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MC CHRIS / WHOLE WHEAT BREAD / I FIGHT DRAGONS
Wednesday Nov 11, 2009 9:00 PM
mc chris (Christopher Ward) was born and raised in the north shore suburbs of Chicago. Upper middle class, chris grew up on a steady diet of G.I Joe, Star Wars and rented betamax tapes. In high school, chris was a big fan of counter culture hip hop after hearing public enemy for the first time. That was followed by alternative hip hop acts, the Pharcyde, De la Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep. chris memorized it all.
An actor, a performer, an artist, and writer, with credits from "The Adventures of Pete & Pete", "Aqua Teen Hunger Force", "Sealab 2020", and "The Brak Show" to his name, mc has plans to return to his cartoon home around 2010 with a project of his very own, “battle hi.”
This show is for ages 18+. Tickets for this show are $12/14. Doors at 8 / show at 9.
I FIGHT DRAGONS | 9:00 PM
 We fight dragons.
I Fight Dragons is Chicago's finest (and quite possibly only) NES-Rock band. They have very detailed delusions of grandeur, most of which include gross misuses of Nintendo products in combination with music in the Popular Rock genre.
This February, they sold out Chicago's Elbo Room as they self-released their debut EP, "Cool Is Just A Number," which has since gone on to chart nationally at 169 on the CMJ College Radio charts, and been featured across Commercial Radio formats in Chicago, on Alternative Rock (Q101), Top 40 (101.9 The Mix), and Independent Rock (93 XRT).
They use a talking computer a lot, or possibly a talking computer uses them a lot. They were selected as the Best new Chicago band for 2009 by Metromix.com. There are several TVs at all of their shows, occasionally showing people playing videogame versions of their songs, while the band plays the songs live on videogame controllers, and everyone's heads explode.
They played a date on this year's Warped Tour. They tend to release free music to their email list every couple weeks (but you already know, since you're on it, right?). This fall, they'll be branching out from Chicago to tour the nation for 2 months with mc chris. All in all, there are 6 of them, and at least one of them is really really cool, but they haven't figured out which one yet. It's Hari.
"I FIGHT DRAGONS is a High-Def concert experience influenced by an 8-bit video game dream world. They are both an audio and visual powerhouse to have at the club" -Brian Bender, Elbo Room Chicago Talent Buyer/General Manager
“I Fight Dragons’ EP, “Cool is Just a Number,” offers such catchy hooks that “irresistible” feels like an understatement.” -Metromix.com
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WHOLE WHEAT BREAD | 10:00 PM
 Jacksonville, FL punk band Whole Wheat Bread has just released their new EP, "Punk Life" which was produced by Travis Huff (Fall Out Boy, Pharcyde). It is their second release for Fighting Records, following up last year's "Minority Rules" which has sold more than 15,000 copies so far. The new EP showcases the band's traditional punk influences while also working their love for all things crunk into their sound. "Punk Life" includes new originals plus remakes of crunk classics gone punk.
The boys did such a good job on the remakes that within days of posting their version of Lil Jon's "I Don't Give a F*ck" on their MySpace page, none other than the King of Crunk himself got in touch about collaborating. Whole Wheat Bread and Lil Jon have since done sessions together in world-class studios in Hollywood and Las Vegas. No word yet on when the collaborations will be released but it's safe to say fans of both acts are in for a treat.
It's been a rollercoaster ride for Whole Wheat Bread. The same week they got the call from Lil Jon, they also heard from their punk rock heroes Rancid who invited the band to open some dates on their tour. The band seemed to have an unstoppable upward momentum when everything came crashing down (or seemed like it would).
While on hiatus from the band, WWB's bassist Nick Largen was arrested on first-degree robbery charges in Buffalo, NY (and was later sentenced to 7 years). The band had a difficult decision to make especially since Nick was the brother of WWB's drummer Joseph. The band decided to push on with a new bassist, 21-year old Johnny Rock formerly of the Atlanta-based El Pus, who released one album on Virgin Records. Interestingly enough, WWB never ended up missing a single show despite losing 1/3 of the lineup unexpectedly.
Since then, WWB has continued their rise from the underground. "Minority Rules" recently debuted on Billboard Magazine's Heatseekers Chart. XM Radio is spinning their music in the states while BBC Radio 1 is playing them in the UK. MySpace, MTV On Demand, Much Music (the Canadian equivalent of MTV) and MTV Latin America have all featured the band's video for "Old Man Samson". "Minority Rules" is also out in Japan on Ambience Records.
Not bad for a band started by Trinidad native Aaron Abraham who grew up in the slums of Miami but attended a multi-racial school where he discovered punk rock. "We were broke and we lived in the worst ghetto areas of Miami for most of my life." Aaron's parents wanted a good education for him "so they drove me 30 minutes everyday to a school near the beach" where he was exposed to all kinds of musical influence. "I got into Green Day at a young age, which was exactly the same time I started playing guitar," says Abraham "but I was also rapping too." Today, Abraham is doing both, bringing fans of punk and hip-hop together with a sound that includes elements of the best both genres have to offer.
