City Winery will show two music documentaries in the coming weeks, Beatles documentary Good Ol Freda and End Of The Century: The Story Of The Ramones.The movies will be projected onto dual 90-inch screens in the performance area, utilizing the winerys sound system and seating, with food service and themed drink specials available.End...

Medeski, Scofield, Martin & Woods Juice is the perfect album for jam fans and jazz fans alike.Taking a more laid-back approach than 2006s Out Louder, the four master musicians work their way through jazz, fusion and rock with a deceptive ease, making difficult compositions and inventive solos sound unbelievably easy.Juice abandons the abrasive...

JRAD painted a psychedelic masterpiece in front of the crowd at Concord Music Hall last night. Quick turnaround on a bunch of media (thanks, Jeff), so dive right in.See you tonight!JRAD Chicago 9.19.14Set 1Beat It On Down The Line ^ (SM)Friend Of The Devil (TH) >Cumberland Blues (All) >Viola Lee Blues (...

There has been a treasure trove of incredible video and audio to emerge from last weekend's Phases Of The Moon festival.  I won't be able to share all of it (though I just might try).These two sets get the first treatment though.  They were my first SCI experience in about nine years...

Homer: You like ice cream, don't you? Lisa: Uh huh. Homer: And don't you like ice cream better when it's covered with hot fudge? And mounds of whipped cream? And chopped nuts? And, ooh, those crumbled-up cookie things they mash up? Mmm... Crumbled-up cookie things... -- Homer Simpson, explaining hows sports gambling makes a good...

Bifunkal. The name is pretty easy to grasp and certainly is one of the most descriptive band names I've encountered.The criminally underrated duo of Jesse Cryderman and Hershyl Edwards have been dropping funk bombs around Chicago for almost a decade. Their latest release is Animals, a collection of concise funky tunes that will no...

Subtle & Never Excessive - Spoon at Chicago TheaterBy Alex WoodSpoons music is simple, its attributes subtle and never excessive, and their live show is no exception. The Chicago Theaters extraordinary sound quality only brought such nuance to the forefront, a perfect setting to observe a band that has grown into a popularity greater than...

This weekend, we come as close as can be to a pair of "must see" shows on The Barn's calendar:Top notch musicians, who we love as solo acts, as well as supporting players in other bands, coming together as a supergroupThis band's first shows out of the NortheastAll Grateful Dead material (yes, please and...

Intoxicating Music - An Interview With Monophonicsby Brian Brinkman - @sufferingjukeLast week San Franciscos Monophonics headlined a show at Martyrs. A band with ten-years of touring experience, and a workingmans funk approach, theyre an incredibly powerful and engaging live act. I sat down at spoke at length with guitarist Ian McDonald, organist/singer Kelly Finnigan,...

Two Guitars & A Mug Of Tea - Billy Bragg @ City Winery 9/12/14Photos: Heidi Peters | Additional Reporting: Des PetersThe last time Billy Bragg played Chicago's City Winery he brought along his band. This time, he arrived with just two guitars and a mug of tea.Bragg bounded on to stage and after a brief How...