The Album of the Year: Patrick Stump- 'Soul Punk'

Patrick Stump -‘Soul Punk’
Album Review **** (4-Stars)
2011’s Album of the Year
By Anthony Kuzminski

Inside Chicago’s Metro nightclub a dramatic detour on the pop landscape by Patrick Vaughn Stump is taking place. Instead of the baseball cap wearing front man, we’re confronted with a slick and sleek sight not familiar to many. With a six-piece band firing on all cylinders behind him, his turquoise pants and black shirt reflect sheens of sweat that shimmer under the stage lights. The look and feel of Patrick Stump may be altered but when he opens his mouth, a proverbial voice full of sanguinity and hunger hit that aural sweet spot. Weeks earlier my heart was warmed as Soul Punk, Stump’s solo debut, revealed a series of sweet and dark songs meant to be savored. Records these days that fully encompass an experience and have an emotional pull are rare. Over the last decade Stump honed his chops in Fall Out Boy pushing his craft and expanding his talent with each release which is fully on display for his debut solo album. For most artists a solo project is a breather from the group machine but for Patrick Stump Soul Punk is an extension of his very soul. The record is bittersweet for me as I believe Fall Out Boy’s last record, 2008’s Folie à Deux, to be their very best but one listen to Soul Punk and it becomes apparent Stump needed to articulate himself outside of the dimensions of the band. Besides writing and producing the entire album, he performed every single instrument on it. If that isn’t enough for you, he footed the bill for the entire project signifying how much he believes in these songs. This isn’t an ego trip but a reflection of an artist in the truest sense of the word. Stump is a virtuoso who wanted to do more than simply step outside of familiar terrain but was hell bent on reinventing himself in the process.

• Fall Out Boy: Their Hearts Beat For The Diehards 10/20/2007 Live Review
• Fall Out Boy: Cosmic Kids in the Fallout Zone -Live Review Chicago 12/2/2008

No one doubted that Stump would construct sonic landscapes that are pleasing (he was the principal composer of the music in Fall Out Boy) however his lyrics distil years of experience as he concurrently tapped into his inner child and stepped onto the battlefield of adulthood. Stump borrows liberally from the pop stars he grew up loving and admiring (Prince and Michael Jackson) while channeling the spirit of his contemporaries as well (Kanye West) and the end result is every bit ambitious as it is wistful. “Explode”, a buoyant socio-political-personal anthem, which tells a tale of melancholy and peril opens Soul Punk. Keyboards, guitars, synthesizers and drums collectively howl in agony while the lyrics are wired with feeling. Inside the auditory fireworks are some of the years most enlightening and affecting lyrics. While the hypnotic and tight arrangements may overshadow the stories within, don’t be fooled, Stump is bringing pop music not just to life, but infuses it with integrity. He’s not here to merely sing to the beat but to guide the listener through the unsettling combat zone of consciousness. The lyrical anxiety within “Dance Miserable” is in direct contrast to its vibrant music. Hidden within are invoking thoughts; “When did the punks stop being mad? / They penned love songs while we got had”. This is an anthem or the disenfranchised where he calls out others for being too complacent with their lifestyles and not providing a voice to those who couldn’t be heard. Artistry should be all about exposing the troubles of the world, shining a big bright light on it and while there’s nothing wrong with love songs, Stump’s point hits home as we’ve just come out of a decade as perilous as the 1960’s and the music world hid in fear of alienating their corporate sponsors.

“The “I” in Lie” places infidelity at the forefront in a tale where he leads the dance beats behind closed doors where temptation and broken promises infest relationships often resulting in solitude. His insight into the torment of life and the isolation that comes with it isn’t something anyone should take lightly despite his alluring the listener with liquid sunshine. “Greed” is a well-timed account merging ills within a pop framework with seething lyrics pointing a finger at a culture hell bent on egocentric behavior and oppressing everything in its way (“You know, very rarely is good art born in the board room”). “Allie” is dark, twisted, tender and a sexy ode to the past where former insecurities come to light amidst teenage anticipation. Ultimately it’s an intuitive soul weeping ballad. Listen closely and you may feel a grandiose homage to early 90’s R&B which would be awkward for merely anyone else but Stump makes it come to life. Instead of pining for a lost love, he meticulously details the drama of fateful relationships in “Everybody Wants Somebody”. Stump takes the template for a love song and fuels it with determined optimism while framing it with full force pop hooks.

