Print Issue of October 19, 2017 (Volume 47, Number 3)

C H I C A G O ’ S F R E E W E E K LY | K I C K I N G A S S S I N C E 1 9 7 1 | O C T O B E R 1 9, 2 0 1 7

Joravsky: How Governor Rauner is trying to cripple the Democratic Party 10

The The CHA’s CHA’s sleeping sleeping giant giant The Chicago Housing Authority provides Section 8 vouchers to tens of thousands of low-income households.

Is the agency trying to keep them from realizing their collective power?

By MAYA DUKMASOVA 13

Star Creature Universal Vibrations launches boogie into the future. 25

LECTURES & TALKS

CURRENT PROJECTS

ARCHITECT TALK

Renewing our Cultural Resources Through Design

The State of Architecture with Helmut Jahn

Tuesday, October 24, 2017 at 6pm $15 public / $7 members

Monday, November 6, at 6pm $15 public / $7 members

A bold new crop of cultural spaces designed by local architects is popping up in Chicago.

Hear the story behind several new museum and theater designs by Studio Gang, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture and Wheeler Kearns Architects.

Join us for a talk with distinguished Chicagobased architect Helmut Jahn. Helmut will discuss the evolution of his prolific residential practice both locally and internationally. In Chicago, new apartment towers are rising at a furious pace, often with uninspired design.

What lessons might we draw from Helmut’s bold record of residential design to apply to a new generation of buildings? What influences and innovations will shape multi-unit residential architecture in Chicago in the years to come?

Chicago projects that will be featured at this event include The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare and the new Writers Theatre in Glencoe. Speakers will also draw from their broader portfolio of work outside Chicago, including projects in New York, Arkansas and Astana, Kazakhstan.

DAYTIME TALK “Chicago’s Fabulous Fountains” with Greg Borzo Wednesday, October 25 at 12:15pm $5 public / Free for CAF members with RSVP* Chicago is home to more than 100 fountains, from stately and eclectic to sober and whimsical.

Greg Borzo’s new book, “Chicago’s Fabulous Fountains,” captures the whole spectrum. Come hear him share stories about some of the city’s favorite public fountains *Although this event is free for CAF members, advance registration is required.

ALL LECTURES TAKE PLACE AT 224 S. MICHIGAN AVE. TICKETS AT ARCHITECTURE.ORG/PROGRAMS 2 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

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EDITOR JAKE MALOOLEY CREATIVE DIRECTOR VINCE CERASANI CULTURE EDITOR TAL ROSENBERG FILM EDITOR J.R. JONES MUSIC EDITOR PHILIP MONTORO ASSOCIATE EDITORS STEVE HEISLER, JAMIE LUDWIG, KATE SCHMIDT SENIOR WRITER MIKE SULA SENIOR THEATER CRITIC TONY ADLER STAFF WRITERS MAYA DUKMASOVA, LEOR GALIL, DEANNA ISAACS, BEN JORAVSKY, AIMEE LEVITT, PETER MARGASAK, JULIA THIEL SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR RYAN SMITH GRAPHIC DESIGNER SUE KWONG MUSIC LISTINGS COORDINATOR LUCA CIMARUSTI FILM LISTINGS COORDINATOR PATRICK FRIEL CONTRIBUTING WRITERS NOAH BERLATSKY, ANNE FORD, ISA GIALLORENZO, JOHN GREENFIELD, ANDREA GRONVALL, JUSTIN HAYFORD, JACK HELBIG, IRENE HSIAO, DAN JAKES, BILL MEYER, MICHAEL MINER, J.R. NELSON, MARISSA OBERLANDER, LEAH PICKETT, BEN SACHS, DMITRY SAMAROV, OLIVER SAVA, DAVID WHITEIS, ALBERT WILLIAMS INTERNS MOLLY O’MERA ---------------------------------------------------------------ADVERTISING DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHER BEST SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER EVANGELINE MILLER ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES FABIO CAVALIERI, BRIDGET KANE MARKETING AND EVENTS MANAGER BRYAN BURDA DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL JOHN DUNLEVY ADVERTISING COORDINATOR HERMINIA BATTAGLIA CLASSIFIEDS REPRESENTATIVE KRIS DODD

FEATURES

4 Agenda “Heaven and Earth: Alexander Calder and Jeff Koons” at the MCA, Shark Tank: The Musical, the film The Florida Project, and more goings-on about town

HOUSING

The CHA’s sleeping giant

The Chicago Housing Authority provides Section 8 vouchers to tens of thousands of low-income households.

Is the agency trying to keep them from realizing their collective power?

BY MAYA DUKMASOVA 13

MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE 29 In Rotation Current musical obsessions include Ufomammut, Arca, and Creeping Pink

10 Joravsky | Politics Abortion bill HB40, the union-busting Janus v. AFSCME case, and the Illinois governor’s unlikely coalition 12 Transportation The turbulent history of the bike bridge that will finally complete the North Shore Channel Trail

30 Shows of note Lil Uzi Vert, Chelsea Wolfe, Boris, and more of the week’s best

FOOD & DRINK ARTS & CULTURE

DISTRIBUTION CONCERNS distributionissues@chicagoreader.com

19 Theater The Hypocrites’ Dracula is a victim of mistaken locality.

21 Architecture “Between States,” challenges architects to transform underused infrastructure into community assets.

22 Visual Art Nicolas Carone: revered teacher, brilliant painter

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24 Movies Goodbye Christopher Robinson reveals the unhappy boy behind A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh.

CITY LIFE

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IN THIS ISSUE

MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE

Star Creature Universal Vibrations launches boogie into the future

Tim Zawada and Ben Van Dyke’s label helps turn the far-flung fans of this resurgent postdisco dance music into an evolving community.

BY LEOR GALIL 25

23 Movies Loving Vincent, the new Van Gogh biopic, dives into the mystery surrounding the painter’s death.

38 Restaurant review: Katana A massive robatayaki parachutes into River North from Hollywood.

40 Booze North Shore Distillery’s new rum is unlike anything else being made in Illinois.

CLASSIFIEDS

42 Jobs 42 Apartments & Spaces 43 Marketplace

44 Straight Dope Why do sounds like the noise of nails on chalkboard drive us batty?

45 Savage Love How to handle the revelation that a family member was a pervert—or the signs that one may be 46 Early Warnings Led Zeppelin 2, “Weird Al” Yankovic, and more shows you should know about in the weeks to come 46 Gossip Wolf Grungy stoner-metal band Alma Negra partially returns as Reivers, and other music news.

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 3

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Bachelorette In February, Spenser Davis directed a stellar production of Michael Perlman’s heartfilled At the Table, a tightly knit living room dramedy following the mid-midlife crises of friends outgrowing their youthful bonds with one another. This gnarly, in-yer-face 2010 dark comedy

by Leslye Headland shares some surprising thematic and stylistic crossover with Davis’s previous show, and like it, benefits from his close attention to casual back-and-forths—even if the outcome this time around is straight-up misanthropic. Ensconced in her friend’s bridal suite, a late twentysomething (Carmen Molina) invites old friends for a night of debauchery and learns the hard way the difference between what’s long past cute and what’s irrevocably horrid.

This Level 11 production is a ferocious ensemble effort all-around. —DAN JAKES Through 11/5: Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, Sun 3 PM, Den Theatre, 1329-1333 N. Milwaukee, 773-609-2336, thedentheatre.com, free-$40 (pay what you can).

Billy Elliott Porchlight Musical R Theatre opens its first season at the newly rehabbed Ruth Page Arts

Center with a show that wouldn’t have been possible at its old haunt, Stage 773. Brenda Didier’s production of this uplifting 2000 movie musical features a massive Margaret Thatcher puppet that towers over the cast, and Billy (Lincoln Seymour and Jacob Kaiser alternate in the role) soars above the audience during its most euphoric scene. Didier’s direction achieves the balance of grace and grit required by Lee Hall and Elton John’s adaptation, best reflected in the performances of Sean Fortunato, whose portrayal of grieving widower is steeped in pain, and Shanésia Davis, who’s an electric onstage presence when she gets to cut loose. —OLIVER SAVA Through 11/26: Thu 7:30 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 4 and 8 PM, Sun 6 PM through 11/5, 2 PM thereafter, Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn, 312-337-6543, porchlightmusictheatre.org, $55-$60.

Burf of a Nation The socially acceptable window for “covfefe” jokes was

about five hours, the ballpark time it took the world to be reassured that the president wasn’t starting World War III but instead, as suspected, dementedly farting out half-baked tweets of rage against the TV. Carla Stillwell (who also directs) and Leonard House peg this sitcom-style satire to the May social media incident (good God, that was only May?), then go on to detail the creation of a black-governed micronation at odds with Trump’s America. It’s half-baked, but this MPAACT production gets at the heart of what made the 2016 election an at once surreal and painfully unsurprising experience for people of color, and it cushions the blows with broad physical gags and sporadically punchy one-liners. —DAN JAKES Through 11/19: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln, 773-4047336, greenhousetheater.org, $34-$38, $31 seniors, $28 students.

Fool for Love In the spot where you’d expect to find a biographical note about director Zeljko Djukic, the program for this inaugural production by Facility Theatre quotes drama professor Stephen J. Bottoms on Wim Wenders’s 1984 film Paris, Texas, which Sam Shepard wrote. “Shepard fully endorsed Wenders’ approach,” the quote reads, “suggesting that the director’s ‘Europeanness’ had enabled him to highlight an obsessive quality about . . . American culture that certain American directors would totally overlook.” Watch the production and it’s easy to see why the Yugoslavian-born Djukic might find that worth sharing. Especially in its opening passages, Djukic’s staging brings an almost Beckettian inertia to Shepard’s tale of haunted lovers having it out in a cheap motel. Like the characters in Endgame, they obsessively replay their peculiar tragedy. Something is gained, but something is lost too: a secure grounding in shit-kicking American naturalism. —TONY ADLER Through 11/12: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division, 773-769-3832, chopintheatre.com, $20.

Hard Times The current revival R of Heidi Stillman’s 2001 adaptation of Charles Dickens’s sober, satirical 1854 novel about life among the rich

and working poor in the fictional Coketown combines understated theatrical scenes with a handful of circus acts (in particular the Spanish Web) to create an intelligent, quietly powerful drama. This isn’t a show for audiences who don’t like to listen (or think). But for those with a touch of patience and a taste for literary theater, the production offers many rewards—like pitch-perfect acting under Stillman’s direction (Audrey Anderson and Cordelia Dewdney particularly shine), fine costumes (designed by Mara Blumenfeld), and ear- and eye-pleasing design from Andre Pluess (sound) and Dan Ostling (the superb set). —JACK HELBIG Through 1/14/18: Wed 7:30 PM, Thu 2 and 7:30 PM (7:30 PM only select dates), Fri 7:30 PM, Sat-Sun 2 and 7:30 PM; also select Tuesdays, see website, Lookingglass Theatre Company, Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan, 312-337-0665, lookingglasstheatre.org, $50-$85.

Occidental Express It’s hard to R imagine a director better suited to stage Romanian playwright Matei

Visniec’s confounding, deadpan hallucinations than Istvan Szabo K. Crossing the Atlantic to tackle his third Visniec opus with Trap Door since 2011, the Hungarian director orchestrates this feverish inquiry into balkanization—geopolitical, interpersonal, and psychological—with more nuance and specificity than ever before, staging the fragmentary, ever-morphing scenes with whirling precision. His design team turns the small stage into an unsettled diorama of dismaying beauty, and the seven-person cast of Trap Door veterans display extraordinary fluency in Visniec’s indecipherable theatrical language. The result is 90 minutes of masterful perplexity, as shadowy, clownish figures race in and out of their own troubled histories in failed attempts to create (or, unaccountably, erase) anything genuine. —JUSTIN HAYFORD Through 11/18: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W. Cortland, 773-384-0494, trapdoortheatre.com, $20$25, two-for-one admission on Fridays.

Punk Playwright Michael Allen Harris turns big ideas into small drama. He creates a maximum security prison unit reserved for gay, bisexual, and trans-

gender inmates, where the disastrous consequences of poverty, trauma and/ or social marginalization are everywhere evident. The hard-won peace in the unit’s self-described family is shattered when Travis, convicted of murderous gay bashing, requests a transfer there. The story raises complex issues around sexual identity, social responsibility, and prisoners’ rights, but for too long Harris engages in wish fulfillment, painting the unit as a kind of understaffed boarding school for the slightly fabulous, slightly sassy, and unfailingly supportive. When emotional crises erupt, they’re largely unearned.

Despite uneven casting, this New Colony premiere, codirected by Diana Raiselis and Katrina Dion, still manages moments of great pathos. —JUSTIN HAYFORD Through 11/5: Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, Sun 3 PM, Den Theatre, 1329-1333 N. Milwaukee, 773609-2336, thenewcolony.org, $20.

The Skin of Our Teeth In act one R the Antrobus family of Excelsior, New Jersey, has to cope with the Ice

Age. In act two it’s the biblical flood.

Act three? A devastating war. I wish this sounded more far-fetched than it does.

Thornton Wilder’s masterpiece was supposed to be absurd when it premiered in 1942 (all except for the war part; that was real enough at the time). But now—given Harvey, Irma, Maria, and the California wildfires, just for starters—the disasters Wilder piled on humankind are beginning to look like business as usual. Which only makes this Remy Bumppo Theatre production more apt and worthwhile.

Wilder tells the unlikely story of Homo sapiens’ survival with idiosyncratic wit, deep empathy, and formal innovations that anticipate writers like Eugene Ionesco. Krissy Vanderwarker’s staging is effective, though it picks up better on the play’s light tones than on the dark ones. Kelly O’Sullivan is amusingly wry as Sabina—narrator, seducer, and slave.

—TONY ADLER Through 11/12: Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, Sun 2:30 PM, Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln, 773-404-7336, remybumppo.org, $42.50-$52.50.

Two Mile Hollow First Floor TheR ater presents the world premiere of Leah Nanako Winkler’s multilayered sendup of “white whine” melodrama.

Three children return to their childhood

Two Mile Hollow ò JULI DEL PRETE

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Best bets, recommendations, and notable arts and culture events for the week of October 19

Estlin, owner of the Annoyance Theatre, has transformed this engaging series into an improvised musical in which panelists give the contestants the third degree over their products, services, and businesses, made up on the spot. Through 11/10: Fri 8 PM, Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont, 773-697-9693, theannoyance.com, $20, $15 students.

Whitney Cummings ò BRAD BARKET home in the Hamptons—just as their mother has put it on the market—to wallow in self-pity and hash out their decades-old resentments. One of the most hackneyed setups in theater is skewered by casting all the traditionally Caucasian roles with people of color.

What raises Winkler’s play above mere parody is that it manages to mock its overprivileged protagonists while simultaneously honoring the truth of their grievances. Arnel Sancianco’s multilevel design serves to underscore the many levels on which this memorable piece functions, though it might’ve benefited from an in-the-round configuration, as some speech is lost when actors are in the stage’s farthest reaches. The dialogue is so peppered with references to everything from Chekhov to Drake that multiple viewings are recommended to take it all in. Hutch Pimentel directed.

—DMITRY SAMAROV Through 11/4: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Den Theatre, 1329-1333 N. Milwaukee, 773-609-2336, firstfloortheater.com, $20, $15 students.

DANCE Marginalia You know when people scrawl in books, adding comments, annotations, possibly doodles or drawings? That stuff is marginalia. Links Hall hosts an evening of dance performance about how “the marks, scrawls, and comments that readers interject into a text” can reframe things and catalyze “new ways of being” and interacting. Fri 10/20-Sat 10/21, 7 PM, Links Hall at Constellation, 3111 N. Western, 773-281-0824, linkshall.org, $10.

COMEDY Whitney Cummings Cummings is brash and crass, unabashedly rolling in raunch as she shares stories she’s never told anybody. The entry fee includes a copy of her new book, I’m Fine . . . and Other Lies. Thu 10/19, 8 PM, the Vic, 3145 N. Sheffield, 773-472-0449, victheatre. com, $45.

Shark Tank: The Musical In R case you’re unfamiliar, Shark Tank is a reality show on which entre-

preneurs and small-business owners pitch their concepts to a panel of potential investors, most notably Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Jennifer

10/20, 6-10 PM. Hubbard Street Lofts, 1821 W. Hubbard, spudnikpress.org/ event/hubbard-street-lofts-annualopen-house.

MOVIES More at chicagoreader.com/movies

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Token Kaye Winks goes for the jugular in her saucy new solo show about growing up black in a mostly white world. And who could blame her?

Helped by great direction from Schoen Smith, Winks shows a knack for uncomfortable, often hilarious jokes that speak to the greater ills of race in America.

But it’s arguable that her talent isn’t so much in nailing unseemly stereotypes as in the subtle, self-deprecating humor that puts her squarely at the center of a thoughtful and reflective comingof-age story. Bits about white friends from the suburbs, black cousins from the south side, and an exceptionally awkward holiday trip to the southern states are relatable, even humbling at times. —MATT DE LA PEÑA Sun 10/22, 8 PM, Judy’s Beat Lounge, Second City Training Center, 230 W. North, second floor, 312-337-3992, $13.

LIT & LECTURES

For more of the best things to do every day of the week, go to chicagoreader. com/agenda.

NEW REVIEWS

“Heaven and Earth: Alexander Calder and Jeff Koons” ò NATHAN KEAY Inception Fashion designer Agnieszka Kulon and video artist Edward Yang collaborated on this immersive exhibit featuring fashion, animation, projections, and music. It’s a prologue to The TimeGate, a virtual reality project the Zhou brothers started in China this year.

Opening reception Fri 10/20, 7-10 PM. Through 11/3. Mon-Fri 10 AM-5 PM, Sat noon-7 PM. Zhou B Art Center, 1029 W. 35th, 773-523-0200, zbcenter.org.

Chavela Ranchera singer Chavela Vargas turned heads in Mexico during the 1950s and ‘60s with her butch costumes and emotionally naked performances, stripped of the genre’s characteristic gaiety to reveal only stoic sorrow. As this documentary by Catherine Gund and Daresha Kyi reveals, Vargas came by her tragic persona honestly: unloved by her poverty-stricken parents, she lived most of her adulthood in the closet (her macho stage act notwithstanding) and was in the process of drinking herself to death when a new romantic relationship gave her the strength to quit in 1988.

Her subsequent professional comeback, including a triumphant theatrical debut in Spain, was well-deserved, though the filmmakers allow this last chapter in Vargas’s life to drag on as she makes one farewell performance after another.

“She tried as hard as she could to die onstage,” remembers one witness; Vargas nearly succeeded, but then the

Lit & Luz Festival Make magR azine’s annual Lit & Luz Festival brings half a dozen artists and writers

from Mexico to participate in readings and other events and work with some of their Chicago counterparts to devise Belonging: A Live Magazine Show Extravaganza, which closes out the festivities Sat 10/21 at 7:30 PM (Co-Prosperity Sphere, 3219 S. Morgan, $20). See website for complete schedule. 10/17-10/21, various times, various locations, litluz.org.

