Remember 2006? Man, what a year. Saddam Hussein is executed, Pluto is demoted from planet to dwarf planet and Chicago’s own OK Go self-produces one ingeniously goofy video, the treadmill fun of “Here it Goes Again,” a Internet meme so wildly successful (46 milion YouTube hits) it even topped the band’s other brilliantly choreographed dance video, 2005’s “A Million Ways.” Yessir, nobody forgets those videos, just like nobody remembers those songs. Try as they might, Damian Kulash and company’s stew of power-pop meets the Pixies meets choreographed dances comes across as forced and unremarkable, especially their last record, “Oh No,” which shoved a lot of uncatchy blah-pop into unwilling ears. The band’s self-titled September 2002 debut had some momentum—each song pulsed with sugar in its veins—but, like a piece of Juicy Fruit chewing gum, the hits lost all its flavor by October 2002. Maybe I’m psychologically prejudiced against these guys after watching them impeccably dance while wearing full dress suits in the 117-degree sun during Lollapalooza 2005 (I recall thinking, “kill me”). They seem like fun-loving guys, but every time Kulash’s precisely plotted screams overtly inform me everybody’s having an “off the hook” time partying with OK Go, it always comes off like the wedding reception DJ who’s enjoying his presence far more than anyone else. (Andy Seifert)
April 23 at Double Door, 1572 N. Milwaukee, (773)489-3160, 9pm. $20.
Still Breathtaking: A Preview of Sting at Ravinia Festival Sting's solo catalog boasts more than a dozen studio albums. He may not rack up the hit singles like he once did, but he remains a compelling writer, musician and performer.
Last Punks Standing: A Preview of Mekons at Hideout Mekons have endured by refusing to adhere to anyone's ideas regarding what is and isn't punk rock (which is in and of itself a defiantly punk attitude).
Remember 2006? Man, what a year. Saddam Hussein is executed, Pluto is demoted from planet to dwarf planet and Chicago’s own OK Go self-produces one ingeniously goofy video, the treadmill fun of “Here it Goes Again,” a Internet meme so wildly successful (46 milion YouTube hits) it even topped the band’s other brilliantly choreographed dance video, 2005’s “A Million Ways.” Yessir, nobody forgets those videos, just like nobody remembers those songs. Try as they might, Damian Kulash and company’s stew of power-pop meets the Pixies meets choreographed dances comes across as forced and unremarkable, especially their last record, “Oh No,” which shoved a lot of uncatchy blah-pop into unwilling ears. The band’s self-titled September 2002 debut had some momentum—each song pulsed with sugar in its veins—but, like a piece of Juicy Fruit chewing gum, the hits lost all its flavor by October 2002. Maybe I’m psychologically prejudiced against these guys after watching them impeccably dance while wearing full dress suits in the 117-degree sun during Lollapalooza 2005 (I recall thinking, “kill me”). They seem like fun-loving guys, but every time Kulash’s precisely plotted screams overtly inform me everybody’s having an “off the hook” time partying with OK Go, it always comes off like the wedding reception DJ who’s enjoying his presence far more than anyone else. (Andy Seifert)
