Lessons at 8:30pm, dancing at 9:00pm

Fridays are live partner dances at Judson & Moore and now you can Swing your way into the weekend with free lessons from Ava Brennan & Harsh Singh.

We have a world class house band featuring Abigail Riccards (vocals), Jeff Stitely (percussion) Stephen Kuhn (guitar) and Arlo Wohlgenant (bass).

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

On Horses, the highly anticipated follow-up to their critically acclaimed debut, Tobacco City, USA, the band takes listeners on a nostalgic journey through the haze of youth, where time feels suspended and plans are nonexistent. The album’s lyrics conjure vivid images of small-town life—smoking schwag behind the grocery store, drinking cream from a gas station with your first love—capturing that carefree, uncertain time when the future felt distant. The music channels the spirit of ’70s country with influences from legends like Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, bringing a timeless, uplifting energy to each track. At the same time, the lyrics intersect with modern-day themes, blending the beauty and innocence of youth with the harsh realities of life. Horses feels like a contemporary take on classic country, merging a nostalgic past with the complex world of today, all while remaining undeniably authentic and heartfelt. This follow-up to Tobacco City, USA—which received high praise from NPR and Rolling Stone—cements the band’s place at the forefront of a new wave of country-tinged Americana

In the midst of the thick New Orleans summer of 2017, Chris Lyons of garage punks Bottomfeeders found himself sitting on a small batch of songs that didn’t quite fit the fuzzed-out pileups of that band. The new songs were more chiming, driving but relaxed, full of little corners begging to be filled with classic pop harmonies and wayward country licks. He called in his trusted confidants: Bottomfeeders drummer and longtime musical partner Lucas Bogner—the two started playing music together at the tender age of 15—plus bassist Pete Campanelli, and Kunal Prakash (Jeff The Brotherhood) dug the songs and signed on, and the quartet started playing in earnest, hunkering down in the practice space. By the time the band played its first gig in late 2018 at the opening of Nola’s ManRay Records, the songs had multiplied and the members of the newly christened Silver Synthetic had become genuine rock & roll craftsmen.

Grace Rogers is a musician & writer based out of Louisville, Kentucky originally from Owingsville, Ky having just released her debut full length album Mad Dogs (Sophomore Lounge, 2025). With accompaniment from a band of Louisville friends (Ian Gordon, Fiona Palensky, Chris Cupp, & Scott Boice), the Grace Rogers outfit blends rock, country, and traditional influences into tunes that, in the words of Leigh Viner, "hum like hymns and drive like rain." Stereogum writes “Rogers has the kind of talent and irrepressible personality that makes a singer-songwriter stand out in a crowded field.”

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Ada Lea is the musical project of Montreal-based artist Alexandra Levy.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

A sense of place has been essential to the music of Brokeback since guitarist/bassist Douglas McCombs first launched the project in 1995. Initially conceived as a solo outlet, the Chicago group has taken on new dimensions over the past two decades, morphing from the lean, pastoral ambience of the first album, Field Recordings from the Cook County Water Table, to the more muscular, taut arrangements and dynamic swells of the last release, Brokeback and the Black Rock, for which McCombs assembled a new quartet lineup. Each album develops with exacting detail, revealing McCombs’s gift for dialing in the essence of a mood, feeling, or distant locale with a handful of reverb-laden guitar tones, elegant and sustained, strategically placed and sparingly deployed. The instrumental landscapes he creates on Illinois River Valley Blues are utterly transportive, evoking familiar open-frontier soundtracks and charting out new sonic territory.

