Collectors Edition presents: Alt-Rock Video Roundup

Hullo!

My name's , and I am a writer-performer guy based out of Chicago. Tonight, (Wednesday, October 24th) at 8PM, my fellow writer-performer buds Richard Joyce and  will be putting on a show at the  called . It's a live essay show based on pop music, featuring monologues and singalongs and some serious deep emotional moments from all three of us. Tears. Feelings. Love.

We're putting on this show because we all love popular music more than anything. We are bona-fide pop-rock obsessives who will end almost every rehearsal with a 20-minute exploration of our favorite Foo Fighters album tracks. We are deeply in love with popular music and Collector's Edition is a direct product of that love. It is an outpouring of affection straight outta our hearts and hopefully into yours.

We also like exploring the strange and neat corners of pop music history. In past shows we've tackled the weird trend of Justin Bieber hatred and dug deep into the history of doomed pop music program Total Request Live. For this upcoming show we're gonna chart the rise and tragic fall of alternative rock radio, a subject that hits us particularly hard. The three of us were kids when Nirvana knocked Michael Jackson off the top of the charts, so we've witnessed the birth and death of alternative rock firsthand. The phenomena of underground alt-rock radio made the mainstream success of bands like Pearl Jam, Green Day, and the Smashing Pumpkins a possibility, making it all the more tragic when it was swallowed up and spit out by corporate masterforce Clear Channel at the end of the 1990s.

So we wonder: what was so important about alt-rock radio? What did we lose when it faded away? Is it still alive today, and if not, could it ever rise again? Tough questions that we will answer, without a doubt, tonight. 

But hey! Why don't we take a quick look at facet of alternative rock we won't be covering at the show: music videos! Man, I love me some alt-rock music videos. Check out a few of my favorites after the jump!

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Interview: Conor Sullivan

You might know ​Conor Sullivan from his work as one quarter of local absurdist sketch group , or as a burgeoning screenwriter (his first screenplay, Sandkicker, was a finalist in 2011's Chicago Screenwriters Competition). Conor is also a huge fan of classic MGM movie musicals from the '40s and '50s, like Singin' In The Rain, Anchors Aweigh!, and Ziegfeld Follies.

While these films are generally regarded by critics and cinéastes as classics, they're hardly fashionable today; with their deliberately crafted and expertly choreographed dance numbers and physical comedy standing out in stark contrast to the modern ambling, overtly improvised mainstream comedy picture. I talked to Sullivan all about his unique passion, and got a few recommendations for those looking to explore this genre further.

Read the full interview after the jump. Read More
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