Celebrating its 25th year in business with a series of special concerts, the Empty Bottle has already hosted some incredible bands that have long outgrown the small music venue. Over the past seven months, fans have been able to catch intimate performances by the Hold Steady, the Mountain Goats and Tortoise. The venue is (rightfully) stretching its anniversary into yearlong occasion, which means that there are even more great shows to look forward to.
Yesterday, the Empty Bottle revealed a trio of additions to its 25th anniversary concert lineup in September and October, and the names are only getting more notable. Experimental indie rockers Animal Collective will headline the Bottle on September 24, just a day after playing Goose Island's 312 Urban Block Party. Epic Texas instrumental rock act Explosions in the Sky will bring its sweeping crescendos to the venue on October 3—the last time the band was in town, it headlined the comparatively gargantuan Aragon Ballroom. The next night, on October 4, electro-pop act Future Islands will return to the Ukrainian Village rock club, which the group last played in 2011.
Tickets for the Empty Bottle's Animal Collective, Explosions in the Sky and Future Islands concerts will go on sale Friday, August 11 at 10am. There is a two-ticket limit for each of the shows and all tickets will be nontransferable and only available at will call on the day of the performance.
Take a look at the current lineup of Empty Bottle 25th anniversary shows below and relive some of the venues history with a collection of photos from the Empty Bottle book.
Sept 24: Animal Collective + Black Dice
Oct 1: Deerhoof + Sad13 + Lily and Horn Horse
Oct 3: Explosions in the Sky
Oct 4: Future Islands
Oct 13: Pelican + Grails + Jaye Jayle
Oct 28: Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile
Nov 10: The Black Heart Procession + Sam Coomes
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