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Local observations from a movie, music buff

The Pitchfork Preview

Who to see at the city’s coolest music festival

By Dan Ochwat

The love ’em or hate ’em influential music webzine Pitchfork (www.pitchforkmedia.com), the self-appointed bastion of indie music, once again pooled together a stellar lineup of music acts to form the Pitchfork Music Festival, running July 13-15.

This is the third year of invading Chicago’s Union Park, and this festival is becoming as credible as the music site itself. Here are my must-see acts of — no doubt — Chicago’s coolest weekend of the summer.

First off, the music festival, working with All Tomorrow’s Parties, added what could be a legendary day to the festival. On Friday night, July 13, three acts are playing their seminal albums from beginning to end, headlined by Sonic Youth playing their classic “Daydream Nation.” Of course, this night is sold out.

The idea of seeing this has me and surely many other “younger” music-heads geeked. The album launched in 1988, so do the math and you’ll realize most of us weren’t attending shows back then. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The other acts playing that night are Wu-Tang’s Gza playing his solo debut “Liquid Swords” (I’d rather see Method’s solo) and punk rockers Slint performing “Spiderland.”

Two-day passes and individual day tickets for Saturday and Sunday are on sale ... for now. Two-day passes are $35, and one-day tickets are $25 apiece.

Now, fans of this column who follow the concert listing each month will recognize a lot of the names playing Pitchfork. Chicago is a main musical artery, so many of these acts have been through town, but it’s the fact that they’re all lined up for two days that makes it special. I’m not naîve to think everyone is going to see every band, which you should, but here are the ones to make a point to see, in order of when they’re playing.

Saturday
Beach House — This duo plays sleepy, trancelike music, but once you’re sucked into the delicate vocals and bending music, it can pack an emotional punch. They should be a real cool early afternoon band to kick off your day. Check out “Tokyo Witch” on their website at http://www.myspace.com/beachhousemusic.

Fujiya & Miyagi — From sleepy to the jam of the century: “Collarbone” will have the crowd kicking up baseball diamond dust. This song is amazing, hear it at http://www.myspace.com/fujiyaandmiyagi. The rest of the ablum is tight, too.

Oxford Collapse — Now it’s time for messy, dirty, awesome guitars, and this New York band brings it. While Fujiya will have the feet moving, this band promises to get that shaggy hair swinging in your eyes. “Please Visit Your National Parks” is very catchy. Hear it at www.myspace.com/theoxfordcollapse.

Dan Deacon — This dude is like a mad scientist, and his goofy electronica will leave you with a lasting impression for sure. Play “Crystal Cat” at http://www.myspace.com/dandeacon.

The Twilight Sad — This four-piece from Glasgow sings with thick Scottish accents, but it’s the new-wavy guitars that slay me. I love “Talking With Fireworks.” http://www.myspace.com/thetwilightsad.

Grizzly Bear — A Brooklyn band that has been interviewed in this column, they have an accessible experimental sound that is some of the most unique stuff around today. Live, the experience is completely different from the album. Play “Knife” at http://www.myspace.com/grizzlybear.

Battles — Grizzly Bear plays dreamy, experimental music. Battles experiment with knocking you on your ass. The song “Atlas” is the song of the summer. Do not miss! http://www.myspace.com/battlestheband.

Cat Power and Dirty Delta Blues — Chan Marshall, a.k.a. Cat Power, is so fun to watch on stage. She gets into her bluesy, beautiful songs, and this performance, backed by a full band, should have Chan out of her skin. Listen to “The Greatest,” at http://www.myspace.com/catpower. And let’s face it, she’s the real headliner for Saturday night, so who’s going to stick around for Yoko Ono?

Sunday
The Cool Kids — If you have to sleep off Saturday’s heat and beer, don’t sleep past this rap duo. They’re one of Chicago’s own and have a fun, throwback sound. Their song “Gold and a Pager” is my fave. Reminds me of Masta Ace. Hear it at http://www.myspace.com/gocoolkids.

Deerhunter — I saw this band play The Empty Bottle, and their sonic guitars filled the room. Combined with a great buzz, I felt transcendent. Probably the one set not to miss of the entire festival, in my opinion. Check out “Cryptograms” at http://www.myspace.com/deerhunter.

Menomena — These three guys from Portland layer in a ton of music and play a real full sound in tight, short pop rock songs. They’re a great live band, too. I saw them at The Empty Bottle. Listen to “Muscle ‘N Flo” at http://www.myspace.com/menomena.

Junior Boys — Two guys from Canada who play electronic pop music led by the sexy vocals of Jeremy Greenspan. They soothe and move, perfect for the mid-afternoon. Download “In the Morning” at http://www.myspace.com/juniorboys.

Stephen Malkmus — The Pavement frontman is a legend and supposedly playing new songs at the festival. He doesn’t play live much, so this could be memorable. Bob along to “PostPaint Boy” at http://www.myspace.com/stephenmalkmus.

Of Montreal — This band is absolutely insane live — they’ll supply the theatrics for the weekend with makeup, gowns and maybe stilts. Their new album is also one of the best musically and lyrically of the year. Check out “Suffer For Fashion” at http://www.myspace.com/ofmontreal.

The New Pornographers — Led by A.C. Newman and Neko Case, the band is celebrating a new album release Aug. 21, so we should be getting a sneak peek! “My Rights Versus Yours,” the first single, is at http://www.myspace.com/thenewpornographers.

De La Soul — The celebrated hip-hop trio closes out the festival with a rare performance. I’ve got incredible memories growing up listening to these guys. You’ll recognize “Me Myself and I” at http://www.myspace.com/delasoul.

Other Concerts
Obviously, Pitchfork and Lollapalooza are going to settle your upcoming concert needs (next month I’m going to chart your Lolla schedule), but here are some other fantastic upcoming shows.

One note, Apostle of Hustle are finishing off their residency at Schubas. They’ll be playing every Wednesday until the end of June. I went and checked them out, and you will be hard-pressed to find three sharper musicians. They play an amazing set in the intimate venue.

The other standout upcoming show isn’t until 7/23, again at Schubas, but one of my favorite surprises of the year: Besnard Lakes are playing with Handsome Furs (led by Dan Boeckner of Wolf Parade), an incredible double bill.

Also at Schubas, on 6/30, the gorgeous folk sounds of Great Lake Swimmers play, and on the same night, Chicago’s The Race play Subterranean. On 7/1, Chicago’s jazzy Tortoise play the Metro.

An early favorite record comes from a pint-sized master of the guitar, Marnie Stern, playing the Abbey Pub 7/3. A week later, on 7/10, Spoon-sounding Robbers on High Street play Schubas. On 7/13, marching band Mucca Pazza plays the Abbey Pub. Brit rockers Maximo Park fill up the Double Door on 7/16, and pop/folky singers Mirah and Laura Veirs share a bill at the Logan Square Auditorium on 7/17. The same night, legends in my mind Built to Spill play with Les Claypool at the Vic.

A free show, The Decemberists play with the Grant Park Orchestra on 7/18 at the Jay Pritzker Stage at Millenium Park. Finally, a new great rock Americana album from Pela will surely be broken in to a Chicago crowd 7/18 at Schubas.

Keep sending me your music or anything else on your mind at danochwat@hotmail.com. I’ve also joined the MySpace army, so give The Real Chicago some love at http://www.myspace.com/danochwat

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