Homeroom's longest-running program continues with songwriters that span roots and folk to electro-pop.
The performers for Songwriter Showcase are:
The Songwriter Showcase emphasizes the craft of songwriting by inviting songwriters from diverse musical backgrounds to perform without a backing band or a full amplifier rig. The Showcase features four songwriters per event who are each encouraged to discuss their song-writing processes and influences in an intimate environment that fosters focused listening and promotes open interaction with the audience.
Axons (a.k.a. Chicago-based songwriter, singer and producer Adele Nicholas) playfully skews and recombines sounds drawn from a diverse palette of 90s indie rock, top 40 pop, electronica and hip hop. Axons' live shows feature Adele performing as a one-woman band, looping percussion, synths, guitars and vocals to create lush sonic landscapes in real time.
Thomas Comerford is a fine craftsman of words, melodies and harmonies whose sound the Chicago Reader describes as “a time capsule from an alternate past, as though a band of 70s Nashville malcontents had learned to harness the beauty of David Bowie in his prime. This isn’t classic rock, but it feels like something classic indeed.”
Deadbeat is American lo-fi solo artist Jessica Risker, who also performs as lead singer of the electro-rock outfit Absinthe & The Dirty Floors. Channeling her songwriting into self-described folk “apatheticisms,” Deadbeat draws influence from the musical stylings of Beck, the do-it-alone attitude of Bob Dylan, and the poetic musings of Daniel Johnston.
Rebecca Francescatti is a prolific songwriter and recording engineer, whose music straddles the groove between city and country. She can often be heard at various residencies around Chicago with her bands Rebecca F. and the Memes and Night Jogger. Rebecca recently made waves for her involvement in a copyright infringement lawsuit against Lady Gaga (2011). Her autumn 2014 essay, “Why You Should Care That Lady Gaga’s Suing Me for $1.4 Million” touched a nerve among songwriters, musicians, and world citizens fed up with the global corporate monopoly on culture.