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For Immediate Release |
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LOCAL
MUSIC NEWS COLUMN
by Tom Lounges Summer is almost gone!!!
Where the heck did it go?
That said, our next issue will be our annual “How We Spent Our Summer Vacation!” photo scrapbook issue. For this, we dedicate several pages strictly for images that our staff photogs feel capture the concert season essence from the zillion summer shows. HHS
DINOSAURS STILL ROAM…
It was grand to see
former Night Rock News
(this publication’s predecessor) correspondent, Tim
“SBRR” Vanzo wing his way in from Las Vegas for this weekend
of debauchery. Likewise
my buddy Mark Stefanich and
his ever gorgeous wife Barb, who jetted in from Hollyweird, where Mark
is regarded as one of the top stunt specialists in the major motion
picture biz. Among
the recent films he has worked on are: “Mars
Attacks,” “The Gift,” “Windtalkers,” “Spiderman” and
“K-19.” Thanks to Lynn (Montgomery) Mika and Melissa (Joseph) Valois and everyone involved in planning the “Peter Pan Weekend” which allowed we Highland 1977 alumni the chance to recapture our youth, catch up with each other’s activities, and boldly relive the days we would go “shot for shot” with each after bellying up to the bar. Sadly, there is more belly now than there was once upon a time… CAPT.
KIRK Vs. MANCOW...
His visit was to
prepare for the “William
Shatner Charity Big Game,” being
presented on August 31 by SPPLAT
(Society of Paintball Players And Teams), where Shatner will lead a
team of paintballers against two other teams headed up respectively by
Q101’s Mancow Muller and Tom Kaye
of Airgun Designs. Proceeds will benefit “Ahead
With Horses,” a charity event that has long been close to the
actor’s heart, where physically challenged children work with
trained horses to experience the thrill of riding which also helps
build their self-esteem. Shatner plans to film the event for an hour-long broadcast television show and a video/DVD release. In addition to the
charity paint ball battle, there will be a massive “Star Trek” convention complete with other “Star Trek” personalities, contest, seminars, autograph sessions
and much, much more. There
is even talk of having some live band’s performing, though that was
not confirmed at press time. For more info, contact Dave Bellah @ (815) 726-2800 or log on at: www.challengepark.com BUCO
BITES THE DUST... It happens to the best
of us and now it has happened to our “Midwest
Runblings” columnist, David
Alan Buco! The
indie rock buff will be hearing bells this month as he walks down the
aisle with his lady fair, Amy
Shepherd, in his adopted home state of California on August 11.
Sorry ladies, this news flash is true, Buco is a bachelor no
longer. Due to his being
occupied by wedding plans and his need to practice saying –– “Yes,
Honey!” –– in front of a mirror several hours a day, we gave
Buco this month off from writing his popular column.
The wise-cracking critic will be back next month in these very
same pages to once again spout off about the best and the worst of
locally released demo tapes and CDs.
In all seriousness, a
BIG congratulations to Dave and his Harley-loving bride, Amy!
Readers can send the happy couple personal congrats via email
at: midwestrumblings@yahoo.com
HEADHUNTERS
& HAWGS... Midwest BEAT Magazine is proud to be one of the sponsors of the “3rd Annual Road Hawgs Benefit Bike Show,” taking place on
August 31 in rural Crown Point.
This year’s charity poker run/bike show will benefit local
charities, including the Veterans Hospital of Gary, IN. After a day of riding in the hot sun, region bikers will get to kick back to the cool music of such local bands as the Acousticats, Ransom and Tongue ‘N’ Groove, before getting rocked by national headliners, The Kentucky Headhunters, who are arguably the greatest raunch ‘n’ roll band on the scene today. The concert, emceed by
Yours Truly, takes place rain or shine on a lot adjacent to the Road
Hawg Custom Motorcycle Shop. For directions and info, call: (219) 661-HAWG. FREE
MUSIC...FREE FUN! •
HOOTERS -- that
taste place of tantalizing ta-tas – will be hosting an anniversary
party in the parking lot of their Merrillville location (at I-65 &
U.S. 30) on Saturday, August 17 from 1 p.m on with live music and
plenty of buxom babes. Performing on the outdoor stage will be -- Shuddup & Drive, Mr Meaner (formerly Overdue), and Wookie Luv. Even the top-heavy Hooters wait staff will have a hard time holding guys’ attention once Wookie Tootie starts to shake her mighty fine money-maker. You GO girl! That very same day, Dynamite
Music will present their eighth annual free concert in the park ––
Dynafest 2002 –– at the band shelter in Central Park in the
heart of downtown Griffith (on Broad St.).
