Marty Casey and Lovehammers

This event is the largest two-day street fair in the Midwest. The event spans six city blocks and features three music stages. Many of the artists will be top-name, national headliners, giving market days a reputation for some of the best live music in Chicago. With their roots in Chicago and an extremely loyal fan base, it is no surprise that Marty Casey and Lovehammers are one of the headliners for this exceptional event.

(BACKGROUND) When Marty Casey was named runner-up on the hit television show Rock Star: INXS, it only meant he wasn't going to be a member of INXS; there was no doubt he was already a rock star. Of course, anyone who has seen Casey and his band Lovehammers perform over the last five years (or heard any of their four self-released albums) already knew that. INXS knew it as well, and they invited Casey and Lovehammers to join them on their upcoming tour.

The group (lead vocalist Casey, guitarist Billy Sawilchik, bassist Dino Kourelis and his brother, drummer Bobby Kourelis) approached its self-titled Epic/Burnett Records debut with the confidence of a band used to winning over audiences. After all, their albums have sold more than 25,000 copies without a label or distributor, and their sweaty, electrifying performances have made them one of the Windy City's most popular live bands. They recently amassed a few million new fans thanks to Casey's remarkable run on Rock Star. Over the course of the hit series, Casey's intense and infectious performances made him a fan favorite and his hook-laden single, "Trees," was a No. 1 download on MSN.com. That amplifies a resume that includes gigs opening for such diverse artists as Nickelback, Jerry Cantrell, Interpol, Puddle of Mudd, and most recently, Cake and Gomez on a 21-city tour. In 2004, their DVD Live/Raw debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard DVD chart.

"We always wanted to have our shot, to step up and do it on a larger scale," says Bobby Kourelis." Adds Dino: "We always believed the songs were there. It was just a matter of getting them heard."

The material is certainly there. The Lovehammers write songs that grab you with a loud crunchy guitar riff, surging melodies and Casey's powerful and emotive voice. With the exception of "Casualty," which was written after "Rock Star: INXS" wrapped, the album was drawn from the Lovehammers existing repertoire. While this is their major label debut, Marty calls it "OUR greatest hits record." The roster of producers who have lined up to work with the Lovehammers is proof that they're ready for their close up. "Straight As An Arrow" was recorded by Chicago legend Steve Albini (Nirvana), with Marty Frederickson (Aerosmith, Mick Jagger) and Johnny K (Staind, Disturbed) manning the mixing board on additional tracks.

And of course, the album features "Trees," the undeniably infectious Marty introduced on "Rock Star," and host/ex-Jane's Addiction/Red Hot Chili Pepper guitarist Dave Navarro predicted would be a hit.

Pulling together so many disparate recordings into a coherent album might have intimidated lesser bands, but for Marty Casey and Lovehammers it only makes the end result more fulfilling. "A lot of today's records sound the same-perfect tone, same guitar sound," says Casey. "But on some great old-school records-the Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers is one example, every song had a different sound. They'd use a different drum kit, they used different instrumentation." The Lovehammers record, he says is a "total collage of different sounds, different recording techniques. For me, it makes for a really cool record."

Casey says the band wanted to "release something really exciting and raw, something that shows who we are-and we're a rock band without question." The album has the gutsy sound that first got the Lovehammers interested in music. "I want kids in high school to write the name of our band on their notebooks," he adds.

To gain that kind of loyalty takes hard work, and the Lovehammers are ready. For this self-described "working class Chicago band," it's second nature.

"Our background is going to help us in the long run," says Dino. Casey and the Kourelis brothers have known each other since they were kids playing t-ball in the southwest Chicago suburb of Hickory Hills. They started playing together in junior high and went through a number of guitarists over the years. The lineup was solidified with the addition of Billy Sawilchuk in 2002. In addition to being band mates, they're also roommates. The quartet lived in a couple of houses in the Chicago area that had nothing in common, Bobby says, except they were all called the "Hammerhouse" and, after the band left, they were all demolished. "We had nothing to do with that," Casey adds with a laugh, although each house did see more than its share of mayhem. It became something of a Lovehammers tradition for the band to invite THEIR audiences back home for THE after party.

