Beck seemed to take a message from the words flashing on the Pitchfork Fest’s video screens as the previous act, Giorgio Moroder, finished his set: “HOT STUFF.” Beck and his backing musicians practically bounded onto the stage, immediately allaying any fears that this was going to be a morose and mellow set. Even though Beck’s latest album “Morning Phase” is filled with the sad-bastard variety of Beck music, he apparently decided not to start off his show by moaning about isolation. Instead, he delivered something more like a greatest-hits set, starting off with “Devils Haircut” and gleefully tossing in “Loser” halfway through the show. By the time he finally got around to playing some of those new downbeat numbers, he’d earned the right to moan a little bit—and he sounded almost majestic doing it. And then it was back to more of the hot stuff. (Robert Loerzel)
Solo Survivor: James Swanberg Navigates the Live Music Shutdown “The responsibility of having a drummer or a bassist would really stress me out,” says Swanberg. “My stress level compared to a traditional band, is a lot smaller, and I’m fortunate for that.”
Factory Showcase: The Cold Waves Festival Returns for More Industrial Music The best known examples of the influence of industrial music can be found in what today could be considered “legacy alternative rock” acts like Depeche Mode, Ministry and Nine Inch Nails, although hardcore fans would (and should) take umbrage at such an attempt to lump these “pop” acts into the genre. Trent Reznor may have done more than anyone to…
Jerusalem on Lake Michigan: Chicago’s Birthright Claim To Gospel Music Festival With the occasional exception of crossover artists like Sir the Baptist at Lollapalooza—gospel isn't going to make a significant showing at any festival that’s not exclusively gospel-dedicated. Fortunately for Chicago, the gold standard in that regard occurs annually on our lakefront.
The Incredible Expanding Band: A Preview of The Claudettes at 210 Live The Claudettes’ sound is hard to pin down; there’s a strong foundation of barrelhouse and stride piano jazz, but there’s plenty of boogie-woogie in there as well. And even on its first album, the band delivered its original music with a punk attitude.
[…] with Beck and his bandmates bouncing around the stage right from the beginning. I wrote a short review of the show for Newcity. And here are some photos I took — from the crowd instead of my usual spot in the photo pit. To […]
[…] with Beck and his bandmates bouncing around the stage right from the beginning. I wrote a short review of the show for Newcity. And here are some photos I took — from the crowd instead of my usual spot in the photo pit. To […]
[…] Beck […]