Chicago

Here's a Tab of Acid for Your Ears: Chance The Rapper's Acid Rap

The hype has been palpable leading up to twenty-year-old Chance the Rapper's new mixtape, Acid Rap. Chance gained some recognition from his first tape, 10 Day, and in anticipation of Acid Rap, he proceeded to hop on as many tracks as possible, put out videos and tour extensively, including numerous ... More >>

Recent Openings: Piccione Pastry on the Delmar Loop, Prasino in St. Charles

Geez. I leave town for a few days, and everything at Gut Check International Headquarters goes bonkers. Specifically, Gut Check might have given you a malware warning when you visited late last week. If so, 1) our sincere apologies; 2) you missed some good stories, including the news that Piccione P ... More >>

In the Galleries - A modest occupation CLOSES April 12 at the Luminary

No, He Meant the Champagne of Beers and Not-Poisoning a Prince of Saudi Arabia: A Q & A with Andrew Jennrich of Farmhaus

This is part two of Gut Check's Chef's Choice profile of Andrew Jennrich of Farmhaus. Read part one, a profile of Jennrich, here. Part three, a recipe from Jennrich, will be available on Friday. Is it unseemly to be thankful for the financial stresses that others have faced? Of course. So put it ... More >>

The Best St. Louis Metal Shows in April

Looking for a good place to see flashy and exciting music played at high volume, have your mind blown by dark and powerful sounds, or just stomp around like a drunken goon with your shirt off? Then a heavy metal concert might be just the place for you. Each month I'll be offering my top picks of the ... More >>

Second-Hand Laughs

Red Light Camera Vendor With Ties to Missouri Caught in Chicago Bribery Scandal

Redflex, the Australian firm that operates red light cameras in St. Peters and Wentzville, has lost its contract in Chicago after acknowledging that one of its consultants bribed the bureaucrat in charge of the city's red light program. The company conceded over the weekend that the consultant rece ... More >>

Ask Fan Landers: What Can I Do To Make My Album A Success?

Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Ask Fan Landers! Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls' Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to help you ... More >>

[UPDATE] Will Illinois Legalize Gay Marriage During This Week's Lame Duck Session?

Update January 3, 2:15 p.m.: The same-sex marriage bill will not be heard by the state senate until next week, Illinois Senate Democrats said in a statement this afternoon. Several senators whose "yay" votes are considered necessary for the bill to pass are currently away from Springfield due to fam ... More >>

Win Hood Internet Tickets

Tonight, Chicago good-time master the Hood Internet will be at the Gramophone. Tickets are $15 at the door and the show starts at 10 p.m. Do some weird shots beforehand.

Chicago Young Republicans to Romney Supporters: "Call Me Maybe"

The Chicago Young Republicans face the nearly impossible task of winning Barack Obama's hometown of Chicago -- and the rest of Illinois -- for Mitt Romney this November. So what do they do when the going gets tough? Why sing a cover of Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe," of course. 'Cause, you know, ... More >>

Sleigh Bells and AraabMuzik Are Coming to the Pageant: Presale and Gift Card Giveaway Happening Now

Sleigh Bells and AraabMuzik have just announced a co-headlining fall 2012 tour, and it will stop at the Pageant (6161 Delmar Blvd) on October 28. Expect the loudness and riffage to have your ears ringing right through Halloween. Tickets go on sale this Friday at 5 p.m., unless you head over to the ... More >>

Chi-Normous! The Muny brilliantly brings Chicago back from the dread

RiverDance

Ask a Mexican: Muy Caliente Summer Edition

Maps & Atlases

8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 12. The Firebird, 2706 Olive Street.

Why You Should See Nones Tonight at El Lenador

8 p.m. Tonight. El Lenador (3124 Cherokee Street). Every Spring we Midwesterners reap the benefits of shows from bands that are touring to and from the SXSW festival in Austin. We're usually stoked about coastal bands that had previously been too lame to swing through the Lou, but this year we can ... More >>

Blues Lose Second in a Row; Local Columnist Weeps Quietly in Darkened Living Room

​The Blues were riding high as recently as this past weekend, having taken a home-and-home from the Columbus Blue Jackets and leading the NHL overall in points. Since then the Note have suffered through a series of calamities the likes of which haven't been seen since god looked down at a man name ... More >>

How Chicago Sees St. Louis: A Nipple On One Gigantic Bosom

WGN this morning aired a segment on subliminal messages in weather reports. The image below was allegedly used to illustrate an ice storm that hit the Midwest a year or two ago.  ​Groused a reader today at Chicagoist, which also linked to the image, "As usual, all the best [weather] is south ... More >>

