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RETURN OF SECRETWARS! At a recent Windy City Rollers match, this single came floating down from the rafters via a little flashdrive attached to a toy solider parachute. Is this an act of war? A pre-emptive strike? Or just another stealthy bout of madness as SECRETWARS rolls out his...
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REPEAT/REPLAY I’ve been digging on this album so much I had to drop another MMM-MMMP3 off Don’t Call Me. Stream "Captain Craig" below — I’ll stand by my original, rambling write-up: Some people talk about a 90s revival and point to a new band like Yuck or classic acts...
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Sweden’s alternative music scene broke out into the world a few years ago (QRO Swedish Sensations), and has just kept on going, from indie-pop to moody, atmospheric, and experimental, such as Fredrik. A major QRO favorite (QRO interview), this ‘Friend of the Q’ from Malmö grew to a...
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Atrocious band name aside, Grandpa Was A Lion has got a lot to offer in the vein of laidback, synth-inflected pop ballads. Each song is a quiet little moment of introspection with its own unique textural landscape. Think: Antlers, but more of a one-man band. The four song EP...
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I did an aural double-take the first time I heard the tracks off San Francisco-based Callow’s self-titled EP because the vocals were so intensely committed to a certain style that you don’t hear attempted often these days in pop music. A gravelly, high-pitched delivery you hear sometimes in that...
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While Charles Manson was holed up in San Quentin, someone surreptitiously snuck basic recording gear into the serial killer’s cell. That basic gear, plus Charles Manson, a guitar, and a total lack of discretion, resulted in the album you see at right: Charles Manson Live at San Quentin. From...
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Some people talk about a 90s revival and point to a new band like Yuck or classic acts like Pearl Jam bringing back the grunge sound to a generation that grew up in the shadow of Kurt Cobain’s suicide, but never really "got it." Not that anyone really "got...
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Here’s another great Chicago band, Outer Minds, that I got a chance to see during the SXSW Send-Off party at the Hideout. The track below "Bloodshot Eyes" hews towards the bubblegum garage end of the spectrum with a healthy dose of ’60s pop hooks and sing-along refrains. When I...
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QRO was there last summer in Chicago for the first Neon Marshmallow Music Festival at the Viaduct Theatre. The event was a beautifully-curated amalgam of experimental sights & sounds. This summer the braintrust behind the festival returns with another stellar line-up, plus a special compilation tape to kickoff the...