Dreamworks records in ’99 and ’00 helped to craft two hard to forget records unique from one another – one stemming from sElf, who produced a grandiose record responsible for this blog, amongst countless other oddities. And then Dreamworks hoped to continue the Chicago 90s rock boom into the 21st century. For the label, this venture into the Midwest never garnered monetary success; but for the keen listener,closely following an era, a movement, aural pleasure care of guitars never left Chicago. Take the quartet Cupcakes, a sonically space-like act that carried over the crunchy guitar sound from yesteryear into their 2000 s/t debut. Light, sweet power-pop melodies are sprinkled throughout most tracks. Soft, yet tightly layered build-ups exist throughout most 13 tracks, that are precursors to eruptions of walls of sound.
Living through this era was difficult – I was at the age where strutting into a bar, a Chicago rock show, wasn’t an option. Luckily though, most acts ventured into all-ages venues; but unfortunately, especially after sitting down again with this quartet’s debut, Cupcakes were an act I never witnessed in all their sonic glory.
Cupcakes :: Intentionally Vague
Not that I know from personal experience, but YouTube showcases a story of Cupcakes being mighty impressive in a live setting. Good looks on the link, JT…
MiS | Moving in Stereo 
http://retrolowfi.com/2007/11/15/criminally-overlooked-021-cupcakes/
Solid, link. I remember seeing that reunion show on the Reader’s site and ignoring it!