Rick Sims and his new bandmates, Beanz Decatur and Billy Fury, share how this upcoming Riot Fest gig came about. The last Didjits gigs happened back in 2006 - so we are all in for a treat as the band gets ready to play Riot Fest on Friday 9/19 and the Empty Bottle on Sunday 9/21.

Time Stamps:

1:36 - Pavement & Didjits re-form - are The Smiths next?

3:20 - How did the Riot Fest gig come together?

5:30 - Beanz & Billy join the band.

6:20 - How did Beanz & Billy get together?

7:50 - Were Billy & Beanz familiar with the Didjits?

8:55 - How did the practices go?

12:36 - How long have you been practicing together?

13:33 - How about playing Riot Fest?

15:25 - How does it feel to be playing these songs after so long?

16:35 - How will this compare to previous Didjits shows?

18:45 - Excited to play the Empty bottle?

19:35 - Is this a one-off or will there be more Didjits?

21:02 - More Didjits music?

23:45 - Strictly Dynamite response?

27:20 - Is Brad Sims coming out for the shows?

28:20 - What's on your "To Do" list when you're in Chicago?

Matt Walker has always wanted to play the drums. It was his first instrument and he took to it immediately. He's now made a wonderful career of it - playing in an amazing list of incredibly bands. Morrissey, Smashing Pumpkins, Filter, Garbage and more. His band, Cupcakes, put out a major label record, but broke up too soon. Nowadays, Matt puts out his own work as of1000faces. We talked about Matt's career, as well as his thoughts on Chicago.

https://of1000faces.bandcamp.com/

Time stamps:

3:07: Was it always your intent to play drums, or did you learn something else and segway into drums?

4:21: Who were some of your earliest drumming influences?

6:51: Did you learn anything from your dad about listening to music critically?

10:52: At what point do you start to expand your music playing from the blues scene into more rock type acts?

15:16: What was that band that clicked for you that you played in?

17: How do you get tapped to audition for Filter/what is an audition like?

21:30: You enter The Smashing Pumpkins at a super tumultuous time, what is that tumult like?

28:24: How quickly did you have to learn The Pumpkins songs before going on tour with them?

35:15: What led to you leaving The Pumpkins?

39:28: Tell us more about Cupcakes

43: Did you take more ownership because this was your band?

44:19: How do you get hooked into the Morrissey orbit?

49:13: Is it stressful to be in a band with Morrissey?

51: What is it like going in the studio with Morrissey?

53: Thick or thin crust pizza fan?

55:05: Favorite venue to see a show and favorite venue to play a show?

56: What makes Chicago music scene unique?

58: How did the of1000faces project come to be?

59:48: What is your go to cheap drink?

61:20: Anything you'd like to plug on the way on out of here?

Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot have been writing about Chicago and music for a long time. Greg was the rock music critic at the Chicago Tribune from 1990 to 2020. Jim spent 15 years as the music critic at the Chicago Sun Times. Both have written several great books - Greg's published books include Wilco: Learning How to Die, I'll Take You There Mavis Staples and Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music. Jim's titles include Let It Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs, Staring at Sound: The True Story of Oklahoma's Fabulous Flaming Lips and Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly. But they may be best known for the long-running podcast Sound Opinions which celebrated its 1,000th episode in 2025.

We loved getting the chance to talk shop with Jim & Greg about what it has been like to cover music for so long, how things have evolved over the years and what they like (and dislike) about Chicago. As a disclaimer - Jim's views on Chicago pizza are his alone and do not reflect the opinions of No Wristbands (and he's clearly wrong!).

https://www.gregkot.com/

https://jimdero.com/

Time stamps:

3: What's the biggest misconception people have about being music journalists?

10: What are some of your greatest music discovery moments you've experienced in Chicago?

14:30: What has changed throughout your time as being a music journalist?

17:45: With the rise of online music publications, did that have any impact on how you wrote and/or talked about music?

28: People should get paid to be music journalists.

32: Who are some bands/artists from Chicago that you felt like never hit as big as they should have?

35:25: What makes Chicago such a good and unique music scene?

45: What keeps you going with Sound Opinions?

48:44: Thick or thin crust pizza fans?

51:45: What are some of your favorite venues to see shows at in Chicago?

Hell Yeah, we got Brendan Kelly from The Lawrence Arms on the show!! Chicago Punk Legend! We go deep into the history with one of Mark's all-time favorites. Slapstick, The Broadways, The Falcon, the Wandering Birds, The Lawrence Arms, Nihilist Arby's and so much more. We went a little long with this one because it's so fucking good. Enjoy it!

Time Stamps:

3:30: How you doing Brendan?

5:30: Despot talk!

10:19: What are some of your earliest music memories?

13:30: Cool babysitter who was on SST

17: Growing into liking punk rock via Reckless Records

19: Gladhands and the start of Slapstick

22: Is it weird for you for people to deify Slapstick, something you did so long ago?

25:30: Cap'n Jazz/Slapstick crossover event

27:52: You go from Slapstick to The Broadways

30: Did your experience in The Broadways inform your time in The Lawrence Arms?

33:45: How did you get your first Lawrence Arms album out on Asian Man Records?

37:40: When I think of The Lawrence Arms, I think of The Fireside

43:25: How long did it take to fill the void of The Fireside closing?

45:23: Did any musicians take you under their wing as you were coming up?

51:13: Has the process of how you create music changed over the years?

53: When you write do you know what project it is for as you are writing?

57: You were just on a song with Sincere Engineer. How do you try to help cultivate the next wave of Chicago musicians?

64:06: You've seen a lot of Chicago bands, are there bands that you feel didn't get their due?

66:18: What do you think has changed between when The Lawrence Arms were starting out and today?

