cntrybrkfst-blog

[cntrybrkfst-blog]

Country Breakfast 5/29/18: Forgotten Outlaws & More

Had a real fun time with this one. This week’s show attempts to shine a spotlight on forgotten outlaws like Johnny Rodriguez, Willis Alan Ramsey, Larry Jon Wilson, and so much more. Interestingly enough, the ones we remember the least make the most memorable music. Lots of interesting genre-bending and wonderful songwriting across the board with this one.

We also played some new releases from The Kernal, St. Marlboro, and Ratboys early on in the show and some bluegrass/psyche country later on.

Listen HERE

[cntrybrkfst-blog]

Country Breakfast 5/22/18: Country Soul, Psyche, Honky Tonk Night

Whew. Had a late start to the show thanks to public transportation (aside: public transit rules, this was actually entirely my fault) but ended up going for about 90 minutes. There’s a Tom T. Hall song about this actually, and every time that I miss the train this song plays on loop in my head until another one comes along. 

Today’s show explored the greatest American bastard genre of them all country soul, dabbled in country-inflected psychedelic music, and played a track from the three artists performing at Honky Tonk Night. What is Honky Tonk Night, you ask? Details can be found here along with other shows this week. Check it!

COUNTRY BREAKFAST: 5/22/18 LINK

[cntrybrkfst-blog]

Shows! Shows! Shows! (5/21-5/27/18)

One of those quality over quantity weeks. Here is your semi-comprehensive list of Chicago alt-country and Americana shows this week. 

5/22: Shakey Graves @ Vic Theatre ($28 / SOLD OUT)

5/23: ★ Brett Naucke: The Mansion, ★ Bill Mackay & Ryley Walker ★ @ Constellation ($10) An excellent show featuring one of the most wonderful duos in Chicago. Bill Mackay & Ryley Walker transport you elsewhere with their pastoral fingerstyle guitar compositions. Brett Naucke brings experimental and impressionistic sounds that capture the sounds and memories of his childhood home, combining sound collage and synth elements to create haunting atmospheres. Highly recommended.

5/24: ★ Devil in a Woodpile @ Hideout ($5 at the door / 6 PM) Devil in a Woodpile continue their Hideout residency in their penultimate performance for the month. Always a wonderful time, every week brings something different.

5/24: Southern Culture On The Skids @ Schuba’s

5/25: ★ Leo Kottke @ SPACE ($30-65) The legendary fingerstyle guitarist brings his Fahey-esque melodies to Evanston. This show along with the Bill Mackay & Ryley Walker shows combine for an exquisite pair of American Primitive evenings.

5/25: ★★ Honky Tonk Night: Los Gallos, Cass Cwik & Hot Bologna, St. Marlboro @ Co-Prosperity Sphere ($5) Three great locals in one of the best rooms in the city. A must see.

The Not-Country Pick of the Week: 5/26 - Sen Morimoto (Record Release) @ Empty Bottle ($8)

[cntrybrkfst-blog]

St. Marlboro - Oh, Friend (Review)

Chicago country punks ST. MARLBORO make their return three years after their last release, Reprise, with OH, FRIEND, weaving the sound of the midwest with east coast grunge and slacker rock of yesteryear. Immediate comparisons to bands like The Handsome Family, Uncle Tupelo, and Deer Tick feel apt, but these four have cultivated a moody Americana sound that eschews any one-to-one resemblance to any group. 

I remember taking my first literature course in college and coming across a short story from Southern Gothic icon Flannery O’Connor by the name of “A Good Man is Hard to Find.” This happened during a time where I felt optimistic, hopeful about anything and everything. Reading the story sent me into a weeklong funk where I revived my teenage angst and only wore black and never smiled, becoming pessimistic like Camus while looking like Trent Reznor. Listening to Oh, Friend revives these feelings. 

Too often in the music world are artists fixated on the idea that the only emotions that should be elicited in their art are positive ones. The spectrum of human emotion is far too wide to ignore the dark side, and St. Marlboro have crafted a cathartic and atmospheric representation of what it feels like to have tainted memories without feeling utterly hopeless. Guitarist LIAM SHANLEY is a remarkably tasteful player, and his leads on virtually every track are effortless compliments to the songwriting of frontman KYLE PAULIN. Paulin’s performances have the kind of pain in them that elevates an album from good to great. At times the lyrics get lost in the mix but the stories that are told through the excellent guitar interplay are as powerful as any lyric can be. 

If you are in the Chicagoland area, catch St. Marlboro alongside Los Gallos and Cass Cwik at Honky Tonk Night at Co-Prosperity Sphere. Tickets are $5, doors at 7 PM. Co-Prosperity Sphere is a shining beacon in the Chicago music world, as is Lumpen Radio. Support good bands, support good organizations.

STANDOUTS: "Brick and Mortar,” “Flamingoes,” “Carbondale”

FOR FANS OF: PILE, THE HANDSOME FAMILY, 16 HORSEPOWER

THREE AND A HALF PLATES OUT OF FIVE