ChicagoVerseUniteD: Chicago Scene Salvation

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Purple Apple!

Chicago pop-rock group Purple Apple have been working on new songs since the release of their 2010 EP, Sweet Wolverine. The band – comprised of a trio of 14-year-old girls alongside their babysitter, herself in her twenties - have already attained the honor of being the youngest act to ever headline the Metro. Now, Purple Apple’s lead singer and guitarist Olivia Eigel tells CVU what’s on deck for the young band, as they look towards their next release.

“We’ve been writing and recording over the last four months so the new EP should be ready to release in the first half of 2012,” Eigel says. “The new stuff is really cool. A good mix of indie rock-strong guitars, interesting keys and dance pop. As we’ve gotten older, our music has matured, so have our lyrics. From 10-14 years old makes for a much different sound. I don’t like to compare us to other bands as far as our sound - we do our own thing. Of course we have influences but we don’t try to be anything. We just write and play.”

Though the group is looking at an EP release, Eigel reveals things could still go in a different direction, stating “There’s a lot of great material. LP, EP…not sure which yet.” The work’s title and release date are also still to be determined, with Eigel offering “Have you worked with four girls before?” as an explanation.

What is certain is the young band’s ambition. “We would LOVE to tour this summer or fall,” Eigel proclaims. “Lollapalooza would be a blast to play this summer, too. We have a great gig at the Double Door in the spring – it’s a fundraiser for Trio Animal Foundation. We’ll play throughout the year in the city. That’s a lot of fun. We’re ready for whatever is put in our direction.”

Find the group performing their song “Shut The Door” on Windy City Live below, followed by the band’s EPK. And watch for more on Purple Apple right here at CVU.

Get $2 off cover at the door when you say “Dynasty!” - Listen to the live broadcast live on Thursday night at the Dynasty Podcasts Mixlr page!

This week on Dynasty Podcasts Live Broadcast: the NOIZE R!OT 01/19/12 broadcast podcast! Recorded at the second week of the NOIZE R!OT party, and featuring Karolina Naumowicz of Young Girl Party, Leyla I. Royale, two freestyles, and more!

And catch Dynasty Podcasts broadcasting live tonight, Thursday, January 26th at the third installment of DΞ∆D F∆MΞ‘s NOIZE R!OT, happening at Stan Mansion (2408 N Kedzie). Get $2 off cover at the door when you say “Dynasty!” - Listen to the live broadcast in real time on Thursday night at the Dynasty Podcasts Mixlr page!

Dynasty Podcasts launched in 2005 as Chicago’s first music-focused podcast network. The network currently has over 25,000 followers worldwide, and pulls in on average about 1,000 more per week. Dynasty Podcasts was heard in over 100 countries in 2011 alone, and hit over 10,000 plays last year across multiple platforms. Promoters looking to book Dynasty Broadcasts for their next event can email DynastyPodcasts@gmail.com for more info. And follow the Dynasty Podcasts network on Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Mixcloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Tumblr, and Posterous.

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Late In The Playoffs!

Chicago pop-rock outfit Late In The Playoffs isn’t wasting any time getting going in 2012, with the group already having embarked on a run of dates this month. That momentum looks to continue in the weeks and months to come, as the band’s Dan Schein explains here to CVU.

During their recent New England mini-tour, Late In The Playoffs recorded a pair of tracks with Gary Cioffi (Four Year Strong, Transit). “Working with Gary at his studio in the Boston area on these new ones was and is an amazing experience,” Schein states, adding “We definitely want to track our full length with him, and fingers crossed that will happen very soon.”

“The new songs are a very natural development for the band,” Schein continues. “We got tighter, and more confident in each other, and that is definitely reflected in the songs. I feel like these tracks are a huge step forward, & I can’t wait to put them out.”

The artist goes on to project that the two tracks will see release in the spring, while the band is aiming to have their full length completed before the year’s end.

“We’re working on finding the right way to release these new songs,” Schein informs, “and hope to record a full length later in the year.”

Closing out his thoughts on the year ahead, the artist confirms, “We’re looking to tour as much as possible this summer and onward, and are looking forward to meeting lots of new people and playing in as many places as possible!”

Catch Late In The Playoffs out live on February 17th at Subterranean. And find the band’s track “Blue Eyes,” off AEMMP Records‘ fall 2011 Out Of The Loop compilation, below, followed by video of the group performing “New Directions” acoustic at the Johnny Cupcakes store at a recent performance.

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Blah Blah Blah!

2011 was a big year for Blah Blah Blah, with the group releasing their Thank You, Thank You EP, touring the country, and even performing on Chic-a-Go-Go. Now, the indie rockers are looking towards their first full length effort, as Blah Blah Blah’s Solomon David and Phill Ferguson inform CVU.

“The new music is more aggressive and more melodic than previous releases,” Ferguson reveals of the band’s new material. “It will be thought-intriguing, upbeat, and inspiring,”

“My prediction is that everyone who hears the album, in it’s entirety, will find one of their new favorite songs in life.” David adds.