Cops Collar Chicago Woman for Clobbering Hubby With Cupcakes

Ian Froeb​The cupcake. Delicious individually portioned treat. Food trend that has jumped the shark and nuked the fridge. And, now, weapon.The Chicago Tribune reports on a Chicago woman arrested after throwing cupcakes at her husband:

Announcing the Doorway to the Force Tour

​Hip-hop collective the Force is broadening its reach. In the first week of October, the group will tour as a single entity. And while out-of-town shows have been common for many of the artists on this particular roster, this marks a new step in a coordinated effort by the group. The full to ... More >>

Sleepy Kitty's Infinity City Release Party

​Sleepy Kitty's debut full length, Infinity City, had an informal release party last week at the Royale. The band is playing a show tomorrow at Pig Slop with Cowboy Indian Bear and Little Big Bangs. We are introducing a feature, Live and Local, to help introduce St. Louis bands to people who ... More >>

Pitchfork Music Festival 2011: What to Expect, What to See and More

​Sometimes the Iternets can put on one helluva flesh-and-blood show. Pitchfork Music Festival is run by the music blog of the same name, which just announced it's expanding to Paris this fall with an overseas version of the festival to be curated by (Everybody Loves) Bon Iver. The American b ... More >>

St. Louis Named Midwest's Best Weekend Getaway

We are soooo much more fun than Chicago. Our art's better, too.​Take that, Chicago: St. Louis is officially the best large city for a weekend getaway in the Midwest.Or so says AAA Midwest Traveler, which polled its readers and determined that the Lou beats the snot out of Chicago and Kansas City. ... More >>

Company of Thieves

8:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 22. Firebird, 2706 Olive Street.

More Weiner Problems. This Time With Hot Dogs

Wikimedia CommonsWither, Tony Packo's? Hot-dog lawsuits in Toledo and Chicago.​ At least these problems aren't Congressional in nature. Some of the nation's favorite hot dog institutions have troubles more judiciary and executive in nature. In Chicago, Vienna Beef is suing Scott D. Ladany, a ... More >>

Philosophically Speaking, St. Louis Was to Be Far Superior Than Chicago

We rejoiced in your fire, Chicago. But you got last laugh.​Hard to believe today, but, 140 years ago, one of the most exclusive clubs in town was the St. Louis Philosophical Society. The organization, started by a couple followers of German philosopher Georg Hegel, published the influential journa ... More >>

Goose Island Sells Out to Anheuser-Busch

​ Sorry Chicago, but your craft beer star now belongs to St. Louis. Well, technically, it belongs to Belgium. It was announced this morning that Anheuser-Busch is buying Goose Island, the 23-year-old Chicago miccrobrew stalwart. (A-B has distributed Goose Island since 2006.) After the jump: ... More >>

Tonight: Emeralds' John Elliott at Floating Laboratories

Call the last few days the unofficial kick off of the stellar spring line-up--despite today's unexpected nuclear fallout slushy snowfall, your social life may be about to experience a nice thaw. It's been a good couple of days for mind-altering psychedelia. On Friday, Chicago's Cave played an insa ... More >>

Last Collector Standing: Kate Eddens on Working at Thrill Jockey and Vintage Vinyl, and Her Musical Education (and Evolution)

Jon Scorfina​As major record labels have struggled to adjust to the new digital landscape, independent labels have thrived by sticking to the tried and true demand for vinyl. We caught up with Kate Eddens, a former employee of both Thrill Jockey records and Vintage Vinyl, at her south city hom ... More >>

Friday Afternoon Video Dump

It's that time of the week again -- Friday afternoon. The final few hours of the work week are lingering and plenty of us are hard at work trying to avoid doing anything resembling our jobs for the rest of the day. That said, here's a few videos to help you waste time. Snowpocalpyse Chicago: Weathe ... More >>

St. Louis Art Capsules

Jessica Baran encapsulates the St. Louis art scene

Butt-Dial Launches SWAT Action

​Here's a tale that puts your unfortunate drunken butt-dial to Grandma from the bar into perspective. Outside Chicago yesterday, a woman got a call from her husband on his cell phone that terrified her into thinking he was in a hostage situation at the school where he works. She heard scary, seemi ... More >>

