Contest Win tickets to see The Low Anthem or Small Sins

The A.V. Club is generously putting some tickets up for grabs for some lucky readers to two upcoming shows. On Feb. 28, the big-thinking indie chamber quartet The Low Anthem will be performing at Lincoln Hall with Daniel Lefkowitz. On March 2, Canadian indie rockers Small Sins will be performing at Schubas. To enter to win, interested parties should e-mail ochicago@theonion.com with either “The Low Anthem” or “Small Sins” in the subject line. Winners will be drawn a day or two prior to each show.

The Low Anthem is a lush folk collective that originated at Brown University. Following the release of 2009’s Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, The Low Anthem became recognized for its accessibility and scientific mastery of its instrumentation and took the top spot on every year-end best-of list. During live performances, each member of the quartet takes a turn playing one of the alleged 32 instruments (everything from Tibetan singing bowls to crotales) on stage. The songs range from intimate hymnals to earth-shaking folk foot-stompers, like the Jack Kerouac-fused Tom Waits cover of “Home I’ll Never Be.” The rustic instrumentation is phenomenally crafted, and despite the band’s overwhelmingly foreign and numerous instruments, The Low Anthem is still an accessible American folk band that can be appreciated by anyone. This month, the band will be releasing and touring its upcoming album, Smart Flesh.

Small Sins is the project of Toronto’s Thomas D’Arcy, a former member of The Carnations. Small Sins’ subtle synth-pop songs were initially intended to be D’Arcy’s solo project, but after a year, D’Arcy had collected enough guys to make a band, and The Ladies And Gentleman were born. Small Sins, under the name The Ladies And Gentlemen, released their debut album, Small Sins, in 2005. Once they got signed to Astralwerks, the band changed its name to Small Sins due to copyright matters. Last year, the quintet released its third studio album, Pot Calls Kettle Black, produced by Chicago indie-giant, John McEntire.