GRINNER
Indie / Rock / Post Hardcore
When I first saw Grinner on a summer night at Chicago's Big Horse, they were so loud I had to watch the show from the curb on Milwaukee Ave. I bought my first pair of earplugs for their next show a few streets over at The Mutiny, but they were so drunk all I could do was stand and stare in voyeuristic horror. It's the kind of unofficial induction into the city's dues-paying music community that no one foresees, but everyone endures. A series of libertine guerilla gigs and pair of EPs saw the boys make the coveted jump to the North Side's best venues. Taut, intelligent songwriting proved they belonged there, and so many months of rent panic in the big city bestowed upon them the maturity to divide music from scene. In the winter of 2006 they recorded debut "The Trap" with longtime hero Matt Talbott at Great Western Record Recorders. It is a richly and relentlessly compelling group of songs, and one that will doubtlessly ensnare fans of Hum, Shiner, and Radiohead. -Andrew Morgan