Doors at 8:00pm, Show at 9:00pm

Hailing from the historically rich city of Charleston, South Carolina, Americana music artist Hunter Park is defining what it means to not only live in the modern south, but to be a trans woman and artist within this landscape. Combining folk-infused vocal melodies and evocative lyrics that capture the unfiltered human experience, She Returns From War is taking her seat in the Americana music world with grace, strength, and passion. In 2023, the project shows no signs of slowing down. From opening for Bernie Sanders at his presidential rally in Charleston, to performing at national festivals like Stagecoach and High Water Festival and with artists such as Pat Benatar, Band of Horses, and Nikki Lane, She Returns From War is sharing with the world what the modern south should look and feel like: inclusive, compassionate, unfiltered, and loving.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Jake McKelvie has traveled the DIY touring circuit in the US and UK for over a decade, carving out a niche for himself as a songwriter and performer. Known for his off-kilter and whimsical "stream of self-consciousness" lyricism and charming stage demeanor, he keeps audiences engaged both as a solo performer or with his newly minted backing band, “the New Old Band". He released his latest LP "A New Kind of Hat" in 2024 and has been touring in support of that since.

Advance Base is the melancholic soft rock recording project of Chicago, IL singer/songwriter Owen Ashworth (formerly of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone). Using a two-handed arsenal of electric piano, Omnichord, samplers, effect pedals & drum machines, Ashworth builds minimalist, heavy-hearted, & nostalgia-obsessed ballads around his conversational baritone. The warm, electronic sound of Advance Base has been described as "lo-fi," "depressed" & "weirdly uplifting."

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Matt Ulery with Katie Ernst, Matt Gold & Jim Tashjian Chicago based bassist/composer and bandleader, Matt Ulery, has produced and released 16 critically acclaimed albums of all original music under his name. In 2014, he performed with his quintet, Loom, on the NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series and was featured in Vanity Fair Magazine in a “rising jazz stars” feature article. Known for his sweeping lyricism, unconventional phrase structures, expressionistic emotionalism, Ulery’s music, from small, diverse chamber ensembles to full orchestras, is informed by the entire spectrum of jazz, classical, rock, pop, and folk– specifically American, South American, Balkan, and other European folk styles.

Sydnorigami w/ Matt Ulery & Jeremy Cunningham Curt Sydnor is a musician living in Richmond, VA. He has released six albums as a bandleader and toured/recorded with artists such as Mirah, Janka Nabay, Luke Temple, Cassandra Jenkins, and Peni Candra Rini, with whom he performed at 2025's Big Ears Festival. In 2022 he received a recording grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts to complete his most recent album, Air Ride Equipped. With Deerhoof's Greg Saunier, Curt is currently preparing a series of canons by JS Bach arranged for synthesizers and drums

Angela James with Sarah Clausen Angela James' voice elicits comparisons to classic country artists Patsy Cline and Hazel Dickens, while her emotionally forthright songwriting and penchant for experimentation place her directly in the present. Over the span of 4 records and a 10 year career, her work speaks to horizons in progressive Americana in a way that feels both indebted to and freed from the strictures of time. Her music has been called “smoldering and gorgeous” by the Chicago Reader and featured in the Chicago Tribune, NPR, and Tiny Mix Tapes (RIP), among others. Her latest project is a cycle of conceptual songs imagining the lives of her matrilineal ancestors of the Eastern TN foothills.

come dressed “adorkably” for $50 grand prize!

Doors at 8:00pm, show at 8:30pm

Derry Queen, Lily Reed, Dylan Bragassa and a rotating cast of performers are here to feed you down at THE TROUGH, a new comedy-drag experience that asks the question: what if a girl and 2 gay guys made a variety show?

Featuring:
Sonal Aggarwal, Courtney Tua, Brigid Broderick, Silchele, and Modern Nun

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Shannon Lay’s music is shored by radical empathy. After 15 years of writing, recording and performing her singularly gentle songs in venues around the world, the self-taught singer-songwriter is most concerned with how her music may help people in emotional and spiritual need. In a world of persistent change, Lay’s goal is to have concentrations of love and energy in her work that double as a helping hand or a voice whispering “everything is going to be ok.” The singer’s abiding belief is that immense change also means invaluable transformation and permanent relief. Intention is her North Star. Hailed by publications such as Pitchfork, The Guardian, SPIN and Uncut magazine, Lay’s solo albums, including “Geist,” “August”, “Living Water,” and “All this life goin’ down” are noted for their thoughtful and entirely tender reflections on life’s big questions. Her seraphic voice has drawn comparisons to British folk icons Anne Briggs, Sandy Denny and Vashti Bunyan. Though an old soul, Lay aims to meet her listeners in the present. For her, creating a song, a recording or a live performance that is relatable and communal is of the utmost importance for we are constantly in flux and those unknowns, met with compassion, can be beautiful.

