The middle of July is quickly approaching, and the rising temperatures tell me that Taste Of Chicago is almost upon us. The city’s finest restaurants will supply the food, and a few of Chicago’s finest bands will be putting on free shows sponsored by Bud Light. So save up your nickels and dimes for the fun to start on Friday July 12th. Some folks have … Continue reading Taste Of Chicago 2013 Preview
It’s been a long time since I’ve done an interview that was just one-on-one, so I wanted to try some different things. When I met Matt at Schubas, we started talking and we got a few minutes in so I just decided to turn the camera on and let it roll without doing any introductions or anything, just two guys talking. We covered some really … Continue reading An Exclusive Interview With Matt Priest Of Canasta
It was a bit odd for me on Saturday night to be standing barely five feet away from the stage where, ten years earlier, Canasta played their very first show. Odd because for the first nine and a half years of their existence I paid very little attention to them. Just a couple years ago I was hearing a lot of their praise for their most recent album, The Fakeout, The Tease, and The Breather-and still I gave them no mind. It wasn’t until I saw them play a show at Lincoln Hall in January that I discovered their majesty. Last week I reviewed their now two year old album on the site, and it is a brilliant piece of work. I plan on remaining much more aware of their moves over the following ten years.
The show kicked off with a slideshow detailing the band’s history, put together by co-founder Elizabeth Lindau. Pictures of the original lineup were set to the theme song from “Perfect Strangers,” while later photos were backed with Sara McLachlan’s “I Will Remember You.” In addition to the ever-evolving facial hair of Matt Priest, it was interesting to see just how many people have been involved with Canasta over the years. Near the end of the slideshow there was a list of every show they’ve ever played, and it read like the opening of a Star Wars movie. Over the last decade the band has played something like one hundred million shows.
On this particular evening, the show was as much a history lesson for new fans as it was a rollicking good time for long-loyal diehards (Canastanites?). Their very first show at Schubas was a Belle & Sebastian cover show, at which they played one song-“Seeing Other People.” Of the four covers Canasta tore through for their anniversary, two of them were by the Glaswegians. “I Didn’t See It Coming” was played near perfectly by the band, while “I’m A Cuckoo” fell a little flat for me. Probably because I’m a much bigger fan of the former. Back in September Canasta played a full set as Belle & Sebastian, which I missed. Hopefully they’ll be doing that again someday. Continue reading “Canasta’s 10th Anniversary Show At Schuba’s”
It feels kinda like 2010 is getting a second life around here lately. Last week I posted my old review of The Congregation’s Not For Sleepin’ and now I’m doing a review of another album that I missed two years ago. Some things are worth revisiting, though, and honestly my excuse for not reviewing it back then is just laziness. Now that I’ve actually heard Canasta’s album, I feel like an idiot.
If it hadn’t been for a record release show by Young Jesus back in January, I probably still would be ignorant to the sounds of Canasta. Luckily they opened that show with a tremendous set, capped off by the greatest version of Blackstreet’s “No Diggity” I’ve ever heard. I’ve been listening to The Fakeout, The Tease, And The Breather off and on since then, but decided to wait until now to give it a review.
Continue reading “Canasta-The Fakeout, The Tease, And The Breather”
Last year I dedicated basically an entire week to Record Store Day. To me, it’s like Christmas only instead of celebrating the birth of someone none of us have ever met we get to celebrate our love of 180g vinyl and rare 7″ singles. Way more fun in my mind, and I never get anything I don’t want. Last year was a pretty stellar year … Continue reading Record Store Day 2012: The Annual Celebration Of Vinyl
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