As the band heads toward the next level of its career, Casey promises the show onstage will match their offstage antics. They're already looking into ways to make their stage show more memorable. They may have achieved success on a level most bands can only dream of, but they're not going to rest. "We don't want it to be just four guys on stage with instruments," Marty says. "We're going to keep working our asses off. This is just the beginning."

Interview: Rock Star Dave Navarro on Why He Loves Spreading Entertainment Online

He’s played with Jane’s Addiction and felt the heat of the spotlight in a reality TV show with ex-wife Carmen Elecrtra. But in an interview with Digital Journal, Dave Navarro reveals why his new Web show is one of his most exciting projects so far.

Digital Journal — Dave Navarro is the kind of celebrity interview who talks like he’s known you his whole life. He doesn’t use rehearsed lines or clichés. He speaks bluntly about anything on his mind. The Swiss army knife of celebs — musician, radio host, reality TV star (remember Carmen and Dave?) — is accustomed to sharing his opinion with the world, but now he has the ultimate platform for free expression: an online talk show.

You may best know Navarro as the former guitarist for Jane’s Addiction and Red Hot Chili Peppers. He still has the guitar chops. But he’s extending his range outside alt-rock solos and power chords. In an exclusive interview with Digital Journal, Navarro explains why he’s excited about hosting the weekly Spread Entertainment show found on ManiaTV. The hour-long show features Navarro as a relaxed host chilling an L.A. nightclub, chatting with B-list celebs like Ron Jeremy and Tom Green, or picking the brains of intriguing writers or musicians or even psychotherapists. There’s no one direction Navarro follows, no script he memorizes. It’s a jam session on the Web.

Navarro, 40, isn’t just knowledgeable about the workings of the Web (he’s been online since the late 1990s). His conversational repertoire spans the cultural map — he riffs on the trouble with mainstream media, the freedom of indie music labels and why he enjoys being the interviewer this time around.

DJ: What do you find appealing about doing an online talk show? How is it different from anything you’ve done before?

Navarro: I love the fact that Spread Entertainment is an open discussion-based forum. It’s conversational, so there’s no list of questions, no hawking the guests’ wares. And the guests are mainly all individuals who have compelling stories, so it’s not just a music or celeb show.

The good and bad thing about the Internet is that it allows the freedom to say whatever you want, but it allows the freedom to say whatever you want. [Laughs]. I love how there’s no regulation, no censorship. It’s all live. And I don’t do cookie-cutter interviews because I know that experience being interviewed. I try to share my own experiences with the interviewees so it’s a give-and-take situation.

DJ: What kind of guests do you look for?

Navarro: Someone like recent guest Alix Lambert. She’s a writer, director and producer, a true jack-of-all-trades creating incredible documentaries and art installations. She’s fascinating to talk to.

A few weeks ago, we had a woman who was a cutter, who slashed her arms up with a knife. We also had a psychotherapist to have a close and personal moment to discuss the disorder of cutting. In the future, I'd like to get an FBI profiler on the show, as well as an alien abductee and a Holocaust survivor. I’m primarily interested in going after people that don’t get a lot of attention.

Dave Navarro, host of Sread Entertainment, sits with supermodel Janice Dickenson at an L.A. nightclub moonlighting as his show's set. -Photos courtesy of ManiaTV

DJ: It’s well known you’re not a fan of how the news is being run. How would you give the mainstream media a makeover?

Navarro: I think newspapers are more interested in selling copies than having information get out there. When I was 21, I did way worse shit than Lindsay Lohan, big deal! Some people think it’s big news; others just think it’s someone growing up.

People are fascinated by what people shouldn’t be seeing, whether it’s porn or a car accident. This celebrity coverage has become porn, and it’s acceptable to the public. But the difference is that in porn, no personal lives are being invaded. Well, if they are, then at least those actors are getting paid.

DJ: You know all about celebrity coverage because you were hounded by paparazzi when you were married to Carmen Electra. Are you frustrated by how the media stalks celebrities?

