Today we have a show announcement for a show happening in about a month on Friday, February 20th. It’s going to be a good one! For this show we have the shoegaze project from Chicago called Military Police. You can check outsome of their music streaming below. Military Police will be coming down with Broken Prayer– a band who played here last for Dumb Fest 2 on the ramp of Skank Skates! Then we have a couple of local acts. This will be the next show for SAP, who just released their cassette Maiden, Mother, Crone out on Ooey Gooey Tapes. Opening things up is a very first live show for a Springfield project called Night/Hex, which has been strictly a recorded project by members of War Magic for a little while. Come see what Night/Hex is like live.

This show will begin at 7:00 pm and admission will be $5. Be on the lookout for a facebook event soon. In the meantime check out our shows page for a look at what else is coming up at Black Sheep.

With announcements for Dumb Fest 3 (is it happening this year?) just around the corner, we want to also highlight some notable DIY music festivals happening in other parts of Central Illinois coming up this year. This one is being called “What-The-Heck-Fest” and it is happening in Galesburg, Illinois (about two hours away from Springfield). There are plenty of bands from Central Illinois playing, including Springfield’s own Bad Banshee. Check out the full lineup below:

DAY ONE: (@ Venue TBA [Probably Glory Days])
Emily Prewitt
Flesh & Phantoms
The Raw Boys
(TBA)
Jacob Kenney
Comfort
Memorial For A Dove
Oceanographers
Biggie STRDST

DAY TWO: (@ Glory Days Barber Shop in Galesburg)
Qiana Garmon
PM Buys (Peter Buys)
Werepire Day
Bad Banshee
Gas Up Yr Hearse‼ (blono ballerinacore)
The Gnar Wave Rangers (Chicago silly boyz)

You can find a facebook event for What-The-Heck-Fest and stay updated on venue and band additions right here. The festival is happening two days during Friday, March 20th and Saturday, March 21st. We also plan on keeping you updated on all of the other DIY and punk festivals happening around Central Illinois this year.

Earlier we told you that Springfield emotional hardcore band Our Lady are hitting the road with No Sleep Records band Aviator at the end of the month. Today we have the info for Our Lady’s tour kickoff for that show, which is happening right here at Black Sheep on Monday, January 26th! Our Lady will be playing this show, as well as Springfield acoustic songwriter “Paqui.” Other than that, we also have Chamapaign/Urbana post rock band Kreylbone returning to Black Sheep- they were just here last month for the Loses The Mighty EP release show. To top off this great show we have Looming.

This show will start at 7:00 pm and admission is $5. Find a facebook event for the show right here. Also be sure to check out our shows page for a good look at what else is coming up in 2015.

The new year is going to start of with a bang here in Southtown as we kick 2015 off tonight with a double-header of a show featuring four bands at Black Sheep and then a two-band aftershow at South Town Studio. Things are sure to get wild. The show at Black Sheep features the band Moonassi coming from Texas. You can stream their music on the player at the very bottom of this post. Also coming from Austin, Texas is the group Family Hearse. They play experimental music. Before them is the one Springfield band out of the bunch and that is the new screamo project called Knives. We also have an appearance from Bloomington Illinois screamo project Gas Up Yr Hearse!.

Round two of tonight is happening upstairs at South Town Studio, right after the first four bands are done playing inside of Black Sheep. This show will feature two Philadelphia female-fronted hardcore bands, and those are Latex and Blank Spell. Everyone and anyone is welcome to join.

The show tonight starts at 7:00 pm and admission for the whole shebang is $5. You can find a facebook event for it all right here. Also be sure to check out our shows page for a good look at what else is in store for 2015.

It’s a brand new week at Springfield record store Dumb Records and there are plenty of new arrivals and pre-stocks in for all of you doing some last minute Christmas shopping. Dumb Records is located at 1107 South Grand East for those of you not familiar. Since Christmas is here this week, the store is also going to have limited hours. Let’s see when the shop is going to be open this week:

Tuesday (today): 3:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Wednesday: (closed)
Thursday: (closed)
Friday: (closed)
Saturday: 10:00 am – 9:00 pm
Sunday: 3:00 pm – 8:00 pm

New LPs
Big Crux – Ponchito
Neutral Milk Hotel – On Avery Island
Television – Marquee Moon

