Filtering by Tag: Lincoln Hall
PHOTOS: Julianna Barwick with Malibu at Lincoln Hall
Last Thursday night, Julianna Barwick put on a beautiful show at Lincoln Hall. See the full photo gallery of the evening, also featuring Malibu below, and see where you can catch Julianna Barwick next here.
PHOTOS: The Lemon Twigs With TCHOTCHKE at Lincoln Hall
This past Thursday night, The Lemon Twigs rocked Lincoln Hall alongside TCHOTCHKE. Check out the photo recap of the evening below, and see where you can catch the band on tour next here.
PHOTOS: Cannons with Madi Sipes and the Painted Blue at Lincoln Hall
This past Saturday night, the indie pop trio Cannons returned to Chicago to perform to a sold out Lincoln Hall. The LA-based band had last been here performing at Lollapalooza, where they drew a large crowd to their early afternoon set. If you missed out on tickets, check out the photo recap of their dazzling show below, and see where you can catch them next here.
Live Recap: Caroline Rose and Tōth at Lincoln Hall
ANCHR spent this last St.Patty’s Day in the ideal way—no, not by drinking green beer or seeing the Chicago River dyed green— by seeing Caroline Rose and Tōth in a sold out Lincoln Hall.
Brooklyn songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Alex Toth (the namesake of Tōth) kicked off the high energy and good vibes of the evening by beginning the set donning sparkly butterfly wings. The fun continued with songs like “Turnaround (Cocaine Song)” and “Muerto,” which had some crowd members singing along. However, the biggest sing-along of the set happened when Tōth performed “Juliette” and led audience members in echoing the lines “Juliette, I’m just glad we met.”
Next up, a DIY backdrop and light set up filled the stage to mark a new era for Caroline Rose. Caroline’s highly anticipated return to Chicago was her first show here since the release of her album Superstar— which as Caroline joked was a terrible date to release music, was put out on March 6th, 2020. Caroline and her band hit the stage when the room was packed and buzzing with fans who were either eager to see them perform again, or new fans ready to experience Caroline Rose for the first time. The beginning part of the set featured some familiar favorites from 2018’s Loner, like “More of the Same” and “Jeannie Becomes A Mom” before turning to songs from the newest record. Caroline’s albums have brought me joy as a listener, but nothing compares to witnessing her perform and bring those songs to life in a completely unique light. For example, Caroline used auto-tune during one song and then broke off into a tangent of singing “Believe” by Cher. “I could be a Cher impersonator and probably make a lot more money,” she joked. At another point, Caroline turned off the DIY lighting rig and borrowed a fan in the front row’s phone to use the flashlight as a makeshift spotlight—making the already intimate show feel even more personal.
Towards the middle of the show, Caroline spoke between songs about how the pandemic has affected her approach to life, relating it to the carefree attitude our grandparents often adopt later in life (“Like when your grandparents don’t give a crap about what they do and just burp and fart in front of you”). “That sounded more poetic in my head but when I say it out loud, it didn’t sound quite as sexy,” she added. While there was obviously a joking element to that statement, the underlying sentiment is one that I personally can relate to a lot; Now that we’ve survived the devastation that the pandemic has brought on so far, it’s much easier to no longer sweat the small stuff in life. The heartbreak of the pandemic and the shut down of the music industry also made it that much easier to truly cherish and appreciate moments like this Caroline Rose concert— it was one of those shows that make you believe in rock and roll and the goodness of other humans by bringing together a room full of strangers.
The show ended with Caroline performing an extended version of “Money”— with a detour that had her climbing the amps and ad libbing whatever vocalizations came to mind. With so much going on in the world, these short moments of undistracted joy are what keeps me going.
You can catch Caroline Rose on tour this year—dates here, and check out the photo recap of the night below.
PHOTOS: Maisie Peters with Jonah Kagen at Lincoln Hall
We kicked off the month of March with a beautiful show from singer-songwriter Maisie Peters and Jonah Kagen at Lincoln Hall. If you missed out on tickets to the sold out show, check out our photo recap below, and see where you can catch Maisie Peters next here.
