Naommon. Photo by Emmanuel Caurel. Junior-Senior album cover._________
Adding plenty of colors to the rainbow spectrum of Chicago's gay-themed music festivals this summer is Queer Fest Midwest. Benefiting About Face Theater and WLUW, the all-star line-up is highlighted by Katastrophe, Johnny Dangerous, Chris Garneau, Office, 8 Inch Betsy and Actor Slash Model. The first run of the Queer Fest Midwest is being put together by Chill Magazine and Think Pink Radio. Taking place at Pulaski Field House, 1419 W. Blackhawk, on Sat., Aug. 25, the all-ages music and arts festival will go from noon until 8 p.m. Tickets are available via www.etix.com and more information can be found at myspace.com/QueerFestMidwest.
Also on Aug. 25, Rufus Wainwright is scheduled to take to the stage at Ravinia with Magic Numbers and A Fine Frenzy as opening acts. Twice in June 2006, Wainwright redid Judy Garland's celebrated concert at Carnegie Hall. The out singer-songwriter has since brought Garland's legendary show to London and Paris, with plans to recreate Garland's 1961 performance at The Hollywood Bowl next month. When not saluting the great Garland, Wainwright is promoting his latest Geffen album, Release The Stars. This self-produced set includes the singles Going To A Town and Rules And Regulations. Wainwright is regarded as one of the best contemporary songwriters by the British music magazine NME and Sir Elton John.
Like Wainwright, Tegan and Sara return this summer—this time, with their fifth studio album, entitled The Con. The Canadian lesbian identical twins open this Vapor/Sanctuary release with the politically charged I Was Married. The set also has two other acoustic numbers, Soil, Soil and Call It Off, and Tegan and Sara fans will not 'wake up exhausted' with The Con. Produced by Death Cab For Cutie's Christopher Walla, their latest still has pop elements like the previous effort So Jealous, as heard on Back In Your Head. Similar to another great out pair, the Indigo Girls, each member of these duos has her own distinguishable songwriting style.
On the breakout hit Move Your Feet, Junior Senior sings 'everybody move your feet and feel united.' This mantra lives on throughout the much-awaited sophomore album Hey Hey My My Yo Yo. The Rykodisc/Crunchy Frog album's lead single, Can I Get Get Get, features Le Tigre's JD Samson and can be heard on commercials for Logo. Le Tigre also contributes to Hello, We R The Handclaps and Dance, Chance, Romance. Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson of the B-52s return from Planet Claire to make a cameo on Take My Time. Continuing the universal harmony that certain dance music brings, Hey Hey My My Yo Yo is a welcome return for this Danish pair.
Even sweeter than Christina Aguilera's Candyman, The Puppini Sisters make three-part harmonies fun and accessible. On their debut, Betcha Bottom Dollar, the trio remakes wartime favorites like Mr. Sandman and Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. But these European ladies also rework more modern songs including I Will Survive, Heart of Glass and Wuthering Heights to sound as if the Andrew Sisters had sung these. Inspired by the underappreciated French-animated movie The Triplets of Belleville and the rich harmonies of the golden era of radio, with clothes to match, the Puppini Sisters already won over fans and critics abroad with their talents and sense of camp. Expect to see them in Chicago on Fri., Aug. 24 at Schubas, 3159 N. Southport. Maybe they will croon the cheeky live favorite Right Key, Wrong Hole.
People have been asking me if Madonna's former producer, Mirwais, has his hand in Naommon's debut album, Allnighter. While the two French electronic popsters have not teamed together, the similarities are definitely there. Sleek and out now on iTunes, Allnighter has already made fans out of dance-floor hipsters Billie Ray Martin ( Your Loving Arms, Undisco Me ) and The Ones ( Flawless ) . Ever the multifaceted artist, the young Parisian has done self-portraits that could easily pass for an homage to a Kick-era Michael Hutchence. Now residing in Harlem, Naommon appears in the Gay.com underwear slide show along with other LGBT artists like Joshua Klipp, Ari Gold and The Cliks' Lucas Silveira.
It won't be 'just another manic Monday' when The Bangles perform at The House of Blues, 320 N. Dearborn, on Mon., Aug. 27. Hailed as one of the most successful female bands of all time, The Bangles remarkably reinterpret others' works ( Simon and Garfunkel's Hazy Shade of Winter, Prince's Manic Monday and Katrina and the Waves' Going Down To Liverpool ) as well as show off their own versatility with their songwriting skills ( Eternal Flame, Hero Takes A Fall, Get The Girl ) . Sadly, bassist Michael Steele has retired from the group; however, she is included on the quartet's newly-released live DVD Return To Bangleonia. Recorded in their hometown of Los Angeles in September 2000, this Shout! Factory video features the number-one hit Walk Like An Egyptian along with other '80s favorites and an acoustic performance of Manic Monday and Ride The Ride.
