Ravinia 2025 Issue 4

GIN BLOSSOMS Founded in 1987 in Tempe, AZ, Gin Blossoms evolved their light jangle-pop sound to cut through the mix of hair bands and grunge music popular on the radio. After a series of personnel shifts while creating its sound, the group created its independently released debut Dusted in 1989 and grew in popularity throughout its home state, resulting in an invitation to play at South by Southwest that same year. Gin Blossoms was signed to A&M Records the following year, with which its first recording efforts were collected onto the 1991 EP Up and Crumbling . Ten months later, after continuing to work feverishly in the studio, in 1992 the group released New Miserable Experience , which became an immediate break- through when “Hey Jealousy” was released as the first single a year later. Charting up to num- ber 25, that success was matched by subsequent single “Found Out About You,” launching the al- bum to four-times platinum certification and a number-30 peak chart position. Gin Blossoms’s second major album, number-10 Congratula- tions … I’m Sorry (1996), was titled in honor of former guitarist Doug Hopkins, who wrote those two hit songs but had died in late 1993. Lead single “Follow You Down” cracked the top 10, and on its B-side was previously unreleased number-11 “Till I Hear It from You,” which the group had recorded and co-written with Mar- shall Crenshaw for the 1995 movie Empire Re- cords . Between 1997 and 2002 the Gin Blossoms went on hiatus, and after further personnel shifts to reestablish its sound, the group recorded its first new studio albums in a decade, Major Lodge Victory (2006) and No Chocolate Cake (2010). In 2012, drummer Scott Hessell joined the band’s lineup alongside guitarists Jesse Valenzuela, Robin Wilson, and Scotty Johnson and bassist Bill Leen; five years later, Gin Blossoms were inducted into the Arizona Music Hall of Fame and embarked on a 25th-anniversary tour of New Miserable Experience . Meanwhile, the band worked on a new album—their first without producer John Hampton since NME —enlisting veterans Don Dixon (Smithereens) and Mitch Easter (R.E.M.) for 2018’s Mixed Reality . Gin Blossoms are returning to Ravinia for the first time since their 2013 debut at the festival. SPIN DOCTORS Spin Doctors’ first album in 12 years is at once a bold leap for a legendary band and the sound of a group truly revitalized. Marking their de- but on the iconic label Capitol Records, 2025’s Face Full of Cake finds the alt-rock veterans in top form with an abundance of hooks in their arsenal and the warm, funky sound that long- time fans have come to expect from them. The record truly marks a new era for Spin Doctors— bassist Jack Daley makes his studio debut after joining vocalist Chris Barron, guitarist/vocalist Eric Schenkman, and drummer/keyboardist Aaron Comess full-time on the road in 2021— and this 35-years-strong and running crew is, despite their wealth of experience, just getting started. Face Full of Cake marks the quartet’s return after 2013’s If the River Was Whiskey , its songs originating from the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of several writing ses- sions saw Barron and Schenkman hunker down at the Vermont studio space of Phish member Mike Gordon; at other times, Comess and Bar- ron were having dinner when inspiration struck. Those creative huddles provided a sentimental bent that supercharged the songwriting spark— “We really missed each other. We would goof off, [but then] end up writing three songs in like, three hours,” Barron says. Following the exten- sive demoing process, the quartet decamped to Asbury Park, splitting time between hotel digs and Daley’s studio space where recording took place. “I was psyched that they wanted to do it at my studio,” Daley recalls. “When we got into the studio, everyone was really supportive about not being afraid to step out a little bit or play a little busier. We had a blast making this record— it was nothing but positive energy.” As Schenk- man points out, Face Full of Cake feels like a true full-circle moment from their star-making 1991 record Pocket Full of Kryptonite . “There were plenty of reasons to believe it wouldn’t work, but as soon as we played three notes, we knew we had it,” he says. “The same thing happened with this record. There’s a lot of joy emanating from all of us in this band.” Spin Doctors are making their Ravinia debut. Wintrust Chair and Table Rental, managed by the Ravinia Women’s Board and operated by The Festival Shop, benefits Ravinia and its Reach Teach Play education programs. RAVINIA.ORG RESERVE LAWN chairs and tables when you order tickets by clicking “ADD-ON items.” Wintrust chair & table RENTAL HEAVY lifting to us. Leave the