Sound check: Debbie Gibson, Lisa Lisa, Jody Watley play the Genesee
Ladies of the '80s
A dream come true, out of the blue ... the “Ladies of the '80s” tour is coming to town! Relive every foolish beat of your heart when three of the decade's biggest entertainers - Debbie Gibson (“Shake Your Love,” “Lost in Your Eyes”), Lisa Lisa (“Lost in Emotion”) and Jody Watley (“Looking for a New Love”) stop at Waukegan's Genesee Theatre for one night only, 203 N. Genesee St., Waukegan. $45-$79. (847) 263-6300 or geneseetheatre.com. 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28
Keeping it Freaky
The three-day Freaky Deaky musical extravaganza continues Friday night, when you get to choose between U.K. house duo Gorgon City at Concord Music Hall and Oliver Heldens with Klingande at the Aragon Ballroom. Saturday night, all Freaky Deakers can gather at the Aragon for DJ/comedian Dillon Francis. Tickets range from $20-$45 for the various events. 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at Concord Music Hall, 2047 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, (773) 570-4000 or concordmusichall.com; also 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, and 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago, (773) 561-9500 or aragonballroom.org.
Kings, Tigers and Led Pig at Skyline
Hard-rocking Woodridge quartet The Kings Rising headlines this month's Skyline Concert Series Friday at BaseCamp Pub, along with sets by Led Pig, She Rides Tigers and the Aaron Williams Band. Get to know some great local bands while riding into Halloween weekend. BaseCamp Pub & Eatery, 5750 Lakeside Drive, Lisle. $6. (331) 777-4712 or aaronwilliamsmusic.com. 8:45 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27
Very Scary Vesper
Bid farewell to power-pop duo Vesper - Zak Fox Jablow and Samantha Humphreys - as they leave Chicago for Nashville and celebrate Halloween at the same time. Punk rock band Dead Wolf and rockers The Sirens Are Calling join the Very Scary Vesper Halloween. Costumes are encouraged to add to the fun. 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Cairo Ale House, 2009 Franciscan Way, West Chicago. $5; $30 for the party bus package. evensi.us.
He's landed
Singer-songwriter Ben Folds lands his “Paper Airplane Request Tour” at Chicago's Riviera Theatre, along with Boston electrofolk duo Tall Heights. Catch his catchy and clever piano-driven hits (and maybe a few old Ben Folds Five favorites). 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Riviera Theatre, 4746 N. Racine Ave., Chicago. $40-$249. (773) 275-6800 or rivieratheatre.com.
Evening Glow's album, show
Modern-day indie rock takes on an '80s English rock flavor no more so than on the title track of Evening Glow's new “Perfect Harmony.” Check out the new EP (available on Bandcamp, Spotify or iTunes) or see the Chicago and Batavia musicians live at Tonic Room Sunday when they play with Engine Summer and Crosstown. 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, at Tonic Room, 2447 N. Halsted St., Chicago. $8-$10. (773) 248-8400 or tonicroom.ticketfly.com.
Halloween treats
Halloween is coming up faster than a carload of creepy clowns flocking to a makeup sale. Local musicians have been working hard on tributes to beloved bands, some even in full costume for the holiday. Here are a few in the city and the suburbs to see:
Lombard's BrauerHouse hosts a rock tribute show with BLEACH headlining as Nirvana on a night that also features Chicago's Run and Punch playing as Big D and the Kids Table, Fersher taking the stage as Sublime, and The Mizzerables walking a lonely road in Green Day's shoes. 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at BrauerHouse, 1000 N. Rohlwing Road, Lombard. $7-$9. (630) 495-2141 or brauerhouse.com.
Yorkville's The Giving Tree Band takes the stage as legendary Canadian-American roots rockers The Band. 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Old Towne Pub & Eatery Wasco, 40W290 La Fox Road, St. Charles. $12 plus $1.65 fee. (630) 513-4240 or otpwasco.com.
