five cent deposit
COVID-19 and the
Chicago Music Scene
The Empty Bottle / 📷 : Aaron Pylinski
Human connection is at the heart of what we do at Chicago Crowd Surfer. Music is an expression at the very center of our mortal experience. The bond we receive from rubbing elbows while a band shreds on stage is irreplaceable. The only way to get that back soon is to follow the example of regions that have curbed new cases by social distancing. In these uncertain times, we urge you to educate yourself on COVID-19 by visiting the CDC website.
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“I think the most important thing we can be doing, especially as young [and] healthy people… the best way forward is to do what the CDC and the WHO (World Health Organization) say to do and social distancing seems to be the best way to beat the spread [of the virus].”
Deeper at Lincoln Hall / 📷 : Tina Mead
-DEEPER
Social distancing is the current catchphrase, but is immensely important, and the gig community is feeling the strain by and large. Prolific road gig and rock ‘n’ roll bosses, North by North hit the nail on the head, “[We] think social distancing is extremely important at this time, as that's what the health and government officials are saying will help relieve the pressures from this virus.”
ROOKIE at Goose Island Block Party / 📷 : Tina Mead
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“We’re doing all we can to keep strong. A lot of people have been supportive.”
-Rookie
Though we are apart as a community, it is in our blood to keep connected through our common musical interests.
The Children, Think of the Children!
Many bands are canceling and postponing shows. We spoke to a few local artists about their experiences thus far with the COVID-19 outbreak and two things are thematic throughout the community: they’re missing out on gained revenue, but most importantly, they aren’t reaching a broader fan base.
For the folks in Deeper, it’s a matter of commitment to their craft and the fans. “We all quit our jobs and we’re pursuing music full time,” and unfortunately, they just canceled their upcoming album release tour, “We’ve lost thousands of dollars in income because of the [COVID-19 outbreak].”
Max Loebman from Rookie spoke to the fact that their band had to cancel a month's worth of shows and that “Some of us have requested time off from our full and part time jobs to tour.” For Rookie, there are no shows and now no work, which puts them in a tight spot.
Some bands were already on the road, like Speed Babes and North By North. Both bands had to subsequently cancel all shows until further notice. We talked to Speed Babes while they were en route back to Chicago after having to cancel their South by Southwest (SXSW) tour dates.
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“Buy music and merch on Bandcamp, because that can go a long way. If you’re not directly sending money, spread the word about the bands you like.”
-SPEED BABes
“Touring regionally, you’re always hoping to break even and [COVID-19] made that impossible.” They knew heading to Texas for SXSW that they would be playing smaller venues or possibly canceling altogether, “It was something that we talked about from the get-go, the right thing to do, we knew the venues might be closing, with businesses and folks working paycheck to paycheck. It was a tough decision whether to outright cancel or go out there and give it a shot to see what happens.” In the end, they decided public health was the better option.
North By North at Empty Bottle / 📷 : Tina Mead
Initially, North By North decided to hunker down on the road, but now have shifted gears, “We just released our third album Get Weird and was on tour to promote the release. We've now decided to cancel the remaining dates [thru the end of April] and head back to Chicago to try to save what we can of our meager profits thus far.”
Keep The Music Going
Local artists want to just keep the word of mouth campaign strong in the Chicago music scene. We feel it is Chicago Crowd Surfer’s civic duty to let you know our favorite local bands that we are listening to.
See our staff picks below, listen, and most of all SHARE. We may not be able to share the same physical space, but we can share the music. Here is a Spotify playlist of all the bands to stream them now. Or click below to buy merch or music on Bandcamp:
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“Keep your phones on and stream [albums] on Spotify or other streaming services overnight. Leave your phone on silent and just stream it. We will get [revenue] from that on the backend if you just keep on streaming it.”
-DEEPER
Daymaker at Cole’s Bar / 📷 : Tina Mead
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Heavy Stream
It is our mantra to help our readership keep seeing live music. Let us know if you have a livestream going up or have an album needing reviewing. If you are a venue with updates, send them our way. Something else to consider, if you are a band or know a band that wants to advertise a livestream concert, send a DM to Jamie Ludwig of the Chicago Reader via Twitter or email them at: jludwig@chicagoreader.com.
Rookie at Goose Island Block Party / 📷 : Tina Mead
The Venues, Think of the Venues!
Venues, like the musicians, are feeling the strain of COVID-19. We as a community can help offset some of their losses. Find your favorite venues online or on social media and help them out by donating.
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“We were literally sitting in a restaurant in Pittsburgh trying to determine how we would go on with our release show. Dimitri [Panoutsos] came up with the idea that we would go to the studio where we recorded our album, Treehouse Records, we would have a film crew come in, and we would perform our set as we would [live] and just have it stream for free online.”
-ROOKIE
Tasha at The Hideout / 📷 : Tina Mead
The Hideout is shuttered until April, Sleeping Village closed indefinitely, Schubas and Lincoln Hall haven’t had a show since March 12th, and The Empty Bottle only recently announced they’re closing because of the mandate for all bars and restaurants to be closed by 8 pm on March 16th by the Governor. And these are just a few examples from the places we frequent the most. Find your favorite venue on social media and learn ways to donate.
Hideout: The Hideout has a Virtual Tavern where folks can donate via GoFundMe. All proceeds go to the staff.
Sleeping Village: Are closed indefinitely, but have a GoFundMe campaign.
Empty Bottle: Not to be outdone, The Empty Bottle and Bite Cafe have a GoFundMe campaign and sweetened the deal with Kickstarter-style donor level rewards. Go to the site and see for yourself. If only I had $10,000 to give away.
The Reader has also compiled a list of venues accepting donations.
Waiting is the Hardest Part
Chicago Crowd Surfer is continuing to publish album reviews and do email interviews with bands during this crisis. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up on all the latest in the Chicago music scene.
Nothing is more important to us than you, dear Surfers. Without you we are merely shouting into the blank nothingness of the internet. We want you to be around for decades to come, and we’ll be here for you to check in every week for all your Chicago music related needs. See you on the other side, Chicago. Be good to each other and stay healthy.