sometimes I go to shows

I've finally got a second to fill you in on the great show I went to on Tuesday. I think you'll find these music tips were worth waiting for- I know I did a lot of downlaoding when I got home!

So on to Tuesday.

The setting: Double Door's revamped Dirtroom. Its not so aptly named now, by the way, the place is kind of 20's style lounge, and much cozier than the main stage upstairs, with a little bit of a glamorous undertone. Red walls, black velvet and twinkly lights make for quite the scene.

The line-up for the evening began with Identity Crises Inc.. They are, in their own words, 9-5ers from the north side of Chicago. These guys were working with a pared down band for a more intimate feeling in the Dirtroom, and I have to say, the show stealer of this set was Michelle. At first she appeared to be a backup singer.... but that didn't last long. Quite the Jill-of-all-trades, Michelle picked up a harmonica, danced, sang and gave a surprise trumpet performance during the short 30 minuet set! I love that kind of variety.

Next on the docket was Natalie Oliveri. The lovely, leggy lady stepped up in a striped skirt and a sweet flower in her hair- and blew us away. Imagine Amy Weinhouse but with a funky, loungey, bossa twist. Maybe her EP title explains it best: Eclectic Soul.

Yeah, that sounds right.

Natalie crooned to us in Spanish and Portuguese on some songs, which was so hot I had to take my sweater off. Not to mention that she was backed up by a chick drummer (always kinda drool-worthy, right?) and a sick guitar player, Anthony. Overall, an enchanting set, and the night was just half way over!

That brings me to the shivers that started down my spine the moment Leslie Beukelman opened her mouth. A cute, bubbly woman, Leslie enthusiastically thanked us all for coming, then got right down to business. During the show she kept a sound-board of some kind (please excuse my ignorance of the sound-board world) on a music stand next to her and played her voice like the instrument it is, adding echos, reverb and so much more that I simply don't have the vocabulary for. Truly awesome. Behind her she had a bass, a guitar/back-up singer and... a guy on a box? Seriously. I think we determined that it was a hollow wooden box with a mic or something inside that basically acted as the percussion.

The result? A bluesy, rocky jazzy kind of music.

After looking in to Leslie and her band a little more, I found that she regularly plays at places like Pops for Champagne, which totally makes sense. I would listen to her with a glass of red in one hand any time. Lovely.

Finally we come to the finale, and what a finale it was. Paper Thick Walls took over the stage and made everyone who was checking their watches with a grimace ,thinking about their long work day in just 6 or 7 hours, forget the clock and grab another drink. With 2 vocalists and a line-up of instruments longer than might be reasonable to list here, they have a kind of Of Montreal sound, but even better. I know I have a lot of links on this blog, but theirs really really is worth clicking on. I think I can safely say that everyone who was there when they started stayed till the end of the show, and I know next time I see their name pop up on my "Upcoming Show" list, I will be there.

With bells on, as my dad always says.