Dynafest kicks off at
noon with that badass bluegrass band, Flintlock,
and rolls along well into the evening with sets of music ranging from
country, to blues, to reggae, to rock, by such bands as The Cash Brothers Band, Shuddup & Drive, White Dove, Steepwater,
Nick Danger Band and National
Jet Set. Food and
beverages will be available, but alcohol is prohibited in the park. For more info call Dynamite Music at: (219) 924-7868. Yours truly will be ping-ponging between Dynafest and the Hooter’s Bash as a guest emcee at both events... Speaking of free music
and fun... Backdoor
Lounge (811 E. Ridge Rd.) in Griffith will be hosting a free
“Customer Appreciation Hog Roast/Rock Fest” on Sunday, August
11 with bands playing on an outdoor stage.
Among those playing are: Trauma,
Tumblin’ Dice, and Unusual
Suspects. For more
info, call (219) 923-0118. DRATS!
“SOiL-ed AGAIN!”
Chicago rockers, SOiL,
will not appear at the Chicago stop of the OzzFest on August 10 as most hometown fans had hoped.
The band leaves Ozzy’s roadshow after the first leg of the
tour ends on August 8 in Detroit. SOiL guitarist Shaun
Glass says a highlight of his OzzFest
experience came when Ozzy/Black
Label Society guitarist,
Zakk Wylde, joined his band on stage to jam in Boston on July 17. That performance was captured on tape and is expected to be
included on a forthcoming CD/DVD
release chronicling the best moments of OzzFest 2002.
Fans can “get
SOiL-ed” when their fave local heavies headline The Metro on August 6
with hometown national rockers, No
One. Opening the show
is region band, Ditchwater,
featuring Hoosier shouter Mike
Meadows of Lowell. More
info: www.soilmusic.com BAND
BITS... •
Veteran region guitarist Vince
Castellanos has joined local rockers, Trauma, taking the place of
departed guitarist Skip Stinski.
Oddly enough, Stinski left Trauma and joined Mas
Kaos, replacing Castellanos. •
Local punk/ska band O*Soe-z
have lost bassist Tony Marzilli,
who left under very friendly conditions due to what he termed “a change in personal musical preferences.”
The band has filled the vacancy with Matt
Del Santo, a long time friend of the group. Meanwhile, Marzilli has hooked up with a band called, No.
6. •
For the third summer now, N.W. Indiana’s Sad Hannah are back by popular demand as the featured artist at Six
Flags/Great America’s “Market Stage.”
The alt-rock/pop group perform seven 30-minute sets every day
at the Gurnee amusement park through August 18.
•
Shannon Raye & The
Diamondback Band are celebrating their first anniversary together
by recording a CD of original music. Raye had previously recorded a
solo CD of songs written by outside songwriters in early 2001, just a
few months before hooking up with the band.
Though still untitled, recording is already underway.
After going all the way to the statewide finals last year, Raye
and Co. returned to compete once again in the
“2002 Country Showdown,” at the Porter County Fairgrounds
on July 21. They took
first place in the local competition and will again move on to the
regional contest. For
more information, log on at: wwwshannonraye.com •
Chicago songwriter/singer Pete
Berwick has some new members in his backing band, The Renegades. Drummer Dave
Kent (ex-Kent Brothers Band) and bassist Augie Kellogg have joined lead guitarist Rick Devries in laying down the roots rock sound behind Berwick’s
hearty vocals. •
Southside metal band, Cryptic
Visions, have finally put a jam in the revolving door line-up that
has plagued them for the last year. Guitarist and sole remaining
original member, Jeff
Bagherpour, says he has a solidified band once again with drummer Donny
Mizanin, guitarist James
Link, bassist Scott Trubich
and vocalist Joe Lawson.
•
The Chicago Blues Posse
has made some notable changes to their line-up recently.
They have added Lockport, Illinois blues singer Deb
Seitz to their line-up, along with veteran guitarist Hollywood Johnny Cosgrove (formerly with Blind Pig recording act, Studebaker
John & The Hawks) and guitarist Bob
Mandarino. The two
new guitar slingers replace David
Miller and Danny Ferris, who are moving on to other undisclosed projects.
•
Kudos to Crown Point drummer, Joe
Catlow, who slams for the regional modern rock band, Free Raine. Over July
Fourth weekend, Catlow pulled off a daring Drum-A-Thon at the Lake
County Fairgrounds and managed to raise $1,100 each for the
National Children’s Cancer Society and the Crown Point Fire
Department. The
plucky percussionist cashed in on all the pledges he had collected in
the weeks prior to the holiday weekend, when he toughed it out and
beat his drums for incredible 24 hours straight. •
Local blues musician, Little
Johnny Moore, is already back on stage following a serious
motorcycle accident in early July that put him in intensive care.