The most ambitious song on Soul Punk is "Run Dry (X Heart X Fingers)"; a account of an addict who breaks promises persistently as they wind their way through daily dread. There is a dramatic moment of lucidity where the narrator says “I beg the ceiling for forgiveness” as the spin machine cycle of their mind will not yield. It’s more than a guarded confessional but features a radically brightened second half (entitled “Cryptozoology") which allows the song to take flight. An extended workout jam, which was nothing short of fierce on the Metro concert stage, is often reserved for concerts. In the here-today-gone-tomorrow landscape of pop music, an outside producer would have excised this exhilarating interlude deeming it a forbidden fruit best not tastes. Fortunately Stump was both the producer and financier so he gluttony relished the taste and as a result, we’re better off with one of the year’s most explosive musical arrangements.

Despite winding tales of quiet menace and despair, the album’s finest tracks ignite your inner spirit. “Coast (It’s Gonna Get Better”) culminates the ten song journey on an affirmative note with a repeating chorus that invades your mind. "Spotlight (New Regrets)” is a hymn of empowerment. An equally wonderful alternate take entitled “Spotlight (Oh Nostalgia)” appears on the Truant Wave EP. Both cuts are wholly unique with a contagious arrangement and a goliath-like chorus ready made for stadium sing-a-longs. Like most great pop art, “Spotlight (New Regrets)” embodies a sense of community where its larger-than-life melodies infect you with optimism. Stump is attempting to pry open the hearts and minds of his listeners. He wants them to be more tolerant, more concerned and above all else more loving as he echoes in the lines of “Compassion is something that they just don’t teach”. The album’s lead single “This City” is a harrowing love letter to home. John Mellencamp once sung about small towns and now Stump undertakes the charms and challenges of big cities carefully dissecting the highs, lows and yet it’s a true love that one can’t be without. “The City” was a turning point for Stump when he composed it earlier this year. His album was for the most part complete, but “This City” took Stump and the album into an entirely different direction. In telling this to his manager, he decided to redo the whole record. Some of the initial recordings can be heard on his excellent Truant Wave EP available on iTunes. The decision to re-record and follow your muse is a road rarely traveled these days, but by doing so Stump pushed his craft to new heights where he fuses his influences and experiences into a record that is the very embodiment of his soul. It’s sentimental while offering glimpses of frayed innocence. It’s one of the truly great songs of 2011 in any genre. The single cut features fellow Chicagoan Lupe Fiasco, which is available on the deluxe edition of Soul Punk which I highly recommend over the standard edition not just for the remix of “This City” but also for the utterly captivating “Bad Side of 25” which takes its place in the pantheon of incredible songs relegated to bonus cuts and b-sides.

Soul Punk is a triumph in pop production where Stump’s forthrightness turns an agnostic into an advocate; he expands the pop spectrum in a way few of his contemporaries would even dare. Most acts are trapped by what’s hip and new whereas Stump dove deep into the pool of pop’s past, but added edgy lyrics placing a spotlight on not just his own demons but the world at large. He makes you believe pop music can attain a higher plateau where he imparts intelligence and offers sage counsel (“It only gets better when it hurts”) into the mix. He instills a desire to preserve self worth. His Chicago upbringing has provided him with a view of society that is both warm and fuzzy but also absurd and authentic. While I had assurance in Stump’s abilities, I never imagined he would create a record that isn’t just endearing but continually enduring. With each listen new lessons are learned and innovative sounds come to light which permeate you with a gigantic sense making you grateful to be alive. If you’re walking through life in a daze with emotions buried deep down, Soul Punk is the perfect prescription to throw you back into the ring. Each and every one of the songs on Soul Punk takes a flight of operatic grandeur. Without thinking twice, Stump put his emotions on the line through a voice that is assured, comfortable and takes us on a voyage. The emotional canvas Patrick Stump draws from on Soul Punk is as wide and varying as anything in the last quarter century of pop music. Soul Punk is distinctive amongst a landscape riddled with copycats and insincerity. Like a one-night stand, most pop music fills a hole in our lives and when the moment has come and gone, we’re just as empty as we were before. Great music isn’t about simply turning your life into a kaleidoscope of colors that aren’t real but hopefully tells you tales in order for you to learn from them. Call me a fool but out lives should be centered on improving ourselves, enriching others and opening each other to novel experiences. Soul Punk beautifully encapsulates all of these.

