Chicago’s shaggiest sons have come a long way since their cover-band days. Before this year’s self-titled release, some might say the band’s biggest career accomplishment was 2005’s opening slot on a worldwide Oasis tour. One spin of the new album, released in October on Mad Dragon Records, puts a halt to that line of reasoning. Although the band hasn’t strayed entirely away from their British Invasion sensibilities, these riffs pack a wallop that is distinctively classic rock. Despite the heavy-handed distortion, the album remains accessible without once resorting to imitation. It seems getting the axe from Capitol was the best thing that could have happened to this Deerfield quartet—now signed to an independent label run by Drexel University students, The Redwalls emerge from the unemployment line with their indie-credibility firmly intact. Tour buddies Johnathan Rice and the Athens-based Whigs help celebrate the band’s homecoming. (K. Tighe)
Saturday, December 8 at Metro
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