No Wristbands! We Drink For Free

Jeff Lescher has been putting out records since 1984. His band, Green, is one of my all-time faves. He's a unique talent with an eclectic group of influences - The Kinks, 40's/50's/60's pop songs, Big Star, The Beatles and more. If you haven't heard them before, maybe start with Green's 1987 album, Elaine MacKenzie. We talked with Jeff about his long career, a few of his regrets and his recent sol...

Deanna Belos joins us again with a new album on its way. Probable Claws is due out June 26th. We talk about how that one came together and how she plans to support the new record. We also cover how things have progressed since Cheap Grills was release three years ago. And we definitely spend some time talking about Chicago. Be sure to catch Sincere Engineer at Riot Fest in September. Time Stamps:...

Anthony Vacarro joined Beach Bunny as bass player in 2019 and has been playing lead guitar since 2022. He also has his own band, Helicopter Leaves and has put out two great records - Get Stuck In (2023) and his latest, Sabrina Nickels out in 2026. We talked with Anthony about the differences of being in those bands - from local gigs to playing Madison Square Garden. And we talk a lot about the Chi...

Steve Baker is the co-owner of Chicago Fret Works. After starting his career as an English teacher, he began working on guitars in 2000, learning his craft at Bryan Galloup's School of Luthiery in Michigan. In 2008, after working together at another Chicago guitar shop, he and Dan Wolf partnered up to go out on their own with Chicago Fret Works. Now eighteen years in, they've worked on instruments...

Rob Miller co-founded Bloodshot Records in 1993 and ran the label until it was sold in 2021. He recently published a great new book, The Hours Are Long But the Pay is Low - A Curious Life in Independent Music. Rob joined us to talk about his history with Bloodshot and to share his thoughts on the book. We spent a lot of time talking about our mutual love for Chicago. You can find out more about Ro...

Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy (and their musical friends) have definitely tapped into something with this "play R.E.M." thing. Mike & Jason originally started this exercise by playing album sets of some of their favorite artists like Neil Young, The Modern Lovers, The Smiths and more. But when they picked out Murmur by R.E.M. in 2023, the whole concept took off in a big way. After playing...

The first Art Brut album, Bang Bang Rock & Roll , came out in 2005. The buzz started slowly, but then Pitchfork gave it an 8.9 rating and things took off from there. Four more LP's followed from 2007 to 2018. We got a chance to talk with bandleader Eddie Argos about his musical career and his love for Chicago. Art Brut is touring this spring, playing that first record as well as a few more gre...

John Perrin is an incredible Chicago drummer and has toured or recorded with an impressive list of artists, including NRBQ, JD McPherson, Young Fresh Fellows, The Smoking Popes, Jake La Botz, Rodney Crowell, Jim Boggia, The Hushdrops and many more. We talk about how he got his first drum set at the age of two and played in his first band with his dad & brother at the age of ten. We also covere...

Dag Juhlin has done it all - well, almost all. He's been in too many bands to count & played with nearly everyone in the Chicago music community. The Slugs. Poi Dog Pondering. Sunshine Boys. Expo '76. Courtesy Patrol. Young Fresh Fellows. R.E.M. Tribute band. He'll most certainly be playing at a Chicago club near you very soon!!! Time stamps: 3:13: When did you know you wanted to be a musician...

Miranda Winters grew up in Providence, RI - but she's all in on Chicago. She plays guitar and sings in Chicago noise rock quartet Melkbelly (along with her husband, Bart Winters). Her most recent project was the all-female band Mandy wich released the LP Lawn Girl last year. Look for Melkbelly out on tour in the next few months. Time stamps: 1:30: What are some of your earliest musical memories? 3...

Rick Sims and his new bandmates, Beanz Decatur and Billy Fury, share how this upcoming Riot Fest gig came about. The last Didjits gigs happened back in 2006 - so we are all in for a treat as the band gets ready to play Riot Fest on Friday 9/19 and the Empty Bottle on Sunday 9/21. Time Stamps: 1:36 - Pavement & Didjits re-form - are The Smiths next? 3:20 - How did the Riot Fest gig come togethe...

Matt Walker has always wanted to play the drums. It was his first instrument and he took to it immediately. He's now made a wonderful career of it - playing in an amazing list of incredibly bands. Morrissey, Smashing Pumpkins, Filter, Garbage and more. His band, Cupcakes, put out a major label record, but broke up too soon. Nowadays, Matt puts out his own work as of1000faces. We talked about Matt'...

Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot have been writing about Chicago and music for a long time. Greg was the rock music critic at the Chicago Tribune from 1990 to 2020. Jim spent 15 years as the music critic at the Chicago Sun Times . Both have written several great books - Greg's published books include Wilco: Learning How to Die, I'll Take You There Mavis Staples and Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revol...

