Indian Caves
80’s Kids Featuring Shannon Curtis
“HOLY JOHN HUGHES THAT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!!” Get ready to turn up the nostalgia and sing your heart out! Synthpop sweethearts Shannon Curtis and Jamie Hill are returning to Reverb Lounge with 80s kids 2 — the second installment of their nationally touring hit side project 80s kids. 80s kids 2 — lovingly referred to by those in the know as “80s kids 2: The Empire Strikes Back” — is a high-octane joyride through the best of 1980s synthpop — tied together with funny, moving stories about growing up in the 80s. From the electrifying beats of Pet Shop Boys and New Order to the heart-on-the-sleeve melodies of OMD and Erasure, this show is a love letter to the decade of iconic anthems and underdog heroes. This dynamic concert-style theater show features all-time favorites from Thompson Twins, Soft Cell, Alphaville, Naked Eyes, The Human League, and many more — delivered in a wildly fun and interactive performance that feels like you’re experiencing them live for the first time. With awesome, authentic sound, amazing immersive video art, killer merch, inclusive energy, and magnetic, joyful stage presence, this hit show is an experience that you don’t want to miss. Get your tickets today! * Freebies at the merch table for people wearing 80s fashion! Live videos and more information: https://80skids.live
Snake Lucci’s MY DARKEST TOUR
Representing Project Be Well and Snake House Records… Snake Lucci presents his MY DARKEST TOUR! featuring Kxng Frxst hitting Omaha, Nebraska on May 14th at Reverb Lounge! Presented by Nice Enough Ent, 93 & Alive, and Hybrid Promotions / Self Made the Label
Mikaela Davis
Every universe begins with a singular point, a quiet corner where instinct speaks loudest, where existential imagination can stretch its limbs. For acclaimed harpist and songwriter Mikaela Davis’ new album, Graceland Way (due TK via Kill Rock Stars), that singularity was a hillside home in Chevy Chase Canyon, a spot nestled in Los Angeles County where time slowed, the world fell away, and Davis could create from a sense of warmth and deep attentiveness. The “canyon country” epic born of that care ties a neo-western future back to the lineage of Laurel Canyon, the mythos of Elvis’s Graceland, and Paul Simon’s restless reinvention—a place where Davis can explore the fragile balance of light and dark, grace and struggle, rose and thorn, as well as the mystical power found at their nexus. The record’s musical big bang originated at the nexus of UHF Studio, where Davis and noted guitarist John Lee Shannon, co-wrote the record and co-produced alongside longtime collaborator Dan Horne. As the album’s story of an unnamed antihero navigating life in a failing world, her harp, his guitar, and their joint melodies weave a mystic depth. That’s immediately evident from the opening track “(Looking Through) Rose Colored Glasses”, a harp glissando burst functioning like a blissful wormhole to a new universe where dark Western tones come aided by Kurt G. Johnson’s pedal steel guitar and transformative harmonies from guest vocalists Madison Cunningham and Tim Heidecker. But even in this pained origin story, Davis’ glittering, opalescent voice and evocative harp find a depth of beauty. That duality is then immediately challenged in “Nothin’s On The Radio”, where the antihero arrives in a city devoid of meaning, the dystopia of modern homogenized radio writ large. “It already feels dystopic living in a world today where radio stations are all owned by a handful of corporations, all playing the same artists. Gone are the days when the radio was a way to bring people together, to amplify the voices of freaks and weirdos from all corners of the world,” she says. “I was fortunate to grow up in the last years of the golden age of FM radio, and being able to tune into this magical world far beyond my own was a transformative experience. Hearing artists like Sheryl Crow and Vanessa Carlton coming through the car stereo is what made me want to write songs and play music in the first place.” As the album progresses and the story continues, Davis and her compatriots explore magic and mysticism on “11:11” and the haunting darkness of “Mizmoon”. Cass McCombs wrote the latter, rattling percussion and Davis’ harp low end giving way to slippery shadows of violin. “When Cass first sent over the track, it was the coolest thing I’d ever heard,” Davis says. “The music and lyrics create such an ominous mood and I could imagine how the harp would carry the song right away.” Elsewhere, Wednesday vocalist Karly Hartzman contributes to “Junk Love”, an exploration of knowingly filling an empty space with meaningless physicality. Across Graceland Way’s, Davis’ harp masterfully powers the wide variety of soundscapes, taking on an ecstatic range of emotional color. “At the end of the journey, the place you were destined for all along isn’t even a place, it’s a state of mind: Graceland Way,” Davis says. “It’s all interconnected and the universe balances itself. You need the dark to see the light, and the most beauty usually happens where the two meet.”
Belles
Dave’s Cosmic Birthday Bash
Beast Eagle
Benn Sieff and a Murder of Crows
Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol
“Our catalog has never been short on big dumb riffs, but the idea on this record was to really turn the screw,” says RBBP bassist Aaron Metzdorf. On Big Dumb Riffs, that screw is cranked incredibly tight. “We just wanted ‘the part’: The opening of Pantera’s ‘Primal Concrete Sledge’, the breakdown in Primus’ ‘Pudding Time’ — the shit that makes you move and lose your mind. Just that part the whole time.” Across 11 concise, taut songs — most clocking in around 2 minutes or less — Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol demonstrates their skillful ability to blend the merciless low end of Leo Lydon’s 8-string guitar, Aaron Metzdorf’s masterful chordwork on the bass, and Sean St.Germain’s driving drumming. Hot on the heels of their breakout 5th studio release Doom Wop (2023), Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol returns with Big Dumb Riffs: A whole new variant of the fuzzed out, overdriven, melodic, groovy music they have been making since 2016. While Big Dumb Riffs is decidedly more aggressive and rhythmic, it still retains the overtly melodic feel of Doom Wop. But Leo Lydon’s vocals are considerably more angry and negative (song titles like “1-800-EAT-SHIT” and “Body Bag” should be a clue.) “The whole writing process was, ‘what if we just played two notes the whole song’,” Metzdorf says. “‘What if we tuned down to almost unusable string tension?’, ‘what if we write a record that will make everyone say ‘wow that is dumb’? Leo and I really move around on stage a lot. Being a dingus is crucial to the groove. All these riffs were designed to allow us to act bigger and dumber on stage.”
PINKSQUEEZE
Chicago based sapphic power pop band Pinksqueeze guarantees you will get at least 10% gayer at their live show. Voted one of Chicago’s bestrock bands (2022 & 2024) and one of the best Punk Bands (2024) in the Chicago Reader, Pinksqueeze is making an impact for audiences and listeners in Chicago and beyond. Drawing influences from punk, indie, pop, emo, and grunge, their music focuses on queerjoy, healing, and community. Their high energy shows have been described as “Like a band from Scott Pilgrim come to life” and “Like being at a sleepover with friends you haven’t met yet.”