No record released in 2011 better exemplifies the world we live in than Soul Punk. Despite numerous warning shots to the soul, its melodic throb infects the listener. From self-empowerment to infidelity to despondency to addiction to hope Soul Punk is bursting with life lessons. Great art isn’t something that can be taught. In order to craft something as downright riveting as Soul Punk one must give themselves over to their art. Patrick Stump has crafted ten exquisite songs which illustrate an artist who has and continued to experience ache and uncertainty, yet his unrelenting belief in himself ignites not just his soul but his music as well. There is an acute awareness of reality here and it lifts the album to another plane where pop music rarely resides. As I watched Stump in a knockout performance in front of his hometown crowd, I didn’t so much see a rock star as someone who embodies my hopes and fears as well. Patrick Stump’s Soul Punk isn’t just a daring and revelatory detour but the bravest and most remarkable album released in 2011.

Anthony Kuzminski is a Chicago based writer and Special Features Editor for the antiMusic Network. His daily writings can be read at The Screen Door. He can be contacted at thescreendoor AT gmail DOT com and can be followed on Twitter

antiMusic.com: Tony K's Album of the Year Pick: Patrick Stump - Soul Punk

antiMusic.com: Tony K's Album of the Year Pick: Patrick Stump - Soul Punk

Concert Review: Judas Priest 11/12/2011 Hammond, IN

Judas Priest / Black Label Society
Concert Review
November 12, 2011
The Venue – Hammond, IN
By Anthony Kuzminski

Inside The Venue, a state of the art concert complex attached to the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Indiana (just outside of Chicago) Black Label Society and Judas Priest performed one of their longest and most intimate shows of their current tour. Sure, they’ve played clubs and theaters but The Venue has an immense stage allowing for an arena-like set-up (with immense screens on both sides of the stage) giving this performance a unique perspective. The two combined acts delivered nearly three and a half hours of deafening heavy metal riffs to a sold-out crowd of approximately 3,000 people. Black Label Society took to the stage a little after 7pm and for the next 65-minutes tore through ten songs with vocalist/ guitarist Zakk Wylde shredding and singing. “Crazy Horse”, “Suicide Messiah” and a killer finale of “Stillborn” resounded with the crowd. Black Label as a whole rocked and rolled with each band member flexing their respective muscles with great power setting the stage for headliner Judas Priest.

The Epitaph tour is a first for Priest. They’re performing one song off of each of their Rob Halford studio albums. While not the first band to do this, it was a refreshing and amazingly well paced show that stretched well past the two hour mark. First things first, K.K. Downing is missed. There is something missing on stage looking at five musicians and not seeing his blonde hair and searing guitar solos. However, he decided to sit this one out and in his place is a wholly impressive 31 year-old named Richie Faulkner. He held his own as he and Tipton had chemistry and he engaged the crowd. So while nostalgia rules most of our memories, Faulkner eased the blow. He can never fully replace Downing but he did a stupendous job on stage and with the songs.

The double whammy of “Rapid Fire” and “Metal Gods” from the seminal British Steel record was a forceful way to start the show. Over the next 140-minutes I was continually amazed at how much of the Priest catalog I had buried within my body. It’s hard to believe how many truly influential records the band recorded between 1973 and 1990. “Heading Out to the Highway” continued the effortless assault. When the chorus came, all Halford had to do was hold his microphone out to the crowd and they knew every word. “Judas Rising” from their superb Angel of Retribution album in 2004 continued the evening of history. One thing you have to give Judas Priest from their debut record Rocka Rolla to Nostradamus in 2008, they’ve rarely wavered from their mission. Sure, there were some radio hits that were a bit more polished than others but the band brought the same steely determination to every record and era of the band.