Meernaa is the musical project of Carly Bond, a Bay Area native known for her introspective and genre-bending music. Her sound blends Americana, indie-pop, and classic R&B, often exploring themes of self-examination, addiction, and loss. Bond's emotive vocals and elastic melodies, paired with lush arrangements, create a distinctive sound that has been praised for its depth and accessibility.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

In a musical landscape of period-correct reproduction, “outlaw” internet posturing, and flavor-of-the-month variants on country, JP Harris Is A Trash Fire burns as bright as a dumpster ablaze in a Walmart parking lot on a moonless night; some will fear it, some will gravitate to its acrid warmth, and most will have no idea what to make of the situation.

Even within the rapidly growing world of “underground” country music, Harris still considers himself an outsider, content to inhabit a gray area where punk rock ethos, folk art aesthetic, and the workingman’s ballad mingle. Check out any of his prior releases, his brilliant 2017 EP of duets Why Don’t We Duet In The Road featuring Nikki Lane, Kelsey Waldon and Leigh Nash or flip the page to yet another exceptional project Dreadful Wind and Rain – a string duo collaboration with Chance McCoy (Old Crow Medicine Show) that is an astute sampling of authentic old-time hillbilly mountain music.

Harris has been steadily elbowing the definitive boundaries of “country music” wider with every album, both sonically and lyrically, and his latest piece of self-described “Avant-Country” is no exception. Produced by longtime friend and collaborator JD McPherson, the highly anticipated next chapter JP Harris Is A Trash Fire comes out September 2024 on Bloodshot Records.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Just as the marbled salamanders emerge from under damp logs and leaves, the mushrooms—smooth, pearlescent ones and spongy morels—turn on like night lights glowing in the dark, and the long-horned beetles and regal moths begin buzzing. The fiddlehead ferns and trout lilies curl inward, a copperhead slowly swerves, and a fox steps into the moonlight looking for prey. It is here, in that restless middle of the night, under cover of darkness, where Caleb Caudle’s sixth studio LP Sweet Critters is nestled.

Through sometimes shadowy arrangements that creep and lurk, Caudle continues to mine both the brightest and murkiest corners of his imagination, finding that purest of points where tenderness and grit collide, inspired by musical heroes like Buddy Miller and Guy Clark, and mentors like Elizabeth Cook and John Paul White. It was White who Caudle tapped to produce Sweet Critters, along with Ben Tanner, at the duo’s Florence, Alabama studio Sun Drop Sound. "I was very excited to work with Caleb on this record. Iʼve been a fan for years and count him as a friend,” White says of working with Caudle. “Heʼs a stellar songwriter, so I knew heʼd bring the goods. And he did.”

These songs are a showcase of Caudle’s singular command of language. He sees the world through a hyperreal lens wholly unique to him, one that renders dank humidity “horsefly heat,” a moody sky “cast iron skillet” dark, or a loved one’s “wind chime of a smile.” For Caudle, details are the last frontier in a world where thousands of new songs are created every day. As such, he weaves his intricate tales of redemption, sacrifice, forgiveness, and loss with the colorful threads of living, breathing characters and all the rich idiosyncrasies and ephemera that fill out their worlds.

feat. Teddy & The Rough Riders

Doors at 9pm, dancing at 9:30pm

Last Call Honky Tonk is Judson & Moore's late night two step party. Every month catch a rotating local band play and the bar serves a cheap beer & shot combo for the late night affair. Dance right up until you hear your bartenders yell last call!

