Prior to the Soft Pack’s Lollapalooza aftershow performance at Schuba’s in Chicago, we spoke with front man Matt Lamkin and bass player David Lantzman about their Lolla performance. It sounded like a smashing success, confirming what one Sound Citizen reader told us — that the Soft Pack “was worth the price of admission” that day.
Lantzman also told us that it was probably the biggest stage they have ever played. So it was fitting that, on this night, they were playing one of the smallest stages in Chicago where some of the biggest bands have played in the past.
The Soft Pack’s sound is direct and empowering, and at the same time lazy and completely understated. But the band itself is anything but lazy. Guitarist Matty McLoughlin shreds the strings — literally — and the rest of the band follows suit with passionate turns on the drums and bass. Lamkin sings in one of the most straightforward manners I’ve seen and a tone that never wavers, no matter the song. I think that’s part of what draws me to them in the first place, and got them a spot on Sound Citizen Radio 7.
Anyway, enough from me. Let’s hear from Soft Packs drummer, Brian Hill on their Chicago visit.
“Chicago has always been really great to us, but it was more than a little bit surprising that people came out early on Saturday to see us play at Lollapalooza. Playing at around noon at a huge festival like that can be a bit daunting, but we had a total blast. It was a treat to see Phoenix’s soundcheck earlier in the day — those guys are the best. We just kind of did our thing for 40 minutes or so, and then moved along from there. Unfortunately, we didn’t get much of a chance to check out any bands, really. One highlight would be Wild Beasts. I thought that the singer sounded a little like Jeff Buckley, and that was fine by me. My comparisons are usually wrong to a lot of people … maybe I’m losing my hearing?*
“Later on, in the evening, we had the chance to play one of our favorite venues, Schuba’s. That place is great. It always sounds great, they treat bands wonderfully, and their restaurant is top banana. Now I sound like I’m writing for Zagat’s or something. Anyways, there was a slight mishap regarding equipment at the beginning of the night … we didn’t have our backline. Luckily for us, the other band on the bill, Royal Bangs, were sweethearts and offered to let us borrow theirs. Well, not to ramble on, but our equipment did show up and we played what we thought was a great show. No complaints about Chicago — we love that place.”
Big thanks to Brian and the rest of the Soft Pack fellas for an outstanding show at Schuba’s. The Soft Pack comes back to Chicago October 30 and 31. Check them out, you won’t be disappointed.
*Hearing loss wouldn’t surprise me. These guys are wonderfully loud as hell.
Below is some video from the show and below that are current Soft Pack tour dates.
| Sep 4 2010 | 5:00P | FYF Fest, Los Angeles CA | Los Angeles, CA |
| Sep 10 2010 | 9:00A | Bowery Ballroom | New York, NY |
| Sep 11 2010 | 9:00P | Bowery Ballroom | New York, NY |
| Sep 17 2010 | 5:00P | Neon Reverb Festival, Las Vegas | Las Vegas, NV |
| Sep 18 2010 | 9:30P | The Clubhouse, Tempe AZ | Tempe, AZ |
| Oct 1 2010 | 8:30P | San Francisco State University: The Depot | San Francisco, CA |
| Oct 3 2010 | 11:00P | Detroit Bar | Costa Mesa, CA |
| Oct 7 2010 | 9:00P | Sons of Herman Hall | Dallas, TX |
| Oct 8 2010 | 11:30A | Austin City Limits Festival | Austin, Texas |
| Oct 9 2010 | 10:00P | Antone’s | Austin, TX |
| Oct 12 2010 | 11:00P | Old No. 2 | Laredo, TX |
| Oct 13 2010 | 11:00P | Mango’s Cafe | Houston, TX |
| Oct 14 2010 | 10:00P | Lochrann’s | Frisco, TX |
| Oct 16 2010 | 2:00P | Corona Festival, Mexico City | Mexico City, MX |
| Oct 19 2010 | 5:30P | Juanita’s Cantina Ballroom | Little Rock, AZ |
| Oct 20 2010 | 10:00P | Proud Larry’s | Oxford, MS |
| Oct 21 2010 | 10:00P | The Earl w/ Kurt Vile | Atlanta, GA |
| Oct 22 2010 | 6:00P | The Nick w/ Kurt Vile | South Birmingham, AL |
| Oct 23 2010 | 9:00P | Mercy Lounge w/ Kurt Vile | Nashville, TN |
| Oct 26 2010 | 6:00P | Mad Hatter Club w/ Kurt Vile | Covington, KY |
| Oct 27 2010 | 6:00P | The Summit w/ Kurt Vile | Columbus, OH |
| Oct 28 2010 | 6:00P | Blind Pig w/ Kurt Vile | Ann Arbor, MI |
| Oct 29 2010 | 6:00P | White Rabbit Cabaret w/ Kurt Vile | Indianapolis, IN |
| Oct 30 2010 | 9:30P | The Empty Bottle w/ Kurt Vile | Chicago, IL |
| Oct 31 2010 | 9:30P | The Empty Bottle w/ Kurt Vile | Chicago, IL |
| Nov 1 2010 | 9:00P | Triple Rock Social Club w/ Kurt Vile | Minneapolis, MN |
| Nov 4 2010 | 9:00P | Neumos Crystal Ball Reading Room w/ Kurt Vile | Seattle, WA |
| Nov 5 2010 | 7:00P | Biltmore Cabaret w/ Kurt Vile | Vancouver, Vancouver, CANADA |
| Nov 6 2010 | 8:30P | Berbati’s Pan w/ Kurt Vile | Portland, OR |
| Nov 9 2010 | 8:00P | Rickshaw Stop w/ Kurt Vile | San Francisco, CA |
| Nov 11 2010 | 8:00P | Echo Plex w/ Kurt Vile | Los Angeles, CA |