73:18: Thick or thin crust pizza fan?

77: What makes the Chicago music scene unique?

83:30: What other cities are big Lawrence Arms cities?

86: What is your go-to cheap drink? Mark's L&L story

93:30: Are you working on anything right now?

Stacey & Erik join us to talk over their plans for the fourth edition of fForest Fest in Morris, IL. They filled us in on the entire musical lineup, the move to two stages in 2025 and all the other great things to do in Goold Park - food trucks, cool vendor market and lots of green space to play. Bring the whole family out for a wonderful day of music and fun! Saturday, June 7th - gates open at noon. $10 cash at the gate (kids 5 and under are free).

https://fforestfest.com/

Time stamps:

1:30: How did fforest fest 3 go?

5:35: fforest fest is a true labor of love. how many stages do we have this year?

7:12: Let's talk about our bands

9:45: We are getting Pet Needs!

16:21: Make sure you remember your ID - story time!

23: Make sure you buy merch!

27:33: Sponsors to thank

31:21: What's your favorite thing about running fforest fest?

33:30: Inside tip - Liam Kyle Cahill and Kasey Christensen are playing a bar in town the day after fforest fest

Mario Cannamela (vocals & guitars) joins us to talk about his Chicago-based band Bottom Bracket. Originally formed in Springfield, IL, the band released their first EP Dreamland in 2017. Near the end of 2021, Mario said "fuck it" and moved to Chicago. Along with Tim Recio (bass/vocals) and Rob Diaz (drums), the band released their fantastic second LP, I'm So Afraid Of Where on Count Your Lucky Stars Records in November of 2024. We talked with Mario about all of that, plus so much more - including his thoughts about our wonderful city of Chicago.

Time stamps:

2:23: How are you doing today Mario?

5: When did you get your first guitar?

9:30: Fuck it! Let's move to Chicago! How did you meet Rob and Tim?

12:25: Tapping is in a lot of your songs, how do you utilize it?

14:51: Did you feel like you were making the leap when recording I Am So Afraid of Where?

17:30: How do you think Chicago has influenced the band?

20:44: Do you feel like you belong in Chicago?

22:11: What is your creative process like?

23:41: Do you write with a theme in mind?

26:35: How did the everything come together with the record and label?

28:43: Do you have a song on the record you are most proud of?'

32: What do the next six months look like for the band?

33: Who were some of your gateway bands in the emo universe?

39: How did the Subt show come together?

41:30: The bike is a significant thing for the band, and you like riding, where do you like to ride in Chicago?

43:20: Thin crust or deep dish pizza fan?

45:19: Favorite venue to play/see shows at?

47: What makes Chicago a unique music scene?

50: How has the response to the new album been?

51: What have you been listening to lately?

52:45: What is your go to cheap drink?

54:30: Anything to plug on the way on out of here?

Born in Memphis is 1974, Cory Branan has been releasing albums since The Hell You Say in 2002. He released three great records on Chicago's Bloodshot Records - Mutt, The No-Hit Wonder and Adios) and his most recent LP (his 6th overall) is the excellent When I Go I Ghost in 2022. Many of his musician friends - Jason Isabel, Brian Fallon, Laura Jane Grace, Craig Finn, Jody Stephens, Ben Nichols, Sadler Baden & more - have appeared on his records. We talked with him about all of that, about his songwriting process, his Chicago experiences and his upcoming tour with his buddy Chuck Pagan. Enjoy!

Time Stamps:

2: Was it hard for you to have Rollingstone rewrite your history naming you a best new artist over 10 years into your career?

7:25: How did you find John Prine? What stands out to you about him?

13:50: When listening to a great songwriter, are you able to enjoy it, or are you analyzing it?

17:45: What is your creative process like now?

20:30: How does your OCD impact your writing?

24: How do you choose who you work with?

28:30: Being from Memphis, is it surreal to play with Lucero and Jody Stephens?

53:15: Did Bloodshot Records end up paying you?

53:45: Deep dish or thin crust?

55:30: Favorite venue to play in Chicago?

58:40: What makes Chicago a unique music city?

61:30: What is your go to cheap drinks?

62:23: Anything you'd like to plug on the way on out of here?

Matt Spiegel is a music guy. His bands have included Brother Brother (a 10-piece funk band with his brother Jon), Tributosaurus and Sonic45 (with Len Kasper) and has recorded a 3-song 7" with Steve Albini. He was the producer for Sound Opinions with Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis. He's also a huge baseball fan and in his spare time he works as a sports radio talk show host at 670 The Score. We talked with Matt about his love of music and Chicag and more.

Time Stamps:

3:20: Where'd you grow up?

7: Working in a record store and turning people on to Pavement

10: What was the first rock band you played in that made you want to make it your career?

13:30: Any chance of Brother Brother playing together again?

17:20: When did you decide that music wasn't going to be your long term career?

19: Tales from Sound Opinions

24: How did you get involved with Sound Opinions?

26:45: How did Tributosaurus come together?

33:04: How much time is there between the idea being formed and when you perform that band's music?

37:24: Is there a band you want to do that you haven't done yet?

40:40: Do you have imposter syndrome with being a musician while doing radio work?

43:30: Do you enjoy something more when it is an avocation versus a vocation?

45: Is there a secret text chain amongst Chicago sportscasters about their music projects?

48:13: Why are there so many sports people in Chicago who love music?

51:28: What makes Chicago a unique music scene?

62:15: What's your favorite place to play in Chicago, and where's your favorite place to see a show?

65:51: Thin crust or deep dish?

69: What have you been listening to lately?

76:35: Your go to cheap drink?

79: What would you like to plug on the way on out of here?