Though Moore is blowing harmonica, playing guitar and singing
from a wheelchair at present, it’s thrilling to have him back out
bluesin’ it in clubs so soon after such an ordeal.
Though he is facing many months of physical therapy, Moore said
the tremendous outpouring of support, prayers and well-wishing he
received from the local music community in the weeks following his
accident has done wonders to lift his spirits and get him back on
stage. •
Local H became the
first major rock act to auction itself off online.
The Chicago alt-rockers auctioned off a private live concert
over the EBay auction web site between July 17 and July 26.
No word at press time who put in the highest bid or what that
bid was, but whomever it was, won the opportunity to pick the time and
location of the concert –– be it their backyard, bedroom or high
school auditorium.
The winner also gets to personally invite everyone who attends
the private jam, which is sure to include songs from the band’s
latest CD, “Here
Comes The Zoo,” which features such guest musicians as Josh
Homme from Queens Of The Stone Age and Jerry
Only from The Misfits.
•
The Steepwater Band,
who did a super job opening for
Paul Rodgers & Bad Company last month at the House Of Blues,
will headline their own gig at The Metro (3730
N. Clark) on August 30. Opening
the 11 p.m., 18 & Over show will be local rockers, Old
No. 8. ROCKIN’,
RECORDIN’ & RETAILIN’ •
Music fans looking for something new and exciting on the local
rock scene, would be advised to snap up a copy of the self-titled,
five-song CD from a Highland teen band called, Closed
World. Until last month, this
talented modern prog-rock band were completely unknown even here in
their/my hometown. The
musical maturity – playing and writing – on this disc belies the
age of the players and stellar production by Dungeon
Studio’s Neil Holmquist
(who has produced David
Ragsdale of Kansas) makes this a rock solid release.
Guitarist Nikola
Djorovic’s instrumental prowess is truly amazing. His style
falls somewhere between jazz great Wes Montgomery and rock virtuoso
Steve Morse. Likewise, George
Colakovic does an equally impressive turn on piano.
The two have been jamming together with drummer Nemanja
Djorovic (Nikola’s twin brother) for nearly six years in
basements, while bassist Ryan
Szanyi and vocalist Lizzy
Ellison are both new to the project.
•
SOiL’s manager, Peter Tsiolis, has been shopping demos to national labels in the
last few weeks and getting bites on his latest Chicagoland client, Stripping
The Pistol. The
five-piece group’s have gotten a hefty buzz their melodic modern
metal thanks to a three-song demo CD was recorded in just one day.
Audio samples at: www.strippingthepistol.com •
There’s a red hot and bluesy new band in da region by the
name of Second Childhood,
who have released an impressive debut disc of original tunes titled, “Answer The Call.”
The deep and soulful sound laid down by this trio of
local music veterans –– John
Beric plays bass and Myke
Romano and Jym Van Loon share guitar/lead vocal duties –– is in league with
that of Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Allman Bros. and Bloodline.
Recorded at Hammond’s Thunderclap
Studios and beautifully engineered by John
Carpenter, the CD features guest drummers Terry Boylan, Vinco Manich and Rick Vallejo.
No word yet on who will reside behind the kit when the band
starts playing out live. Emailing
Van Loon for more info: jympatty@aol.com •
Region punk rock band, Egnaro,
will be one of a dozen rising young acts featured on a new national Weezer
tribute album titled, “Punkerton.”
They have re-recorded the Weezer tune, “Getchoo,”
for the release due in stores this November.
Egnaro’s own debut
album –– “The Foul Stench Of Youth” –– recorded earlier this year
in California with David Bowie’s
former production team for the nationally distributed Jet Speed
Records, has been slated for release in late August.
Local fans can get an early listen to some of Egnaro’s new
music by logging online at: www.nationalmedianetworks.com •
N.W. Indiana heavy rockers, Cryptic
Visions, report that they will be heading into StarTrax Studios in late August to lay down the original songs --
“Gearflesh,” “Ardent Blasphemer” and“The
Swordsmith” ––
for a promotional CD demo. Catch
them live August 24th at the U.S. Beer Co. in Chicago and on August 28
at J.J. Kelley’s in Lansing. •
N.W. Indiana’s modern pop band, Sometimes
Seven, who just wrapped up work on their latest indie album,
“The Songs I Was Telling You About,” which should be
available for purchase through the band and some local retail stores
by summer’s end. •
Region rockers, Nast
Devin, took first place in the sixth round of the ongoing
“Battle of the Backdoor” competition held last month and about
half of their winning set list consisted of songs from their newly
completed debut CD, “Take A Ride.”
