Chicago’s Most Eclectic Independent Music Publication

Latest News

  • Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios, Approaches Fifty-Years Of Innovation Right Here In Chicago
  • Photo Gallery: Third Eye Blind @ Brookfield Zoo Chicago 2025
  • ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Murder By Death Plays Final Chicago Shows
  • Photo Gallery: Tripping Daisy 2025 (Milwaukee, WI)
  • Photo Gallery: Plague Vendor
  • The World’s Largest Music Festival: Milwaukee’s Summerfest 2025 Wrap Up Review
  • Home
  • Music News
    • Breaking News
    • Features
    • This Just In
    • Interviews
    • Reviews
    • ITLM OTRS
    • Local Loop
    • Musical Theatre
    • ChiBluesBro’s Jukebox Reviews
  • Media
    • Photos
    • Videos
    • Streaming Live
  • Events
  • Festivals
  • Promotions
  • About
  • Contact
  • Follow
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Google+
    • Youtube

The Legacy That Is Failure Returns To Chicago With New Album And Continuing Tour

Apr 08, 2019 James Currie Features, Music News, Reviews 0


The Legacy That Is Failure Returns To Chicago With New Album And Continuing Tour

By Christopher David

It’s no secret that, here at In the Loop Magazine, we all have favorite bands. So I’m going to cut right to the chase and say this with equal parts personal investment as a fan but also with as much objectivity as I can offer: at the moment, Failure is the best sounding live band on earth.

The legacy of Failure’s legendary third album, 1997’s Fantastic Planet, is known to pretty much everyone at this point, and we’ve certainly devoted considerable time to it over the years even in this magazine. And after 2015’s ‘comeback’ record, The Heart is A Monster, and its subsequent tour, fans hoped that the trio of Ken Andrews, Greg Edwards, and Kellii Scott would keep things moving.

Keep things moving they did, and if their new album (2018’s In the Future Your Body Will Be the Furthest Thing From Your Mind) is any indication, the band’s best work is in front of them. One needed look no further than their stunning performance at House of Blues on Friday to see that this is a creative unit at the absolute peak of their collective powers. Opening with a trio of songs from In the Future before segueing into a series of tunes from Planet (including anthem single “Stuck On You,” which, no matter how many times you’ve seen it live, hits with unrivaled bombast), the band managed to hit on highlights from every era of their career, and the balance of material was striking. The crisp, driving drone of “Undone” sounded as fresh as it did when it was first released in 1994, and new tunes “No One Left” and “Solar Eyes” were right at home alongside Fantastic Planet’s most recognizable cuts. But it was “The Pineal Electorate,” the epic, penultimate song of the main set, that made clear how expansive Failure’s sound has become. With a McCartney-esque piano and vocal melody from multi-instrumentalist Greg Edwards that culminates with a full-band coda, the new-album closer was an absolute showstopper. If “Layla” or “Hey Jude” had come to us from somewhere in space, this might be what it sounded like. Ending with the ominous crunch of “Screen Man” from their first album, 1992’s Comfort, it was refreshing to see that the band’s entire catalog is still in play.

Failure’s musicianship has often been the subject of much praise, and with good reason. Andrews, a production and recording giant in his own right, and his constant trade-off with Edwards on bass and guitar (with Edwards also tackling keys) is something to see; every song in the set plundered new sonic depths and layers of effects that made it tough to even figure out where sounds ended and began, and no drummer currently in the game plays with more precision and intensity than Scott. There’s an aural tapestry created between the three that goes beyond just a band playing a bunch of songs – at five records in, Failure fully inhabit their own sonic landscape, and their best work may well be ahead of them. Miss them at your own risk – Failure in 2019 is as good as live music gets.

For more on Failure, click here

For photos from the House of Blues show, click here

============================================================================================

Failure – House of Blues, Chicago, IL, April 5, 2019 (setlist)

Solar Eyes

Distorted Fields

Heavy and Blind

Another Space Song

Smoking Umbrellas

Stuck On You

Undone

Frogs

A.M. Amnesia

Counterfeit Sky

Dark Speed

No One Left

The Pineal Electorate

Heliotropic

Macaque

Screen Man

facebookShare on Facebook
TwitterTweet
FollowFollow us
PinterestSave

  • tweet
THE 36TH ANNUAL CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL FULL LINEUP CELEBRATES CHICAGO’S RICH BLUES MUSIC LEGACY Failure @ House of Blues Chicago

James Currie

Related Articles
  • Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios, Approaches Fifty-Years Of Innovation Right Here In Chicago
    Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios,...

    Oct 25, 2021 1

  • Photo Gallery: Third Eye Blind @ Brookfield Zoo Chicago 2025
    Photo Gallery: Third Eye Blind @...

    Jul 19, 2025 0

  • ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Murder By Death Plays Final Chicago Shows
    ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Murder By...

    Jul 18, 2025 0

  • Photo Gallery: Tripping Daisy 2025 (Milwaukee, WI)
    Photo Gallery: Tripping Daisy 2025...

    Jul 17, 2025 0

  • Photo Gallery: Plague Vendor
    Photo Gallery: Plague Vendor

    Jul 17, 2025 0

More in this category
  • ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Murder By Death Plays Final Chicago Shows
    ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Murder By...

    Jul 18, 2025 0

  • The World’s Largest Music Festival: Milwaukee’s Summerfest 2025 Wrap Up Review
    The World’s Largest Music...

    Jul 16, 2025 0

  • Boots, Brisket and Beats, Windy City Smokeout Sizzles and Soaks Chicago For Its 2025 Season
    Boots, Brisket and Beats, Windy City...

