How is the music scene in Chicago?

[TheBear]

I'm planning on moving to Chicago sometime this spring or summer, and I was hoping that you Chicagoans out there would share your praises, gripes and stories of the live music scene up there. I'd specifically like to find out where to go to hear good shows, what venues to play at (or avoid), where musicians tend to live in the city, etc...

[Linas]

What kind of music are you into, whats your scene?

[hbarcat]

Lots of variety. Any night of the week I can see bands play any type of music I choose. In fact, tonight I'm going out to see my friend's original punk band D'Z NUTZ open for THE GOOD YEAR PIMPS.

[chicago_mike]

Theres going to be a new studio/rental/club built as well. So what im hoping is pitching the idea of another Bulls type place. Chicago needs that type of hang for us cats.

Check out blues on halsted for good funk-n-blues.

[wilser]

www.kickthecatmusic.com

Chris Clemente who plays bass on that band is one of my best customers. He stays in touch constantly and tells me what's going on. He gigs basically all the time, makes jingles, plays in church, does studio jobs... and this does not include his band Kick The Cat. I'd say it's a pretty dang lively music scene.

[WickedPissah]

Originally Posted by hbarcat

Lots of variety. Any night of the week I can see bands play any type of music I choose. In fact, tonight I'm going out to see my friend's original punk band D'Z NUTZ open for THE GOOD YEAR PIMPS.

Best. Band name. Ever. EVAR!

[hbarcat]

Just got back from the show.

There were four bands and the entire night was being recorded and videoed (I guess for someone's podcast or something).

The first act, HANNIBAL HORSE, was actually a spoof of a dysfunctional 80's hair band and it was pretty funny. The bass player "got mad" that his equipment wasn't working and smashed his bass to pieces on the dance floor at the end, and then the singer "passed out" on stage while the drummer and the guitarist got into a "fist fight". The audience ate it up.

Second band. I won't mention their name. Train wreck.

D'Z NUTZ played fantastic music and the crowd got into it a lot more than most unknown original bands usually get. Their sound is kind of a mixture of progressive/punk/metal/experimental/whatever.

THE PIMPS came out to thunderous applause. The crowd was moshing the whole time.

I really do like the music scene, here - I don't often make it into Chicago but the music scene is spread out over all of Northern Illinois.

[CamMcIntyre]

Like the other guys, what styles are you looking for?

2 of my favorite places to play are Subterranean and The Green Mill. Subterranean for rock and The Green Mill for jazz.

I've been playing musical theatre gigs across the area [including suburbs] consistently since this past August and I'm currently booked through mid-May.

There's a lot of places to play, and people that are willing to show up.

[TheBear]

Sorry, I guess I should have been more specific...

I like most styles of music but right now I'm on a hard rock kick. I'll play whatever, though I'd have to be paid pretty well to play ska (not a fan).

Here in Oklahoma City most live music venues have died off, and I'm just hoping that a large city like Chicago would have greater opportunities to play live and better places to meet musicians, rather than hanging out at Guitar Center to find bandmates!

At this point I'm so eager to get back into playing live that I'd play guitar instead of bass if I had to! Sad, I know...

[willgroove2]

The thing about Chicago is that there are scenes plural, you literally can find any type of music being played somewhere at any time.

[CamMcIntyre]

Originally Posted by willgroove2

The thing about Chicago is that there are scenes plural, you literally can find any type of music being played somewhere at any time.

+1