Listening to “Starbreaker” it hits me between-the-eyes as to why I never warmed to the more extreme metal of the 1990’s and onward. I think one of the reasons comes from my introduction of metal by Metallica, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. The template these acts set forth may have been modified but rarely bettered. It’s akin to watching Buddy Guy perform one night and following it with the latest platinum rock outfit, it can’t compare because almost nothing could measure up to. The chiming union guitars on “Victim of Changes” were welcomed with an eager surge towards the stage. The general admission crowd may not have been as active as they once were, but the call-and-response to certain songs couldn’t be denied. It was obvious this tour was something designed specifically with the fans in mind. It should be noted that many of the songs Priest performed exceeded the seven minute mark. Considering three of the key members are in their 60’s it was hard to not be awed with their constant stage charisma and release of the songs. The two guitarists had a familial rapport, almost like a father and son as they traded off menacing licks notably as they grinded their twelve strings for a brutal foundation that drove “Never Satisfied”. One of the other reasons I find Priest and their brand of metal so endearing is the way they pull from their influences which extend far beyond the world of metal. They had “Diamonds & Rust” from Joan Baez and “The Green Manalishi (With the Two Pronged Crown)” which was originally done by Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac in the set. For “Diamonds and Rust” the song was performed under sepia yellow and red lights with the crowd singing along as their fists defiantly swung to the air. I couldn’t help but feel that Joan Baez never imagined in a million years that this song would have this type of a reaction in an atmosphere like this. But once again, props must be given to Judas Priest for never playing by the rules and pushing boundaries. This is why they were and continue to be revolutionary.

“Prophecy” from their controversial Nostradamus record rocked, plain and simple. It was a record their fan base had an incredibly complicated time listening to with many detractors but this particular performance felt inspired with drummer Scott Travis always taking the band in a forward motion and an ominous vocal by Halford. “Night Crawler” was a sentimental choice for me as Painkiller was the first actual Priest album I had bought whereas previously I had been listening to them mostly through mix tapes and live compilations. New guitarist Richie Faulkner was once again fantastic during this song thrusting his fists to the air as he inched his way closer and closer to the fans. He may not be K.K. Downing but he fit the shoes well and above all else proved to be the liaison between the band and the fans. “Turbo Lover” is one of the few songs in the Judas Priest cannon that stirs up debate as the synthesizer drives most of the song but onstage this time around, there was no synth beat and it was nothing but an unrelenting and fierce performance driven home by the two headed guitar monster of Drover and Faulkner whose twelve strings took the track to heights even the most staunch metal head could not have imagined.

One of their earliest songs “Beyond the Realms of Death” featured operatic guitars while “The Sentinel” featured Drover and Faulkner traded off licks trying to top one another as Ian Hill’s bass shook the rafters. The band’s stage up was devised for crowds larger than The Venue. A benefit is we see great acts in more intimate places but the sound verged on overwhelming as it shattered my ears in the days that followed. “Blood Red Skies” was astonishing in all of its 8-minutes. I never paid much attention to Ram It Down but this is clearly a gem I had previously overlooked. Hard core metal fans often take issue with some of the theatrics the band may bring to the stage but the lasers, flames and pyrotechnics help invigorate some of these lesser known numbers for the crowd. It may appear to be eye candy but in truth it’s a way of keeping the crowd engaged song-to-song as they pull from their extensive catalog.

The last thirty-minutes of the show was fueled by the unforgettable hits people have come to know inside and out. For “Breaking the Law” Halford didn’t utter a single lyric as the crowd vociferously sung every word at the top of their lungs. “Painkiller” featured the driving interlock of drummer Scott Travis and bassist Ian Hill as Rob Halford shrieked in his most indomitable performance of the evening. The melody is obscured under the incensed and sniveling guitars with the rhythm section kicking into overdrive as they pulverized the crowd with the double kick-drum and spiraling bass as the sold-out crowd waved their fists in severe approval. “The Hellion/Electric Eye” from 1982’s Screaming for Vengeance opened the encore expanding the dialogue between the band and their audience. From here on out the band masterfully took the already explosive evening to another level. “Hell Bent for Leather”, “You've Got Another Thing Comin'” and the finale of “Living After Midnight” found Judas Priest reaching the apogee of their horns-to-the-air supremacy. When the band ended their 140-minute set it was more than a triumphant hit medley but an all encompassing career knock-out. Capturing at least one song from every album forced the band outside of their normal dynamics and pushed themselves in the process.

