Welcome to doubletimefeel.com. For those of you expecting petecroke.com, fear not! It's still me, I just decided to change the name of this blog and give the site a bit more focus. You can access this site from doubletimefeel.com, doubletimefeel.org, and petecroke.com... whatever suits your fancy.

This redesign was, to put it mildly, a royal pain in the ass. 3 times over the past few weeks, I managed to overwrite files, delete crucial directories, and nitpick nitpick nitpick over how the site looks. That being said, I am also extremely excited to have Double Time Feel up and ready. I hope to be a voice in documenting the amazing music that either orginates in or passes through Chicago.

Double Time Feel is a constant work in process, so new features and tweaks are soon to come. If I labored over this launch any longer, chances are it may never have seen the light of day.

Thanks for being patient and thanks for reading. Tomorrow: the first show review!

I would make few exceptions for not covering a Chicago band as my first show review. It just so happens that one of these exceptions rolled into town last weekend for a show at the Empty Bottle. Antelope is from Washington D.C. and is currently at the tail end of a 5 week tour spanning the US and Eastern Canada. They just released their debut full length in March on Dischord Records, entitled 'Reflector'.

Most of the songs played that night were off the new record, and they also performed some of my favorites from previous EP's released over the years. When describing Antelope to friends, I tend to throw around the term 'anti-song'. Most revolve around simple drumbeats, catchy basslines, and meandering guitar parts that repeat themselves from the beginning to end, sometimes incorporating minor variations. The bass and drum interplay of Bee Elvy and Mike Andre (who split time on both instruments) are tightly focused, catchy riffs which allow Justin Moyer room to play guitar parts that weave in and out of the rhythm section.

As judged by the response from those in attendance, Antelope had everyone's undivided attention. The set took on a meditative-like atmosphere, and the songs flowed seamlessly from one to the next. In the week since the show, I still catch myself humming bass/drum parts to myself and wondering where they came from, and quickly determine the source to be Antelope song.

Here is Antelope performing the title track off of their new record:

The most recent addition to the Thick Records family, The Brokedowns, will be out at Subterranean tonight, spinning tracks from their upcoming May release, entitled New Brains For Everyone. Also joining them are label-mates and Chicago punk staples The Arrivals who will be previewing new tracks from their upcoming release on Recess Records.

The Brokedowns turned a lot of heads with their debut LP, These Colors Don't Run! (The Musical), and Double Time Feel is anxiously awaiting this new record. They went back into the studio again with engineer Nick Kraska at Electrical Audio and RecStudios, so rest assured that The Brokedowns will be back with another raucous, ear splitting release.

Don't take my word for it, though, head to Subterranean tonight from 9pm-2am and listen for yourself. You'll be hearing a lot from The Brokedowns in years to come, so you might as well get on the bandwagon early.