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

glow in the dark flowers, southern Illinois’ premiere experimental punk duo, release new record, R.T.Z., following members’ two-year struggle with mental, physical health challenges

Southern Illinois-based artists Glow In the Dark Flowers (Jessee Rose Crane and Philip Jerome Lesicko) will release their sophomore album, R.T.Z. , on August 1st 2025 under their own label, Manic Static. Recorded at Electro Spiral Sound in New Douglas, IL, the record also features contributions from Bosco Nichols and David Vettraino.

Madeleine Aguilar we’re never not moving in space is a collection of songs spanning from 2015 to 2022. They are memories, both joyful and difficult, living under the same roof. They are small, ephemeral moments, memorialised. They are the experiences that make up the person we know as “Madeleine.” She has built us a time capsule, willingly sharing it with us rather than burying it in the backyard. Each track is its own meaningful object, thoughtfully selected and arranged with intention, one building upon the other, adding more information while leaving just enough room for your own memories to slide in. On each track, Aguilar uses repetition as if it were an instrument of its own, a tool, if you will, creating tangibility to what is inherently intangible, which is why it is no surprise that her first recorded record can stand upright, on its own two legs.

feat. Rachel Swain

Lessons at 8:30pm, dancing at 9:00pm

**Lessons start at 8:30pm, Dancing begins at 9pm!

Local Universe presents the two-step night that's taken the city by storm with Rachel Swain! Now lessons are included in the ticket price!

Pull out that vintage cowboy hat, shine up that bespoke bolo, and come pardner-up to dance with someone new and hang with fellow country-queers. There's a grand prize for the best dressed, and even a little something for the runner up! Channel Dolly and Orville and come dressed to impress.

If you need a bit of liquid courage, Judson & Moore's house distilled spirits and handmade cocktails will be available from the bar. If you don't know the steps, sign up for lessons before the night gets going from Billingsley & Earp. Think you have two left feet? The live band and the encouraging crowd will get you swaying in no time!

ABOUT THE LESSONS The Texas two-step is a fun partner dance that is easy to learn, even if you have two left boots. By the end of the group class with instructors Wild Earp & Michelle Billingsley, you'll be armed with the basics of leading/following, two-step footwork, and an easy turn or two; everything you need to feel comfortable two-steppin'. After the lesson, the dance floor will open with the house band!

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

An emerging act at world music festivals across the U.S., Tuvergen Band (“galloping” in Mongolian) is a Chicago-based folk-fusion trio founded by Tamir Hargana (lead vocals, folk lutes, morin khuur), Naizal Hargana (morin khuur, vocals), and Brent Roman (percussion, didgeridoo, vocals) in 2020. Hailing from Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia, Tamir and Naizal bring some of the country’s most distinctive sounds to Tuvergen Band, including the cello-like horsehead fiddle (morin khuur), various folk lutes (the Tuvan doshpuluur and West Mongolian tovshuur), and khoomii throat singing. An ethnomusicologist and Asian percussion specialist, Roman augments these sounds with a custom hybrid drum kit of twenty global percussion instruments and didgeridoo. The trio use this rich instrumental palette to perform what they call “modern nomadic music,” incorporating bluegrass, blues, rock, and more into its repertoire of Mongolian and Tuvan folk songs and originals.

featured guest Mallory Eagle

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Chicago’s cult-hit Cosmic Country Showcase has found a home for 2025 at Judson & Moore. Every other month find this psychedelic, americana revue featuring some of Chicago’s hottest country talent and an out-of-town headliner to close out the night. The Flying Objects back a slew of incredible singers and guests while hosts Andrew Sa & Mary Williamson guide us through two acts of this one-of-a-kind trip.

FEATURED GUEST: Hailing from the historically rich city of Charleston, South Carolina, Americana music artist Hunter Park is defining what it means to not only live in the modern south, but to be a trans woman and artist within this landscape. Combining folk-infused vocal melodies and evocative lyrics that capture the unfiltered human experience, She Returns From War is taking her seat in the Americana music world with grace, strength, and passion.