VISUAL ART Heaven and Earth: Alexander Calder and Jeff Koons Two of the fine art world’s best-known figures have been brought together by the MCA in honor of its 50th anniversary. Calder’s weightless, ethereal sculptures represent heaven, while Koons’s massive, concrete representations stand for earth. Through 3/31/2019. Tue 10 AM-8 PM, Wed-Sun 10 AM-5 PM. Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago, 312-280-2660, mcachicago.org, $12, $7 students and seniors, free kids 12 and under and members of the military, free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays.

Hubbard Street Lofts Annual Open House The doors open on three floors housing 14 galleries, studio spaces, design shops, and arts organizations to offer a taste of the myriad art projects developing in this creative hub. Food trucks roar at the ready outside. Fri

The Murder of Fred Hampton Edra Soto: Open 24 Hours For two years, local artist Edra Soto collected liquor bottles discarded in Garfield Park, litter she transforms into art with her installation Open 24 Hours, a site-specific work designed for the MCA’s new exhibit space the Commons. Visitors are invited to submit their own materials, which Soto will incorporate into talks, performances and workshops on select Fridays.

Through 2/25/2018. Tue 10 AM-8 PM, Wed-Sun 10 AM-5 PM. Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago, 312-2802660, mcachicago.org, $12, $7 students and seniors, free kids 12 and under and members of the military, free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays.

secret of her musical power was that she threatened to die at the end of every song. —J.R. JONES 93 min. Fri 10/20-Sun 10/22, 2:30, 4:45, 7:30, and 9:40 PM; Mon 10/23, 2:30 and 4:45 PM; Tue 10/24, 2:30, 4:45, and 9:40 PM; Wed 10/25, 2:30, 4:45, 7:30, and 9:40 PM; and Thu 10/26, 2:30, 4:45, and 7:30 PM. Music Box. The Florida Project WriterR director Sean Baker (Starlet, Tangerine) takes a sympathetic look at a

couple of motels in Orlando that serve as home for a variety of working-poor individuals. The film unfolds mainly from the perspective of a six-year-old girl, whose single, twentysomething mother supports herself through prostitution µ

Never miss a show again.

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Only the Brave B and scamming tourists; Baker also broadens his focus occasionally to consider the activities of their motel manager (Willem Dafoe), a paternal figure to both mother and daughter. The subject matter may be sordid and sad, but the tone is generally upbeat, reflecting the little girl’s cheery, naive outlook. This also conveys with remarkable vividness a small child’s sense of time: Baker places no dramatic emphasis on any individual scene, granting a sense of wide-eyed wonder to major and minor events alike. —BEN SACHS R, 115 min. Landmark’s Century Centre.

The Foreigner A London restaurateur (Jackie Chan) loses his daughter to a terror attack staged by a group called the “authentic IRA,” then taps his long dormant skills as a special operations soldier to face off against a cagey former Sinn Fein leader (Pierce Brosnan) with a lot at stake in his current government post. Martin Campbell (Goldeneye, Casino Royale) directed this twisty, bracing political thriller, giving Chan room to display his dramatic ability and letting Brosnan flesh out a vigorous, complex character who’s surrounded by frenemies with secrets of their own. In English and subtitled Mandarin. —ANDREA GRONVALL R, 114 min. Chatham 14, Ford City, Harper, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, 600 N. Michigan

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The Murder of Fred R Hampton Chicago native Howard Alk helped found Second

City in 1959 and made a name for himself in the ‘60s and ‘70s as a documentary cinematographer, editor, and director. His debut feature, American Revolution 2 (1969, codirected by Mike Gray) looked at the Black Panther Party in Chicago; this follow-up, a profile of Panther leader Fred Hampton, unexpectedly turned into a true-crime story in December 1969 when Hampton and another Panther were fatally shot during the Chicago Police Department’s notorious raid on a Panther crash pad in West Town. The doc-

umentary (1971) presents Hampton as a charismatic figure given to violent revolutionary rhetoric; after his death the focus shifts to Cook County state’s attorney Ed Hanrahan, whose report exonerating the police was treated as gospel truth by the Chicago Tribune but belied by a wealth of physical evidence at the scene of the crime. As a first draft of history, this is invaluable, though its topical relevance has hardly diminished. —J.R. JONES 88 min. Restored 35mm print. Also on the program: The Jungle (1967), a 22-minute short about street gangs, written and directed by Philadelphia high school students. Sat 10/21, 3:30 PM, and Wed 10/25, 7:45 PM. Gene Siskel Film Center.

Only the Brave Screenwriters Ken Nolan and Eric Warren Singer adapted a GQ article for this actioner about a group of Arizona firefighters known as the Granite Mountain Hotshots, nearly all of whom perished while battling a wildfire in 2013. The film follows them over a few years prior to the tragic event, focusing on their paternal superintendent (Josh Brolin) and a former drug addict (Miles Teller) who straightens out his life after joining the team.

Nolan and Singer create sympathetic portraits of these two, but the other characters are defined chiefly by macho posturing. Except for the supervisor’s wife (Jennifer Connelly), the women characters serve mainly as trophies for heroic behavior or as sexual betrayers.

Director Joseph Kosinski (Tron: Legacy) makes effective use of the wide-screen frame (particularly in capturing the Arizona vistas), though he fails to build on any of the script’s straightforward themes. —BEN SACHS PG-13, 134 min. Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings.

The Trip to Spain With this third theatrical spin-off, the British miniseries The Trip has graduated to a genuine franchise: it’s like the

Fast and the Furious movies, but with celebrity impressions instead of hot rods. Following The Trip (2010) and The Trip to Italy (2014), Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon (playing themselves) set off on a tour of Spanish restaurants with scrumptious food and spectacular views, where they needle each other, pontificate about Don Quixote, and workshop their impressions of David Bowie, John Hurt, Ian McKellen, and Roger Moore, among others. (This comic motif, a mainstay of the series, crosses through the looking glass when Brydon mimics Mick Jagger, whom he met at a party, trying to do Michael Caine.) Joke for joke, this is much funnier than Italy, predicated as always on Coogan’s vanity and insecurity. —J.R. JONES 110 min. Fri 10/20, 2 and 6 PM; Sat 10/21, 7:45 PM; Sun 10/22, 3 PM; Mon 10/23, 7:45 PM; Tue 10/24, 6 PM; and Wed 10/25, 7:45 PM. Gene Siskel Film Center SPECIAL EVENTS The Fly David Cronenberg’s 1986 remake of the Vincent Price shocker, though what it reminds you of most, in its uneasy meld of physical deformity and romance, is Peter Bogdanovich’s Mask. The mixture didn’t work there and doesn’t here either: image so much subverts intention that Jeff Goldblum’s tragic flyperson finally seems more ludicrous than affecting, voyeuristically bizarre. For a while Goldblum’s quirkiness (as teleportation master Seth Brundle) keeps the movie afloat, but as he sinks irrevocably into his fly suit, everything else sinks with him. Still, it’s an interesting experiment Cronenberg’s attempted, if ultimately in the wrong direction: almost none of the minimalist alienation of, e.g., Scanners and Videodrome remains, and the stylistic opening out diminishes those films retrospectively, makes them seem less authentic than they are. The warmth and accessibility may be flattering to Cronenberg’s psyche, but the creative loss is considerable. —PAT GRAHAM 100 min. 35mm. Screens as part of the “Cinema Science” series, with an introduction by Erica Zahnle of the Field Museum. Tue 10/24, 7:15 PM. Music Box. New York Dog Film Festival This second annual edition of the touring festival consists of two different programs collecting animation and live-action shorts on canine themes.

You know it’s from New York because the dogs are all incredibly rude. Sat 10/21, 3 PM. Patio.

Films by Femi Odugbemi The Lagosian filmmaker attends this program of three documentary shorts he made between 2005 and 2016. 99 min. Thu 10/26, 7 PM. Nothwestern Univ. Block Museum of Art. F v

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SURE THINGS

THURSDAY 19

FRIDAY 20

SATURDAY 21

Ô Elevate Chicago Da nce This festival offers public performances and studio showings at venues citywide; a full schedule is available at chicagodancemakers.org/ elevate. Tonight check out DFBRL8R for dance works in the gallery, basement, and back spaces. 10 PM, DFBRL8R Gallery, 1463 W. Chicago, $5 donation.

ï Mat Ra ppaport Every ten minutes, the artist circles his truck around Columbia College, having taken video the entire ride. He projects images he witnessed, remixing the downtown landscape on a continuous loop for those waiting. 6:30-9:30 PM, Columbia College, 600 S. Michigan, meme01. com/?project=range. F

J Trevor Noah The affable South African transplant, current host of The Daily Show, does stand-up offering his outsider’s view of the United States. These performances follow last week’s Daily Show tapings. 7:30 and 10 PM, Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State, 312-4626300, thechicagotheatre. com, $155.

SUNDAY 22

MONDAY 23

TUESDAY 24

WEDNESDAY 25

× Taste of the World in One Ne ighborhood The Rogers Park and West Ridge Historical Society has compiled a cookbook of 221 recipes showcasing the far north side’s cultural diversity. Come out to sample some of the ethnic dishes featured.

1-4 PM, Indian Boundary Park, 2500 W. Lunt, rpwrhs.org/cookbook. F

Å Down With Mo numents? A panel of speakers addresses the current controversy over monuments, asking: Should memorials that are out of date or potentially offensive be removed? Or can they be recontexualized to resonate with the present? Refreshments provided. 4:30 PM, School of the Art Institute, 112 S. Michigan. F

i Ge nerati on Lati nX This bilingual weekly variety show invites Chicago-based Latino comedians and musicians to perform— sometimes in English, sometimes in Spanish, sometimes without words altogether. 10 PM, iO Theater, 1501 N. Kingsbury, ioimprov.com. $10.

| Spooky & Scandalous Trea sures From the Newberr y Vaults The Newberry digs deep into its archives to unearth supernatural texts, witch-hunting manuals, pornographic pamphlets, and other salacious texts. 6-8 PM, Newberry Library, 60 W. Walton, newberry.org. F

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Abortion bill HB40, the union-busting Janus v. AFSCME case, and the Illinois governor’s unlikely coalition

By BEN JORAVSKY

D

espite what you’ve been reading about the far right’s consternation with Bruce Rauner over his ostensible support for abortion in Illinois, I think it’s been a pretty good month for the governor.

The union-busting Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees case that he initiated has made it to the Supreme Court. And he’s got liberal groups like Planned Parenthood praising him for his stance on reproductive rights. It looks like he may be able to put together the band of rabid right-wingers and abortion-rights moderates who helped elect him in the first place.

I know that sounds like the oddest of coalitions—but it just goes to show you what a clever politician can buy with his billions.

The Republican right-to-lifers are furious that Rauner flip-flopped and signed HB40, the reproductive rights bill that expanded Medicaid funding for some abortions and eliminated the controversial “trigger provision” from state law. (The trigger language would’ve made abortions illegal in Illinois should Roe v.

Wade be overturned.)

And many, including Steve Bannon, are talking about recruiting someone to mount a primary challenge against Rauner. But I think it’s mostly bluster. In fact, I can’t understand why they’re so outraged. They knew what they were getting when they overwhelmingly voted for Rauner back in 2014.

Rauner made no secret of his support for abortion. In 2014, his wife, Diana Rauner, went so far as to take out an ad assuring pro-choice Democrats that when it came to abortion rights her husband would be no different than his opponent, former governor Pat Quinn.

Backed by many pro-choice moderates in DuPage County, the North Shore, and the Gold Coast, Rauner edged out Quinn and promptly went to work bankrupting public education by

vetoing the budget.

Earlier this year, the governor panicked when it looked as though he might be losing support among downstate Republicans. So he assured right-to-life legislators he would veto HB40. That enraged pro-choice voters, who claimed he was betraying his lifelong commitment to their cause.

Rauner found himself in a jam. He had to decide which group he could least afford to alienate on the eve of next year’s election: Gold Coast and North Shore moderates or rabid Republicans. Obviously, he went with the former, at least partly because, if push came to shove, they might actually vote for a Democrat. As for the rabid right, he probably figured he’d give ’em a tax break and they’d follow him off a cliff.

Of course, Rauner was slick about it. Over the summer he made a real show of inviting various pro-choice women to his office to explain to him how important it was to pass HB40.

If Democrats can’t beat Republicans, they can’t enact liberal-minded measures, like—oh, just to pick one— reproductive rights.

And then on September 28, he signed it, making a big deal about it, like he was King Solomon making a wrenching decision as opposed to a lifelong abortion supporter doing what he’d promised to do four years ago.

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Republicans knew what they were getting when they overwhelmingly voted for Bruce Rauner. He made no secret of his support for abortion. In 2014, his wife, Diana Rauner, went so far as to take out an ad assuring pro-choice Democrats of her husband’s stance. ò AL PODGORSKI/SUN-TIMES MEDIA

In any case, it seems to have worked. Key players in the pro-choice movement fell for it. When Rauner signed HB40, Planned Parenthood of Illinois sent an e-mail calling on members to “thank Governor Rauner.” Puhlease! A more accurate response would’ve been “Thanks for nothing, Bruce!”

Even if the strategy fails and he doesn’t win reelection, Rauner’s in a perfect position to achieve his great dream of damaging, if not destroying, public unions in Illinois thanks to the Janus case.

Mark Janus is a state employee who argues that his First Amendment rights are being violated because state law requires him to contribute a “fair share” portion of his paycheck to the union that represents him—in this case, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. In particular, he doesn’t think he should have to donate money to a union with which he disagrees politically.

It’s called a fair-share contribution because the money guarantees that workers share the cost of financing a union that represents them in bargaining and grievance hearings.

On February 9, 2015, a few weeks after he took office, Rauner issued an executive order halting automatic fair-share deductions from paychecks. Several unions and attorney general Lisa Madigan sued and Rauner’s executive order was overturned.

Rauner also filed a suit in federal court seeking to stop automatic fair-share contributions on First Amendment grounds. In 2016, a federal judge ruled against Rauner, decreeing that the governor didn’t have standing in the case.

By then Janus had joined the case—as a state employee, he clearly has standing. Janus is being represented by the National Right

to Work Legal Defense Foundation, a unionbusting outfit that’s financially supported by the Koch brothers, the Walton Family Foundation, and other stalwarts of the far right.

On September 28, the Supreme Court agreed to hear Janus’s case.

The suit is similar to one filed by Rebecca Friedrichs, a teacher in California, who lost when the Supreme Court was deadlocked 4-4.

Since then President Trump and the Senate have put conservative Neil Gorsuch on the court. So unless another judge flips—c’mon Justice Kennedy, you can do it!—it looks like SCOTUS will issue a bruising blow against unions, which will have to scramble to keep up their funding.

This is a cruel irony on many levels. For one thing, government employees such as Janus will be relatively defenseless without unions if they’re fired or harassed by a powerful politician like Rauner. Good luck getting the National Right to Work Foundation to help them with that.

As for Rauner’s friends at Planned Parenthood—well, with a drop in membership, unions will be less able to help elect Democrats. So really the assault on unions is an attempt to cripple the Democratic Party. You don’t think the Koch brothers actually give a hoot about workers like Mark Janus, do you?

If Democrats can’t beat Republicans, they can’t enact liberal-minded measures, like—oh, just to pick one—reproductive rights.

Think about this, Planned Parenthood. Your good friend, Bruce, is throwing you under the bus once again. Only this time he’s got a more roundabout way of doing it. v

v @joravben OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 11

Rendering of the Lincoln Village Pedestrian Bicycle Bridge ò CDOT

CITY LIFE TRANSPORTATION

A bridge too far

The turbulent history of the bike bridge that will finally complete the North Shore Channel Trail

By JOHN GREENFIELD

T

he late 50th Ward alderman Bernard “Berny” Stone was a colorful character. Elected in 1973 under Mayor Richard J. Daley, he presided over the far-north-side West Ridge community for nearly four decades. Throughout his career Stone was famous for his feistiness.

In the 1980s he was an original member of the Vrdolyak 29, the nearly all-white aldermanic bloc that tried to thwart Mayor Harold Washington’s every move during the racially charged Council Wars. Stone apparently relished the many verbal battles he got into at City Hall during this period. In 1986, for example, he mocked compact then freshman alderman, now congressman Luis Gutierrez as a “little pipsqueak.” During his later years in office, Stone sometimes fell asleep during council meetings but was no less fiery. In 2011 he lost an acrimonious runoff election to Debra Silverstein, an ally of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Stone passed away in December 2014 at age 87.

Earlier this month, Silverstein joined Emanuel and members of Stone’s family to cut the ribbon on Bernard Stone Park, a memorial to her former foe. Located by the west bank of the North Shore Channel, just south of Devon Avenue, the 1.8-acre green space replaces what was the weed-strewn parking lot of a defunct movie theater.

Silverstein says naming the park after her onetime rival as a “tribute to his service” was her suggestion. That’s big of her, considering that during the election Stone reportedly dismissed Silverstein, whose husband, Ira, is a state senator, as “nothing but a housewife.”

It’s also ironic that the park that honors Stone will be served by an upcoming bike-and-pedestrian bridge the alderman put the kibosh on while he was still in office. More than a decade after the bridge was originally planned, the Chicago Department of Transpor-

12 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

tation is finally moving forward with building the 180-foot-long weathered steel structure over the channel, just south of the new green space. Construction is slated to begin in early 2018 and wrap up a year later.

Officially called the Lincoln Village Pedestrian Bicycle Bridge, it will provide the final missing link in the North Shore Channel Trail, which runs nearly seven miles from Albany Park to Evanston. Most of the path’s Chicago portion hugs the east bank of the waterway, but north of Lincoln Avenue the trail shifts to the west bank. As it stands, people strolling, running, and biking are forced to make the crossing via Lincoln or Devon, busy four-lane highways.

By 2005, CDOT had designed a bridge near this location and secured funding for it. But Stone pulled his support. (I was working as CDOT’s bike parking czar at the time but wasn’t involved in bikeways planning discussions.)

According to CDOT deputy commissioner Luann Hamilton, who worked on the project, Stone claimed his opposition was based on feedback from neighbors east of Kedzie, which parallels the east bank. He said residents were worried about people parking on their streets and using the bridge to access the Lincoln Village Shopping Center, west of the channel.

But Hamilton says the alderman provided no documentation to support this claim.

Not long after Stone gave the thumbs-down on the bridge project, the Lincoln Village Senior Apartments were constructed just west of the trail, near the proposed span site. “An alternative theory was that the developers . . . were concerned that the bridge would impact or detract from their site,” Hamilton says.

