Every year, one question always lingers after attending Square Roots Festival: How on Earth can organizers keep providing this caliber of music performances for free? It seemed like straight-up robbery to see headliners Dehd, Margo Price and Nick Lowe & Los Straitjackets all in the same weekend and not have to buy tickets.
Thankfully, the suggested donation boxes were overflowing as fans showed up in droves July 10-12 to take in the flagship summer event produced by the Old Town School of Folk Music and the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce. The festival also offered local bites and brews, including the very popular Square Roots Hopfenlager, made by the neighborhood’s Dovetail Brewery.
We’re taking a look back at the best music acts of the weekend, which included equal amounts of local talent, national touring acts and international flair. Not to mention an incredible permanent tribute to the late John Prine with a mural designed by fellow artist Jon Langford that was in progress all weekend on the north wall of the Old Town School. Featuring the visage of the beloved singer-songwriter holding his acoustic guitar, the painting also carries the words of his song, “How Lucky Can One Man Get?” — a feeling that felt universal as the 2026 edition of the festival wrapped.
Dehd
The Humboldt Park rockers really made themselves at home in Lincoln Square for a couple of days. “We played across the street last night,” guitarist Jason Balla proudly declared of the trio’s pre-fest gig at Old Town’s Maurer Concert Hall on Thursday. “I think I recognize every single face here. It’s amazing you all fit in that room.” He might have been joking, but a huge flock of fans did gather Friday to take in the band’s signature mix of fuzzed-out surf rock, garage rock and banshee vocals that connect with our most primal human nature.
Dehd’s setup is simple yet effective, just Balla and bassist Emily Kempf working off a short run of pedals and their combined vocal play while drummer Eric McGrady stands the whole time, hitting a staccato tribal beat on songs like “Mood Ring,” “Don’t Look Down” and the band’s eternal hit “Bad Love.” The group threw a couple of new songs in the mix too (hopefully meaning a follow-up to 2024’s “Poetry” is coming soon) and nonchalantly breezed past the 10 p.m. curfew. Before wrapping up at 10:15, Balla gave shoutouts to opening bands and fellow locals Starcharm and Deeper. “Chicago literally has the best music scene,” he said as Kempf quickly added, “Chicago has the best everything.”
Tuvergen Band
Time travel felt possible Saturday when Tuvergen Band took the stage. The Chicago trio — a regular of the World Music Wednesday series at Old Town School — goes back nearly 2,000 years and 6,000 miles to faithfully recreate centuries-old traditions of Mongolian folk music. Some don’t even seem humanly possible, such as vocalist Tamir Hargana’s complex throat singing, where he accesses the deepest pits of his diaphragm to churn out reverberating hums.
As Hargana explained, the different vocal frequencies are meant to evoke sounds in nature, whether the calm of the forest, the bleating of sheep, the ebbs and flow of the river or the majestic beauty of horses, an animal that is a central tenet to the group (even so far as giving out mini figurines at its merch table). Tuvergen translates to “galloping” while member Naizal Hargana plays a traditional instrument known as the morin khuur, aka the horse fiddle, which replicates a cello or viola. It was complemented with the wide range of percussion from Brent Roman, including a bass drum, Indian dancing bells, the Spanish cajón and the Australian didgeridoo for a fully cinematic soundscape.
With all of its traveling through different eras, one of the most intriguing parts of the set was when Tuvergen Band brought it back home to the present with a little local flair, adding in flourishes of Chicago blues with a guest spot from harmonica player Graham Nelson.
Fugu Dugu
Listening to Fugu Dugu on Sunday afternoon felt like attending a raucous Eastern European wedding and standing on the frontlines of a revolt at the same time. The eclectic Chicago quintet describes itself as “the lovechild of Gogol Bordello and Patti Smith,” and there are definite hallmarks of both pioneers in Fugu Dugu’s musical bag that overflows with the revelry of klezmer music and some serious punk rock poetry.
Lyrics like “As we laugh, as we cry, as we hold our heads up high, and watch the world burning down” felt like fun music for the end of the world. And when they got to a part about “you should be dancing,” it felt like a direct order as many in the crowd obliged. “That’s what life is about – dancing, playing music and drinking!” declared front woman Madame Broshkina. “I’m Eastern European so the stereotypes are definitely true,” she joked.
In addition to singing in Romanian, Ukrainian, Russian and English, Broshkina was exemplary on the violin, routinely aided and abetted by her guitar-wielding counterpart Bucky Wanko, the true bard of the group, who even got his own folkloric song. His story will be explored further in the group’s upcoming album, “Bucky Wanko and the Legend of Baba Yaga.” According to Broshkina, it will be celebrated with an upcoming record release show at Old Town School.
The Tossers
Representing the South Side Irish was the beloved Celtic folk band The Tossers, who’ve been going strong since 1993. “Happy Sunday, God bless yous,” said singer/mandolinist T. Duggins as he made the signs of the cross to anoint the crowd.
In between smoking cigs, guzzling beer and hiding behind hangover sunglasses, the six-piece balladeers burned through spirited drinking songs about booze (“Buckets of Beer”), more booze (“Where the Beer and Whiskey Flow”), women who love to party (“Siobhan”) and horse racing (“The Horses”). “That one’s for all you ladies and gentlemen hoping Hawthorne Race Course in Stickney doesn’t close,” said Duggins.
There were more serious numbers too, like trad covers of “What Will We Do When We Have No Money” (a somber piece Duggins did solo) and the sea shanty “Poor Paddy Works on the Railway” that show the breadth and relevance of the group outside of the St. Pat’s Day party circuit.
Chicago pride was, of course, a big part of the set too, heard in songs like “The South Side of Town” and “Emerald City” that champions our city “built on Irish will.” The story of immigrants carried over into an impassioned new one too, “The USA,” that shouts out Lady Liberty for “shining her endless light every single day and every single night.”
Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets
The grand finale of Square Roots weekend rightfully went to Nick Lowe. The British songwriter is unmatched in what he’s contributed to the modern pop-rock pantheon, evidenced by the number of phones that went up to record the performances of his timeless hits “Cruel to Be Kind” and “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding.”
Across the 80-minute set, Lowe sounded pristine and downright joyful, delivering a good cross-section of his catalog, from the surf rock of “Went to a Party” to the whimsical folly of “Half a Boy and Half a Man” and the one slow song, “House for Sale.”
“We’re going to be toe-tapping all night,” Lowe declared and delivered on the promise. Of course, it was only possible with the help of his compadres Los Straitjackets whose twangy rockabilly instrumentals were a true show of force, especially when they were given the spotlight as Lowe took a 15-minute break mid-set. The Nashville quartet have enjoyed their own fruitful career since the late ‘80s, but since teaming up with Lowe in 2014, it’s been a musical match made this side of heaven.
For the encore, Los Straitjackets started it off with a scorching take on Shocking Blue’s “Venus” before Lowe joined back in for a final send-off of “When I Write The Book.” We can only hope he lives up to that promise someday too, because you know he’s got stories.