This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Signal to Noise magazine’s Spring 2008 issue. Baby Dee talks about the old German folk tale of the Erlkönig as if it really happened to her—back when she was still a boy, growing up in Cleveland. The Erlkönig, a king with a beard and a flowing cloak,… Continue reading Baby Dee profile
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Cat Power: 2008 concert review
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in The Daily Southtown on February 11, 2008. Cat Power, the singer also known as Chan Marshall, was once notorious for abandoning songs or entire concerts before she was halfway through finishing them. When she played at Chicago’s Vic Theatre two years ago, she gave an erratic performance,… Continue reading Cat Power: 2008 concert review
Playbill feature: ‘Shining City’
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Playbill magazine in January 2008. Are ghosts real? Or do these apparitions spring out of the human psyche? Are they supernatural beings from another world or merely manifestations of our own emotions? Robert Falls, artistic director of the Goodman Theatre, has never seen a ghost, but in… Continue reading Playbill feature: ‘Shining City’
The smoking gun: Anti-smoking crusader Lucy Page Gaston
Chicago magazine, January 2008 — Year after year, Lucy Page Gaston sat through Chicago City Council meetings and legislative sessions in Springfield. Even as politicians exhaled clouds of tobacco smoke, the prim lady in a somber black dress urged them to pass laws restricting cigarettes. Read my story in Chicago magazine.
Bettye LaVette Q&A
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on December 5, 2007. Four decades after she began making records, Detroit R&B singer Bettye LaVette finally broke through to national acclaim last year with her album, “I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise.” Praised by many critics as one of 2005’s best records, it… Continue reading Bettye LaVette Q&A
Grace Slick Q&A
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on September 6, 2007. Grace Slick hasn’t sung on a stage since 1989. These days, the former vocalist for Jefferson Airplane and Jefferson Starship spends her time drawing and painting. Slick will make appearances Sept. 8 and 9 at the Wentworth Gallery in Schaumburg’s Woodfield… Continue reading Grace Slick Q&A
Windy City drone
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Signal to Noise magazine’s fall 2007 issue. As a steady hum rose from the ten musicians in the loose ensemble known as DRMWPN, a flickering glow filled Chicago’s Empty Bottle. The “Dreamachine” was on. Invented in 1959 by artist Brion Gysin and scientist Ian Sommerville, the Dreamachine is… Continue reading Windy City drone
Ivan Brunetti profile
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Time Out Chicago’s May 31-June 6, 2007, issue. For more, read my Q&A with Brunetti at Underground Bee. For a collection of comic books, Ivan Brunetti’s Misery Loves Comedy (Fantagraphics, $24.95) looks unusually plain on the outside. No dust jacket. No illustration. Just the title and the… Continue reading Ivan Brunetti profile
Wanda Jackson Q&A
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on May 9, 2007. Fifty years after she first hit the country and rock charts, singer Wanda Jackson is winning over a whole new generation of fans. Jackson played alongside Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis in the 1950s, arguably becoming the first woman to… Continue reading Wanda Jackson Q&A
Play review: ‘Othello’ at Writers’ Theatre
This review by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on May 31, 2007. Iago is one of literature’s greatest villains, and a new production of “Othello” shows this infamous schemer as a fascinating and charismatic agent. John Judd’s performance as Iago at Writers’ Theatre is so remarkable that, at times, one thinks this play should be… Continue reading Play review: ‘Othello’ at Writers’ Theatre