Navarro: If I go to a club or red-carpet event, I expect the paparazzi, it’s par for the course. My problem is when I’m being followed or they go through my garbage like I’m part of the Mafia. If you follow anyone around long enough, you’ll obviously capture a pic that is either funny or will catch someone not looking their best.

DJ: A lot of people know you as Dave Navarro the guitarist. What are you doing with music today? Is it on the back burner because Spread Entertainment has becomes the focus?

Navarro: The art of music is never on the back burner. I’m playing with Camp Freddy [rock cover band], and I’m still with Panic Channel [band with former members of Jane’s Addiction]. But the difference is I’m done playing the game with major labels because the whole thing is falling apart. They’re not taking chances on artists. In rock especially, corporate structures are making decisions on what’s best suited for them rather than what’s best for the artists. I was lucky because Jane’s was with Warner Bros. and they were amazing. Not so today, man. There’s no artist development with major labels. If “Stairway to Heaven” were written today, the labels would think it would be too long and they’d chop it in half.

Indie labels stick behind their artists and help them develop and grow. They understand how real art is done, and a true source of expression doesn’t need a massive audience to be fulfilled.

DJ: Speaking of being fulfilled, where do you want Spread Entertainment go? Any future plans you’d care to unveil?

Navarro: I don’t know where we’ll go. I’d love to let it unfold and see what happens. My best experiences are those that I didn’t expect or plan for, and I always try to keep that outlook. The beautiful reality of my life is that I don’t do things I don’t love.

Reality Show Recap: ‘The Rock Life’ Debuts With Slash and Ass-Crack Aplenty

Every week The Rock Life follows Los Angeles band Whitestarr as they attempt to make it in the music biz. But who’s following The Rock Life? We are! Here’s our first report:

Here’s Whitestarr lead singer Cisco Adler opening VH1’s umpteenth new reality show: “We’re just an average, struggling rock band that’s trying to make it.” However, the unspoken undercurrent from the get-go is that Whitestarr are just an average, struggling rock band whose lead singer is the spawn of the guy who produced Sam Cooke records, lives in palatial Malibu digs, drives a shiny red Caddy and is currently dating Marissa Cooper on The O.C. (clearly this was filmed a while back). Shelved by Atlantic a few years back, they’re looking for a second chance, armed with little more than a Black Crowes shimmy, a Buckcherry ’tude, a stunning amount of self-absorption and pants that don’t always fit right — forget the music, last night’s back-to-back premiere episodes featured no less than sixteen different shots of ass-crack!

VH1 debuted two episodes in a row, probably since the expository first episode didn’t have much for actual conflict — be-fro’d guitarist Rainbow tried to convince his girlfriend to stay home from the sold-out Roxy show (“What if I was a lawyer and you came to my job with me?”) and then hot-dogged a guitar solo because Slash (sans sunglasses … yikes) was in the audience. And full-time dancer Tony Potato was concerned over the footing on his dancing platform at the Roxy. But the second episode was classic millennial Monkees antics. Their new manager advises them to “write the hit,” so they all move into Adler’s fancy digs to compose their ticket out of obscurity. And — surprise! — it’s not that simple as they thought!

When the manager comes to check on their progress, Adler is frustrated that his band is so drunk and underrehearsed that everything devolves into tuneless flubs and bickering. Adler’s cute little dog dies (if this was the real “rock life,” someone would have taken acid and mistook her for a hot pocket) and his conspicuously absent-from-camera-time actress girlfriend stops talking to him. Somehow this gets him riled up enough turn a show at the Viper Room into a “riot,” tearing up the stage and taking out his weiner. There’s a happy ending in that they finally write a song, the implication being that it’s the one that will take them to the top. If we’re lucky, uh, whatever the song is called could be our own “Last Train to Clarksville.”

