Muzzle of Bees » Summer Songs

Chicago Summer Music Fest Time!!!

jodifer — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 01:13:22 +0000

Oh my god. It is finally warm, sunny and green outside. And Jodi is one very happy young lady. To celebrate this newfound warmth, the most natural way to celebrate is of course, with music street fests!

I’m still a fairly recent new Chicagoan, so I was pretty surprised to find out all the exciting music fests that are quickly approaching. Of course I knew the biggies, July 18-20’s Pitchfork @Union Park and Lollapalooza Aug. 1-3 at Grant Park. (And you better BELIEVE I am counting down the days to catching Spoon, Vampire Weekend, Les Savy Fav, Kanye, BSS, Go Team, etc etc.) But did I know of Rib Fest? Belmont Art and Music Fest? Taste of Randolph Street? Nope. But I’m glad I looked ‘em up. Looks like Do Division Street was the first mini fest to kick things off. Too bad I missed out on Ted Leo and the 1900s, were any of you lucky enough to catch it? There’s plenty more fests in the coming future though. Check below for more thorough lists of only a few of the many upcoming showcases in June and mark your calendars now, kids. . . Cuz it’s officially time to celebrate summer!!
For a more thorough list of upcoming Chicago fests, go here.

Ribfest Chicago Sat. June 7 – Sun. June 8
Saturday: Boho Paisley/ Rafter/ Company of Thieves/ Skybox/ Treaty of Paris/ Mighty Short Bus/ Kevin Flynn & the Avondale Ramblers/ Pink Devil/ The Silos/ The Alternate Routes
Sunday: Inchworm/ The Bon Mots/ The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir/ Illinois/ Nada Surf/ Hot Heels Records/ Lush Budgett/ Van Ghost/ Joe Pug/ Ha Ha Tonka

For more info, go here.

Taste of Randolph Street Fri. June 20 – Sun. June 22
Friday: Mike Doughty/ Frisbie/ J. Davis Trio
Saturday: Drive by Truckers/ Bobby Bare Jr.
Sunday: Josh Ritter/ Matt Costa/ Delta Spirit/ The Everyday Visual/ Baby Loves Disco
For more info, go here.

Pizzafest June 21 12PM-10PM
Is a line-up really necessary? It’s called PIZZAFEST! And Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers will be at this day long pizza love fest on Racine and Fullerton. Mmmm.

BAM! Belmont Arts and Music Fest Sat. June 28 – Sun. June 29
Saturday: Cursive/ Maritime/ Sybris/ Unwed Sailor/ Parlor Mob/ Mark Rose/ Everthus The Deadbeats/ The Redwalls/ Waco Brothers/ Dot Dot Dot/ Steepwater/ Rockit/ Hey Champ
Sunday: American Music Club/ Jonathan Rice/ Maria Taylor/ Casiotone For the Painfully Alone/ Nik Freitas/ Yourself and the Air/ Smoking Popes/ Justin Townes Earle/ Air This Side of Caution/ Ezra Furman and the Harpoons/ Anne Harris Band/ Cavashawn
For more info, go here.

Some honorable mentions include Chicago’s Blues Festival (June 5-8), Andersonville’s Midsommarfest (June 14-15) and Chicago Pride Fest (June 28). July’s got plenty more in store for Chicago as well, including Pitchfork (July 18-20), Rock the Bells and Wicker Park Fest (July 26-27). Word on the street says there’s this OTHER fest going on the first weekend of August. . . Happy summer!

The Hood Internet vs. Chicago

jodifer — Fri, 30 May 2008 21:37:45 +0000

Sunny skies, green grass, cold beer. Summer is finally back! Now how to get the dance party started? Well, whether or not you know it, the perfect summer weekend soundtrack dropped this past Tuesday, for free at that. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favor and head over to visit our friends The Hood Internet and download their latest effort, The Hood Internet Vs. Chicago. The 24-track mix is the third installment of Chicago’s own DJ STV SLV and ABX, mashing up an impressive resume of Chicago based artists ranging from Kid Sister, The Cool Kids, Common, May or May Not, Smashing Pumpkins, Mahjongg, Lupe Fiasco and several others. You can download the tape for free either as a whole mix or individual tracks. I gotta give props to Cakecide, the Hollywood Holt/The Prairie Cartel number and the ridiculously danceable Watch My Big Feet, the Dude N Nem/Twista/Office mash. But my favorite? Superbowl Jesus, hands down—nobody can mess with Mr. West, Wilco and the 1985 Chicago Bears—mad rhyming skillz indeed.Download this mixtape. Now.

You can check their Mixtape release party at Sonotheque on June 19 and DJ STV SLV spin a set at Schuba’s on June 27.