A handful of bike advocates held a meeting with Stone to discuss the matter, according to Bob Kastigar, who lives in the neighboring

39th Ward. Stone claimed he was concerned that cyclists coming off the bridge might be struck by drivers in the shopping center parking lot. “But there was a large distance between the path and the parking lot,” Kastigar says, “so that didn’t make any sense.”

Former Active Transportation Alliance executive director Rob Sadowsky claims that, as with the Vrdolyak 29’s resistance to Washington, there was a racial element to the bridge opposition. Sadowsky says that while he was working for the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs in 2001 he attended a meeting on affordable housing in the 50th Ward during which Stone referred to African-American and Latino youths as “little blacks and browns.” The alderman implied, according to Sadowsky, that the ward should avoid measures that would bring more young people of color to the neighborhood.

Sadowsky adds that when he was leading Active Trans in the mid-2000s, CDOT staffers working on the bridge project indicated that there was racially motivated resistance to the span from white homeowners and merchants as well as from Stone. “They believed that nonwhites would travel in hordes through the ward. But no one would say that in public— they would talk about ‘gangs.’”

“That infuriates me,” responds Stone’s daughter Ilana Stone Feketitsch, who served as the alderman’s chief of staff during the last 18 years of his career. “Never did he ever dismiss anyone of any race, color, and creed.”

(Asked about her father’s involvement in the racially charged anti-Washington resistance, she says, “He got caught up with what was going on and what he believed in.”)

Feketitsch, who attended the park ribboncutting, says her recollection of the bridge issue is spotty. But she says she believes the alderman’s main concern was the opposition

from the residents east of Kedzie, which she doesn’t think was racially motivated. “He always stood for what the community wanted— they came before the bicyclists.” Feketitsch adds that she currently supports the project.

“It’s a good thing that people from other parts of the city will use the bridge.”

“That’s utter nonsense to say it was a racial issue,” echoes Stone’s son, Jay, a hypnotherapist who in 2003—contrary to his father’s wishes—unsuccessfully ran for 32nd Ward alderman. The younger Stone notes that the 50th Ward is home to “Jews, Muslims, Catholics, Indians, Pakistanis, Assyrians, and African-Americans. It’s such a melting pot.

The biggest thing I was proud of my father for was his ability to bring people of different races and religions together.” He adds that, as a cyclist, he was always in favor of building the bridge, but he respected his father’s position.

In 2007 aldermanic challenger Naisy Dolar used the missing bridge as a campaign issue. Berny Stone blasted that strategy as “ridiculous” before defeating Dolar at the polls. After Silverstein ousted Stone in 2011, she told CDOT she was interested in resurrecting the project. (She now says that she has no idea why Stone blocked the bridge, and hasn’t heard much from constituents on the subject.) But by then the bridge funding had been used for other projects, and a canoe launch had been built at the planned bridge location, forcing the department to return to the drawing board.

In January 2013, the Illinois Department of Transportation allocated $979,600 for the bridge, but it took a few more years until additional federal and local money could be lined up for the $3.4 million project budget.

In September 2016, Silverstein and CDOT officials including Hamilton held a community meeting to present the latest plans for the bridge, which will be located just north of the canoe launch. “When they were finished there was a long period of silence,” Kastigar recalls.

“There wasn’t any opposition. Finally someone started applauding and we all joined in.”

Kastigar suggests that we should name the span the Stone Bridge, not to honor the alderman but to serve as a reminder of how one pugnacious politician can derail a worthwhile project for years. “I’m sorry he didn’t live long enough to see the bridge get built.” v

John Greenfield edits the transportation news website Streetsblog Chicago. v @greenfieldjohn

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T h e C H A’ s s l eepin g

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The Chicago Housing Authority provides Section 8 vouchers to tens of thousands of low-income households. Is the agency trying to keep them from realizing their collective power?

By MAYA DUKMASOVA OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 13

On a Saturday a©ernoon in January, a handful of mostly middle-aged men and women gathered in a conference room on the tenth floor of the redsteel-framed skyscraper at 60 E. Van Buren.

Participants in the Housing Choice Voucher Program, also known as Section 8, they’d come to the headquarters of the Chicago Housing Authority for a long-awaited meeting with CEO Eugene Jones Jr. In addition to Jones’s blessing, they expected to get a check for $850 to file paperwork to officially become a 501(c)3 nonprofit: the National Housing Residents Association.

The CHA is Chicago’s historically maligned public housing landlord, but it also oversees the administration of the voucher program, which subsidizes low-income tenants’ rent in the private housing market. Public housing residents have long been able to communicate their concerns to the CHA through elected tenant councils and a citywide representative body—in fact the citywide body, the Central Advisory Council, receives more than $1 million annually from the agency to run

14 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

programs and services for residents, compensate board members, and maintain an office and staff. Yet even as the size of the voucher program has grown—vouchered tenants now outnumber public housing residents in Chicago four to one—the 47,000 households in that program haven’t had the benefit of similar representation. The members of the National Housing Residents Association were set on changing that.

When the group arrived, Jones was already in the conference room. Over the previous nine months they’d held many meetings to define a structure for the group and determine the scope of their work; they’d also obtained articles of incorporation from the secretary of state’s office. “It was a relief because it’s like finally all the hard work paid off,” Valeria Harris, a certified nursing assistant who rents an apartment in Ravenswood, recalls of her feelings that morning. “We had two or three different bylaws we wanted him to look over, we had programming we wanted him to see, a mission statement, a vision statement.”

The meeting didn’t go according to plan.

“It was just terrible,” Harris says. Instead of signing off on their progress, Jones told the group “we need to get our s-h-i-t together,” she says, spelling out the word. He added, she says, that “we’re unprofessional, we’re not ready, we need to find out what it is that we really want, and if we don’t like it we can resign.” Jones then stormed out.

Harris was shocked—not just by the content of the message but by Jones’s tone. “I felt so humiliated,” she recalls. Four other members of the group confirmed Harris’s description of the encounter. Jones declined multiple requests to be interviewed for this story, and didn’t respond to these claims in a brief written statement he offered instead.

Harris and most of the others took Jones’s behavior as a sign that the CHA wasn’t invested in their success as an organization, but opinions diverged about what had caused him to go from an attitude of support and enthusiasm toward their venture to one of deprecation and disrespect. Some thought it had to do with months of internal squabbling and disorganization among members; others suspected snitches and saboteurs among their numbers; still others had the feeling that the CHA had no intention of letting the group become official in the first place.

In the weeks that followed, it wasn’t clear whether the council was still sanctioned to meet. Harris and Jackie Paige, an outspoken voucher holder who’d long been interested in forming some sort of representative body for Section 8 tenants, interpreted Jones’s behavior at the January meeting as the latest sign of his desire to thwart the group. Though not everyone in the group agreed, a few council members thought they saw a pattern: When the council was first selected by the CHA in the spring of 2016, they were told they’d be able to work with an attorney to establish themselves as a nonprofit in order to receive agency funding. Yet the attorney Jones connected them with, former Chicago Board of Education vice president Jesse Ruiz, didn’t seem interested in them.

Paige says they’d asked Jones to provide group members with organizational and leadership training opportunities, since most members had no previous experience being on a board or running a council. That never happened either. When they had nevertheless reached the threshold of officialdom, it felt like the rug had been yanked out from under them.

At the CHA board meeting the following month, Paige, a confident 5'8", stood up to object. “I am here because the council has been stymied at every turn in our attempts to formalize ourselves into a resident advisory board,” she said, reading from a prepared statement. (Her remarks hadn’t been approved by other NHRA members, and some disagreed with her public airing of grievances.) “[Jones] informed us that we need to get our sugar-honey-iced-tea together and declared that he was the boss. I am sure this is not what HUD intended when it gave [public housing authorities] the right to appoint a resident organization.” She was referring to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s designation for groups representing people assisted by housing authorities, which authorities are obligated to give resources to and include in their planning activities.

“If we are truly to be an independent organization—” Paige continued, but just then the CHA timekeeper rang the bell signaling the end of her two minutes of public comment. She folded her notes, thanked the commissioners, and walked away.

The commissioners issued no response, but when Paige, Harris, and a few other NHRA members arrived at the CHA offices for their monthly meeting a few days later, they found the conference room locked and no one expecting them.

They met in the hallway. When they requested a meeting room for March, they were denied. In an e-mail obtained by the Reader, Housing Choice Voucher Program director Karen Humphrey wrote, “Pursuant to the request and direction of CEO, Eugene Jones, the March 25th NHRA meeting is being cancelled.” Finally, in April, all members received a letter from Jones stating that the agency would no longer recognize them as the resident advisory board for voucher holders. Jones disbanded the group—just like he’d disbanded a previous voucher tenants’ council a year prior.

In recent months the CHA has quietly formed yet another iteration of this council. Will the third time be the charm?

Chicago has a rich legacy of tenant organizing in public housing. In the 1980s, Cabrini-Green resident

leader Marion Stamps directed massive get-out-the-vote efforts to help elect Mayor Harold Washington. Later, residents of the Wentworth Gardens public housing complex successfully fought the razing of their community in the face of encroaching development around the new White Sox stadium.

The National Public Housing Museum owes its existence to the diligent lobbying of west-side public housing leader Deverra Beverly. And in 2000, at the start of Mayor Richard M. Daley’s $1.6 billion Plan for Transformation, it was legal action by the Central Advisory Council that codified displaced public housing residents’ “right of return” to new and rehabbed units.

But public housing is no longer the primary means by which the CHA provides housing assistance to low-income families.

The vast majority of the people on its rolls are voucher holders living in the private rental market. Following decades of bad planning and institutional neglect, which earned Chicago’s public housing complexes a reputation for being the country’s

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technically represents only public housing residents. People in the voucher program contact her office, Washington says, because they don’t know where else to turn: “We get 20 to 30 calls per week: people having problems with their landlords, having problems with security deposits, landlords charging money under the table.”

She says the CAC tries to do what it can to address voucher residents’ needs, but that “dealing with HCV is not an easy task.” Perhaps the biggest hurdle to working with vouchered households is that they’re dispersed and anonymized in the wider rental market. There are neighborhoods on the south and west sides with disproportionate concentrations of vouchers, but even next-door neighbors with vouchers may not know about one another. Unlike public housing buildings, in which organizers often went door to door to mobilize tenants, vouchers are invisible, with no obvious physical landscape around which to rally.

The members of the first two voucher resident advisory boards convened by the CHA knew this all too well. They had personal experience with the injustices and inconveniences of the program. And like their predecessors in public housing, they understood the power and potential of mobilizing their constituents—if only they could find an effective way to meet and communicate.

In the 1980s Cabrini-Green tenant leader Marion Stamps oversaw massive get-out-the-vote efforts to help elect Mayor Harold Washington.

The duty of public housing authorities to involve voucher holder representatives in resident advisory boards was codified by the Depa ment of Housing and Urban Development in 1998. But

worst “vertical ghettos,” the Plan for Transformation sought to remake the city’s subsidized housing landscape both physically and politically. Most high-rise public housing was demolished and Section 8 subsidies were expanded; the shift reflected national policy trends spurred by the view that local governments just weren’t capable of being good landlords for the poor. Beginning in the 1990s, policymakers increasingly argued that the physical design of public housing (rather than segregationist politics or inept bureaucratic administration) had led to residents becoming a disenfranchised underclass in most American cities. Vouchers were seen as a way to roll back government involvement in the housing market and reconnect low-income households to the existing institutions of their cities. The various consequences of the Plan for Transformation—from mass displacement to entrenched segregation to the rise of private companies profiteering off the voucher program—have been amply documented. But an additional ramification has been the erosion of organized tenant power.

With two million participants nationwide, the Housing Choice Voucher Program is the largest rental housing subsidy program in America. Though it barely makes a dent in addressing the need for housing assistance—42,000 households are on the waiting list for vouchers in Chicago alone—there are enough people in the program to constitute a formidable interest group or voting bloc. It’s enough people to sway elections and lobby for policy change on a local, regional, and national level. And there’s a lot of money at stake. The Section 8 program brings some $430 million in federal funds to landlords in Chicago every year (on top of the $130 million that accounts for tenants’ contributions to their rent, which can’t be more than 30 percent of their incomes). Despite voucher holders’ racial, geographic, and socioeconomic diversity, their lives are governed by the same set of administrative rules, which are often difficult to navigate. And the need for organized resident representation is clearly there.

“The majority of our clients are HCV,” says Francine Washington, the president of the Central Advisory Council—which

guidelines for how representatives are to be chosen, and what they’re entitled to, are vague.

Voucher resident advisory boards are supposed to represent tenants in the program, but don’t have to be elected; authorities can handpick board members as long as they use a “reasonable process.” While HUD requires that public housing tenant representatives receive $25 per occupied unit each year to organize activities and programs, there’s no such similar mandate for voucher RABs. Voucher RABs have to be provided with “reasonable means” to connect with the families they represent and learn about the workings of the authority, but what form those means take isn’t spelled out. The only input from the advisory boards that housing authorities are required to take into account is their ideas about the agency’s annual plan.

There are few immediate consequences for the CHA if it doesn’t follow these rules. Though in theory, HUD could cut funding if it finds noncompliance with its regulations for tenant participation, this has never happened in Chicago. In fact, much of the federal oversight of the CHA has been drastically scaled back as part of the Plan for Transformation.

In spring 2009, under the leadership of Lewis Jordan, the CHA decided to form the first voucher resident advisory board, a group of about 20 people that met quarterly. Jordan, now head of the Marin Housing Authority in California, declined to comment for this story; according to CHA spokeswoman Molly Sullivan, no one remains in the agency’s J

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 15

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administration who could speak about the motivations behind creating that first group. But by 2009 the CHA’s voucher program had grown by 40 percent since the beginning of the Plan for Transformation, from 25,400 to 36,000 households.

The “reasonable process” to choose representatives for a resident advisory board was allowing anyone interested to come and join what the CHA began calling the HCV Participant Council. In its 2013 annual plan (the first to make any mention of the group), the agency noted that the council was made up of people “who reflect and are representative of the interests of all families” in the voucher program. The council was described as a forum for sharing information about the CHA’s activities and helping the agency develop “strategies to improve the overall administration of the HCV Program.”

In practice, council participants say, the group never seemed to be taken seriously, and meetings were often disorganized. “I was on it for almost five years, and every time we came, we had the same conversations,” says Kim Curtis, a South Shore resident and a voucher holder since 2002. “I got involved because I was under the impression that our voices would make a difference. But I came to find out that they do not at all.” A precinct captain for former alderman Sandi Jackson who’s also been involved with the disability rights group Access Living, Curtis had been civically active for years. She says it didn’t seem to her like the Participant Council had been formed with the intention of becoming a well-functioning organization. “It was just bizarre.” Other council members were similarly concerned.

Curtis was particularly frustrated by the lack of internal organization and the lack of a clear mandate since she knew other voucher holders who were dealing with significant problems, such as living in slum conditions, without electricity, or in foreclosed properties. “The council, from our understanding, was to be formed so we could take the complaints of the residents, direct that [to the CHA], and say we don’t think that’s fair,” she says. But the mechanism to do that was never put into place. “To me we were just a front [for CHA] to say: ‘We formed them!’ But nothing that we said or what we did ever counted—it never became anything.”

Curtis added that when council members inquired about office space and stipends, they were rebuffed.

Still, some council members sacrificed not just time but money to participate. Their frustration with the directionless meetings and squabbling within the group was particularly acute. Alicia Avila, a preschool teacher who’d had a voucher since 2000, took unpaid breaks from her job to make some of the meetings. “I knew I was going to miss 30 minutes of my pay for this meeting,” she says. “I was trying to make that extra sacrifice and I felt like it should be productive.”

Avila felt it was important for the CHA to connect more with Latinos, who have historically been sidelined by the agency. She wanted to make it easier for voucher holders, especially those who don’t have a good command of English, to communicate with the CHA. She imagined a simplified telephone process or more opportunities to meet with agency representatives in the neighborhoods rather than having to go downtown. All of this would obviously require resources.

“They didn’t really ask us our opinion, it was more like we showed up and listened to them,” says Avila, adding that a few

16 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

“I got involved because I was under the impression that our voices would make a difference. But I came to find out that they do not at all.”

—Kim Curtis, member of the first HCV Participant Council

CHA representatives frequently came to Participant Council meetings to talk about this or that program. “It was like, this thing might happen—what are your thoughts?” she recalls. “It was very informal, it wasn’t well organized.”

Curtis and Avila weren’t the only ones who felt that way.

Around 2011, when the Central Advisory Council learned about their counterpart organization dedicated to voucher holders, they invited the group to use their office space in Bronzeville.

Washington, the CAC president, recalls that most members in the council seemed to have no idea what they were doing, and that the CHA staffers working with them didn’t either. “They needed help to figure out how to be an organization,” she says.

The CAC’s attorney at the time, Robert Whitfield, was more concerned that the CHA was falling short on its obligations to provide resources to the Participant Council. “It was always my impression that the CHA didn’t really want [voucher holders] to be represented,” he says, because it would mean “they’d have to pony up more money for them.”

By 2014, the Participant Council still had no offices, no funding, and no direction. Some mem-

bers began organizing in a smaller group outside the purview of the CHA. Jackie Paige was among them. In her words, this smaller group wanted to give the agency “pushback” on some of its policies, such as one specifying that voucher holders have only 90 days to find a new apartment when they move and risk losing their voucher if they don’t succeed. They also wanted more transparency in the process through which landlords and tenants are evaluated for eligibility to participate in the voucher program.

At a community meeting organized by the Metropolitan Tenants Organization that year, one member of this splinter group talked with Noah Moskowitz, then a tenant organizer at MTO, about her experiences and frustrations with the voucher program. He immediately saw potential for a mass organizing campaign among voucher holders.

Moskowitz came to learn that voucher holders often put up with bad landlords, discrimination, and crime in their buildings because they’re afraid that reporting problems might jeopardize their voucher. “In theory you should be able to organize these people in huge numbers and get the CHA to

change the program in a way that’s much more effective and liberatory,” he says.

He began meeting on a regular basis with Paige, other members of the splinter group, and a few more voucher holders he recruited. After a few meetings that required some attendees to travel “crazy distances,” the group decided to split up into “regional branches,” with leaders on the north, south, and west sides responsible for growing numbers in their communities. “The idea was we’d be canvassing satellite offices, talking to voucher holders coming and going,” Moskowitz says. “The problem was we never got enough people.”

It’s typical of any community organizing effort, he says, to see high rates of attrition and turnover. But when organizing poor and working-class people, the precariousness of people’s personal lives makes it even harder to maintain ranks. Plus, many voucher holders work full-time (in Chicago, a family of four living on $61,500 or less qualifies for housing assistance from CHA) and can’t sacrifice a lot of hours.

