Industry Fest Weekend

It's a three day weekend for me and this is one of those glorious times in which that also means it's a three show weekend. Since those three shows are all record label showcases, this weekend is being referred to (by me) as Industry Fest Weekend. First up, on Friday is the Burger Records Caravan of Stars.

The Caravan of Stars lineup for the show at Logan Square Auditorium on Friday is The Coathangers, Together Pangea, Cherry Glazerr, AJ Davila & Terror Amor and Mozes & the Firstborn. Burger Records is probably best known for their proclivity for putting out cassettes; they were the driving force behind this year's Cassette Store Day. I personally do not hold the same romanticism for cassettes as I do for vinyl, but I do get it from a DIY perspective. Cassettes are cheap to produce, so the barrier to entry is lower both from the producer and consumer standpoint. I will grant that they are more attractive than CDs and immensely more appealing than the faceless MP3 format. Tactiles aside, Burger Records puts out some high quality music. I was first turned on to them with Cherry Glazerr, a catchy, cheeky female-fronted indie pop group. I am now just as excited to see Together Pangea, whose 2014 release Badillac is endlessly fun listening.

Saturday, Red Scare Industries holds their big 10-year anniversary blowout at the Metro. The Falcon, who rarely play, headline the day-long marathon show. For this show, The Falcon's lineup will be Brendan Kelly and Neil Hennessy of The Lawrence Arms, Dan Andriano of Alkine Trio and Dave Hause of The Loved Ones. The lineup also includes The Lillingtons, The Methadones, Masked Intruder, Enemy You, The Sidekicks, Teenage Bottlerocket, Brendan Kelly and the Wandering Birds, The Holy Mess, Direct Hit!, Elway, The Brokedowns and Reaganomics. Doors open at 3 p.m. and thankfully the Metro will allow reentry, so no one will starve. There are still some tickets left for this extravaganza, so if you've been twiddling your thumbs, get on it before it's too late! Here is The Falcon's new song "We Are the Bald," featured on Red Scare's 10-year anniversary comp:

Sunday it's an acoustic Red Scare aftershow with Brendan Kelly and Cobra Skulls at the Gingerman Tavern. Believe it or not there are still a few tickets left for this small room show, so get on it already. The show is also said to include surprise guests. This is sure to be a rare intimate show, especially considering the fact that Cobra Skulls are not really an active band anymore.

Elsewhere this weekend: Nothington, Elway and Dan Vapid kick off the Red Scare festivities with an acoustic show at the Gingerman Tavern on Friday; Dethwarrant, Nervous Passenger, Brickfight and Georgia O'Queef bring a solid local lineup to Quenchers Saloon on Friday; a free cover show at Cole's on Friday featuring members of Vamos, Ego, The Sueves and Mama as Thin Lizzy, Vaya as LCD Soundsystem, Swimsuit Addition as Bikini Kill and Bleach Party as Led Zeppelin; Saturday, it's skankin time at the Beat Kitchen with The Toasters, Run and Punch and Bumsy and the Moochers; and Ex Hex, Speedy Ortiz and Split Feet will tear it up at the Empty Bottle on Saturday. Check the shows page for the best upcoming shows in Chicago, the suburbs and the DeKalb area.