A suburban bar with sensational bands, once again, rocked last night when City of the Weak and Echo Black performed at the House of Music and Entertainment, better known as H.O.M.E., in Arlington Heights, Illinois, thanks to RWK Entertainment.
This venue has been bringing great acts through their establishment for nearly a decade. H.O.M.E. welcomes local groups starting out to internationally acclaimed musicians to their stage in their 15,000 square foot theatre.
H.O.M.E. most recently added a second stage in their front room and this was my first time seeing a show there. Rockin’ the new stage last night were vibrant Minneapolis-based alt-rockers, City of the Weak, and Echo Black, a mysterious dance-rock group from New York City. These two bands are in the middle of a 25 city nationwide tour titled “Turn it to 11 Tour.”
I’ve had the pleasure of seeing City of the Weak several times. I first witnessed their amazing skills at the inaugural Chicago Open Air Festival at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois back in July 2016. Let me tell you, they are amazing. I’ve also seen them in smaller venues like Route 20 in Sturtevant, Wisconsin where they opened up for Shallow Side, Deadset Society and 9ELECTRIC. Their energy is insurmountable, they perform the same way at all of their shows. Whether they’re in front of a mass crowd of 10,000 people or performing at an intimate club with 100 onlookers.
City of the Weak is fronted by female vocalist, Stef with an F, who clearly belongs on the stage. Her show(wo)manship is stellar and draws you in from the first note to the last. She uses the stage with power and is absolutely stunning and very friendly. Their guitarist, Brent, makes playing look effortless as he is the ultimate six-string slammer during his show. Cody on bass cannot contain his excitement for performing and is one talented guy. Plus, their touring drummer, Rocky, is an animal behind his drum kit. City of the Weak is anything but weak, as they are strong, polished entertainers and musicians.
Prior to City of the Weak, Echo Black took the stage. I was eager to hear their music as I have never listened to them before. I saw their promo photo on the tour poster online a few weeks before their show. They are comprised of four seductive looking men. In the photo they had the darkest black hair I had ever seen, stylish clothing that looked haute, and heavy makeup. Might I add, their makeup was better than mine, I might need a tutorial from them. Anyway, the band took the stage and played nine songs to get the crowd going and I’m now their newest fan.
Towards the final few songs, Echo Black’s lead singer, Danny Blu, took off his tank top to reveal a corset that fit him like a glove and looked amazing. Echo Black is comprised of Rob Gnarly on bass, Billy Long on drums and Felix Skiver on guitar, however, he was missing in action last night, so they had a replacement for him.
You can catch City of the Weak and Echo Black on their remaining tour dates below:
April 26: Fort Atkinson, WI @ Hijynx
April 27: Battle Creek, MI @ The Music Factory w/ Super Bob
April 28: Williamsport, PA @ Ground Floor 2.0
April 29: Dayton, OH @ Therapy Cafe
April 30: Buffalo, NY @ Mohawk Place
May 1: Worcester, MA @ Raven Worchester
May 2: Asbury Park, NJ @ Asbury Park Music Foundation
May 3: Philadelphia, PA @ Voltage Lounge
May 4: NYC, NY @ The Knitting Factory
May 5: Norfolk, VA @ 37th & Zen
Upcoming events at the House of Music and Entertainment:
April 27: Judas Beast – The Return: The Iron Maiden Experience
April 28: In the Flesh: Pink Floyd Experience
April 29: Themed Trivia Sunday: Contact bar for this week’s theme
April 30: FreeNFun Bar Bingo!
May 3: Line Up! Country Night!
May 4-6: Melodic Rock Fest: The best melodic hard rock from around the world featuing bands from Sweden, UK, Canada, Australia and the USA!
View photos from City of the Weak and Echo Black’s show taken by Janelle Rominski Music Photography below.
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