Originally conceived as a way to bring several styles of popular music under one umbrella, Bill McKenzie’s concept group, The Aspect, continues the tradition by again taking on the Beatles as subject matter. The Lime Street Cafe venue adds to the ambiance with walls full of Beatle-related memorabilia as the Aspect members bring to life […]
Tom Irwin
Tom Irwin, a sixth-generation Sangamon County resident, has played his songs and music for nearly 40 years in the central Illinois area with occasional forays across the country. He's contributed to Illinois Times since 2000 by writing Now Playing, a weekly music column, as well as features stories and other articles. He resides on the Irwin family farm in rural Pleasant Plains.
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End-of-February fun
My, oh my, looks like we’re in for a jam-packed weekend of music goodies. Here we go with a whoop and a holler. First up is my quick report on recent adventures that took me through Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado. Highlights include being heckled by an elderly fellow at a senior center […]
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Doings around town and elsewhere
Continuing my travels this week, I’m writing in Flagstaff, Ariz. and then heading to Pagosa Springs, Colo. Adventures abound from powerful poetry readings at the Mineshaft Tavern in Madrid, N.M. to stellar music happening at the Low Spirits in Albuquerque as creative folks gathered last weekend to pay tribute to the work of Kell Robertson. […]
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Josh Catalano and The Dirty Thoughts
How many bands can one guy have? For Josh Catalano, the answer may be in the infinite stars above. From the long gone days of Mugshot and currently of the Damwell Betters and Lazer Dudes, the prolific songwriter and unabashed front man continues a songwriting spree that spans several albums of original material with CD […]
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Dog Of Panic
In a Macomb dorm room circa 2008, a struggling college student dreamed of leaving the academic world behind to write and play music. Dog of Panic began when Dan Rohde wrote 15 songs in that lonely room, left school, moved to Springfield, found a job and began the tedious process of forming a band. Through […]
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Weekend news for you
I’m writing from the road over the next few weeks, sending you this missive from the home of New Mexico scholar and poet Kendall McCook, now located in Fort Worth, Texas. From Kansas last week to Texas now, I’m off to Albuquerque and Santa Fe for shows there culminating in a tribute to beat poet, […]
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Bleu Edmondson
Here’s a music business story with a happy twist and one that continues an upward spiral. Rather than the usual tale of playing music from the cradle, Bleu Edmondson first picked up a guitar and “started writing songs because he didn’t know what else to do” during his college years. After recording a few self-penned […]
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From Springfield to Memphis
In the last few columns I’ve mentioned the amazing and wonderful fact that three area blues organizations selected three Springfield-based blues bands as representatives to the International Blues Challenge contest held annually in Memphis. This is no small feat and each deserves hearty congratulations. As you read this, the performers, Tombstone Bullet (Springfield’s Illinois Central […]
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Mike McClure Band
If you were from Oklahoma and if you were into hard-rocking, good country music like that of the Red Dirt scene, seeing Mike McClure’s name would send you boot-scootin’ for the ticket booth, if you had boots. The singer, songwriter, guitarist, performer and producer played with The Great Divide, had tunes covered by Garth Brooks […]
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2012 forecast
What good are predictions anyway? Is there any meaning in the fact that someone states “so-and-so shall do that and turn out this way” and then it does, or doesn’t for that matter? Really the only concerning issue is our perception of what might be, because what is, is, and happens regardless of the endless, […]
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Early morning ruminations
Oh boy, call it a late one, or early as the case may be. The clock says 4:32 a.m. and I’m wide awake. The problem stems from the schedule switch I attempt to accomplish each week as the nighttime weekend gigs finish and the daily chores arrive in the regular morning hours. Anyone who’s worked […]
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Mike Zito
A St. Louis native who took to working at Tower Grove Music fresh out of high school intent on making music a lifelong endeavor, Mike Zito plays the blues like nobody’s business. After years of touring the country, releasing four independent records and making a good name on the circuit, he signed a good deal […]