Summer Songs – I Guess I’m Floating

uwmryan — Sun, 04 Jun 2006 19:13:08 +0000

Connor from I Guess I’m Floating took some time to make a great contribution to our summer songs feature. Make sure to check out that I’m From Barcelona track!

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For many of us still in our college years, summer represents a plateau of endless opportunity. You can be whatever you want to be and do whatever you want to do, encouraged by the warm summer sun and immutable fresh air. It’s about going to the beach, it’s about dating that girl you’ve always had an eye on, and it’s about doing everything you’ve ever wanted to do. It’s about escape…and what better escape could there be than one accompanied by a fitting soundtrack?

Oh No! Oh My! – Walk In The Park [mp3]
Nothing like some perfect indie pop to set the summer mood. This song’ll tell you everything I summed up in the intro, so if you don’t feel like listening to me, let the boys from Oh No! Oh My! take you for a stroll.

The Beatles – Girl
Maybe it’s just because I’m obsessed with this song at the moment, but everything about it is perfect, from the pos/neg dichotomy of love to the subliminal messages of the toking persuasion. That was the summer of love, my friends, and I think if anyone knew what they were talking about back then, the fab four knew it best.

I’m From Barcelona – Treehouse [mp3]
This song reminds of the summers I spent as a kid, hanging out with my friends, being a little punk-ass 11 year old, wearing fresh scars like badges of honor and courage, nobody to tell me what to do…those were the days. This one’s the “feel-good” song of the summer, don’t pass it up.

Soundgarden – Black Hole Sun
Here’s the anti-song. If there’s one song that could forever ruin this delightful season for all of us if taken too seriously, this is the one. Versions of sweaty, moist, unbearable heat that makes your skin boil, tar bubbling in the sun, and barbie dolls melting over an open grill are all enveloped in this slow moving ballad…just don’t get too close, and don’t look directly into your stereo.

Summer Songs – So The Wind Won’t Blow It All Away

uwmryan — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 13:28:02 +0000

ZB from So The Wind Won’t Blow it All Away sent me an e-mail with some summer songs attached, and I am happy to put them up as part of the summer songs feature. Thanks ZB for your time and the music!

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In our extreme seaside area, a country where it rains forty days after forty days of wind then rain again and again, we impatiently wait for spring to end. Most of the time, it happens during the month of may. In the last days. suddenly time is slowing down, the air is lighter and sun is giving the signal : it’s summer’s turn to keep the promises Spring hadn’t.

Pernice Brothers – there goes the sun [mp3]

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But there, in my land of clouds and water, it happens that rain comes around mid-july and we ask ourselves : “where’s the sun ? Poor us ! why did we let it go ?” Fortunately, this time of raining doesn’t last more than a couple of days and, soon, sun bursts in again…

Eyeless in gaza – sun bursts in [mp3]

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So, August can come with its high sun, thick air and empty streets and for everyone, until first days of september, it’s too hot to move or think.

Triffids – too hot to move, too hot to think [mp3]

Summer Songs – Can You See The Sunset From The Southside?

uwmryan — Wed, 31 May 2006 13:15:14 +0000

Continuing our “summer songs” feature, Eric from CYSTSFTS stops by to offer up a couple of tracks for your enjoyment.

Avail – August [mp3]
Rock and roll courtest of Richmond, VA’s finest. Great “summer songs” seem to always have a certain time and place attached to them that just bring the memories flooding back. I spent the summer of 1998 in Indianapolis and this song just begs for me to sing along every time.

Otis Redding – Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay [mp3]
C’mon do I even need to explain this one? Quite possibly the greatest summer song of all time.

Also, Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” is also a (IMHO) perfect summer song.

Summer Songs – Veritas Lux Mea

uwmryan — Tue, 30 May 2006 12:40:58 +0000

Today’s feature was also featured on Saturday, but for some reason everything I posted on Saturday and Sunday vanished into thin air. Therefore, I would like to once again hook you up with some summer songs courtesy of Goose from Veritas Lux Mea. Enjoy the tunes and nice weather!

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Dropkick Murphys – Tessie [mp3]
A great summer song about the game of summer – baseball. An ode to all things Boston and the Red Sox; the perfect song for tailgaiting in Fenway Park with some Sam Adams. Plus, punk to me really captures the summer feel, and this song does exactly that.

Sublime – Badfish [mp3]
For some reason, Sublime just feels like summer to me. Maybe it was all those years in college of listening to Sublime while we partied outside in the sun, but they’ve got a groove that just makes me think of good times, good friends and good drinks.

Beck – Que Onda Guero [mp3]
I first heard this song last summer, which is why it reminds me of summer I guess. Plus, it’s got a great latin beat and a real cool summer feel to it. If I had a lowrider, this is the song I would drive around and play. That probably shows how white I am, but hey, it’s a great song.