“People are struggling with paying medical bills, making rent, finding jobs,” Moskowitz says. “The key to dealing with that is having enough of an organizing infrastructure, reaching out to enough new people and following up with them so that you may lose a lot of people but over time the amount of people participating is increasing.”

At its peak, the splinter group comprised about 20 people.

At one point they packed a CHA board meeting and testified on behalf of several voucher holders who were struggling with specific issues. This “direct action” worked: one of the commissioners talked privately with the voucher holders after the meeting, Moskowitz says, and the problems were ultimately resolved.

But even though helping a handful of voucher holders address individual problems was an important small win, the lack of funding for this organizing work, and the sheer magnitude of the task, ultimately defeated Moskowitz and the Participant Council splinter group. Moskowitz left MTO and could no longer help the voucher holders on a volunteer basis.

Others who had the capacity to lead couldn’t make the time, or were turned off by internecine squabbling.

Paige says she felt she could let those efforts go because the arrival of Eugene Jones to head up the CHA in the fall of 2015 offered a glimmer of hope for a revitalized and sufficiently empowered Participant Council.“Mr. Jones was someone who I thought was doing his job and a man of integrity,” she says.

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“[He] was saying to us: Look, this is a whole new era and we’re gonna try something different.”

Shortly after he took over the agency, Jones disbanded the old, ineffective Participant Council. In a statement to the Reader, the agency said, “It was determined that the group was no longer meeting the goals and vision for which it was established and participation among members often fell short of what was needed to ensure a cohesive, well-functioning entity.”

Jones arrived in Chicago with a mixed reputation. In previous stints leading housing agencies in Toronto, Detroit, and Indianapolis, he became known as a fierce advocate for tenants and a hands-on manager. But he also had a track record

for apparently impulsive decision-making (particularly in hiring and firing), favoritism, and questionable financial management. Jones resigned as head of the Toronto Community Housing Corporation in 2014 after a 111-page report from the city’s ombudsman chastised him for “arbitrary” use of authority and creating a “climate of fear” at the agency.

Soon after disbanding the first Participant Council, Jones put out a call for applicants for a new one in the HCV program’s quarterly newsletter and on the agency’s website. Rather than letting anyone join the group, the CHA’s new “reasonable process” for choosing members was having those interested fill out a six-page application. Out of 116 who applied, 13 people were chosen, including Jackie Paige, Alicia Avila, and one other member of the first council.

At first, it seemed like the new council was in a better position to succeed. Jones told the group they’d need to become a nonprofit organization in order to draw funding from the CHA and have a structure of accountability with a board of directors. Members say he also promised offices, staff, and other resources once they got themselves up and running. They decided to drop the name Participant Council and instead call the body the National Housing Residents Association. (The name was aspirational; the group had no immediate plan to go national.)

“It was more focused. They had specific goals we had to meet within a year,” Avila says. Yet she began to see that, despite Jones’s vision and advocacy, the CHA didn’t appear committed to the success of this group either. Or the agency didn’t understand what such a commitment would require.

“We had to come up with bylaws, rules, a budget, office space, how much we realistically needed to run it, to have staff,” she says. “We had a great idea but we really didn’t have guidance and support from the CHA. We definitely needed a more hands-on approach.” Most group members didn’t have experience setting up a company or being on a board of directors. Most also didn’t know one another and had no preexisting bonds of trust to build on.

CHA general counsel James Bebley did introduce the group to politically connected attorney Jesse Ruiz (now president of the Chicago Park District board), but they didn’t get the sense that he was interested in helping them. “It seemed like he never really made time for us,” Avila says.

For his part, Ruiz says he met with members of the group for an initial consultation and was ready to help them pro bono. He acknowledges that he had to cancel one subsequent meeting unexpectedly, but says after that he “never heard from them again.” There “wasn’t a lot of consensus among the folks” he met with, Ruiz says. “I remember a lot of discussion about whether or not they were going to pay themselves. . . .

Most directors of nonprofit organizations don’t get paid.”

Paige, Avila, Harris, and others involved with the NHRA don’t dispute their internal discord, or their preoccupation with whether they’d be paid. The same issues that plagued the first Participant Council—interpersonal conflicts, distrust, and jealousy—resurfaced. But they also point out that group members didn’t have the right organizational training to manage these disagreements. And most couldn’t afford to work as community organizers, CHA consultants, or tenant representatives without compensation. Besides, their counterparts on the CAC are paid for their time and labor—why shouldn’t they be? “We’re asking to be on the same level,” Paige says.

Some NHRA members, on the other hand, felt that the CHA was doing more than enough to support them. “I’m probably the only person that felt the CHA bent over backwards,” says Patrick Barberousse, who had recently received a voucher

after eight years on the waiting list. He was eager to help participants understand their rights and the thicket of rules governing the voucher program. “[Jones] was accessible. Everyone had his cell number and he would respond to them. Everyone had his e-mail address and he would respond to them.”

Barberousse doesn’t agree that the group could have used more hand-holding, and says Jones rightly wanted to see members learn to resolve their own conflicts and build consensus “because we’re going to have to be a working unit and should begin to rely on each other’s strengths.” He also felt participation in the group should be a volunteer effort, to ensure that members would really work for the population they represented rather than out of self-interest.

As months passed, the group spent a lot of time debating how to structure meetings and establish order. Some were intensely preoccupied with the construction of agendas; others tended to dominate conversations at the meetings. Elections seemed key to many, not only to establish themselves as legitimate leaders of the vouchered population, but also to make it known to everyone in the program that the council existed. But there was disagreement about when would be the appropriate time to hold them. Natural leaders emerged and alliances formed, but the group struggled to channel its J

Elected tenant leaders from Chicago’s public housing projects took legal action in the face of the Plan for Transformation to assure residents’ rights to return to new and rehabbed units. ò JOHN H. WHITE

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 17

continued from 17

energies in a productive direction. People sometimes made decisions (such as purchasing supplies) or spoke to the CHA on behalf of the group without consulting the entire council.

“We tried to establish what kind of structure and committees we were going to have,” says Michelle Joiner, who joined the council bursting with ideas. “But bickering ensued.” She had been excited by the possibility of organizing voucher tenants in the legacy of her aunt Helen Finner, who for years led the tenant council at the Ida B. Wells Homes and was part of the Central Advisory Council. But she also knew that effective leadership and organization requires resources and training.

“The Central Advisory Council has all of this interpersonal bickering and rancor, but they have a structure that keeps that contained and they’ve proven that the structure can work.”

Most members who agreed to speak with the Reader thought the shortcomings of the members were secondary to those of the CHA. Most are convinced that Jones sabotaged the council, though there’s some disagreement about whether it was intentional.

Paige believes Jones used the shortcomings of the members as an excuse to not engage them in the work they were supposed be doing: consulting the agency on its planned programs and activities. For instance, she was angry that the agency didn’t work with the council on a proposal for a pilot program, developed in 2016, to set an eight-year limit on vouchers for 100 volunteer households from the waiting list and provide intense social services to see whether the families could become self-sufficient in that time. “Even as we were in the stages of organizing ourselves we still could have functioned, he still could have gotten our opinion, and we still could have gone to our community and gotten input.” Though the CHA had made public announcements about the creation of the council and told voucher holders in its quarterly newsletter that they’d soon learn the identities of their representatives, this never happened.

Joiner didn’t see nefarious intentions but felt that Jones had unrealistic expectations for the group. “People on the voucher have challenged lives,” she said. “People are economically unstable, that’s why they’re on the voucher. Myself and another person didn’t have Internet access and a computer. Some people didn’t have bus fare to come to meetings. That may be something difficult for Mr. Jones and the staff to comprehend.”

Joiner says she couldn’t understand why, given the agency’s vast resources and the personal and political cachet of its executives, the CHA couldn’t provide the council with the training its members so obviously needed. “There’s no way we would be able to effectively serve our constituents,” she says.

“If we can’t get information and resources for us, now how are we going to get it for our constituents?”

Barberousse said he didn’t blame Jones or CHA for dissociating themselves from the NHRA and didn’t take it personally. “I’m shocked it went on this long,” he says, adding that not being part of this group isn’t stopping him from bringing concerns to the agency or advocating for fellow program participants. He believes CHA officials sincerely “want to be held accountable,” but that they made the mistake of not conducting thorough interviews with the people they picked for the council to gauge their intentions, motivations, and commitment. To him, the attitude of some NHRA members—that

18 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

“We’re not going to stop and we’re going to be here long a©er Eugene Jones is gone. We’re still going to be organizing.”

—Section 8 tenant organizer Jackie Paige

the agency owed them something—is symptomatic of a larger problem: that too many voucher holders view this subsidy as something they’re entitled to.

Jones didn’t agree to be interviewed or respond to these allegations and speculations. In a written statement he said only: “My vision for the council has always been for CHA to obtain meaningful feedback on the HCV program from the people we serve through the program. . . . This is something that is very important to me personally. The people who we serve are uniquely qualified to tell us how we’re doing; we need that input to do our jobs well.”

After Jones disbanded the second Participant Council, most members went their separate ways. But Paige and Harris kept at it. Determined to see a functioning, funded resident advisory board to represent the city’s voucher holders, they’ve lodged a complaint against Jones and the CHA with HUD. They’ve even contemplated a lawsuit.

“We’re not going to stop and we’re going to be here long after Eugene Jones is gone,” Paige says. “We’re still going to be organizing.” Reflecting on the constant turnover at the helm of the agency and the durable resident leadership in public housing, she adds: “[Voucher holders] can get powerful too—it’s just that we have to teach our community their voice. They don’t understand the power that they have. Once we organize and let them see something good happen from organizing, then they’ll understand what it is that they have.”

Si^ing in a small conference room with a shiny, round wooden table and soft leather office chairs, surrounded by framed black-and-white photos of Chicago’s public housing projects from the agency’s archives, CHA spokeswoman Molly

Sullivan and chief housing choice voucher officer Kathryn Ludwig disputed the idea that the Participant Council, in its past or current forms, was ever meant to be a representative body despite being a resident advisory board. They were baffled to hear that former members wanted to hold elections.

“They don’t have constituents,” Ludwig says. “I think of them as consultants, like they’re helping us.” She went on

to say that she always considered the elected Central Advisory Council a totally different entity than the Participant Council: “There’s not that same expectation that they are representative of the entire 47,000 households.” Though it’s true that HUD regulations don’t specify that voucher resident advisory boards should be elected, they clearly say that RABs should “reflect and represent residents.” Ludwig didn’t explain why CHA’s expectations for public housing and voucher RABs differed.

She did emphasize, however, that voucher holders are no different than other renters in the city, and that the agency encourages HCV participants to embrace their interconnectedness with the wider community. “You’re a citizen of the city of Chicago and you have the same rights and responsibilities as other renters,” she says. “Yes, you’re a voucher holder, but let’s not forget all these other things that are available to you and that you should be taking advantage of.”

Notwithstanding this view, Ludwig says that in June, the CHA went back to its applicant pool for the second Participant Council and picked 14 new members for a new board, which they’re now calling the Participant Advisory Board. This time around, Ludwig says, they’re hoping to avoid the mistakes of the past by meeting more frequently and taking a more handson approach.

“I think we’ve realized they need a little bit of guidance,” Ludwig says. “We’re doing a lot of training with them, going chapter by chapter [through the administrative plan] and answering their questions.” She said that Jones isn’t as personally involved with this group.

Asked whether there were plans to provide the board with funding, Ludwig said it’s “possible,” but it’s still too early to tell. “They’ve said, ‘Hey, let’s take this slow,’ ” she added.

“They’re the ones who are telling us, ‘Hey, we want to get more training from you guys before we go to that next level and start talking about budgets.’”

So far, the group hasn’t been introduced to the tens of thousands of low-income Chicagoans they’re supposed to represent. The agency didn’t respond to the Reader’s request to be connected with anyone on this new board.

It remains unclear what exactly they’ll be tasked with accomplishing. v

@mdoukmas

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READER RECOMMENDED

b ALL AGES

F

ARTS & CULTURE Breon Arzell and Maurice Demus ò BRETT BEINER

THEATER

Adapted and Directed by

Heidi Stillman

A case of mistaken locality

From the Book by

Charles Dickens

By TONY ADLER

W

ant proof that context is everything? Consider the Hypocrites’ Dracula. Onstage at a cabaret-style comedy venue like, say, the Annoyance, where party-primed customers sit around bistro tables and drink alcoholic beverages, Timothy F. Griffin’s new version of the classic horror story by Bram Stoker would be a gory, funny—if overlong—Halloween goof with a fist-pumping feminist gloss. Yes, it’d be a goof with a gloss: righteously yet uncomplicatedly entertaining. We wouldn’t even worry about the cartoon mugging of the actors under Sean Graney’s direction, needing no better justification than that the funny faces make us laugh.

But Dracula isn’t running at the Annoyance.

It’s at Mercury Theater, where an audience member sits in one of 290 seats arranged in rows, all of which face forward toward the proscenium stage. At that level of formality, and over the course of a two-hour running time, we might start wanting to know things.

In Association with

Like, why do characters (especially Janelle Villas’s Lucy Westenra) spend so much time mugging? And why does Graney set up

a convention where they direct their dialogue out at the house (especially Maurice Demus’s Jonathan Harker), only to violate it at will? And how come everything is so awfully, arbitrarily arch? And the feminist theme seems tacked on? And a last-minute turn toward Grand Guignol features stage effects that range from deft to oafish? And so on and on, with no answers in sight—except maybe that the show is overburdened by hip pretension, and its length and locale make that squirmingly apparent. v DRACULA Through 11/5: Wed-Fri 8 PM, Sat 3 and 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport, 773-325-1700, mercurytheaterchicago.com, $30-$55.

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The Actors Gymnasium

NOW PLAYING! Lookingglass launches its 30th Season with the award-winning, circus-infused adaptation of Dickens’ tale of toil and greed, beauty and hope.

lookingglasstheatre.org 312.337.0665 Cordelia Dewdney and Raymond Fox; Photo by Liz Lauren

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 19

“A unique American love story, hilarious yet deeply moving, profound and beautiful.”

–OakPark.com

YASMINA’S NECKLACE

BY ROHINA

MALIK

DIRECTED BY ANN

FILMER

Newly arrived in Chicago from her homeland, Iraqi artist Yasmina has hardened herself against the possibility of finding happiness. But when she meets Sam, a man with his own emotional setbacks, what had seemed unthinkable becomes tantalizingly real.

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20 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

THE POWER OF THEATER

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Installation view of “Between States” at the Chicago Architecture Foundation ò MICHAEL COURIER

an Office of the Public Architect. Like the Office of the Public Defender (the firm’s real-world model), the OPA would provide free service to those in need—in this case, people who hit bureaucratic snags (such as work-permit issues) or are renting a home with unsafe elements (like wobbly back porches or missing railings).

Future Firm’s project envisions the OPA operating out of functioning U.S. post offices, utilizing unused or unoccupied service windows.

Less compelling is a proposal by Woodhouse Tinucci Architects for the Congress Theater— the shuttered Logan Square venue is already under renovation, and moribund movie palaces aren’t typically repurposed in innovative ways to begin with. The firm JGMA presents a plan for a “mural park” in the Pilsen-Little Village area, near the soon-to-be-constructed Paseo Trail—it seems less like a boon for the community than a white flag of surrender to the developers who are currently destroying Pilsen’s extraordinary murals.

Most of the proposals in “Between States” are infused with utopian idealism, yet the exhibit lacks a basic level of awareness that’s

ARCHITECTURE

‘States’ of mind

By ANJULIE RAO

G

arfield Park is a neighborhood filled with elevated train tracks, ornate residential facades, vacant lots, broken windows, and storefront churches, all of which sit adjacent to 170 acres of parkland. To some people, this underserved section of the city speaks to decades of civic and economic disinvestment. A more opportunistic and less altruistic observer might see neglected real estate assets that could bring new wealth to the area, albeit at the expense of its current residents.

The architecture firm CannonDesign saw Garfield Park as a place to be cultivated. As its contribution to the exhibit “Between States—50 Designers Transform Chicago’s Neighborhoods,” at the Chicago Architecture Foundation (where, full disclosure, I once worked), Cannon proposes to transform Garfield Park into a Planned Agricultural District.

The city already has Planned Manufacturing Districts, geographical areas governed by zoning regulations implemented to protect manufacturing facilities and industry. Cannon’s plan would concentrate redevelopment efforts on food production by using rezoning to create viable farmland and spaces for food storage and transportation.

Cannon’s proposal is one of the most promising in “Between States,” in which some of

Chicago’s largest firms have taken up the challenge to propose converting underused existing infrastructure into a community asset—to identify a pressing community need and provide a design-based means of addressing it. The exhibit, which includes 50 proposals—one for each city ward—was curated by architect Martin Felsen of UrbanLab, known for work in public interest design.

Felsen believes the title “Between States” poses two questions: First, how can the physical state of these sites be transformed? Second, are there successful community-based projects or institutions that can serve as case studies for local redevelopment?

Each design solution is presented on a suspended board: one side displays the architectural rendering; on the opposite side, the architects post their locally relevant case studies. In the case of Cannon’s project, the team shows a rendering of Seoullo 7017, from Seoul, in which the firm MVRDV turned a decommissioned inner-city highway into a garden.

Cannon’s plan demonstrates an attempt to ground the exhibit in reality. The bulk of “Between States” functions more as a playground for design thinking than as a laboratory for solutions. Other proposals include Bridgeport-based Future Firm’s plan to create

PURRFORMING LIVE AND IN PURRSON 10/19-10/22

Vittum Theatre Noble St. Chicago

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ARTS & CULTURE

necessary in architecture and design—especially when the objective is to strengthen vulnerable communities. Instead of showcasing renderings of blithe people enjoying a new public amenity where there was once little more than an eyesore, a more interesting exhibition would allow audiences to learn how architects can work with communities to create mutually meaningful spaces. Cannon’s designs for Garfield Park show large swathes of green gardens, but don’t include the food-manufacturing facilities that would be required to make the proposal reality. In many ways, “Between States” reinforces how difficult it can be to make urban planning and architecture public processes; more often than not residents have little say in what their empty lots become. v “BETWEEN STATES—50 DESIGNERS TRANSFORM CHICAGO’S NEIGHBORHOODS” Through 3/1/18: 9 AM-9 PM, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Atrium Gallery, 224 S. Michigan, 312-922-3432, architecture.org. F

v @AnjulieRao

YES REAL RESCUED CATS! The only all cat band in the entire world!

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OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 21

‘‘REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU STAND ON THE VACCINATION ISSUE,

IT’S POSSIBLE TO RELISH MIRANDA BAILEY’S HIGHLY INFORMATIVE, ANGER-AROUSING FILM.’’

