Var Gallery Presents: Jessica Risker & Caley Conway with special guest, Kid Coolie

Tickets on sale now!

$10 presale (plus service charge)

$12 at the door

Doors: 7:30pm

Show: 8:00pm

Jessica Risker

Jessica  Risker is a musician and visual artist based in Chicago, Illinois.   Risker’s music fluctuates between electro-psychedelic/experimental  albums, instrumental music box lullabies, and psych-folk songs.  From  the neopsychedelic/garage rocker ’Won’t You Meet Us In Vegas?, to the  space-folk 'Zero Summer Mind’, Risker’s continuous genre shifting is  inspired by dual desires to 1) experiment with soundscapes made possible  by modern recording techniques, and 2) craft melodies, lyrics, and  structures pared down to their most basic elements.   Risker's  latest album, the psych-folk gem "I See You Among The Stars" was  released to critical acclaim via Western Vinyl in 2018.  Risker is  currently working on a new psych-folk album written during the  pandemic.  Risker currently performs with Joshua Wentz (synths and  electronix), Brian Weza (bass) and Jenn Romero (flute and vocals).   Risker  also hosts a weekly podcast called "Music Therapy With Jessica  Risker".  The podcast's goal is to explore creativity, artistic careers,  and other issues meaningful to musicians, and offer mental health  awareness and support, based on Risker's professional experience as a  psychotherapist.   To learn more about Jessica Risker, visit https://jessicarisker.com/

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Caley Conway

"Bringing  a brilliant songwriting spirit that focuses on melody and earnestness,  Conway's music is relatable to a wide audience beyond the roots world,"  No Depression Magazine praises Caley Conway for her intimately arresting  voice and beautiful take on classic folk songwriting. Warm choral  harmonies, deft guitar solos and detailed storytelling seal a “Joni  Mitchell meets early St. Vincent” vibe (as she self-describes her  now-hallmark sound). Across her career, Conway has nimbly shared stages  with folks like Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker, Anaïs Mitchell, Haley  Heyndrickx, Lomelda, and beyond, and Milwaukee Magazine emphasizes that  easygoing expertise - “With a rare voice and sharp, detailed lyrics,  (Conway) commands the center of her songs with a quiet ease that  suggests she’s been at this for a while.”

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Kid Coolie

Kid  Coolie and their creations are the inventions of writer and performer  Bryan Rogers, whose highly anticipated debut EP, Stolen Pages from Past  Ports is poised to captivate audiences from Anderson.Paak to Lianne La  Havas and D'Angelo upon impact. Though crafted with a curious disregard  for societal notions of genre, the Kid's sound is both warmly familiar  and enticingly foreign. It's nineties R&B rinsed in the tropical  waters of the Caribbean. Evocative folk with suggestions of jazz  undertow. Vivid storytelling on hushed and breaking vocals.