Before opening for The Flaming Lips July 8th at the Aragon Ballroom, Kill Rock Stars shredder Marnie Stern will showcase her furious finger-tapping in a far more intimate setting at a special guitar clinic held at Pancho's. more ›

Chicago is seeing two upcoming shows from indie-rock guitar wizards. First up is Marnie Stern, who is touring behind her current, self-titled release. Second is Ponytail guitarist Dustin Wong, who hits the Hideout on Sunday in support of Infinite Love, his latest solo album. more ›

Marnie Stern may look like a bookstore clerk or a Starbucks barista, but this Brooklyn guitar virtuoso has little else to do with lit or lattes. She's a metalhead through and through, having mastered such thrash-god techniques as finger-tapping, shuddering time-signature shifts, and balls-to-the-wall shredding that would make Eddie Van Halen blush. So what's this obvious shred-head doing on venerable punk rock shock shop Kill Rock Stars Records? She's carefully bridging the gap between the colorful, technical, and often posturing world of metal, and the guttural vocals, minimalist production, and eff you attitude that "punk" has come to inspire. It's a tenuous position, given that punk set out to destroy all the egotistical excess and arrogance of the metal scene, but maybe the old adage is right -- it just takes a woman's touch. more ›

This week it seems almost impossible, but we're looking ahead to even more holidays for the shows that went on sale today. First of all, and also on the 1st, The Hold Steady just aren't playing New Year's Eve at the House of Blues, they're gonna stay around for the first day of the year and do it all over again. Boys and Girls in America made 2006 a lot of fun. We think this... more ›