The Menzingers @ Fest 8 (photo by ceephoto)
So, my trip to Fest started on somewhat of a sour note as I started get really sick with the flu only a few days before I left for Florida. However, I am a trooper and refused to let a little sickness get in my way of a weekend of good ol’ fashion rock n roll. Instead of boring you with every minute detail of the weekend, I am only going to talk about my favorite two sets of the weekend.
On the first night, one of the bands I was most looking forward to was a band that I had actually seen one week before at the Metro, but that’s how much I enjoy them and their live show. The band I am talking about is Philadelphia, PA’s own The Menzingers. Like many acts at the Fest, The Menzingers enjoy bigger than normal crowds in every year in Gainesville and this weekend was no different. Performing at the Atlantic to an (over)capacity crowd, the Philly foursome rocked through a set comprised mainly of their latest EP Hold On, Dodge coupled with a few older tunes and covers of The Clash (“Straight to Hell”) and Billy Bragg (“To Have and Have Not”). The reaction of the crowd was amazing, and it was thrilling to see so many people just as excited for this band as I am.
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After 6 days in New York City I can honestly say I am ready to head back to the Midwest. We woke up early this morning to cross Manhattan into Queens to catch our flight at La Guardia Airport. As I enjoy my last 30 minutes of vacation time on this flight, I figured this would also be the best time to recap my last night in NYC and the whole CMJ experience.
Now that the panels have ended, the CMJ Music Marathon wrapped up with the remaining showcases in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Saturday’s weather was humid and rainy, so in between running through raindrops we decided it was the best choice to stick it out at one venue, the Bowery Ballroom. A friend of mine works at ICM and manages Violens, one of the bands playing the Bowery showcase, so that helped make our decision on where to camp out.
Threes and Nines @ The Bowery Ballroom
The first band playing when walked into the Bowery Ballroom was called Threes and Nines out of California. The four piece band featured lead singer/songwriter Jake Brebes, female upright bass player Tasha Powers, drummer Max Triplet, and an unnamed guitarist. The group was fun to watch and their sound at times reminded me of early Bob Dylan mixed with some early rockabilly influences. Threes and Nines looked like they had a great time playing together on stage and was an energetic way to kick-off the long roster for the evening.
Violens @ The Bowery Ballroom
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Creators of HAIR the Musical
We gave up the sunny 70-degree temps from Thursday for rainy, 50s on Friday. It made it harder to get out of bed, harder to be motivated to get out to shows, and just annoying for those of us who were not smart enough to pack an umbrella. With the later start to our day, the panels were our first stop. The creators and a few actors from HAIR the Musical came out to speak about the musical, how they brought it back to Broadway after a break, and we were even treated with a performance at the end of the panel.
The next panel I decided to hit up was about using Journalism as PR. Some of the speakers had amazing quotes, and the really dove in to why people have and use blogs to spread the word about music. Rob Fields, writer and creator of boldaslove.us mentioned that “blogs are done out of passion.” You will not find a blog that has consistent material up about music that is not done out of passion, it just would not exist. Read more…
It’s only the morning of day 3 and I can feel the sickness coming on. Maybe its from the 6 venues we hit up last night, and the 7 killer artists we saw that dwindled down my immune system – or the fact that staying out until 4am then getting back up at 10am on a regular basis is crazy. I do recommend walking through Times Square at 4am though, its the one time you can really appreciate how massive and bright that area is without tourists.
Featured speaker Andrew W.K.
One of the highlights every year at CMJ is their featured speaker. This speaker is normally someone of high influence in the entertainment industry who can motivate, inform, and connect with the college students who attend the conference. THIS YEAR’S speaker was some of that, and maybe a little bit extra- Mr. Andrew W.K. He began his speech with “well, you can really see how the music industry has changed by having CMJ book this as their featured speaker!” Andrew went on to amuse the crowd by answering questions from students and ultimate fans (two boys who were dressed exactly like Andrew). When asked how he became so successfully Andrew replied “just keep doing what you love to do with as much intensity as possible.” Read more…
Currently reporting live from New York City (about a block from Times Square right now to be exact!) to update you about the happenings at the CMJ Music & Film festival. We are well into Day 2 right now, but to hear about our exciting panel with Andrew W.K. you’ll have to check back in tomorrow.
After an early morning flight from Chicago to NYC, we kicked off the festival by conquering the public transportation system in New York to pick up our “offical” CMJ badges. The weather in the city has been beautiful, especially considering Halloween will be gracing our calendars next week so rather than walking in halfway on the panels we decided to enjoy SPICE Thai food outside of NYU’s campus on the steps of Union Square. Read more…
www.cmj.com
It’s that time of year again, the CMJ Music Marathon kicks off tomorrow afternoon in New York City and I am lucky enough to be attending!
The CMJ Network hosts the yearly music festival every October and “connects music fans and music industry professionals with the best in new music through interactive media, live events, and print.” It is a haven for college students who are involved with, in love with, or want to work with music. CMJ’s festival is known for launching the careers of numerous artists over its 15 years including the Black Kids, Crystle Castles, Justice, Wolf Parade, and even the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
The festival features panels filled with industry professionals that take place on New York University’s campus. If panels are not your thing, the over 50 showcases a night featuring breaking artists from all over the world should be. Artists that I’m already looking forward checking out include the XX, We Are Country Mice, French Horn Rebellion, Malajube + the hundreds of other new music discoveries that will be made over the next 5 days of my life.
Stay tuned on a daily basis as I attempt to keep you updated with photos, music, and stories from my CMJ adventure.
Wish me luck.
Chicago is a D.I.Y. (do it yourself for those not hip-enough to know that abbreviation) city. If you don’t believe me walk around in Wicker Park, or even around the campuses of Columbia College or the School of the Art Institute. You will see handmade jewelry, clothes fashioned out of garbage, t-shirts attacked by scissors, and way to much puffy fabric paint as each person individualizes their “look.”
This Saturday and Sunday all of these creative folk come together to make some cash off of their handy work. The Renegade craft fair kicks off this beautiful September weekend tomorrow, and runs until Sunday, September 13th on Division between Damen Ave. and Paulina.
If taking advantage of the free bike valet isn’t enough to bring you down to Wicker Park this weekend, the 300 artists from across the country selling their DIY goods to you should be! Hopefully you saved some cash from all that back-to-school spending Read more…
Got a bit of a preview, behind the scenes tour of Lollapalooza today with C3 Presents – the production company that well ..produces Lolla every year in Chicago.
Sweet random piece of useless information: The name “Lollapalooza” came from when Perry Farrell, [the dude that created the awesome festival] was rolling around on the floor and opened up a dictionary and the first word his finger landed on was ‘Lollapalooza.’ Which is an “extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.” I say his finger was guided by the hand of God.
There are a few new gadgets coming into play this year that you guys should know:
- Everything is going to be streamed online on the website, so you broke asses like myself, can watch from home, and not worried about getting arrested for jumping the fence.
- They’re recording the performances in 3D which is the first time in the history of forever 3D filming is been used on such a large scale. C3 has some bamfs working there, I’d say.
- And I just had a brain fart and can’t remember the third thing I was going to write. So instead, I’ll fill the space with another random piece of useless information: A spot in one of the Cabanas [which is usually occupied by head honchos at IBM, Budweiser, and other rich kids] will set you back like $1500.
So much for a recession.
Have fun at Lolla this weekend, kids.
- Devan Marie
The summer is finally starting to dwindle down as August creeps into the calendar this weekend. In Chicago, the summer seems to end after Lollapalooza, but before you start having those “I gotta go back to school so I’m super depressed” thoughts, look forward to the weekend!
This weekend, the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival takes place along Milwaukee Avenue from California and Ridgeway. This festival is filled with live music, fine art, local vendors, and diverse food from the Logan Square neighborhood.
If that isn’t enough to make you trek out to the far west side of the city, the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival Live art Masterpiece Battle takes place on Saturday, August 1st and the winner walks away with a $500 prize. So if you have any artist friends looking to make extra cash, pull them out and celebrate the arts!
Chicago is an artsy city, come experience it firsthand!
Check out the live music schedule behind the cut…
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Columbia College Chicago is hosting the 5th annual Printers’ Ball this Friday! [July 31st]
The shenanigans goes from 5pm-11pm at the Ludington Building. [1104 S Wabash]
In case you are not familiar with Printers’ Ball – it’s basically the biggest literary party in Chicago.
- Over 1,500 people attend
- Over 200 local, national, and international literary organizations hang out and give away free print material
- Live DJs
- Live Bands
- Literary Death Matches
- Readings by Chicago’s biggest writers
- Free ink on paper, including magazines, books, broadsides, and more Paper making demonstrations and more
- People serenading you with poetry and short stories in the elevators [Elevated Diction]
- Meet and greet editors, publishers, and writers, and more.
The magnitude of this event is ridiculous.
If you are involved in print culture of any sort, or if you write, or like to read, or like beer, you should probably go.
And this’ll be one of the only times you’ll be served alcohol on school campus ever. Well, legally, that is.
BEST PART: It’s completely FREE and all ages.
See you there
-Devan Marie