Iconic Hairstyle's Midwestern Roots Honored

​It's been fifty years since a hairstylist in Chicago first worked iconic magic with a rat-tail comb and a ton of hairspray. And now, her contribution to the planet's catalog of fabulous is being honored by the Chicago History Museum and Cosmetologists Chicago.Margaret Vinci Heldt invented the fam ... More >>

Wikileaks Reveals Venezuela's Food Secret

Wikileaks has a tasty cable from Venezuela. The Atlantic has the cable about Arepera Socialista, a government-owned restaurant opened by Hugo Chavez a year ago. The food's cheap and tasty, and the workers and diners happy.In Chicago, food trucks are on the lam. The Wall Street Journal covers the cit ... More >>

Take That, Chicago: St. Louis Is "More Charitable"

We had vowed never to ever pay attention to those silly lists at the Daily Beast again -- but then we saw one that actually made us kinda happy about ourselves. Never mind that whole Most Dangerous City designation; it turns out we're actually the Fifteenth Most Charitable City in the country!If we ... More >>

Under the Radar: Why do AeroMexico flights take off in any kind of weather and Mexican mistranslations go uncorrected?

What Americans Need to Know About Hunger

In this week of overabundance, the Washington Post takes a look at the five biggest myths about hunger in America. Turns out some Americans do go hungry, helping them isn't just a good deed, it's not just about kids, we can't solve hunger with the food we waste, and it's not just about food.Where ha ... More >>

Bottle Rockets Backing Up, Opening for Power-Pop Legend Marshall Crenshaw

Oh, those sneaky Bottle Rockets. You never know where the band will turn up next! Just yesterday on Facebook, the band made the following announcement:​No word yet on if this trek will be hitting St. Louis; the only date to surface so far is in Chicago on January 20. (Crenshaw has a few more d ... More >>

Michelin Reveals First Chicago Restaurant Star Rankings

​St. Louis gastronauts take note: For the foreseeable future -- and likely beyond -- this is as close as we're going to get to Michelin-starred dining.Michelin today released its first-ever star rankings for the restaurants of Chicago. Alinea, the avant-garde palace of chef Grant Achatz, and L20, ... More >>

A documentary sheds new light on brain-raid masters Skarekrauradio

Trifeckta Reigns Supreme at Red Bull Big Tune

Twelve producers went head to head last night in front of a packed house at Pop's Nightclub in Sauget for the Red Bull Big Tune nationwide competition. Now in its fourth year, Red Bull Big Tune is the hunt for the one producer that can wow the crowd. Red Bull Photo Files/Carlos CruzThe final two p ... More >>

The Ponys

8 p.m. Friday, October 1. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Avenue.

PLAY:stl Fest Kicks Off Tomorrow Night at Cicero's

​The fourth annual PLAY:stl Fest starts tomorrow night with a kickoff party at Cicero's featuring Chicago indie rockers (and last year's big draw), Owen. This year's showcase follows the same formula as previous festivals: 100 bands, 3 days and cheap as all get out -- $20 for a three-day wrist ... More >>

Americans Eschew Fruits and Vegetables, Find Way to Delivery Sundaes.

Eat your fruits and vegetables, already! A Centers for Disease Control study shows that American adults still aren't eating enough vegetables, and they're decreasing their fruit consumption. Only 34% Americans eat more than two servings of fruit a day. Maybe it's because a Chicago pair has found a ... More >>

Porcinis to Die For.

Good enough to die for? Eighteen Italian mushroom-foragers have died in ten days. According to the Guardian, it's not the mushrooms that are deadly; it's the terrain. Weather conditions this have have led to an explosion of porcinis in mountainous northern Italy, which has led to exceptionally compe ... More >>

Before Amtrak Gets Fast, It's About to Get Slow

Someone oughtta right a song about this. Oh, wait...​Beginning today Amtrak service between Chicago and St. Louis will experience several interruptions for track maintenance as part of an effort to create a high-speed route between the two cities. Passengers who use Amtrak's Lincoln Service depart ... More >>

Win a Pair of Tickets to the First North Coast Music Fest in Chicago! See Chemical Brothers, Nas & Damian Marley, Benny Benassi, Paul van Dyk and more

Click for a larger version​From September 3-5 -- that's this weekend -- the first North Coast Music Festival is happening in Chicago's Union Park. The lineup is pretty fantastic: Umphrey's McGee, Paul van Dyk, Benny Benassi, Chemical Brothers, De La Soul, Moby (as a DJ) and Lupe Fiasco are the ... More >>