This admission might be a waste of time simply because you've already come to the conclusion that I am definitely an idiot. If you weren't 100% certain before today, then get ready for some closure. I don't like dealing with music in the electronic age. It annoys the hell out of me when someone IM's or emails me a record. I don't know what unzipping a file means. I couldn't tell you the difference between a stream and an mp3. It's just not my style. Granted, in a lot of cases, it must be done especially if it's a record that hasn't hit the physical world of regular publicity distribution outlets. In this case I'll call Josh or even Noah and hopefully they can help me figure out how the hell to hear the advance copy of the new hot shit. More often than not I'm a late bloomer, but sometimes the extra edge happens to fall in my lap and on Sunday, that edge was Shannon's computer.

Since I've known Larry Fitzy, she has pimped her roots like Jay-Z pimps Marcy. Along with this love for the Windy City comes a requisite push for her friend Ed's label Brilliante Records. Yes, my early thoughts were clouded with skepticism as most friends try to hype their friend's work, but more often than not they end up directing me to the corner of Front Street and Perpetration Avenue. On Sunday, Larry sat me down and cluttered my iPod with a few unknowns and a band I've only heard about through Bitchfork. Oh, she also put on some other tracks, which lead me to a whole other question that will be addressed later. So onto the music…

First on the chopblock is The M's whose name you would recognize from their Pitchfork praise during the promo push for their festival last summer. The M's seem to reference all the right 60's and late 70's rock bands that we've come to know as stapples, but upon first listen I had a different reaction. Their sound recalls the lo-fi rock goodness of Guided by Voices, if Robert Pollard and his crew of misfits swapped their bottles of Bud and Jack Daniels for some Red Stripe and Vodka Tonics. All this means is they are a bit more sophisticated than GBV and incorporate more instrumentation into their songs, but they are definitely grounded by the raw rock n' roll that we've come to enjoy. Yes, they intermingle characteristics of Nugget style rock into their sound, but it's easy to hear why they call the Midwest home. Their full-length debut came courtesy of Polyvinyl (home to Of Montreal - a band The M's should support on the road), but Brilliante has released their first three EPs in one nifty little package. If you don't know where you come from, then you don't know where you're going.

Second band in question is Venue who tackle a sound very different from The M's and immediately force you to recognize the label as a home for a diverse group of artists. The initial reaction to the Venue tracks passed my way is that these kids are the understudies of The Faint. It makes me wonder what's in the water coming off the Lake. Chicago is certainly producing a wide array of talented artists who don't necessarily fit into one big geographic puzzle, but they are all intertwined in some fashion - Brilliante being the binding glue. Think of dark synth rock that forces a foot tap, but would have you avoiding a dark alley in fear of the unknown. The result is something alarmingly sexy and futuristic, but it finds normalcy in the beats that you'd find in any club circa 1990. They are creating the rhythms that suck me in and refuse to let go - and I like it.

My final look is at New Sense which (surprise) is a Chicago based group that sounds as if they are big fans of the Manchester scene when The Happy Mondays and New Order blew it off the map, (who the hell is Moz anyway). Rising from the ashes of Camden and sharing members with Promise Ring and Decibully, this band isn't new to the beat. Brilliante's website goes onto explain the origin of New Sense as an exploration in production. Apparently most of their first recording were written as rock songs, but once Camden fell apart they hit the studio and with the help of Kristian Riley, William Seidel and Ryan Weber were able to take their music in a new direction. At times the tracks have a distinct dance feel even going as far to reference an artist like Jamiroquai or Phoenix. On the EP Flowers Before Hours it becomes clear that New Sense aren't constrained by this electronic-pop sound that characterized their debut, self-titled EP. On the second EP they return to some of the rock that might have emerged on the first record if a full band would have played on the EP. Check them out if you are interested in a band that takes the Costello style from The Changes and blends it with an English dance rock sound found stateside in NYC's Soft.

So that's my look at Chicago's Brilliante Records. You should dive right in and give them a gander. There are all sorts of samples of these three bands on the web site along with the other bands on their roster that I've yet to make an acquaintance.

Ok, so if you are still reading, you are a trooper. The other question that is weighing oh-so-heavily on my mind is: which Arrested Development song is better - Tennessee or Mr. Wendel? Also, the two Joggers' records are quite different. Though they are rooted in the same sound, is there a dangerous progression pattern that is leading them into the freak-folk genre? I dig on bands like Devendra (when he isn't being a crystal hugging hippie) and Akron/Family (when they decide to bring the rock), but I'm a bit nervous The Joggers could one day lose the accessibility that made the first two records so amazing.

And if anyone is near Washington Square Park South today, give me a call so I can come meet you. Someone needs to punch me where my balls should be for staying in and working last night as opposed to seeing the Deerhoof show at Bowery.