Rolling Stone posed six questions to Sonic Youth

Rolling Stone posed six questions to Sonic Youth singer-guitarist/record exec/general cool guy Thurston Moore. He spoke out in favor of noise rock, Yoko Ono and his right to be a snooty music expert in the school cafeteria.
Name one of your earliest examples of rock-star behavior.
The most rock-star thing I did at fourteen would have been defining myself in the school cafeteria. Some kids were obviously into rock music and they made a big deal out of it. They were into Yes and the Allman Brothers. But I was really getting into Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Sparks and Roxy Music. And they thought I was into rock music so I sort of knew what I was talking about sometimes. The fact was I knew a million times more than any of those kids knew about any of those bands from Zeppelin to the Beatles. I knew it all and I was a fucking egghead about it. They’d ask me what kind of music I liked. I would say, “I really like theater rock.” And they just looked at me like I was the spawn of all that is wrong with music. I think that was a rock-star thing to do in a way, just kind of divorcing myself from the cattle.
What was your favorite album when you were fourteen?
Probably Kimono My House by Sparks.

What album have you been digging lately?
It’s this compilation of L.A. hardcore bands called Life Is Ugly So Why Not Kill Yourself? It features the first generation of hardcore bands like Civil Dismay, Red Kross, Anti, Ill Will, Descendants and Mood of Defiance. I’ve been getting together a book of pictures — photos by David Markie and Jordan Schwartz — of all the house parties and gigs where a lot of those bands played. I guess the Minutemen are on there too, they do a couple of great songs on there, “Shit You Hear at Parties.”

When people come up to you and say, “Hey, I don’t understand noise rock,” what is your response?
That’s not the way to approach any kind of music, to say you don’t understand it. There’s nothing to understand. Any kind of music, it already kind of transcends understanding. It’s a sensual art form. You obviously don’t understand life because noise music, for me, is the noise of life, in a way. It’s so much more akin to the human condition. The human condition is not a song, it’s not an organized composition. This is more the natural music of our lives.

Who’s the coolest famous person you ever met?
It would have to be Kim G! For sure. Believe me, she was unbelievable when I first met her. She wore this sort of hip prison-stripe outfit and flip-up shades on her glasses. She had a ponytail, a little ponytail that was sort of center at the back of her head and I thought, “That’s the coolest fucking person I’ve ever met.” Then she became my girlfriend, which was beyond cool because that never really happened to me before. The funny thing about cool
is that Sonic Youth always gets tagged as like this cool band, and I grew up as a teenager in high school and stuff and I was not the cool kid. It wasn’t because I wanted to be cool, it was because I wanted to get away from the cool. So the fact that now that that kind of theme of un-cool is cool is kind of un-cool as far as I’m concerned.

When do you think you’ll know when it’s time to retire?
I just feel like I’m still going to an apprenticeship here. I feel like I’m getting to a point where I can actually be like the musician I want to be to do the kind of work I want to do. It takes a while, it really does. Take Yoko Ono, who is one of the most radical musicians on the planet. She’s in her seventies. I just did a duet with her in Pittsburgh. People like that to
me are my inspirations.

How Lollapalooza helps boost the music industry

After three full days of performances by 130 bands in Chicago’s Grant Park, the el is no longer packed with passengers wearing festival wristbands and the Michigan Avenue skyscrapers are no longer reflecting haphazard waves of rock music.

“Until next year, my lovelies,” festival founder Perry Farrell smiled as his band, Satellite Party, closed their set Sunday evening.

An estimated 160,000 fans braved blazing sun, humidity and rain to attend the festival that once spearheaded the 1990s alt-rock movement, suggesting that the touring business may be what saves the music industry.

This year’s headliners included Pearl Jam, Daft Punk and Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals. Pearl Jam bandleader Eddie Vedder must have been in a good mood as he closed Lollapalooza Sunday evening, obliging the massive crowd with a greatest hits set. Fireworks erupted in Soldier Field during the performance of “Even Flow” from the 1991 classic album, Ten.

If Lollapalooza had a lifetime achievement award, it would have gone to Iggy Pop earlier Sunday afternoon. The lean, muscular, frontman smashed claims that punk is dead. The 60-year-old commanded more energy than many of the younger musicians combined. He invited hundreds of festival-goers onstage during the raucous “No Fun” – the national anthem of punk recorded in 1969 by Iggy’s band, The Stooges.