ARTS & CULTURE

- Lisa Jo Sagolla, FILM JOURNAL

L I A R H E A L E R M O N S T E R

THE

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VISUAL ART

Revered teacher, brilliant painter

By DMITRY SAMAROV

STARTS FRIDAY OCTOBER 20 FACETS CINEMATHEQUE 1517 W FULLERTON AVE, (773) 281-9075 • CHICAGO

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22 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

Nicolas Carone, Untitled, 1955 ò COURTESY RARE NEST GALLERY

N

icolas Carone, who died in 2010 at 93, was a painter, sculptor, and beloved teacher of generations of artists. Megan Williamson, his student, has curated “Carone Centennial Chicago,” one of five national exhibitions being produced to mark the centennial of his birth. The show features drawings, paintings, and a bronze statue that come from private collections and Carone’s estate—they reveal a nimble draftsman whose energetic evocation of landscape and figure are evidence of a restless seeker of deep personal expression.

“Carone Centennial Chicago” is also the inaugural exhibit for Rare Nest Gallery in Avondale. Rare Nest is an unassuming storefront space located just off a quiet stretch of Milwaukee Avenue—but it harbors serious ambitions. Keith Bringe, its proprietor, told me he plans to concentrate future exhibitions on artists 50 or older, and he hopes to handle several artists’ estates. “Carone Centennial Chicago” indicates that Rare Nest will likely become a go-to destination for fans of serious painting.

Carone was born in Manhattan to Italian parents but spent much of his childhood across the river in Hoboken, New Jersey. He quit high school after two years to pursue painting and sculpture as a profession. He studied under muralist Leon Kroll in the 1930s and German expatriate Hans Hofmann in the ’40s, giving

him a direct line to the European modernist tradition. After winning the Prix de Rome in 1941, he spent time in that city, reconnecting with his ethnic roots, and was newly influenced by old masters. Soon afterward, Carone became a close friend of Jackson Pollock’s.

Later in life, Carone was often summoned to authenticate Pollock’s paintings when they surfaced for sale; he was also a key consultant on Pollock, the 2000 film starring and directed

by Ed Harris.

Carone had many exhibitions in New York and elsewhere in the 50s and 60s but started to teach full-time in 1965. He wouldn’t exhibit his work again until he was in his 80s, preferring to earn much of his living as a teacher.

Williamson told me she thinks the long gap may have been due to Carone’s disgust at the commercialization of his more famous friends’ artworks, fueled by the feeding frenzy over abstract expressionism in the American art market. Yet Carone never stopped producing—by the time those close to him finally convinced him to share his efforts with the public again, there was a treasure trove of material to choose from.

Throughout his long career, Carone vacillated between abstraction and figuration. At Rare Nest there are earthy red figures rendered in crayon—somehow reminiscent of both Michelangelo and Picasso—and also mysterious, cloudy, and calm oil portraits that recall the

early 20th-century Ashcan school, the art of ancient Greece, and the Italian Renaissance.

There are paintings that could be mistaken for de Koonings.

But regardless of the medium or the tools, there’s always a tactile and searching quality to Carone’s art. No matter how sketchy or unfinished a work might appear at first, further examination shows that every inch of its surface was considered or repeatedly refined.

Carone’s output is evidence of an endless engagement with the painted plane.

My deep appreciation of “Carone Centennial Chicago” doesn’t feel accidental. Williamson had been friends with my teachers at SAIC, some of whom had taught at the International School for Art, the summer art program Carone founded in Todi, Italy. She recalled to me how early on in their acquaintance, Carone took her by the arm, looked her in the eye, and told her she was now family.

“Nick taught the language of the picture plane, believed in the metaphysics of art making, and encouraged his students to pursue their own path,” Williamson says. “He was a connection to the grand tradition of painting.” It’s a chain that links Carone, Hoffmann and Kroll, Picasso and Matisse, and all of Western painting. v R “CARONE CENTENNIAL CHICAGO” Through 11/5: Wed, Sat, and Sun 11 AM-6 PM or by appointment, Rare Nest Gallery, 3433 N. Kedvale, 708616-8671, rarenestgallery.com. F

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Get showtimes at chicagoreader.com/movies.

ARTS & CULTURE Loving Vincent

MOVIES

Brush with greatness

By J.R. JONES

T

ampering with an artist’s memory can be dangerous business: In 2011, Gregory White Smith and Steven Naifeh published Van Gogh: The Life, an acclaimed biography arguing, among other things, that the Dutch painter’s gunshot death in July 1890, in the French town of Auvers-sur-Oise, was no suicide, as scholars had agreed for years, but homicide at the hands of a local bully. The blowback from Van Gogh fans and art historians was severe. “Many [of these scholars] had done years of research and writing that was deeply embedded in the old narrative,” the authors explained in a Vanity Fair article three years after the book appeared. “They didn’t just disagree with our new reading; they were enraged by it. . . . [One] specialist, with whom we shared a stage at the opening of a Van Gogh exhibition in Denver, was so choked with indignation that he refused even to discuss the subject when the audience raised it.”

Everyone knows that Van Gogh killed himself in despair, because—well, why? Because it was in that Irving Stone novel, Lust for Life, and the Hollywood movie that Vincente Minnelli made out of it? Loving Vincent, the first ssss EXCELLENT

sss GOOD

Van Gogh biopic since the homicide theory surfaced, dives into the mystery surrounding the painter’s death. This extraordinary animation, created by a team of 115 artists who hand-painted every one of its 65,000 frames, brings to life many of the people Van Gogh painted during his last years in France—foremost among them young Armand Roulin, whose family befriended Van Gogh during his year-long stay in Arles. One year after the artist’s death, Armand is recruited by his father, Joseph, to track down Van Gogh’s brother, Theo, and place in his hands an unsent letter from Vincent that has just turned up.

Armand’s journey leads him to Paris, where he learns that Theo has died too, and then to nearby Auvers, where he questions the townspeople about Vincent and, from their variously colored memories, tries to reconstruct how and why the artist died.

Visually the film is stunning, a flawlessly executed journey through Van Gogh’s art. The production team, divided between Poland and the UK, spent a year adapting to their cinematic frame (in the standard aspect ratio of 1.33:1) some 125 different Van Gogh paintings, either as backgrounds or as character studies. Ac-

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tors, shot on digital video, performed in costume against green screens or on sets that replicated Van Gogh paintings. From that point each shot became the work of a single artist, who would use the digital image as a guide and paint the first frame on a 67-by-49-centimeter canvas; after this was photographed, the artist would alter the canvas to create the second frame, which would then be photographed, and so on, until the shot was completed. Onscreen the French landscapes that so inspired Van Gogh come alive, his paint strokes sizzling and spiraling with energy; the interiors gleam with the bright, clashing colors that he always managed to bring into harmony.

The movie’s flashbacks, however, are rendered in black and white, recalling the more sober and impressionistic work Van Gogh drew back in the Netherlands. Writer-directors Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman touch briefly on Vincent’s arid childhood, but most of these black-and-white sequences concern his days in France. Hoping to escape the stifling Parisian art scene, Van Gogh moved to Arles in 1888 and enjoyed an explosively productive period that also coincided with his worsening mental illness. A tumultuous visit from fellow painter Paul Gauguin that fall so disturbed Van Gogh that he cut off part of his left ear and gave it to a local prostitute, after which the townspeople circulated a petition demanding his expulsion. A year of hospitalizations and further breakdowns followed, but in May 1890, Van Gogh moved to Auvers to paint under the supervision of a physician and amateur artist named Dr. Gachet, who wound up attending him at his deathbed.

Armand (given voice and form by British actor Douglas Booth) brings his own unpleasant memories of Van Gogh to the story. In the opening sequence Armand drinks and broods in the diabolical red-green room we know from Van Gogh’s The Night Café on the Place Lamartine in Arles (1888). There’s bad blood between Armand and the other townspeople, who shunned his father, the kindly local postman, for refusing to sign their petition. Joseph Roulin (played with great tenderness by Chris O’Dowd of Bridesmaids) came to Van Gogh’s aid immediately after he severed his ear, and the postman still seethes at how his neighbors turned on the sick stranger in their midst.

Rousting his drunken son from the Night Café,

he recalls the calm and lucid letter he received from Van Gogh only six weeks before the painter died. Roulin can’t understand it: “How does a man go from being absolutely calm to suicidal in six weeks?”

When Armand arrives in Auvers, he discovers another small town governed by gossip and petty cruelty, where people’s memories of Van Gogh are tinted by their own agendas.

Louise Chevalier (Helen McCrory), the doctor’s pious, hard-hearted housekeeper, remembers Van Gogh as “evil” and tells Armand, “We’ve had quite enough weeping over that nutcase in this household.” Adeline Ravoux (Eleanor Tomlinson), daughter of a local innkeeper, remembers the night Van Gogh was brought home with a bullet wound and characterizes Dr. Gachet as criminally negligent; she sends Armand to meet with a local boatman, who reports having seen Van Gogh on a secret date with Gachet’s beautiful daughter, Marguerite. At the doctor’s house, Armand finds Marguerite (Saoirse Ronan of Brooklyn in a proud, high-necked performance) posed at an upright piano in her flowing white dress, just as she is in Van Gogh’s Marguerite Gachet at the Piano (1890). She remembers Van Gogh as a platonic friend and a tortured soul, bristling at the implication that her father was to fault for the artist’s death.

Kobiela and Welchman give the homicide theory a proper airing when Armand encounters Doctor Mazery (Bill Thomas), an elderly man who first appears seated with his head in his hands, after the image of Van Gogh’s At Eternity’s Gate (1890). Like a crime scene technician, Mazery reenacts the shooting, standing Armand in place as Van Gogh and demonstrating how the trajectory of the bullet proves the gun was fired from a distance. As in Van Gogh: A Life, the principal suspect for the crime is one René Secrétan, a rich teenager from Paris who fancied himself a cowboy and carried around a small pistol; during that summer he continually patronized Van Gogh, including him in social gatherings but then mocking him after he’d departed. For years after the painter’s death, rumors circulated around Auvers that Van Gogh had been shot by a group of teenagers, possibly by accident, on a road near the Secrétans’ summer home.

Loving Vincent takes an appropriately agnostic position on the Secrétan angle, following Mazery’s argument with a climactic scene in which Armand finally comes face-to-face with Dr. Gachet. Played with elegance and J

WORTHLESS

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 23

Get showtimes at chicagoreader.com/movies.

ARTS & CULTURE Goodbye Christopher Robin

continued from 23

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gravity by Jerome Flynn of Game of Thrones, Gachet sweeps away Armand’s suspicions, pointing out that melancholia (i.e., clinical depression) can drive a calm man to suicide in six hours, let alone six weeks, and remembering Van Gogh as a man who fought an “unfathomable, empty loneliness,” who was “deeply afraid of the future.” The doctor offers a simpler explanation for the artist’s death, though one shaded by his own guilt: shortly before the shooting incident, he and Van Gogh had fought bitterly, and the doctor had blamed Vincent for the emotional stress that was slowly killing his brother, Theo. When Van Gogh was dying, Gachet reports, his only words were “Maybe it is better for everyone.”

Turning Van Gogh’s death into a sort of memory play is a masterstroke, given the painter’s own growing appreciation of memory as an artistic resource. Throughout his career Van Gogh had drawn strength and inspiration from observed nature, but during the two months he spent working alongside Gauguin, who urged him to abandon the physical world for pure imagination, he painted from memory the garden of his father’s home in 1875, with a servant tending the flowers and two women passing through. Writing to his sister, he likened one of the women in Memory of the Garden at Etten (1888) to their mother and explained, “The deliberate choice of colour, the dark violet violently blotched with the lemon yellow of the dahlias, suggests Mother’s personality to me.” The “bizarre lines” of the garden “may present it to our minds as seen in a dream, depicting its character, and at the same time stranger than it is in reality.”

Memory, Van Gogh learned, is more susceptible to emotion, and thus to exaggerations of color and form. Loving Vincent actually inverts this idea with its floridly colorful present-tense narrative and its drab, black-andwhite flashbacks. But as Armand learns at the end of the movie, there’s no way to assemble all the conflicting recollections of Van Gogh into a portait more truthful than the stern self-portraits he left behind. And as Smith and Naifeh confirmed with their controversial book, who an artist really was doesn’t matter nearly as much as how people want to remember him. v LOVING VINCENT ssss Directed

by Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman. PG-13, 94 min. Music Box, 3733 N. Southport, 773-871-6604, $11

v @JR_Jones

MOVIES

When we were very famous

By ANDREA GRONVALL

G

oodbye Christopher Robin, Simon Curtis’s biopic of Winnie-the-Pooh author A.A. Milne and his only child, Christopher Robin, is stuffed with weighty topics: war and PTSD, the writing life, the crippling emotional reserve of the British. But the movie’s focus on the caustic effects of celebrity make this narrative set in the first half of the 20th century particularly relevant for the media-frenzied 21st—especially in the wake of nonstop news stories about camera-mad parents and their needy offspring.

Milne and his son were both private people, but the father was better equipped for the spotlight.

In 1925, still shell-shocked from combat at the Somme in World War I, and despising the superficiality of London society, Milne (Domhnall Gleeson) moves to a farm in Sussex with his wife, Daphne (Margot Robbie), and their preschool son, nicknamed Billy Moon (Will Tilston). Already acclaimed as a humorist, playwright, poet, and novelist, Milne finds the peace he’s been seeking, but he’s slow to resume writing. Daphne, not the most doting of mothers, returns to the gaiety of London, leaving her husband and child to bond; their time together inspires Milne’s hugely successful foray into children’s fiction.

“I suppose that every one of us hopes secretly for immortality,” Milne wrote in 1926, the same year Winnie-the-Pooh unexpected-

ly fulfilled his wish. In Goodbye Christopher Robin the press and retailers oblige fans by pushing Billy further into the public eye, where his overstuffed schedule denies him time alone with his father and he struggles to distinguish himself from his fictional counterpart. A fabricated sequence in which the family does a New York promotional tour suggests that Milne’s pursuit of publicity was obsessive and supports the sense of the adult Billy (Alex Lawther) that his father ruined his life.

At the film’s end Christopher comes to see Winnie-the-Pooh as a healing force because of the solace the books offered his fellow soldiers in World War II. But in actuality Christopher Milne’s difficulty finding gainful employment after the war marked the beginning of a long estrangement from his parents. As he recalled in the first of his own memoirs, The Enchanted Places, “In pessimistic moments . . . it seemed to me, almost, that my father had got to where he was by climbing on my infant shoulders . . . and had left me with nothing but the empty fame of being his son.” Autobiography helped Christopher come to terms with A.A. Milne and his legacy. But that’s another story, about a much less famous adult, so don’t expect the movie version anytime soon. v GOODBYE CHRISTOPHER ROBIN ss Directed by Simon Curtis. PG, 107 min. Century 12 and CineArts 6, Landmark’s Century Centre, River East 21

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MUSIC

Tim Zawada of Star Creature Universal Vibrations. The label’s other founder, Ben Van Dyke, lives in Los Angeles and couldn’t make a photo shoot in Chicago, so his spot is taken here by Zawada’s dog, Tugboat. ò OLIVIA OBINEME

Star Creature Universal Vibrations launches boogie into the future Tim Zawada and Ben Van Dyke’s label helps turn the far-flung fans of this resurgent postdisco dance music into an evolving community.

By LEOR GALIL

T

im Zawada began his DJ career in Chicago knowing he was an outsider. The south-suburban native had been DJing at parties while at Indiana University before graduating and moving here in 2009. Within a couple weeks, his skills had earned him a job with a local DJ company, which set him up with occasional gigs at clubs and bars, but he felt obligated to tread carefully when deciding what records to spin.

“I didn’t feel comfortable playing house music anywhere, because I didn’t know the history of everything,” Zawada says.

“I thought it was too much of an evolved thing for me to just walk in, disrespect, and start doing—I felt very uncomfortable

playing house music for the first couple years here. Same with hip-hop too—I didn’t feel like I was a part of the hip-hop scene.

I didn’t want to, like, bust into it.”

Faced with the need to develop a niche without running afoul of a DJ culture that guarded its treasures carefully, Zawada gravitated toward a form of music that wasn’t quite so ringed around with gatekeepers: boogie. “It’s just an in-between genre of a bunch of different stuff,” he says. It quickly became the core of his musical identity: in 2010 he cofounded popular DJ collective the Boogie Munsters, and in 2015 he helped launch Star Creature Universal Vibrations, a record label that specializes in new modern funk, boogie, and disco.

Boogie emerged in the late 70s, at the tail end of the disco boom, and though it preserves disco’s crisp, mellow melodies, love-focused lyrics, and dance-floor orientation, it’s generally slower and less flashy—perhaps a way of pulling back from the gold-rush excess that gave the world “Disco Duck” and The Ethel Merman Disco Album. Boogie foregrounds the lizardbrain grooves and supple bass lines of funk, and as synthesizers took over pop music, it integrated them too. Few sounds scream “80s” like the cheesy neon synths of a boogie track, which can sound like a Commodore 64 trying to sing hymns.

Boogie had faded into obscurity by the end of that decade, but no bygone dance-music style ever truly dies. Zawada is part of an international community of DJs and musicians who’ve given boogie a second life—and not just by spinning old vinyl.

Artists from the U.S. and around the world—Mexico City, Tokyo, even towns in Russia and France too small to find on most maps—are making new boogie music.

The contemporary tunes often borrow from other genres— most notably hip-hop, from which it takes loose, cybernetic beats and ghostly samples. The word “boogie,” when applied to new music, is interchangeable with the term “modern funk,” popularized in the late 2000s by California producer, DJ, and vocalist Dam-Funk. Last year he released a modern-funk mix as part of !K7’s beloved DJ-Kicks series; on the label’s site he describes it as “Funk, Boogie, Electro, House, Modern-Soul, Ambient tones . . . a push and pull of nostalgia and progressiveness.”

“Dam-Funk pretty much gets credit for being the godfather of the movement,” Zawada says. But the Star Creature Universal Vibrations label has played a vital role in building on what Dam-Funk began: the music it releases from its international roster of artists is snapped up by a small but tight-knit community of fans, who find one another online no matter what country they call home.

Star Creature presses 500 to 1,500 of each of its records— runs too small to get noticed by Billboard but not always large enough to satiate those fans. Some sell out their first runs within two weeks, most within two months. (The label’s entire catalog is also available digitally through Bandcamp.) Discogs sellers have discovered how valuable these records get once they’re sold out: they’ll send you a copy of one of Star Creature’s first releases, the E. Live seven-inch “Everybody” b/w “Be Free,” for anywhere from $29.35 to $88.04.

