September 29th at The Radon Lounge: David Dondero, Liz Fritz, MJT, The Woodland Brush

Posted on September 17, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Sure, we’ve already announced that we will be hosting a free show at Black Sheep on this night but that doesn’t mean we can’t tell you about the other options you have for live music in this town. On Friday, September 29th The Radon Lounge will be hosting their next show featuring some real nice *chill* music and art. This one will feature national touring act David Dondero, playing some folk music. Check out some of David’s music on the player below. The Radon also has local musician Liz Fritz lined up for this one. Then “MJT” which is an indie-rock duo from Lincoln, Illinois believe it or not. The Radon Lounge continues to bring the art to the show space this time by featuring the work of Emily Barnett of The Woodland Brush.

This show will start at 7:00 pm over at The Radon Lounge and admission is $5. (Sorry, the one at Black Sheep starts at the same time). If you don’t know where The Radon Lounge is, you can inquire on their website. Check out a facebook event for this show right here. Also be sure to check out our Springfield shows page, which isn’t at all up to date right now.

September 27th at Black Sheep: Clothing Swap + Reggae DJ

Posted on September 16, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

After our last roundtable meeting earlier this month bringing up many that had ideas and suggestions as far as what they want to see or help book at our space, we are taking some things on different from the regular ol’ show. On Wednesday, September 27th we will be holding a clothing swap inside of Black Sheep. This will be paired up with a DJ night of sorts by Jim Whitehead of Animals With Human Names who will be playing all of his favorite reggae cuts off of vinyl. Here’s an explanation of the clothing swap from a facebook event:

Beyond being economical, eco-friendly, and an excuse to clean out your closet, a swap party is a great time to make new friends and find new threads! Please bring clean goods in gently used condition this includes clothes, shoes, books, bags and jewelry. Guests should also come with an extra tote bag for carting home their finds.

Admission for this is $5 – bring five bucks and whatever stuff you would like to submit to the swamp, and then you can just go inside and take whatever you like! Pretty cool. This is happening that night from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Check out a facebook event right here. Also check our shows page for all of the events coming up inside Black Sheep this fall.

NPR Illinois: “A Glimpse Into The Underground” Art Exhibition, Opening September 26th

Posted on September 16, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Rachel Otwell and NPR Illinois / WUIS continue their streak of being awesome and incredibly supportive of everything on in Southtown and Springfield’s punk scene by this time organizing a new art exhibition to run the entire month of October called “A Glimpse Into The Undeground.” The exhibition features works of 3 artists – Brian Galecki (Black Sheep, Dumb Records), Kamila Glowacki (Kowabunga! Kid, Nectar, etc.) and Veronica Mullen (Ghoul Jr., Dumb Fest official photographer).

The opening for this exhibition will be taking place on Tuesday, September 26th at the WUIS building at One University Plaza, WUIS-130, Springfield, Illinois 62703 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. After that the gallery will still be up and open to the public throughout the entire month of October and up through November 3rd. Check out a facebook event for this right here.

Black Sheep 12 Year Anniversary Show Tonight

Posted on September 16, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

12YEARSHOW_web

Wow, can you believe it!? On this very date in Springfield twelve years ago we hosted our very first ever show at Black Sheep in 2005. You can find that old flier and lineup on our Black Sheep history page along with a few other notable dates and events that have occurred along the way. Tonight is our big celebration of that- with four bands all from here in town of different genres, two of which are playing CD release shows. Stick People from Taylorville, Illinois is one of those bands. They will be releasing their five-track CD, Lips. Bottom Bracket is the other one, the punk/emo/indie band that has been making a splash as of late. Stream their new EP below officially being released tonight. Other than that we have solo acoustic performer Kate Ridge on board. Also the rowdy punk band Prowess opening things up.

The show tonight will start at 7:00 pm and admission is $5, going to keep Black Sheep going. Check out a facebook event for the show right here. Also be sure to check out our shows page for a look at what else is coming up at Black Sheep this fall.

Bottom Bracket: “Dreamland”

Posted on September 15, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

21200612_172153109999827_8085372847511252169_o

Even though the official release is not until tomorrow, Springfield band Bottom Bracket couldn’t hold their horses any longer and decided to let their hot new EP slip onto the internet today in its entirety. You can stream that five track Dreamland EP on the player below. This release was recorded in our brand new recording studio Southtown Sound right next to Black Sheep. Head on over to the Bottom Bracket bandcamp page where you can purchase the digital download or pre-order the cassette of the album.

