Steve Penhollow
Whatzup Features Writer
Articles
A punk absurdist marching band? Chicago troupe to fill Brass Rail
Mucca Pazza is an Italian phrase meaning “Revenge of the Nerds.” Actually, that’s a lie. Mucca Pazza means “Mad Cow.” That’s what an eccentric music troupe calls itself and, given […]
Indian guitarist offers jazzy mix of East, West
When Indian guitarist R. Prasanna was still a mere boy, he figured out how to adapt one of his country’s vocal traditions to electric guitar. It had never been tried […]
Eagles Theatre spreads its wings
Growing up in Wabash, Crystal Gayle (born Brenda Gail Webb) was a frequent visitor to the Eagles Theatre, which started as a vaudeville showplace in the early part of the […]
Deaf singer lends voice to fundraiser
Singer Mandy Harvey’s new album, Nice to Meet You, has a literary antecedent: Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. To be more precise, Harvey was creatively inspired by one of the […]
‘Guitar god’ lets go of his perfectionism
Eric Johnson is one of the last of the Guitar Gods, a class of musician that lost steam in the 21st century. Great new guitarists continue to materialize. It’s the […]
Piano man stays true to his own pop roots
In 1989, Cleveland ad man Jim Brickman moved to Los Angeles to follow his muse and seek his fortune. Like a lot of people who move to southern California to […]
Improv meets hypnotism in Mochrie, Mecci show
After he decided to shift careers from therapist to entertainer, hypnotist Asad Mecci took a course in improvisational comedy at Toronto’s famed Second City. What he learned is that the […]
Musical gypsies find their home
The guitarist who convinced Devon Allman to pick up the guitar was not his late father, Gregg Allman. It was Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick. “I never was anti-Southern rock,” […]
Indiana-born band unafraid to experiment
The fans of Umphrey’s McGee expect the band to screw up. When Beyoncé screws up on stage, footage of the gaffe always goes viral and the accompanying comments are mostly […]