Change is a constant, especially within the music industry. Bands change their lineup, their name, their sound, but even though most bands are constantly evolving, that doesn’t mean that they forget why they got into music in the first place. Suderland, England’s The Futureheads, a quartet probably best known for their new-wave rendition of Kate Bush’s "Hounds of Love," are a band that’s roots are steeped in their commitment to making the music they want to make. Over the past year they have split from major label Warner Brothers, started their own label, recorded the album they always wanted to make, The Chaos, and toured across the globe to support and celebrate their new found freedom. Somewhere in the middle of all of this lead singer and guitarist Barry Hyde made time to talk to us about the whole thing and managed to even crack a few jokes during his busy schedule. more ›

Well, we started the week out with puppets, so let's see in the weekend with much the same. This is the new video from Pitchfork Music Festival '06 alums The Futureheads, whose new album we particularly enjoy. more ›

This will come as no surprise to music-savvy Chicagoans, but despite the popularity of big chain stores like Best Buy and Target, independent record stores still actually exist. Earlier this year, we celebrated Record Store Day and now Paste Magazine has named their top 17 record stores in the U.S. of A. We're not surprised by the inclusion of some of the more well known stores (Amoeba Records in L.A., Criminal Records in the ATL, and Waterloo in Austin), but we did raise an eyebrow when we saw the lone Chicago entry on the list: Dusty Groove America (1120 N. Ashland Ave), tabbing it "the best place to buy funk records no one's ever heard of." Don't get us wrong. Dusty Groove is an excellent establishment, especially if you're looking for funk and soul records and national recognition is always good. But we couldn't help wondering: whither Reckless? Or Gramaphone? Or...well, countless other fantastic record stores in the Chicago metro area? more ›