Steve Albini's influence on Chicagoans

How Leor put together a fitting, personal tribute [View this email in your browser]( [READER Logo]( Daily Reader | May 15, 2024 I’ve been thinking a lot about the meaning of “influence,” particularly in regards to music. This is something I’ve more or less wrestled with since I encountered Ian MacKaye’s interview with Dan Sinker in [Punk Planet issue 31]( which I first read in the zine’s 2001 compendium, We Owe You Nothing. There’s a small aside in which MacKaye and Sinker discuss the importance of MacKaye’s two best-known bands, Minor Threat and Fugazi; the former broke up in 1983, the latter was still active when the Punk Planet exchange took place. Here’s the part of the exchange that’s on my mind: MacKaye: A lot of people also ask me, “How do you compare Minor Threat to Fugazi?” Well first off, I don’t. But if I had to answer, I’d say in a heartbeat that Fugazi is a more important band. I would say any band that’s operating today is more important than bands that came before. They’re more important because they exist. Those other bands are done, they’re finished. They’re important on one level, but it’s at almost an educational level. They’re historical now. Sinker: They’re important in their ability to help us better understand the present. Minor Threat can’t actually influence what’s happening now. MacKaye: People may be influenced by Minor Threat, but Minor Threat can’t influence anybody. This has been on my mind as I’ve worked my way through remembrances of Steve Albini since his death last week. I first encountered Albini through the records he engineered, then the music he made himself—often recommended to me by friends whose interests braided us together. When Albini died, I thought as much of the friends who influenced me—my tastes, my outlook on art and community—as the music we shared together. When it came to Albini, I wanted to learn more about the people who were part of his life; those who influenced him as much as he did them beyond his work as an engineer and guitarist. I have the same access to the same big, famous recordings Albini worked on as anyone else. These records are, of course, great in their own right, and a fascinating way to learn of one person’s approach to nourishing art. But there is so much more to all of us than the pile of records we collect, appreciate, and work on. Music is an expression of personality, and often a window into a person’s being; it’s not the whole house. Part of why I love reporting on music as a facet of community is that I can observe the ways songs and albums function beyond a recording. I love writing about albums, and I really relish when a story gives me the opportunity to do more than just gaze at that limited frame of reference. Researching and excavating the context behind a piece of music—all the labor, relationships, places, and seemingly niche life experiences that are poured into it—also nourishes my understanding and appreciation of it. I love finding what influenced the music that moves me to write about it. Albini participated in an evolving local underground music ecosystem. His studio, Electrical Audio, attracted musicians from around the world. In this regard, Albini’s influence has been well-known and well-reported by international outlets. I already knew, say, Dave Grohl thinks the world of Albini; there’s books and documentaries that illustrate their relationship better than I can. But what about the people who are part of his community in Chicago, a place he’s called home for longer than I’ve been alive? This is the question that I hoped to get answered, to whatever degree it could be, with [the Albini remembrance we published earlier this week](. His influence on Chicagoans alone could fill several books, and I knew one story could only go so far. But I’m thankful for all the folks who worked with Albini, or hired him to record their music, or played poker with him, and who took the time to reflect on what he means to them [for the Reader story](. Putting it together made me get a better sense of how Albini engaged with arts communities in this city beyond his work on music that matters to me. And I hope the story gives you a better understanding of what an internationally renowned musical figure means to so many of our neighbors in this city. ◈ [Demystification #4]( ◈ [“soup activists’ martin meyer on the new album + life after lumpy,”]( by Evan Minsker (See/Saw) ◈ [“US students, once again, have led the way. Now we must all stand up for Palestinians,”]( by Osita Nwanevu (The Guardian) ◈ Pete Willson & the Rooks, [Songs from P. Earth]( ◈ Demo Division, [Sunken Skin]( ◈ Decoteau Black, [Sam Feared for His Son.]( ◈ Chief Keef, [Almighty So 2]( [J Bambii makes space for everybody at south-side party the FiFi]( Plus: The free Grant Slam Fest brings eight acts to Jonquil Park, and indie rockers Milkswarm throw a release party for their debut album. by [Tyra Nicole Triche]( and  [Leor Galil]( | [Read more]( → [Shoegaze legends Ride embrace the journey on the synth-pop–influenced Interplay]( Thu 5/16 at Metro by [Jamie Ludwig]( | [Read more]( → [Electronic-music pioneer Suzanne Ciani celebrates the 40th anniversary of her album Seven Waves]( Fri 5/17 at Fourth Presbyterian Church by [Micco Caporale]( | [Read more]( → [Drummer, bandleader, and impresario Mike Reed throws a five-day celebration of his 50th birthday]( by [Bill Meyer]( | [Read more]( → The Reader is surveying the Chicago music community about its reading habits, to determine how to distribute music news and concert announcements in the best way possible. Answer our short survey and you’ll be entered to win concert tickets to a variety of shows, including Amos Lee at Auditorium Theatre, The Gaslight Anthem at the Salt Shed, and more! [CLICK HERE FOR A CHANCE TO WIN!]( Get the latest issue of the Chicago Reader Thursday, May 2, 2024 [READ ONLINE: VOL. 53, NO. 15]( [VIEW/DOWNLOAD ISSUE (PDF)]( [Become a member of the Chicago Reader.]( [Facebook icon]( [Instagram icon]( [Twitter icon]( [LinkedIn icon]( [YouTube icon]( [Website icon]( [Logo] You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from the Chicago Reader. Want fewer emails from us? [Click here to choose what you want us to send you](. Or, [unsubscribe from all Reader emails](. We’ll miss you! [Sign up for emails from the Chicago Reader]( | [Forward this e-mail to a friend]( © 2024 Chicago Reader. All rights reserved. Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616