Over the past six months we have introduced you to many of Chicago and Columbia’s finest rock bands. After scouring the campus one more time, we found a whole other genre at Columbia featuring Chicago’s finest performers. The hip-hop scene in Chicago has always been huge, and for a young producer who moved to the city from St. Louis, it opened a new door to endless opportunities. In our latest installment of artist of the week, meet Orie.
You’ve been producing for about 8 years now, how did you first get into producing? What did your first songs sound like?
I actually started with rapping back in middle school. My mom used to always tell me that I should get into producing, cause that’s where the real money was at. I ignored her for a couple years, and after seeing my friends producing some of the tracks I originally wrote in my middle school rap/r&b group “Rising Image,” I became fascinated and started from there. My songs were always very lyrically driven, often called “conscious” rap, but from the perspective and vocabulary of a 13-year old.
Was the transition from the St. Louis music scene to the Chicago scene difficult? What are the major differences between artists you’ve met here and artists you worked with in St. Louis?
Very different. I love my city, but I’ve gained access to so much new music being in Chicago. I’ve never been exposed to House music before I came to Columbia for school. If you’re not making a dance/club record back home, it’s hard to get any attention from the radio. Chicago is similar in a lot of ways, but there are so many other outlets and ways to get exposure, such as clubs, events, and major Chicago blogs.
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I remember Dan Henig and his music from its earliest incarnations in high school, 42nd Parallel. We both hail from Ann Arbor, MI and it was a wonderful surprise to reconnect with him here in Chicago a couple of weeks ago when I found out he transferred colleges. He has always had a knack for writing catchy and addicting music, but his solo work has evolved and matured beyond being just a fun band to go see on the weekends. He’s become an artist to pay attention to, someone who isn’t just playing for his friend’s entertainment in the basement. He’s playing for himself, means it, and he is going places. Check out the interview and music below.
Enjoy.
Allison Correll
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FREE MUSIC INDUSTRY EVENT – The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs has some rad stuff coming up with co-sponsor Chicago Music Commission. [They’re the fellers that put together Chicago Music City.] It’s nice to know that the city is still keeping the arts alive with events like this.
This February they have their “At Work Forums” which is a series of well …forums that “brings artists and experts to discuss the best practices for Chicago’s creatives in music, dance, theater, visual art, and more.” [Thanks, Explore Chicago].
This shits good. And best part – it’s FREE.
Yeah, panel discussions can get kind of dry at times. But it’s free education and insight about what’s going on in your industry. Here’s one that you all should know about:
Musicians at Work Forum: Touring Tips for Finding and Booking Gigs
Date/Time:
February 22, 2010
Networking: 5:30pm-6:00pm
Panel: 6:00pm-7:30pm
Location: Chicago Cultural Center
78 E. Washington St., 5th Floor Washington Room
Chicago, IL 60605
Moderator:
Joanna Quargnali-Linsley – Misery Loves Co.
Check out the Panelists: Read more…
At one time or another you were horribly embarrassed. You were picked last for a team, taunted based on the contents of your lunchbox, or tripped on the stairs causing your pants to rip in the most horrifying of places. It’s time to reclaim that memory and wear it as a badge of honor. As the Webelos say, “for those ready to embrace who [you] are, we salute you.”
The quartet hails from Chicago and represent both Columbia College and Northwestern University. The band’s philosophy boils down to being true who you are, no excuses, no apologies. They believe in the power of a solid hook and they do it well, drawing influences from the forefathers of pop: the Beatles, the Hollies, the Beach Boys, et al. Don’t be fooled though; the Webelos’ sound is not a throwback, nor are they a band based on nostalgia for a time in which none of the members lived. Their sound is at once modern and classic. As singer Danny Leavitt puts it, “you have to respect your roots, and those are pop rock’s roots.” The Webelos appreciate their inner dweeb and their inner pop star and once you get to know them, those are things you will appreciate, too.
Read on for my interview with Webelos lead vocalist Danny Leavitt.
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Scared about getting a job after school?
Ch-ch-check this out.
For all you arts business kids – whether it’s music, performance art, visual art, literary art, or media art, this is a must-be-at event.
The SEA Conference [Self-Employment in the Arts], is held all over the U.S. hitting up Washington, Cali, Florida, Missouri, Minnesota, and Illinois.
They hold a conference every year around February in Lisle, IL. The conference is over two days with panels, performances, speakers, workshops, etc. It’s designed to cater to multiple arts and businesspersons and put together by the Coleman Foundation, Columbia College, North Central College, and a few other sponsors. It’s designed for college kids studying to enter the arts industries.
My faculty advisor does a lot of work for the conference, and has been quite animate about getting me to go this year. My marketing teacher also raved about it, too. I looked in to the conference a bit more and asked some other people about and I did get some mixed reviews. I guess it can be dry at times, but has overall been found beneficial. Hey, it’s worth a shot. Read more…
The Skallywags are not casual hobbyists. They are group of hard-working, skilled, driven, passionate young musicians. As full-time musicians they have gained a loyal following and as full-time students they are perfecting their talents. Their brand of guitar-driven rock hints at classic rock, ska, country and 90’s pop-rock (à la Third Eye Blind). I had the opportunity to interview Skallywags vocalist and Columbia College student Kristine Spieldmann. Here’s what she had to tell us about her band.
Photo Credit Not Found.
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Chicago is a mecca for emerging artists, especially if you are a solo artist looking to perfect that live back-up band. For John Farrell, it was easy to find close friends to support him during his live show. His backup band came from a previous collaboration that dispersed from the lack of time each member could commit. Instead, John decided to write and record a new round of songs, brought in a killer manager to handle all that paperwork, and gave his former band the chance to play live together once again.
Enjoy this week’s edition of Band of the Week.
How did the John Farrell band come about and how did the collaboration with the musicians in the back-up band come about?
I basically asked these guys (Dave, Kyle, Greg,) to help me play my songs live because we all didn’t have enough time to keep our former band ( Voodoo Youth) together. I figured at least this way we could keep playing together. The problem was that between song writing, practicing, booking shows, and everything else that encompasses being in a serious band, we couldn’t get off the ground. With Dave and I being in school, and Kyle and Greg having full-time jobs among other personal commitments made the idea of a band seem unrealistic. So I figured if I wrote the songs myself, recorded the songs myself (Kyle of course playing the drums), and brought Andrew Coate into the mix for booking and other managerial duties, then maybe this could work. I later added Rico Vigil ( You, Me, and Everyone We know) who is a long time friend, because he happened to be in town for the winter and brings so much energy and experience to a live performance. I have known all of these guys for years, and truly appreciate there willingness to partake in my insanity. In a nutshell, band is basically me and my closest musician friends getting together and playing my songs together.
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As we venture further into January, it is time to welcome back our weekly edition of “Band of the Week.” 2009 introduced us to acts from all over the world with one thing in common – each of them now calls Chicago home. Brother and sister duo The Arrowsics’ story may be similar to interviews we have conducted in the past, but lead singer and composer Trevor Geiger gives us a glimpse into his musical background and the beautiful coastal town they are named after, Arrowsic, Maine.
The Arrowsics is comprised of you and your sister, have you always played music together or is this a new project?
Back when I started playing in bands everyone always said that Molly should sing for my group and I was always annoyed. My little sister….in my band? But about three years ago when my long-time band DPOM broke up, I realized that she has a great voice, and that any annoyance from years ago was gone. We’re really great friends and our voices are really similar, so it actually made a lot of sense.
We’ve done a bunch of stuff where she sings lead, but for this latest project she’s been really nice and done support vocals for me on my solo work. I love having a female voice for the high harmonies and even though Molly’s more used to singing lead, she does a great job.
What was the influence behind moving to Chicago from your hometown of Arrowsic, ME?
I dropped out of college in 2003 to move to Atlanta with my old band. After a few years down there we had all decided to move to Portland, Oregon where we thought we’d fit in better. We packed up all of our gear and began the cross-country drive. But we only made it as far as Chicago. After spending a few days in the city we had decided to stay. A reunion with our old guitarist (studying at the University of Chicago) convinced us that this was a pretty cool town. Read more…
These boys may still look like they couldn’t pick up a pack of cigarettes at the local 7-11, but trust me, they can surely rock. Named after Jim Carey’s “The Truman Show,” Truman & His Trophy are combining math-rock and punk rock together to create a sound perfect for any house party. Check them out at one of their upcoming shows over Winter Break!
Enjoy this week’s installment of “Band of the Week”
How is it that Truman & His Trophy began and what brought all of you
together? Where did you get that name? It’s really interesting!
Truman & His Trophy began as a collaborative basement recording
project between Frank and myself in the summer of 2007. We were in a
band together that had just disbanded. I had written two songs that I
really liked and wanted to record them for fun at his house and at
this point I had no intention of starting another band. After we had
recorded them, we felt extremely good about it and wanted to properly
start a new band. We immediately found a house show to play without
any sort of band. We then asked our friends Jake and Ryan to help us
out, who are still in the band now. I had made up the name Truman &
His Trophy out of nowhere in particular. I really liked the movie The
Truman Show at the time, which I suppose is where the name Truman came
from. I’m also really attracted to phrases with alliteration, so I
guess the “trophy” came from that. Long story short, I wish there was
an awesome story behind our name but there sadly is not.
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