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by Tom Lounges
(Local Music Happenings)
I'd like to begin this month's column with a great big thank you to the
multi-talented Jim Peterik for giving my wife Julie and I one of the best
nights of live entertainment we have enjoyed in a long, long time.
We joined Beat Magazine staffers Roy Ferrer and Sharon Pisinski and about
2,000 other area rockers in St. Charles on January 15 for the debut of
Peterik's exciting new project, World Stage.
The theory behind this engaging project puts the
singer/songwriter/instrumentalist at the center of his own musical world,
surrounded by an assortment of musical friends. "The show will change each
time we put it on stage," said Peterik. "Because each time there will be
different guests involved in it."
Helping Peterik warm up the cold night air at the Norris Theatre were
such national notables as Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon), Don Barnes (.38
Special), Henry Paul (Blackhawk/The Outlaws), Kelly Keagy (Night Ranger) and T
he Ides of March. They were joined by a bevy of strong local talents like
Cathy Richardson, Leslie Hunt, Jeff Boyle and N.W. Indiana's own David Carl.
Seventeen-year-old Leslie Hunt also did a great job opening the show with a
set of her piano-driven originals.
Together they put on a fast-moving, professional performance that
showcased the remarkable songbook of Peterik. It was Jim's night to
shine...and he did!
Watch for a full feature on Peterik's World Stage in the March issue of
Midwest Beat!
SHOWS CANCELLED!
Hey readers...please be aware that our two Beat Bashes scheduled in
February have both been cancelled!!!
Conflicting schedules made it necessary to move the Rock Haven metal show
from Feb. 12 to sometime in late March or early April. The Feb. 18 show we
had planned for DJ's Sports Bar in Lynwood has been completely cancelled
because the club has decided to cease doing live music in favor of DJ dance
music.
TOM BARNHART LEAVES A LEGACY
I am very sad to report that a very good friend to many of us - Tom
Barnhart - a local musician and the co-founder/co-owner of Lansing's Music
Lab, passed away last month from heart failure. Tom, who was only
56-years-old, was a key figure in the South Side music community. He leaves
behind a legacy and is remembered fondly by those who's lives he touched (see
page 14).
Music Lab, a hub of musical communion here on the South Side, will remain
in operation in the capable hands of Neal Barnhart (Tom's brother and
partner) and longtime store manager, Nick Kutzko.
LIFE IN THE PUMPKIN PATCH
 | Chicago's Smashing Pumpkins, who have been plagued by problems lately,
finally ship their latest CD, "Machina/The Machines of God", to stores on
February 29. Their sixth album, the follow-up to the poorly received "Adore"
release, will be the last to feature founding bassist D'Arcy Wretzky. Although Wretzky's vacancy is presently being filled by former HOLE
bassist, Melissa Auf Der Maur, there's been no confirmation on if her
employment will go beyond the world tour, which began in Stockholm on Jan. 7. |
Recently relocating from her home in Michigan City, Indiana to Hollywood,
California in the hopes of forging an acting career, Wretzky, has seemingly
done well. She just landed a starring role opposite veteran screen tough guy
Mickey Rourke in a major film, "Peaces of Ronnie", where D'Arcy plays a
comedic mafia hit woman. It's expected in theaters in late 2000.
Also rising out of the Pumpkin patch is the band's greatest hits package -
"Smashing Pumpkins: 1991-1998" - which includes a previously unreleased
acoustic version of "Mayonnaise", a song from their 1993 "Siamese Dream"
period.
With their management (Sharon Osbourne) recently dropping them, their
internal fragmenting, dwindling CD sales and the negative press generated by
all of the above, many are starting to think that maybe the Pumpkins' 15
minutes of fame are just about up.
BAND BITS...
. Rockford's favorite sons, Cheap Trick, will NOT tour this year as part of
the KISS/Ted Nugent package as was announced at such places as Ted Nugent's
web site. The official word came to this column straight from Trickster
International. Trick will instead start recording their first new studio
album in four years and then go out on a mini-headline tour sometime in late
March. For more info: www.cheaptrick. com
. Transplanted region bassist Darrin Laszlo (ex-Sgt. Roxx), now living in
L.A. as a member of 22 Jacks, has been on tour most of the winter. His band
has been opening dates for the likes of Buck Cherry and Smashmouth. Laszlo
will get the chance to reacquaint himself with Chicago weather when 22 Jacks
visits our Toddlin' Town on Feb. 22 to open the for Smashmouth and Lucious
Jackson at the Aragon .
. Regional guitar virtuoso Dave Uhrich has signed a new deal to create a
series ofGuitar instructional books for the giant, Mel Bay Publishing. The
announcement was made at the NAMM show in Los Angeles last month.
 | Hammond retro rockers History's End named bassist Scott Hicks and
guitarist Greg Milikan as the new permanent members of their line-up earlier
this week. Hicks previously played with the group Live Nude Girls and for
the rest of this month, can be seen pinch-hitting for local cover band, Out
Of Time. |
. Along with his new History's End duties, Milikan will remain guitarist for that "other" retro act, Bravo Johnny.
