Mahjongg

Chicago party animals, Mahjongg, originally from Columbia, MO, may be nearing the top of Chicago's 'local band' heap, but if you haven't heard of them yet it's probably because their music has made it quite difficult for locals to nail them down in a 'scene.' Mahjongg's shows are always ragers, which often leads attendees to shove (or drop) the actual musicianship from their memories - a shame since they're onto something pretty damn cool.

Their music toes the slightly familiar line between rock and dance music (a la Mouse on Mars), but also manages to work in the grooves of coastal revivalists like !!! and Out Hud. Their points of reference may not dig quite as deep, but the overall product is exactly what it seems to aim for - a good time. Mahjongg's full-length debut, RaYDONcoNG 2005, is available on (the now defunct) Cold Crush Records.

Their sophomore long play was released in 2008 via K Records. Kontpab/i] saw Mahjongg exploring african percussion and develop their sound through even more eclectic electronic palette.