Lightfoils

I was in the middle of I-55 when it hit me this Lightfoils show was at Empty Bottle and not Subt's. That made the trip shorter and for relatively easy parking. I park right next to the church. My slow healing sprained ankle allows me this Walking Dead limp that I think creeps people out. I make it in time to see Highest Order. It has to be noted here to go see them again. Since 2010 Lightfoils is active in maintaining their place in the Chicago Dream pop/Shoegaze pantheon, and within that Cory plays bass for them....Lightfoils and Panda Riot.  Its actually amazing how so few people are spread about so many bands. One person can count as two bands. I briefly paused to see the Lightfoils shirt by the merch table, dark grey....a welcome and doable change from the usual black. Not quite a stretch for me I know. The band was kind enough to just give me the shirt. I am humbled and eternally grateful. That was after the show. This was my first time seeing the new voice of Jane Zabeth.
  
  Its great to see the band continue. I get my stamp and ask if they started and they were next. Awesome! Its noteworthy to see Cory's Panda Riot bandmates on my way to see who it was that I can hear on the way in, Highest Order. Oh and Corey the drummer from Moritat. He has another project coming as well.
  Suddenly there was this pocket of time that allowed me these unexpected impressions and a cool chat with Cory's girlfriend outside for a cigarette smoke. We went on about e-cigarettes and how totally inadequate they are, diet fucking dog shit.  As we talked a  girl fresh out of her taxi was about ready to hand her money to us to let her in the wrong door. Clearly it was her first time there, but good for her because she still made it on time. So we go inside. Cory as always is so cool with me and I feel at ease among his Lightfoils bandmates as a result. As a pre-sold believer I am not short on reasons to like this band. Perhaps I should go on with it from here since up to this point it was about how I got here and not the bloody music.
  Hearing Jane made a fan out of me all over again. Breezy, fast-playing and still casual as a stroll on a beach. Obviously sweet but with muscle-car balls like in The Italian Job. There is just enough turbulence and strength for Jane to sound right and to make people move. If people are moving its because they are listening, as indeed occurred that Thursday night at Empty Bottle. I noticed about 5 or so. I would have been among them if not for this bloody sprained ankle. For their set I noticed a good concentration of medium-light audience in the front. Urgent /turbulent music over calm-soothing-angelic female voice sound uncommon again.   Notice the bass on Into Deep Sea, for me its the beginning of what makes this song so dance worthy for Sarah and Philly's shoegaze night, or Late Bar. Indeed this trait easily spans all songs on the self-titled EP released on Saint Marie records.They did play a new song that is leaning more aggressive.  However you are hooked, there is more to enjoy from there.  I'm on Facebook and I notice the posts of performers I'm fortunate enough to be friends with. Many live too far away for me to see their gigs. I'm glad to see them active in keeping their music alive. I still feel the sting of not seeing them play. So what I catch feels like something I almost missed, and ever more happy I am for catching it.
Zig