Star Creature’s roster includes plenty of Chicagoans, among them Wings of Sunshine and Bell Boys, but it’s also put out music

by Mexico City’s Shiro Schwarz, Tokyo’s Liquid Pegasus, and Boston’s Saucy Lady. The label has had a relatively busy 2017, so far releasing six 12-inches, six seven-inches, and two cassette mixes. And that’s not counting the 12-inch from Belarusian producer Fitzzgerald on Zawada’s other label, Tugboat Edits, or the five seven-inches Star Creature releases this week, in time for a Saturday showcase at the Hideout called Star Creature Vibes: two from E. Live, aka 37-year-old Bay Area producer and multiinstrumentalist Eli Hurwitz, one from German artist First Touch, and two re-presses of Saucy Lady’s early Star Creature singles.

Saucy Lady, aka Japanese native Noe Carmichael, is one of three out-of-towners on Saturday’s bill—E. Live and singer and multi-instrumentalist K-Maxx are coming from the Bay Area.

Star Creature Vibes is the third such event the label has J

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 25

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BUY TICKETS AT 26 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

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continued from 25 thrown this year. “That dude works full-time, does DJing fulltime, and does the label stuff full-time,” Carmichael says. For Zawada, whose day job is at a business-to-business consulting company, music is worth all the effort. “It comes with sacrifices,” he says. “Like not living a normal lifestyle, not getting a normal amount of sleep, not being involved in what other people are normally doing with their lives.”

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awada initially resisted the pull of DJing. “I’d already seen other DJs that were really good,” he says, “and I was like, ‘I’m not gonna disrespect them by taking my crappy records out somewhere and playing whatever.’” Star Creature cofounder Ben Van Dyke has known Zawada since their days at Indiana University together, and their sophomore year he convinced his friend to DJ a party with him. “I didn’t have enough records, so I needed Tim to help me out,” Van Dyke says. Zawada caught the bug, and soon he was injecting a bit of Chicago music history into the IU party circuit, playing house, disco, and the occasional boogie track.

The two of them moved to Chicago together, and at that point Zawada began to immerse himself in boogie. He found a guide in Mark Grusane of defunct Morgan Park shop Mr. Peabody Records. “He’s the one that told me what boogie music was and started pulling records off the shelf,” Zawada says. “He’s, like, our version of Dam-Funk.”

In 2009 at Wicker Park’s Between lounge, Zawada met Shazam Bangles, another local DJ who shared his blossoming love for boogie. “We were both outsiders to the DJ scene at the time,” Zawada says. “I was coming in as a person that wasn’t really from here, or wasn’t involved with house music, wasn’t involved with hip-hop. And he was coming in more as a turntablist that had a sick record collection and a crazy amount of musical knowledge.” The following year they formed the Boogie Munsters (“I think I’m the Herman of the Boogie Munsters crew,” Zawada says) and began spinning rare electro-funk, disco, and boogie at a couple spots in Wicker Park. These days the core of the crew consists of the two founders and Constance K, an Ohio native who joined in 2013, while Chicago expatriate DJ Moppy maintains a Detroit chapter.

Zawada and Van Dyke also threw parties at their Wicker Park loft, promoting them via travel and hosting network CouchSurfing.com. “We always had random people staying with us,” Zawada says. “The parties ended up being super cool, because you’d get a couple hundred people there from all over the world that were just visiting Chicago.”

Van Dyke hasn’t DJed since college, but he’s grown to love boogie as much as Zawada does. He thinks some fans came to boogie in the early 2010s because they needed a refuge from EDM but still loved dance music. “Dance music became more of a mainstream genre, and there was just other interest in some of the peripheral music,” he says. “I don’t really know why in particular the boogie sound—that kind of 1981-to-1985 sound—has resonated.”

Dam-Funk has been the most important boogie evangelizer this century. He’s hardly the first—Montreal duo Chromeo broke out in 2004 playing pop songs flavored with electrofunk—but Dam-Funk went further by creating forums to

STAR CREATURE VIBES

Star Creature Universal Vibrations label showcase featuring Saucy Lady, K-Maxx, E. Live, Family of Geniuses, and DJ sets from Bell Boys and Tim Zawada & the Boogie Munsters.

Sat 10/21, 10 PM, Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, $10, 21+

celebrate the sounds that inspired him. In 2006 he launched a weekly club night called Funkmosphere in Culver City, California, which grew into a hothouse for modern funk. Pasadena producer XL Middleton, who’d go on to cofound MoFunk Records in 2013, became a regular at Funkmosphere—though he’d spent his 20s making hip-hop beats, it led him back to the music he grew up with. As he told LA Weekly after the release of his 2015 debut, Tap Water, “Funk is our first language, so we want to do our own take on it.”

Some contemporary boogie artists have followed similar trajectories: Seattle vocalist and producer Proh Mic switched from hip-hop to smooth electro-soul (some of which he’s released via the label of Chicago hip-hop collective All Natural), and K-Maxx was putting out rap tracks as early as 1994.

E. Live played punk in high school, took up jazz piano in junior college, and in 2004 toured in Gabby La La’s backing band, opening for Primus front man Les Claypool. But after moving to Los Angeles in 2005, he started making hip-hop tracks—a decision that would eventually lead him to boogie.

“I worked on hundreds of songs and none of them could feel finished for me,” E. Live says. In hip-hop, the styles of the day were relatively minimal, but he loved full-bodied productions that simulated funk-band arrangements—a sound he calls the “Quincy Jones ensemble.” His peers were skeptical. “They would generally be like, ‘Wow, really cool tune, but dude, you’ve gotta take out those toms, you gotta take out those crashes, maybe just loop that one part,’” he says.

Many boogie and modern-funk artists use their new material to carry their love for older styles into the future. “I’ve always been listening to R&B and a lot of jazz, and I think whatever we call modern funk now is basically an extension of R&B, soul, and funk,” says Noe Carmichael, aka Saucy Lady. “I’ve really been into that for some time, since grade school, middle school.”

Dam-Funk toiled in obscurity for decades—he was celebrating boogie and postdisco funk as a teenager in the late 80s, when no one else would touch it. In 2007 he signed to eminent indie hip-hop label Stones Throw, which in 2009 issued his watershed sophomore album, Toeachizown.

Dam-Funk, now 46, has become a sought-after producer and minor star, not to mention the best collaborator Snoop Dogg has had in more than a decade—in 2013 they teamed up on a self-titled album as 7 Days of Funk. The scene Dam-Funk nurtured has largely remained underground as it’s grown, but it’s much more cohesive now. In 2009, when Zawada met a member of San Francisco collective Sweater Funk at a Chicago bar, he had only a vague sense of what was happening in California.

“He gave me a mix CD—I was like, ‘I don’t know any of these tracks,’” Zawada says. “I didn’t even really know about Dam-

Funk at the time.” But these days he’s networking with fellow travelers on both coasts and beyond.

Dam-Funk’s cousin Turquoise Summers has released music through Portland boogie label Omega Supreme, whose catalog Zawada pulled from for Star Creature’s September cassette mix Contemporary Jacuzzi Aerobics Volume 2. The tape also includes tracks from D.C. electronic imprint Future Times, and all three sell music through online retailer Earcave, founded by Andrew Morgan of D.C. label Peoples Potential Unlimited—which also reissues boogie and releases modern funk. “I probably know every disco DJ, every funk DJ—definitely in the U.S.,” Zawada says.

“I know every funk party, every boogie party, every crew that’s playing boogie and funk, because of Facebook and all that.”

Zawada describes releasing records as a natural step forward after years of DJing. He started with the vinyl-centric Tugboat Edits in 2013, then launched Star Creature in part as a way to stay close with Van Dyke, who was about to leave town.

“I was moving to California to be with my girlfriend, and it was kind of a way for us to remain connected,” Van Dyke says. “It’s very much kept our friendship quite strong.” They paid for the label’s first release using the security deposit from their Wicker Park loft, and Star Creature still funds all its pressings up front, instead of asking artists to cover the expense and then get paid back with sales revenue.

Van Dyke handles the label’s business side—accounting, online sales, e-mail support, wholesale customers—while Zawada, a self-described Soundcloud fanatic, tracks down music.

“What we’re specifically looking for is people that don’t have any releases, people that are no-name, that nobody would know,” Zawada says. “I want to find these people that are just making music for the pure love and because it’s their nature to do so—without any intentions of doing anything beyond putting it on their Soundcloud page.”

Zawada first contacted E. Live through Soundcloud. It’s also how he found Jehan, a French producer reared on hip-hop whose featherweight, carefree Air Dancer EP is among my favorite Star Creature releases. “I live in a really small village in south of France and I make music for a big Chicago label,” Jehan says. “That’s dope!”

Star Creature is starting subsidiary labels for two of its most prolific artists: E. Live’s Elivity (one of this week’s five seveninches is its debut) and Hotmood, which shares the stage name of its creator, Mexican producer Guillermo Gonzalez. Zawada is also eager to try out boundary-pushing sounds on Star Creature’s audience, now that he’s earned its trust. One of his September releases, a self-titled 12-inch by Russian producer Venus Express II, is better suited to headphones than to a sound system—Zawada describes its atmospheric tracks as “outsider boogie.” The way he sees it, boogie has reached a critical mass that allows Star Creature to experiment safely—at this point he could easily DJ an entire set of exclusively new music.

“Being involved in the boogie and the disco scene, it’s kinda weird to be, like, ‘I love all this stuff, but it’s all older than me— all the music I play is older than me,’” Zawada says. “It’s cool to be able to have our own thing. Our own style of funk and disco that represents the times and what’s going on now.” v

v @imLeor OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 27

TOMORROW NEVER KNOWS DESTROYER + TYPHOON + ALLAN RAYMAN

PRESENTS

HINDS + RAYLAND BAXTER + NO AGE DIANE COFFEE + HELADO NEGRO + SONNY SMITH MARK FARINA + YUMI ZOUMA CUCO + BEDOUINE ANGELO DE AUGUSTINE SLØTFACE + RON GALLO + VARSITY + BELLE GAME DIVINO NIÑO + CUT WORMS + MEGA BOG + LITTLE JUNIOR HELENA DELAND + OKEY DOKEY + SLOW MASS YOKO AND THE OH NO’S + PEEL + V.V. LIGHTBODY

COMEDY AT THE HIDEOUT JO FIRESTONE WHAM CITY COMEDY X HELLTRAP NIGHTMARE COMEDY AT THE KNITTING FACTORY JOSH FADEM + KATE WILLETT AND MANY MORE TBA

For your chance to win tickets and VIP passes to meet the band courtesy of Coors Light go to one of these locations on Friday, October 20 Trader Todd’s

3216 N. Sheffield Ave. 8pm-10pm $4 Coors Light Drafts

The Uptown Arcade Bar O’Shaughnessy’s Public House 4830 N. Broadway 8pm to 10pm $4 Coors Light & Arcade Games!

4557 N. Ravenswood Ave. 9:30pm to 11:30pm $4 Coors Light

JA N 17-21 20 18 T N K F E S T. C O M

Buy tickets at JAMUSA.COM 28 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

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MUSIC IN ROTATION

A Reader staffer shares three musical obsessions, then asks someone (who asks someone else) to take a turn.

bottom lounge ON SALE FRIDAY

ON SALE NOW

Arca at this summer’s Pitchfork festival ò PORTER M C LEOD

UPCOMING SHOWS SILVER WRAPPER PRESENTS

10.27 THE MAIN SQUEEZE ZOOFUNKYOU

REACT PRESENTS

10.28 CRANKDAT

STRATUS / HI FIVE & WHO CARES

10.29 BRUJERIA

POWERFLO / PINATA PROTEST MEXICAN WEREWOLF

REACT PRESENTS

11.02 A TRIBE CALLED RED REACT PRESENTS

Link Wray in 1979 ò CARL GUDERIAN The cover of Simultonality by Joshua Abr Abrams & Natural Information Society

11.03 AZIZI GIBSON 11.05 WINDED CITY

EAST AVENUE / [REDACTED] CROOKED HILL / ODYSSEY

11.08 GIRAFFAGE

SWEATER BEATS / WINGTIP

JAMIE LUDWIG

MIKE BOYD Thrill Jockey publicist,

DOUG MALONE Recording engineer

11.12 TALK TO YOU NEVER

Link Wray, Rumble! The Best of Link Wray I don’t typically pay attention to industry awards, but the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s announcement of its 2018 nominees caught my attention: Among the groundbreaking artists who should’ve made the cut long ago (Nina Simone, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the MC5) was Link Wray, the guitarist who popularized the power chord. We could debate the reasons he wasn’t inducted after his two previous nominations, but it’d be more satisfying to dive into the career-spanning 1993 compilation Rumble! The Best of Link Wray. The Reader’s music staff has been freaking out over a live 1974 version of the title track from the Winterland in San Francisco.

Górecki, A Nonesuch Retrospective I first heard Górecki’s Symphony no. 3 (aka Symphony of Sorrowful Songs) last year, after Lee Buford from the Body recommended it, and I was immediately hooked. I only recently picked up the seven-CD Nonesuch retrospective that includes said symphony, and the choral pieces on the fourth disc, especially Miserere and Amen, are perhaps as overwhelmingly emotional and affecting. Densely textured choral sounds are a weakness of mine.

Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society, Simultonality Simultonality provides up-tempo pulsations of moving shapes and sounds through repetition. The album’s stereo imagery pans two drummers right and left (Frank Rosaly and Mikel Avery), their kits conversing with Abrams’s guimbri at the center.

The album is as visceral as the cover art—both seize your attention at once but require further immersion to trace the details deep within every line, color, and rhythmic gesture.

11.15 SLOW MAGIC

Arca, Arca Arca has contributed to Björk’s Vulnicura, Kanye West’s Yeezus, and FKA Twigs’s LP1. But it took the Venezuelan producer’s set with Jesse Kanda at this year’s Pitchfork festival for me to really start paying attention. It embodied the punk attitude that electronic acts have been adopting over the past decade, fearlessly blending raw, clubby music with wild experiments: disjointed rhythms, forays into bolero, operatic singing.

Not to mention the crowd-deterring cow-birth and fish-carcass visuals. Arca is a contender for my favorite record of the year.

Michael Blair and Joe Bucciero’s 33 1/3 book on Young Marble Giants’ Colossal Youth This great read about an inspiring album by Welsh band Young Marble Giants reveals interesting details about what influenced it, including John Cage’s minimalist composition style and changes in technology and mass media during the late 1970s. Colossal Youth bridges 20th-century avant-garde and postpunk, shaping its sound with hazy drum-machine rhythms and strict attention to dynamics. The band called it quits shortly after this 1980 release, but the record remains important today.

11.29 EKALI

Reader associate editor

Gábor Szabó, Bacchanal Hungarian crossover jazz is hardly my forte, but when I heard guitarist Gábor Szabó something clicked. Bacchanal is one of several albums he cut in California in the late 60s that create something timeless by reimagining commercial pop via psychedelia, Hungarian folk, and loungy jazz.

I’d take his versions of “Theme From Valley of the Dolls” and Lee Hazelwood’s “Some Velvet Morning” over the originals any day.

Ufomammut, 8 When life or the news cycle overwhelms, it’s tempting to indulge in escapism; Italian spacelords Ufomammut fill your brain with so much sound nothing else can seep in. Despite its enormity and intensity, their music can feel like a warm hug, especially on the new 8, where these masters of the doom and stoner renaissance nod to the connectedness of the universe.

guitarist for Stander

and owner of Jamdek (formerly Minbal)

THE HOMECOMING / EVERYONE SAYS BAD PLANNING / CALIFORNIA KILLERS SILVER WRAPPER PRESENTS REACT PRESENTS

11.16 BLEEP BLOOP

UM.. / SUMTHIN’ SUMTHIN’

11.22 OCEANS ATE ALASKA

DAYSEEKER / AFTERLIFE / TANZEN

11.24 FACE THE FIRE

SKY MACHINE / 9TH ST MEMORY RIOT FEST PRESENTS

11.25 BEACH SLANG

DAVE HAUSE & THE MERMAID SEE THROUGH DRESSES

SILVER WRAPPER PRESENTS

Endon, Through the Mirror I’m a bit of a jaded metal fan, having grown up with the genre and thus gotten weary of its pitfalls and recycled tropes. Japanese noise-metal outfit Endon are the sort of ensemble that cuts through that monotony. On their new record, Through the Mirror, white-knuckle speeds, visceral noise, and completely unhinged vocals churn the group’s obvious chops into a thoroughly riveting experience. I can’t wait to see them at Thalia Hall this month.

Creeping Pink, Mirror Woods This album by bedroom-recording savant Landon Caldwell (a friend from Bloomington, Indiana) playfully combines multitracked Syd Barrett-esque acoustic and vocal melodies with hazy, lo-fi Harmonia-style electronics. Its wide-ranging aesthetic includes musique concrète and fuzzed-out, tape-saturated pop. The instruments blend into a multitextural palette while staying true to the songs’ rhythmic intentions.

MEDASIN / JUDGE

12.07 BLACK PISTOL FIRE COBI

12.08 THE DEAR HUNTER THE FAMILY CREST / VAVA RIOT FEST PRESENTS

12.15 THE LAWRENCE ARMS

3RD ANNUAL WAR ON X-MAS “MIDNIGHT MASS” TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET BLOOD PEOPLE RIOT FEST PRESENTS

12.16 THE LAWRENCE ARMS

3RD ANNUAL WAR ON X-MAS “SEXY X-MAS” NOTHINGTON SASS DRAGONS

12.17 THE SPILL CANVAS WILD / SUPER WHATEVR

“SO MUCH BEWTEEN US” 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

12.23 INEPT 12.31 MURDER BY DEATH www.bottomlounge.com 1375 w lake st 312.666.6775

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 29

MUSIC

Recommended and notable shows and critics’ insights for the week of October 19 b

ALL AGES

F

THURSDAY19 Cousin Stizz Swoosh and Big Leano open.

7 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 2105 S. State, $20. 18+ Boston is rarely celebrated for its contributions to hip-hop (Gang Starr started there, but most remember the legendary duo for their time in New York), yet last summer when Fader writer Eric Diep asked Boston rapper Stephen Goss, aka Cousin Stizz, whether he believed his hometown’s scene deserves more outside recognition, Stizz replied, “Yo, Boston is going to do whatever the fuck it do regardless if people want to give us recognition or not.” Stizz imbues that take-no-shit attitude in his work, and that spirited interpretation of the Boston hip-hop community is alive in his personality. Even when he isn’t specifically referencing places in his hometown scene he carries himself with a sense of self-satisfaction, energy, and pride. On his majorlabel debut, July’s One Night Only (RCA), Stizz raps with the preternatural calm we used to demand of those who filled the role of president—he locks his vocals into his minimalist instrumentals like he’s the only person with the codes to unlock their power.

