In Tall Buildings frontman Erik Hall grew up in Chicago among sky scrapers, the L, and Lake Michigan. He has studied classical piano, played guitar in rock bands and percussion in the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, and studied jazz and sound recording at the University of Michigan School of Music. He [...]]]>  

In Tall Buildings frontman Erik Hall grew up in Chicago among sky scrapers, the L, and Lake Michigan. He has studied classical piano, played guitar in rock bands and percussion in the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, and studied jazz and sound recording at the University of Michigan School of Music. He is a founding member of the afrobeat band NOMO and has recorded and toured with His Name Is Alive and Saturday Looks Good to Me.

In 2009, Erik completed work on his first batch of original songs and named the project In Tall Buildings. His debut album was released in 2010 on Chicago’s Whistler Records, and the Chicago Tribune immediately praised the music as being “dense, textured, [and] hypnotic.” American Songwriter magazine referred to In Tall Buildings as “the aural representation of a pleasantly scattered mind,” and The Huffington Post included In Tall Buildings on their Best of Chicago 2010 list.

Erik spent 2010 bringing In Tall Buildings to stages throughout Chicago and beyond. The live band calls upon NOMO drummer and longtime collaborator, Quin Kirchner, and bassist/composer Matt Ulery (Eastern Blok, Matt Ulery’s Loom). The trio delivers an apt distillation of Erik’s songs’ most defining elements, and they have shared stages with NOMO, Sharon Van Etten, and The Rural Alberta Advantage.

The Arts of Life Band is an ongoing collaborative project between disabled and non-disabled artists in the Chicago area. Artistic Director Ryan Shuquem says he is overjoyed by the response the Arts of Life band has received: “This my favorite band to play with. The artists, local musicians involved, and the fans always have such a blast watching and being part of this experience. It’s truly a pleasure, and the songs are fun, catchy, and they rock too.”

Since 2001, the members of Fandanguero have interpreted Son Jarocho, a 350 year-old genre originating in Veracruz, Mexico. Represented by Gypsy/Spanish-influenced guitars, African drumming and the mysticism of the Mexican indigenous tradition, Fandanguero recreates this colorful performance where the audience is part of the Fandango, a musical gathering. The group plays the traditional acoustic instruments from the Veracruz region: jarana, requinto, and quijada de burro (donkey jaw), while interweaving several rhythms from Cuban son to Afro-Peruvian festejo, along with a touch of samba and flamenco.

The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir is a chambery, folky, punky band from Chicago who have been featured on The OC, in a play at Second City, and in a Michael Rappaport film. They’ve opened for The Violent Femmes and The Arcade Fire and this month they headline [...]]]>  

The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir is a chambery, folky, punky band from Chicago who have been featured on The OC, in a play at Second City, and in a Michael Rappaport film. They’ve opened for The Violent Femmes and The Arcade Fire and this month they headline Summer Sessions on the Square: Logan Square’s rocking picnic/concert series.

The Golden Horse Ranch Band’s soaring 5-part harmonies and good-time, country music is not to be missed. This 7-piece ensemble features mandolin, fiddle, upright bass, banjo, guitar, snare drum/washboard, and the occasional bassoon, played by a stellar group of musicians from a cross-section of Chicago bands, such as Reds and Blue, Palliard, the Lawrence Peters Outfit, The 1900’s, Tangleweed, Plastic Crimewave Sound, and everyone’s favorite marching band, Mucca Pazza. This month at Summer Sessions, Golden Horse will be playing a special set of country tunes for the kids of Logan Square.

Casa de Soul found its roots in the Wicker Park apartment (aka “casa de soul”) of drummer/ percussionist Alan Lake. Juan Cabral, a salt-of-the-earth Brazilian vocalist/guitarist has a deep understanding of the poetic and beautiful music of his people and inspires heart-warming arrangements orchestrated by the group’s third member, vocalist/composer Nino Arobelidze. Their first record includes a sampling of samba, bossa nova, and traditional Brazilian folk music and is scheduled for September 2011 release.

Neighborhood watering hole The Whistler signs on to book music for Summer Sessions.

We’re so excited to announce that Summer Sessions is pairing up with Chicago Independent Radio Project to bring free local music to Logan Square this summer. Learn more about CHIRP at chicagoindieradio.org

For free monthly concerts at the Logan Square monument! 4th Saturdays, June – September.