Strange 90s

Metro // Chicago, IL // March 8, 2019

Naked Raygun, Andrew W.K., and Kill Hannah played the biggest hits from one of the best decades of music, all for Jerry Bryant.

It takes a lot to get some of the biggest Chicago bands and some of the biggest bands of the 90s to get together for one night of music. But nearly a dozen bands did just that in honor of Jerry Bryant, founder and presenter of JBTV. For those who don’t know, JBTV is the longest running music television program and was started in 1984 by Bryant here in Chicago. Since then, JBTV has helped boost the careers of countless bands, including Fall Out Boy, Radiohead, and Wilco. Unfortunately, Jerry Bryant was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the fall of 2018 and had to undergo several surgeries and chemotherapy. While his prognosis is good, his medical bills are staggering. Thus, the Strange 90s benefit was created to give back to one of the kindest dudes in the Chicago music scene.

Jerry Bryant of JBTV and Lauren O’Neil of 101WKQX

Aside from an auction of signed memorabilia and a massive raffle, concert goers were treated to a ton of amazing music. Chicago bands Marina City, Madina Lake, and the Lovehammers opened the night with covers of Michael Jackson, Stone Temple Pilots, and Nine Inch Nails. LPX, the only female act of the night, stole the show with her covers of Alanis Morissette and Fiona Apple.

LPX

One of the best moments of the evening was when Kill Hannah reunited and played together for the first time in years. The emo band got their start thanks to Jerry Bryant. “They were handing out flyers outside the Metro, so I got them in”, said Bryant before introducing them. Mat Divine sang the band’s biggest hits “Kennedy” and “Lips Like Morphine”, and hundreds of nostalgic 30-somethings sang right along with him.

Kill Hannah

Local H, a legendary Chicago band, played an incredible rendition of Radiohead’s “Creep”. Lead singer Scott Lucas jumped into the crowd and had the audience sing along with them. Party rocker Andrew W.K. came out and played his biggest anthem, “Party Hard”, but that was the only song he played. It was a real letdown to only hear one song from W.K., but at least he played his best hit.

Andrew W.K.

After FOUR hours in a photo pit (we didn’t leave the entire time, and it was the longest I’ve ever been in a pit!), Naked Raygun ended a night of incredible music and played some of the best covers of the evening. My personal favorite was their cover of The Flaming Lips’ “She Don’t Use Jelly”. The night was a triumph of kickass music for a good cause, and it was one of the best nights I’ve had in a long time.

Naked Raygun

Strange 90s