Category: Music

Oasis

Jae-Ha Kim

Noel Gallagher appeared comfortable taking the stage without his brother. Whether he stayed in his usual spot–stage left–out of habit or respect for his brother is debatable (although I’m guessing the former). But if there was any question about his ability to command a crowd’s attention with his voice, it was quickly dispelled when he started their 15-song, 85-minute set with “Acquiesce,” a track not included on either of their albums. As he sang the telling refrain, “‘Cause we believe in each other,” the crowd furiously pogoed its approval back at him.

Oasis says it’s the best band in the world. Are you paying attention?

Jae-Ha Kim

At the Aragon soundcheck, it was Liam who was intent on hassling Noel. The moody singer jumped off the stage and meandered around the venue playing with a worn soccer ball. Looking at Noel, who was still rehearsing, Gallagher took aim and expertly kicked the ball to or, depending on who you asked, at his brother. Noel stopped the ball with his right foot, but wouldn’t surrender it to Liam until the song was over.

Sporting technicolor hair, Johnny Rotten leads the original Sex Pistols in a concert Saturday at the Aragon Ballroom

Jae-Ha Kim

Fans at the Sex Pistols’ reunion concert at the Aragon Saturday night spit, swore and threw plastic cups filled with beer, ice and soda at the aging punk rockers. Kinda makes you wonder what they would’ve done if they hadn’t liked the band so much. Yes, it was just like the old days, except the Pistols didn’t return the volleys as they would have in their late 1970s heyday.

Beck roars out in Metro opener

Jae-Ha Kim

Envy those who have tickets to this solid, eclectic sold-out concert. If ever there was a male waif, it’s Beck Hansen. Thin and slight, his frame gives off the misleading impression that he’s a small child playing at being a rock star. But Thursday – in the first of two sold-out nights at Metro – the multitalented musician roared out with confidence and turned in one of his most solid, eclectic sets. Beck’s music personifies what now has become a generic definition for “alternative.”

Brian Setzer and orchestra show fans great time

Jae-Ha Kim

Sometimes you get so used to being uncomfortable at concerts that it’s easy to forget just how much fun a rock show can be. At Brian Setzer’s sold-out gig on Monday night at the Skyline Stage on Navy Pier, no one moshed or body surfed. The smell in the air wasn’t of pot and cigarettes, but rather a light fragrance of Bryl Creem and other hair products.

Goo Goo Dolls give Taste a big finish

Jae-Ha Kim

The Goo Goo Dolls skyrocketed to stardom last year on the strength of their bittersweet ballad “Name.” The difference between the Goo Goo Dolls and most rock bands, though, is that guitarist Johnny Rzeznik has a voice that’s consistently alluring live, whether he’s singing a searing rendition of the Plimsouls’ “Million Miles Away” or conveying the chaos of “Long Way Down.”

Cocker Puts Pop In Britain’s Pulp

Jae-Ha Kim

Jarvis Cocker is a tall, stick of a man who doesn’t look as if he could possibly possess the deep, rich, resonating voice he has. At Pulp’s sold-out concert Tuesday night at Metro, the gangly, twitching front man for the British sextet could’ve been a laughingstock if his strange antics were all he had to offer. But as with most great performers, he used his body to accentuate the positive, which in this case is the band’s superbly lyrical songs.

Overindulgent Lenny Kravitz Still Delights

Jae-Ha Kim

Kravitz fares best when he sticks to four-minute rock songs. The lengthy jams have got to go. Unlike some of his critics, Lenny Kravitz doesn’t view it as a problem that some of his music is reminiscent of songs by the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Smokey Robinson or Led Zeppelin. Rather, the sinewy musician flicks away any comparisons – good or bad – as easily as he tosses aside his long dreadlocks and keeps writing songs with strong backbeats and deliciously catchy pop hooks.