- If you rub this bottle, Jimmy Whispers will magically emerge* and not grant you any wishes. (*No he won’t.)
Chicago singer-songwriter Jimmy Whispers, who describes himself with disarmingly transparent bravado as “the greatest bedroom popper in the tri-state area,” recorded his new debut album, Summer in Pain, way back in 2011. For years he’s been holding out for the right label (and the right moment), refusing until very recently to post any music online, and on March 24 he finally releases the album through local imprint Moniker. The Owl held a listening party on March 12, and on Tuesday the Empty Bottle hosts Jimmy’s release show.
- It’s hard to tell given the lighting here, but Summer in Pain is in fact a pretty dark beer for its style.
Take a whiff of Summer in Pain, and it hits you with a face full of fruit—not just tangerine and cantaloupe from the hops but also peach and apricot, presumably from the Belgian yeast. The smell is bright and invigorating but also woody and a bit sharp, with notes of pine, cedar resin, and underripe strawberry. The caramel malts (which you can see plenty of in the beer’s color) struggle to announce themselves in the company of all those powerful aromatics.
Jimmy Whispers – Summer In Pain by Moniker Records
