The Chicagoist will be launching later but in the meantime please enjoy our archives.

Get Fayed-ed At Emporium Arcade Tomorrow Night

By Katie Karpowicz in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 10, 2014 4:00PM

2014_09_deepfayed.jpg
Binkey and George Wundsam of Deep Fayed/Photo: Ryan Schorr

Thanks to Riot Fest, nostalgic rock is essentially dominating Chicago's playlists this week. We're not complaining but if you know your hip-hop quota won't be met solely by The Wu-Tang Clan on Saturday, head to Emporium Arcade in Wicker Park tomorrow night for beats and 8-bit.

Chicago instrumental rap act Deep Fayed headlines a free show at the bar. For fans of any artists willing to push the barriers of hip hop, this should be your next favorite band. We're always suckers for MCs that perform with a live band but Deep Fayed's songwriting is just as much about the grooves—which touch on everything from funk to prog-rock—as it is about the flows.

Should you wonder where the group gets its diversity, look no further than its members' backgrounds. In 2011 guitarist and bandleader George Wundsam, a Columbia College graduate, recruited local poet Binkey to front the group. They eventually pulled in soul-music-specializing keyboardist Cole DeGenova, impressively accomplished jazz drummer Makaya McCraven and a number of other established Chicago musicians to round out the group. Together they're proving that there doesn't have to be any disparity in the level of vocal and instrumental intellect when it comes to their music.

The group has a six-song self-titled EP out now and plans to hit the studio next summer. They perform tomorrow, Sept. 11, at Emporium along with Tennessee R&B/funk act Dynamo and enticingly bizarre singer DBP starting at 8 p.m.