Downers Grove's North of Eight is setting aside their usual raucous jams for two nights as Pink Floyd and the Grateful Dead. 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at The Uptown, 12 W. Burlington Ave., Westmont, no cover, (630) 969-4717; and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at North Side Sports Bar & Grill, 499 Pennsylvania Ave., Glen Ellyn, no cover, (630) 469-4602 or northsidesportsbar.com.
The Empty Bottle makes Halloween a chance to honor a legendary musician with A Very Petty Halloween. Tight Pettyz, The Heartburns, The Traveling Gnarburys, Al Scorch, Flamingo Rodeo, Danny Black and DJ Sarah Frier will play their best Tom Petty and Petty-inspired tunes, and costumes are welcome. $10 suggested donation directly benefits United for Puerto Rico, but admission is free with donation of goods for those in need. 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, at The Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago. $10 suggested donation or free with item donation. (773) 276-3600 or emptybottle.com.
Martyrs' hosts The Cells as The Smithereens, Craftwerc as Kraftwerk, The Differents play AM Radio Hits, Phil Agotti & Friends as Squeeze and John San Juan plays as Eddie Money. 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Martyrs', 3855 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. $8-$10. (773) 404-9494 or martyrslive.com.
Beat Kitchen hosts the Kickstand Halloween Extravaganza XIII, featuring Electric Villain play System of a Down; Bloodsport: The Movie The Band as The Replacements; Sad Paul Stanley playing Black Sabbath; Paul, Mary & Seb as Slipknot; Beat the Smart Kids as the Mighty Mighty Bosstones; Daniel Wade as CCR; Peel as Cheap Trick; and Mark Rose playing the “Karate Kid” trilogy soundtrack. 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. $10; $8 if you're wearing a costume. (773) 281-4444 or beatkitchen.com.
Halloween at Cobra Lounge features Major Threat playing as Minor Threat, Violent World channeling the Misfits, The Mizzerables as Green Day and Rosaries as Black Sabbath. 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, at Cobra Lounge, 235 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. $10. (312) 226-6300 or cobralounge.com.
Chicago's Cream Puff Warriors honors the legend of the Grateful Dead and bluesy rock band Murley jams as the Allman Brothers Band. 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, at Martyrs', 3855 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. $12. (773) 404-9494 or martyrslive.com.
Shuffled tracks
What I'm listening to this week:
<b>Ballroom Boxer:</b> If you missed it when it first came out and you're a fan of Gaslight Anthem, you should check out Ballroom Boxer's last album, “Tides,” with its freely constructed but tightly played Midwestern indie rock. Enjoy the singalong choruses! (Bandcamp, Spotify and iTunes)
<b>Friday Pilots Club:</b> FPC is heading in a catchy new direction with a fresh sound that builds layers of indie pop on the band's already strong blues-rock base. Catch the video for the brand new track, “End of It,” a precursor to an album's worth of shiny new music coming soon.
<b>Belmont:</b> Belmont is pushing hard to be your next favorite pop-punk band. The emerging north-side band has been working hard the last two years and seems poised on the edge of a breakout with their recent video, “Step Aside,” featuring a track released this summer. (Bandcamp, Spotify and iTunes)
Concert highlights
Bob Dylan & His Band, Mavis Staples: 7:30 p.m. Friday, oct. 27, at Wintrust Arena, 200 E. Cermak Road, Chicago. $39.50-$126.50. (312) 791-6900 or wintrustarena.com.
Josh Todd & The Conflict, Wayland Wayland, Achilles: 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at RocHaus, 96 W. Main St., West Dundee. $20-$35. (815) 893-9768 or rochaus.com.
Tori Amos “Native Invader Tour”: 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at the Chicago Theatre, 175. N. State St., Chicago. $44-$368 (resale tickets). (800) 745-3000 or thechicagotheatre.com.
“Night of the Living Mung” featuring Mungion: 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at Durty Nellie's, 180 N. Smith St., Palatine. $10. (847) 358-9150 or durtynellies.com.
