03 Jul 14

SHE'S BACK!

Yep, blogspot readers, SouthSide has returned home from her mini "vacation" in Milwaukee rockin Summerfest 2014. However as soon as she unpacked, it was back on the music beat checking out the touring bands making pit stops in Chicago before heading to Summerfest for the July 4th holiday. Tonight, she's at Lakeview's Schuba's Tavern for some highly intense energetic rock by The Black Cadillacs before heading to Smartbar (the nightclub underneath Metro) the monthly edition of [synthetic].  

Describing themselves as "...all the way live...", this quintet of musicians from Knoxville, TN told SouthSide in a recent interview to expect "...a loud and spirited rock and roll performance..." since they wholeheartedly feel "...that's why people come back to see [us]..." Well, blogspot readers, the "loud" and " spirited" part about this band definitely sums them up correctly after their Chicago performance even though for this reviewer, it was more than loud and spirited. From beginning to end, she had never seen SO much foot-stompin' and jumpin' around the Schuba's stage during her many years covering the local scene. That poor stage took a pretty good beating tonight. Throughout her time with The Black Cadillacs, there was hot, sweaty excitement in the air, blogspot readers, and it wasn't solely contained to the stage ...but within the crowded floor as well. When The Black Cadillacs opened their headlining performance, it didn't begin with a whimper. The entire venue felt this heart-pounding intense bang of energetic rock exploding forth that immediately had many around SouthSide moving to the rhythmic rock beat. The stage was literally bursting to life with music note after note ...just remember this is merely the opening song because it stayed that way until the very end when shouts for "one more song" could be heard. Yes, blogspot readers, there certainly a whole lot of shakin', rockin' and rollin' going on with this band. Enough so, that SouthSide could feel the earth move beneath her feet. These Cadillacs know how to rock and do it quite seriously while still having fun.

"...As far as the set goes, we try to keep it fresh [for ourselves and the audience hahah] every night..." the guys mentioned to this reviewer during the interview, "...whether that means catering to a specific room or audience, we like to move stuff around..." Now during their performance, she doesn't know if they moved the set around however The Black Cadillacs did a fine job of keeping everyone moving and shaking to the music even when taking the intense energy down several notches to allow Will (front man on vocals/harmonica/tambourine) to spotlight his vocals. Not to worry, blogspot readers, the energy is still there yet with enough punch within the chorus to get your feet moving to the twitterpating guitar riffs or the fast thunderous percussion rhythms. And the foot-stomping doesn't stop while in a downtempo groove. You're not encouraged to stand and watch them perform, blogspot reader. Nay, you're suppose to enjoy yourself too whether you're listening to songs like "Find My Own Way" or "Classic Fool" or "Run Run" (off their current release Run) in which the guys recommend listening because they will give you "....a good idea of our influences..." During their set, SouthSide heard electric bluegrass as well as some country rock laced within The Black Cadillacs Americans music. It's that kind of combination, blogspot readers which truly drove this crowd wild with passionate music fervor ...thus leaving you with a sense of amazement of how rapidly their performance went because you're having a good time. That's how SouthSide felt. Not a single minute was wasted of depriving fans away from what they came for - a rockin' good time. It was so much fun and intense that bassist Philip broke a string but continued playing with the 3 other strings. Did SouthSide mention it was sweaty too? If this Chicago show was any indication of how it was going to be at Summerfest, then blogspot readers, everyone in Milwaukee was in for a real rockin' treat with this band.

When chatting with at the guys, SouthSide was curious about Knoxville and its local scene there to which they replied. "...Knoxville is kinda perfect for a band finding itself..." adding "...it had a surprisingly supportive arts community ...it [Knoxville] is not a huge city so you have an opportunity to test your material without a lot of risk..." Then mentioning also how Knoxville "...allows you to grow with a scene ...[and] is traditionally more of an Americana town but it seems like all genres are well received..." So besides, Summerfest, blogspot readers, The Black Cadillacs have a busy rest of 2014 planned for themselves like recording a new album and touring which they're excited for what the future may hold for them as a band. "...we will be on the road this fall and you can definitely look forward to some new music from us soon..." Hopefully, that would include a stop in Chicago before old man winter returns. Still like every touring band, the Cadillacs main goal, blogspot readers, is "..that people dug the music that we played and that they will come back ...see us again the next time. That's all we can ask for really..." And lastly, The Black Cadillacs would like to express their thanks for coming to their show at Schuba's as well as reading this article. "...check out our music at http://www.TheBlackCadillacs.com.

Thanks to The Black Cadillacs for taking time out for this interview. SouthSide highly recommends checking out this band while currently on its summer tour.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide