12 July 13

Hey, blogspot readers, SouthSide's Friday night has just begun!

Rockin' Chicago's music scene didn't stop after seeing Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters at Grant Park. No, it was time to rock some more with her friends of Alice Sweet Alice at Hard Rock Cafe.  From Kansas City, Mo, this band was on a summer tour in support of their latest release, Ribbons & Stone opening for headlining local band Pez Band.

It has been a long while since SouthSide has seen Alice Sweet Alice performing on stage and this was a great opportunity to hear selections off Ribbons & Stone live in front of a crowd at this River North venue.  Opening the set with a rather somber but lively tune Glorious Excess that impressively demonstrated the dynamic mixed with soul in Ali' vocals,  this band, blogspot readers, showed signs of progression since the last time this reviewer saw them. The tone of the evening was more focused on bringing out the soul and heartfelt sound in the vocals as well as keeping the music on an upbeat tempo (at times) even though the subject may be slightly heavy handed for such a tempo.

For example, check out the song, Spiral (track 7 on the album) in which Ali, in this reviewer's honest opinion, shined underneath the staged lighting as she poured not only her heart but also her soul into the microphone delivering such a powerful tour de force of emotions.  And this wasn't the only moment either. She kept the powerful vocal display going during M.I.A. (track 3 on the album) amidst an energizing alternative rock sound and Scott (Alice Sweet Alice's bassist) backing her on her vocals. His deep baritone voice added more depth and meaning to the lyrics at the chorus. Scott took the audience All Around The World (track 5) with his deep heartfelt tone while grooving to that unique music combination of a haunting melodic sound intricately woven into an upbeat rhythm thus creating a nice danceable beat. During this particular song, Alice Sweet Alice almost had a powerpop/shoegaze vibe going on at Hard Rock Cafe.

The song of the night for SouthSide would have to be Alice's Full Circle where you felt more than just Ali's vocals on the lyrics ...you literally feel the pent up electric charge and energy as she soulfully wows the ears! This was her intense "I am woman hear me roar" moment on stage, blogspot readers, especially during the chorus. She truly showed us what it feels like to be frustrated when a relationship going so good has now reached its full circle and wasn't the woman to be pushed around with flimsy promises and such. And though the lighting sequence for this song was a bit distracting when switching between the bright white to violet, it along with the music wonderfully matched Ali's vocal temperament and tone before closing the show with Burden Of Truth - another powerful display of vocals amidst a vibrant powerpop-like vibe within rock alternative sound.

Even though it was a rather short performance for Alice Sweet Alice, blogspot readers, SouthSide does highly recommend checking out this band live at their next show as well as snagging a copy of Ribbons & Stone. This reviewer recommends listening to the title track first before putting the rest of the CD on random mode to hear the other selections like Heroes, Breakout and Worth The Wait. Fans will enjoy the dark overtones within a couple of Alice's songs but don't let that scare your ears away ...it's to highlight the heartfelt emotions being projected within the lyrics. For information about Alice Sweet Alice, visit http://www.alicesweetalice.com.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide

12 July 13

SouthSide has finally basked within the grace of THE rock god of all rock gods inside Valhalla. And with one word, it was AMAZING, blogspot readers! 

Tonight, this reviewer kicked off her double-header Friday night adventure around town with a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to see Robert Plant along with his touring band Sensational Space Shifters when they headlined day 3 of the 33rd Taste of Chicago. This legendary rocker and band simply wowed the crowd of hundreds of thousands with classic Led Zeppelin as well as a few eclectic fusion of African/blues/soft rock during this near two hour performance ...and it went beyond hearing the some of standards like Stairway To Heaven, Kashmir (SouthSide's favorite Led Zeppelin song) and Immigrant Song. No, blogspot readers, Robert Plant performed a rare blues standard Spoonful (loosely based on A Spoonful of Blues,  a song recorded in 1929 by Charley Patton here in Chicago) to a semi-acoustic yet very moving version of Going To California and other songs in between.

With his setlist comprised of songs highlighting Led Zeppelin through the years (as well as his solo song - In The Mood), Robert Plant and Sensational Space Shifters revived certain songs with a fresh sound that incorporated either an earthy/tribal vibe (with the inclusion of African instruments) or an experimental/cosmic soundwave. Amidst the eclectic fusion, you could also hear a bit of Eastern influence within that West African mix to give the music a somewhat sultry dance groove. This unique combination heard throughout the performance kept many (even the hardcore) Zeppelin fans groovin' on the grassy field of Grant Park ...sometimes you could even hear parts of the crowd singing along with the band to their favorite songs. Performing songs like Baby I'm Gonna Leave You, Gonna Make You Sweat (which had the crowd singing the "ah ah ah" part) and Black Dog, this reviewer enjoyed how Robert's voice hasn't aged with time almost sounding the same as the recorded Zeppelin. Yes, his raspy soulful blues style can still give SouthSide the thrilling chills especially when singing Whole Lotta Love.

Yet, he also added more instrumental jams and bridges to allow fans, a wonderful diverse showing of young and old crossing all generation, bask what was the some of the legendary band's very best, blogspot readers. Basically, this was as close to a real Led Zeppelin concert it was going to get for this reviewer and many others attending the performance. The classic Led Zeppelin hits like Whole Lotta Love (featuring a few bars of Bo Didley's Who Do Love at the bridge), In The Mood, and What Is And What Should Never Be garnered plenty of cheers from the crowd especially during the beautifully moving version of Going To California. It was so moving that a couple got engaged, blogspot readers!  The crowd (when this reviewer took a minute to observe) was thoroughly enjoying themselves with lively dance circles and bouts of singing the lyrics like during Going To California. And when it was over, Robert and the band left this crowd hungry for more Led Zeppelin ...or just for more Robert Plant in general as he appeased their appetites with hot version of Rock and Roll as an encore.

If you get a chance, check out Robert Plant presents Sensational Space Shifters as they tour the US at particular music festivals this summer, blogspot readers. It's an experience you're never going to forget...

The Sensational Space Shifters band is Robert Plant, Patty Griffin (vocals, guitars), Juldeh Camara of JuJu (African violin and banjo and vocals), Justin Adams of JuJu (guitar, bendir and vocals), John Baggott of Massive Attack (keys), Liam Tyson of Cast (guitar, vocals), Dave Smith of JuJu (drums) and Billy Fuller of JuJu (bass, vocals).

For more information, visit Robert Plant's official website http://www.robertplant.com for tour information and more.

Until next time, support your local scene,

SouthSide

07 July 13

Which wine pairs better with your music - red or white, blogspot readers? Tonight's On The Town adventure took SouthSide on a rare journey deep within the West Loop area for an evening of soul/funk/neo-R&B at City Winery. This music revue featured local bands The Diplomats of Solid Sound with The Diplomettes and The Right Now with The Heard headlining the lineup and DJ sets by DJRC and Mr. Gac with a funky montage of video images accompanying the music. 

This was SouthSide's first time visiting City Winery which is also a full-scale restaurant/wine bar as well as a sophisticated music venue. City Winery, blogspot readers, can almost be compared to Roger Park's Mayne Stage. The venue itself is quite spacious with ample seating and room near the stage for dancing. However during this performance, the tables in this reviewers were set too closely to each other that you don't have enough room to either move and/or sit comfortably without trying to bump into your table neighbors. SouthSide did browse through the menu which offered a delicious array  of yummy food selections to appease your foodie palette. Yet, the main feature of City Winery of course is the wines and it's very extensive with a suggested house selection for tonight's music performance as well as a list of imported and US craft beers. City Winery does also has whiskeys but not much in the cocktail department (they only have The Manhattan) which was somewhat a disappointment for this reviewer. Then again, blogspot readers, this venue's main focus is wines from France, Italy and California that you can either be served from the tap or bottle.

Opening the evening of funk/soul revue was a lively DJ set by host Rich aka DJRC featuring a mix of his favorite sounds of past, present and modern soul/R&B/funk, blogspot readers. Along with his video montage (that included classic clips from Soul Train and a 70s car commercial), the unique combination of sight and sound not only dazzled its audience but also warmed them up amidst the cool AC before  The Diplomats of Solid Sound took the stage. This reviewer enjoyed The Diplomats' set but feels it could have been better if the female vocalists, Sarah and Kathy aka The Diplomettes, displayed more of an energizing force in the vocal department to match the fiery soul of the band's music. There were moments, blogspot readers, when both vocalists complemented the music backing them (i.e. Give Me One More Chance) however there were times when the vocals seem lackluster and didn't have that soulful umph to boost the emotion and/or heighten the lyrics to make the soul pop to life. To SouthSide, they seemed to be holding back just a little until the right song or moment to really drive home that dynamic soulful voice to wow the audience. The band behind The Diplomats of Solid Sound was indeed solid in the sound department, blogspot readers. This reviewer found the music to be fiercely intense as well as coolly smooth within its R&B/funk soul fusion that offered lots of energizing buzz especially when you have hot rhythms from the saxophone and steamy funk from the guitars and drums. Even though the saxophone was sometimes virtually overshadowed by the rest of the band, it still made its presence heard and known like during the instrumental jam that set the stage ablaze with a fiery rhythmic beat and swinging tempo for some daring enough to dance near the stage. For more information about The Diplomats of Solid Sound, visit http://www.myspace.com/thediplomatsofsolidsound.

Where The Diplomats of Solid Sound lacked in the vocal department, The Right Now's female lead vocalist made up for it, blogspot readers. Not only did she popped that wow factor with her soulfully dynamic voice but also upped the sex appeal that truly complemented the band and its image for the audience. Hot is not the word for this band's performance at City Winery. It was a steamy ...sultry as well as groove-tastic performance full of rhythmic beats and melodies from beginning to end. This band knew how to get many within the seated area to gravitate towards the dance floor even while it got a little crazy when Adam and Lucas (of The Heard) joined The Right Now thus turning up the funkified rhythm section to full blast. It was an explosion of soul rocking not only the stage but the dance floor during the instrumental bridge. Yet it was Stephanie and her voice which had everyone feeling this band's groove, blogspot readers. At times, she could fog up the room from the sultry sexiness of her voice projected over the microphone especially while the band performed in a downtempo rhythm thus allowing her to shine but when the tempo was more upbeat and happening, that was when she popped the entire to life. *fans self* And when the moment was right - Stephanie didn't hold any emotions back as the intense energy bouncing off the band behind The Right Now assisted in helping her vocals be more expressive on the lyrics. She let the audience have it all including some sassy body language to complete the sex appeal for the band. The true highlight of this set was when she did an acoustic version to Prince's How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore (a rarely covered B-side). Overall, blogspot readers, SouthSide says be prepared to sweat as you groove to the funk/soul sounds of The Right Now at their next performance. This band definitely turned up the heat (even with the AC going) by dazzling the audience with its rockin' energy and steamy yet sultry female vocals by Stephanie. The touch of craziness is simply an added bonus to keep you locked within The Right Now groove. For more information, visit The Right Now at http://www.therightnow.com.

Get your dance shoes on! It's now truly the time to party, blogspot readers, with The Heard! This local funk jam band many within the audience (including good friend August Forte) kicking up their heels to the rhythmic sounds of their funk/soul fusion on the dance floor area. SouthSide instantly liked The Heard's brand of lively energy and funk vibe as each member got down with their bad selves especially when they paid tribute to James Brown at the beginning of their set. It was very cool to see how his musical legacy had some influence on the music before moving onward to other instrumental songs like The Walrus and Spoon Fork. The music, blogspot readers, can be simplistic with its rhythmic tempo and upbeat groove as well as complex from the way these musicians (especially the hot rhythm section) added a little music piece of themselves into the notes. For instance, listen to The Heard's epic piece titled The Falcon in which you will feel yourself vibrantly soar amongst the towering crescendoes while experiencing the intense melodic tempo around you. The horns vividly expressed the spiraling dizziness of your winged flight as the rest of the band dips and upswings to new heights upon coming towards the end. Then set got a little hotter and a whole lot steamier when Stephanie (of The Right Now) leant her dynamic voice during this performance adding more spice and spitfire that matched The Heard's smooth floetry style. Not to worry, blogspot readers, if you missed this rousing funkified performance by this local band. You can catch The Heard rockin' the stage every Thursday night at aliveOne (located 2683 N. Halsted) ...just be prepared to dance your pants off while having a funky good time. For more information about The Heard, visit http://www.theheardfunk.com.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide

One On One With Don Preston

He's a legendary jazz musician and has been part of the Detroit jazz scene back in the 1950's gigging with the likes of Charlie Haden in Los Angeles ...has done experimental music in the 1960's and performed with a band called Aha!. This artist has played and recorded with other artists such as John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Peter Erskine and John Carter as well as Chicago's very own Lou Rawls, Al Jarreau, Nat King Cole, Connie Francis, Leo Sayer and the list goes on and on. He has scored more than 20 feature films (including a part of the Apocalypse Now soundtrack) and 14 plays and has been confused for the lead guitarist of Joe Crocker and Leon Russell because they share the same name, blogspot readers. Besides collaborating and working with Frank Zappa, his long and extensive music career includes performing with the Los Angeles and London Philharmonics to acting in films like Forbidden Island (1944), Ogo Moto (1969) and 200 Motels (1970). 

Who is this mystery musician you might ask?

If you've guessed keyboardist Don Preston, then you're absolutely correct, blogspot readers. And recently while he was traveling to his next gig, SouthSide had the extreme honor of chatting with Don about his extensive music career (including that infamous scene in Apocalypse Now), how he met Frank Zappa, his likes and dislikes for modern music in general, his current project Grandmothers Of Invention and doing magic tricks.

From Don's biography, Crytogramophone Records, he has been compared to Cecil Taylor because of "...his style of attacking the keys with intense passion ...his solos also reflect intellect, technical skills and a storyteller's way with a line..." and "...his playing, like his compositions, ranges across panoramas of mood and emotion ...all colored with the freedom that comes from possessing remarkable facility..." SouthSide while asking Don to describe his vast music career that spanned over six (6) decades somewhat stumped him but then he answered with "...age begets life and fame ...that's how I would sum up my life..." She wondered if he meant with age does he feel he gets better with his musical craft to which he said "...I don't think I'm better..." In fact, Don believes that he has harder challenges to meet as he grows older. For example, he has listened to older recordings from 40 years ago and compared them to what he can and/or cannot do today. "...Now, I'm facing challenges I wasn't able to do then but able to do..."  During the course of the interview, this reviewer wanted to know if Don has ever considered returning to his Jazz roots in which he answered that he never left it. He did tell SouthSide that as soon as he's finished with this tour that he along with the drummer will be performing with Bobby Bradford in his band. Don also mentioned that he's always writing Jazz songs and performs once and  a while at Jazz clubs.

Then, she asked him for his opinion about today's modern rock music wondering if it lost its creativity and/or artistic symbolism. Don doesn't know if it lost its symbolism however he has noted that something should be done about the music writing and has heard people singing the same one note. "...rock music has lost [its] creativity and [become] too commercialized..." says Don. He also made reference to the rap/hip hop music scene mentioning it as "...people talk..." in which he said "...it's not music..." and it's boring. On the flip side, blogspot readers, he has seen a rap group during one particular evening and commented that they were good. Getting back to his original point about rock music and due to its limitation to the same 4 / 4 beat count, Don stated that was the basic reason why he doesn't listen to modern rock music much. Yet, there were couple of bands which he likes - Throbbing Gristle (one of the first bands to perform industrial music) and  Henry Cow (it was rumored the band took the name for an American composer Henry Cowell but the band members have denied it) featuring Chris Cutler who was also part of Art Bears with Fred Frith (a multi-instrumentalist i.e. piano, guitar, violin) to which he likened to Frank Zappa for his composition writing. As far as modern rock goes, Don does like the Chicago indie band called Yellow Jacket saying "...they're amazing ...very good..." after seeing them perform at one of their recent performances.

So how did Don Preston and Frank Zappa meet? According to Don, it was around 1961 when both were performing a concert inside a huge concert hall that had about 5 to 6 stages of live performances. He said they exchanged phone numbers and that was it until later he (Zappa) called for Don to do an audition. "...I came to his house..." says Don telling SouthSide Frank had a basic band set up - organ, guitars and drums as well as a record collection almost similar to him ...classical composers to which Don calls his "...kind of music..." Back in those days, blogspot readers, Frank Zappa was experimental with music and Don had a group of his own scoring art films and movies. "...sometimes Zappa would jam with us if you could call it that..." Don states, "...[it was] mostly metallic..." then adding that "...Zappa  would show up at my house  with long hair and a monkey coat ...you couldn't tell where the hair ended and the coat began..." Don told this reviewer that original name for the band was Mother but since in those days the word "mother" was meant for something else (think one of those 7 words you can't say or use), the record company came up with the band name Mothers Of Invention. However, Don couldn't join the band because according to Frank "...I didn't know anything about rock-n-roll..." So in order to "know rock-n-roll", blogspot readers, Don began working with a lot of rock bands before auditioning for Zappa's band again. By this time, Mothers Of Invention was working a little more and gaining more popularity with Herb Cohen as their manager. And the rest ...is history.

SouthSide wanted to know what was it about Frank Zappa as a musician that had Don collaborating with him. "...as a musician, he [Frank] couldn't read simple music..." answers Don, "...[but] as a composer, he wrote complicated pieces..." which Don cannot explain why that was. He did state saying over the years, Frank became a fairly good reader of music that Don found his solos interesting even though Frank thought he was inadequate. "...reading music is a skill not a talent..." Don told SouthSide while describing that Frank was exceptional as a writer to which likened Frank's style to Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. Since Don has worked with many ...the best of the best within the music industry, this reviewer wondered if there was anyone he would like to work with and/or collaborate. Well, blogspot readers, "...that's one of the problems when getting older ...a lot or people you want to work with end up dying..." He would like to work with progressive rock musician Tony Levin (of King Crimson) as well as do a duet with jazz pianist Paul Bley (who plays with saxophonist Sonny Rollins). And the name dropping continued when Don told SouthSide a story about the time he had dinner with Paul and Carla Bley - his close friends since 1955. He told her that she was very innovative back then and wrote most of the music for him as well as writing Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra.

Remember when SouthSide mentioned earlier that Don Preston was an actor? She, then, asked him if he had the chance to portray anyone or any character in a movie who would it be. There are several he would like to play but he chose astronomer Carl Sagan (believe it or not, Don has an interest in astronomy) and swashbuckler legend Errol Flynn to which he and SouthSide having something in common - their favorite Flynn movie, The Adventures of Robin Hood. Don even gave her some movie facts about Flynn's role as Robin Hood because it's widely known the studio thought he (Errol Flynn) wasn't a good actor. So to prove them wrong Errol did his scene separately from his co-star the lovely Olivia de Havilland. Now if there was going to be a movie on his life story, SouthSide wanted to know who would Don like to have portraying him. It was a tough question for this jazz legend to answer, blogspot readers. "...it would take a week to go through all of the actors..." who would audition for the role. Don did mention seeing Burt Lancaster portraying him because he's "...a dynamic actor ...did so much with his characters in his movies..." and the late comedian Richard Pryor or an actor with "...a combination of the two..." About Richard Pryor, Don called him one of the funniest people on the planet and then began telling SouthSide a story about the time when he saw Pat Collins the Hip Hypnotist hypnotized a little boy into being Richard Pryor after asking him along with others what they wanted to be. "...here's a white boy without any color prejudice became Richard Pryor..." he said stating the boy was good as he could be especially when telling the audience a classic Richard Pryor joke!

