A Great Band

From time to time I feel shame because I don't go see more bands. There are few things I love more than a good live music performance, but the transaction costs of finding the good bands can get kind of high---bars don't seem to exercise much quality control, and before I invest the time (and usually lost sleep) in going to see one I like to have at least a decent expectation that they have some merit.

So last year I e-mailed a bunch of my music-savvy friends asking for recommendations of bands to go see, and my friend Dan (not the friend Dan who came to the Big Brew, another friend Dan---I have multiple friends Dan), recommended a good one. Dan works as a recording engineer and a live sound man at local venues, so (a) he sees a LOT of bands, and (b) it takes a lot to impress him. But he mentioned that he was actually going to see this band on his night off, which was about the strongest recommendation for a band I can imagine.

Dan

The band in question was Union Pulse, who are from Milwaukee. I joined Dan and some friends at a show at Elbo Room, and I was very impressed. They are a thrashy pop-rock band, but they do it remarkably well: they have a very high-energy stage show, their songs are hooky and memorable, and James Redding is an ohmygod guitarist. It's so refreshing to go watch somebody play who is so in tune with the guitar, who throws off neat little licks and riffs so effortlessly. They have some tunes up on their MySpace page, but the studio recordings, while good, really don't do justice to these guys. Their forte is their live show.

So anyway, they came back through town on Saturday, thanks to Dan's intercession---his band had a gig and the club told them they could book another band on the bill, so he called up Union Pulse, and they came down. It was another great show. I tend to get kind of jaded about the music scene but seeing a show like that reminds me that yes, there is still great music out there to be found.

If you know of a good local band, or at least someone who plays in Chicago regularly, post a comment and let me (and all three other people who actually read this) know about it!

And, check Union Pulse's schedule of upcoming shows---they've been playing in other parts of the country, so maybe they'll be somewhere near you. If you have a chance, go see them---you won't be disappointed.

(Ironically, I didn't get to see Dan's band play on Saturday because they were on last and I had to catch the last train home. But next time, I'm there!)

Union Pulse in action, apparently around Christmas.