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I'm curious what people's local music scenes look like. I recently moved from Chicago to Detroit and am feeling it out.

What are the prominent genres?

Your top picks of bands?

What you wish your scene had?

And any other notable info you find peculiar or interesting.



My Answers for Chicago:



Chicago has a huge mix of genres across the city. On the North side has the best Jazz, Experimental, and Rock venues. The DIY/underground scene on the North side is mostly pop though, a lot of indie/surf rock, some great synth rock groups, free jazzers and freaks, a moderate DJ/EDM scene. On the south side is Metal/Punk, Rap, Neo-Soul, more house venues of varying genre, mostly heavier stuff. Not nearly as many venues.

Top picks are:

Woongi - weird synth rockers, heavy use of Prophet Six synth
Fury Hip Hop - Awesome female MC with a killer live band, who are all working class musicians in other bands
Cordoba - Jazz fusion sextet, technically complex and musically accessible
Joanna Connor - One of the best blues guitarists in the City
Goran Ivanovic - Classical/Jazz Fusion on Nylon guitar as solo, duo guitar, and trio. This guy is on another level with his finger style and musical fluidity.
No Men - Punk Trio that keeps the genre fresh
Pixel Grip - The City's best electro/synth/goth group with live drums and synth programming. They're a fun one to see.
Dana Hall Trio - Head of the Music Department at a large school, Depaul, in Chicago. Maybe the best drummer in the city.

I wish there was more accessible classical music and regular chamber orchestras or modern/contemporary ensembles. (Not music but, same feelings on Dance in Chicago also.)

The DIY scene in Chicago is huge. There are many house venues at play. They provide an entry point for new and different bands. The scene is politicized and outs abusers and does not tolerate bullshit from anyone. There are good honest people making it happen.



Looking forward to your answers!

Were you able to get a decent feel for Detroit before all of the pandemic craziness?

I'm a couple hundred miles north of you in a rural "hub". It's sparse here, but there's a surprising number of very talented musicians to play with. Not much good original music to be found: a young punk band who found pot and went soft (not in a good way), and a bass player I've played with forever who writes folk-ish roots rock.

It's mostly classic rock and country covers here, and maybe a third of the bands are any good, but they are GOOD! A lot of really solid guitar players are from my area.

I'm thinking about moving to the Detroit area in the fall. I play guitar in a band with a group of guys who live down there. Not exactly my favorite kind of music to play--not much guitar going on--but they're my pals and they're monster musicians. And the more we play together, the more I find space to do what I like.

I don't feel nearly well versed enough to answer the question, but the loud-volume scene here and around the country is A++++

Yes there is many good loud musics around this island.

Around me there's some really great DIY gigs with a great mix of genres - as well as bigger local stuff. I go to as many of these small gigs as I can and there's a few great little venues (and improvised venues) serving this scene but I would not really claim to be in the know.

Small list of local bands I like (definitely forgetting/omitting a lot of great stuff just because it's off the top of my head):
Ill
Witch Fever
Shuck
Algernon Cornelius
6a6y 6