Many felt the Epitaph tour would have been the band’s final stand. While it may be their final extensive world tour that stretches for months on end, all signs point to the band continuing to write, record and above all else tour. Many felt the British Steel tour from a few years back (where they played the seminal album in its entirety) was their pinnacle. If K.K. Downing had been on board for Epitaph this would have been their crowning moment. It’s bittersweet to not have him in the band but the youthful exuberance of Richie Faulkner has helped the band forge ahead and considering the length (in terms of songs and time) this tour was a refreshing to longtime fans as it showed Judas Priest still has plenty of vigor within them. From Halford’s anguished scream to the dark brutalism of Hill’s bass and Travis’ drums to the windstorm of Tipton and Faulkner’s conjoined guitars the evening took their most fervent of admirers down dark and strange corners of their history but ultimately in the end, the pacing and emotional intensity gradually build to a roaring pyrotechnic climax where metal fans of all ages rock until dawn.

Anthony Kuzminski is a Chicago based writer and Special Features Editor for the antiMusic Network. His daily writings can be read at The Screen Door. He can be contacted at thescreendoor AT gmail DOT com and can be followed on Twitter




SETLIST
Rapid Fire
Metal Gods
Heading Out to the Highway
Judas Rising
Starbreaker
Victim of Changes
Never Satisfied
Diamonds & Rust
(Joan Baez cover)
Dawn Of Creation
Prophecy
Night Crawler
Turbo Lover
Beyond the Realms of Death
The Sentinel
Blood Red Skies
The Green Manalishi (With the Two Pronged Crown)
(Fleetwood Mac cover)
Breaking the Law
Painkiller
The Hellion
Electric Eye
Encore:
Hell Bent for Leather
You've Got Another Thing Comin'
Encore 2:
Living After Midnight

Concert Review: Ani DiFranco 9/21/2011 Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL

Ani DiFranco
Vic Theatre- Chicago, IL
September 21, 2011
Concert Review By Anthony Kuzminski
Originally published over at antiMUSIC
[Photo Credit]

There’s a general lie within the music industry that permeates through most people’s minds; your greatest music is made when you are youthful and have nothing to lose. While there’s a lining of truth to this statement as you make music in an innocent fashion, if an artist is truly great, they grow, evolve and take their audience along for the ride. Just recently I watched Ani DiFranco in a performance that was indisputable and invigorating. DiFranco is one of the most captivating and revealing artists of the last twenty years. She made her mark creating naked soul bearing records year-after-year outside of the record system at a time when no one else was doing it through her own Righteous Babe Records. Even more amazing was her success that followed. Marketers studied what she did, marveled at how she built an audience and most didn’t follow her lead because it took too long. After a decade of being on the road constantly, she lured an audience that wouldn’t just buy her records but would follow her to the ends of the Earth. In the last few years, music has taken a back seat in her life to motherhood. However, despite her diversion from music, she took to the stage at the Vic Theatre and over ninety-five blistering moments reminded everyone as to why she’s one of her generations defining voices.

Opening at 8:20 sharp with “Anticipate” the seated crowd leapt to their feet where they stayed for the entire set. Alone on stage in khaki pants, a white tank top t-shirt and her long hair provided a rejoinder to the Britney Spears of the world. You don’t feel unsettled by DiFranco but endeared to her. Her stage was bare except for two amps and a microphone. DiFranco chose to take this trek alone and her ardent string plucking provided more fireworks than most arena rock shows. Her delivery, poise and beat poet voice riveted the crowd as she tore through classics and a series of songs from her still unreleased upcoming record in early 2012. The songs matched up against her bitter protests of love and social angst and showcase maturity. She talked about her mother and how at seventy-eight the two are reconciling old wounds. She also gave some advice, with a smile slyly escaping, about how to never disparage your mother in songs or on the internet how it would come back to haunt you. She then enlightened the crowd with an industrious performance of “Angry Anymore” (from Up Up Up Up Up Up).We look for artists to lead the way and while we’re trying to find our path, the dissention and anger is good. But as one ages, reconciliation is an equally important part of the healing and growing process.