Bottom Bracket of course will be playing tomorrow at the Black Sheep 12 Year Anniversary Show. It will also be a release show for Stick People with their new CD, Lips.

NPR Illinois: Black Sheep Update & Show Announcements

Posted on September 15, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Recently Rachel Otwell of NPR Illinois / WUIS sat down with Black Sheep owner Clare Frachey to discuss how things have been going for us since our call for help last month as well as some big events that we have coming up this fall. You can listen to that six minute long clip on the WUIS site right here. From the article:

While the long term future is unclear, it’s bright for now. Frachey says a serious concern is interest will peak over the next few months but then drop off again. “Our purpose in reaching out to the community was really to create long term results where people buy in, they have ideas, they contribute – and it’s something they want to invest in,” she says.

Tomorrow of course is the Black Sheep 12 Year Anniversary Show taking place at Black Sheep at 7:00 pm. It will also be a special event because at the end of the show names will be drawn for our annual Black Sheep Band Lotto.

Today on Black Sheep Radio: Stick People

Posted on September 15, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Today is Friday, so that means there is another episode of The Black Sheep Radio on the airwaves from 4:00 – 6:00 pm. Today our special guests on the show are the band Stick People. Stick People will be playing the release show for their new CD Lips tomorrow at the Black Sheep 12 Year Anniversary Show. We will be talking to them and playing at least one track off of that release.

There are no shows going on at Black Sheep tonight, but there is a poetry open mic going on at William Vans downtown from 5:30 to 7:00 pm and also a show happening later at The Barrel Head!

You can tune in to the Black Sheep Radio Show from 4:00 to 6:00 pm on 88.3 WQNA fm. Also stream it online at the same time at WQNA.net. For a list of a few of our downloadable episodes of the past, head over to our radio page.

Illinois Times: Best of Springfield 2017 Finalist Voting

Posted on September 14, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Today The Illinois Times have released their official ballot for this year’s 2017 Best of Springfield poll. The finalists were generated from nominees that were chosen from nominee voting that was open to the public a few weeks prior to this. You can vote for your favorite bands, musicians, artists, places, people, and events on the ballot. Find the voting for that online right here. Here are a few notable finalists that you can vote for!

The Black Sheep for Best Small Live Music Venue
The Black Sheep for Best Open Mic
Dumb Fest for Best Music Festival

We support all bands and people doing anything in this whole city and don’t like choosing favorite bands – but some of you might want to check out categories of “Best Hip Hop Performer”, “Best Original Music Band” or “Best Punk Band” to see a few names that regularly play Black Sheep.

The results for the Best Of’s will be released in The Illinois Times on Thursday, October 26th. We will once again launch our Best of Springfield Music poll on our site at the very end of the year.

The Buzz: “Bottom Bracket Goes Behind The Scenes Of Their New EP”

Posted on September 14, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Springfield twinkly twankle emo band Bottom Bracket were recently featured in Champaign-Urbana online publication Read Buzz. From the article:

Fresh from the Springfield punk scene, Bottom Bracket boasts a complex sound that falls into the crossover of emo and math rock subgenre. Comprised of Mario Cannamela, Carter Bibb and B.J. Pearce, Bottom Bracket will be self-releasing their first EP, “Dreamland,” on Sept. 16.

As if self-releasing their first record isn’t already impressive, Bottom Bracket’s members are multi-talented with strong ties to Springfield’s very own DIY scene — recording and releasing their first EP in true DIY fashion. Buzz caught up with Cannamela, Bibb and Pearce the night before their show in Champaign at Blips and Chitz to talk about “Dreamland.”

Check out that full article on readbuzz.com right here. Of course Bottom Bracket will be playing their release show for their new EP Dreamland at The Black Sheep 12 Year Anniversary show coming up this Saturday which will be made available online after that. Stick People will also be releasing their CD Lips, both of which were recorded right here at Southtown Sound. You can already listen to one of the Bottom Bracket tracks- “No Pressure” via New Noise Magazine right here.

Eric Marvel: “What A Disappointment” EP

Posted on September 12, 2017 by blacksheepspringfield

Today we bring you some more new Springfield music yet again, this time from solo electronic pop project Eric Marvel. Last week Eric released a new 7-song EP called What A Disappointment. Is this release truly a disappointment? Or is it a blessing? How about you have a listen on the player below so you can decide? Head over to Eric Marvel’s bandcamp page where you can pay to download the EP or check out more of Eric’s music.

Eric Marvel will be performing on Saturday, September 23rd at The Pharmacy along with boon, Jeff Williams, and Timothy Donavan Russell.