Brad Matthew

I know I know, I haven’t been blogging all that much lately.  I sincerely apologize to my 5 loyal readers!  It is hard to blog when you spend 9+ hours working in front of a computer everyday.  Ugh.  Anyways, here are 10 concerts you should attend if you are living in the Chicagoland area.  I will be at most of these, so perhaps I will see you there?  Party!

1. The Whigs @ Bottom Lounge - March 13
2. Dr. Dog @ Double Door - April 10
3. Ha Ha Tonka @ Subterranean - May 2
4. Bruce Springsteen @ United Center - May 12
5. Wilco @ The Pabst Theater (Milwaukee) - April 14 & 15
6. Blitzen Trapper @ Empty Bottle - February 19 (Tonight)
7. Death Cab for Cutie @ Aragon - April 17
8. Les Claypool/Devotchka/Saul Williams @ The Riviera - March 21
9. Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s/Cloud Cult @ Metro - April 1
10. Raphael Saadiq @ Park West - March 12

I really can’t remember the last time I watched the Grammy’s, but this year was a little bit hipper than most.  Not only did Kings of Leon get nominated for 3 Grammy’s, winning Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals (Whatever the fuck that means??) for “Sex on Fire“, but rock dietes Radiohead were slated to play, so I tuned in.  Sure at times it was complete torture sitting through collaborations of Stevie Wonder and the Jonas Brothers and Katy Perry (she has nice boobies) prancing around in utter awkwardness, but a few standout performances made it well worth it. I have to admit I am a fan of Estelle’s mega-catchy tune “American Boy” and her performance with Kanye was pretty effin good.  And preggers MIA performing on the day her baby is due was fucking rad as hell, but nothing can compare to Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood performance with the USC Marching Band for a monumental version of “15 Step”.  I was blown away by them at Lollapalooza last year and was amazed at how well the In Rainbows songs translated live.  Unfortunately, the Grammy performance was minus Colin, Ed and Phil, but astounding none the less. Dig it!

“Saturday always reminds everyone of their youth.” says Anthony Gonzalez, the mastermind behind the french shoegaze project M83. His most recent album Saturday=Youth is a dazed trip through synthland. It’s a trip I recommend to all, even if you don’t like tripping.  The lead track, “Kim and Jessie”, is straight out of the 80’s; light, playful and quite savory.  The video is a bit of the same, although the savory party might make me sound like a pet-her-ass. Oh well!  M83 is wrapping up a tour supporting The Killers and recently supported the mighty Kings of Leon on their Europe tour.  I say god damn!