If you book them, they will come
Chicago-based booking agency Flowerbooking gears up to celebrate their 10-year anniversary with an impressive slate of charity musical acts set to hit the Chicago area this month
By Aaron Lovell
Staff Writer

     Flowerbooking, a Chicago-based booking agency, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary by hosting a series of six shows featuring the cream of the indie rock crop, with the proceeds going to benefit a local children’s charity.

     Susanne McCarthy, head of Flowerbooking, began writing in high school.  During that time she produced a fanzine and eventually worked at the student radio station at Boston College.

     While a sophomore at Boston College, McCarthy started booking indie groups. Growing up in the Boston scene a fan of Mission of Burma and Buffalo Tom, McCarthy’s involvement in indie rock came at an exciting time.

     Her work with college radio led to contacts within the world of punk. “I met a lot of bands and talked to people at record labels,” McCarthy said. She admits she soon realized she was better suited as an organizer, and Flowerbooking was born.

     Soon she was booking the likes of  new bands called Sebadoh, Royal Tux and Antietam.

     “There was no plan,” admits McCarthy. “It happened by accident.”

     By her senior year she was working with about 10 groups and had even found support from the Dean of Boston College. The business school awarded her credit for the work she was doing and allowed her take graduate courses in small business management. “They helped me a lot,” says McCarthy, recommending the administration to young DIY kids.                   

     After graduating in 1993 and continuing in Boston for a year, McCarthy moved the whole operation to the indie-friendly city of Chicago. Being friends with the owners of Lounge Ax, and record labels like Thrill Jockey and Touch & Go, McCarthy saw a move to the Windy City as a chance to move Flowerbooking to a new town with an established indie community. Since then she has employed the help of Mike Frye and Tim Edwards, bringing Flowerbooking’s permanent staff to three.

     Admitting that all local music scenes are cyclical, she feels that Chicago has never seen a serious downswing in quality. This specific scene in Chicago has, in part, led to the Flowerbooking celebration.

     “I don’t think we would have ever thought to have an event like this, unless there was a scene to support it,” she adds.

     The shows are impressive, featuring some of the most popular, innovative indie acts on the Flowerbooking roster. This includes Tortoise, Jets to Brazil, Trans Am, Isotope 217 and Califone.

     While some shows, including The Sea and the Cake and Jets to Brazil, are already sold out, there are still a few tickets for the Tortoise and Trans Am shows.

     The show on Thursday will feature a special secret guest that will probably be The Promise Ring from Milwaukee.

     This is all being done in the name of charity Possibilities in Life: Art for Youth, a group providing one-on-one artistic opportunities to disadvantaged kids in Chicago, will be the recipient of all profits over production costs. Considering the all-star lineups, this will no doubt be a helpful donation to the non-profit group. McCarthy also hopes the number of kids coming to the shows will help promote the issues PLAY. is dealing with.

     Antietam was the first band to trust McCarthy more than 10 years ago, so she admits that she is looking forward to their performance. “It’s a true honor to say they’re still on the roster and still my friends.”

     “We’d like to think we’ll still be around in 10 years,” McCarthy said. If the first 10 years are any indication, that should not be a problem.

     If Flowerbooking continues their efforts to put together well-designed shows that are definite crowd-pleasers, they will be around for a long time to come.