Musicology

Back in high school, like so many before me, I was attracted to the more outlandish types of music, especially those found in the various subgenres of punk and metal. There was so much that I had never been exposed to, and it was all full of angst and strife and brutal guitars and driving drums and all the usual bombast that goes along with that whole scene.

Looking for something to do tonight? Got an itch that only folk rock mixed with psychedelic fusion can cure? Come on down and scratch that itch at the Canopy Club as Old Shoe and Chicago Farmer once again join forces to bring you an evening of great music.

So many people have asked me why I like the Grateful Dead. They ask me if I like a bunch of noise squealing over erratic drums, if I like inconsistent performances and struggles with drug addiction. They ask me why I like songs with no structure.

So I turn 26 today, right around 3:25 in the afternoon. I'm in a pretty good mood even without that, and I thought I would just share some of the music I've been listening to today, and tell you a little bit about a show coming to town tonight. I know it's two topics in one article, but I really wanted to talk about all of this at once, so here we are.

Festival season is winding down. Shoe Fest gave us one more dance, and now it looks like the Midwest still isn't done. Just up the road in Saybrook, IL, happening right now, this very second, is FarmFest 450; a small festival with a big attitude.

By now, anyone who has read my column knows I like to search the various nooks and crannies of the Midwest and root out the music hiding in the cornfields. Our particular swath of America is home to such a diverse cross section of American culture, and lately the music scene in our area has been exploding.

Shoe Fest is such an experience that I simply don’t have time to break it down by each individual performance, so I am just going to see where this column takes me. I mean, anyone who has read my column before knows that Shoe Fest is near and dear to my heart, like it is to so many in the Midwest.

Festival season is winding down, and with the cancellation of Phases of the Moon down in Arkansas (that festival seems to be cursed...), the end is coming even sooner than expected. Luckily for those of us here in the Midwest, there's still "one more dance before summer turns to fall". That is the wonderful weekend of bluegrass, roots, folk, funk, jazz, and rock known as Shoe Fest.

So Magnaball, the tenth festival for powerhouse jam band Phish, has finally come and gone, and left us all exhausted but thrilled, and the memories will stick around forever (it's pretty cool that the recordings of the shows are already available).