Lambchop, Talib Kweli, Electric Guest and More: The Chicago Venue Menu for April 23-29

Venue Menu Ep 4

It’s another week of great shows and today also happens to be my birthday! By some miracle of Betty Ford, I did not spend any portion of my weekend throwing up, passed out on a bathroom floor or sobbing into a bag of flaming hot Cheetos. A total winner of a birthday!

You can download The Venue Menu Podcast for April 23-29 right here (right click “save as”) or subscribe to the podcast via iTunes.

Monday Picks:

Acid Mother’s Temple @ Empty Bottle

Eric Hutchinson with Anya Marina @ Lincoln Hall

Tuesday Picks:

Unicycle Loves You @ Empty Bottle

Lambchop @ Lincoln Hall

Jill Barber @ Schubas

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Perfume Genius, Christopher Paul Stelling, Conya Doss, Now Now & More – Chicago Venue Menu

Chicago Venue Menu podcast episode 2

We’ve got some great bands coming this week and I actually even get to take a break from my computer next Sunday to catch a few of the acts. Download or stream here now – or, thanks to modern technology, you can even subscribe via iTunes! Yay interwebs!

Monday Picks:

All American Rejects & A Rocket to the Moon @ the Metro (3730 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 60613)

Fucked Up @ Lincoln Hall (2424 N. Lincoln Ave Chicago, IL 60614)

Tuesday Picks:

Perfume Genius & Parenthetical GirlsSchubas (3159 N. Southport Ave. Chicago, IL 60657)

Christopher Paul Stelling @ Ace Bar (1505 W. Fullerton Ave. Chicago, IL. 60614)
Download “Mourning Train To Memphis” free via his bandcamp page.

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The Chicago Venue Menu Podcast – Episode 1 (Concerts April 2nd – 8th)

Mia Casette Tattoo

Welcome to the Chicago Venue Menu podcast! As a music-lover, podcast maker and concert-goer, this is something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time. In the future, I hope to release these every Friday and will be making these available via iTunes in the next few days. Eventually, I’ll be bringing on special guests to join me and share their picks for the upcoming week in Chicago concerts. If you’re a publicist or band that wants to get in touch, feel free to reach out to me at iamchubbyjones (at) gmail (dot) com.

Stream or Download here: Chicago Venue Menu Episode 1

Monday April 2nd Picks:

Kasabian @ The Vic Theater (3145 N Sheffield Ave Chicago, IL 60657)

Nada Surf & An Horse @ the Metro (3730 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 60613)

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Music Wrap-Up for Tuesday

This weekend was the first time I made it back to the Empty Bottle for a concert in what feels like ages. The last time I was there, I had gotten a little too friendly with a bottle of whiskey before what seemed to be a disappointing performance from Thao and Mirah (both of whom I normally love). Thankfully, for Sunday’s show I was able to walk a straight line and enjoy all of Wild Flag’s performance.

Before the show we went to Bite for dinner and man has that place changed! They classed it up a bit and the menu has stepped it up a notch. I’m sad I didn’t see their falafel on the menu but I ate the shit out of some amazing vegan stir fry.

When we finished dinner we went next door to the venue and were early enough to get aYellow Fever prime short-person spot on the top of the stairs. The openers, Yellow Fever, were great. I had seen the singer at Bite earlier and she was rocking some serious mom jeans with a pouffy blouse. At one point I guessed she was probably in a band but I definitely wasn’t expecting her to sound the way she did.

Wild Flag was rad as hell and the energy they shared on stage was infectious. Carrie Brownstein and Mary Timony faced off in their guitar stances while Janet and Rebecca kept the rhythm going dancing to themselves. That was definitely one of the best concertsWild Flag I’ve been to in a while and it got my psyched on venturing out during the winter months.

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Download Tracks:

Mr. Gnome – “Bit of Tongue

Dum Dum Girls – “Bedroom Eyes

Don’t forget to check out today’s New Music.