The heyday of Chicago's post-rock scene of the 1990s found a lot of talented and ambitious musicians lumped under its rather non-specific banner. If it wasn't always easy to express just what fit Dianogah, Tortoise and U.S. Maple into the same classification, it was at least easy to notice that a handful of individuals kept cropping up over and over. Perhaps it was their complementary dispositions towards what made music worthwhile which held the whole thing together. The only inarguable point is that their influence has lasted longer and traveled farther than most localized "scenes." more ›

A sheriff, a musician, and a professor walk into a bar--wait, that's a different post. more ›

Daniel Kraus must have invented a method of extracting more than twenty-four hours out of a day. When we last checked in with him, he had just premiered his documentary Musician, profiling jazz genius Ken Vandermark. Since then he's ramped up production of additional installments of his WORK series, with at least three new films in various stages of production; transitioned into a Books for Youth associate editor at Booklist magazine; and, oh yeah, also published a novel for young adults, The Monster Variations. It's enough to make the rest of us look like layabouts. more ›

The huge banner containing an image of President-elect Barack Obama and makes it pretty obvious that Hideout's owners and staff were pretty vocal supporters of the dude when he was running for office and are tickled pink that he's about to take the reins. more ›

There is arguably no genre of music littered with more forgotten figures than jazz. When it comes to pop and rock, every neglected album is just a Pitchfork blurb away from reappraisal and appreciation. But in the world of jazz, for every undervalued legend like Jimmy Scott whose work is rediscovered, there are dozens still consigned to near invisibility. Such a singer is Jackie Paris. He toured with Charlie Parker, performed with Lionel Hampton and Charlie Mingus, and even opened for Lenny Bruce. But an erratic recording career and the proverbial string of bad personal choices have ensured his status as a little-known cult figure. 'Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris, a new documentary playing in a week-long run at the Siskel, traces the life of the troubled song stylist. Interviewees include Billy Taylor, George Wein, Mark Murphy, and Ruth Price. Incidentally, thanks to the magic of iTunes, several of his albums are now back in print. A casual listen brings to mind Johnny Mathis with a smidge of Jon Hendricks' tone. more ›

Back in January we told you a little about Chicago filmmaker Daniel Kraus' ambitious documentary series, WORK. The first film in the series, Sheriff, will be released on DVD by Facets in October; and Musician has its premier this Friday night at the Siskel. It profiles Ken Vandermark, who, now that James Brown is dead, is certainly in the running for the title of Hardest Working Man in Show Business. The awesomely dedicated reed man played at Pitchfork this summer and just wrapped up a week-long "Vander-fest" at the Velvet Lounge. more ›

While most Pitchfork Music Festival coverage will undoubtedly focus on the headliners, we think it would be a shame to not mention our favorite part of the festival: the side stage. The Balance Stage, aka “the tent,” has been our escape at the past two Pitchfork-involved festivals. During the afternoon, much of the Union Park field is full of immobile patrons only half-interested in who’s on the stage, making walking around the festival a mile-long... more ›

Chicago filmmaker Daniel Kraus is looking for another job. No, he doesn't want to change careers. He wants to make a movie about it. Earlier this month his documentary Sheriff was broadcast on the PBS series "Independent Lens." It chronicles the day-to-day job of Sheriff Ronald E. Hewitt as he attempts to maintain order in the small community of Brunswick County, North Carolina. Sure, there are guns involved and people drawl. But "The Dukes of... more ›