As a member of the Grandmothers Of Invention, Don explained to SouthSide the difference between them and other Frank Zappa tribute bands. "...we're older now so we can't be called Mothers Of Invention..." Don laughs, but the "...main difference is that with Napoleon Murphy Brock and myself are the only members of Mothers Of Invention today [still] performing..." since they were with Frank Zappa when he was creating and teaching the music. One thing she didn't know about the original band set for Mothers Of Invention, blogspot readers, was that they were all equal members with rights and privileges to the band. By the time it was 1974, Frank Zappa's writing not only got better but also weirder with songs like Don't Eat The Yellow Snow, The Booger Man and Po-Jama People. Don also mentioned that most fans have probably been to a previous Grandmothers Of Invention show "...so they know our level of musicship [and] where it should be..." Don called a live performance of Grandmothers Of Invention show to the level of music theater. It's "...full of surprises..." says Don before adding "...a lot of things are going on ...not your run of the mill [Frank] Zappa band..." During this tour, Don and the band are featuring the CD in its entirety, One Size Fits All which was one of the more popular Zappa albums than Live At The Roxy and Burnt Weeny Sandwich. He encourages fans to sing along with the Grandmothers Of Invention especially when they perform Sofa (that's only sung in German).  Oh, be on the lookout for Don doing magic tricks while he's playing the keyboard like eggs coming out of his mouth. Yes, you heard right, blogspot readers, eggs coming out of Don's mouth.

Sadly, as the interview came to a close, SouthSide relied a message of "hej" ("hi" in Swedish) to Don from her friend Jessica and Don responded back that they might be bringing Grandmothers Of Invention tour there. He had more parting words about Grandmothers Of Invention for fans "...hear the music the way Frank Zappa wanted it to be played ...it would be the way he wanted us to play [with long instrumentals and extra bridges] ...he would never wanted us to play like the record..." also adding "...[we] try to make it [live Grandmothers Of Invention performance] a very exciting show..." Oh, SouthSide did ask about his contribution to the soundtrack of Apocalypse Now and Don told her it was music to the head tossing scene. Lastly, Don wanted all of Chicago to know that he loves our city. "...it's one of the beautiful cities in the states..." SouthSide in turn invited him to attend the annual food event - Taste of Chicago to sample the city's culinary best if he had time.

Thanks to Billy James of Glass Onyon PR for setting up this interview and to Don Preston for taking time out (while on the road) to chat with SouthSide.

For more information, visit Grandmothers Of Invention at http://www.grandmothersofinvention.com.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide

05 July 13 - World War Z

**this review contains no spoilers**

"Mother Nature is a serial killer..." ~ World War Z

In a time where zombies and vampires seem to be Hollywood's latest cash cow, World War Z isn't your average ...run of the mill zombie movie, blogspot readers. Actually this summer  blockbuster offers a plausible scenario (just like another movie - Contagion) where the entire world is infected by a fast spreading disease which could ultimately wipe out the human race. Yet unlike Contagion, World War Z doesn't offer a solid solution to this devastating problem ...but a sliver of hope that it can be wiped out in a matter of time.

Based on a book by Max Brooks, World War Z stars Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane, a family man of two daughters but more importantly a former UN worker who has worked with, in and around dangerous situations before. But nothing like he's about to face after witnessing what appears to be a zombie attacking a human during the middle of petrified chaos when a explosion rocks the busy Manhattan area. He and his family are able to escape out of the city (just barely) and face terrifying obstacles while spending an overnight stay in New Jersey before help finally arrives to get them. Good thing too because these zombies are quite smart, blogspot readers. Don't think of them as the slow-moving, "hungry for brains" ones like George Romero's Night of the Living Dead. In this movie, they're fast-moving living dead that can sniff out healthy humans to attack. By the time rescue arrives, Newark, New Jersey is overrun ...practically every major city in east including Washington DC has been overrun by zombies. Now begins the fatal race against time since even the world's foremost experts on diseases don't know whether these attacks are caused by something viral or bacterial and they need to find the answers to pinpoint where this began and by what or whom. This task, forcefully bestowed upon Gerry when "asked" to help in this search, has him traveling to places like South Korea and Israel where he discovers (a) how widespread the pandemic is and (b) clues on how the living dead function ie what attracts them to non-dead humans. With the help of an injured Israeli soldier and doctors at a W.H.O. (World Health Organization) facility, he finds a possible solution after remembering what he witnessed when hordes of zombies attacked in Jerusalem. It may not be the best solution yet it does give the surviving human race a chance to live and fight for another day...