Used LPs
B.J. Thomas – Reunion
Barry McGuire – Have You Heard
Bertie Higgins – Just Another Day In Paradise
Bob Dylan – Slow Train Coming
Don Francisco – Forgiven
Don Francisco – Brother Of The Son
Engelbert Humperdinck – The Last Waltz
Honeytree – The Way I Feel
Honeytree – In Concert Me And My Old Guitar
The Imperials – Sail On
Jamie Owens-Collins – Lone Eyes
Jamie Owens – Laughter In Your Soul
Jim Croce – I Got A Name
Joe Wayman – Anything Can Happen
Larry Norman – In Another Land
Larry Norman – Bootleg
Larry Norman – Only Visiting This Planet
Larry Norman – Upon This Rock
The Manhattan Transfer – The Manhattan Transfer
Michael Jackson – Thriller
Randy Stonehill – Welcome To Paradise
Various – How The West Was One
Various – Firewind

7”s
American Hate – Dead Squeeze
Big Zit – Electric Zit
Ooze – S/T EP

Zines
Cretins Of Distortion – Issue 4

Cassettes
Bad Blood – Tape
Zap – Demo Tape

Did you hear about this great show happening on Saturday, January 17th featuring an awesome five-band lineup? It is happening. This show will feature plenty of Springfield, St. Louis, and Chicago. On this show we have SAP– the indie spook rock three-piece band that are currently working on recording material. Then we have the saxophone-charged punk band Sick Sad World coming from Chicago. You can stream their music below. Also coming from Chicago is a newer indie post-punk band called Person. Person features members of some older Champaign bands Laughboy and Midstress. Next on the lineup is a two-piece band called The Funs coming from St. Louis. They are good. Starting things off is a brand new Springfield hardcore band called WARRS. We have been told that it features members of Loses The Mighty and Soap Scum.

This show will start at 7:00 pm and admission is $5. Check out a facebook event for the show right here. And be sure to check out our shows page where you can find everything coming up at Black Sheep in 2015.

Tonight is a magical night because we are hosting the annual Black Sheep Holiday Show! Bring your hot chocolate, eggnog, and holiday cheer. This show will be the last ever performance by Springfield feel good rock group Big Storm. Big Storm features Brandon Carnes of Looming and South Town Studio on guitar and vocals. They just released a final four song EP earlier this week which you can stream below. Also on this show and coming from Chicago is the experimental-jazz group called Lamp. You are all in for a treat. We also have the indie rock duo, Coed Pageant coming from Champaign for this show. Opening things up are the emo rock three-piece power group Wir Können.

The show tonight starts at 7:00 pm and admission is $5. You can check out a facebook event for the show right here. Also be sure to check out our shows page for a look at everything else coming up at Black Sheep.

It looks like we have captured some rare footage of the birth of a brand new Springfield punk band called Diaper Rash from this past weekend. We have a video of the band’s first ever performance at Black Sheep to share with you all today. This video starts out with a performance by the legendary Nighthawk, and then strange things begin to happen. You’ll have to see what happens next.

Diaper Rash will be playing in Springfield next at Donnie’s Homespun on Friday, December 26th. The band also just released a cassette containing their first three demos, which you can stream right here. Check out the Diaper Rash video below:

Today is a very special on the Black Sheep Radio Show because it is the show’s 100th episode. The Black Sheep Radio Show has been going strong every Friday for nearly two years now. The show has grown a lot since then, and is currently recorded right at Southtown’s very own South Town Studio by Brandon Carnes. Today on the Black Sheep Radio Show we have an all-star lineup of guests including Kevin Bradford (owner of Black Sheep), Mike Tirehaus (King Worm), Brian Galecki (Teen Freak), and Brandon Carnes (everything).

You can listen to the Black Sheep Radio show on 88.3 WQNA fm from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm today. You can also stream the show live online at wqna.org during that same time. Don’t forget to check out our radio page if there are episodes that you may have missed that you want to go back and download.

It looks like the Springfield electronic/ambient project called Night/Hex has released a couple of new songs this month. Those songs are titled “11/6” and “11/15” and we just happen to have both of them streaming below. You can also head over to the Night/Hex bandcamp page where you can find the songs for an at-your-price download as well as all of the band’s past material. Night/Hex features members of the dream-folk band War Magic.

There are no current plans for any Night/Hex live shows, and War Magic does not have anything currently lined up.