Stizz can sometimes sound unperturbed, no matter the mood of a track; the energy level he brings to a song isn’t always in sync with an instrumental, and the resulting tension can works wonders. Stizz’s wistful, half-sung hook on the chilly “Paid” transcends the specifics of his rags-to-riches-themed verses to deliver a sense of triumph to anyone who needs it. —LEOR GALIL

PICK OF THE WEEK

As hip-hop turns pop, Lil Uzi Vert is its rising prince

Fictive Five 9 PM, Elastic, 3429 W. Diversey, $10. b

ò SPIKE JORDAN

LIL UZI VERT, PLAYBOI CARTI, DJ DRAMA

Fri 10/20, 7 PM, Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence, $49.50. b

THIS YEAR HIP-HOP, long a dominant cultural force, went pop in terms of both setting trends in contemporary music and leading music sales. Philadelphia rapper Lil Uzi Vert is at the apex. His debut studio album, Luv Is Rage 2 (Atlantic), is the most important release of 2017, which has as much to do with his status as an avatar for the current zeitgeist and industry shifts as it does with the quality of his music. His rock-influenced approach to songwriting and his sugary, melting flow hit the sweet spots of the surging, raucous aesthetic of the underground “Soundcloud rap” scene as well as the more melodic mainstream—a place big enough for Drake’s R&B coos (his March “playlist” More Life spent several weeks at number one on the Billboard 200) and Migos’ slippery

30 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

je ne sais quoi (January’s Culture debuted at number one). And because hip-hop has so keenly embraced streaming (which the industry has finally accepted along with traditional sales), the numbers further favor upstarts such as Uzi Vert—his cathartic, mesmerizing “XO Tour Llif3” has been streamed on Soundcloud more than a billion times since March. The single is on Luv Is Rage 2, and it speaks to the album’s volcanic mix of hook-laden euphoria and lyrical woefulness. This album debuted at number one on its release in August, and six of its songs—nearly half the album— appear on Spotify’s most popular and influential playlist, RapCaviar. The streaming platform also happens to sponsor tonight’s show. —LEOR GALIL

Veteran Bay Area reedist Larry Ochs has often worked within meticulously arranged compositional vehicles—in his pioneering saxophone quartet ROVA, high-flying improvisation is rigorously woven into the fabric of each piece. In recent years he’s increasingly spent time in looser, more spontaneous configurations where written material plays a less prominent role, but he continues to see composition as a crucial tool. In a short liner-note essay from his group Fictive Five’s eponymous 2015 debut album (released on Tzadik Records), he describes the music as “pieces that invite musicians in, even as they’re being pushed out and into the wild.” Fictive Five features a superb cast of players (most of them significantly younger than Ochs, who’s 68): trumpeter Nate Wooley, drummer Harris Eisenstadt, and bassists Ken Filiano and Pascal Niggenkemper. Together they inject a brooding energy and propulsive drive into four compositions by Ochs that recall the energy music of the 60s freejazz movement. Following a practice employed by soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy, Ochs dedicates three of the four pieces to figures who inspired him, film artists Wim Wenders, William Kentridge, and Kelly Reichardt, and he seeks to use sound to conjure their works’ narrative imagery. Even apart from that conceit, the music thrives, the twin bassists deftly pivoting between rhythmic and harmonic thickets to give the horn men generous space and ideas. The entire group sounds locked in, the members feeding off one another’s energy, anticipating

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MUSIC

Cousin Stizz ò ISAAC GARCIA

phrases, and regularly pushing into fresh angles of attack. For its Chicago debut Fictive Five will be without Niggenkemper, but while that extra low end will be missed, I doubt the show will suffer. —PETER MARGASAK

FRIDAY20 Arditti Quartet 7:30 PM, Mandel Hall, University of Chicago, 1131 W. 57th, $38, $20 under 35, $10 for students. b The Hungarian composer György Ligeti will be feted during the University of Chicago’s 2017-2018 concert season with a thrilling series of performances by high-caliber artists including Imani Winds, Eighth Blackbird and Amadinda, and Third Coast Percussion. The program gets off to a stellar start with the Arditti Quartet, arguably the most consistently adventurous and precise contemporary-music string quartet of the last quarter century. Ligeti (1923-2006) wrote only two string quartets in his life.

The first, Métamorphoses Nocturnes, was composed between 1953-’54 when Hungary was isolated deep behind the iron curtain. Ligeti wrote that the piece “was intended only for my bottom drawer,” as the communist regime allowed only music that promoted its nationalist agenda. But though it was banned in its home country, the composition could be freely played abroad, and it was debuted by the Ramor Quartet in Vienna in 1958. Inspired by the third and fourth string quartets of Ligeti’s fellow Hungarian Bela Bartók (most of whose work was also banished at the time), Métamorphoses Nocturnes is a single 20-minute-movement in which the dynamic chromatic variations of the opening theme fly at the listener in a steady procession of alternating fastslow sections. When Ligeti composed String J

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 31

End the year on a high note.

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Help us celebrate our 60th anniversary and join the party with a class in guitar, banjo, dance, ukulele, and more!

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oldtownschool.org 32 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

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MUSIC

This Is the Kit ò FLORIAN DUBOÉ

continued from 31

album is filled with sensual polyrhythms that ripple and throb as Lindsay delivers melodies in a voice that sounds ever closer to the rounded softness of jazz vocalist Bob Dorough. On the opener, “Grain

by Grain,” sexually tinged wordplay falls from his lips with erotic playfulness as he croons, “I love my handwriting / I love my hand writing your name / On your belly.” Most of the songs bask in a lovely sonic tension, where the hushed intimacy of the melodies and vocals is battered by low-end grooves that shimmy with elegance but aren’t overcrowded by the singer’s gentle warble. Lindsay vividly digs into his masterful primitive guitar technique on the instrumental “Arto vs. Arto”—a bruising dialogue of weird vocal tics and brittle six-string dissonance— and serves unalloyed beauty on the ballad “Pele de Perto.” —PETER MARGASAK

Arto Lindsay Beauty Pill opens. 8 PM, Fullerton Hall, Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan, $20, $10 members. b

This Is the Kit Helena Deland opens. 8:30 PM, Constellation, 3111 N. Western, $15. 18+

Quartet no. 2, in 1968, he’d ditched every aspect of the first except for the chromaticism. By then an internationally acclaimed force, he’d absorbed a world of ideas from other living composers that had led him to dramatically recalibrate his focus.

The work is a masterpiece of polyrhythms and textures—a five-section juggernaut of slashing lines, striated timbres, and fragile, burned-out pizzicati that retracts into a tender puddle of fluttery long tones that whisper away into the ether. Both quartets have been part of Arditti’s vast repertoire for decades—the group’s mastery of the second is especially acknowledged. The program also features the two Bartók quartets that inspired Ligeti while he was cloistered in Budapest all those years ago.

—PETER MARGASAK

Earlier this year experimental pop genius Arto Lindsay dropped Cuidado Madame (Northern Spy). It’s his first new studio album in 13 years, but what’s resulted fits seamlessly alongside its predecessor, Salt (Righteous Babe). Since the late 70s, when he unleashed one of the world’s greatest manifestations of—in the immortal words of Lester Bangs—“horrible noise” with his trio DNA, Lindsay has spent decades forging art-pop that melds koanlike poetry with the sophisticated Latin pop he grew up hearing while living in Brazil with his missionary parents. Cuidado Madame is helmed by his longtime bassist Melvin Gibbs and the versatile jazz drummer Kassa Overall, with help from a shifting cast of instrumentalists and songwriters at the vanguard of various styles, among them Patrick Higgins of New York experimental band Zs and Brazilian pop avatars Lucas Santtana and Marisa Monte. The

Until this year I’ve missed out on the beguiling folk-pop crafted by This Is the Kit, the moniker of Paris-based Englishwoman Kate Stables and a rotating cast of musicians from the UK, France, and beyond. The group’s fourth and latest album, Moonshine Freeze (Rough Trade), has led me to catch up on their previous recordings, but nothing I’ve heard quite matches its succinct beauty. Stables sings with a measured grace, melding sophisticated pop phrasing with a crystalline tone straight out of classic British folk tradition. The new record was masterfully produced by longtime PJ Harvey cohort John Parish, who underlines the tension between her controlled voice and twitchy arrangements such those as on “Hotter Colder,” which suggests a modern iteration of Joni Mitchell’s folk-jazz divide. “Two Pence Piece” glows with warmth, a subtle but effective ooh-ooh vocal harmony sandwiched between graceful horn lines casting a gorgeous spell J

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 33

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@martyrslive

THECHICAGOTHEATRE.COM The Chicago Theatre provides disabled accommodations and sells tickets to disabled individuals through our Disabled Services department, which may be reached at 888-609-7599 any weekday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Ticketmaster orders are subject to service charges.

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MUSIC Kirko Bangz ò MICHAEL LOCCISANO

Never miss a show again.

CAN YOU SING???

EARLY WARNINGS

continued from 33

for the singer. Other songs embrace a leaner palette, such as the tender “Easy on the Thieves,” where Stables’s delicate banjo arpeggios are complemented only by muted horns. In every case, her voice remains the center of attention. —PETER MARGASAK

SATURDAY21 Bill Mackay and Ryley Walker Tim Kinsella opens. 8:30 PM, Constellation, 3111 N. Western, $10. 18+ Guitarists Bill MacKay and Ryley Walker have been playing together for years, and their lovely second collaborative album, SpiderBeetleBee (Drag City), beautifully bridges the gap between their backgrounds. MacKay, a Pittsburgh native, has musical roots in jazz, while Walker pursues a cosmic folk-rock sound indebted to experimental troubadours such as Tim Buckley, John Martyn, and Tim Hardin (even though he discovered left-field sounds through skateboard videos while growing up in Rockford). Most of the new album consists of tender original compositions where the two guitarists weave acoustic counterpoint more delicate than a spiderweb and float through airy, meditative cascades of fleet arpeggios and extended runs; their collaboration collides old British folk with rustic post-John Fahey American Primitive guitar. Though a handful of tracks feature plangent cello by Katinka Kleijn (a member of the CSO and ICE), who shades the chord changes and enriches the interplay, most of the album is just two guitars ringing out with relaxed, natural beauty. A few pieces opt for a more probing, improvisatory feel, such as the harmonics-drenched “Naturita” or the slightly jammy “I Heard Them Singing” (which adds bubbly hand percussion from Ryan Jewel), but the record’s touchstone is luxuriant melodic warmth—the sound

of an easygoing friendship that’s produced a deep musical rapport. —PETER MARGASAK

Find a concert, buy a ticket, and sign up to get advance notice of Chicago’s essential music shows at chicagoreader.com/early.

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SUNDAY22 Invisible Guy 9 PM, Hungry Brain, 2319 W. Belmont, $10. 21+ Bay Area clarinetist Ben Goldberg always seems to be widening his creative portfolio, applying his restrained virtuosity to an ever-increasing number of pursuits and styles. I first took note of his work in the early 90s, when his New Klezmer Trio melded sometimes raucous, sometimes sorrowful Jewish music with the language of free jazz. Since then he’s turned up in tons of disparate contexts, some emphasizing his melodic gifts, others stressing his skills as a superb group improviser. One of his most fruitful projects in recent years has been Invisible Guy, his trio with drummer Hamir Atwal and keyboardist Michael Coleman, which deftly blends tuneful freebop with woolly electronic accents. The group’s 2016 album Knuckle Sandwich (BAG Production) is freewheeling and catchy, with an accessibility not impinged upon by its hurtling energy and improvised maelstroms. Earlier this year the trio displayed a different side of its personality by creating a film score for the forthcoming indie comedy A Sibling Mystery, where its music functions as brief motific cues that set scenes or suggest sudden shifts in tone. While the structure of the material limits improvisation, Goldberg ranges freely within each succinct vignette, whether contributing to the dark rhythmic ambience on “Night Creeper,” delving into the hard-driving bop of “Swing Song,” or using his rheumy contrabass clarinet to add some humorous post-Munsterstheme ebullience to the title track. I doubt much of this material will make the trio’s live set this weekend, but its charming sensibilities will surely be in evidence. —PETER MARGASAK J

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 35

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An Acoustic Evening with

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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20 8PM

Inti-Illimani

50th Anniversary Tour

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20 8PM

Radney Foster

In Szold Hall

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 21 8PM

Town Mountain

In Szold Hall

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 22 7PM

A.J. Croce

In Szold Hall

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26 8PM

Zusha

In Szold Hall

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27 7 & 9:30PM

Eddie Palmieri Latin Jazz Band: Eddie at 80 FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27 7PM

Erwin Helfer & Lluís Coloma

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10/29 11/3 11/5

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MUSIC

ò BILL CRISAFI

continued from 35 Kirko Bangz 7 PM, Portage Theater, 4050 N. Milwaukee, $16-$35. b When rappers began to gravitate towards singing at the beginning of this decade, Kirk Randle, better known as Kirko Bangz, infused his vocals with the spirit of his hometown, Houston, and the city’s influence is all over his breakout 2011 single, “Drank in My Cup.” The song’s title is an obvious reference to the recreational abuse of cough syrup popularized

in Houston hip-hop, and its glacial pace and resonant melody are steeped in the southern swang of H-Town rap. Kirko Bangz applies soulful, supple, and slow musical methods to his vocal performances; throughout last year’s Back Flossin (300 Entertainment) and his August mixtape Progression 17 he drags out words as if he’s watching the last syllable fall like a grain of sand in an hourglass. He can stand at attention when he wants to; on his May single “Swang N Bang” he busts out a rubbery, adroit flow that marries vintage funk with Houston rap history— the song title, and its euphoria, is a nod to “chopped

and screwed” forerunner E.S.G.’s crucial 1994 cut “Swangin’ & Bangin.’” —LEOR GALIL

on. This week’s show is part of a tour commemorating the group’s 25th anniversary. —LUCA CIMARUSTI

MONDAY23

TUESDAY24

Boris Helms Alee and Endon open. 8 PM, Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport, $20, $18 in advance. 17+

Chelsea Wolfe Youth Code and DJ Scary Lady Sarah open. 8 PM, Metro, 3730 N. Clark, $25, $22 in advance. 18+

One of the greatest joys of pressing play on a new Boris record is the excitement of hearing which direction they take each time around. Formed in 1992, the Japanese trio have dabbled in—and mostly perfected—the entire spectrum of heavy and heady music. They kicked off their career tipping their collective hat to the doom of 90s Earth and the sludge of the Melvins (the band’s name is a homage to the opening track of the Melvins’ Bullhead LP), and went on to master dizzying thrash, eerie psychedelia, glacial doom, and gorgeous shoegaze—they even toyed with J-pop on 2014’s Noise (Sargent House). Boris’s 24th full-length, Dear, which came out in July on Sargent House, focuses on the beyond-slow heaviness of their early work, and dips into Sunn O)))-style power ambience and Ominspired metal meditations. Initial reports coming out of the notoriously prolific band’s camp were that Dear was set to be their last record ever, but Boris left the studio with three albums’ worth of material, so it looks like their train will keep plowing

Genre-straddling chanteuse, composer, and guitarist Chelsea Wolfe confounds some fans and rewards others on her newly released sixth album, Hiss Spun. Her witchy brew of drone-folk with gothic and industrial influences is dramatic and cinematic (it’s been licensed by Fear the Walking Dead, The Magicians, and Game of Thrones). It’s also crept heavier and heavier with each release; most of Hiss Spun roars out as full-fledged sludge metal. Wolfe’s previous collaborations with Russian Circles and the Converge/Neurosis-related project Bloodmoon serve her well on the Hiss Spun, where she steers a course within the rocky shoals adeptly built by bassist/synth player Ben Chisolm, drummer Jess Gowrie, and guest guitarists including Aaron Turner of Isis and Troy van Leeuwen of Queens of the Stone Age (who all come together on “Vex”). In all, she wields delicacy and melancholy as weapons that are even sharper due to the crushing walls of riffs they emerge from. —MONICA KENDRICK v

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 37

FOOD & DRINK RESTAURANT REVIEW

Katana plunges its glittery blade into River North

A massive robatayaki parachutes in from Hollywood.

By MIKE SULA

T

his sultry ‘fall’ weather means one thing and one thing only: you’re clinically proven to be better looking after a meal at Katana.”

That was Michael Simon’s Facebook status at the blistering peak of last month’s unseasonable heat wave. Simon is the gifted, hilarious, and peripatetic barkeep who’s currently running the beverage side of things at Katana, a massive Japanese restaurant that took off in Hollywood and landed its second location in River North in early August.

I ate at Katana a few times right around then, and I looked tired, sweaty, and generally terrible. But that’s not Simon’s fault. On the other hand, his mezcal old-fashioned, Beerus the Destroyer, with Riesling-infused agave nectar and peach-and-allspice bitters, is a clear, potent, and sorcerously sweet elixir, just the sort of memorable cocktail he’s been making for years at spots like Acadia, Celeste, and Carriage House. I’m not fond of aggressively sweet cocktails, but this one was quite the pick-me-up.

Katana, named for the samurai sword you once bought from a Chinatown gift shop, is the second recently opened restaurant trying to sell some form of Hollywood fantasy to Chicago. (Don’t tell me you’ve already forgotten Blvd.) It’s a development that couldn’t

38 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

The items that come off the robata are generally well executed. Small portions of minimally accented proteins glisten and sizzle in their fats. ò MATTHEW GILSON

make me feel more protectively midwestern.

For lovers of Japanese food, the arrival of this monument to aspirational narcissism— an outpost of LA-based Innovative Dining Group, which already had five concepts in a dozen locations—is a bit of a bitter pill to swallow. It announced itself with a grand opening padded with celebrities four weeks ahead of the closing of Sumi Robata Bar, just a hop, skip, and a jump across the neighborhood. As Sumi did, Katana considers itself a robatayaki, but the two couldn’t be more different. At Sumi you could sit, mesmerized, directly in front of chef-owner Gene Kato as he grilled skewered chicken butts and beef tongue over white-hot binchotan charcoal with the intensity of a concert pianist. It was a contemplative, Zen-like experience. At the sprawling Katana you can get up close to the grill and the sushi bar, but you’re really just another face in the crowd. Anyway, you’re probably more interested in looking for the nightlife photographers.

From a design standpoint the place is interesting. Within its 13,000 square feet squats a massive square bar and lounge where you can make eyes at everyone in the dining room, which sits beneath a huge atrium of blond wooden beams that gives you the sense that you’re a dumpling sweating in a giant bamboo steamer.

The menu is almost as sizeable, offering snacky vegetable starters, hot and cold dishes, sushi, a variety of grilled animal muscle from the robata, and the option of submitting to an omakase by chef Jose Melendez, himself transported from the west-coast mothership.

It takes time to get a grip on.

The items that come off the robata are generally well executed. Small portions of minimally accented proteins glisten and sizzle in their fats, from springy chicken meatballs and clean-tasting lamb chops to charred aged rib eye and bouncy mineral-rich chicken hearts.

