Live music – Page 59 – 7th Level Music

Levitation Chicago Night 3 – Natural Information Society and Bitchin’ Bajas, Night Beats, Earthless, Faust, Chelsea Wolfe

The last night of Levitation Chicago was a good one. It started with local acts Natural Information Society and Bitchin’ Bajas. They played a beautiful set of trance-inducing instrumentals combining jazz, world music, and electro.

Up next were one of my favorite bands, Night Beats. They get better with each performance and are slaying it right now. They never turn in a bad performance. I got to chat with them after their set. They were all humble and appreciative. Drummer James Traeger was surprised that I’d been promoting them since 2013.

Another group of humble, appreciative guys I got to talk with were Earthless. They flattened the place with an epic three-song set of their space / stoner rock. Afterwards, a young man next to me asked if all their songs were so big and long. “Yes,” I said. “All of their stuff is that epic.”

“They just don’t stop,” he said. “They just keep going.” He’s right. They lift off and like a rocket and don’t come back for a while.

I took a break and came back for part of Faust‘s set. They had four women knitting on stage to “keep things from getting out of control.” It was weird and quirky.

The night ended with a loud, powerful dark wave set from Chelsea Wolfe. Her voice is as powerful as her heavy sound. She slithers like a snake and sings like a siren.

It was a good end to the festival. I’d like to come back next year, and need to track down more new music now.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago Night 2 – Nite Fields, Blanck Mass, Ryley Walker, Lightning Bolt

Night #2 of Levitation Chicago didn’t have the same “wow factor” of the first night for me, but there were still some good moments.

The first was a good shoegaze performance from Nite Fields, who came all the way from Australia. I was glad that more people showed up by the end of their set because it got better with each song.

Blanck Mass came out next and put down a great set of electronica that had people dancing and trancing. Each song flowed into the next without interruption and ended with a dropped beat and a wave good-bye. I need to pick up his full-length album.

One neat thing about a Levitation festival is that you can jump genres on the same stage and both performances will be good ones. Ryley Walker and his band came out after Blanck Mass and performed a fine set of blues-influenced Americana rock. It made me think of the Allman Brothers Band in their heyday.

I ended the night a little early when I couldn’t bear any more of Lightning Bolt‘s set. They continued their tradition of setting up on the main floor and being surrounded by the audience. The set was punishing. I was about ten bodies back and the force of their bass-drums combo literally hurt my stomach. I dared not get close enough to get a photograph. I had to walk away and decided to call it a night.

Tonight’s line-up for me is Natural Information Society and Bitchin’ Bajas, Night Beats, Earthless, Faust, and Chelsea Wolfe.

Keep your mind open.

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The Dunes – Live at Soundlounge 2015

I first discovered The Dunes (Stacie Reeves -vocals and percussion, Matt Reiner – guitar, Adam Vanderwerf – bass, Jess Honeychurch – keyboards, Brett Walter – synths, Clair O’Boyle – drums) in 2014 when I was writing for Outlaw Music Magazine. These Australian psych-rockers create music as big as their homeland and trippy as the night skies above the desert there. I don’t know if they’ve ever toured the United States, but getting this fine live recording is a good appetizer for a future full course live meal.

The album opens with “When You Wake Up,” which plunges you into their deep, dark psych-rock at the first note. It’s almost induces a trance with its droning synths, fuzzed-out guitars, echoing vocals, thick bass, and drums that sound like they’re being played in a red rock canyon, so I imagine the band is referring to waking up from illusions and seeing true reality rather than waking from a good night’s sleep.

“Badlands,” the title track to their September 2014 release, is nearly ten minutes of freak-out mind-warp madness. The synths spin around you, the drums would fit in a pow-wow, and the bass buzzes like a drunken hummingbird. We get an extended cut of “A Thousand Crimes” after it, and I like how the synths sound like a sitar and the guitar work has a bit of a surf edge to it.

“End of the Beginning” is strong and bold, with great shoegaze guitars and heavy bass and percussion while the keys, synths, and vocals float along like a weird fog. The use of a tambourine on this track is both excellent and jarring. “Door to the Mind” blends shoegaze and psych-rock so well that I’m not sure where one ends and the other begins. It definitely will open your mind as it blends Doors, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, My Bloody Valentine, and the Jesus and Mary Chain. It’s an amazing track with some of the finest guitar and rum work on the record.

“Lunar Effect,” all eleven minutes and six seconds of it, ends the album on an uplifting note with vocals that rise like the sun. The band goes out on an ethereal note as they flow back and forth until the final chords.