She talked about her legacy as a “very angry girl” but as she did compile Canon in 2007, she listened to all her music and thought to herself “there’s that anger”. Yet she did this all with a smile and a sense of complacency. Not the type of satisfaction that would allow her to give up her craft but someone who is happy with her mission and who she has become. Her assurance was almost disarming because musicians are supposed to be tortured but some of the greatest find ways to break on through to the other side without having their demons swallow them whole. She was fired up for “Manhole” but right before a revelatory performance of “Promiscuity”, one of her new songs, she spoke to the crowd and said “Thank you for being my therapists”. This one quote sums up everyone’s existence as an artist. And yet, it was DiFranco who has soothed souls through her songs. Despite apologizing to the crowd for the lack of new records as of late (“I’m on Mommy time now”) when she stepped up to the microphone to sing “Promiscuity” you couldn’t help but feel this was one of her most accomplished songs. There’s nothing better than growing with the acts you love and seeing them evolve in ways you had hoped but were never quite sure would happen. The song is about taking your life lessons and learning from them. Few artists know how to express themselves when they find pure joy in their life and instead of scolding her fan base as she experiences domestic bliss, she gives them a template as they find their way. Whether we are teens, in our twenties or even our forties, we’re all trying to figure out the mysteries of life and what “Promiscuity” does is allow us to make mistakes as long as we learn from them. Another new song “Unworry” had the potential to be a perfect pop song that should be picked up by a reality TV star and watered down, but inside the Vic Theatre it was a philosophical and raw expression of how love can occupy more than misfortune and be something of magnificence. We need reminders of this to find our way in the world without becoming a world-weary skeptic.

Despite her talk about family, she channels her past stridently in her pleading vocals evidence by “Napoleon”, done in the 2007 arrangement when she re-recorded to song for “Canon”. Watching her on stage you realize there is no barrier between her and the audience. There’s no PR person standing behind her telling her she looks better with sunglasses, bleached hair or trying to hold her back from telling us too much. This is Ani DiFranco, the artist whom the 1,300 in the Vic also considered a close personal friend. “You Had Time” was sung in a melancholy manner with the crowd whispering along to every lyric in a song about the fleeting moments of life. “Little Plastic Castle” was done at the request of a fan and to he surprise, she barely had to sing it as the crowd sat there and sung every word to her at the top of their voices. “Swandive” featured a hypnotic weaving of chords. These challenging times define our existence yet at the same time, her words remind us the greatest rewards come from swimming in shark infested waters. “Lag Time” found DiFranco’s most zealous playing of the night on her acoustic as she let loose like a thrash shredder. Her guitar playing was spot on the entire evening with syncopated strumming on “As Is” and her best Angus Young plucking on “Both Hands”. “Marrow” featured a story about her anger at the state of the nation. Listening to her stories were invigorating because many don’t grasp is that the ferocity inside of her is alive and well, but she has more to lose than ever as a mother. Disillusionment is easy, but to stay true to yourself and making your audience believe your every word is greater triumph than she ever could have imagined. A tale about being scared of living life, yet the greatest joys in life come about from taking chances. The stories and most importantly, the emotions continue to pour out of her two decades onward from her start.

At the end of the show, she performed a pair a covers defining her role in the world of music. “Which Side Are You On” was a Pete Seeger cover and in the tradition of great folk singers and she is continuing the tradition speaking the truth and never shying away from discussing unpopular topics in her music. “Angel of Montgomery” was a prayer sung with the greatest concentration conceivable. Her heart-on-her-sleeve lyrics paired up perfectly with these two covers and tie back to the great American songwriting traditions she still embodies to this day. It doesn’t matter is she is a wife or mother because her passion was evident throughout the entire show with DiFranco not merely performing but sharing a piece of herself with those in attendance.

Ani DiFranco is a performer, a songwriter and an artist…but she’s also now a mother so when she sings of disillusionment in the world, it’s not for being a disaffected youth but because she wants to leave the world in better shape for her daughter. One of the new songs she performed, “Mariachi” had this endearing line; “let’s squeeze the lime” reminding us that we can worry about the future but also improve it but loving our lives and who we are. Inside of each of us we all have this empty void within us, no matter how loving our families may be, ultimately we yearn to bond with others. This is often why losing your first love is so detrimental to you because that void was filled momentarily. It’s also not just not about finding anyone but someone specifically who opens worlds for you. DiFranco has found it in her current producer and together they’re discovering new worlds with a daughter. They key to life, on display throughout DiFranco’s ethereal and contemplative lyrics, is to not fall into self-satisfaction but to make every day a voyage. If the crowd reaction at the Vic in Chicago was any signal then all 1,300 are continuing their voyage in the hopes of new discoveries and new loves we can share with our therapist and mother figure, Ani DiFranco.


Anthony Kuzminski is a Chicago based writer and Special Features Editor for the antiMusic Network. His daily writings can be read at The Screen Door. He can be contacted at thescreendoor AT gmail DOT com and can be followed on Twitter