| I got the call from ChicagoGigs.com, in this case Mr.
Kevin, "Hey Joseph, do you think that you could do a live review of the CHaT Electric
Showcase"? I thought about it for a minute, and I said, yeah OK. I’m not doing
anything and I have a new shirt that I want to wear. For me it always comes down to the
shirt, and the shoes. So I made my way down to the Abbey Pub with Dan and Steve from
Echosend. All the while hoping that, of the 4 bands performing, at least one would be
good. Not great mind you, but at least good. As it turned out the evening as a whole was
great in spots, and in others very good. One of the great spots of the evening was Ellen
Rosner, who opened the showcase.
This was my first time seeing Ellen with a full band and,
not surprisingly, she and the band were great. If you have never heard Ellen sing,
you’re missing something special. The first time that I saw Elllen I thought - hey,
she sounds a lot Joan Armatrading. But the more that I listened to her, I came to discover
that Ellen has her own sound. With a band or without the band, that sound comes through
loud and clear. Ellen falls into that ever-broadening singer/songwriter category, but with
a twist. The twist being that while performing live, she uses her stage presence and words
to bring you ever closer to who she is, and that makes for a very special evening. If you
get the chance, check out Ellen Rosner.
Following Ellen was The Eskimos, a band from Alabama. OK,
this is pretty simple: if you like Dylan, Neil Young or Marah then there is a pretty good
chance you will like The Eskimos. I like something by all of those artists/bands I
mentioned, but not everything, and that’s pretty much how I would sum up The Eskimos'
set. At times I found myself loving it, and at other times I found myself looking at my
watch. The one thing that I will say for this band is that they have a good time and I
think that if you see them you will too.
Next up was Seven Day Run. They have this song called
"In My Head" and it’s a hit if I ever heard one. But unlike The Eskimos,
whose sound falls into the categories of Dylan or early Neil Young, Seven Day Run sounds
like the Dave Matthews Band - they just do. With that said, they put on one hell of a show
and you can not deny their talent. These are very fine musicians. The band had a lot of
fun and I had fun listening. If you like Matthews, you will like this band.
Closing the evening was Lidlifter, a band out of southern
Illinois. I had never heard of them, so it's only natural that I would be curious George.
The first thing I thought of was that they sounded like a band that I like a whole lot, a
band by the name of Saliva. I also found Lidlifter's sound to be reminiscent of Linkin
Park. This is a style of music that some would consider bass heavy rock and they're not
too far off the mark. The difference between Lidlifter and the other two bands, is melody,
because without it, songs tend to run into each other and the sound becomes a bit one
dimensional. Now as far as their performance on this star filled evening (I mean the ones
in the sky), it was first rate. This band definitely can play - very tight band and very
high energy. Let's just say that there wasn’t a dull moment and you know what? Ya
can’t bitch about that. So would I recommend this band to friends and family, and
children of all ages? Yeah I would, as long as they understood that this band is more
about power and performance, than melody.
Hey I had fun, I always do at a CHaT event. What the hell
is CHaT you ask? Well, CHaT stands for Chicago
Harmony and Truth and it is a networking organization for musicians. Meetings are held
the first Monday of every month, so that musicians can network in the sprit of harmony,
thus helping each other as opposed to stabbing each other in the back. If you are a
musician in the Chicago-land area, check out a meeting, because the organization is there
for you - all of you.
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