A few Sundays back, I was among the lucky few to attend the Fleet Foxes show here in Chicago. It was a perfect a show for a Sunday – tangible energy from the crowd and melodic music from the band. Yet, I caught Fleet Foxes back in July at Pritzker Pavilion and was a little underwhelmed with the direction of their live show. They would hit on some amazing sections and I would be in folk heaven but rarely would they stay in that place. It was like listening to CSNY if Crosby had ADHD. In Fleet Foxes’ case the potential was there and that’s all I need to give a band a second chance.
This second live show affirmed the group as the force many claim them to be musically; they quickly enveloped me in an array of sound and I found myself lost — in a good way — for the first half of the show. But they failed to put together the entire package a great live show must claim. The second half was more stage banter than music, which I can’t endorse as a way to maintain a concert. The crowd seemed to be enjoying themselves and there were a lot of laughs but it was somewhat lost on me. Some of the band even seemed annoyed at these numerous misdirections.
Over the course of the night I took some photos from the bird’s eye view I found myself in but I was lucky enough to have any view at all because Metro was packed with people. If you’ve seen Fleet Foxes before let us know what you think about their approach to the onstage conversation. Follow the jump for some more photos from the night. READ MORE
Earlier this week we let you know about some great things we’ll be doing at Metro here in Chicago to help get more and more readers to see great live music. For this Saturday’s show featuring two pairs of musicians, Crystal Castles & Lymbyc Systym, we’re offering two pairs of tickets. For the first two comments that appear on this post, we’ll get your name on the list over at Metro with a +1 and you’ll be all set to go for the show.
Both of these bands are truly fantastic, they definitely have different sounds and their live shows are nearly at two extremes but collectively it will be an amazing night of music. Lymbyc Systym has just finished a new split LP this past summer and the new stuff is great. Crystal Castles has been riding the wave of support for their eponymous debut that released earlier this year.
Though I usually enjoy a more creative contest in order to get something free, we’re a little late on this one and therefore need to get the names in asap. Please remember to leave an email address and obviously your name so that you won’t get shut out. Hope everyone has a great weekend.
The last few weeks have been really exciting for LMB especially here in Chicago where both Mitch and I call home. Not only did the blog get its wish — it has to do with a certain band — but we’ve been ironing out a relationship with Metro Chicago to get more and more great music to this city. And more importantly get more people to see said music. For the foreseeable future, LMB will be promoting shows at the Metro and we’ve got three great concerts on the slate through the end of the year.
What this means for our readers is that we’ll be throwing some tickets around for free — or more accurately for your wonderful comments — showcasing some great bands both old and new on the site, and possibly having some great giveaways aside from the tickets. The three shows that we’ll be supporting in the next three months are Crystal Castles, Lymbyc Systym on 10/25, Calexico on 11/21 and CSS (Cansei de Ser Sexy) on 12/14. We’re very excited about all three of these shows and if you follow the jump you can hear about the first upcoming date with Crystal Castles and Lymbyc Systym.
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Blue-eyed soul has been around forever, white dudes have been trying — sometimes very successfully — to replicate the music that poured out of Detroit and Memphis during the 50′s and 60′s throughout almost every other decade to date. Jamie Lidell may have the most uncommon path to blue-eyed stardom, starting his career as one half of the electronic duo Super Collider. Yet the result is unmistakably smooth and expressive.
Jamie Lidell made a stop at the Metro here in Chicago last Wednesday night and I had the definite pleasure to catch the show. Lidell brought a great band with him, complete with the keyboardists’ version of Keith Richards. The rest of the band, including Lidell, were decked out in Elvis costumes and pajamas; they even brought out a bust of Elvis Presley with them on stage. To say the least, it was quite the night.
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A happy Monday to everyone! Just spent a full weekend in Chicago for the first time in some time and I am smitten with this city all over again. I saw a great show Saturday, ate some amazing food and though the Cubbies lost, there is a lot of excitement and energy in my surrogate home. In honor of the mood the town is putting out, we’re gonna give a away some tickets to a show here in Chicago.
On Wednesday, Jamie Lidell is playing at the Metro. We have two free tickets to give away and I’m thinking we’ll make this contest another writing exercise. Let us know what is special about Chicago this time of year. Musically and in general, whomever sells Chicago the most effectively will win the pair. We’ll keep the contest up until Wednesday morning and will let the winner know early that afternoon. Post your comments, be creative and don’t forget to leave contact info. Follow the jump for some info about Mr. Lidell if you need the knowledge. READ MORE
I wake up every morning and sigh when the realization sets in about how late this review is. Procrastination has become my mistress and I’m starting to feel guilty. This all started back around 2000 when I saw Cornelius on an HBO special. It was a pretty good performance for a tv show, so when LMB got me on the list for their latest Chicago gig, I jumped at the chance. Then inertia set in and this review became harder and harder to write, mostly because memory is a malleable device — there’s some concern that my account had become completely fictional. For the most part, I think this is accurate, though.
So I got to the Metro and the opening act seemed to fly by. Nothing terrible, but not much remembered either. Ultimately, everyone in the house was there to see Cornelius, as evidenced by this exchange during one of the tuning breaks:
heckler: Why did the stegosaurus cross the road?
band: I don’t know.
heckler: I bet that Cornelius knows!
My vote for heckle of the year. I think the genius lies in the subtlety — in this case, we’re not completely putting down the artist, but saying that the headliner is better. Still degrading, yes, but whatever.
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