Jay Lara

Hey! My name is John (for ticketing purposes lol), but I normally just go by Jay. I'm the Senior Editor and PR Manager who is incredibly professional when I want to be.. otherwise, I'm a certified goof. IG: jaylara.jpg97 .. Lets work together?!

Concert Reviews Featured

Pretty Metal: The Lady in Red - Vana

May 1, 2026 will forever be a night that I look back on, as it is the day that I got to experience The Lady in Red - live. A night of great music, flashing lights, memes, and gambling... it's hard to forget something like that. Vana truly

Concert Reviews Featured

Belle and Chain surprise Evanston with wondrous sound

On April 24, 2026, on a beautiful Friday evening, an up and coming band put on one-of-a-kind performance - opening for Barns Courtney. Led by the one and only, the stunning, Spencer Grammer (who is most well known for her role as the voice of Summer Smith ("Rick and

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Chicago amps up for a night of insanity with Whitechapel

On April 20, 2026, Whitechapel put on a seriously heavy performance as they opened for Slaughter to Prevail - at the Aragon Ballroom. I, along with a few other friends, got a chance to head-bang our night away... what a way to to start off the week - with some

Concert Reviews Featured

Baby Baby... Sports, You Are the Right One

You read that right. On Sunday, April 19, 2026, Sports came through Chicago's Lincoln Hall - easily selling out their show. The venue was so packed that you just had to choose a spot to hunker down and hope for the best. Next time, they're going

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Des Rocs summons the lighting with electrifying performance

Rock n roll is, in fact, NOT dead! It feels like the voices still echo of people saying that rock is dead - and that there is no more good rock music anymore. I think people just aren't looking hard enough and want to be stuck in their

Concert Reviews Featured

Goldford comes back to his roots and puts on a phenomenal show at Park West Chicago

On the beautiful Saturday night that was April 11, 2026, Goldford steamrolled right through Chicago's very own Park West to play to a jam-packed house. By the time I made it through the doors, the house was buzzing with excitement as people were getting drinks, stopping by the

Concert Reviews Featured

Night one of TWICE's mesmerizing two-night Chicago show

Tonight (as of writing this), April 6, 2026, I had the opportunity to go to the United Center and be part of TWICE's first night in Chicago. To be completely honest, I had no clue what to expect. While I had heard of TWICE, I wasn't

Concert Reviews Featured

Perfect end to a tour - in Chicago - with Night Cap

On Thursday, April 2, 2026, Night Cap's "It's Happening" 2026 Tour came to end in Chicago's very own Chop Shop - in Wicker Park - after almost two months. I've been to the venue once before, but it's

Concert Reviews Featured

Local Chicago band, The Fresh Bears, rock out at SubT

The one thing about the local music scene in Chicago is that there's a lot of unseen talent that, unfortunately, goes very unnoticed. This year, it was a goal of mine to really find more local bands to see what diamonds I would be able to find. The

Concert Reviews Featured

The ever-so-stunning Sabrina Claudio wins over Chicago

On Thursday 19, 2026, Sabrina Claudio brought the heat with her to Chicago (House of Blues). While it wasn't quite mid-spring/summer hot, it was a beautiful day for what Chicago had been the previous few days. There was something about the way she walked out in her

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Heavy, dark, melodic riffs with Orbit Culture in Chicago

Sweden's own Orbit Culture came through Chicago's House of Blues like a storm with their intense, but melodic, sound and bright flashing lights. The crowd was already warmed up from the previous acts. Just by looking at them, you could tell they were ready for blood.