The group is hoping for an early summer release for the album, which the band is “playing around with” calling Guns In The Greenroom. Before then, the band is also looking towards new video releases. The group is also preparing for two KCRW-sponsored events in LA next month, including a pre-brunch show before The GRAMMYs on February 11th. Also on the 11th is an evening performance on the rooftop of The Roxy. (Show info fixed from earlier post.)

“This year we’re really looking forward to working with the most talented producers and engineers to produce a new yet familiar sound,” David confirms.

Find the group’s new video for “Soon As I Get Home Tonight,” featuring a cameo from The Cool Kids‘ Chuck Inglish below, followed by the treatment for “A Game We Play,” both off Thank You, Thank You. Those videos follow David’s CVU podcast interview from 2011, and are followed by the group’s Live At The Alley appearance alongside Urbanites.

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Dani Deahl!

This week on the ChicagoVerseUniteD audio podcast: Dani Deahl! The globe-trotting Chicago DJ discusses her recent travels, her “Diplo Hates You” remix contest, her upcoming single “Pocket Porn,” and what she has coming up for the year. Stream or download that podcast below, followed by Deahl’s “Diplo Hates You” track and the contest’s promo video. And find all the details for entering the contest, ending this Sunday, January 29th, here.

ChicagoVerseUniteD is a weekly music and nightlife podcast series, hosted by Jaime Black and  recorded out of The Music Garage in Chicago. CVU features interviews with the premier talent and tastemakers in the Chicago music and nightlife communities, and is published through the Dynasty Podcasts network. Follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Mixcloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Tumblr, and Posterous.

Dani Deahl Ft. Oh Snap! – “Diplo Hates You”

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Rockie Fresh!

This week on the ChicagoVerseUniteD Cover Story Series audio podcast: Rockie Fresh! In a condensed podcast recorded at The Music Garage, the Chicago MC reflects on his recent press, explains the significance behind the title of his brand new mixtape, Driving 88, and discusses the increased sense of confidence on the effort. Stream or download that podcast below, followed by its companion video. And find a download link for Driving 88 above the podcasts, with the videos for the effort’s “How We Do (Feat. King Louie)” and “No Fear” below. Catch Rockie Fresh live on Thursday, January 26th at Reggie’s.

Rockie Fresh – Driving 88

ChicagoVerseUniteD is a weekly music and nightlife podcast series, hosted by Jaime Black, with video by Colleen Mares of Lewis & Clark and The Axis World. CVU features interviews with the premier talent and tastemakers in the Chicago music and nightlife communities, and is published through the Dynasty Podcasts network. Follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Mixcloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Tumblr, and Posterous.

(CVU interview video filmed and produced by Colleen Mares)

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Glittermouse!

Since the band’s beginning in 2009, Glittermouse has released a steady stream of four EPs, the most recent of which, The Dream is Dead. Long Live the Dream. (album cover pictured above), was released this past December. Now, building off that momentum, the group is looking towards a full length effort, as the band’s Jeremy Mumenthaler expresses in to CVU.

“We will be releasing a full length album in 2012 with continuous supplemental pieces throughout the year,” Mumenthaler reveals. “We’re doing what we want, possibly to a fault; these songs are weirder and braver… and strong… and loud… and grumpy… and oblivious to reality.”

Mumenthaler states that the album’s tentative title is Brain Valley Frontier, which, the artist says, is in reference “to the creases (sulci) in your brain. And the notion of rethinking the way we think things. The album, and the band are moving into a place where we’re going to question pop music, and the rules of it. As well as the general subject matter of the lyrical content.”

“This will also be a driving force behind our release mechanism,” Mumenthaler continues. “We decided after we released our 4th EP, The Dream is Dead. Long Live the Dream., in December, that we were done releasing on CDs. They’re essentially a dead medium, used as a way to transport music from a store to your iTunes, or relative PC equivalent. So, we figure to cut out the middle man. We’ve released all of our previous music for free digitally on our website, and then released limited edition special physical versions. And we’re thinking that, for Brain Valley Frontier we’ll do the same sort of thing: Free digital version and a super-nifty physical version. We’ve discussed vinyl and singing pop-up books at this point. So we have no idea what it will end up being but the aspect of having a physical counterpart to our musical endeavor is essential.”

Download Glittermouse’s discography thus far through the band’s site, and catch Glittermouse live on Sunday, March 4th at Lincoln Hall. And catch the video for “Animal Craquerz,” off the group’s Fuck Yeah! OR The Rainbow Beast, The Broken Bomb, and The Fate of the Earth EP, below.

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Cut Teeth!

Cut Teeth is an outfit made up of musical orphans, comprised of members of acts like The Felix Culpa, Stay Ahead Of The Weather, Red Knife Lottery, and Monday’s Hero that are either defunct or on hiatus. The group came together to form a new project at the start of 2011, and spent a large part of the year crafting their initial release, an EP titled Televandalism. And as the act’s Dustin Currier tells CVU, that’s just the beginning.