The Main Squeeze, Zoofunkyou: 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at Bottom Lounge, 1375 W. Lake St., Chicago. $18. (312) 666-6775 or bottomlounge.com.
Owens Room, Jericho, Robby Ciganek: 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at River City Roasters, 114 N. Main St., Wheaton. $7. (630) 909-3480 or eventbrite.com.
Trash Martini reunion show/costume contest: 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at BaseCamp Pub & Eatery, 5750 Lakeside Drive, Lisle. $7-$10. (331) 777-4712 or basecamppub.com.
Nahko, 1,000 Fuegos, Christina Holmes: 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Concord Music Hall, 2047 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. $30. (773) 570-4000 or concordmusichall.com.
Yanni: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Rialto Square Theatre, 102 N. Chicago St., Joliet. $49.50-$225. (815) 726-7171 or rialtosquare.com.
Violent Femmes, Brett Newski: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Vic Theatre, 3145 N. Sheffield Ave., Chicago. $37-$50. (773) 472-0449 or victheatre.com.
Way Down Wanderers: 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Two Brothers Roundhouse, 205 N. Broadway, Aurora. No cover. (630) 264-2739 or twobrothersbrewing.com.
The Other Us, Alec Haley: 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at The Lodge of Antioch, 899 Main St., Antioch. (847) 395-3373 or lodgeofantioch.com.
Crankdat, Stratus, Hi Five & Who Cares: 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Bottom Lounge, 1375 W. Lake St., Chicago. $15. (312) 666-6775 or bottomlounge.com.
The Bank Notes: 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Duke's Alehouse, 110 N. Main St., Crystal Lake. (815) 356-9980 or thedukeabides.com.
Afterlife featuring UMEK and Paradigm: 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at Estate, 1177 N Elston Ave, Chicago. $15-$30. (312) 523-4296 or afterlifechi.com.
The Sky Ghosts (featuring Deb Sonzo and Jamie Riani): 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, at EvenFlow, 302 W. State St., Geneva. (331) 248-0269 or evenflowmusic.com.
Old Warsaw, Aiming For Average, Oops, Radar, St. Marlboro: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, at Wire, 6815 W. Roosevelt Road, Berwyn. $8; free with costume. (708) 669-9473 or wireismusic.com.
Arcade Fire “Infinite Content Tour”: 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 30, at the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago. Tickets start at $25. (312) 455-4500 or unitedcenter.com.
Funhouse Halloween Costume Party featuring The Fundamental Kink, Friday Pilots Club, Chandler Fuzak, Capital Soiree and Ajani Jones: 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, at HVAC Pub, 3530 N. Clark St., Chicago. $10; $5 with costume. (773) 789-8864 or hvacpub.com.
Music + Hope 4 Haiti featuring Barry Dean, Lori McKenna, Luke Laird and Natalie Hemby: 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1, at Joe's Live, 5441 Park Place, Rosemont. $85; $100 for VIP; donations benefit Music Heals International, which brings music and musicians to the children of Haiti and other parts of the world. (847) 261-0392 or joesliverosemont.com.
The Million Reasons, The Shades, The Hacky Turtles: 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 2, at Township, 2200 N. California Ave., Chicago. $10. (773) 384-1865 or townshipchicago.com.
The Weeknd “Starboy - Legend of the Fall 2017 World Tour”: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 2, at the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago. Tickets start at $39.75. (312) 455-4500 or unitedcenter.com.
Them Guilty Aces, The Belvederes: 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 2, at Martyrs', 3855 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. $7. (773) 404-9494 or martyrslive.com.
The Nadas, Tom Fuller Band: 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 2, at FitzGerald's, 6615 W. Roosevelt Road, Berwyn. $15. (708) 788-2118 or fitzgeraldsnightclub.com.
<i> Brian Shamie is a Daily Herald multiplatform editor who just might know all the dance moves to Michael Jackson's “Thriller.” You can follow him on Twitter at @BShamieDH.</i>