PHOTOS: The Weather Station with Helena Deland at Lincoln Hall
Last Friday night, we kicked off the weekend with a beautiful show from The Weather Station and Helena Deland at Lincoln Hall. Check out the full photo recap of the show below, and see where you can catch The Weather Station next here.
Live Recap: Magdalena Bay and Cecile Believe at Lincoln Hall
This past Thursday night, LA pop duo Magdalena Bay headlined their first ever Chicago show to a sold out crowd at Lincoln Hall, in honor of their debut album Mercurial World.
Cecile Believe warmed up the packed house with her electropop tunes that perfectly complemented the musical styling of Magdalena Bay. Cecile performed her set with a backing DJ and minimal other gear, but she awed the crowd with a magnetic performance and interpretive dance moves that accentuated her songs. Many of the audience members enthusiastically soaked up her songs, particularly the fan favorite “Bitch Bites Dogs.” If you’re a fan of Caroline Polachek and FKA Twigs, you should definitely check out Cecile Believe.
Eager energy pent up throughout the venue during Cecile’s set, and the release of that euphoric energy was palpable when Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin of Magdalena Bay hit the stage to perform their set. The show began with a Y2K-era style graphic appearing on the background screen and a robotic narration to introduce the band, which essentially felt like the band’s website for Mercurial World had been brought to life.
The set began with the introductory track from the album ironically entitled “The End,” which features Tenenbaum’s philosophical musings. From there, the duo quickly launched into the record’s title track and played out the setlist in the precise order of the album’s tracklist. Magdalena Bay’s mesmerizing stage presence and immersive stage props gave their show an air of a blast from the past— Tenenbaum’s microphone headset gave me flashbacks to those Britney Spears used in the 90’s and early aughts. That tinge of nostalgia added to the sense of escapism that Magdalena Bay was providing to their fans, who were all dancing and screaming along to the lyrics.
When the time came for the last song of the record called “The Beginning” (again—ironic), the robotic narrator returned to instruct the audience to cheer for an encore. Tenenbaum and Lewin obliged and returned to perform some of their earlier material, like the singles “Killshot'“ and “Good Intentions.” The show ended with the entire room jumping up and down on Tenenbaum’s command.
If you missed out on the show, check out our photo recap below, and see where you can catch Magdalena Bay next here.
Live Recap: CHAI with Su Lee at Lincoln Hall
This past Friday night, Chicagoans braved the cold and snowy conditions to overflow the room at Lincoln Hall for CHAI and Su Lee. The sold out show acted as the inaugural date for CHAI’s current North American tour.
South Korea’s Su Lee kicked off the evening with a set that combined comedy with her quirky bedroom pop music. As it turns out, the Lincoln Hall show was actually Lee’s first live performance, but she easily endeared herself to the audience with her funny between-song banter and relatable song topics. Her stage set up was minimal with just a microphone, a keyboard and her laptop but her presence captivated the audience and her songs—including the vial “I'll Just Dance”— had the crowd dancing along. Lee’s set included a cover of “Cocoa Butter Kisses” by Chicago’s own Chance the Rapper and the iconic “Take On Me” by a-ha. The crowd ended up loving Su Lee so much that they chanted for an encore.
After a brief stage changeover, the time came for CHAI to hit the stage, marking their return to Chicago for the first time in over two years. Every time I’ve seen CHAI perform in the past, they always deliver an incredible element of theatrics and production, but this was the first time I’d seen them perform as headliners—which only elevated their levels of theatrics. The band members Mana, Kana, Yuuki and Yuna entered the stage decked out in matching silver capes and performed a choreographed opening dance number before launching into their single “No More Cake.” The choreography and coordination continued throughout the show as the four members of CHAI used dance movements to accentuate their music. As the group performed a mix of songs from their 2021 album Wink and earlier releases, they rotated to different instruments and places on the stage, showcasing the multiple hats that every member of CHAI wears.
Just before CHAI left the stage for an encore, they welcomed special guest Ric Wilson to sing their collaboration track “Maybe Chocolate Chips,” giving the Chicago audience a unique performance the rest of the tour won’t experience. As with any past CHAI show I’ve attended, I left the show feeling the pure jubilation that the band conjures with their bubbly spirits and effervescent tunes.
If you missed out on tickets to the show, check out the photo recap of the evening below, and see where you can catch CHAI on tour next here.
