24 Apr 10

...it's your birthday ...happy birthday to you...


Hey, blogspot readers, it's fun turning 21 ...again! On Friday, SouthSide took the night off for her annual birthday bash held at the Elbo Room. The lineup rockin' the stage featured hip jazzy rock by Keith & The Complications, psychedelic angst rock by Oui Si Only You, wild crazy rock by Strange Ranger, riot sexy rock by Riot Inside and classic guitar rock by 6 Degrees of Separation. Thanks to all bands, fans and friends for making this birthday celebration extra special.


Tonight the rockin' fun and celebration continued at the Cubby Bear for Model Stranger's Dreams & Bones CD Release show. And to help them celebrate this momentous occasion, they invited 20 Mark Helga, The Flavor Savers, Verona Red and Calvary to perform. Plus many representing the Who's Who of the local scene - 72 Hours, Machinegun Mojo, The Branded, Red City (to name a few) were in attendance as well as family and friends. SouthSide highly recommends checking each band at their next show for totally rocking out this popular northside venue with their unique sound and music.

20 Mark Helga kicked off the lineup with a performance full of thundering guitar rock sound. Throughout this band's set, there was energy and fire not only within the music but also in the songs. Though it was a rockin' show, this reviewer noticed how the vocals didn't really compliment the amongst the trio of vocalists (Phineas on guitar, Joe on drums, and Steve on guitar) during certain songs. When paired with the lead guitarist, it seemed to be slightly off key and at one point throw off a song's keyboard rhythms. Yet each vocalist (while singing solo) displayed a unique voice style to their respective song. Meanwhile 20 Mark Helga's rock sound thundered and roared until the end when closing with Red Rover. SouthSide suggests listening Something To Hold, the title track of their current six-song EP. For more information, visit www.20markhelga.com or www.myspace.com/20markhelga1.

Verona Red was a band that this reviewer hasn't seen live on stage a very long time. And tonight she's had the unique chance to see them again. Compared to the older version of this band in which she remembers, SouthSide thoroughly enjoyed the "newer" version and its energetic burst of sound. They had the type of music that you immediately felt the vibin' groove coming from Verona especially during their new songs. One particular song featured a modern twist of jazz rhythms mixed with lyrical hiphop ...it kept this crowd dancing along with the band. This band definitely had evolved into something bigger and better in music which was livelier and energetic with the tech/keyboard beats woven into their sound. This reviewer also noticed how much fun Verona was having on stage with this type of music. Even the ballad under a downtempo pace had enough spark to set the stage ablaze with rockin' music. She highly suggests listening to new song, No Way Home featuring a semi-acoustic sound with a conga drum, keyboard rhythms and lots of energy. This song totally rocked down the house just like their cover of David Bowie's Let's Dance. For more information, visit www.veronared.com or www.myspace.com/veronared.

It was time for the honored guests, Model Stranger, to rock the stage to officially debut their album, Dreams & Bones. Sporting either full mustaches and/or beards, this band after a long 18-day tour still had enough energy to rock the stage for the home crowd! Opening with Where Do We Go From Here? (track 7), the fans instantly felt what this band was vibin' off the music and guitar riffs. Blogspot readers should take notice the way Stephen's (front man on guitar) vocals clearly projected the angst and frustration of love/relationships gone bad in certain songs. SouthSide suggests listening to She Don't (track 1), Carousel (track 5 - also SouthSide's favorite song), and What Are You Looking For (track 8 - which is also available on a limited special edition vinyl copy). They're fine examples of retaing that rock energy felt in Model's other songs (i.e. Fire!Fire!) despite having a downtempo sound of heartache. This reviewer also suggests listening to Vyolet's (SouthSide's daughter) favorite song by them, Monster, for its representation of modern teenage angst. Everyone has a little monster inside of them waiting to appear without a moment's notice. Closing with Sound of Silence, silence was definitely not the word of how this rockin' performance ended with an explosive BANG! SouthSide highly recommends snagging your own copy of Model Stranger's Dreams & Bones CD. For more information, visit www.modelstranger.com or www.myspace.com/modelstranger.


...careful - some of you may be pregnant after that song...
The Flavor Savers


Dubbed as the hottest gents around town, these wild party animals known as The Flavor Savers bursted onto the stage ready to party. Using the (Chicago) Bulls theme to introduce themselves, this reviewer instantly loved the retro gym class uniform look complete with sweatbands and 80s sunglasses. Fans will have a fun time enjoying Flavor's unique mix of lyrical hiphop mixed with pseudo disco/rock sound which kept this crowd shaking their booty throughout the set. Seriously, blogspot readers, this band was all about having a good time ...even the songs performed stayed true to that effect. One thing this reviewer can say they certainly were ready to rock our faces all night long. And believe it or not, Flavor was barely out of their opening song though it felt like the middle of the performance. These guys performed cover songs such as Salt-n-Pepper's Push It (with a Flavor twist) and Billie Ocean's Caribbean Queen as well as originals People (simply a song about people) and Let's Go Disco (with lots of retro disco dance steps on stage). This was more than an ordinary review of a rock band on stage ...it was more like watching an old VHS Jazzercise tape. Nonstop movement with lots of sexual energy until the very last song done in The Flavor Savers style. For more information, visit www.flavorsaversmusic.com or www.myspace.com/flavorsavers.


...can you turn up the girl screaming on my monitor... ~ Calvary


Whew, blogspot readers, after that high impact energy workout with The Flavor Savers, SouthSide's surprised she had any stamina left for Calvary. This was another band she was excited to see performing on stage. During their headlining set, there was explosive guitar rock featuring hardcore riffs and music you could bang your head to. Even with a tight time constraint, these guys were determined to rock out the Cubby Bear. The audience enjoyed Calvary's thundering guitar sound while listening to songs off their current EP. SouthSide like one particular song in which it had the sound and feel of a ballad by taking the hardcore rhythm down a notch. This song truly highlighted the lead guitarist's vocals while still retaining that certain umph inside the music. This reviewer also recommends listening to songs - Lesson in Lies and Welcome Home. Better yet, check out these rockers live at their next show. For more information, visit www.myspace.com/calvary.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide