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 Satvva Dog – Chicago Psych Punk Noise 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.
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)”
Triplets of Gonzo, Zakary Extract, Beastii
Triplets of Gonzo began as a street performing act in Mexico, where Selinger Gonzo and Jess Northup first developed their guitar and vocal chemistry. After relocating to Chicago, they teamed up with drummer Todd Waters and pushed their sound into something more mature and expansive, a melding of early-2000s Chicago underground, 70s prog sprawl, and Latin-leaning rhythmic patterns. Their new EP Gift (recorded with Mike Lust) digs into that mix with intricate guitars, massive synth bass, razor-tight drums, and a powerful vocal presence that cuts through the chaos. Onstage, the compositions intensify as the band cranks up the energy, balancing a tight, dialed-in sound with Selinger’s magnetic stage presence. Zakary Extract is a singer-songwriter from Chicago Illinois making intricate, hand-crafted art rock. On his new full length record “Elsewheres,” Extract trades biting electric guitars for lush, ephemeral psychedelia. Beastii – Surfy moody grungy groovy garage pop
HAUS OF *** PRESENTS: THE GREATEST SH*W ON EARTH
HAUS OF *** PRESENTS: THE GREATEST SH*W ON EARTH TIX $13 ADV/$15 DOS SEND IN THE CLOWNS HAUS OF *** is b*ck for THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH—- your money back if you disagree!* *jk it’s 13 dollars no refunds. Come to Cole’s THIS JANUARY 10th for LIONS, TIGERS, BEARS, TWINKS, DRAG QUEENS, AND MORE!!!! starring your resident cast: KEROSENE TRUE ROMANCE SPINE RICKY RUFF DEMME ONYX DELTA BADHAND DEAR JAMIE And TIP KITTEN GEORGIA RISING
.cordless, Try a Dull Knife, 2g
.cordless – new chicago loud and moody Try a Dull Knife – Malort powered emotional rock, guitars and screaming 2g – Loud, fuzzy, heavy punk music
Shinespark, Future Nest, Mary!Mary!, sulffffffur
shinespark is the musical project of Chicago based producer zoey eliza. Her tracks blend emotive melodies with textural beats and mellow to otherworldly electronic sounds. With influences ranging from minimal ambient, idm beats and breaks to pop punk riffs, y2k aesthetics and nature, shinespark aims to create saturated emotional spaces to dream of a better world to. ⋆˚✿˖°shinespark’s recently released album ‘zoey.eliza_dream_realm’ is a collection of uplifting and dreamy all-instrumental beats. Future Nest blends Industrial Goth and Digital Hardcore to create a a show that is both dynamic and immersive. The action of the songs is heightened by her improvised movement and vocal delivery, which connect the audience directly to the performance. Skin on metal on wire on blood – flirt with that sacred pull and let desire walk you on its leash. MaryMary! is a noisepop musician who sings about love and fear and self respect. She loves analog synths and digital samplers, both of which can be heard on her EP, entitled MY STUPID HEART LIKE A SNOWGLOBE FULL OF BLOOD. Her music and other endeavors can be found at linktr.ee/marymarychic. Mary lives in Chicago with her friends. sulffffffur is serious contemporary music.
Nude Franklin, Smooth Rogers, Oux
Nude Franklin is new Chicago-based alternative rock band led by songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Dylan Barnett. Drawing inspiration from eclectic, genre-bending artists like Talking Heads, Pink Floyd, Prince, St. Vincent, and King Krule, Nude Franklin blends new wave, funk, and psychedelic rock in their incendiary live performances. Expect raucous guitar solos, bewildering lyrics, 80’s inflected synth pop, and funky drums. The band plans to release their debut EP January 22nd, 2026. “oux “/ɒ/” is an alt-pop band from chicago. while you could call their music “experimental pop”, that hardly does justice to the profusion of genres and ideas they weave into their songs. oux’s debut full-length, “necronym” balances prickly idiosyncrasies with sleek earworms, and unraveling its layers is part of the fun. Smooth Rogers is the brainchild of Chicago-based musician, Zac Bron. Combining elements of psychedelic pop, dreamy alt-rock, and funk, Smooth Rogers takes you on a journey through lush soundscapes and danceable grooves.
La Croix Mystique, Alpine Subs, Gatsbe
La Croix Mystique combines garage rock stylings à la Guided By Voices and Pavement with driving motorik beat and psych rock intuition of Can and Neu! Alpine Subs – Chicago rock ‘n’ roll for fans of garage, jangle and psychedelia. Gatsbe is a three-piece rock and roll band from Chicago. They blend the genres of rock, punk, and pop, all while bringing the energy of a house show. “These guys are awesome!” says lots of people.
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.