Battle of the Bands

It’s impossible to catch every band at Lollapalooza, started in 1991. Walking at a good pace, it takes about 15 minutes to push past thousands of fans to reach the opposite end of Grant Park. Concert-goers often had to make painful choices between two of their favorite acts. The toughest battles for fan attention included Muse versus Interpol, Regina Spektor versus The Hold Steady and Lupe Fiasco versus Amy Winehouse.

In another cruel organizational move, My Morning Jacket played at the same time as Modest Mouse. My Morning Jacket was promoted to the AT&T stage after a stellar afternoon performance last year at the Bud Light stage. Leaning back to hold his guitar face-up to the sun, bandleader Jim James solidified the Louisville band’s reputation for being a great live act.

Although My Morning Jacket’s collaboration with Chicago’s Youth Symphony Orchestra enhanced Curtis Mayfield’s “Move On Up,” it otherwise did little to improve the songs in the set. The quartet fell into the trap most rock bands do when they partner with orchestras – creating simplistic scores based on 19th-century romanticism.

We can do it

Lollapalooza was dominated by four female performers: Amy Winehouse, Regina Spektor, Patti Smith and Karen O.

Not only did rebellious soul chanteuse Amy Winehouse show up, she showed up sober and executed a breathtaking set. With a beehive hairdo larger than her whole body, Winehouse swiveled behind the mike stand as she sang selections from last year’s Back to Black and cover songs of ’60s soul classics. A live band accompanied the British 23-year-old, who improvised on almost every melody.

Russian singer-songwriter Regina Spektor performed Saturday with a big, endearing grin as if she were a seven-year-old in a school Christmas play. Spektor opened her show a cappella, tapping the microphone with her finger while singing in her quirky, playful voice. In addition to playing a number of songs off 2006’s Begin To Hope, Spektor delighted the crowd with the dark humor of “Baby Jesus” and dedicated “Poor Little Rich Boy” to rock legend Patti Smith.

After a semi-traumatizing performance involving the F-word on the 2006 Kidzapalooza stage, Patti Smith returned to her hometown this year to play for the adults. The punk poet played “Gloria,” from the classic 1975 album, Horses, and a passionate rendition of Nirvana’s “Smell’s Like Teen Spirit.”

Donning a silver cape that may or may not have come from Gene Simmons’ closet, Karen O made a dramatic entrance alongside her two band-mates Saturday. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs lead singer defines rock star charisma. From the intimacy of “Maps” to the screeching fury of “Sealings,” to the sexy swagger of “Phenomena,” the garage rock outfit emerged victorious.

Tighten it up

The weekend’s best performances almost justified the steep $195 three-day and $80 single-day ticket prices. Next year, however, Farrell should focus on quality, not quantity. A staggering 130 bands hit eight stages August 3, 4 and 5. From the cookie-cutter indie rock of Paolo Nutini to the limp Californian ska of Slightly Stoopid, Lollapalooza 2007 had a lot of excess. The festival could easily be a two-day or three-day evenings-only, event.

That’s not to say Farrell should nix the local or up-and-coming bands. Chicago’s DJ duo Flosstradamus revealed why they fill every club they play and Schaumburg quartet Wax on Radio earned new fans under Friday’s relentless sun.

Big business

Perry Farrell should be very pleased with the weekend’s estimated 160,000 head count. Just three years ago, the festival was canceled due to poor ticket sales.

The North American concert business has been particularly strong in 2007, according to first-half numbers reported on Billboard Boxscore. Attendance was 20.4 million from January through June, generating box office revenues of $1.05 billion from the 6,886 reported shows. Last year, major tours from the Rolling Stones, Madonna, U2 and Bon Jovi set record highs.

Meanwhile, despite the surge in digital sales, the recording industry continued its downward spiral last year. Retail dollar value of digital and physical recordings dropped 6.2 percent from 2005 to 2006, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

“The recording business is dead, but the music business is healthy,” Farrell said at the festival. “It’s an ideal time for musicians.”

Although the weekend marked the third year in a row the festival rocked Grant Park, it was only the first event in a five-year, $5 million contract between the Austin, Texas-based promoters C3 Presents and the Chicago Park District. Chicago music-lovers can rest assured – Lollapalooza is guaranteed to be back every summer for the next four years.
Dashed line

Drinking in the Drowning Pool

Few bands can claim to have lived through the tragedy and disappointment that Dallas, Texas-based Drowning Pool has suffered.

