For the last hour or so we’ve been completely under her spell but there’s laughter when Lucy Rose confesses, “If you didn’t know already, my new record is really, really depressing”. The record in question, No Words Left, is certainly the Surrey born singer-songwriters most reflective album but depressing? No, there’s something far more special going on here.

Los Angeles is an interesting city.

It’s interesting, because, for a city with seemingly so many positive attributes (beautiful weather, gorgeous beaches/scenery, a storied history, vibrant music scene, etc.), it seems to get a lot of negative reviews, mostly from people that don’t live there of course.

Someone forgot to hit the reset button on the party that started Saturday night.  Day 2 of High Water Festival was already in high gear as we strolled into the not so dulcet sounds of Thelma and the Sleaze.  We didn’t catch the bulk of their set, but if you told me they had been playing since the night before I would have believed you.  The roar from the band and the crowd weren’t what you typically order up on a Sunday morning.

Friday nights in Lawrence are hardly ever a boring time. But on the 12^th, Liberty Hall housed two iconic alternative rock bands known for their breathtaking performances. The co-headlining tour was announced in February: Failure & Swervedriver. Two bands that were making the rounds in the 90s but ended up disbanding after several classic records. Thanks to the internet (and file-sharing) both bands were rejuvenated in the 21^st century and reunions came about, followed by comeback albums by both in 2015 (I Wasn’t Born to Lose You and The Heart is a Monster). And to their credit, both were great.

How do you begin to describe The Mekons? During Fig by Four’s support set, singer Sarah Statham hits the nail on the head; “The Mekons have a way of bringing people together…community bands are important”.

I don’t know much about organizing festival line-ups and the like, but the juxtaposition of The War and Treaty and Mitski playing back to back on High Water’s main stage was one of the most brilliant things I have seen.  No doubt what these two artists had up their sleeves when this was planned out was not even in their own heads at the time and certainly not coordinated, but it made for great cinema when it happened. 

For us mere mortals it’s a Tuesday night, perhaps the most unremarkable night of the entire week. The weekend just gone is nothing but a fading memory, the next too far away to get excited about. Thankfully Bob Log III isn’t a 9 to 5 kind of guy. For Mr. Log, every night is Saturday night and for the next few hours, we’ll be honoured guests at the best party in town.

Playing to a capacity crowd last Saturday night in Austin, Jenny Lewis’ pastel-hued stage set made you long for teenage days spent listening to records in your bedroom.  Days when landline phones weren’t museum pieces and when memorizing a phone number like 867-5309 was a necessary step to staying connected. 

Doves are back. After a lengthy hiatus, the Manchester trio announced late last year that they would be playing live again in 2019. Tonight’s performance is their comeback, a first warm up show before a string of dates in larger venues and festivals in the coming days and months.  

The Comet Is Coming are a difficult band to sum up, in essence, a three-piece jazz trio playing drums, saxophone and electronics but in a way that no one else does.

Two men lean over a bass guitar on stage at The Brudenell Social Club, one holding a flashlight as the other tries to work out what exactly has gone wrong. Until moments ago, post-punk trio Bilge Pump were happily playing to a sold-out crowd. The mood one of celebration, a well-deserved victory lap for some longstanding local legends. So, naturally, the band’s bass guitar had to stop working mid-set. The night can’t end like this. Can it?

St Patrick’s Day Eve can be quite the debaucherous occasion, as scores of bush-leaguers take to the streets in celebration of their dubious (or in most cases entirely nonexistent) Irish heritage, and of course, all the goofy stereotypes and indulgences that go along with that. This is particularly true when St. Patty’s Eve falls on a Saturday night in Chicago, especially when you’re in close proximity to DePaul University.