“We’re releasing an EP in a couple weeks and have already started working on new songs,” the former Felix Culpa guitarist reveals. “Hopefully we can put out an LP next year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we put out a split 7″ or something in between as well.”

“The EP we’re releasing is our first batch of songs,” Currier continues, ”so it’s hard to say where we’ll go from here, but I think there’s a lot of room to evolve in a lot of different directions, which is a really good feeling. Overall, though, I think we’re just a really loud rock & roll band. There’s definitely a mindset that you could say is probably more akin to a lot of Dischord or Touch and Go bands from the ’90s when it comes to aesthetic and songwriting. Definitely a departure from what a lot of us have done before, which also makes it really exciting.”

Televandalism will post online at the group’s soon-to-launch Bandcamp page on Tuesday, Jan. 31st as a choose-your-price release. The EP coincides with the group’s first live outings, happening Friday, February 3rd at Underground Lounge and Saturday, February 4th at the Cactus Club in Milwaukee. The group will have a limited supply of 100 hand-packaged and numbered CDRs available for purchase at the events, as well.

“Right now we’re just focused on getting this EP out, and we’ve done everything ourselves up to this point – writing, recording, packaging and assembling the CDs, booking, etc.,” Currier concludes, “but it certainly would be great to see a vinyl release for this at some point (…ahem, cool indie labels out there…).”

Check out a mid-mix snippet of the group’s song “Stone of Yap” below. And watch for more from Cut Teeth right here at CVU.

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: BBU!

Though the group has been keeping busy with sizable accomplishments like performing at Lollapalooza in 2010 and then North Coast Music Festival in 2011, conscious-minded hip hop outfit BBU haven’t released a new mixtape since 2010′s Fear Of A Clear Channel Planet. That changes next month, with the release of the act’s forthcoming mixtape effort, bell hooks (“Named after the author bell hooks,” the group explains).

“We got a lot in store for 2012,” the act informs CVU. “From a full length project coming out to collabs with artist we have dreamt of rocking with since were we shorties, all that and then some releasing in 2012.” Speaking of their new music, the group offers, “It Sounds like Malcolm X and Maya Angelou discussing the state of the nation at a Brick Squad Concert.”

Catch BBU live on February 23rd at Schubas for the bell hooks release show. And preview tracks from that effort below, including a link to the download page for “Kurt De La Rocha” (via Ruby Hornet), “Outlaw Culture” (via Gowhere Hip Hop), and “Jumpers” (via Prefix), all following the act’s CVU podcast interview from this past summer’s North Coast Music Festival, and followed by a BBU promo video.

BBU – “Kurt De La Rocha”

For this month’s ChicagoVerseUniteD cover story, every day in January will preview 2012 plans for a Chicago talent or tastemaker. Today: Gemini Club!

Gemini Club’s last high visibility appearance in Chicago was late summer 2011, when the trio performed an early but strongly received set at North Coast Music Festival. Now, with the group set to perform at tonight’s 2012 Snow’d In Music Festival at Double Door, the band’s Dan Brunelle fills in CVU on the state of the band’s new music, including the band’s forthcoming EP, Here We Sit, set for release on April 17th, as well as “a few remixes that are already finished and laying in wait for release.”

“Our new EP, Here We Sit, is a definitely a more mature record for us,” Brunelle ascertains. ”We still have the catchy melodies and driving beats of the first EP but overall its much less of a “bedroom producer” record. Every song has live drums, the vast majority of the instrumentation was performed live, the synths were played through amps and mic’ed. We made sure to use digital music techniques but not so much that that’s all there is to it. There’s a much greater sense of physical space in this EP than you might expect from an “Electro Band”.

“Like our first EP there’s a large range of styles and influences,” Brunelle continues, adding “there’s even R&B angles to some of the melodies.”

In addition to Here We Sit, Gemini Club is also looking towards additional remix work and collaborations, as well as aiming “to be consistently working on new material while our new EP makes the rounds.” As if that weren’t enough, the act is “working a bunch of music videos for most of the EP.” Also in the works are the band’s plans to tour, with a focus on “getting back out to New York.”

Finally, Gemini Club is also turning its attention towards the remix treatment for their forthcoming EP.

“We’re going to have remixes for Here We Sit from producers from all spectrums,” Brunelle remarks. “ Local, national, international. We have a very talented pool of artists on board to remix our songs and we’re excited about the variety of content that we’ll have available to share with people.”

Look for presale information and album artwork for Here We Sit to post online next week, and for fans of the CW program Ringer, listen for Gemini Club cut “Mirrors” in an upcoming episode. And catch Gemini Club as official talent at this year’s SXSW. Check out video of a new Gemini Club song snippet, following the group’s CVU podcast interview from North Coast Music Festival 2011.