If I was a live show whore before...

I'm suddenly forcibly reminded of how busy Chicago gets in the fall. Opening last week's festivities was fusion powerhouse Tribal Tech Monday night at Martyr's. These guys would eat Spyro Gyra for lunch. I had forgotten how much I like this band, and also how strangely drummer Kirk Covington plays. They were smoking from start to finish, playing mostly from Face First and Reality Check, but also dipping back a little further for a revamped "Signal Path" and a blistering "Got Tuh B," which ended the first set.

After a mildly embarrassing showing in the first round of the Guitar Center Drum-Off the following night, it was on to Metro to check out Chevelle, who have been tagged a possible "next big thing" out of Chicago. It's been a while since I've been to an all-ages, mosh-worthy show, and I don't miss it at all. The band was pretty good, although they get stuck in a bit of a 12/8 rut, and the way they hesitate on some of the hits can be maddening. Overall, there's a definite Helmet influence, and the singer/guitarist's voice reminds me of Maynard James Keenan from Tool, which is a good thing.

Wednesday was back to Metro for Cibo Matto, with Solex and Milwaukee's Citizen King opening. Solex was forgettable, and Citizen King was serviceable at best. Cibo Matto put on an excellent show, although keyboardist Yuka Honda occasionally seemed a little disinterested. What I found interesting was that Honda didn't provide the high backing vocals on their most recent album, and that it was drummer Timo Ellis instead. Ellis, lead vocalist Miho Hatori and bassist Sean Lennon (yes, that Sean Lennon) did a fantastic job of recreating the vocal harmonies of the recorded tracks, and this definitely helped carry the show.

Thursday was a URT gig at Cubby Bear, although I was almost tempted to catch Trigger Gospel at Metro before we went on.

Finally, Friday saw me back at Martyr's, where the booking is getting more and more impressive. On the bill was Bloque, a rock band from Bogota, Columbia that has been a pet favorite of local music writer Greg Kot. Wow. These guys have a ton of intensity, an infectiously buoyant groove, and the best maraca player I've ever seen in my life. Maracas may seem like an odd instrument to be really good at, but if you saw the precision of her playing, you would know what I was talking about.

I slept really late on Saturday.