The Overture: June 29 – July 5
With school, work, family, and a pathetic excuse for a State's Attorney ruining your life, who has the time to find out about the best shows happening in Champaign-Urbana? No need to fear, because the editors at Smile Politely have taken care of it.
Here are the must-see shows of the week:
When: Wednesday, July 1; 7 p.m.
What: Psychostick w/ Blessed With Pain, Scathe, and Dipshit McGee
Where: The Canopy Club; $7
OK. So, the show is headlined by Psychostick, who is a very capable up and coming thrash-core hard rock act from Tempe, Arizona. They are perfect for you, if you are waiting around hoping desperately that Faith No More schedule a North American tour. Otherwise, we think it might be worth coming to this show, simply to check out the opener: Dipshit McGee. With what might be the best/worst name in the history of rock music. They have no Myspace page, no music to listen to, or any indication of what to expect. But they are called Dipshit McGee. And that's worth the price of admission alone.
When: Wednesday, July 1; 7 p.m.
What: Bill Kirchen
Where: The Rose Bowl; $15
Bill Kirchen, a legendary guitarist who got his start with Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen back in the ‘60s, has played with everyone from Ralph Stanley to Elvis Costello, Doug Sahm to Emmylou Harris. We interviewed him when he came through town last September. If you're tired of midweek shows keeping you up past your bedtime, this is a good alternative.

When: Thursday, July 2; 8 p.m.
What: New Ruins w/ Ohtis, Prussia, Common Loon and Junk Culture
Where: The Canopy Club; $7
Here is an indie rock show worthy of your time and attention. The best of Champaign, meets the best of Bloomington, and everyone is bringing a friend along for the ride. In tow, is Prussia, from Detroit, who are in the midst of a short regional tour, and signed with Common Cloud Records. Common Loon is carrying Junk Culture, which is the one-man project from Deepak Mantena, of Oxford, Miss. Headlining is arguably the best band currently calling Champaign home, New Ruins of Parasol Records. No question, one of the best shows of the summer.
When: Thursday, July 2; 9 p.m.
What: Decade of Highdive w/ Beats By Otter, Lyle the Electrician, DJ Kosmo and more
Where: The Highdive; Free
On July 1, 1999, a crowd of about 150 – 200 people congregated in the stage room side of the newly opened Highdive, in the old adult theater / church next to Vriner's on Main St. in the now recharged downtown Champaign. The expectations were large; Ward Gollings from The Blind Pig would be booking the 425 cap room, and the music scene, desperate for a venue to call their own again, were hungry and ready to make it surge. And for the first few years, it was perhaps the best small room in the Midwest. The artists that have graced the stage at Highdive reads like a veritable tour de force of who's who in the music industry: The White Stripes, Queens of the Stone Age, Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse, Superchunk, Cibo Matto, HUM, Guided By Voices, and the list goes on and on. But another thing happened as well. Three words. DJ Dance Party. And sooner than later, it was clear what The Highdive would end up as: a downtown dance club. So, it's fitting that the 10-Year celebration would feature some of the best DJs to have ever hit the decks in their perfectly placed DJ booth. This is a fee show, and one that will no doubt be a great time. Cheers, Ward, for bringing us ten years of unbelievable live shows, and for keeping them up despite the douche factor on Fridays and Saturdays.
2 comments
Tyson
Ohtis is going on a permanent hiatus I’ve heard, starting the Friday June 3rd. In other words, Thursday is your last chance to see them in town…sadness….
Oh dear… Ohtis on hiatus? I might have to move around the ol’ schedule… right after I say a “epic” prayer for a Faith No More tour. (heh heh heh… sorry) I heart them.
Most Recent Music Comments
Nice article, love the Dead quote in the beginning. If they can get down here to Central FL I’ll definitely be heading out to the show. Some of my friends have finally stopped wincing when I say “jam band.“ I’ve now tried my best at more descriptive…
good call on that Herring recording, Josh. Love that version of Exit Music….here’s a clip of the Cinco de Mayo show (from about six months prior). As I recall, this Shakedown went on for roughly a half hour, while getting into the Trampled Underfoot jam in the…
sux
whats a zmick?
Here is a link to download the aformentioned 2007 show at Red Herring, a true gem from the early Zmick archive, again recorded by Ben Valocchi: http://www.archive.org/details/zmick2007-11-02.logitech
My biggest concern is that the free Caribou show at the Krannert is now not at the Krannert and no longer free. But then, I guess if that’s my biggest concern, then I’m doing pretty well—at least I still have potable water! Still, I would prefer it…
Who’s got the crack?
Any band that makes the effort to pay homage to ! = Metallica @ = Beatles # = 2pac $ = Moldy Peaches % = Grateful Dead ^ = Dave Clark 5 All in one show! (with Herb Alpert interpolations to boot) That’s what tasty jams is all about
THE CAKE IS A LIE
Most Popular Music Articles (60 days)
- Champaign Music Festival: Not that bad, honestly
- Pygmalion: Schedule announcement and more additions

- Pitchfork preview: I don’t care, I care, I really don’t care
- Pygmalion additions: final round
- Pitchfork review: So much style that it’s wasted (Part 2)
- Why music criticism is OK
- Hooray for everything
- Withershins: the hardest working band in Champaign
- Album review: Jay Bennett Kicking at the Perfumed Air
- Pygmalion schedule changes, Emeralds and new Erin Fein project added
Most Recent Comments
Illinois has simply had no luck at all in these Mizzou games. None. I think maybe we’re do for a couple of bounces to go our way. If we get one or two (or sever or eight) breaks, I think it’s a win.
Jason, Savoy could easily join the CPL tax district, which is probably closer to most Savoy residents than the Tolono library is. But my impression is that Savoy residents as a whole don’t want to pay the cost of the CPL (Tolono’s library taxes are cheaper), even…
Sorry, but I am lagging behind on updates to the map. Also, some construction projects were delayed from their original start date. On a more positive note, I am putting together a map of haunted houses in Central Illinois. I have a few plotted already, and I…
I’ve never gotten the privilege of all the services CPL cardholders get. I just want to be able to go out of my way to drive to the CPL to check out books, pay fines, maybe buy some coffee, and enjoy the library. None of those activities…
These days, there is more to using a library than checking out books. At one time, paying into the Lincoln Trails system probably would cover the expenses incurred by other libraries in the system. Now, with Internet, videos, coffee shops, wireless Internet hubs, etc., I suspect the…
(speaking as a Savoy resident) By paying taxes to support a member of the LTLS, we are paying our “fair share” to use any LTLS library—Tolono, Champaign, Urbana, etc. This is how library systems work. The 6% of CPL’s circulation represented by Tolono users is NOT significant…
I would be interested to hear more about the “word on the street”—how are individual hauling companies fulfilling their promise to recycle?
Timbo makes a smart, sound argument. Reread it.
I joined on 09-09-09 after living here over a year, and having to listen to my dad tell me how his best friend is, like, #27 or something crazy like that, and how said friend never lived further than 50 feet from the Illini Inn while going…
And, I might add, no one is being prevented from using the Champaign library. They are just being asked to pay their fair share if they are going to use it as their primary library.
The equation is pretty simple here. If you want social services, then pay the taxes required to run those social services. These things only work if everyone puts in their fair share. As a heavy user of the Champaign Library, I say bravo to this new policy.
What is the increased marginal cost of serving a resident of Savoy or Mahomet? I suspect negligible. What is the increased revenue to be realized by this new policy? I suspect very little. Aside from these financial aspects, what are the most probable results from this new…
Looks like you are also all members of the killer sideburns club.
Thanks for the article, Ben. I was not familiar with this band until now and even though I won’t be able to attend the show on Friday they are now on my radar. A *good* jam band is hard to find, and these folks appear to fill…
Nice article, love the Dead quote in the beginning. If they can get down here to Central FL I’ll definitely be heading out to the show. Some of my friends have finally stopped wincing when I say “jam band.“ I’ve now tried my best at more descriptive…
@Annie: Yeah, my bad. That was the best part! Drinking + memory exercises = fun @Rob: According to Ask the English Teacher, “My dictionary says ‘drunk’ is an archaic past tense of ‘drink.‘“ We’re all about the new grammar around here.
Katie, have the residents of Savoy and Tolono thought about having their taxes raised a little to help their public library expand? That’s a possibility for them. And then everybody wins.
Most Popular Articles (14 days)
- Camp Rantoul Report: August 20, 2010
- Withershins: the hardest working band in Champaign
- Champaign to close recycling drop-off center

- Pygmalion schedule changes, Emeralds and new Erin Fein project added
- The Burlington Coat Factory Mosque

- Meet the new blog on the block
- CU Pride Fest review
- Flatlander fundraising off to a tasty start
- The right thing changes from state to state
- Garbage doesn’t just “go away”
Recent Searches
- derby (118 Results)
- 1592 (7 Results)
- Susan Toalson (3 Results)
- Gabe (4 Results)
- Bond (97 Results)
- Bond (97 Results)
- Gabe (4 Results)
- bond (97 Results)
- bond (97 Results)
- dan schreiber (34 Results)
- gillespie (129 Results)
- Men Against Sexual Violence MASV (1 Results)
- 8684 (1 Results)
- Men Against Sexual Violence MASV (1 Results)
- great cover up doug hoepker (13 Results)
- great cover up (589 Results)
- C-U Circle (32 Results)
- 4130 (1 Results)
- elsinore (123 Results)
- elsinore (123 Results)

Facebook
Twitter
Full Site
Events Calendar


























Thanks for the article, Ben. I was not familiar with this band until now and even though I won’t be able to attend the show on Friday they are now on my radar. A *good* jam band is hard to find, and these folks appear to fill…