French Inhaler, Side Hug, Kangaroo, JFK Healthworld
French Inhaler hail from Logan Square, Chicago. The trio play a blend of 80’s new wave synth-pop with a modern post-punk ethos. For fans of Joy Division, The Wedding Present,The Postal Service. On their debut album New Language, Chicago’s Side Hug encourages us to embrace change both in our lives and in their sound. Released on Easy Does It Records, it’s a bold reinvention of the band’s sound and spirit. The 10-track project is anchored in change — embracing it, surviving it, and emerging with clarity.New Language marks a sonic evolution for the band, moving beyond the nostalgic indie-folk of their earlier releases into the atmospheric textures of post-punk, shoegaze, and art rock. Produced by writing partners Allan Cardenas (guitar/bass/synth) and Lyd Landor (guitar/vocals), and engineered/mixed/mastered by Erik Rasmussen at Chicago’s Palisade Studios, the album is as raw as it is refined, fusing twinkling guitars, serrated basslines, and synth flourishes with emotionally resonant songwriting.“The album really focuses on this idea of change: accepting it, learning from it, and letting things go,” says Landor. “Things kind of suck right now, but they will get better. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.”Following a string of transformations, from relationship upheavals to lineup shifts and newfound sobriety, Side Hug’s New Language mirrors personal growth with musical reinvention. The band crafts a new identity that’s moody, melodic, and defiantly hopeful. Kangaroo is a band of contrasts. They’re loud and noisy, but their songs are hyper-melodic and practically beg to be sung along to. They’re brain-pummeling rock and roll, but they tackle deeper subjects in their lyrics. They’re a punk band that has a nuanced view on religion and spirituality. Chicago’s JFKhealthworld blend shoegaze haze with emo heart, creating songs that are equal parts cathartic and catchy. Known for their choreography and Heelys, they bring sincerity and energy to every set. Fresh off their show with Empire! Empire! (I Was a Lonely Estate) and Emperor X, JFKhealthworld deliver a live experience that’s as heartfelt as it is unforgettable.
Javelin, Basement Party, Sattva Dog, Weaklung
Javelin – We are a noise rock/grunge band and this will be our first time at Coles! The Basement Party merges the raw high-end spirit of skate punk with smooth sun soaked vibes of surf rock Weaklung is a loud noisy rock band who grabs you by the throat with guitars, and hits over the head like a sack of door knobs with thick bass. Drums will poke at you all night. Weaklung are from Chicago and sound like it. Also featuring Sattva Dog
Glad Rags, Cowboy Neal, Arm Candy
Glad Rags is a music collective from Chicago that blends chamber pop, psychedelic rock, new wave, electronica, and experimental jazz. Cowboy Neal is an energetic six-piece band from Chicago, IL. Bringing frenetic, diverse performances, you’ll hear music inspired by The Talking Heads, Fela Kuti, Frank Zappa, King Crimson, Pom Poko, and black midi. Cowboy Neal has performed at many venues in the city: Bookclub, Beat Kitchen, Subterranean, the Burlington, and more! Come and dance with Cowboy Neal! Arm Candy is an energizing rock group that fuses ethereal, dynamic instrumentals with insistent, anthemic vocals. Like a sugar rush, Arm Candy is something you’ll crave again and again.
May + the Ladies, Basal Jones, Night Beach, Emily Rach Beisel
May Klug is a composer based in Minneapolis, MN. Her project May + The Ladies celebrates high-femme pop spectacle, drawing from her experimental synthesizer practice, past as a frontwoman in queercore bands, and deep love of house, bubblegum bass, and electroclash. Joined by Jared Hemming and Cleo Pupillo, this is May’s heartfelt, desperate, and misguided attempt to make extremely likable music. Basal Jones – I am a rap artist who has a taste for different sounds and cultures. This EP will include everything from a medieval bop to a crash course into the City Girl lifestyle. Night Beach is a 4-piece band playing creative indie songs about love, identity, and a life in common. FFO Elliot Smith, Parquet Courts, & Yo La Tengo. Expect new chords, sweet melodies, and seismic revelations on the nature of reality (DISCLAIMER: revelations not guaranteed) Emily Rach Beisel is known for visceral performances blending extended vocal and instrumental techniques with analogue electronics. Their works is described as “heavy stuff, sounds retrieved from the deeper places… Beisel pokes around in the sonic depths and brings leviathans out to play. (A Jazz Noise)”
The Metric Ton, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Maneaters, Nightfreak
The Metric Ton – A conglomerate of sounds from Cincinnati, Ohio, embarking on a celebratory tour of our latest album, Can’t It All Be So Simple? Mr. Clit and the Pink Cigarettes are three loser nerds with a love of cinema and music. Influenced by the B52s, Pee-wee Herman, The Cramps, and girl groups of the 60s. They mix punk with camp, femininity with aggression, pretty and ugly, snot and candy. Upon formation they started touring the US, which led to multiple international tours, including Canada, China, and France. Who is Mr. Clit? They dont know, but who is Hootie? NightFreak – Blood, sweat, and beers. We play fast, loud, and frantic heavy metal tinged punk. We have a sold out LP on Big Neck Records and have toured a ton which has helped us build up a loyal following. We are known for our wild and energetic live shows! For fans of Annihilation Time, Motorhead, Gang Green also featuring Maneaters
Big Chemical, Disaster Kid, Growing Boys
Big Chemical is a twangy indie rock band formed in Ann Arbor and currently based in Chicago. They take inspiration from The Band, Dear Nora, and The Replacements to bring a complex and high energy performance. Chicago Nostalgia rock trio Disaster Kid finds reflection at the core of their music. Packed together by vivid detail and passionate melodies, their cathartic indie rock sound is lined with lyrical storytelling which puts an emphasis to the mysticism in the mundane. Growing Boys, a folk and alt band, is the brainchild of two best friends whose harmonies are as tight as their bond.
Radderall, Crisis Actress, Helicopter Leaves
Radderall is a Cleveland-based music and art project started in 2012 by longtime friends Zach Taneyhill and Jonny McAllister. What began as sharing songs on MacBook laptops grew into a layered blend of dream pop, shoegaze, glam, psych, and lo-fi R&B, paired with a strong visual side.Joined by drummer Alexander Eliopolous in 2021, the trio has released three albums, including How Can I? (2022), which marked a shift in their sound.Since 2021, Radderall expanded their studio sound to the stage with a live band of Taneyhill, McAllister, Eliopolous, and bassist Ryan Fletterick. They’ve shared stages with Nick Hakim, Donny Benet, and Welshly Arms, and played festivals like Brite Winter, Ingenuity Festival, and Cincinnati’s Rock and Roll Carnival. In 2022, they joined the Wax Mage Records roster. Chicago-based Crisis Actress crafts noise-pop that exists in perpetual evolution. At the heart of their sound are swirling keyboards, vocal stacks, loops, drums, and wires. Fresh off their full-length debut, Return of the Puppet King captures the band’s shared musical obsessions and commitment to experimentation. Recorded at the hallowed Electrical Audio last fall, each track is a testament to their collective journey- a dream realized through collaboration with countless talented friends who helped shape their vision. Helicopter Leaves is Influenced by a combination of 90s indie rock and 70s power pop. Led by Chicago born and raised singer/vocalist Anthony Vaccaro. The debut album Get Stuck In is a collection of songs with intricate stories in 2-3 minute indie pop blasts of fun.
Miss Misery, Rocco Desgres, Sponj, 8-bit crEEps
Miss Misery brings a high energy performance to accompany their bittersweet melodies and incredibly dance oriented tracks. Guaranteed to provide a larger than life experience you won’t forget. Rocco Desgres is an LGBTQ+ musician from Chicago, Illinois, exploring the lo-fi sounds of the 80s on analog synthesizers. With soaring falsetto vocals, pulsating electronic dance beats, and live analog synthesizers. Their two Studio Records, “The Very Very Best of Rocco Desgres” followed by “Rocco Desgres Now in Five Exciting New Flavors!”, are high-energy synth pop songs recorded exclusively on analog synthesizers. Their live electronic sound has classic inspirations from Depeche Mode, O.M.D., and Italo Disco, and modern inspirations such as Holy Wire, Dutch Experts, and Odor Eater. Rocco Desgres has collaborated with many artists such as Recent History, Moving Day, Translucent Industry, and Cosmic Duct Tape. They have been dazzling audiences with their high-energy performances at the best venues in Chicago, most notably, Coles Bar, The Burlington Bar, and the Fallen Log. The pulsating electronic dance music and captivating high-energy performance of Rocco Desgres always give audiences an unforgettable experience. Formed in 2023, sponj is a two-piece, indie-electronic, two-guys and a drum machine band from Chicago. Sitting somewhere between Suicide, Depeche Mode, LCD Soundsystem, and Massive Attack, they provide a transportive, retro-futuristic alternate sound universe, for everyone. 8-bit crEEps are a psych-wave quartet in a polygamist marriage with new-wave synths, fuzzed-out guitars and driving beats. The band has been experimenting with these sonic elements and conceptual storytelling since 2016. We ask that you attribute any defective material to the stresses of nepotism, capitalism and cognitive dissonance. That is to say, come on friends! Let’s party!
Body Shop, Genre is Death (NY), King Sans, AAAYYYAAA
When you hear trembling guitar, charged bass lines, siren-like synths, and throbbing drum machines, you’re listening to Body Shop. The Chicago outfit, composed of songwriters Kit Dee, Sam Crow, and Lou Larsen, is on a mission to radicalize through inoculation. To the uninitiated, they’re just a band. To those in the know, Body Shop is a manifesto. They honor their disco-punk predecessors by offering up tracks that fuse and transcend. Body Shop redefines the very meaning of its name. In a world dominated by fiscal greed and sexual repression, Body Shop fights back with biting wit and precise sonic warfare. For Body Shop, making music isn’t about building a bomb shelter, it’s about creating an immune system, one that heals the body and soul. Total liberation is the goal. “Genre Is Death (NY) destroy limitation….Their minimalist sound, presentation and performance rather than acting as a typecasting influence, provides an expansive backdrop from which their connection with each other can be fully explored…Connection isn’t a one dimensional concept to Varesi and Lee. Intricate guitar/bass lines and vocal call/response give way on many occasions to menacing wall of sound moments that evoke early . More rhythmically open passages bring about a playfulness reminiscent of performances. Genre Is Death make connection captivating. They induce audiences to mosh, make-out or watch in rapt attention as they perform their art without clenching a muscle.” Insecurity Hits King Sans – Gothic noisepunk from the shadows of Chicago:Always putting on a show to remember, as King Sans, Iz and Jake deliver chaotic energy with melancholic lulls, to create a night as dynamic as each day itself. AAAYYYAAA – MIDWEST INDUSTRIAL
Halloween Cover Show with Fleshed Out (Indie Sleaze), Tommy Bravos (George Michael), Liska (No Doubt)
Fleshed Out is a band of spectacle. Bold, brash, and packed with charisma, they bring an electrifying energy that gets crowds on their feet and keeps them there. Their genre-hopping pop-centric sound defies expectations—no two songs are alike, but every track is as catchy as it is unpredictable. Tommy Bravos is like no other. His dreamy music is a fusion of Greek influence, pop hooks and deep lyrics that make you contemplate reality. Fun to listen to, even more fun to feel to. With Briggite Bardot hair, psychic abilities, and enough broken hearts to inspire an entire discography, Chicago’s-own Liska has all the makings of a “pop girly,” the Gen-Z-originated internet term of endearment reserved for the most iconic of icons. Liska’s sound blends her resolute confidence with sheer magnetism and electrifying musical experiments that hit the mark in their addictive verses and honey-dipped choruses. Her tour-de-force artist persona illuminates her identity; her music is a direct expression of her truest truths, her soul’s exclamations, her observations of our ever-changing world.