Trials of Van Occupanther (Audio CD)
This past weekend I saw Midlake at this newish venue in Chicago called Lincoln Hall. I went with two old (in stature and in age) friends from 2 entirely different circles. My friend Bob and I used to hang out near Lincoln Hall back when it was the 3-Penny Theatre. Across the street was the Biograph where Dillinger was shot. A few doors down was Wax Trax! Records — where I spent many hours as a teenager in Doc Martens flipping through industrial and punk rock records. My other friend Tim is a serious music aficionado. We worked together in the dot com boom days. We were rich and then not rich.
I haven’t been to a show in ages. Nowadays people don’t smoke inside Chicago venues. I always expect to come home smelling of cigarette smoke after seeing a band. None of that anymore. There was actually great beer at this venue too. My have things changed. As we get older, and as these kids grow up, is there no more room for shows in a bowling alley lobby or a dirty back room of a bar? This was a sophisticated place. The band was excellent. My God they were tight. There must have been at least 8 of them on stage. Sounded exactly like the records.
