A friend of mine recently issued a challenge.A longtime musician, prolific stoner, and general musical omnivore, he never really "got" the Grateful Dead.He's theright age to have caught their late eighties popularbreakthroughin his impressionable years, and has the propensity to chew on some meaty sonic dishes -- he lists punk, krautrock, psych, jazz...

Something's brewing at Jeff Austin Headquarters.About to set off on a Spring tour of the East and Midwest, he'sgoing digging through the closet of his songbook to bring back some old favorites. To hear him tell it on his Facebook page:Over the last few months I've been bringing back some older songs i...

Here's an interesting way to fill out your March Madness bracket.CBS Sports' Matt Norlander interviewed every coach in the field of 68 teams in the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament about their favorite band.The results teeter on the edge of enlightening and bizarre. A lot of Bruce Springsteen (or course), some Pearl Jam and one...

While classic rock continues to live onthrough tribute bands and reunion tours, the music of Jimi Hendrix can't be contained by a single band or artist.The Experience Hendrix Tour seeks to rectify this, allowing multiple guitariststo celebrate Jimi's life by fronting a crack house band. As you might guess, with a ton of talent...

 The Revivalists are road warriors. Currentlyin the midst of a tour of the West, they've only got a short time off before the resume again in the Southeast and some gigs in their native New Orleans for Jazz Fest.Time for rest, right? Nope. Vocalist David Shaw, true to the hard touring spirit of...

By: Ryan MannixWhen a band walks out to an 8-bit version of their own tunes, you know something strange is about to go down.Dr. Dog used a Nintendo-fied version of "Badvertise" to kick off their show at Riviera Theatreand pivotedinto a psychedelia infused pop and rock showworthy of the creative walk out music.They...

A funny thing happened on the way to this post. I almost didn't publishit.Frequent contributor, photographer Howard Greenblatt, offered photos of Toronzo Cannon's CD Release Party at Fitzgerald's in Berwyn.Now I rarely turn down fine photos, but I just wasn't familiar with Cannon's work, and Howard had already published them on his Facebook...

By: Ryan MannixSteve Kimocks Last Danger of Frost may sound like completely different music than what he's delivered to Chicago-areaaudiences in the past, but this may beas close to the true artist as it gets. Self-recorded, thealbum blends acoustic instrumentation with electronic soundscapes for a lush pastoral sequence crafted more for a seated audience than...

Infamous Stringdusters brought the Ladies & Gentlemen tour to Park West on Friday night, with special guest Nicki Bluhm. She's making a habit of bluegrass sit-ins in Chicago, we last saw her with Greensky Bluegrass around New Years.Nicki guests on "Still The One" on the tour's eponymous album, but on this night she also...

By: Ryan MannixMarbin has come home.After 37 days on the road, the funk-fusion band paired up with local prog-rockers Audiobakery for a Thursday night gig atEmporium Arcade Bar in Wicker Park. A fine opportunity to not only catch two rising acts, but also to enjoy a craft beer while playing Galaga in between sets.That...