. Three of the region's most talked about new bands - Soulshine, Dope Sick
and Mindshaft - team up for an all-ages concert at Portage's Lazer Zone (815
McCool Rd.) on Feb. 12. For more info, call The Lazer Zone @ (219) 764-0772
or log on at: www.soulshine.com
 | . N.W. Indiana rockers, Monkey Cocktail, have been announced as the opening act for former Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, when he becomes the first national artist to break in the new state-of-the-art stage at FinkE's (8835
Kennedy Ave.) in Highland on February 16. FinkE's is the hip new music joint with a zillion televisions, bright lights and thumping low end that occupies the spot where once stood the oldClub Dimensions, but don't look for any old remembrances of that dank and
dark rock haunt when you go there, because the place was literally gutted and
rebuilt from the ground up. |
. Joliet hard rockers, Ton of Bricks, changed their name to Vis@40 upon
discovering four other bands in the U.S. and at least one in Europe was using
the same moniker. The change is timely, as it follows the group's recent
shift in sound from old-school metal to new school metal. While their new web
site is under construction, fans wanting to know the 411 on the band can
email them at: tobdave@medianone.net
. Markham's nu metal band, Ditchwater, who were out of commission for quite
some time after the departure of original vocalist Mike "Quimby" Lewis (now
with Trauma), are again up and rocking. New singer Bill Matthews of Oak
Forest now fronts the all original group, which also includes bassist Bret
Basnick, drummer Jerry "J.J." Romero and founding guitarist, Mark Anderson,
who said their new sound is akin to Fear Factory, Slipknot and Staind.
. Chicago metal bands - Ion Vein and Syris - have teamed up to produce
"Chicago Power Fest #1" at J.J. Kelley's in Lansing on Feb. 26. The event
will introduce local music fans to - Division (Virginia), Enertia (New York),
and Antithesis (Ohio).
. Speaking of Ohio... Our good friends, Girth, from that city have asked us
to help spread the word they will be part of a benefit concert taking place
on Feb. 24 at the Cleveland night club, Peabody's. Proceeds from the event
will go to a special fund for the 7-year-old daughter of Ray Eppich, a
popular Cleveland musician who passed away over the Christmas holidays. For
more info or to donate to the cause, call the Girth Hotline at: (216)
990-1141 or Mike Stiddum at: (440) 918-1497.
. Guitarist/vocalist Jim Hillegonds (ex-Alison's Mailbox) of Highland has
assembled the AC/DC tribute band, BONFIRE, to focus on AC/DC's early years
with original singer, Bon Scott. Joining him are Bravo Johnny's rhythm
section, bassist Aaron Hedges and drummer Chris Karp, and lead guitarist Zeke
Rongers. BONFIRE makes its stage debut at J.J. Kelley's on Feb. 19, the 20th
anniversary of Bon Scott's death from alcohol poisoning.
. Area jazz/blues drummer, Lannie Turner, a session player on many regional
album projects over the last 15 years, has joined Griffith's Nick Danger Band.
THE STORK HATH COMETH...
Hey...we know what you guys were busy doing during those hot summer
months...because the results have finally come in!
Big congratulations go out to some good friends this month on their recent
contribution in giving the region some new little rockers and future Midwest
Beat readers!
Passing out cigars last month were local concert promoter and lighting
tech Johnny Sin and local bassist Brian Smolar of The Situation.
Sin and longtime girlfriend Sylvia Cordova celebrated the birth of their
daughter, Britney Briana on January 18th, while Brian and his wife Amber
welcomed their son, Tyler Stephen into the world on January 28.
SPINNIN' TAPE & DISHIN' DISCS...
. N.W. Indiana modern rock band, Betty Neals, have signed with J-Bird
Records of Connecticut. Ranked among the indie label's repertoire are such
notable artists as John Entwistle (bassist of The Who), '80s hard rocker
Billy Squire ("Stroke Me") and popular Hoosier bluesman, Duke Tumato.