Paul Simon – Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard [mp3]
The only song I have to dance to every time I hear it, bar none.

Summer Songs – Songs:Illinois

uwmryan — Mon, 29 May 2006 20:49:08 +0000

Craig from Songs:Illinois and SwedesPlease drops by today to offer a bunch of great tunes for our summer songs feature, or in this case our “Driving songs” feature. I agree with Craig that the two go hand in hand. The tracks below offered my initial exposure to Michael Hall and Kevin Kinney, both of which I plan on checking out more of their material, so I hope all you readers can be turned on to something new as well. Thanks to Craig for his time and MP3’s!

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“For some reason “Summer Songs” coincides with “Driving songs” for me. I’ve always lived somewhere where the seasons are a bitch. And that first summer day is made special when you crank down the window (alright push the automatic button), put that left arm on the sash and blast out the tuneages. I’m not sure what makes a great driving, summer song but I know it when I hear it and here are five of my recent favorites. It helps that they either mention summer or driving or both.

The Silos – Let’s Take Some Drugs and Drive Around [mp3]

Michael Hall – I Can’t Believe You Touched Him [mp3]

Kevin Kinney – Broken Hearts and Auto Parts [mp3]

Pelle Carleberg – Summer of 69 [mp3]

The Damnwells – I Will Keep The Bad Things From You [mp3]

Bonus obscure and rare song from producer Dan Byrk – Summer Heroine [mp3]

Summer Songs – The Rock Insider

uwmryan — Mon, 29 May 2006 18:11:26 +0000

Everyone’s favorite Rock Insider offers up some of her favorite summer tracks. Thanks to Jax for taking the time to hook us up with a couple gems.

Sound Team – Your Eyes Are Liars [mp3]
The Tripwire called Sound Team’s new album, Movie Monster, “The Soundtrack To Every Indie Kids Summer.” I full-heartedly agree. I have been listening to it NONSTOP for the better part of 3 months now. Movie Monster is in stores June 6th. The band will be touring all summer long.

Lily Allen – LDN [mp3]
This song reminds me of walking down a city block on a warm summer day eating a frozen dessert and watching kids playing around opened fire hydrants in the streets.

Brian Eno – Cindy Tells Me [mp3]
I wake up every morning from May-September with the opening bars of this track jammed in my head. It reminds me of a place somewhere between Beatlemania, the cold reaches of space, and the quintessential Florida suburb as seen on Edward Scissorhands.

Summer Songs – Out The Other

uwmryan — Fri, 26 May 2006 15:25:04 +0000

It’s Friday, and not only does Janet from Out the Other provide a fantastic summer song, but it also is a great song to end a hectic work week on as well. Thanks to Janet for her fantastic contribution!

Summer Songs – Out The Other – Talking Heads – Road to Nowhere

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I don’t necessarily have a specific memory associated with “Road to Nowhere,” but for me, the Talking Heads (and David Byrne, actually) have always been equated with summertime. I grew up in a very musical house – I think my mother was always playing something – and Talking Heads were her favorite. Stop Making Sense was a staple in the van on the way to family camping trips; I remember listening to Byrne’s Uh Oh on the boom box while we sat in lawn chairs by the lake. But Little Creatures was possibly my favorite, because of the album-closing “Road to Nowhere.” Hearing the song now just makes me picture the family room of the house I grew up in – windows wide open, a sunshiney, beautiful summer day outside. Mom would actually let us crank up the volume – I mean loud, louder than most sane parents would let their kids listen to music – until they could probably hear it down the street. She definitely taught me the beauty of hearing a song in all its 120-decibel glory. And the beauty of the repeat button.

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You can view the rest of our Summer Song features here. If you would like to contribute a song and write-up please feel free to contact me. Have a good weekend peeps.

Summer Songs – Audio For Drinking (Josh)

uwmryan — Thu, 25 May 2006 11:07:16 +0000

Continuing our installment of “Summer Songs” is Josh, the other person behind Audio For Drinking. Enjoy…

Summer Songs – Audio For Drinking – A Tribe Called Quest – I Left My Wallet In El Segundo

A Tribe Called Quest’s “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo” is a song that reminds me of the summertime. It brings back memories of my old paper route and how early one summer I used the money I was supposed to pay for the papers with to purchase my first piece of music, a cassette maxi-single for the second release off the Tribe’s debut album (People’s Instinctive Travels and Paths of Rhythm). I played that cassette every single day while delivering those damn papers, even after my walkman kept falling off my BMX. There’s something inherently joyful to me about the Tribes misadventures in a ‘74 Dodge Dart. I was fascinated that this group of teenagers could just pile into a car and drive from New York City to the Mexican border. The summer really should be a time for road trips and wanderlust, even if sometimes the only border you can make a break to is the Taco Bell up the street.