Smile Politely. Speak Directly. A Champaign-Urbana Culture Blog

Last week, when I heard that Error House had been shut down, my heart sank. Such a wonderful and safe all ages venue, run by selfless musicians, helping fill the void that the Red Herring, Channing Murray, and many other venues and houses once filled — gone in a flash.

Scrambling to relocate their shows, they managed to put together some last minute arrangements with the boys of So Long Forgotten to move their tour-kickoff show to The Green Wolf, a farm house on the western outskirts of Champaign.

More videos after the jump.

Most underground hip-hop heads have been asked the question: “What I should listen to?” Even on a steady path of slinging burned CDs, hours spent on Wikipedia, and a slew of names you might not remember, you still may not be able to grasp the “classics” of indie hip-hop. Leading you back to the start — dejected in your Nike Dunks — unable to lay claim to your bragging rights.

So what becomes of the budding backpacker? Somewhat knowledgeable, but unable to find some of the records his or her friends talk so much about. Any indie music scene can prove to be hard to get into, namely because of the constant come-and-go passing of styles, names, and movements within it.

After sitting down to a round table discussion amongst cousins who first introduced me to decent hip-hop, we managed to hewn an agreeable list of tasty sounds that will get you started.

Crate diggers in training, grab your headphones, and away we go.

Elsinore, Champaign's latest band to make a go of it on the long and winding road that is the American West, is in the first week of their first extended tour thanks to local agency, Amnesiac Booking.

After years of growing local popularity, the members of the band finished school or quit their full-time jobby jobs and decided to make a go of it in the national indie rock scene.

"We've been ready for some time," said lead singer Ryan Groff, a well-known solo artist in his own right. "Things are going smoothly, and [despite gas prices] we're financially ahead so far."

Check out the rest of the tour dates after the jump. They will conclude with a show in downtown Champaign at the final street fest of the summer. Keep checking Smile Politely's Tour Diaries for updates from the road.