Calendar

Artists, activists, musicians, writers, architects, politicians, chefs, and people defying description all grace the stage at PechaKucha Night which brings prominent and emerging creative minds together for an evening of lightning-fast presentations, networking and fun. The PechaKucha format, where a dozen or so presenters are given 20 slides each shown for 20 seconds to reveal their passions, work and inspirations, is now held in over 430 cities around the world. Chicago events are among the most popular, with over 300 people in attendance at each event. It's an amazing, riotous and amusing evening.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

CHIRP Radio’s Live Lit and Music series, ‘The First Time’, is unlike any storytelling show in Chicago. It pairs our six unique readers' personal stories about a first-time experience with a song performance. This unique structure allows the story to resonate with audience members as they experience the accompanying song covered by our house band, The First Time Three, featuring Liam Davis, Gerald Dowd and Steve Frisbie. The band has played with musicians including Robbie Fulks, Nora O'Connor, Justin Roberts, Tributosaurus, Frisbie and more, and takes special care to perform unexpected song arrangements of said covers. It is hard to tell what the audience enjoys more: each story or each song. The show is a benefit for CHIRPRadio.org and is hosted by The Moth champion, Jenn Sodini. Featured readers include:

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Great Moments in Vinyl plays ZZ TopTexas Monthly called their music "loud, macho, greasy, and distorted.”The Santa Barbara Independent. proclaimed, “They’ve got cheek, and they know how to use it.”Variety defined them as “Southern rockers who presented themselves as carny American showbiz biker devils.While over in the U. K., The Guardian summed them up as "part traditional, part contrary, and part of the deep seam of Texas weirdness that stretched from [‘60s psychedelic rockers] the 13th Floor Elevators through to [the chaotic punk of] the Butthole Surfers.Have mercy!Join Great Moments in Vinyl when we pay tribute to this Little Ol’ Band from Texas and trace their music from their roots in the blues and boogie to their glory days as video stars on MTV. Get ready for those greasy grooves and the stories behind the songs as GMiV brings you the music of ZZ Top.

We are thrilled to continue our tradition of hosting memorable concerts with Tim Ries, Bernard Fowler and special guests when the Rolling Stones are in town. This year, Tim and Bernard will be joined by legendary organist Bobby Floyd and his trio and very special guests as we celebrate the life of their long time bandmate, Charlie Watts.Saxophonist, composer, arranger and producer Tim Ries's performing and recording credits include a who’s who of jazz, rock and pop icons: The Rolling Stones (touring from 1999 to the present), Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Donald Fagen, Michael Jackson, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Lyle Lovette, and many jazz greats including Chico Hamilton, Michael Brecker, Joe Henderson, Tony Bennett, and many many others. Tim has released seven records as a leader. His last two releasses, The Rolling Stones Project (Concord) and Stones World (Sunnyside), are his versions of Stones tunes arranged in the jazz and world music genres. Guest artists featured on these records include: all four Rolling Stones, Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow, Milton Nascimento, Bill Frisell, John Scofield, Jack DeJohnette, Lisa Fischer, Bernard Fowler, Larry Goldings, Eddie Palmieri, Brian Blade, flamenco dancer Sara Baras and fado singer Ana Moura.Bernard Fowler is an arty guy, so when he makes an album of Rolling Stones covers, it’s going to be something out of the ordinary. Back in the day, he sang with the groundbreaking dub-electronic band Tackhead as well as downtown avant-funkers Material; along with iconic DJ Larry Levan, he was a founding member of the New York Citi Peech Boys, who emerged from Manhattan’s fabled early-‘80s house/garage scene. Blue-chip visionaries like Philip Glass, Yoko Ono and Ryuichi Sakamoto have him sing on their records; the guy is on Public Image Ltd.'s landmark 1986 Album and Herbie Hancock's hit mid-'80s electro-funk albums.Fowler has another gig too: he’s sung and played percussion with the Rolling Stones, on stage and in the studio, since 1988. At soundcheck somewhere along their 2015 Zip Code tour, he started riffing on a Stones song as dramatically delivered spoken-word — and the band dug it. “Mick said, ‘Bernard, I’ve heard Rolling Stones songs done a lot of ways but never like this,’” Fowler recalls. “I said, ‘Well, you know what? When the tour is over, I'm going to cut it.’ And he said, ‘You should.’ That’s all I had to hear. That was the green light.” As you probably well know, The Rolling Stones will be back in town for the first time in years, and it may be the last time. I don't know. This tour, as in all recent tours, The Stones will not be playing consecutive nights at the Soldier Field. So, as always, some of the guys are playing here at Martyrs' on their night off. In years past, Tim Ries, long time Rolling Stones sax man, along with other Stones sidemen: Bernard Fowler, Darryl Jones, Chuck Leavell, Michael Davis, and friends from New York including Larry Gouldings, have played here as The Rolling Stones Project. Don't miss The Rolling Stones Project featuring Tim Ries, Bernard Fowler and the Bobby Floyd Trio and special guests as we celebrate the life of Charlie Watts.

First Sundays are the Chofis Session. Presented by drummer extraordinaire, Chris Sanchez (AKA Chofis). The Chofis Session is a jam featuring some of Chicago's brightest young musicians. Bring your instrument and jam with the best. ALL AGES welcome and No Cover! Come One Come All!

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

DEAN JOHNSON, RICHARD JAMES, DAN KELLY, LYLE BREWERWith a diverse catalog of hundreds of songs, the musical juggernaut Neighbor has become one of the most exciting and unpredictable live bands on the music scene today. Grown in large part by the passion and devotion of the fans called Neighbors, their symbiotic relationship inspires and touches every performance. The creation of childhood neighbors Richard James (vocals, keys) and Lyle Brewer (guitar), Neighbor combines ambitious composition, soulful balladry, and a fearless approach to their lengthy improvisations. The quartet is rounded out by Dan Kelly (bass) and Dean Johnston (drums) who fuel the groove and lay a solid foundation for Neighbor’s “down home” sound. Come see what’s good in the neighborhood. “As a child I can remember locking myself in my room with a big old set of headphones and listening to the Band's Music From Big Pink album over and over again,” said Reid Genauer, the lead singer and founder of the New York based quintet Assembly of Dust. “Besides loving the hell out of the music, I was intrigued with the production value in the recordings. As I listened I felt almost like I was there in the room with the Band at a moment of perfection. That intimate listening experience drew me in and is what inspired me to be a musician.”Drawing on that influence and countless others, over the last ten years Assembly of Dust has crafted a unique sound that recalls the likes of the Band, Traffic and Neil Young. They have taken that early 70's Americana swagger, put their own funky spin on it, and earned comparisons to the next generation of Americana heroes including Ryan Adams, Mumford and Sons and Wilco. Hooky melodies, poetic lyrics, and a profound depth of musicianship promptedUSA Today to say Assembly of Dust has what it takes to "dazzle the Alt-Country universe."

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.

Honky Tonk Sundays! Join us for an afternoon with The Hoyle Brothers. They play every Sunday at 3pm.