Cate Le Bon with Mega Bog @ Thaila Hall - Chicago, IL
Photos & words courtesy of Alyssa Leicht | February 14th 2022
“Hello, Chicago.”
That’s how the wryly grinning, soft-spoken Cate Le Bon greeted the crowd at Thalia Hall on Valentine’s Day. Le Bon, the Welsh songwriter signed to the independent label Mexican Summer, played a set skewed mostly toward her superb new album “Pompeii,” but also included many favorites from 2019’s LP, “Reward.”
The crowd was intensely focused and energetic for hits “Miami” and “Daylight Matters” from “Reward,” which had Le Bon stepping out from behind her fluorescent orange guitar to command the stage. Singles “Moderation” and “Remembering Me” from the 10-days-old “Pompeii” also matched that energy, culminating with Le Bon side-winding while playing a reverby psych-noise guitar solo.
The night was dotted with signs of romance for the holiday, beginning with Erin Birgy, singer of the opening act Mega Bog, placing a pink rose in a vase at the front of the stage. Mega Bog, offering up a spectacular stripped down two-piece set reminiscent of Laurie Anderson and Kate Bush, felt right at home opening for Le Bon.
Le Bon also gestured toward the air of love in the room several times. “Some sage advice for you all…” she said softly, as she and the band, sans bass player, returned to the stage for the encore the crowd demanded. She then began a sweetly sincere rendition of Paul McCarntney’s love song Waterfalls, which goes:
Don't go jumping waterfalls
Please keep to the lake
People who jump waterfalls
Sometimes can make mistakes
And I need love, yeah I need love
Like a second needs an hour
Like a raindrop needs a shower
Yeah I need love every minute of the day
And it wouldn't be the same
If you ever should decide to go away
Protomartyr with Melkbelly @ Raccoon Motel - Davenport, Iowa
Photos and words courtesy of Alyssa Leicht | October 11th 2021
The Wikipedia page for Joe Casey, lead singer of Detroit-based rock band Protomartyr, describes him as having an “anti-charismatic” stage presence. But after having witnessed his November 10th performance at the 175-cap Raccoon Motel in Davenport, Iowa, I think it’s safe to say that’s an incomplete description, at best.
Standing mostly in place, perpetually gripping a sweating can of Miller Lite, Joe Casey isn’t just anti-charisma – he’s intense and challenging, and at times engages personally with the audience, locking eyes with individuals in an artsy game of chicken. The captivating performance perfectly embodied the range and poetics of Protomartyr’s songs. Their set was fittingly bookended by the thrashing number “Processed by the Boys” and its musical opposite, the haunting elegy “Worm in Heaven.”
Melkbelly, garage-rock band from Chicago, opened the night with a grungy set that often dissolved into art-rock noise. Their style and performance gestured toward the Breeders, whose co-founder, Kelly Deal, joined Protomartyr on keys, vocals, and percussion during their set and elevated their songs through subtle textures and experimental feature parts.
The setting of Sean Moeller’s Raccoon Motel made the experience that much better for this show, providing a moody and intimate club environment packed with funky art and retro decor, and a separate bar area and listening room for a more focused and uninterrupted show experience. If you ever have a night in the quad cities, I highly recommend checking this place out, even if you don’t know the band who’s playing. They routinely have a stacked show schedule that doesn’t disappoint.
IDLES @ Riviera Theatre - Chicago, IL
Photos and words courtesy of Alyssa Leicht | October 8th 2021
British-Irish punkers IDLES’ October 8th show at Riviera Theatre in Chicago was the second night of their COVID-delayed Ultra Mono tour, and the house was packed. In addition to 2020’s Ultra Mono, the band’s lengthy set spanned earlier albums and to the joy of many in the crowd, included a generous preview of their upcoming album Crawler, out in November.
A tightly packed and intensely energetic crowd moshed and nodded along to IDLES’ performance, mesmerized by the band’s beautiful ability to conjure catharsis and camaraderie in a room full of strangers. That quality was on full display as the audience shouted out lyrics in perfect unison with lead singer Joe Talbot, song after song.
Gustaf, a Brooklyn-based art-punk four-piece, brought their dancy rhythms, arch humor, and impeccable lyrics during their opening set at the beginning of the night. Lead singer Lydia Gammill has a must-see stage presence and a refreshingly original sound that feels like a combative, grimier Talking Heads but with more earnest romance. Gammill got some extra love from the crowd for her melodic flute performance in the truly beautiful number, “Happy,” a track from their debut release “Audio Drag for Ego Slobs.”
At the end of the night, the sweat-drenched crowd lost their minds to a full-ensemble iteration of IDLES’ “Rottweiler,” with Gustaf joining in and consuming the stage with a raucous tandem performance of the final number.
Low Cut Connie @ The Rust Belt, East Moline, IL
Photos courtesy of Alyssa Leicht | April 18 2019
