And the radio man says, “Rock ‘n’ roll lives!”
Honorary Champaign-Urbana band Kissinger (now neighbors of Solips in Austin, Texas) will be back here June 9 at Cowboy Monkey. The special occasion is a release show for Me and Otto, the second full-length Kissinger release, and Green Light Go opens. Show time is 10:30 p.m., and cover is $3.
Kissinger last played here Sept. 16 with JigGsaw but stayed another day and saw Terminus Victor. Kissinger made three tour stops here the year prior. March 18, Kissinger won the title of 2005 Austin Music Foundation Incubator Band, which comes with a $15,000 recording budget. Kissinger also appear May 29 at Schubas in Chicago with The Like Young (ex-Wolfie) and Mike Downey of The New Constitution. Show time is 8 p.m., and cover is $10 ($8 in advance).
Green Light Go have news of their own, some sad. Bassist Mike Daab (also of Grand Poobah) is moving to Indianapolis but will go on with the band. Guitarist and co-founder Darin Smith, however, has announced his departure in order to concentrate on a teaching career. A four-state tour starts tomorrow night at Lemmons in St. Louis, and Nik Allen of Pulsar47 will fill in for Smith.
May 24, The Like Young officially issued The Timid EP, a vinyl-only three-track. The show with Kissinger and Mike Downey is the last on the horizon; Joe and Amanda Ziemba will spend all summer practicing and recording songs for album number three. The recording will begin in August at Key Club Studio. Writes Amanda: “As much as we would love to be back out ASAP, it won’t be happening until our next full-length is released. When that hits the streets, so will we.”
Tonight at 8, as part of its acoustic music series, Aroma presents Rachel Brandstadter and Joanna Michal. Brandstadter is a guitarist-vocalist for Cameo Turret, and Michal is a singer-songwriter who recently released a six-track EP, Impostor, available at Exile on Main Street. At 11:30 p.m., The Weakdaze will play across the street at Cowboy Monkey.
Saturday afternoon at Crystal Lake Park, UrbanaTeens.com hosts its first annual Teen Battle of the Bands. Live performance launches at 3:50 with Epitaph for an Enemy, then continues through 8:50 with True to Form, H.O.T., 217, Right to Remain, Dark Room Notes, Mac & Ez, The Greytones, Crown Frog and Krash Type 17. In August, the winner will play on the main stage of the Illinois State Fair, and the top three bands will play at the Urbana Sweetcorn Festival. Saturday night at 7, in Savoy, bossa nova cooperative Desafinado returns to Steep & Brew, the coffee nook at Pages for All Ages. There is no cover for these shows today and Saturday.
All of a sudden, “The Void” mysteriously looks less like a house basement and more like The Canopy Club. Wednesday night, in the second installment of a summer concert series, The Void/The Canopy Club spotlight The Living Blue, Tractor Kings and The Situation. Show time is 9 p.m., and cover is $5. May 17, The Living Blue opened for seminal glam-rock group New York Dolls at the Metro in Chicago.
