OffCenter ft Congress of Starlings, Bridget Lyons, Erick DeShaun Dorris

Center on Halsted is veering OFF CENTER in our new monthly performance showcase. We're featuring live sets from LGBTQ community musicians in a laid-back setting. The night welcomes noted Chicago acts Congress of Starlings, Bridget Lyons, and Erick Deshaun Dorris. Come out, kick it and relax with the Center on Halsted community to unwind from the week. $10 suggested donation benefitting our Homeless Youth Initiative http://www.centeronhalsted.org/youthhousing.html CONGRESS OF STARLINGS Chicago-based Congress of Starlings progressive folk-rock fills the room with fun energy, magical lyrics, stellar harmonies, and challenging reflections on nature, gender, and humanity. Aerin Tedesco and Andrea Bunch have been entertaining midwest and east coast audiences for over a decade at folk, rock and college clubs. Fans will catch COS as an intimate duo or as a four-piece band with their stunning rhythm section; Greg Nergaard and Janet Cramer. Known primarily for gorgeous vocal harmonies and stellar songwriting, Andrea & Aerin do not settle for the standard folk stasis of guitar and voice. Instead they employ a wide palette of sounds and instruments from Aerin's ever-present tenor guitar to Andrea's computer generated tones. Their live show ranges from traditional acoustic folk to laptop tinged anti-folk and back again.The duo released their first collaborative album ALBEDO in November 2006. Recently, the duo supported their separate solo albums Numinous (Andrea) and Birthmark (Aerin) by performing together at many colleges and festivals including Iowa Women’s Music Fest, Estrojam, National Women’s Music Fest, and Old Town School of Folk Music’s Queer is Folk Festival. Along the way they have shared the stage with talent such as Dar Williams, Melissa Ferrick, Michelle Malone, Kinnie Starr, Lowen & Navarro, Zoe Lewis, Gail Ann Dorsey and Ember Swift. BRIDGET LYONS Bridget Lyons is a singer songwriter from Chicago, IL and is currently touring the U.S. Most recently has completed a full length LP, "LOVE FOR A GUN" which will be available on I-Tunes, CD BABY, RHAPSODY ETC. along with past albums currently available. In 2008 after having music featured in an offical selection film of the SXSW multi-media conference in Austin, TX Bridget finished her first EP (Long Kiss Goodnight) and is now on the road promoting and performing her LP. She was an official musician of SXSW 2010, and she has performed with a wide range of artists including but not limited to Brandy Norwood, The Flobots, Kidd Russell, Kosha Dillz, and Tristan Silverman. ERICK DESHAUN DORRIS Erick Deshaun Dorris ("EDD") is an artist and educator based out of Chicago. As an artist, he claims to be the love child of Nina Simone and Wesley Willis. As an educator, he is a cross between Alvin Ailey and Geoffrey Canada. He performs infrequently, maintains a highly curated online presence and claims to have an "Absurdist" aesthetic. If you are ever at a show and someone screams, "That's my cousin!” you are probably in the same room with Erick Deshaun Dorris.