Hell Yeah, we got Brendan Kelly from The Lawrence Arms on the show!! Chicago Punk Legend! We go deep into the history with one of Mark's all-time favorites. Slapstick, The Broadways, The Falcon, the Wandering Birds, The Lawrence Arms, Nihilist Arby's and so much more. We went a little long with this one because it's so fucking good. Enjoy it! Time Stamps: 3:30: How you doing Brendan? 5:30: Despot...

Stacey & Erik join us to talk over their plans for the fourth edition of fForest Fest in Morris, IL. They filled us in on the entire musical lineup, the move to two stages in 2025 and all the other great things to do in Goold Park - food trucks, cool vendor market and lots of green space to play. Bring the whole family out for a wonderful day of music and fun! Saturday, June 7th - gates open a...

Mario Cannamela (vocals & guitars) joins us to talk about his Chicago-based band Bottom Bracket. Originally formed in Springfield, IL, the band released their first EP Dreamland in 2017. Near the end of 2021, Mario said "fuck it" and moved to Chicago. Along with Tim Recio (bass/vocals) and Rob Diaz (drums), the band released their fantastic second LP, I'm So Afraid Of Where on Count Your Lucky...

Born in Memphis is 1974, Cory Branan has been releasing albums since The Hell You Say in 2002. He released three great records on Chicago's Bloodshot Records - Mutt , The No-Hit Wonder and Adios ) and his most recent LP (his 6th overall) is the excellent When I Go I Ghost in 2022. Many of his musician friends - Jason Isabel, Brian Fallon, Laura Jane Grace, Craig Finn, Jody Stephens, Ben Nichols, S...

Matt Spiegel is a music guy. His bands have included Brother Brother (a 10-piece funk band with his brother Jon), Tributosaurus and Sonic45 (with Len Kasper) and has recorded a 3-song 7" with Steve Albini. He was the producer for Sound Opinions with Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis. He's also a huge baseball fan and in his spare time he works as a sports radio talk show host at 670 The Score. We talked...

Peter Jesperson has had an incredible career in music. Initially inspired by watching The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, Peter took a job at legendary record store Oar Folkjokeopus in 1973 and became the primary DJ at Jay's Longhorn in 1977. He was a co-founder of Twin / Tone Records the following year. Along the way, Paul Westerberg dropped off the famous demo tape for The Replacements....

Mike Maples started Liquid Mike in 2021. In that short time, the band has already put out five albums of songs - including their most recent one, Paul Bunyan's Slingshot . Hailing from Marquette, Michigan (that's the Upper Peninsula, folks), Mike balances his job as a mailman with writing a ton of songs, playing guitar, singing and touring. You can check them out in Chicago at Concord Music Hall o...

Very excited to welcome Elizabeth Moen to the show! Originally from Iowa, she now calls Chicago home. Her self-titled first album was released in 2016 and her latest, Live at Lincoln Hall came out earlier this year. She's working on a new one with Spencer Tweedy producing. We talk about that, as well as her story about meeting Eddie Vedder, her current tour with Jeff Tweedy and her love for Bruce...

Ian Robinson has been performing as Black Guy Fawkes for almost ten years now. He joins us on the podcast to talk about his musical journey, meeting Frank Turner, his challenges as a black artist and the battle to maintain positive mental health. Ian is working on a new album and also has a great podcast called "Fawkes & Friends". He'll be playing the Color Club in Chicago in October. Time sta...

It's our 50th episode! Time for a celebration! We are very pleased to have Abby Monroe and Josh Dihle on the show for our 50th. Abby and Josh are the owners of Color Club, a Chicago venue that hosts an eclectic array of events. In 2020, they purchased the building on Elston Avenue that previously was home to the Chicago Latvian Association. Their intention was to create "a gathering space for Chic...

John Mohr and Mike Greenlees have been playing music together for a long time. They first got together in Dekalb, Illinois at Northern Illinois University in 1983 with the band Blatant Dissent. In 1988, they transitioned to the post-hardcore band Tar, based in Chicago. And now, in 2024, they've released a fantastic new album with their latest quartet, Deep Tunnel Project, with Jeff Dean and Tim Mi...

We are excited to have Dean Zelinsky on the show. While still in his teens, Dean founded his first guitar company, Dean Guitars, starting it from scratch. He talks to us about how a couple of trips to the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo, Michigan inspired his dream. After setting up his first factory in Evanston, Illinois, Dean went on to build iconic guitars for musicians like Dimebag Darrel, Billy G...