08 May 10

...hope you're wearing your earplugs - it's about to get loud...
The Dirty Vibe


Hey, blogspot readers, who wants to be SouthSide's date for the prom? And it won't your ordinary high school prom either. Dressed in her finest prom attire, she along with other invited guests attended the Illys Prom on Saturday night. Held at the ever popular Elbo Room, there was dancing to DJ-ed music and munching on yummy cupcakes as well as stuffing the ballot box for king and queen. Meanwhile downstairs, fans were rockin' to live performances by Hudson's Landing and The Reunion. They also shared the stage with The Dirty Vibe, Red City and Bryan Cherry Band.

There's nothing dirty about this vibe, blogspot readers, yet this rockin' band certainly knew how to make everyone feel so good with their music. Though sensing The Dirty Vibe quote would be an understatement, it was definitely about to get more than loud during this CD release performance. It had plenty of heat from the thundering guitar riffs and fire from Anna (female lead on vocals) which literally set the stage ablaze. And that was merely the opening moments to The Vibe's first song, Fast Enough. SouthSide enjoyed the electricfying rock music full of that "dirty" hardcore sound. She liked that it had a sultry yet rhythmic energy to get you feeling this band's groove. The rockin' instrumentals alone will soak your ears with The Vibe's gritty guitar riffs. This reviewer suggests listening to new song, Can't Go as well as Crazy Girl (for its classic Stax guitar sound that funkified the stage) and I'm Yours (for its heavier bass rhythms which immediately led into Iron Butterfly's Inna Gadda Da Vida teaser at the end). She also suggests listening to Damned for how Anna's voice pumped the emotional angst clearly heard over the mic. Despite having a good performance (again), SouthSide felt The Vibe's cover of Journey's Any Way You Want It sounded too closely like the original recording instead of owning it with their "dirty" style. This reviewer highly recommends catching the rockin' vibe of The Dirty Vibe at their next show. For more information, visit www.myspace.com/thedirtyvibe.


...Cheers, f*ck face...


By now the crowd was warmed and ready to take a rockin' trip to Red City. Though haven't performed for awhile, this popular local band has seriously impressed SouthSide with its stage performance and music. It contained a firecracker energy that's wild with plenty of hairbanging rock tapping into the classic Led Zeppelin-esque genre. Whenever this band hits the stage, blogspot readers, expect lots of hard-hitting guitar riffs in which totally captures the spirit and essence of what rock-n-roll is all about. Even while taking the same momentum and energy to a slower tempo, fans can still clearly hear the fire and passion within Red City's sound as well as Wags' (Red City's front man) voice. That's the moment when this young man absolutely shines on stage pumping that emotional angst over the mic. And tonight it was no different - he truly poured a lot of himself into this performance ...literally lighting up the basement lounge with fan fervor for more. This crowd wanted to feel more of the sultry heat off the guitar sound ...to hear the riffs twittering in their ears especially during the instrumentals ...and groove all night long to Red City's rhythmic rock beat. SouthSide suggests listening to Tightrope and Sandstorm - don't let the slow beginning fool you as it gradually raises the Red City heat towards that explosive headbanging rock while Wags' voice lures you deeper into that rockin' groove. You'll certainly feel the emotional cry when he sings "...she loves me..." waifing throughout the lounge. This song was the highlight of Red City's set. Despite closing this performance with Get My Kicks, fans wanted and received one more for the road. Whew, blogspot readers, what a performance! This reviewer highly suggests taking your own trip to Red City wherever they're rockin' the stage again. For more information, visit www.redcity.tk or www.myspace.com/redcitychicago.


...nipples bleeding - it happens...


Closing out this lineup was the smooth rock vibe of the Bryan Cherry Band from Milwaukee, WI. SouthSide instantly enjoyed the soulful sounds of this band's rhythmic R&B/Soul groove in which she heard plenty of fire and energetic momentum during the instrumentals. The more she listened to Bryan's eclectic sound, the more she realized it wouldn't be fair to box his music into one solid genre. His music covered a wide spectrum of genres such as blues, modern jazz and alternative. She liked how Bryan and the Band at times honed into the early psychedelic phase of Jimi Hendrix however with their own unique rock style. There were moments when the music electrified the stage as well as other moments when a calming downtempo vibe reigned. Yet even while at this slower pace, there was still that fiery spark within this momentum remaining in the electric and bass riffs. What also impressed this reviewer about this band was how Bryan's vocals invoked the essence and spirit of Jimi Hendrix himself. It was like hearing Jimi singing the poetic floetry of BCB's lyrics instead of Bryan. SouthSide sometimes felt his words were taking the audience on a journey into Bryan's innermost private thoughts with the music blindly following his every move wherever his words led. Both music and lyrics naturally complimented each other which had this reviewer sensing it was personal from the heart. And when he's not singing, listen carefully to the unspoken hidden lyrics "spoken" by the electric guitar. SouthSide highly recommends listening to Laura and You Can Bring Me Flowers for that personal poetic feel to BCB's songs. She suggests listening to Act A Fool and How It's Gonna Be for the way BCB can electrify and funkify the stage with its trippy Hendrix rock vibe. If you're between the Madison/Milwaukee area during May 21 - 23, check out Jam For Jam 2010 in which the Bryan Cherry Band will rock the stage on May 22. For more information about this event, visit www.jamforjam.com. For more information about Bryan Cherry Band, visit www.bryancherryband.com or www.facebook.com/bryancherryband.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide