The results are in . . . This summer we hosted a button design contest, in partnership with Busy Beaver Button Co., celebrating five decades of the Reader being Chicago’s go-to alternative media source. Here are the winning designs chosen by the Reader community to be a part of our 50th anniversary button pack. Thanks […]
Tag: Vol. 50 No. 21
Issue of Jul. 8 – 21, 2021
Posted inFilm
Gunpowder Milkshake takes the buddy flick to unexpected places
Karen Gillan and Chloe Coleman shine in the female-lead action romp.
Posted inMusic
Ari Brown belongs in Chicago’s canon of great tenor saxophonists
Ari Brown hasn’t often sought the spotlight, but his blend of bebop rigor and avant-garde daring puts him on par with the likes of Fred Anderson and Von Freeman.
Posted inMusic
Koeosaeme’s Annulus builds a cohesive world of glossy, blissed-out reveries
Japanese producer Ryu Yoshizawa has a rich career that includes making music for business conglomerates Square Enix and Lotte, spending 17 years and counting in sound artists’ group Office Intenzio, and providing live support for synth-pop pioneers Ryuichi Sakamoto and Yukihiro Takahashi. His output as Koeosaeme has been varied too. His 2017 debut under that […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Remy Bumppo and Teatro Vista name new artistic directors
Marti Lyons takes over at Remy Bumppo, while Lorena Diaz and Wendy Mateo share the top job at Teatro Vista.
Posted inArts & Culture
Mitsu Salmon considers the orchid
A new interdisciplinary work digs into the roots of one of the most mythologized of flowers.
Posted inMusic
Constructive interference on the gig poster of the week
This week’s featured gig poster was designed by Stylin’ Out Network and includes an image by Chicago artist Ricardo Mondragon.
Posted inMusic
Chicago rock stylists Arthhur expand their dance-punk ambitions on Occult Fractures
Chicagoan Mike Fox launched Arthhur a few years ago to explore any musical style he pleased. Multi-instrumentalist Matt Ciani, who plays with Fox in doom four-piece Flesh of the Stars, quickly joined the fold, and the two have since steered Arthhur through whimsical indie rock (2018’s come meet the opposite committee), somber ambient (2020’s Let’s […]
Posted inMusic
TALsounds and Matchess braid their music together on the debut of Damiana
TALsounds and Matchess braid their music together on the debut of Damiana, Chi-ROCK Nation celebrate hip-hop heritage with a monthlong exhibit, and more.
Posted inMusic
Mic Shane helped boost Chicago hip-hop onto a global stage
Mic Shane cofounded the city’s first hip-hop magazine in 1991 and worked tirelessly for decades to help the scene grow.
Posted inMusic
Chicago indie rockers Izzy True find comfort in Our Beautiful Baby World
Izzy Reidy specializes in the kind of intimate indie rock where you can hear the sound of fingertips squeaking along guitar strings. They launched their band, Izzy True, while living in upstate New York, but these days Reidy lives in Chicago and plays with drummer Sam Goldstein and multi-instrumentalist Curtis Oren. Izzy True’s new third […]
Posted inMusic
Nuanced Chicago rapper Qari drops a rare solo release
Qari’s new solo EP IGOTPROBLEMS emphasizes his soulful melodicism.
Posted inMusic
An improvised-music summit offers contrasting experiences of community and austerity
The double album Houston 2012 captures a two-day encounter in October 2012 between English tabletop guitarist Keith Rowe and the experimental-music community of Houston, Texas. Rowe’s visit came about thanks to the initiative of Saint Louis double bassist Damon Smith, who lived in Texas at the time. While there Smith developed a strong working relationship […]
Posted inArts & Culture
You can follow me @frida_kahlo
Does the “Frida Kahlo: Timeless” exhibition and others like it go too far in their pursuit of bigger audiences?
Posted inCity Life
A taste of Chicago to go
Upcoming events and recommendations for the next seven days