We’ve all had a lot to pay attention to this year, but there’s always room for more great music.
Tag: Year in Review
Posted inColumns & Opinion
Looking ahead
I think we can all agree the next year has got to be better.
Posted inMusic
Chicago’s best overlooked hip-hop of 2019
The shrinking of music media requires a new definition of “overlooked,” but even the strictest criteria admit a vast unexplored trove of riches.
Posted inFood & Drink
Twenty new(ish) Chicago restaurants that prove the party ain’t over
Don’t listen to nobody nobody sent. 2018 was a good year.
Posted inColumns & Opinion
A note from the editor
I was running errands Saturday and distracted, so when I hit the Fullerton-Pulaski intersection it took me a moment to figure out what was going on. A man with a walker and several full shopping bags had apparently begun crossing the street a few feet outside of the crosswalk and then stopped. A man, in […]
Posted inArts & Culture
The ten shows from 2018 our critics won’t soon forget
Witches, monsters, selkies, cosmic musings and family dramas, and, of course, the Golden Girls
Posted inBlogs
Archive dive: the year 1971 in review
A look at the best, worst, and most memorable moments from the Reader‘s first year in business.
Posted inColumns & Opinion
Don’t blame ‘identity politics’ for what went wrong in 2016
We marginalized folks didn’t start this garbage fire.
Posted inArts & Culture
2016 was the year of women in comedy
More than ever it’s important to recognize the women who stand out among bland stand-ups.
Posted inBlogs
The best-dressed Chicago women of 2015
These three are the most stylish Chicago girls of the past last year.
Posted inMusic
The year in music: 2015
Seven Reader writers drill down into rap, jazz, punk, metal, and more—instead of just rearranging the same records on everyone else’s best-of list.
Posted inBlogs
The best jazz recordings of 2015
My ballot from the annual jazz critics’ poll published at NPR music
Posted inMusic
Albums by Chicago punks playing Ian’s Party
Because such an impressive glut of local punk full-lengths came out this year, to pick just five I had to come up with a narrower category. Luckily for me (and for you), local punk showcase Ian’s Party (see page TK) has supersized for 2016, moving into three relatively large venues and blowing out its lineup. […]
Posted inMusic
The most painfully slow albums of 2015
It’s been a brutal year. A lot of darkness has crossed our thresholds, so that even when we make time to celebrate—to embrace life and joy—we can never entirely escape all the reasons to do the opposite. With winter poised to strike and our TV and computer screens continually stained with what look like signs […]
Posted inMusic
Chicago music writers having great years
Chicago doesn’t just have a vibrant, busy music scene—it’s also full of busy music writers. This year some of the city’s best talents were at the top of their game, helping drive big, important conversations and refining their distinctive styles. It’s surely just a coincidence that several of them have also contributed to the Reader. […]