And her journey has been a wild one. Since founding the project in 2014, She Returns From War has released many singles, including her second full-length album, Mirrored Moon Dance Hall, in 2018. The 11-track release dives into the themes of love, loss, and self-exploration. Now, with a whole new collection of stories to share, she returns with her latest full-length record, co-produced by Joel Hamilton (Mechanical River) and Wolfgang Zimmerman (Band of Horses, SUSTO, Brave Baby). The album is a slow-burn, deceptively hitting the listener with vocal lines that are just as elegant as they are intensely emotional. Look beyond the surface and you just might see that the album is meant for healing the heart.

Now, in 2023, the project shows no signs of slowing down. From opening for Bernie Sanders at his presidential rally in Charleston to performing at national festivals like Stagecoach and High Water Festival and with artists such as Pat Benatar, Band of Horses, and Nikki Lane, She Returns From War is sharing with the world what the modern south should look and feel like: inclusive, compassionate, unfiltered, and loving.

Doors at 6:30pm, show at 7:00pm

IVY WOLK can next be seen in Jonah Hill’s OUTCOME in scenes opposite Keanu Reeves, in Sean Baker's multiple Oscar winning film ANORA distributed by NEON, in Eugene Kotlyarenko's film THE CODE, in Mary Bronstein's IF I HAD LEGS I'D KICK YOU, and in Andrew De Young's film FRIENDSHIP for Fifth Season, opposite Paul Rudd and Tim Robinson.  Ivy starred as PRINCESS KLEPTO, the lead role in an Amazon pilot last year. Ivy recurs on Brian Jordan Alvarez’s comedy ENGLISH TEACHER for FX and was just listed as one of System Magazine’s ‘Ones to Watch.’ Ivy was also a cameo in the Judd Apatow movie THE BUBBLE and is best known for her strong recurring role in EVERYTHINGS GONNA BE OK for FREEFORM. Ivy does stand-up comedy and can be seen in shows throughout New York City.  

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Elly Kace (she/her/they) is a queer sound healing mystic and indie artist living in Brooklyn, NY. Her baroque-pop portals incorporate earthy vocals, sparkling sound worlds and sound medicine to conjure a new paradigm of radical self love. As a lyric soprano, she has sung around the world at venues such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center - but lately you can find her channeling sound meditation performances of her pop songs to sold out audiences in NYC and beyond.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

The tenured music professional with 36 full-length records, Jim Lauderdale has been described as "stylistically restless". He's been at the cutting edge of where Americana has been headed since the 90s jumping from rock and country straight into a bluegrass album with thee Dr. Ralph Stanley and writing hits for the likes of George Strait, Patty Loveless, and George Jones. He'll be in town with his Nashville all-star band the Game Changers tonight.

We don't expect anything less than wild stories, wild antics, and a good time from one of our favorites, Jim Lauderdale.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

E1 Live! is a live recording of the podcast Episode 1. Each episode is the first episode of a different failed podcast. The podcast is bird brained, is dumb, and can give you a nosebleed.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

A new Ambient trio featuring Sarah Clausen, Jordan Martins, and Zander Raymond.

Cake Friends welcomes Chicago's micro cake bakers to a genial showcase of nothing but cake! Come on a Saturday afternoon and enjoy a few slices with some familiar faces.

Cakes frome helloclown, 1-800-Cakes, medium sweet, html.food, & riosantosss

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

You Are The Garden embodies the importance and beauty of compassion, listening, and intentionality through their combined voice. Andy Danstrom leads the group with his unconventional scores and notation, but beyond his composing, the band’s music becomes the product of all the members. Together, they create music that’s like observing plants grow and looking inward. Simple ideas interlock and kaleidoscope together to grow blankets and landscapes of sound that slip away after the show, but spread pollen around to invoke self-love, inspiration, and contentedness. It’s holy music, it’s lovely, it’s magical. It’s the sound of caring. -Izzy Yellen

Hiver (like "driver") is a rock band from Chicago, the songwriting project of upstate NY native Miles Allen. Debut EP "Making There" was released summer 2024. Full-length follow-up "Offers", an improvisation-based collaboration with producer Jason Koth, was released winter 2025. Miles Allen - songwriter | Kevin Krull - octave mandolin | Sam Pratt - bass | Jeremiah Hawk - drumset

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Parker Callahan is a comedian whose blend of humor and music has culminated in his solo show, Soda Pop. He premiered the show in January as part of the TNK Festival, and now SODA POP IS HEADING TO THE EDINBURGH FRINGE 2025!

