Modern Superstar Formed in 2010 from various musicians touring the same rock-band circuit, Modern Superstar features members from Chicago, Ohio, Florida, Kentucky and right here in Springfield. No strangers to touring hard, these bandmates have shared the stage with rock ‘n’ roll icons such as Queensryche, Whitesnake, Tesla, KIX, Bret Michaels, Kip Winger, L.A. Guns […]
Band Spotlight
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F5
F5 Here’s one F5 central Illinois can be happy about seeing again, as the extremely popular band of some years ago rekindles the magic to bring back the sounds that filled dance floors at bars, festivals, fairs and all kinds of other venues. From December of 1996 to December of 2008, the pop/rock/rap/Top 40/hip-hop group […]
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Piston Broke
How nice is it that a band with five members each bringing decades of music-making experience to the fold has a debut performance? Members come with nicknames included, as Jeff “Drum Junkie” Bechtel (drums), Mark “Big Guy” Bott (lead vocals), Braxton “$Money$” Clark (keyboards), “Father” Hank Stoutamyer (bass) and Alex “Chi-Town” Borisov (lead guitar) come […]
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Unity the Band
Unity the Band How a native of Fuji ended up playing reggae in an award-winning band all over the Midwest is one part of Unity’s story, but what keeps them coming back to venues is the real story and that’s based on the fantastic and flowing music they play. Fronted by founding member Kai “Pita” […]
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Marina V
Marina V Always on the move and in the groove, Russian-born, singer-songwriter-keyboardist Marina V stops in town to perform her expressive, original songs. As a high-schooler in Moscow, she won a contest that landed her in Springfield and she ended up at Illinois College in Jacksonville. After graduation, she played locally until making a break […]
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Frank’s Discount Lounge Act
Remember those entertainment relics called “lounge singers” who could somewhat sleazily, but mostly cheesily, easily charm the pants off a mannequin? Bill Murray famously portrayed one in the 70s on Saturday Night Live and Lord only knows how many made an honest living doing it for real in days gone by. Now Frank Trompeter, renowned […]
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Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys
Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys Big Sandy is no stranger to Springfield, and you can bet in his 25-plus years of travels with the Fly-Rite Boys this guy made some stops across the country. A frequent guest of Sangamon Valley Roots Revival hosts Sean and Jamie Burns, and a welcome performer at the Bedrock […]
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Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers
Son of the legendary accordion player and Zydeco master Rockin’ Dopsie Sr., Dwayne “Dopsie” Rubin comes by his heritage honestly. He knows how to make a party happen whether on his European tours, his many visits to Springfield for the Meatsmack Mardi Gras Party or kickin’ it up at home on his Louisiana turf. Well-known […]
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The Boxmasters
The Boxmasters So you’ve never heard of a band called The Boxmasters? How about an actor known as Billy Bob Thornton? Ah, there we go. He’s in the band as singer and shaker, making the group an accessible entity to thousands of folks across the country. Teddy Andreadis, J.D. Andrew and Brad Davis, along with […]
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Arlin Peebles
Arlin Peebles has composed songs and played in bands (Cleanray, Young Loves) for nearly two decades and spent the last eight or so years working on songs that made it onto his first solo release, Some Big Mystery. Recorded “in rental homes, bedrooms and basements using everything from cassettes to computers,” while moving around the […]
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Chris Bradley & Jennifer Hood
Chris Bradley & Jennifer Hood In an unpredictable world, it’s so nice to hear a pair of studied and stellar music makers playing good songs well. Jen learned her singing lessons bluegrass song-style, at home from the family in Shelbyville, Ill., directly from her parents, both accomplished musicians. She cultivated her naturally gifted singing voice […]
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Supersuckers
Supersuckers By calling themselves the “Greatest Rock-n-Roll Band in the World” these guys don’t lack in confidence or go much for modesty, but without mustering bluster and blasting out the jams, these guys wouldn’t be Supersuckers. Originally from Tucson, they signed to Sub Pop Records in 1992 after moving to Seattle and being around during […]
