First, the setlists. Media toward the bottom of the page.STS98/17/2013First Merit Bank PavillionChicago, ILSet:This, Us > Squares & Cubes, Golden Gate, One A Day, Abcees*, Vibyl*, Simulator*, Kabuki, Circus, Vapors, Be Nice*, King Pharoahs Tomb*, Moon Socket, SchemeNotes:* w/ the Liquid Horns.(via STS9news.com)08.17.2013FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island,...

Words and Photos: Captain Deep-TrackThe City of Chicago was alive with the sounds of music this past weekend as the annual Lollapalooza festivities rolled into town. Tens of thousands of die hard music fans crowded Grant Park on Chicago's beautiful lakeside, as dozens of today's hottest musicians rocked several stages from midday to sunset and...

Derek Trucks with a guitar right now is like Miguel Cabrera with a bat. He's doing impossibly great things as a matter of course. His solos are fluid, dynamic and packed with a mind boggling intensity.And while I believe that Derek was clearly the superstar last Wednesday night on Northerly Island, make no mistake......

On the site of a former Latin music club, Chicago's newest venue -- Concord Music Hall -- will open up on Milwaukee Avenue tonight with a performance by Adam Ant.Mr. Ant doesn't get us too excited, but some of the initially announced bookings sure do. And given that the enterprise is being booked by...

Where to start with the weekend's music? I could easily reel off a laundry list of highlights:The amazing "Scent" duel on Friday, with Fish contacting other worlds on the marimba lumina. The balls deep transition from "Theme" into "Weekapaug". A contained, but smoking "Piper". The fine improv in "Light" that threatened "Timber Ho" for...

Further, the band, and their equipment were much more exposed than they would have been in a permanent structure in these conditions. Where the show may have gone on in Sunday's storm at Alpine or Deer Creek, there was nothing else to do but stop the music and batten down the hatches for everybody's safety....

I handicapped the Blottopia encore race when we first previewed the fourteenth installment of Mr. Blotto's signature event and summertime festival, but although the ultimate choice eluded me at the time, I'm not sure it exactly surprised me.Playing to their strength vocally and rhythmically, the performance of James Brown's Sex Machinelive album was another...

On the heels of the reggae-like Gordon / Murawski tune Yarmouth Road, Phish continues to add Mike penned songs to the repertoire. This one features a falsetto vocal in the chorus and a funky Little Feat-esque groove. Are the influences of Halloween 2010 finally bearing fruit in 2013?The tune made it's debut in the midst of a...

Words / Photos: Dave WecksteinOn the night before a three night Phish run at a brand new venue, the sweltering Chicago night was heavy with promise and anticipation. Fortunately, for those hearty souls willing to let loose early, Old Shoe, Robert's Plant, and Herbert Wiser Band provided a space for early revelry the Cubby Bear. Playing...

Gordon, Fishman, Kanter Storm Second City After StormI guess Mike Gordon really enjoyed his time at Second City on Thursday. He took advantage of Phish's early exit on Friday to set up shop again, this time with his instrument, and with Jon Fishman and Justin Bieber musical director / guitarist Dan Kanter.It seems the group...