This is a fine psychedelic rock record and one of the best live albums I’ve heard in a long while. The Dunes need to get to the U.S. soon so more can hear them.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago: Night 1 – Vadaat Charigim, Gary Wilson, Health

I headed to Chicago’s Thalia Hall after a fine Mexican dinner in time to see Vadaat Charigim, who put on a fine set of shoegaze dream-rock. Yuval Haring‘s spaced-out guitar sounds like he’s playing it from across the street yet it’s still loud enough to hear. Yuval Guttman has some of the best cymbal fills I’ve heard in a long while, and Dan Fabian Bloch looks like Julian Cope and plays bass like Peter Hook.

Up next was the avant-garde legend himself Gary Wilson and the Blind Dates. Let me say right away that the Blind Dates are a killer band who can give anyone a run for their money. They’re probably the closest I’ll get to seeing the Mothers of Invention. Mr. Wilson came out in a floor-length smock, scarf, and his ubiquitous sunglasses and dishwashing gloves and carrying a large piece of thin plastic tarp and a female mannequin’s head. He started with a classic, “6.4 = Make Out,” and went on to tear through a stunning set with songs like “Linda Wants to Be Alone” and “Gary’s in the Park.” He freaked out a girl to my left, who couldn’t bear to look at him as he nearly crawled off the stage toward her while holding the mannequin’s head in his hand. I will see him whenever possible, as should you.

My night ended with Health, who flattened the place with a big set of booming industrial rock and some of the best drumming I’ve heard from any band in a long while. I seriously don’t know how Benjamin Jared Miller makes that much sound with a snare, kick drum, floor tom, one mounted tom, two cymbals (one with about a 3″ x 3″ piece missing from an edge), and a high hat.

It was a good time, and Thalia Hall is a nice venue. Tonight Nite Fields, Blanck Mass, Ryley Walker, and Lightning Bolt are on the list for me.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Faust

Legendary German kraut rock band Faust are playing a rare performance at Levitation Chicago on March 12th, closing out the three-day festival. Faust built a devoted fan base in the 1970’s with their mixture of kraut rock and psychedelic rock before breaking up and disappearing until the 1990’s. Only two of the original members remain (Werner “Zappi” Diermeier – percussion, Jean-Herve Peron – bass), but this will still be a special set.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Chelsea Wolfe

Dark wave siren Chelsea Wolfe creates hard-hitting songs about frightening topics like annihilation, sleep paralysis, purgatory, and shattered relationships. Her voice grabs you by the throat and the heavy bass and synths in her work will make you submit.

Ms. Wolfe is performing at Levitation Chicago on March 12th. I’m sure it will be a powerful set.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Earthless

Earthless (Mike Eginton – bass, Isaiah Mitchell – guitar, Mario Rubalcaba – drums) are a powerhouse stoner / cosmic rock band. In my opinion, they call themselves Earthless because their rock is too big to be contained to this planet. If Jack Kirby’s New Gods comics came with a soundtrack, Earthless would score it.

I saw them at Levitation Austin in 2014 and was blown away by their set. They create epic tracks usually of double-digit length. My wife thought the first two songs of their Levitation Austin set were actually three. I look forward to having them melt my face again at Levitation Chicago on March 12th.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Night Beats

Night Beats (Danny Lee Blackwell – guitar and lead vocals, James Traeger – drums, and Jakob Bowden – bass) are a fantastic psychedelic rock band hailing from Seattle, Washington. I first saw them at Levitation Austin in 2013 and was blown away by their mixture of psychedelia and blues. They put on another great performance the following year at the Levitation Austin pre-festival kick-off party. I got to meet Blackwell there, and he signed my copy of Sonic Bloom. He was a humble, nice chap.

I’ll see Night Beats any chance I can get and look forward to seeing them again and picking up their new record at Levitation Chicago on March 12th. I’ll have my Sharpie ready.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Natural Information Society and Bitchin’ Bajas

Natural Information Society is a Chicago jazz collective led by Joshua Abrams. Bitchin’ Bajas are a Chicago-based kraut-rock band. They’re two great tastes that taste great together on their collaboration that blends world music funk, jazz, electro, and synth-wave.

It’s nice to see Levitation Chicago bringing in local acts, especially this team-up that should bring a meditative feel to their March 12th performance.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Chicago artist spotlight: Lightning Bolt

Lightning Bolt (Brian Chippendale – drums and vocals, Brian Gibson – bass) make some of the craziest noise rock you’ve ever heard. Schizophrenic sounds of distorted bass, war cry bass, and batshit crazy drums. Chippendale wears headphones during their live sets, I’m guessing to better hear his vocals and to keep himself from going deaf.

Their live sets are sweaty, frenetic near-brawls. I’m sure their performance at Levitation Chicago on March 11th will be one of the highlights.

Keep your mind open.

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