Rock The Vote (Literally)

By Scott Smith in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 23, 2005 3:44PM

The nominees for this year’s Metromix Rock ‘n’ Vote contest have been selected so now it’s your turn to play Simon Cowell (although Chicagoist knows you’re more like Paula Abdul with that “Cold-Hearted” routine you used to do in front of your bedroom mirror).

If the strength of Chicago comes from its neighborhoods then this year’s contest certainly reflects the diverse parts making up the whole of the city’s music scene. Many of the bands are pushing their debut album or shopping demos around so this could be a lucky break for someone. Riviera, one of last year’s winners, parlayed their success into a recent opening slot for Jeff Tweedy and a debut record on Glorious Noise (look for more info here next week on their upcoming release party).

Back to the contest: We’re having a hard time deciding on a favorite. The mix of styles is forcing us to do an apples-to-oranges comparison. The significant chunk of shelf space devoted to our Black 47 and Replacements records meant we took an instant head-nodding liking to Flatfoot 56 and The Grackles, respectively. Wonderful Smith’s “My Little House” had us wishing we were road-tripping on a drive south instead of stuck in our cube (great name, by the way). Linc contributes the only rap song you’ll ever hear that has a sample of a Hall and Oates record while Monster-0’s beats recall just a little of “When The Levee Breaks.” And after hearing Descarga’s “El Regalo”, we may never want to hear pop-punk in English again.

Voting starts today and continues until this Sunday the 27th at 11:59 PM. The top four bands will play a free concert at Metro on April 20th. You can start working on putting together your act for next year with this site.