    Jul 15, 2025 0

  • Blistering Blues With Samantha Fish As She Ignites A Heatwave At FitzGerald’s American Music Festival
    Blistering Blues With Samantha Fish As...

    Jul 07, 2025 0


Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Categories

CALENDAR

July 2025
S M T W T F S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Jun    
Spotify Top 50 Global

Archives

  • July 2025 (15)
  • June 2025 (26)
  • May 2025 (21)
  • April 2025 (26)
  • March 2025 (25)
  • February 2025 (13)
  • January 2025 (8)
  • December 2024 (13)
  • November 2024 (10)
  • October 2024 (12)
  • September 2024 (20)
  • August 2024 (15)
  • July 2024 (30)
  • June 2024 (17)
  • May 2024 (23)
  • April 2024 (19)
  • March 2024 (14)
  • February 2024 (16)
  • January 2024 (5)
  • December 2023 (7)
  • November 2023 (15)
  • October 2023 (5)
  • September 2023 (22)
  • August 2023 (9)
  • July 2023 (9)
  • June 2023 (12)
  • May 2023 (9)
  • April 2023 (11)
  • March 2023 (15)
  • February 2023 (18)
  • January 2023 (9)
  • December 2022 (4)
  • November 2022 (5)
  • October 2022 (12)
  • September 2022 (28)
  • August 2022 (28)
  • July 2022 (39)
  • June 2022 (21)
  • May 2022 (20)
  • April 2022 (13)
  • March 2022 (33)
  • February 2022 (21)
  • January 2022 (22)
  • December 2021 (11)
  • November 2021 (15)
  • October 2021 (16)
  • September 2021 (36)
  • August 2021 (21)
  • July 2021 (26)
  • June 2021 (27)
  • May 2021 (13)
  • April 2021 (13)
  • March 2021 (12)
  • February 2021 (4)
  • January 2021 (2)
  • December 2020 (7)
  • November 2020 (4)
  • October 2020 (3)
  • September 2020 (10)
  • August 2020 (6)
  • July 2020 (7)
  • June 2020 (3)
  • May 2020 (5)
  • April 2020 (3)
  • March 2020 (10)
  • February 2020 (22)
  • January 2020 (10)
  • December 2019 (8)
  • November 2019 (30)
  • October 2019 (30)
  • September 2019 (27)
  • August 2019 (41)
  • July 2019 (33)
  • June 2019 (27)
  • May 2019 (36)
  • April 2019 (25)
  • March 2019 (41)
  • February 2019 (22)
  • January 2019 (11)
  • December 2018 (17)
  • November 2018 (13)
  • October 2018 (34)
  • September 2018 (43)
  • August 2018 (26)
  • July 2018 (34)
  • June 2018 (23)
  • May 2018 (31)
  • April 2018 (24)
  • March 2018 (49)
  • February 2018 (48)
  • January 2018 (25)
  • December 2017 (10)
  • November 2017 (30)
  • October 2017 (10)
  • September 2017 (26)
  • August 2017 (25)
  • July 2017 (42)
  • June 2017 (37)
  • May 2017 (49)
  • April 2017 (54)
  • March 2017 (44)
  • February 2017 (39)
  • January 2017 (14)
  • December 2016 (22)
  • November 2016 (20)
  • October 2016 (20)
  • September 2016 (35)
  • August 2016 (46)
  • July 2016 (51)
  • June 2016 (23)
  • May 2016 (15)
  • April 2016 (18)
  • March 2016 (22)
  • February 2016 (27)
  • January 2016 (11)
  • December 2015 (8)
  • November 2015 (17)
  • October 2015 (21)
  • September 2015 (30)
  • August 2015 (54)
  • July 2015 (49)
  • June 2015 (44)
  • May 2015 (16)
  • April 2015 (6)
  • March 2015 (9)
  • February 2015 (9)
  • January 2015 (2)
  • December 2014 (2)
  • November 2014 (2)
  • October 2014 (1)
  • September 2014 (2)
  • August 2014 (5)
  • July 2014 (1)
  • June 2014 (4)
  • May 2014 (5)
  • April 2014 (1)
  • March 2014 (1)
  • February 2014 (2)
  • January 2014 (2)
  • December 2013 (1)
  • November 2013 (2)
  • October 2013 (1)
  • September 2013 (1)
  • August 2013 (2)
  • July 2013 (3)
  • June 2013 (2)
  • May 2013 (5)
  • April 2013 (3)
  • March 2013 (1)
  • February 2013 (1)
  • May 2012 (2)
  • January 2012 (3)
  • September 2011 (1)
Tweets by BeInTheLoopChi

Tag Cloud

2024 (30) 2025 (31) Berwyn (7) C2E2 (6) Chicago (158) Chicago Theatre (6) Concert (26) concert photography (37) concert photos (16) concert review (42) Country Music (8) Festival (11) Fitzgerald's (5) Grant Park (6) Highland Park (6) Illinois (11) images (11) In The Loop Magazine (56) james currie (9) john 5 (5) live (84) live nation (5) Lollapalooza (7) lords of acid (6) Metro (7) Ministry (7) Music Festival (6) NItzer Ebb (5) Northerly Island (5) Photos (7) Ravinia (15) review (6) Riot Fest (16) Riviera Theatre (6) rob zombie (6) Salt Shed (11) Sold Out (6) solo tour (5) Summerfest (6) Thalia Hall (5) tour (33) Tour 2024 (13) Tour 2025 (9) United Center (10) Windy City Smokeout (7)

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
© 2025 In The Loop Magazine / All Rights Reserved.
  • Music News
  • Media
  • Festivals
  • Promotions
  • Venues
  • About
  • Gallery