Four score

Cobalt and the Hired Guns

Chicago music fans, you are in for a treat.

We served up an extremely competitive field of 10 of the city’s best local bands, and Metromix readers narrowed them down to these diverse four acts, all set to rock a free show May 7 at new downtown bar LaSalle Power Co. They’ve got costumes. They’ve got unbridled showmanship. They’ve got perfectly compact, hummable tunes. They’ve got Nintendo.

Who are these bands, you ask? Read on.

Cobalt and the Hired Guns
Base: Wrigleyville, Rogers Park
Experience: Double Door, Congress Theater, Martyrs’, Abbey Pub, Uncommon Ground
“It’s been such an exciting week,” raves Cobalt and the Hired Guns singer/guitarist Matt Hart, 25, of the constant attention gained and promoted by the band during the Rock ‘n’ Vote competition. Now the rowdy Americana-folk-punk foursome can’t wait to unleash their seemingly insuppressible energy on the crowd at LaSalle Power Co. In fact, Hart is glad the new bar’s layout doesn’t allow concertgoers to distance themselves from the performers. At least, not if they want a drink: “I [love] that the bar is next to the stage,” he says, “because you can’t go to the back and hide at the bar.” Once listeners get a taste of Cobalt’s pep—which has helped them land on an iGo Audio Emissions compilation alongside artists like Wilco and Kid Sister—they likely won’t have any inclination to slink away.

Listen: “You Left Your Sweater”

Read about all four bands Metromix readers chose to play the Rock 'n' Vote show

Look back on all 10 finalists for Rock 'n' Vote 2009