Laura Marling and Liam Hayes

England's Laura Marling wowed the awestruck crowd at her show last week at the Athenaeum Theatre. Under a white spotlight, and armed with an acoustic guitar and a stunning voice, Laura proved (to me at least) that she is one of the best - if not the best - indie folk female around right now. I'm not the only person who's referred to her more than once as the "Joni Mitchell of our generation." Her songs have depth, artistry, and ingenuity. They are grounded, sincere, and just plain beautiful. Chicago's own Liam Hayes opened the night. For more of my photos, check out the Schubas/Lincoln Hall Tumblr here.

Liam Hayes 

Laura Marling 

Rodriguez and Jenny O

If you haven't had a chance to see the critically acclaimed 2012 film Searching for Sugar Man, then might I recommend that you go ahead and bump it up to the top of your Netflix queue now. Winner of an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, the film chronicles the fascinating story of musician Sixto Rodriguez and - well - that's all I'm gonna tell you. The story is too awesome and unique for me to spoil it for you in a blog post. For those of you who have seen Sugar Man, perhaps you'll understand why I was so excited to learned that Rodriguez was touring and - better yet - that I had the opportunity to photograph him and opener Jenny O at the Arie Crown Theater last Friday. It was a magical evening and even at 70, Rodriguez's voice remains silky smooth while his songs still boast relevance decades after they were written. For more of my photos, check out the Schubas/Lincoln Hall Tumblr here. 

Jenny O

Rodriguez

Kurt Vile and Steve Gunn

The lovely, lo-fi musical stylings of Kurt Vile & The Violators permeated the walls of Lincoln Hall on Tuesday evening. The sold out crowd seemed to dig his every move - all eyeballs were literally glued to the stage. This was my third time seeing Kurt and somehow he manages to never disappoint live. Steve Gunn was a perfect opener for the evening, treating the audience to his hypnotic mix of bluesy, Americana rock.  

Steve Gunn 

Kurt Vile and The Violators