Join us for one final performance before Parker heads overseas — Wednesday, July 23rd at Color Club. Don’t miss this last chance to catch the show stateside!

Parker was recognized as a 2023 Just For Laughs Festival New Face of Comedy, has toured the world with The Second City, and his stupid little videos have gone viral online despite their gay overtones. As Paul F. Tompkins says, "Parker Callahan has a cheerfully demented energy that instantly draws you in and keeps you there and you like it. You like that this is happening to you." He recently performed at the New York Comedy Festival alongside collaborator Maggie Winters (aka Chicago's Comedy Queen).

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Dave Bixby describes Lefty Parker as “a troubadour and a poet.” Inspired by his hero, Townes Van Zandt, Parker began performing at Cactus Cafe in 2018. He self-released his debut album, Love On The Guadalupe, in 2019, followed by Off San Gabriel in 2021, recorded by Mat Davidson of Twain. In 2024, he released 13, recorded live at Zona Park. Lefty currently lives in New York.

with special guest

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Lizzie No is a folk rock band, a singer-songwriter, and a revolutionary artist in the Black Womanist tradition. Their acclaimed genre-defying third studio album, Halfsies, was released in 2024. Rolling Stone named Lizzie one of their "Future 25" artists of the year, and country ballad "The Heartbreak Store" was nominated for International Song of the Year at the Americana UK awards. The 'Halfsies' tour made stops all across the United States and Europe, including shows with Iron & Wine and Dispatch. In January 2025 they released the electrifying live album Commie Country. As cohost of the Basic Folk podcast and contributing writer at the Bluegrass Situation, Lizzie has interviewed luminaries from across the roots music universe, including Ben Harper, Molly Tuttle, Swamp Dogg, and Billy Bragg. Lizzie was born in the Bronx, raised in New Jersey, and now resides in North Nashville when off the road. They are funding their artistic pursuits via OnlyFans under the username handsomelizzie. No is a graduate of Stanford University, a dues-paying member of the Democratic Socialists of America, and Berlin's mom. Berlin is a dog and a wizard.

with special guest

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves create a sound that is adventurous, masterful, and original, as they expand on the eccentricities of old songs, while never losing sight of what makes them endure.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Toadvine is an alt-country band out of Chicago, Illinois. Their sound is equal parts 60s-influenced garage-y indie rock and equal parts roadhouse bar country; essentially they sound kind of like if Elephant 6 held a jamboree at the Grand Ole Opry.

Lone Rock Bride is an alt-country band based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota. They write songs about poets, pioneers, drifters and dreamers.

Doors at 7:30pm, show at 8:00pm

Sam Prekop’s boundless imagination is guided by his strong sense of melody. For more than 25 years, as a solo artist or as part of The Sea and Cake, Prekop creates a singular sound inventive and warm. His distinctive vocals, guitar playing and work on modular analog synthesizers are inventive, delicate, and always bear his signature sense of melody.

British-born, Chicago-based guitarist and vocalist James Elkington writes introspective, harmonically nuanced songs heavily informed by traditional and progressive folk of the 1960s and '70s. After establishing himself as a staple sideman of Chicago's indie scene, he worked as a collaborator with artists like Jeff Tweedy and Louisville guitarist Nathan Salsburg. He made his own debut with 2017's Wintres Woma and its 2020 follow-up, Ever-Roving Eye, and then produced critically acclaimed albums by Joan Shelley and Jake Xerxes Fussell. Elkington returned to solo work with 2023's all-instrumental double album Me Neither. It was followed a year later by All Gist, his third collection of guitar duets with Salsburg. More intricate guitar instrumentals marked 2025's Pastel de Nada.