The band's original vocalist, the charismatic Dave Williams, died from heart disease while touring with Ozzfest in 2002. This came shortly after the band released its platinum-selling breakthrough debut CD, "Sinner," which included the self-titled hit as well as the anthemic "Bodies."

Deciding to pick up the pieces and carry on, the surviving members of Drowning Pool auditioned for a new lead singer, bringing in former tattoo artist Jason "Gong" Jones. The relationship produced the album, "Desensitized," and the hit single, "Step Up."

But Jones wasn't the right man for the job, and he never quite clicked with the band.

"It was kind of one of those things where a guy comes in and auditions and sounds great, but you don't really know the guy that well and you make a record and you're stuck together on a bus every single day," said Drowning Pool bassist Stevie Benton in an interview with the Tribune from Norfolk, Va. "Twenty-four hours a day, up in each other's face and he was just not an easy enough going person for that kind of environment."

Although fans would have to get acquainted with a third vocalist in as many albums, the decision to part with Jones was easy, according to Benton.

"It was not a difficult decision whatsoever. It wasn't even a decision," he said. "Finally, one night, things blew up and that was it. He was gone. We were happy that he was gone. I'm sure he was happy to be gone."

Enter former Soil frontman Ryan McCombs. Not only was his familiar voice a perfect match for the style of music played by Drowning Pool, he was available to take the vacant job, something they originally wanted after Williams passed away.

"After Dave passed, Ryan was the first guy we really wanted but he was in his former band at the time and we didn't want to go in there and cause any kind of trouble with that," Benton explained. "By the time it came around for us to do our third record, he'd been out of (Soil) for awhile, so we were thrilled to have him."

Today's release date of Drowning Pool's third album, "Full Circle," marks the official beginning of an era, one that will include a stop at the Great Falls Civic Center Thursday as part of their "This Is For The Soldiers" tour.

According to Benton, McCombs addition to the band has returned a family-type atmosphere that had been missing since Williams died.

"Dave was awesome live and Ryan's awesome live," he said. "Dave was like a brother to us and Ryan's always been like a brother to us. It's back to the way we like things to be. It was an easy fit for him to come in and join the band."

Ever since "Bodies" was instituted by the U.S. military to interrogate detainees, Drowning Pool has had a relationship with the soldiers who protect the country.

Since "Bodies" was never intended to be an anthem for troops, the band decided to make a proper ode to the U.S. military by recording the song, "Soldiers," on the new record.

"We met tons of military people on the road and they'd tell us how they use the song 'Bodies' to get themselves fired up for their training for their job," explained Benton. "('Bodies') was written years ago and it's about being in a mosh pit at a concert. We thought 'wouldn't it be great if we really wrote a song for the troops and about the troops?' Kind of our tip of the hat to them and give them an anthem if you will."

Because of their strong legion of fans in the military, it didn't take long for Drowning Pool to become acquainted with the USO. They soon found themselves playing shows at U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf and their relationship with the troops continued to grow.

"After meeting so many people over there in the Gulf ... we wanted to do everything we could for these people that had given us so much," Benton said. "That led us to the IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America)."

According to Benton, 1.6 million Americans have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and at least a third of them will return home with mental health issues.

"The way things are set up with their medical care, they can't handle that kind of volume. They're just not prepared," Benton said of the military health care system.

The band joined forces with the IAVA to start the This Is For The Soldiers campaign, which is raising awareness of issues for troops as well as money. On the tour that bears the same name, Drowning Pool will donate fifty cents per ticket sale to the IAVA and fifty cents to the USO. The IAVA is also trying to get legislation passed that will provide better mental health coverage for veterans.

While controversy still occasionally pops up from people who find it offensive that "Bodies" was used on prisoners, Benton finds it a bit humorous.

"Is our song really that bad that it's considered torture to play it loud to detainees?" Benton asked. "They're not cutting their arms or slicing their heads off, they're just playing loud music. Kids come to our concerts every night and pay $10 or $15 to hear that."