| Nov 13 2010 | 8:00P | Casbah w/ Kurt Vile | San Diego, CA |
| Dec 30 2010 | 6:00P | The Falls Festival – Marion Bay, Tasmania | Marion Bay, Tasmania, AUSTRALIA |
| Dec 31 2010 | 6:00P | The Falls Festival, Lorne – Victoria | Lorne, Victoria, AUSTRALIA |
| Jan 2 2011 | 5:00P | South Bound Festival, Busselton – Western Australia | Busselton, Western Au, AUSTRALIA |
| Jan 6 2011 | 6:00P | Sunset Sounds, Brisbane – Queensland | Brisbane, Queensland, AUSTRALIA |
Sometimes we see a great show then get caught up doing other things. And, unfortunately, the show slips into the archives unpublished. This is one of those times. We went to Schuba’s back in November, 2009, to see Vandaveer – the folk duo of Mark Charles Heidinger and Rose Guerin. It was one of those shows that hit at just the right time – we were headed into winter and needed a warm sound to get prepared. Vandaveer was wrapping up a long road tour, on their way back to their homes in Washington DC. (Live video below)
We spent some time hanging out with Mark and Rose and they just couldn’t be nicer people. Rose was wearing a black veil over her neon-pink hair, recently purchased for her by her brother while on tour. Also, her frilled shoes which she said, “I can’t stop rocking them.”
Mark was all smiles and excited to meet a fellow Pearl Jam fan.
On stage, their every bit as freindly and simply excited to be doing what they do. For example, during an equipment malfunction, instead of complaining or apologizing, they explored the use of the word “awesome.”
“Where’d you get that hat?” asked Mark.
“Denver,” said Rose. “Denver is awesome. But not Chicago awesome.”
“Everything for you and me right now is pretty awesome,” said Mark. “That was a magnetic fuel song. They sure are great … but I wouldn’t call them awesome.”
Vandaveer is surely not widely known, but that might change real soon. They play The Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia on Feb. 26, ahead of four-day stint at South by Southwest, in Austin, Texas, March 17-20. It’s really a perfect place for them to showcase their sound – what XM Cafe called “This generation’s Nick Drake” and Rolling Stone categorized as “Jarring new folk.”
Below is a video from the show at Schuba’s in November, “A Mighty Leviathan of Old.”
And read our interview with Mark Heidinger before the show, and hear more Vandaveer on their MySpace page.
On a late Saturday night/early Sunday morning for our final Lollapalooza aftershow we hit up Schubas to see Dan Auerbach, front man for the Black Keys, touring on his solo album, Keep it Hid. Schubas is one of those places that get’s top-flight talent in an intimate setting and personally I’m a huge fan.
Opening up was Cage the Elephant. I saw them at Summerfest and besides their hit “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” it was largely unimpressive. So, we sat that one out and took a load off on a barstool and sipped some delicious Corona instead. Auerbach came on around midnight.
I don’t have a lot to say about this show, except that if you ever get a chance to see Auerbach – with the Black Keys or solo – take it. One factor that slightly disappointed was the constant din of the crowd. It seems to be a common problem with Lolla aftershows – maybe it’s the all-day drinking of those who attended the festival during the day.
Below is video of “Whispered Words.” You’ll want to watch it to the end. Current tour dates after the video.
You might also like: Dan Auerbach at Metro, Black Keys in Cleveland, Ultimate Lollapalooza Highlight Reel, Band of Horses at House of Blues.
| Nov 5 2009 | 8:00P | Newport Music Hall | Columbus, Ohio |
| Nov 6 2009 | 8:00P | The Majestic Theatre | Detroit, Michigan |
| Nov 7 2009 | 8:00P | Phoenix Concert Theatre | Toronto |
| Nov 8 2009 | 8:00P | Le National | Montreal |
| Nov 9 2009 | 8:00P | The Paradise | Boston |
| Nov 11 2009 | 8:00P | Webster Hall | New York, New York |
| Nov 12 2009 | 8:00P | Theatre of the Living Arts | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Nov 13 2009 | 8:00P | Sonar | Baltimore, Maryland |
| Nov 14 2009 | 8:00P | Cat’s Cradle | Chapel Hill, North Carolina |
| Nov 16 2009 | 8:00P | The Orange Peel | Asheville, North Carolina |
| Nov 17 2009 | 8:00P | Variety Playhouse | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Nov 18 2009 | 8:00P | House of Blues | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Nov 20 2009 | 8:00P | Minglewood Hall | Memphis, Tennessee |
| Nov 21 2009 | 8:00P | Cannery Ballroom | Nashville, Tennessee |
| Dec 3 2009 | 8:00P | Turner Hall | Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
| Dec 4 2009 | 8:00P | First Avenue | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Dec 5 2009 | 8:00P | The Vic Theatre | Chicago, Illinois |
| Dec 6 2009 | 8:00P | The Bluebird | Bloomington, Indiana |
| Dec 8 2009 | 8:00P | Southgate House | Newport, Kentucky |
| Dec 9 2009 | 8:00P | House of Blues | Cleveland, Ohio |
