Leor Galil

Dec 24, 2024 | chicagoreader.com | Leor Galil

Last year, Chicago singer-songwriter Gia Margaret issued Romantic Piano, her first release through mighty midwest indie label Jagjaguwar. I’ve been listening to Margaret since her 2018 debut album, the lush, contemplative There’s Always Glimmer, but since then she’s moved from its delicate arrangements into more overtly ambient music that’s even more sparse and hushed. Romantic Piano is her second such record, and she began working on it in 2021.

Dec 20, 2024 | chicagoreader.com | Leor Galil

New York City rapper Dave East delivers verses like a freight train—just as a train is unassuming and familiar in its bulk and speed, his performances have a powerful momentum that’s belied by his restrained persona and low-humming voice. He’s understated on the mike. Though he isn’t one to raise his voice, he can still give every syllable sharp definition, and his light rasp lends gravitas to his straightforward lyrics.

Dec 17, 2024 | chicagoreader.com | Leor Galil

Advance Base main man Owen Ashworth creates tender character portraits of people in moments of struggle. Advance Base’s Color Club concert this week is also a release party for the project’s fourth studio album, Horrible Occurrences, released earlier this month on Run for Cover. As Reader contributor Ed Blair notes in their preview of the show, the new record is cloaked in the darkness that haunts the fictional town of Richmond.

Nov 15, 2024 | chicagoreader.com | Leor Galil

Chicago indie-rock outfit Spun Out have always drawn inspiration from UK postpunk of all stripes—especially its tendency to create drama by adding a sudden ray of sunshine to a dark, austere atmosphere. Their best material rushes past your ears like the breeze off a northern beach. “Pale Green Sky,” from the new Dream Noise (Shuga), opens with sounds that remind me of crashing waves and ocean spray, but even if it didn’t, I would’ve imagined them.

Oct 22, 2024 | chicagoreader.com | Leor Galil

The Effigies were part of a small but mighty contingent of bands that launched Chicago’s first wave of punk. Formed in 1980, they charged out of the gate with a fast, brash sound that proved foundational to midwestern hardcore. “Guns or Ballots,” from the live 1981 compilation Busted at Oz, set the template for that style, which the Effigies would perfect and abandon by the time they issued their chilly debut LP, 1984’s For Ever Grounded.