Though this movie leaves you clueless as to who is "patient 0" and where did the epidemic began, World War Z, blogspot readers, is truly one of those types of movies that a scenario could possibly happen within the present and/or near future time. Look at the recent years when N1H1 (or swine flu) or H7N9 (bird flu) as well as mad cow disease dominated the news feed. Plus there are other incurable diseases that lurk somewhere in the far reaches of the world we don't know about which one day could start a pandemic like World War Z but probably not like a horrifying zombie attack ...then again, who knows what such disease might do to humans once infected. SouthSide didn't mean to frighten some blogspot readers yet it's the reality we as a human race need to face as medical technology and medicine  continues to advance. Just hope something like this never happens. This reviewer had fun getting sucked into the fast paced action that takes you on and plausible movie plot (despite not having the chance to read Max Brook's book) as well as the intense scenes whenever the zombies happen to appear without a moment's notice. Believe, this reviewer when she says "intense".  She saw a theater full of adults jumping with fright during those moments since World War Z isn't the usual "in your face gore" type of movie. This movie relies on the subtlety of the zombie character to appear out of nowhere to give you that chilling sensation of fright. And there's nothing like a zombie suddenly appearing on screen to make grown men scream inside a dark theater. SouthSide doesn't seel Brad Pitt's Gerry Lane character as the"hero" even though he took some incredible (and terrifying) risks to not only save his family but the rest of world throughout this movie. The character did fight the odds stacked against him when he came close to being zombie food especially during one scene  he injects himself with a deadly disease. As a Muse fan, this reviewer instantly recognized the band's songs 2nd Law: Isolated System and Follow Me (off Muse's current release - 2nd Law) and original music by Marco Beltrami. The Beltrami-Matthew Bellamy music combination gave this reviewer a unique thrill ride of orchestrated and synthesized sound while watching this movie. She can see where Bellamy and Muse got their inspiration for the album's other songs like Panic Station, Supremacy, and Survival since it's known they were reading the book while recording.

Overall, blogspot readers, this reviewer highly recommends seeing World War Z.

July 2013 update

Hey, blogspot readers, check out the following additions that will also be rockin' the local scene in July.


Note: all shows are 21+ unless stated otherwise.

Now til 6:

Fitzgerald's - check out Fitzgerald's 33rd Annual American Music Festival in which this 4 day fest (started on July 3) will be featuring 40+ bands on 3 stages with live performance by The Shams Band, The Fleshtones and many more.

$30 per day / 4 day pass - $100 / Kids 12 and under $5 (welcomed until 10p)

July 5:

Abbey Pub - The Hyperion Battle of the Bands competition comes to Chicago! Cheer on and vote for your favorite band as they try to earn a spot at Hyperion Music & Arts Festival 2013.

July 7:

Corrosive Musick presents Die Sektor, Frontal Boundary and Cobalt Core featuring DJ Restriction and Circuitry

July 12 - 14:

Lincoln Square - it's the Square Roots 2013 featuring over 60 musical and over 30 craft beers (must be 21+ to drink)

For more information, visit http://www.squareroots.org

July 12:
LiveWire Lounge - get your glam rock on with TAFKAVince Band featuring Meds, Daredevil Date and Vaudevileins

July 13:

LiveWire Lounge - rock with Sinister Fate, Radio Creeps and more to be announced

$5

July 15:
Uncommon Ground (Devon location) - check out whitewolfsonicprincess' live performance here

July 19:

Hard Rock Cafe - The Grahams will performing their forthcoming album Riverman's Daughter before its official September 3 release

EXIT - attend Blacklight Blackout's 2 year Anniversary party featuring a pinata and other surprises as well as drink specials, free UV-Reactive body painting by Cold! and Squeak of Cybertribe Body Painting, a raffle for a Super Nintendo and games, DJ sets and much more
FREE

Uncommon Ground (Clark location) - Adam Klein & the Wild Fires bring their tour to Chicago featuring Ida Jo and James Buckett
$7

July 20:

Subterranean - The Damn Choir will be headlining this venue's lineup as well as performing a handful of other local shows before heading to Brooklyn to record with producer Bryce Coggin (The Ramones, Akron Family)

Metro - be seen along with the other beautiful creatures and vampires of the night during the next monthly NOCTURNA meeting ...now in it's 25th year and still going strong!
18+ / $10 / dance til dawn (5a)

July 21:

Ultra Lounge - Brickwall Vultures and Sniper 66 will be rockin' the stage

$5 adv / $8 dos

July 26:

Cobra Lounge - come out and Support Local Music Summer Metal Showcase II featuring Rock In Chicago alumni Beyond Death, Taken by the Sun and Awdacity ...bands and more details will be announced soon

July 27 - 28:

Wicker Park (Milwaukee and North Avenues) - it's the annual Wicker Park Fest that will features 20+ bands like The Bright White, Workout Music, Hey Champ, Mucca Pazza and many more on 3 stages.

$5

July 28:

Double Door - B-Side Kings will be performing 70s deep cuts

FREE / 9p show time

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates as they come, blogspot readers...

Until next time, support your local scene,

SouthSide

GrandMothers of Invention

Hey, blogspot readers and Zappa fans, SouthSide recently received a press release about an upcoming tour show rockin' Chicago's Martyrs' on July 12. After wowing audiences during their month long tour in Europe, The GrandMothers of Invention featuring Zappa Alumni Don Preston and Napoleon Murphy Brock will be bringing the a "One Size Fits All And More" to the US this summer which recently began on June 23 at San Juan Capistrano, CA. Other US tour stops will include stops in North Carolina, New York, and Michigan.

Along with Don Preston and Napoleon Murphy Brock, The GrandMothers of Invention also features Christopher Garcia (drums, percussion, marimba and vocals), Dave Johnsen (electric bass and vocals), and Max Kutner (electric guitar and vocals) as they perform the legendary Zappa album One Size Fits All in its entirety. The performance will also include other MOI/Zappa favorites such as Bongo Fury, Roxy & Elsewhere and Uncle Meat.

Napoleon says "...If you liked last year's tours of us performing the entire 'Roxy & Elsewhere' album, you will really have fun this tour, because we are doing 'One Size Fits All' in its entirety! [which according to the press release includes both German and English version of "Sofa"]..."  He also wants fans to know the difference between the GrandMothers Of Invention performing last year's "Roxy" and this year's "One Size Fits All" is - the original lead singer for both albums is the same lead singer performing your favorite songs, blogspot readers, live on stage. Be certain, this is NOT a tribute band you will be seeing rockin' the stage. "...The GrandMothers Of Invention is the ONLY band currently playing the music of Frank Zappa with two of the original members of the Mothers Of Invention..." He encourages fans to come out to the shows and sing along with the band to their favorite songs.

Meanwhile, here's what Don says about the tour "...this tour will be quite an adventure as we will be performing the entire 'One Size Fits All' CD..." adding that "...'Inca Roads' is one of Zappa's best efforts in music writing along with other songs on that CD..." And what about the band? "...the band is ready..." Don states, "...this band is the tightest ever!" Then, he concluded with the following "...of course, that includes the songs that Napoleon recorded with Zappa like 'Andy',  'Florentine Pogan' and 'Sofa [#] 2' ...I will have some surprises that are just too weird to reveal..." In other words, blogspot readers, you have to be there to witness what Don will do during the performance.

So far, GrandMothers Of Invention have been receiving rave reviews from the press like "...rare are the musicians who can even play Zappa's music, let alone make it live and breathe. So Thank the Lord for the GrandMothers of Invention..." to "...with two different Zappa eras represented, the GrandMothers have a wide palette of material to choose from..." as well as "...they served up vintage psychedelia - rock songs with surreal lyrics, jazz-like harmonies and melodic complexity, with flashes of wacky satire..." and simply "...amazing virtuoso musicians, fun and funny..."

For more information about "One Size Fits All" tour and tickets, visit the GrandMothers Of Invention official website at http://www.grandmothersofinvention.com or their Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/grandmothersofinvention.

Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide