Last night Frontier Ruckus returned to Chicago for a set upstairs at Bourbon On Division. I’d never heard of the bar until the show was announced, and I’m glad I went because the space is really nice. The sound was great, the stage is nice and low so you’re face to face with the band not looking up like you’re worshiping them.

Now performing as a trio (Matt, David, and Zach), they performed songs from all over their discography. They also offered up a new track called “Magdalene (That’s Not Your Name)” that was quite good. And Matt was pleased to announce it’s the first title he’s done with a parenthetical, so that’s fun. My favorite part, as always, was watching Zach hop from instrument to instrument between and during songs. The guy’s a marvel who seems to be able to play whatever you put in his hands: trumpet, melodica, keyboards-you name it, he plays it. I mean, the guy even makes that saw sing!

After about an hour they came off the stage to the floor and played a couple more in the middle of the audience. It was a nice way to end things, and even without microphones everyone could hear very well.