Chicago’s live calendar from Thursday, November 19, through Sunday, November 22, offers a compact look at the city’s habit of letting musicians move freely between rock-band force, improvisation, and composition. Yr Knives, Melkbelly XL (Sitzpinkler), and Blue Earth Sound occupy different bills, yet their local connection is clear in the formats: a quartet joining jazz and rock histories, a Chicago noise-rock group with a deep recorded catalog, and an experimental-jazz project led and composed by James Weir. Take the first three nights as a route through experimental music built from ensemble friction and close listening, with each room framing a separate kind of volume.[3][4][5]

Thursday: two guitars, four Chicago paths at The Hideout

Begin Thursday at The Hideout, where Yr Knives appears with TRAYSH and Puzzle House at 8 p.m. The quartet’s makeup supplies the clearest map for the week: guitarists Andrew Trim and Brian J Sulpizio work alongside bassist Douglas McCombs and drummer Quin Kirchner. Western Vinyl describes a band operating across Chicago rock and jazz circles, with two interlocking, overdriven guitars at the center. That makes this an unusually pointed first stop: players associated with Tortoise, Eleventh Dream Day, Health and Beauty, and the improvised-music community bringing an exploratory framework into a club bill. The Hideout lists 7:30 p.m. doors.[1][3]

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Friday: Melkbelly brings the noise-rock charge to Empty Bottle

Friday moves the thread to Empty Bottle for Melkbelly XL (Sitzpinkler), Duck!!, Haruhi, and Wild Zero, scheduled for 10 p.m. Melkbelly’s official page identifies the group with Chicago and lays out a catalog spanning releases including PITH and earlier work. That history gives useful context for a late, multi-act bill centered on a band whose music has long carried a collision of melody, dense guitars, and rhythmic pressure. Empty Bottle’s official site identifies the room as 21+ for its shows.[2][4]

Saturday: Blue Earth Sound widens the frame

Blue Earth Sound’s album-release bill takes the route toward experimental jazz on Saturday, November 21, at Empty Bottle, beginning at 9 p.m., with PXM and a Ferny DJ set. James Weir leads and composes for the project, whose listed players include piano, drums, guitar, flute and saxophone, and bass. The project’s materials foreground a band approach as much as the composer, making it a fitting final turn after Yr Knives’ shared guitar architecture and Melkbelly’s noise-rock density. Blue Earth Sound presents itself as made in Chicago and works with DeepMatter Records.[2][5]

Plan the three-night route

Start Thursday at 8 p.m. at The Hideout, return to Empty Bottle Friday at 10 p.m., then come back Saturday at 9 p.m. Recheck the official venue and artist pages for tickets, door times, age rules, and lineup changes before leaving.[1][2][3][4][5]

Sources

  1. Yr Knives, TRAYSH, Puzzle House — The Hideout Chicago
  2. Empty Bottle — Empty Bottle
  3. Yr Knives — Western Vinyl
  4. Music — Melkbelly
  5. About — Blue Earth Sound