Photo courtesy Annie Saunders
Annie Saunders, 46, grew up in the Chicago area, and as a teenager she moved into a punk house and began putting on shows. These days, she works as a veterinarian in Wisconsin and sings and plays bass in Chicago-based punk and power-pop band Time Thieves. Inspired by the Instagram page @punkhouseoakland, Saunders launched @punkhousechicago last month to document the city s punk houses past and present. She s accepting photo submissions at punkhousechicago@gmail.com.
As told to Jamie Ludwig
I grew up in Bensenville, just outside of Chicago, and when I was about 14 I was introduced to punk rock. It started mostly with well-known bands like the Misfits and the Sex Pistols, but when I was 15 I went to a local DIY show and my whole world exploded. I spent a lot of time as a teenager at McGregor s, the Fireside Bowl, and tons of house shows.
Sincere Engineer
Author:
Deanna Belos is the punk rock version of Benjamin Button.
Traditionally, when an artist enters their “acoustic period” it signifies one thing above all else they’re getting old. This is particularly true in the punk rock world, where a number of musicians who spent their youth screaming onstage in front of swirling circle pits transition into playing folkish tunes that may follow the spirit of their earlier work, but lack the aggression and volume.
Belos is following the career progression of many of her musical heroes, she’s just doing it backwards. She started out taking the stage alone with her acoustic guitar playing under the moniker Sincere Engineer, essentially becoming a band before she had a band.