. The Steepwater Band has finally gotten their five song CD - Goin' Back
Home - on the street and into the hands of their fans. The talented blues
trio had seen their release delayed almost two months a paper work snafu over
the mechanical licensing rights for their covers by Elmore James and Muddy
Waters.
 | Guitarist Mike Gallemore, who once bent strings locally for the blues
group Red Hot & Blue, is back in area clubs after returning from a year long
gig in Florida with former Allman Bros. side man, Floyd Miles. The best
part is that Gallemore has finally released, Music Man, a 12-song CD of his
original music that was put to tape in 1998 with the help of the Lonnie
Brooks Band and then shelved. |
.
 | It looks like even the mean streets of the steel city - Gary, Indiana -
has becomehome turf for Jesus Christ. 'Cuz that's where rap group LaFamilia
hail from and it's where they wrote the heavy rhymes for their 11-track debut
disc, Eye Hath Not Seen...Ear Hath Not Heard. Although the message here is positive and uplifting, there is nothing
lightweight about the groove behind the words. The sound laid down by this
dedicated trio of true believers is kickin' and thick. It's no secret that I
have never been a big fan of rap music, but I must give props to LaFamilia
for helping to break down the negative barriers in my mind. Dare I say it,
this CD has spun more than a few times in my disc drive while putting this
issue together. I'm glad the guys are already busy working on a second CD |
. Regional doom 'n' gloom group, November's Doom, will soon be returning to
the studio with producer Brian Griffin to begin recording their latest
conceptual CD, "The Knowing", for the nationally-distributed indie label,
Martyr Music.
. Chicago's bombastic Rock Star Club, a trio of slightly psychotic and
supercharged hard rock outcasts, have created a wild-ass concept CD that
loosely follows the life of a fictional rock singer on his ultimate quest for
sex, drugs and super rock stardom. The 13-track set - The Entertainer - is
creatively packaged to look like a cheesy '70s B-movie promotional poster.
Clever and fun...with music that...well...may leave you scratching your head
along with tapping your foot...
Catch Rock Star Club live in Chicago on Feb. 11 at Thurston's (1248 W.
George) and on Feb 26 at The Mutiny (2428 N. Western). Southsiders can grab
their show on March 11 at J.J. Kelley's (2455 Bernice) in Lansing.
 | Styx's studio engineer, Gary Loizzo, assisted on the making of Destructive
Nature, the new sophomore album from LaPorte's veteran hard rock trio, MYTH.
File this set (a dozen decent originals and a so-so cover of the Sabs' tired
ol' "War Pigs") under the apt heading of "old-school metal". Myth tends to
retread a lot of ground, but they do it pretty well. |
.
. Valparaiso's power-rock trio - Soulshine - have completed mixing down
their 10-song debut CD, "Understanding The Reasons." They expect it to be
released at the end of this month.
. Vamprotica has been busy finishing up work on their debut CD recently at
Hammond's Sheffield Studios. They expect to release the album by spring.
. The Strange, a very talented Chicago Ridge trio have fulfilled their
promise to unleash a slice of their abstract musical excursions. A half
dozen quirky creations fill up their self-titled debut (see CD Spins for my review.)
. Singer/songwriter Kevin Lee has spent the new year thus far at Rax Trax
Studio in Chicago, where he is working on songs for his latest CD. His
as-yet-untitled follow up to 1998's "Walk A Mile In My Shoes", is expected to
have a spring release.
 | The title kind of says it all on Change, the third and latest CD from
Chicago guitar virtuoso, Dave Uhrich. Unlike his first two instrumental albums, this time out, the artist
decided to give his vocal chords a work out, along with his nimble digits.
While it may set some of his more "purist" fans back, I for one think it was
a great idea. Uhrich may not get asked to sing for Van Halen anytime soon,
but his warblings are pleasing to the ear and compliment his songs well. |
. Columbus, Indiana's Jon Schaffer, best known for his 12-plus years of
guitar playing with international metal band, Iced Earth, has released an
exceptional 12-track CD of neo-prog metal with his side project, Demons &
Wizards. Lending vocals to the blistering hot instrumentation on this
self-titled set is Hansi Kursch of Blind Guardian.
ODDS 'N' SODS...
. Longtime WXRT/93-fm air personality, Terri Hemmert, was named as the
recipient of the Roger Baldwin Foundation's "John R. Hammell Award" last
month. She was honored for her work on behalf of the entire gay and lesbian
community. The actual awards ceremony will take place at the Union League
Club in Chicago on May, 21.
. Congrats to Shemp DeYoung on being hired by ABC Radio to be executive
producer of the Kevin Matthews Morning Show on Chicago's CD94.7. DeYoung
starts his new gig the first of this month.
. Are you looking to hear the music of local Chicago bands on the radio?
Well...I hate to say it, but those days of WLS-AM pushing hometown talent
ended 30 years ago bucko! It ain't gonna happen as long as the corporate
suits call the shots folks!
But...thanks to David A. Joost, you can now hear a lot of your favorite
local artists on your computer by logging on with "Home Pride Chicago", which
streams in stereo around the clock at: http://www.live365.com.
The coolest thing is that the program doesn't follow any set format, so
listeners can sample the wide array of sounds inherent to Chicago - from
folky weepers by the likes of Robbie Fulks, to groove-laden hip-hop from
LaJunta, to pop songs by Michael McDermott.
Artists looking for more info on getting their digital sounds in rotatio
n on the program can contact Joost via email at: david@bungie.com.
Bands!!!
Please email your information for this column to:
Tom@midwestbeat.com
|
