for a keyboard and drum machine. His side project doesn’t stray too far from the jumpy electro-tunes the band is known for, but he clearly embraces more clubby beats in his first single, “Tenderoni,” which sounds like a pasta but is really a high-energy, danceable track.

British alt-electro group Does It Offend You, Yeah? once remixed for Bloc Party and now opens for Kele (Weekday night). As a band that’s always dished up a heavy dose of  riff-driven electro with a side of snarky lyrics, it’s been compared to every dance act, from Daft Punk to Gorillaz. But mostly its genre is unbridled, especially live, when stage diving and instrument-breaking ensues (Dee Fabbricatore)

September 11 at Double Door, 1572 North Milwaukee, (773)489-3160, 9pm. $24.50

RECOMMENDED

The annual weekly summer jazz series “Made in Chicago: World Class Jazz” makes a welcome return to Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavilion tonight for six weeks of Thursday night concerts through September 2. Spotlighting Chicago’s leading jazz artists across the spectrum of the genre—from Latin and Big Band to experimental, avant-garde and fusion forms—the series, a collaboration between the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs, the Jazz Institute of Chicago and Millennium Park, will include world-premiere commissions, international collaborations and major artist centennial and anniversary celebrations.

First up is Tortoise, formed in Chicago in 1990 with roots reaching across the city’s jazz, indie-rock and punk scenes and considered pioneers of the post-rock movement. This twentieth-anniversary-year lineup, dubbed Tortoise 2.0, is made up of Dan Bitney on bass, keyboards, drums, percussion and guitar; John Herndon on drums, synthesizer, percussion and electronics; Douglas McCombs on bass, guitar and keyboards; John McEntire on keyboards, drums and percussion; and Jeff Parker on guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizer and percussion along with special guests for this special appearance that include Ed Wilkerson on reeds; Greg Ward on saxophone; Nicole Mitchell on flute and piccolo; Jim Baker on piano and vintage ARP synthesizer 2600 and Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello and electronics. Read the rest of this entry »