But alas all good things must come to an end and the dot com bubble caught Epitonic up in its burst… Without getting into details some other people tried to run the site and it ran into the ground a few years back.

Good news! Justin is back in the saddle and is nursing Epitonic back to life. But they could use your milk money. They’re taking donations through Kickstarter and their pledge rewards are pretty awesome. I shelled out $100 to get tickets to the relaunch party, a commemorative t-shirt, special mixtape and my name on the site as a launch donor. I got my wife on board by explaining that we owe our baby’s life to Epitonic because without it I probably would have had crap taste, not started the concert promotion company I used to run and never would have met her at one of my shows – hence no baby girl. And I know I’m not the only one who owes a lot to Epitonic (including most of their iTunes playlist to Epitonic recommendation) so please help them get the party started for the former and future ‘Tonic heads.

www.kickstarter.com/projects/1096570561/epitoniccom-relaunch-by-the-original-founders

www.epitonic.com

In the meantime, I want to make sure everyone knows about Bash on Wabash. I just heard about it from a friend who’s tour managing one of the headliners, Cracker. The event takes place between 13th and 14th on Wabash in the South Loop which is a few blocks from my home base. Noteworthy acts include Asobi Seksu, the Hood Internet and Flosstradamus. It’s September 4th and 5th and has a $5 donation entry price. Definitely worth the ducats.

Best source for info is Metromix.

I went to GMF last year and aside from the torrential rain, it was awesome. Murder By Death were killer (god, make me stop) and I was hoping the rain-caused poor attendance wouldn’t hurt chances for a repeat. Luckily, they’re doing it again. This time the band that I’m really excited for are Maps and Atlases; local heroes done good and signed recently to Bar/None. They’re playing GMF on June 27th as well as at Subterranean the night prior. They’ve got a new album, Perch Patchwork or Porch Perchwurk or something like that.

My boy Dave Davison looks a little like Teen Wolf, but that’s awesome!

www.myspace.com/mapsandatlases

Interview: Bob Nanna of Braid

words by Brian McKinney

“I owe a lot to the fact that all four of us are still out there doing shows or are on tour, putting out records and online talking to people,” Nanna explains. “I give all the credit in the world to Todd [Bell, bass], Chris [Broach, vocals/guitar] and Damon [Atkinson, drums] for doing that and not hibernating. We still like talking about it, and we like remembering all the cool things about being a band.”

Nanna believes in the power of social media and a strong web presence. It’s something he feels every band should take an active interest in.

“I think it’s absolutely important for bands have a web presence,” says Nanna.  “It used to be absolutely important for bands to have a website. Then it became just as important for bands to have a Myspace page. And now I think it’s necessary for bands to have Facebook and Twitter accounts.”

But just having an account and posting show dates and MP3s isn’t enough for Nanna. You need to find a way to connect with your audience: “Bands need to think of it not just as a promotional tool,” Nanna instructs. “Some bands do it very well and are very interactive. After shows they are on Twitter checking out people’s reactions or responding to people or just thanking people for coming. It really means a lot in this day and age having a more personal interaction with a band you like or want to go see. It’s priceless. Probably in 10 years there will be another [technological] thing that bands will have to do.”

This stream of thought speaks volumes for someone who started his band in the early ‘90s when most people using the Internet were wearing lab coats and collecting government grants. When Braid first formed in 1993, the only way to book shows was by tracking down talent buyers and then picking up a telephone.

“We were doing it all ourselves and basically using Maximumrocknroll to find clubs,” Nanna recalls. “Then they put out a book called Book Your Own Fuckin’ Life and that was basically our bible. I remember around ’96 I heard that Sense Field or somebody booked their entire European tour over email. That was just madness to us. We just had no idea the power of the internet in terms of booking. But right around that time Frame and Canvas came out we got a booking agent and let them handle it.”

When Braid recorded their 1995 debut, Frankie Welfare Boy Age Five, they ran out of money after pressing the vinyl and had to get thrifty with packaging. They began buying up used LPs from the local Goodwill, painting over the album art, and individually screen printing their own. The new Polyvinyl Records reissues are completely repackaged, remastered, and stamped on 180-gram vinyl.

“I think they look amazing,” observes Nanna. “Polyvinyl did an awesome job. Todd from Braid did an awesome job making it sound good. He’s a real audiophile. It was just a great experience and it was heartwarming in that it all came together and everyone was psyched to get it out. I’m really happy with the way it came out.”

Braid first signed with the Champaign, Illinois-based Polyvinyl Records in 1998 to release their third full-length, Frame and Canvas. Nanna has nothing but kind words for the label that is also responsible for furthering the careers of artists like Japandroids, Joan of Arc, and Of Montreal.

“I have just the utmost respect for Polyvinyl,” proclaims Nanna. “I ran into Matt [Hubbard, Polyvinyl founder] the other day at an Aloha show and in this day and age when record labels are going under left and right, Polyvinyl is completely thriving and are adding staff. They just opened a branch in San Francisco. It’s because they’re doing vinyl with digital downloads. It’s just amazing.”

Their new attention to vinyl makes Nanna chuckle thinking back to his early days with the label. “The funny thing is that when Braid was on Polyvinyl we had to fight tooth and nail to get them to do vinyl,” Nanna remembers. “Matt didn’t want to do any vinyl. But it’s all about adapting. That’s why some old labels are failing. They just aren’t adapting.”

Not willing to stop growing personally, Nanna has branched out over the years. In addition to fronting some of the most respected and influential indie bands of the past 20 years, Nanna also works as promotions manager for Chicago-based t-shirt designers Threadless, and has created a photo project called Never Ending Polaroid, which involves taking a photo of someone holding the previous Polaroid, creating an endless chain of photos.

“I have 600 of them,” Nanna clarifies. “I hope to keep doing of them because Polaroid took a dive but is coming back. It is a never ending project. I did an exhibit at the Threadless store in Chicago and it was all 600 of them.”

A Chicago fixture, Nanna can currently be found every Wednesday night DJing at Bar Deville in the Ukrainian Village neighborhood of Chicago.

“It’s Chris Broach and me,” Nanna says. “We play ‘90s indie rock and emo and punk.  It’s super fun because every week we just end up hearing songs we haven’t heard in forever and we’re just like ‘Oh my god, that song is awesome.’ Even if it’s mainly for our enjoyment, people come and it’s fun.”

It’s Nanna’s continued efforts to keep involved in the scene, staying in touch with friends and fans, that has helped him and his bands remain significant after all these years.  In 10 years Nanna will be probably be beaming a hologram into our living rooms, playing intimate live shows from the comfort of his home. If the tech is available you can be sure that Nanna will take advantage.

Here’s a nifty graphic that was in the email though.

I guess Red Bull has a new slogan: “Printers Row gives you wings!”

www.myspace.com/papiertigre

The last thing that I heard was that the city hadn’t approved the event or issued any permits. This sentiment was echoed by a letter from 2nd Ward Ald. Robert Fioretti, which was posted in my building recently. I’ll try to grab a copy and scan it. The letter calls the event organizers “cavalier” and claims their planning is “ad hoc” and would not receive any Aldermanic support. I can’t remember if this letter was printed before or after I snapped some pictures of CFD, CPD and various suits meeting in the park on Thursday. I don’t know what Fioretti looks like from an isometric view, so I won’t speculate who attended the gathering.

Then on Friday the Red Bull event planners held a community meeting in the park. As far as I can tell they only announced it a few hours before the meeting time of 6:30 pm, so there weren’t many locals in attendance. I saw someone putting up fliers on the site’s fence and there was a notice in my building that afternoon. Honestly, I don’t even know what they talked about because I just watched from my rear window, so if anyone was there, please spill the beans.

So, I’m not sure the status of this event. Red Bull seems to be selling tickets on their website and moving forward with construction while the city and some community members remain opposed. As I stated earlier, why not let them try it once? It’s on a weekend and ends by 7pm. Sure there’ll be some rock and roll and probably some drunk people, but I put up with that from my neighbors every week. The only negative outcome I can see is if this is just some rouse by an alien civilization who are going to unveil a giant robot who will judge our society on how we handle civic events. That could end badly.

Anyway, I did a bit of Googling and it looks like Red Bull probably didn’t buy the land, but they are putting on a BMX event in the spot on May 15th. They’re calling it Stomping Ground and the premise is that the lot has been “abandoned” and the BMX bandits will be integrating the “abandoned” equipment and supplies in their runs. Well, until 3am this morning, aside from a couple dirt piles (which were trucked in a few weeks ago) the lot was empty. Now there is a back hoe and two bulldozers sitting there courtesy of a noisy mid-night equipment delivery. I guess Red Bull is staging the lot to look like it’s an abandoned city building site. That’s much more dramatic than just building a course.

Since my living room overlooks the lot and the future course, I’ve decided to cover the construction and implementation of the event on this here blog. If you’re interested in the politics and impact of the situation then check out South Loop blog, Sloopin’s coverage. I’ll be hanging out, shooting pictures and drinking a beer, watching dudes do flips on bicycles. Below are some photos from this morning.

This is the lot in question.

The "abandoned" construction materials that showed up this morning at 3am.

The Sears Tower as seen from my window overlooking the empty lot.

I think these guys are the Red Bullies who are creating the track. They were parked next to the tractors.