Street Life
Where to see great concerts on the pavement during Chicago street festival season, plus some weekend reading.
I’ve always associated the phrase “island time” with a slower mode of sun-drenched life that provides ample hours for laying on the beach, slowly sipping ice-cold beverages, and catching up on your book backlog (admittedly, this state of being seems to predominantly be enjoyed by those lucky enough to be vacationing and/or very wealthy).
Summertime in Chicago boasts all the sweltering heat, spacious beaches, and proclivity for time spent outdoors befitting a seaside retreat located much closer to the equator, but it’s trying to pack a year’s worth of warm-weather fun into roughly four months (it’s a season that figuratively and literally has no chill). Here in the Midwest, time actually seems to move faster when the mercury rises — and it’s at least partially because of the sheer number of Things You Can Do when this corner of the globe is fully thawed.
That’s why this edition of Attenuator focuses on the humble street festival — there are probably about three of these pavement-bound events taking place across the city on any given summer weekend in Chicago, and at least one of them typically has a few good bands playing. Pack some sunscreen, make peace with paying $8 for a beer that will quickly become lukewarm, and hit the subscribe button below if you enjoy your time here.
Chicago Street Festival Lineup Power Ranking
Big festivals like Lollapalooza and Pitchfork seem to garner all of the headlines (and newsletter issues), but street festivals truly exemplify why Chicago is such a great place to go outside and see a band during the summer. Sure, there are plenty of street fests that promise “live music,” only to deliver the same tired lineup of cover bands and tribute acts that seemingly perform at multiple fests every weekend. But a decent number of Chicago street fests partner with local venues and talent buyers to assemble impressive lineups of local and touring acts — the kind of groups that don’t simply rattle off renditions of the hits of yesteryear.
After attending my first street festival of the season during the first weekend of June (Do Division), I was inspired to begin scanning the remainder of the summer’s lineups. But I’m not looking for any old Chicago festival — in my estimation (and for the purpose of this newsletter) a real street festival adheres to the following two rules:
A street festival must take place in a street, on a stretch of asphalt, not on a grassy field in a park. (Sorry, Chosen Few DJs Picnic.)
A street festival is not ticketed. Anyone can turn up at the gate, pay the suggested donation (or not), and enjoy the show.
With those rules in mind, I’ve assembled my not-quite-scientific ranking of the best Chicago street festival music lineups throughout the rest of the summer. If you’re in Chicago or find yourself here on a weekend this summer, you’re in luck — there are probably a few good bands playing on a street somewhere nearby, and you’ll only pay $10 (or less!) to get in and see ‘em.
1. Square Roots Festival
I knew that I’d aged firmly into the Square Roots Festival’s target demographic last year when Guided by Voices, Bob Mould, and Aeon Station played the fest and I felt pangs of regret when I couldn’t attend. There’s always at least one aging indie rocker and a boatload of local bands I want to see during the Old Town School of Folk Music’s annual summer bash in Lincoln Square.
This year, I’m probably most excited to see a Friday night headlining set from punk legends X (a band I first heard while playing Tony Hawk’s Underground 2) [sadly, X has canceled their appearance] after checking out local Balkan brass-adjacent marching band Mucca Pazza. On Saturday, you can relive the early ‘90s indie rock boom with back-to-back sets from Superchunk and Eleventh Day Dream after catching a miniature version of the Cosmic Country Showcase and a collaborative set from Mekons bandmates Jon Langford and Sally Timms. I expect that the breezy guitar-rock of Real Estate will be a big draw on Sunday, but I’ll probably gravitate to the existential synth-pop of Lala Lala and technical, melodic rock of Moontype.
Most importantly, this year’s edition of the festival is inexplicably sponsored by Beyblade Burst — a line of ripcord-propelled plastic top toys (you know, for kids) that “battle” one another and are the subject of an anime series. I assume this means that Mac McCaughan and Doug McCombs will take part in a contractually-obligated live Beyblade battle at some point during the festival.
July 7-9, Lincoln Avenue between Montrose and Wilson
2. Logan Square Arts Festival
Yes, I know that much of this fest takes place in the grass surrounding the Illinois Centennial Monument, but I’m willing to bend the rules since this event also occupies a portion of Milwaukee Avenue. Booking the reunited lineup of languid rockers Duster already puts Logan Square Arts Festival near the top of my ranking (especially since I missed out on tickets to the group’s gig at Sleeping Village). But there’s a lot more to this lineup than the prominent headliner, like talented young Chicago folk-rockers Free Range, fuzzed-out Vermont indie rock troubadour Greg Freeman, and Aussie electro-pop trio Haiku Hands. Heck, you can show up on Friday night and join a two-hour dance party beneath the monument featuring international club cuts selected by the DJs behind Global Currency.
Also, if you want to watch some kids finding joy in making music together (and probably tear up, as I usually do), arrive when the gates open on Saturday afternoon for the Intonation Music All-Stars.
June 23-25, Logan Boulevard, Kedzie, and Milwaukee Avenue intersection
3. Wicker Park Fest
Wicker Park Fest often seems to function as a miniature Pitchfork Festival, typically taking place the weekend after the crowds retreated from Union Park and booking a similar mixture of legacy artists and rising indie acts. That’s especially true this year, judging from the street fest’s initial lineup (only headliners and bit of the undercard has been announced). The Spanish-language alt-pop anthems of Lido Pimienta and confessional bars of NYC rapper Billy Woods seem like shoo-ins for Pitchfork’s eclectic lineup — making their presence at a much cheaper and more accessible fest all the more delightful. Ditto for indie-rock vets (and winding guitar solo specialists) Built to Spill and reinvigorated Philly outfit Speedy Ortiz. I’m kinda bummed that I’ll be out of town during this one…
July 28-30, Milwaukee Avenue between Damen and Paulina
4. West Fest
While I miss the days when going to West Fest meant that you could also swing by Permanent Records, it’s still a great reason to make the trek to West Town (and maybe grab a sandwich at Kasia’s Deli). The Empty Bottle-booked portion of the fest is overflowing with great local acts, whether you crave the mutating guitars of FACS, the buoyant new wave of The Hecks, or the contemplative folk-rock of Tenci. And it’s probably one of the only places in the country where you’ll see industrial-adjacent British group Nitzer Ebb or Dallas R&B singer-songwriter Liv.e performing on a tiny stage in the middle of a city street. There’s also a DJ stage that will host the likes of Derrick Carter, Mark Farina, DJ Heather, and DJ Hyperactive, if you prefer to dance.
July 7-9, Chicago Avenue between Wood and Damen
5. Taste of Randolph
I haven’t been to Taste of Randolph in many years, but my memories of it boil down to tiny portions of food from the various restaurants in the area served at an exorbitant mark-up (yes, this describes the fare at most street fests, but you’ll really get more bang for your buck reserving a table at the West Loop restaurant you want to sample on a non-fest weekend).
On the other hand, you can get your $10 donation’s worth by merely showing up to see some of this year’s headliners, beginning on Friday with a set from alt-hip-hop forerunners Digable Planets, performing the trio’s 1993 debut Reachin’. On Saturday, local poet and R&B singer-songwriter Jamila Woods makes a hometown appearance, following a set from London soul artist Jacob Banks. Then on Sunday, Randolph Street hosts what amounts to a Chicago house retrospective (a few blocks from the former site of The Warehouse), with sets from the likes of Derrick Carter, Mike Dunn, and Ron Carroll. It all sounds like way more fun than waiting in a three hour queue for a burger skewered on a knife.
June 16-18, 900 W Randolph Street
6. Ravenswood on Tap
Usually when beer or food is the focus of a street festival, the music programming is an afterthought. But that’s not the case at Ravenswood on Tap, which is centered around lots of suds from various area breweries and accompanied by some tunes to soundtrack your afternoon of IPA and lager consumption. While Sunday is heavy on tribute acts (odes to Beastie Boys and Prince), Saturday is packed with local artists like psychedelic genre-shifters Dos Santos, pummeling punk trio No Men, and rapper (with multiple songs featured in The Bear) Serengeti. If you want to sip something from Odious Cellars or Dovetail Brewery while listening to a Kenny Dennis track that references O'Doul's, this is the place to do it.
July 22, 23, Ravenswood and Berteau Avenues
7. Thirsty Ears Festival
I have no idea who will be performing at this year’s edition of Thirsty Ears (the lineup is still TBA), but I’m including it here because it’s the only street festival in the city where you’re guaranteed to see someone shredding the cello. Classical music shouldn’t be reserved for orchestra halls and evenings in Millennium Park — it sounds great on the street, too! I’m hoping that the live performances of soundtracks to screenings of silent short films are on the docket again this year.
August 12, 13, Wilson Avenue between Hermitage and Ravenswood
A Fistful of Links
Yes, I’m still chipping away at Tears of the Kingdom, and probably will be for many months. Meanwhile, folks like Matt Margini are considering the religious symbolism and themes that are present throughout the Legend of Zelda series. Come for the vintage, official promo art of Link kneeling in front of a cross, stay for the thoughtful appraisal of the franchise’s interpretation of Japanese spirituality.
Everything is getting more expensive, salaries seem stuck in the past, and folks are still getting underpaid to work jobs that they’re “passionate” about (in addition to ones they hate). In an op-ed for the New York Times, author Simone Stolzoff explains why desirable jobs shouldn’t be synonymous with personal sacrifice. It’s good context for the ongoing WGA strike, the looming nurse strike, and all of the other labor action that’s coming to a head after decades of stagnation.
I really enjoyed reading (and listening) through Shannon Nico Shreibak’s ambient country primer for Bandcamp Daily. It’s nice to see so many (currently and formerly) Chicago-based artists pushing the boundaries of Americana represented on this list.
Time to exit out of the gate where you entered. If you know someone who wants to see some great music on the streets of Chicago this summer, use the big orange button below to share this post with them. See you on a stretch of pavement!