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2005 Articles
12/13/2005
The King is Back, and Playing Rockford

So, you think you know all about Elvis, Presley that is - sequined jump suits and pompadour hairstyles. Well, I bet you also thought that Elvis was dead. So, I'm sure did Eric Myer and Chad Pool of Fat Elvis. That was, if you believe the group's biography, until they met him. The rest of the story is the stuff of legends.

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11/28/2005
Wicked Liz and The Bellyswirls - Nearly Local Act With An International Following
What? You've never heard of Wicked Liz and The Bellyswirls? Well, truth be told, I hadn't either - and that's a shame. This group is based out of the quad cities, and for an independent act they have quite a few interesting qualities. For one thing in six years there hasn't been a single lineup change. For anyone that's even been in or followed club type bands, that's an almost unheard of situation. > More
11/09/2005
Geneva Red and The Roadsters - Red Hot Blues Harp Comes to the Rockford Area

Looking for some killer blues harp based music? If so, then you need to get to Chubby Rain on November 25th to check out Geneva Red (one of the few women playing the instrument) and The Roadsters. Red has performed with blues greats such as Bob Margolin and John Primer (both best known for their work in Muddy Waters' band.

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10/24/2005
Model One Rocks Kryptonite October 28th
The new Model One E.P. is here and the release party is at Kryptonite 308 W State St October 28th.  The new EP features 4 new tracks: Homecoming Queen, Something, The Model, The Blush. > More
10/21/2005
Jodi Beach Trio - A Rockford Jazz Tradition
For fans of vocal jazz in the Rockford area Jodi Beach's name should definitely be a familiar one. Local listeners got their first taste of her talent when she performed for 13 years in lead and supporting roles in musicals at Rock Valley College's Starlight Summer Theatre. > More
10/14/2005
The Last Vegas - Good Time Chicago Rock Comes To Town

The Last Vegas, according to Kryptonite's website "are a hard rock band from downtown Chicago, IL. Influenced by the blues, 70's punk, and bands the like of The Stooges, Guns N Roses, Motley Crue and The Trashmen." The end result is strong hard rock with an attitude. These guys will sound familiar to you without feeling derivative. The band is playing Kryptonite both on the 22nd and the 29th of this month, and Rockford hard rock fanatics should make one, if not both of these shows. These guys really rock!

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10/03/2005
A Rockford Metal Reunion - Judas Priest and Anthrax

Metal Gods Judas Priest and their compatriots Anthrax made their way into the Rockford Metro Centre on September 28th, and this represented a reunion on many levels. For one thing this was a return of classic heavy metal to Rockford, and it came back with style. On another level, it was a reunion of both bands with the Rockford area. The Priest hadn't been here since the 1980's and as Anthrax lead singer Joey Belladonna pointed out, that band had last been to Rockford opening for Pantera. This show, though, was also marking personal reunions for both bands.

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09/09/2005
The Platforms at Kryptonite

Austin, Texas' garage fashionistas, *The Platforms* kick off a mini-tour

of the Midwest - THE MESSED UP IN THE MIDWEST TOUR - en route to

perform a showcase at the MidPoint Music Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio.  The group's tour will bring them to Kryptonite on September 23rd.

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09/06/2005
Judas Priest Brings The Metal Back To Rockford

Judas Priest will be storming into the Rockford Metro Centre on September 28th along with Anthrax. For the long time fans, no introduction is necessary, but for those with less knowledge of this metal powerhouse it seems a good time to cover their history - consider this a class called Judas Priest 101.

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08/18/2005
The Fenians - A Lil' Bit of Ireland Comes To Rockford

Looking for a great, fun Celtic rocking time, then Ireland's The Fenians are just what the doctor order. Oh, wait, they're not from Ireland, but rather from Orange County, California. It's easy to believe they call the Emerald Isle home, though. They are bringing their taste of Ireland via California to this year's On The Waterfront festival.

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08/09/2005
Dierks Bentley - Bringing The Country To Rockford
Don't let Dierks Bentley's youth fool you. This country singer and guitar player maybe look like the late 20's that he is, but his heart and musical soul seem a lot older. While many of his contemporaries have embraced a more modern pop oriented country style, Bentley draws his inspiration from the old school icons like Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings. > More
08/09/2005
Joe Diffie - Tougher Than Nails Singer Will Be In Rockford
On Saturday September 3rd Joe Diffie will be headlining the ComEd Country Stage at Rockford's On The Waterfront festival. Diffie will be touring in support of his latest CD of songs based in a hybrid of classic and modern country sounds "Tougher Than Nails". Diffie's name should be familiar to country music fans in the Rockford area - he has had ten number one country hits in his career. > More
07/23/2005
Quiet Riot gets loud at Beloit Riverfest

Back on "The Rock Never Stops" line-up, Quiet Riot rocked festival patrons at Beloit Riverfest on Sunday, July 17. Just after FireHouse and before Ratt and Cinderella, they opened with the insane lyrics "come on mama, we'er all crazee now!"

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07/12/2005
Duke Tumatoe packs Big Cities Lounge

Even though the temperature dropped to manageable levels last weekend, it was hot in Big Cities Lounge on July 1. People flocked to the blues club to check out Duke Tomatoe, a guitarist whose posters show him carrying a sign that says "Pompous and Overated" and "Will Work For Food."

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06/21/2005
Otep - Bringing The Fury and The Artistry To Rockford
Otep is an artist in the truest sense of the word. Otep is also a band. Otep is a poet. Otep is metal fury coupled with artistic expression to create one of the more unique and creative sounds out there. Otep will be rocking Forest Hills Lodge tonight along with a number of other bands. Since Otep has been featured on Ozzfest three different years, she (Otep is the lead singer's and main songwriter's name) and they (Otep is also the name of the band) are a band that is a group not to miss - especially in such intimate surroundings. > More
06/17/2005
Spectacular, Intense Rock and Fire Flowpoetry Ensemble StoneFloat To Ignite Minglewood Coffehouse

Having played to ecstatic audiences in some of the finest music venues in Madison, WI, StoneFloat, the originators of rock and fire flowpoetry in which spoken word is woven between, into and around original rock songs, make their second appearance at Minglewood  Coffehouse  located at 317 W. Jefferson St. in Rockford, IL June 24, 2005 at 8:30 pm.

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06/10/2005
Cheap Chick - The World's Only Female Cheap Trick Tribute Band

"Mommy's alright, daddy's alright, they just seem a little weird", the familiar strains of "Surrender" and other Cheap Trick classics will fill the downtown air on Friday, September 2nd. Those with a calendar and/or Waterfront schedule in front of them may be saying, "wait, Cheap Trick is playing Thursday the 1st." They would be right. The Trick sound on Friday will be provided by Cheap Chick, the only all female Cheap Trick tribute band.

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05/27/2005
Learning Can Be Fun: A Blues Education

Rockford's pickin' guitar blues masters Steve Ditzell and

Bob Levis opened for Ann Rabson at the Mendelssohn Club on April 20th with a special half-hour performance.

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05/27/2005
Chainsaw Dupont And His Delta Crush Guitar

Mississippi native Chainsaw Dupont rolled into town Monday, April 30, and rocked the house at Big Cities, with a wireless mic and wireless Flying V guitar.

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05/02/2005
Southview Working Man's Metal From The Rockford Area

If you, like me, enjoy screaming guitars and metallic thunder, but have a bit of a problem digesting a lot of the nu metal, yo metal and death growls and grunts, Southview is a name you should know. It’s scary how good these guys are, especially when you consider that they come from Rockford.

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05/01/2005
Disfunctional Nation: K Patrol's Hip Hop Dedication To The Armed Forces

Kirk Pryor and Flora Cousins dedicated Pryor's new CD, Disfunctional Nation, to the U.S. armed forces at Rock Valley College in October 2004.

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04/05/2005
Blood of Creation - More Than Meets the Eye
When the five members of Blood Of Creation hit the stage, you might expect to hear some form of new metal or alternative rock, or possibly even boy band tunes. You would be wrong. You also might expect that no good extreme metal can come from a bunch of Machesney Park 16-year-old guys - wrong again. > More
03/12/2005
The Final Comes to Kryptonite

The Final brings their brand of solid straight forward rock to the shores of the Rock River.  The band will be making their Rockford debut at Kryptonite on Friday April 8th.  They will be sharing the stage that evening with Salvame and Titan Moon.

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02/04/2005
Dragonfly Entertainment - It Might Just Be the Way for Your Band to Soar

If you are in a band, you know how frustrating it can be playing the same clubs to the same faces night after night, week after week, and not seeing your fan base grow. It can be really difficult to break out of the endless cycle. Well, Dragonfly Entertainment might have the answer for you. They offer a wide range of services to help the up and coming band make it in the tough world of the music industry. If you are in charge of a live music venue, Dragonfly has an answer for you, too.

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