Whole Wheat Bread continues to earn supporters among the game's elite. It's not just Lil Jon and Rancid either (as if that wouldn't be enough!). Nonetheless it is testament to WWB's music that they have believers in major players who live on distinctly different sides of the fence - WWB has toured with established punk bands like Bouncing Souls, Suicide Machines, The Aquabats, MxPx, Reel Big Fish and others. On the hip-hop side (in addition to Lil Jon of course), there's Killah Priest of Wu-Tang (who recently opened for WWB) not to mention an upcoming performance with legendary rapper Rob Base at the Bamboozle festival in New Jersey this May.
Whole Wheat Bread represents the future of music where punk rock and hip-hop can live together on the same playing field. They co-exist with groups like Gym Class Heroes (another act they've toured with) and Atmosphere - bands breathing hip-hop into the punk scene. To Whole Wheat Bread, they've never known anything else.
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MC CHRIS | 11:00 PM
 mc chris (Christopher Ward) was born and raised in the north shore suburbs of Chicago. Upper middle class, chris grew up on a steady diet of G.I Joe, Star Wars and rented betamax tapes. In high school, chris was a big fan of counter culture hip hop after hearing public enemy for the first time. That was followed by alternative hip hop acts, the Pharcyde, De la Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep. chris memorized it all. At eighteen, he was accepted to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where he studied life drawing, video production and screenwriting. Leaning towards film, chris transferred to New York University in New York City. There he interned on “The Adventures for Pete and Pete,” wrote giant screenplays and made music on his suitemate’s 8 track. Like Run DMC and the Beastie Boys, mc chris recordings began in an NYU dormroom.
After school, mc took on a series of production assistant jobs including the final year of Michael Moore’s series, “The Awful Truth.” It was around that time that mc began studying and performing at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade theater in New York City. The east coast equivalent to the Groundlings or Second City, UCBT is home to many familiar faces, people you see on the office, SNL, Conan, countless commercials. One night after ripping tickets at the ucb where he interned to pay for classes, chris went out for a beer and got discovered by David Willis, creator of “Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” voice of Carl and Meatwad. Chris wasn’t ready to leave NYC for the ATL and instead took up a job as animator on Dave’s friend Adam’s show, “Sealab 2021.” mc went on to animate the first few seasons as well as provide the voice of Hesh in numerous episodes. His skills as an actor, a performer, an artist, and writer were all put to use on Sealab. The show moved down to Atlanta to be close to the Cartoon Network. mc followed suit sensing this was an opportunity of a lifetime and that maybe adult swim might take off.
Adult Swim was a hit, maybe not so much so in the beginning, it premiered one week before September 11, but eventually it went on to beat every single station in the much coveted demo of male 18-35. It beat out Leno and Letterman, Conan and Kimmel and continues to do so. mc thankfully found his way into many shows. He served as production assistant on “Aqua Teen Hunger Force” as well as “The Brak Show.” He voiced MC Pee Pants four times, five including the movie (“Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters”) six including the video game just recorded in LA. His voice also appears in “The Brak Show” where he wrote two episodes, including a rap opera which guest starred cee-lo (after his first solo album, pre gnarls.) His drawings found their way into every show including the last episode of “Space Ghost Coast to Coast.” mc was promoted to assistant producer and made on air content for the late night block, but a life in music was calling.
During his entire stint with Adult Swim, mc was writing rhymes, recording music and self releasing albums. Albums were followed by tshirts. And the money rolled in. Adult Swim never had a problem with mc moonlighting as a rapper, they in fact continue to make commercials for his albums and drop his website every once in a while in their black and white cards. They encouraged chris to give the music a chance full time and he did. After one month of touring, mc had made twice his annual salary. All shows had sold out. Lines wrapped around the venues. mc was in no way expecting a slam dunk but that’s what it was. After a year of doing pretty much nothing but touring, mc took off half a year to make his fourth album, dungeon master of ceremonies. It premiered at number 13 on itunes hip hop the day it was released, it peak at number nine after mc asked his fans to bump him into the top ten and onto the homepage. The album was followed by a record breaking tour and articles in Newsweek, High Times, and Playboy.
After such a strong debut the industry noticed and called mc in. they literally asked how he did it, without marketing or advertising. They wanted to understand what was happening to the world around them with a few hits but mainly declining numbers, rampant file sharing etc. Chris was given a head start over most indie acts in that he was on cable television but what’s more, he’s cultivated his fan base, he’s become an intrinsic part of their lives. With 70,000 myspace friends, mc chris has created a small army of nerds; the recluse, the outcasts, the disillusioned, all thanks to blogging and signing cd’s after shows and taking pictures and being accessible to the kids. Thanks to interacting with his audience, mc chris has created a water cooler phenomenom without the usual street team costs. After doing three hundred live mc chris shows, mc has laid down the groundwork for advancement into bigger markets, bigger rooms. Venues like him because his mic check’s five minutes, the place sells out and the kids pay their tabs on time.
Currently mc chris is working with his new booking agent, Peter Schwartz (De la Soul, Tribe Called Quest, Black Sheep, Del the Funky Homosapien, Hip Hop Harry) and lawyer, Jennifer Justice (Jay-Z) on getting organized for a new era, a new album and a national tour to follow. Peter told mc to get a passport so shows overseas are expected. Also this summer, mc chris merchandise, often sold out online, is finally forging ahead into the world of retail, where mc will release his first pirate shirt (following successful ninja and zombie designs.) After recording three more rap albums (six feet under and rising, hella wicked and race wars,) mc has plans to return to his cartoon home around 2010 with a project of his very own, “battle hi.”
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