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The CHIRP Blog
SKaiser writesA few words with Strange Wilds
They don't mind if you compare them to Nirvana. After all, Strange Wilds are a grunge rock group from Seattle and signed with the Sub Pop label. Currently touring the US and Canada with latest tracks from their July 2015 release, Subjective Concepts, the trio made a recent stop in Chicago. CHIRP Radio gives you the skinny.
Allen Trainer (drums), Sean Blomgren (bass) and Steven Serna (guitar/vocals) formed Strange Wilds in 2012.
CHIRP: Congratulations on releasing Subjective Concepts over the summer! How are you feeling about the first months its been out there?
Strange Wilds: It's pretty crazy to finally have the physical release. Never thought we'd be lucky enough to be on such an awesome label like Sub Pop so it's really exciting. At the same time we're basically a brand new band so it's been slow going getting our name out there but that's what touring is for.
CHIRP: Tell us a bit about the growth or change Strange Wilds experienced from one album to the next.
Strange Wilds: We've had two releases before this but this is our first real full length album. The others were just EPs. I'd say our song writing has gotten more dynamic. Honestly we kind of rushed this record and we're already looking forward to the next one, we've got a lot of ideas that we're real excited about.
CHIRP: How are you guys feeling at this point in your tour?
Strange Wilds: Tour is fun. This first leg has been rough, a lot of long drives and we had our van broken into on the first day. They got some of our personal stuff so that was a bummer. We're looking forward to getting to the east coast where we've never played before. This is a big tour so we won't get back home until around the end of November.
CHIRP: Whoa, do you know who broke into your van or what happened?
Strange Wilds: No, it was just someone who has been targeting that venue for awhile. Unfortunately no one told us that until after it happened. We would have gladly found a parking garage to park in otherwise. We were able to get the window fixed and a new passport for me the next day but everything else was a loss.
CHIRP: How'd your Chicago show go? Is it similar to your music scene back home?
Strange Wilds: Chicago was cool. It would be hard to compare it to where we're from. Olympia is a much different place that's for sure. But we're always stoked when we play a new place and people are into us. That's kind of why we do this.
Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writesWhat’s Happening at CHIRP Radio (Week of Oct. 19)
COMING UP THIS WEEK:
- CHIRP Radio welcomes The Ex and Ken Vandermark to Lincoln Hall on Wednesday Oct. 21st
- CHIRP Radio welcomes Craig Finn of The Hold Steady to The Old Town School of Folk Music on Thursday Oct. 22
- CHIRP Radio welcomes Joanna Gruesome to Schubas on Saturday Oct. 24
- CHIRP DJs spin at the Halloween Gathering at Millenium Park on Saturday Oct. 24
- CHIRP Radio welcomes Donnie Fritts with John Paul White to the Old Town School of Folk Music on Sunday Oct. 25
NEW MEDIA:
- Dylan Peterson interviews Superhumanoids
- Katie Owens talks to The Hecks
- Volunteer: Stories of Philanthropy: Making Music Personal
Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writesOne Last Look at Summer: Mamby On the Beach
As we transition from a busy Summer to a busy Autumn, let's take one last look back at one of the newer festivals that has emerged in Chicago - Mamby on the Beach. CHIRP Radio's Big Rob Kerr was there (Day 1 / Day 2). We're looking forward to future excursions of sun, sand, and beat-astic jams. Soon it will be too cold to even think about the beach, but we'll have these memories to keep us warm until next time.
SKaiser writesThe Week That Was And What Will Be: What’s Happening At CHIRP Radio (10/12/15)
COMING UP THIS WEEK:
- Jam Productions Presents & CHIRP Radio Welcomes Stars - Night 1 at Lincoln Hall (2424 N Lincoln Ave) on 10/13 @ 8:00 PM
- Empty Bottle (1035 N Western Ave) and CHIRP Radio Presents Seoul on 10/13 @ 9:00 PM
- Jam Productions Presents & CHIRP Radio Welcomes Stars - Night 2 to Lincoln Hall on 10/14 @ 8:00 PM
- First Time: First Sign at Martyrs (3855 N Lincoln Ave) on 10/14 @ 8:00 PM
- CHIRP Radio Welcomes Helado Negro to Old Town School of Folk Music (4544 N Lincoln Ave) on 10/15 @ 8:00 PM
- V-I-C-T-O-R-Y! CHIRP Homecoming Rally at The Hideout (1354 W Wabansia Ave) with Netherfriends and Soft Speaker on 10/16 @ 8:00 PM
NEW MEDIA:
- Katie Owens interviews The Hecks
- Stories of Philanthropy: Making Music Personal
- Person of Interest: Nick Moore
- Melanie Kruvelis interviews La Luz at Empty Bottle
- Ron Harlow writes Take Two: "A Boy Named Sue" (Johnny Cash vs. Shel Silverstein)
TOP OF THE CHARTS:
1. Julia Holter – Have You In My Wilderness (Domino)
2. New Order – Music Complete (Mute)
3. The World is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die – Harmlessness (Epitaph)
ronharlow writesTake Two: “A Boy Named Sue” (Johnny Cash Vs. Shel Silverstein)
by Ron Harlow
I was eleven when Shel Silverstein died. My sixth grade English teacher took a break from the curriculum so our class could read poems Silverstein wrote, because my teacher wanted us to understand just how special of a person the world had lost. I loved Silverstein’s playful humor, his bizarre illustrations, and his wild imagination. I could relate to his spirit.
I was fifteen when Johnny Cash died. At the time, the most I knew about him was that his music video for his cover of Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt” was nominated for several awards at the VMAs, but didn’t win any. I started listening to his music when I was nineteen, at the insistence of a friend who burned me a copy of At Folsom Prison on CD-R. Being a boisterous and rebellious young man, I felt a connection to Cash’s rawness, his dark demeanor, and his reverence for the outlaw.
In my mind, silly Shel Silverstein and rugged Johnny Cash were far apart on the artistic spectrum. But when the two overlap on a Venn diagram, what you get in the middle is “A Boy Named Sue.” When I first heard the song on Cash’s 1969 album At San Quentin, I played it over and over because the lyrics are brilliant. It’s a perfect ballad built on an absurd premise. There’s a climax of conflict, a moral resolution, and a punch line at the end. I was surprised when I learned years later that Silverstein wrote the lyrics, but not shocked.