Umlat Revolution Calling
By Scott Smith in Arts & Entertainment on Jan 26, 2005 4:56PM
You could be forgiven for a reaction of stunned silence at the news that the umlaut-ed Queensrÿche has sold out a three-night run that starts tomorrow at the House of Blues (especially since it follows a sold-out show here earlier this month). We like “Silent Lucidity” too but geez…
Apparently, Chicago is filled with legions of prog-rockers who yearn for the social commentary inherent in the band’s critical (if not commercial) peak, Operation: Mindcrime. The Chris DeGarmo-less Queensrÿche presents a “full production” of the album on this tour (think The Who‘s touring version of Quadrophenia with guest actors and rockestral walls of sound) along with their greatest hits. The album critiques the Orwellian undertones of another presidential administration and apparently the song remains the same as QR are rolling out songs from its upcoming sequel, Operation: Mindcrime II: Doubleplusgood! (ok, we made up that title but doesn’t it just…pop?).
Completely lacking in social commentary or nostalgia are three other shows that shouldn’t escape your attention tomorrow:
The last sortie before the epic final battle of Rory Lake’s Battle of the Bands III had to be rescheduled to a less blizzard-y, more attendance-friendly climate tomorrow at the Bottom Lounge. Though there are only four “official” bands on the bill, Monica Kendrick of the Reader gives the Cliffs Notes version of the ongoing feud between Metal Porpoise and their alterego/nemesis Herc. Tickets are $8.
We always enjoy seeing ass on stage so the news that Antioch Secret Society was ready to present tracks from their debut album in their first-ever live show was joyous news indeed. They’ll be appearing with other Gunpoint Recording artists at Double Door at 9 PM. Tickets: $8.
Finally, we’ve been wanting to write about Foster-Walker Complex for a while now but were biding our time until their tasteful mélange of bar band pop migrated from their Evanston base of operations. The recent “re-imagining” of Tommy Nevin’s Pub has forced them southward into the city and they’ve been playing a handful of shows here over the past few months. See them at Martyr’s tomorrow with Not Us and Driveway Ninjas at 9 PM (or on February 10th at Bottom Lounge).