The 9-song pop/rock collection (which clocks in at 27:49) will
be available at the end of this monththrough the band’s new web site
– www.nastdevin.com
–– and at
various region record shops. BEAT
READERS SEE “STARS”... Midwest BEAT readers will again be seeing “stars.” Both varieties – the
celestial and the glitzy earthly kind – as we welcome the return of
two former columns. I am especially
thrilled to announce the return of
“On The Town...with Linda Matlow” (beginning this issue on
page #15). Long time
reader’s will remember Linda
Matlow as our very first photographer and photo editor (back in
the late-‘70s when we were still called Night
Rock News). Through the years,
Linda has always stayed a special part of our “family,” but
because her photos are so in demand, she only periodically has the
time to dedicate to such an endeavor as a monthly column. So while
time allows, we will again be running her exclusive “PIX International” celebrity photos. Secondly, though our
resident star gazer, Ken
Melvoin-Berg has not been able to contribute his monthly
Horrorscope column these last few months, we held tight to the notion
that soon he would be able to return.
Alas, that is not to be the case.
So, starting next month, we will begin publishing a new
horoscope column courtesy of Ms. Margie and the fine folks at Earthly Pride in Hammond.
BITS
‘N’ PIECES... •
Due to strong response to his August 3 –– Eat A Peach and Steepwater
Band –– double-bill, local concert promoter
Lou “Blue Lou” Patrizi has moved the show from T-Zer’s
Sports Bar in Chicago Heights to the much larger Club Infinity (620 S.
Halsted) in Chicago Heights. Showtime:10 p.m. Tickets: $5. Info: (708)
754-5535.
Patrizi, who had been successfully drawing a steadily growing
crowd (even during the slow summer season) with his weekly “Blues
Buffet & Jam Night” at T-Zer’s will most likely also be
relocating that activity to the revamped Club Infinity later this
month. •
Looking for a few laughs?
Then come watch Yours Truly make an “ass” of himself at 7
p.m. on August 6. That is
when I will be participating in the “Celebrity
Donkey Race” held in the Grandstands of the Lake County
Fairgrounds in Crown Point, Indiana.
Several local luminaries have agreed to look ridiculous while
riding bare-back on a herd of donkeys in the 150-yard contest.
Ouch!
The things we will do for the sake of local fame. •
Though the broadcasts have not started as we take this issue to
press, I have been asked to start doing a weekly morning “call-in”
about local music news and events to Indiana
105-FM. I can’t
tell you any details yet, as I don’t know them myself, but here is
yet another reason why all of you local bands/artists NEED to
consistently update me on what you are doing.
It’s easy...just email me at: beatboss@aol.com.
Tune in to Indiana 105 on Friday mornings beginning
August 9 for more info on this call-in bit... •
It’s got to be like an audio version of “Back
To The Future” for local DJ/air-personality, Mark
Zander, who will resurrect his once popular “Rock
Of The ‘80s!” program this month on the airwaves of WLUP 97.9/The LOOP. The show –– which
first began in 1997 and ran through December of 2000 on WCKG and later WXXY
–– is now called, “Saturday
Night Rock Of The ‘80s!”
On August 2, it begins airing every Saturday at 8 p.m. •
“Arrivederci!”
to local singer/songwriter, Tristen.
She will be off roaming the Italian countryside for the next
3-4 months. Watch for
Tristen to rock her way back into local clubs around the
Thanksgiving/Christmas holidays.
SAD
NEWS CAME LATE... My very deepest
condolences and most earnest prayers go out to Roger and PattiJo Porter
(former co-owners of Highland’s
Club Dimensions and currently co-owner of Finnegan’s
Wake in Dyer) on the tragic loss of their son, Roger Porter II on July 14. For a number of years
while I had the good fortune of being employed by the Porters at Club
D., I watched Lil’ Rog (as we all called him) growing up as the
apple of his proud daddy’s eye, ever and always excited about
fishing and hunting and sports. My wife Julie and I found out about
young Roger’s death two weeks after the fact.
We feel awful that we could not be there to pay our
respects. The Porters are
among the finest people I have never known, and it’s always so sad
when good people are made to hurt. May God Bless and keep
the Porter and Gallas families during this very hard and painful time. |
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My
graduating class (Highland High
- 1977) celebrated its 25th class reunion as this issue was going
to press and we proved beyond a doubt that we dinosaurs could still
roam the club scene and stomp the life out of you latter day rock
monsters.
Actor
William Shatner (Captain
James T. Kirk of “Star Trek”)
popped into town in late June to walk the battle-scarred grounds of
Joliet’s Challenge Park Xtreme.
Jim
“J.C. Hooke” Pilster –– founder of Chicago’s hit-making
‘60s group, The Cryan’
Shames –– was spotted hanging out backstage last month with
pop keyboardist and one-time Grateful
Dead piano-plunker Bruce
Hornsby. 
