As we float on through the last weekend in June, headed downstream toward Independence Day, a whole bunch of good, live music floods the scene right here in the old hometown. Plenty of local folks went to the recent Rolling Stones concerts in Chicago and I bet even more wanted to and couldn’t, or just […]
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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JukeRox
Calling themselves a “party rock cover band,” JukeRox indeed lives up to that calling with a striking set list of your favorite hits covering the genres of “rock, pop, hip-hop, country or heavy metal” with incredible musicality and stunning showmanship. Band members Janet Morris (lead vocals), Kent Starr (guitars, vocals), Kylan Davis (keys, vocals), Tim […]
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June music made
Look out ahead, here comes June in for a couple more weeks, with outdoor events all looking at the radar to avoid unwelcome raindrops in large quantities. We’ve dodged a few storms and took a few too, but off we go into the wild world of June music making, heads up and hearts in. We’ve […]
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Austin Meade
This 25-year-old songwriting, guitar-slinger native of Austin from near the Texas Hill Country (now based in College Station, Texas), surely plays beyond his years. With a prescribed presence from the classic guitar rock of the 1970s as a backdrop, his clever and thoughtful songs ring out with a true Americana rock-n-roll character. His latest record, […]
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A musical tribute to civil rIghts
When the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s gained momentum, music and song were at the forefront of the action. To honor the holiday known as Juneteeth, celebrated on June 19 to commemorate an official end of slavery in Texas in 1865, and accepted by the African-American community as a national date for […]
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Jamie and Lilly Merideth
This father and daughter duo from the local music community are both gifted musicians and singers, blessed with powerful and emotive voices that blend with a special harmony reserved for family members who sing together, all while accompanying themselves on piano and guitar. Along with a good selection of original tunes in their collective pockets, […]
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June is upon us
Welcome to the middle of June, as the outdoor events continue to multiply like the mosquitoes and gnats that seem to like to attend the events almost as much as our intrepid Springfield-area music fans. But hey, what would summer time in central Illinois be like without the heat, storms, humidity and bugs to go […]
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LoG Fest and more
This week brings us a downtown music fest, continued Levitt AMP concerts, a brilliant original recording release and some out-of-the-area singing fun. Plus the usual, and unusual, collection of bands around the town, nearby in other towns and whenever the live sounds take us. LoG Fest (the letters spell “log” as a Lincoln the Railsplitter […]
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Dan Hubbard
Hailing from Central Illinois and based up Bloomington-Normal way, singer-songwriter Dan Hubbard continues on his chosen path of a life in song with a new record called Attention. This one feeds off his last recording (done in 2016 with Ken Coomer, original Wilco drummer and now Nashville producer), developing themes of hope and loss, based […]
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May into June Music
With the Memorial Day holiday behind us, this weekend of “May into June” shows the full colors of a full slate of fun-filled things a-happening, exclaiming the summer season is fully here. Sadly, we start this week off with a death in our musical family, as Dave Wright, a lifelong supporter of roots music – […]
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Secret Society ReUnion
Plenty of previously popular local bands have reunited, but it’s hard to imagine a more anticipated and requested reunion than this one from Secret Society. The group started out bucking contemporary music trends in 1989 when Doug Kirk (bass), Brian Curtis (keyboards), Howard Freitag (guitar) and Jim Engel (drums) “got together and started a prog […]
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Memorial music weekend
Ready for the officially unofficial start of the summer season as we roll into Memorial Day weekend? Let’s hope so, because here comes lots of action going on at venues galore. The West of Wise Winery near Petersburg is back with regular Friday night music, hosting my friend and yours, Ben Bedford, in the bucolic, […]
