If you browse the postings on Chicago's musician's craigslist page, you'll eventually run across some people posting ads that look as if they were written by a fourth grader, complaining about a bar in Lincoln Park called Lilly's. Common complaints were that the bar had bad sound, a bad stage, shorted bands out of money, or were generally unprofessional.
Well, my band The Shakedown played the dreaded Lilly's bar a couple weeks back, and let me tell you...it was fine. Here's my little review of Lilly's.
Atmosphere: Very good, laid back. The brick floors were cool. And the bar even had a few built-in customers that saw the music. No problems there, IMO. Yes, it was small, but that just made the show better. Nothing for a good punk-rock show like having the crowd be standing three feet in front of you. There was plenty of room in the upstairs section too.
Staff-The bartender was cool, he talked to us after the show about music, etc. The bouncer didn't talk to us very much but we didn't have any problems with him. The booking agent left after the first band, but who gives a shit? We still got to play.
Sound/Stage-Lack thereof, I should say. This seemed to be the most common complaint. The stage was really just a small area set aside for the bands, cramped uncomfortably in between the barstools and a wall. There was no "backstage." The PA was good, but the only thing we miced was the bass drum on our kit. Other than that, it was totally live, a real punk rock show. And it sounded great. To the bands that bitched about the club having bad sound: Have you considered that perhaps you suck?
Money-We drew a decent crowd, but as they said, we had to split the money with the sound guy/bartender, and 2 other fantastic bands (one of them, the Skis, are mentioned in our "Bands to Watch For" section.) But we did get paid almost 100 bucks. Not bad in my book. Also, the band had no problem getting free drinks.
Location-Well, it's in the middle of the bar district of Lincoln Park, near DePaul, so there is a lot of foot traffic. However, being just a few blocks down from legendary blues joint Kingston Mines doesn't help, and it's a small bar with not much of its own draw. This is honestly the worst thing about the club in my opinion.
Overall-One of the best gigs we ever played. I can't say how much that has to do with the club and how much with our new rehearsal space at Knox Avenue, but I can say I have no problems whatsoever with Lilly's and recommend it to any band looking to play out and have a good time on a Saturday night.
Lilly's
2515 N Lincoln Ave
Chicago, Illinois 60614
(773) 529-1600
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