Sometimes at shows I wonder how many people in attendance consider the act on stage to be their favorite ever. Review Wed Big Fans and Big Sound for Mew A couple hours passed before small tight-knit groups traced the walls of the venue, leaving the dance floor open to anyone who dared to show off their moves. It didn't say when London-native DJ Kane West would perform, nor did it list who his special guests would be. The event was RSVP only, and the invite indicated the doors would open at 9pm. Tiny tea-light candles strategically placed on two-seater tables and booths provided a pathway to the bar. The red light continued to haunt me, as I traveled up a narrow staircase, but a comforting, cozy darkness soon confronted me when I reached the last step. A glaring red light flickered right above the door, matching the rain that fell into a habit of turning on and off. Siri comfortingly reassured me that I was here - at the East Room.Ī black door embellished with indecipherable graffiti and musicians' marks lied against a seemingly vast brick wall. I was standing slightly off of the corner of Milwaukee and Medill avenues, and I quickly double-checked the directions on my phone. It was just a little too warm, and the streets of Logan Square were more tame than usual, which made me question whether I was at the right place.

The weather on an early October night in Chicago felt a little different from what I'm used to.

Review Tue An Informal Introduction to Kane West I was interested to see how she'd hold the crowd's attention alone on stage. The 21-year-old is on her first American tour (it's her first time in America, period) and already seems to be on the fast track to success-her most recent single, 'Borrowed Time,' was co-written with Disclosure's Howard Lawrence, and her standout tracks 'Grow' and 'Let it Out' have garnered her a wealth of critical praise and the opportunity to work with writers like Jimmy Napes and Iain Archer on her forthcoming debut album. But it was the other young British songwriter opening for him, Frances, who spoke with me yesterday. A massive, Simba-like illustration of James Bay's face draped the back wall of the stage, indicating the young British singer/songwriter who most of the crowd had come to see. The Riviera's stage looked eerily empty with just a keyboard and a microphone set up front and center. Review Sat With Just A Piano And Her Voice, Frances Held Up Her Own For James Bay And in front of a very friendly crowd that was clearly expecting more of the former, the new material worked surprisingly well. Since the departure of vocalist/guitarist John Paterini earlier this year, they've shifted their style radically from the rap-rock hybrid of their early halcyon days to a more straightforward garage-y vibe that stays hard-edged enough not to drown itself in reverb. The band is quite young-like me, they graduated from college in May-but they've already gone through a metamorphosis that they put on display for the fifty or so brave souls who conquered the Lazy Sunday vibes and the December chill to come out.

Watching The Lonely Biscuits perform at Beat Kitchen last night was an experience in seeing and hearing the process of change. That's why artists who change tastefully, like Kanye West and The Beatles, transcend the moment, and that's why Nickelback has fallen so far from grace. Art always has a basis in context-whether it be societal mores or the artist's personal life-so for it to remain static suggests an ignorance of the terrifying drip of sand from the hourglass that unites all humanity. Review Mon The Lonely Biscuits Metamorphose At Beat KitchenĪ hallmark of the most successful bands is a willingness and ability to change over time.

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