One thing that was notably left out of the routinely mind-blowing, pre-2016 live sets by White Denim: covers.Suspiciously, in the run up to the recently released Stiff (see our review here), the newly configured bandstarted dropping cover songs via Soundcloud -- and meaty stuff, too: Zeppelin, Traffic and Mickey Newbury (via Kenny Rogers).And...

By: Philamonjaro StudioHLOS, the UK trio comprised of Lotti Benardout, Arthur Delaney and Dom Goldsmith played their first Chicago show supporting their debut recording on Matador Records. Full Circle was released last month and on the heels of showcasing at SXSW, they drew a sizablecrowd of both eager fans in-the-making and educated fans-in-the-know.The band's...

It was the same setlist, but different feel -- from hockey stadium to old school theater -- for the second of three David Gilmour appearances in Chicago.It seems like the Floyd police are heavily policing YouTube for videos and, our post on Monday's show feel victim to it. For this summary of Wednesday's show,...

Photos: Mandy Pichler PhotographyI first became aware of Steve Kimock as he was touring with the West Coast collective Zero in the early 90s. I became further intrigued throughout a series of collaborations with members of the Grateful Dead in the late 90s. But I truly went "all-in" on Kimock via his instrumental, four-piece SKBs...

David Gilmour set up for the first of three Chicago shows on Monday night. While his upcoming Auditorium show has the small venue flair, and Friday's United Center gig will be the weekend blowout, tickets for this appearance appeared to be plentiful and inexpensive on the secondary market, despite the instant sellout.It was a...

Photos: Kristine Condon PhotographyRemember the Quentin Tarantino films Kill Bill Vols 1 & 2?A slice of shocking, pulpy, ultraviolent art, the moviesfeatured an incredible instrumental cut on the soundtrack entitled"Battle Without Honor Or Humanity" by a little known band called Tomoyasu Hotei.It is an epic, sweeping instrumental with a hard edge and a bit...

Intimacy is a word that gets tossed around a lot in music writing.Sometimes it describes a feeling of connection with the artists, or their particular openness to the crowd. Sometimes it's the relative size of the venue (I've heard8000 seat amphitheaters described as intimate).But since the last time I saw Phil Lesh it...

By: Heidi Peters PhotographyTwo complementary singer-songwriters -- with slightly different styles, but both grounded in a bluesy countrified folk -- joined forces as a co-billed event at Chicago's City Winery for two nights this week.It's clear that both Langhorne Slim and Joe Pug have drunk from the Bob Dylan well, bringing a literate approach...

By: Mandy Pichler PhotographyDavid Grisman will spend 2016 touring in a variety of configurations, but it was the Sextet that recorded his first album of originals in over a decade, and who he played a pair of shows at City Winery with. A packed house delighted in the bluegrass / jazz hybrid known as Dawg music,...

By: Philamonjaro StudioMagic!Attending the first of two Mavis Staples concerts at Thalia Hall seemed to have that special something -- the sold-outroom was electric. These werefirst Chicago performances since the release ofthe HBO documentary Mavis! and new album Livin' On A High Note, and like most, theyfelt like a homecoming and a triumphantreturn.How...