Said The Whale

"Audiences are “a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art; music” and refreshingly this four piece band of Chicagoans don’t exclude themselves from that classification. In lieu of taking the stage as if they’re doing those in the crowd a favor, Audiences walked into Schubas ready to share an experience, not just dish one out.

Describing the style of music Audiences plays is a challenge. This is a band that is almost a living, breathing Rosetta Stone to understanding other genres, one that takes snippets of everything and allows listeners to piece together an understanding of styles they may not have been familiar with through ones they already recognize.

In one moment Audiences is singing falsetto harmonies to a rollicking 70’s groove, nearly going into full fledged disco mode but pulls themselves back into the realm of the modern day with mellifluously astral guitar riffs that scream indie rock. Tinges of Via Audio’s taste for vintage dance music and the beach-y carefree quality of bands like Polaris come into play in Audiences music, but even that description fails to properly capture what I heard at Schubas.

Audiences is a band that has enough in common with bands like Vampire Weekend and MGMT to easily become a favorite among trend inspired listeners but enough legitimate musical proficiency to keep from turning off the music fan who doesn’t give a damn about the Hipster Top 40.

Sitting in the venue, it was a little surprising to hear such a big sound coming just four guys and a couple of guitar pedals, which perhaps may have been the most impressive part of the entire evening.

With three of the most basic instruments you’d find in a band lineup- bass, guitar and drums- Audiences paint their songs with broad, sweeping strokes of bright melody before texturizing their sound with epic swells and wailing riffs.

This is a band you truly have to hear for yourself to understand the capacity of, but more so, I’d recommend going out to see them."

-Sam Gordon (Reviewsic: Music worth talking about)

"Nice Night for a Knife Fight" is the second full-length album from Otter Petter. Colin Sipos, an engineer for artists such as Iron and Wine and Califone, was called upon to achieve the big, cohesive sound the songs deserved. The album was recorded at Chicago's Clava Studios, possibly best-known as the location where Modest Mouse recorded "The Moon and Antarctica." The album is available at shows, from the iTunes Store, Amazon, or CD Baby.

Hailing from Chicago, Otter Petter delivers "big, bright, hooky tunes with their hearts pinned proudly on their sleeves" (Chicago Reader). The indie pop quintet features brothers Michael (guitar, vocals) and William Pritchard (drums), Raphael Dussaussoy (guitars, keyboards), Amy Anderson (bass, vocals), and Jeremy Tromburg (keyboards). Recent highlights for the band include a CMJ showcase in New York and a featured role in an NBC TV show pilot entitled "State of Romance." Director Peter Sollet ("Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist") chose the band to appear in segments filmed at the Double Door and Millennium Park in Chicago.

Otter Petter emerged on the Chicago music scene in 2005 with a self-titled, five-song EP. In 2006, Otter Petter was chosen by the Chicago Tribune as one of 10 bands to compete in the "Metromix Rock 'n' Vote" contest. Readers voted Otter Petter as one of the four winning bands to play a show at Metro in Chicago. In 2008, the band's first full-length album "Fireflies and Lamplights" was greeted with glowing reviews. NewCity called it "devastatingly infectious," and Gapers Block described it as a "perfect blend of roots rock, sugary pop and complex indie rock."

BambiRaptor is a five-piece Chicago-based band forged in 2009 by a group of close friends. Their sound is highlighted by catchy hooks, energetic guitar riffs and vocal melodies. The group consists of Roger Remillard (lead vocals), Doug Moore (guitar, effects), Gary Farr (guitar), Kenneth Kruse (bass, backing vocals), and Nick Emrich (drums, percussion). BambiRaptor's material can be compared to acts such as The Killers, Jet, All American Rejects and Taking Back Sunday with the energy and fun of Blink182. The band's particular sound has been coined "Dance Rock", and dabbles in other genre styles such as punk, indie, hip-hop and reggae. Their shows are high energy, colorful, and fun. BambiRaptor currently occupies a monthly practice space at Superior Street Studios and plans on recording their 2nd EP early Fall, 2010.