Concert Reviews Featured

We (Chicago) were Kicking [Our] Feet with Ruel

It's always a good time when I get to hang out with the House of Blues Chicago crew. This time around, I was here to see Ruel and his opener Arthur Hill. While I had known about Ruel, Arthur was not someone I was familiar with, but I

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Irishmen, Somebody's Child, make an early stop in Chicago

The night starts off on a not-so-chilly Tuesday night (2/24) in Chicago's very own Beat Kitchen. The air outside was easy to breathe.. it wasn't thick like it is in the summer, nor was it sharp like on those negative degree days. This was a

Concert Reviews

Chicagoans pour, and rock, their hearts out with Badflower

On February 22, 2026, Badflower stormed into Chicago just like they were the second winter - right through the false spring. They didn't come alone. Badflower also brought along two other powerhouse bands, Point North and Olive Vox. I wish I had a better view of these guys

Concert Reviews

Schur brings the vibes and good times to new(er) Chicago venue, Garcia's

When I heard that Andrew Schur - stage name Schur - was coming to Chicago, I knew had to be in attendance. While I only started listening to Schur in ~2024, with songs like "Dream Seller," he has that unique sound and talent that just makes you keep

Concert Reviews

Hit after hit, Mexican rock band, Enjambre, packs a punch to remember at sold out Chicago show

We start off this windy, cold Sunday night (2/8/26) at the House of Blues Chicago, where the only thing harder than maneuvering to the front of the packed venue was waiting in the cold in a line that never seemed to die down. It was almost 8PM and

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Erin LeCount crosses the pond for her first US shows

Erin LeCount's first stop in the US is Chicago - joining us for her La Lune Tour.

Concert Reviews

Hollyy & Friends take over Park West during mini snow storm - in hopes of melting ICE

First and foremost, many thanks to the Hollyy team for having me and letting me there to capture some moments from the show. Genuinely, what a cool and chill group of guys. As the header states, they were joined by [three] other amazing artists/bands: Runner & Bobby, Sarah Krohn,

Concert Reviews

La Santa Cecilia brings a heartwarming performance amidst tough times and cold, stormy weather

What beauty.. what sound.. what marvelous music coming from this Los Angeles-origin band, La Santa Cecilia. I almost feel ashamed to say that it wasn't until recently that I had heard about this lovely group, and they're based out of my home county. To say that

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The marvelous Elena Rose melts Chicago with her warm embrace

WOW WOW WOW!! The amazingly talented and beautiful Elena Rose tackled Chicago's single-digit (and even negative) temps like it was nothing - filling the always-amazing House of Blues Chicago. Where crowds normally stop coming out due to lower temps, I was in complete disbelief when I arrived at

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Odisseo sets foot in Chicago as their second stop in their debut U.S. tour

Odisseo, a Mexican alt-rock band, set out on their debut U.S. tour at the beginning of December. Though they are only making a handful of stops here in the U.S., I am sure we will be seeing more of them soon. Odisseo, a name that that is derived

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Life is always "Eternal Joy" (tour) with Motherfolk

Chicago was stop #19 of 21 of Motherfolk's "Eternal Joy" Tour. As the opening band, they brought along The Silkies, a band that I was all too unfamiliar with (unfortunately). The Silkies, an indie rock band, has calming and melodies - but the forefront of their

Concert Reviews

Brothers, Xavi & Fabio Capri, bring a unique style to their "X-Tour"

Xavi's "X-Tour" made its way through Chicago on November 28th and brought along a very unique stage set-up and style of performance. Of course, Xavi didn't come alone. As his opener, he brought his older brother, Fabio Capri, who got the crowd all warmed

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The soulful blues/rock duo, Bird and Byron, blow Chicago performance out of the water

On November 23rd, 2025, rock/soul duo Bird and Byron stopped by Chicago's Beat Kitchen as the 8th stop of their "Steadyrock Dreamstate Tour." I won't pretend that I have been a long time fan of theirs that has been listening to them since

Concert Reviews

Sounds of generations come to life in Chicago with co-headliners Seether and Daughtry

I feel like every time I am here (writing and at the Aragon Ballroom) I find myself saying that there aren't that many bands that make it this far and for this long, and every time I somehow manage to eat my words. Though, that's not