The Tomorrow Never Knows festival was bigger than ever this year. It’s become the first major indie-rock event of the year in Chicago, expanding to three venues: Schubas, Lincoln Hall and now Metro. As it happened, though, the three shows I saw were all at Lincoln Hall. I took photos for the Chicago Reader’s Photo Pit page Jan. 14, 15 and 16.
The best bands I saw were Screaming Females (led by the outlandishly rocking guitar playing of Marissa Paternoster) and the always-lively Handsome Furs (who had a few new songs on their set list). Little Dragon delivered some fun, too, although the dance beat got to be a little monotonous as the show went on. “Super group” Mister Heavenly showed some potential with its songs, but the set felt rather awkward at times. Work on the stage banter, guys. I enjoyed the scrappy sound of the Cloud Nothings. Billygoat screened its own marvelous animated films during a set of mesmerizing instrumental music.