Thursday night, rock-starved Great Falls residents will be able to pay to hear "Bodies" and a slew of other Drowning Pool hits, something that Benton's excited about.

"Dude, I can't wait. It's gonna be awesome," he said with genuine excitement. "Alright. Montana."

Times a-changing for live music

Racine club of national note going to DJs as turnout across area dwindles

George's Tavern was never a particularly genre-specific place, despite being recognized as part of the University of Mississippi's list of best blues music venues.

The style was eclectic.

On a recent afternoon, the stage at George's Tavern - 1201 N. Main St., Racine, just a few blocks from Lake Michigan - was empty, and that's the way it's going to stay, at least while the market for live music remains weak at best.

George's Tavern has three final live performances planned, after which live music is being replaced by disc jockeys. It's a change that George's owner, David Popoff, made with great difficulty and much melancholy.

The tavern has been losing money by offering live music for about three years, he said.

Gone are the days when a live act would push the limits of the establishment's capacity of 130, or at least draw a healthy 60 to 80 people.

Popoff recalls one night when only six people showed up for a show.

When a low turnout started to become the rule rather than the exception, Popoff decided the time had come to pull the plug on live music.

"I kept telling myself that 'Tomorrow will be a better day' and, 'Things will get better; people will come back and support live music again,' but, well, it's a different world now. There's no doubt that I'm saddened by it," said Popoff, whose own love for live music was an inspiration to open a tavern.

Cover charge didn't cover

It became clear Popoff could no longer shoulder the cost of live music when cover charges didn't support the effort.

"In my opinion, a lot of the musicians were playing for less than they deserved, but it was their love of performing and appreciation of the space here that kept our working relationship going. Ultimately, the club could not afford it anymore," Popoff said.

He added that he has 11 employees to consider. Since Popoff switched to DJsin mid-July, the crowds are back, reaching numbers near or at capacity on some nights.

"The place is doing fantastic," Popoff said.

Popoff isn't the only club owner finding it difficult to attract an audience to live music.

Both Jim Linneman of Linneman's Riverwest Inn in Milwaukee and Bill Camplin of Café Carpe in Fort Atkinson, agree that it's a challenging time for live-music lovers.

"It is a struggle," said Camplin, who, along with operating the Café Carpe "listening room," is also a singer-songwriter finding fewer venues to play. "We're never happy with the attendance overall. And yet there are so many wonderful, magical moments that occur with live music. It really does exist - music does exist. But, we live in a world where people can turn on a channel or push a button where the music they like already exists."

For love, not money

Linneman admits he's lucky. He doesn't do it for the money, but for the love of live music.

"I'm a music lover, and I always have been," Linneman said. "I'm in this business to stay, but I tell my friends all the time that if I wanted to be making money, I wouldn't be in this business."

The reasons why the audiences for live music have dwindled depends on perspective.

Linneman thinks the region's blue collar workers simply don't want to pay a cover charge.

Camplin and Popoff believe that modern 20-somethings are used to going to the Internet and downloading music for free and can't fathom paying a cover charge for a band they might not know.

Popoff points to the elimination of arts and music education in public schools, where the value of creative expression is neither taught nor appreciated.

Musicians see trend, too

But no matter the reason, musicians also agree the audience for live music is smaller than in years past.

John Sieger, whose former band, the R&B Cadets, got their start at George's Tavern, said his current band, the Subcontinentals, finds work when it wants it, but he admits it's getting more difficult.

"More people should support live music. It's a skill, like being a blacksmith, and, these days, it seems to be just as relevant," said Sieger, who will be with the Subcontinentals at the Kenosha Yacht Club on Saturday.

Steve Cohen, musician and booking agent, said musicians have had to be creative by reinventing themselves to remain busy, such as doing solo acts or duets rather than having a full band.

"Back in the old days, you could play every night of the week, if you wanted to, in a different neighborhood," Cohen said.

Although the audience may be smaller for live music, it still exists, Cohen said.

He's optimistic that the audience pendulum will swing back to live music.

Popoff is not so optimistic, but he'll be ready if it happens.

"Music is the common bonding that brings people together, but I'm not seeing that with live music today," he said.