Other proteins are only slightly more accessorized: pork belly is drenched in maple miso sauce with sweet pear kimchi on the side, cod shellacked with miso glaze in the classic style, crispy-skinned jidori chicken enlivened with a mere dab of the yuzu-chile-salt relish kosho.

Hot and cold small plates are dicey. The immaculate freshness of yellowtail sashimi somehow stands up to a treatment of minced jalapeño and hot olive oil, but pristine lobes of sea urchin suffer a briny disaster, drowned in an insipid ponzu. Tuna tartare gilded with uni, caviar, and a quail egg is a luxurious pleasure that shouldn’t share menu space with soggy-sweet tempura-battered popcorn shrimp that perform as if they’d emerged from a room-temperature take-out container.

Sushi, by chef Rob Juan, is all over the map

too. It’s possible to order lovely pieces of fresh, unadorned sashimi as well as absurd crimes against fish such as the signature Katana roll, overburdened with tuna and raw jalapeño and filled with salmon mush, or the White Lotus, a messy collision of shrimp tempura, avocado, asparagus, albacore, and fried onions.

When I visit a restaurant I make it a point to order the most ridiculous-sounding thing on the menu, and dessert at Katana doesn’t disappoint. The Carnival is a chocolate brownie topped by peanut butter semifreddo adorned with meringue and candied pretzel—all served in a cotton candy balloon that’s doused with vodka and set alight at the table like the circus disaster of your nightmares. The Volcano, a chocolate lava cake called up from 1987, is served with miso-caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream.

Behind the bar there’s a perfunctory selection of red and white wines; if you’re getting into the spirit of the place you’ll be more interested in the 16 sakes available by the glass and the 23 Japanese and Taiwanese whiskeys. But even if you don’t take any aesthetic pleasure in drinking, you should forgo your Blow Job shots and take a look at Simon’s cocktail list.

He performs feats of daring like mixing blended Japanese whiskey with ten-year-old port (Ghost in the Shell) or London dry gin with violet syrup (Sex & Violets) or tequila with

l

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KATANA | $$$$

339 N. Dearborn 312-650-8585 innovativedining.com/restaurants/katana

The Carnival is a chocolate brownie topped by peanut butter semifreddo adorned with meringue and candied pretzel—all served in a cotton candy balloon that’s doused with vodka and set alight at the table. ò MATTHEW GILSON

FOOD & DRINK

yuzu-salt ale (Tears of My Enemies). There’s always something you haven’t tasted before with this guy.

Chicago has historically been tough on restaurants that parachute into town, so who knows if the ostensibly austere minimalism of Japanese food combined with manufactured Tinseltown maximalism will hold the attention of the swaggering primates of River North?

But Simon isn’t the only Chicagoan brought in on Katana. IDG tapped the equally itinerant Jason Chan, a general manager with a significant variety of hometown experience (Butter, Urban Union, Juno, Naoki). It will be interesting see whether, over time, these two veterans of the Chicago hospitality industry can somehow make this place feel like it belongs here. For now, Katana is more accurately described as a brobatayaki; every intention is to make you feel like a sexy beast, in an effort that couldn’t be a more accurate expression of Hollywood facileness. v

v @MikeSula

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 39

NORTH SHORE DISTILLERY

13990 Rockland, Libertyville 847-574-2499 northshoredistillery.com

FOOD & DRINK

BOOZE

North Shore Distillery’s new rum is unlike anything else being made in Illinois

Bourbon Cask Rum; Doublewood Rum; North Shore Distillery’s tasting room ò COURTESY NORTH SHORE DISTILLERY

The spirit is an anomaly in a state where most distilleries are focused on whiskey, gin, and vodka.

By JULIA THIEL

A

s I wandered the aisles of the Chicago Independent Spirits Expo a couple weeks ago, I came across something unusual: two rums from North Shore Distillery, both aged between four and six years. Rum is still relatively rare among local distillers, who tend to focus on vodka, gin, and whiskey instead; if they branch out from there it’s likely to be into liqueur or brandy. CH Distillery makes an unaged rum, and Tailwinds Distilling Company in Plainfield has built its brand on Taildragger, a lineup that includes a white rum, an amber rum aged for at least two years, a coffee rum, and an overproof dark rum. But that’s pretty much it for rum made in Illinois, and there certainly aren’t any others that have been aged for six years. Most local distilleries weren’t even around when that rum went into barrels.

North Shore Distillery has actually been around quite a bit longer than that: it was the first craft distillery in Illinois when it launched in Libertyville in 2004. Rum wasn’t part of the plan back then, cofounder Sonja Kassebaum says. She and her husband, Derek, started out selling vodka and gin while experimenting

40 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

with whiskey recipes. In 2009 they began manufacturing the rum-based Hum Botanical Spirit for mixologist Charles Joly—which required them to learn how to make rum.

“Anytime we had extra we’d just stick it in a barrel,” Kassebaum says. After a few years Joly and North Shore amicably parted ways, but the Kassebaums continued making rum. “We tried to perfect the manufacturing process to promote interesting flavors,” she says. “We experimented with all the different grades of molasses, different kinds of heat, to find out what kinds of flavors they produce.

We use a long fermentation process, almost 21 days, to promote flavor development.”

For a little while the Kassebaums served the unaged rum in their tasting room, mostly in cocktails, but they quickly decided that white rum wasn’t for them. Instead, they’ve been putting all the rum they produce into used bourbon casks, and a few months ago they released the first bottles. One, called Bourbon Cask Rum, is blended from various barrels and adjusted to 80 proof, but has no sugar or caramel coloring added. “Almost all aged rums

add sugar,” Kassebaum says. “We like that dry style. It sips like a whiskey. It has a little smoke to it, some spice tones. It finishes with tropical fruit.” The second rum, called Doublewood, was created by aging the Bourbon Cask Rum with cherrywood staves and Mexican vanilla beans. “That one we add a little sugar, so it’s more like that classic rum drinker’s rum,” Kassebaum says. “It’s the one that sells most to consumers.”

Which may explain why most rum has sugar added: people tend to like it that way.

“One universal truth is, people like sugar,” Kassebaum says. “If you put sugar in, people are going to like it better.” Sugar can cover up flaws, masking off flavors that come, for example, from a fermentation that’s too short.

But it can also accentuate flavor, Kassebaum says. “We make a Tahitian vanilla vodka, and if we don’t put a little sugar in, your brain can’t process the vanilla flavor. You don’t taste how complex the vanilla is if we don’t put in sugar to keep it on your palate long enough for your brain to catch up.”

Customers who want actual whiskey (rather

than a dry rum that drinks like whiskey) don’t have much longer to wait: Kassebaum is hoping to release North Shore’s first bottles of it next summer. Up to now the tasting room has served the distillery’s single malt whiskey just once a year, Kassebaum says—on the Saturday closest to Saint Patrick’s Day. The oldest barrel is ten years old, but what they release will be blended from many different barrels, and she’s not sure yet what the age statement will be.

The other, a bourbon-style American whiskey made from corn and rye, is currently available at North Shore’s tasting room. That’s been true ever since last fall, when the distillery moved from its former location—just up the street from where it is now, in a space so small the tasting room had a grand total of 13 seats—to its current location in a former kitchen showroom. It’s also next to a Harley-Davidson dealership, which Kassebaum says factored into their decision to give the whiskey a permanent place behind the bar. “A lot of those people want whiskey,” she says.

Whether the whiskeys get released next summer, though, depends on how they mature. “It’s an interesting process to learn about barrels and how they change over time,” Kassebaum says. “You like it but it seems very youthful, and then all of sudden it’s like, huh, I don’t know how I feel about that. I kind of liken it to parents: kids get into their teenage years and it’s like, huh, I hope you grow out of that trait right there.” v

v @juliathiel

l

l

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JOBS

fessional references to Kate Campbell via email at kcamp@ uic.edu or mail directly to 1853 West Polk Street, M/C 784, Chicago, Illinois 60608.

Hive, PIG, HBase, Oozie, HCatalog, Sqoop. Send resume to: C. Studniarz, REF: NB, 555 W Adams, Chicago, IL 60661

TRANSUNION, LLC SEEKS

Telephone Sales Experienced/aggressive telephone closers needed now to sell ad space for Chicago’s oldest and largest newspaper rep firm.

Immediate openings in Loop office. Salary + commission.

312-368-4884.

The University of Illinois is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer. Minorities, women, veterans and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

The University of Illinois may conduct background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer. Background checks will be performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

SALES & MARKETING

FUNDRAISING-VETERANS DAY & YEAR END HOLIDAYS -Looking for a few old pros. Start today! Start ASAP, Felons need not apply per Attorney General Regulations. Call 312-2565035 ask for Cash.

General The Medical Service Plan within the College of Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago, located in a large metropolitan area, is seeking a full-time Associate Director of Clinical Strategy, Analysis and Practice to assist with acquiring, analyzing, interpreting and presenting findings regarding new legislation and trends in health care finances. Evaluate complex payment models, analyze databases to improve physicians’ productivity, revenue cycle performance, clinical quality and patient-safety, and design strategies to improve clinical performance. Utilize analytical and data management skills to assist in designing complex databases, quality improvement projects, and build clinic taxonomy to identify, prepare and prioritize clinics to participate in federal quality initiative programs. Design customer specific reports by integrating data from clinical, financial, and administrative systems.

Requirements are a Master’s degree or its foreign equivalent in Business, Finance, Healthcare Information, or related field of study, plus two years of data management and analysis experience in a clinical or healthcare related field. Some travel is required.

For fullest consideration, please submit a resume, cover letter addressing your qualifications and reasons for interest, and 3 pro-

Transmarket Operations LLC seeks Quantitative Researchers for Chicago, IL location to analyze & dev quantitative tools & trading strategies. Master’s in Financial Eng/Math/Stats/Math of F inance/Finance +1yr exp req’d.

Req’d skills: 1 yr building term structure models for pricing & risk mgmt by applying quantitative methods (Volatility Modeling, Black-Scholes Pricing, Factor Models, Derivative Theory); dev hedging algorithms to calculate optimal hedging product based on utility, gathering & analyzing market data, optimizing hedging algorithms using market microstructure analysis, testing & calibrating trading strategies using simulation algorithms; dev quantitative tools for trade execution & monitoring; implementing & calibrating real-time trading algorithms; & w/VBA, Excel. Must have created & optimized trading strategies used in live production.

Apply online: http://www. transmarketgroup.com/careers/ Ref#022 TRANSUNION, LLC SEEKS Sr.

Consultants for Chicago, IL location to architect, design, implement & maintain Batch fulfillment applications. Master’s in Comp. Sci./Info.

Management Systems/ Comp. Applications + 5yrs exp. or Bachelor’s in Comp. Sci./Info. Management Syste ms/ Comp. Applications + 7yrs exp. req’d. Req’d Skills: Hands on sw development exp. using Java, J2EE, Linux, shell scripting, high performance GRID Computing platforms (Univa Grid Engine), Java NIO, Apache-Commons APIs, STG, Relational Databases (RDBMS), SQL programming, Agile/Scrum, JUnit, Ab Initio, Talend, Hadoop Map-Reduce,

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42 CHICAGO READER | OCTOBER 19, 2017

Sr. IT Project Managers for Chicago, IL location to lead complex IT projects involving multiple depart. & teams across specialty areas. Master’s in Comp Sci /Info. Systems or MBA w/concentration in Info. Systems + 2yrs exp. or Bachelor’s in Comp Sci /Info. Systems or BBA w/ concentration in Info. Systems + 5yrs exp. req’d. Req’d skills: must have IT project management exp. on cross functional IT infrastructure & application development projects, incl. storage provisioning (SAN/NAS, troubleshooting, connectivity), Agile Methodology (Scrum/Kanban), full SDLC, JIRA/Agile Central tools, ITIL Processes, & Service Now tools. Send resume to: C. Studniarz, REF: SR, 555 W Adams, Chicago, IL 60661

MANAGER MANAGEMENT CONSULTING ANALYTICS MANAGER

(Mult. Pos.), PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services LLC, Chicago, IL. Provide strategy, mgmt, tech. & risk consulting services to help institutions respond to complex bus. challenges. Req. Bach’s deg. or foreign equiv. in Econ, Stats, Comp Sci, Info Systms, Engg or rel. + 5 yrs post-bach’s progress. rel. work exp.; OR a Master’s deg. or foreign equiv. in Econ, Stats, Comp Sci, Info Systms, Engg or rel. + 3 yrs rel. work exp.

Travel up to 80% req. Apply by mail, referencing Job Code IL1477, Attn: HR SSC/Talent Management, 4040 W. Boy Scout Blvd, Tampa, FL 33607.

Seeking full-time Market Research Analyst. Collect & analyze data on customer preferences.

Identify potential markets & factors affecting service demand.

Req: Bachelor of Business Admin or Economics. Any suitable combination of edu & exp acceptable.

Mail your resume to Human Resources, Dynasty International Forwarding, 1601 Brummel Ave, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007. No phone calls.

MARKETING ORACLE AMERICA, INC. has openings for Associate, Marketing Services positions in Chicago, IL. Job duties include:

Build, test, and launch email campaigns and interactive programs.

Apply by e-mailing resume to brian.jensen@oracle.com, referencing 385.22200. Oracle supports workforce diversity.

Aircraft Technician: Perform routine and special inspections and repair of piston, turbine and turbojet aircraft.

Resumes to Travel Express Aviation Maintenance Inc., 3N060 Powis Rd., West Chicago, IL 60185.

CIVIL ENGINEERING DRAFTER – DZSE, Chicago Loop – BS CE or related, 6 mo. connection eng. drafting exp. – res, cov let to jobs@dzse.com

REAL ESTATE RENTALS

STUDIO $500-$599 TRANSUNION, LLC SEEKS Sr.

Analysts - IT-Batch Credit Services for Chicago, IL location to independently collaborate w/internal & external customers, sales associates, & team members. Master’s in Comp.

Sci. or Comp./Management Info. Systems + 2yrs exp. or Bachelor’s in Comp. Sci. or Comp./Management Info. Systems + 5yrs exp. req’d. Req’d Skills: Must have 2yrs software analys is/development exp. working on multiple projects, & w/ETL tools (AbInitio) incl. Transform, Partition, Departition, create tables, views, Uni x/Linux, scripting (Unix, Korn, Bourne), Control M, relational databases, SQL Queries. Send resume to: C. Studniarz, REF: SSP, 555 W Adams, Chicago, IL 60661

Software Test Engineer: prep test plans & create test cases; perf func & regression tstg; perf data anlys, data mappng & KPI anlys.

Reqs exp w/ Agile/ Scrum/Waterfall methdlgy, Google Analytics, Full Story, Tableau, Access, Oracle, SQL Server, MySQL, SOAP UI, Selenium & XMLSpy. Req’s BS/MS in comp sci, info sys or eng +5 yrs exp (3yrs w/ MS). Job in Evanston, IL & unanticipated locatns thru’ US. No Relocatn benefits offered. No telecommtg. Bckgrnd check reqd. Resumes to Katalyst Technologies, Inc- katalysthr@ katalysttech.com

ENGINEERING ARVOS RAYMOND BARTLETT SNOW LLC has an opening for an APPLICATIONS ENGINEER/PROJECT MANAGER in Warrenville,

Illinois. Duties include: Prepare & present tenders for OEM (new equipment) industrial mills pulverizing products; review requests for tenders; coordinate scheduling & performance of pilot plant testing to support tendering activities. Apply at lynn.m.weaver@arvos-group.com.

Must reference Job #11222.1.

IMPLEMENTATION ENGINEER (2 POSITIONS): In Chicago, Illinois: Plan, architect, implement, and install Vocera communications solutions. Domestic travel required, up to 70% of time.

May telecommute from anywhere in the Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area. Mail resume to: Vocera Communications, Inc., 525 Race St., San Jose, CA 95126. Ref Job# ME500.

CHICAGO, BEVERLY/CAL Par k/Blue Island: Studio $625 & up; 1BR $700 & up; 2BR $885 & up.

Heat, Appls, Balcony, Carpet, Laundry, Parking. Call 708-3880170 SOUTH SHORE 6724 S. Chappel Ave. Studio, 1 and 2BRs. Heat incl, nr park and great trans. $525-$875.

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LARGE STUDIO APARTMENT

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STUDIO OTHER LARGE SUNNY ROOM w/fridge & microwave. Near Oak Park, Green Line & Buses. 24 hr Desk, Parking Lot $101/week & Up. (773)378-8888 CROSSROADS HOTEL SRO SINGLE RMS Private bath, PHONE,

CABLE & MAIDS. 1 Block to Orange Line 5300 S. Pulaski 773-581-1188

Ashland Hotel nice clean rms.

24 hr desk/maid/TV/laundry/air.

Low rates daily/weekly/monthly.

South Side. Call 773-376-5200

1 BR UNDER $700 FALL

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NEWLY

Remod. 1 BR Apts $650 w/gas incl.

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7022 S. SHORE DRIVE Impecca-

bly Clean Highrise STUDIOS, 1 & 2 BEDROOMS Facing Lake & Park.

Laundry & Security on Premises.

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û NO SEC DEP û 6829 S. Perry.

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5309 W. JACKSON, 1BR, Large Basement apt, electric, gas and heat incl. $660/mo. 1 mo rent + 1 mo sec. 773-261-2200 1BR APT. Reduced Rent for Han-

dyman. 61st/King Dr. 202-744-0973 1.5 BR apt, 61st/King Dr, quiet, smoke free $625. 202-744-0973 Newly updated, clean furnished rooms in Joliet, near buses & Metra, elevator. Utilities included, $91/wk. $395/mo. 815-722-1212 NICE ROOM w/stove, fridge & bath Near Aldi, Walgreens, Beach, Red Line & Buses. Elevator & Laundry. $133/wk & up. 773-275-4442 BIG ROOM with stove, fridge, bath & nice wood floors. Near Red Line & Buses. Elevator & Laundry, Shopping. $121/wk + up. 773-561-4970

7425 S. COLES - 1 BR $620, 2

BR $735, Includes Free heat & appliances & cooking gas. (708) 424-4216 Kalabich Mgmt 6930 S. SOUTH SHORE DRIVE Studios & 1BR, INCL. Heat, Elec, Cking gas & PARKING, $585-$925, Country Club Apts 773-752-2200

1 MONTH FREE South Shore Studios $600-$750 Free Heat, Fitness Ctr, Lndry rm. Niki 773.647.

0573 www.livenovo.com

FALL SPECIAL - Chicago South Side Beautiful Studios, 1,2,3 & 4 BR’s, Sec 8 ok. $500 gift cert. for Sec 8 tenants. Also Homes for rent available. 773-287-9999. Westside Locations 773-287-4500

FREE HEAT & COOKING GAS Studio - $675 1BR - $750.

Near Metra & shops, Section 8 OK. Newly decorated, dining room, carpeted, appls, FREE heat & cooking gas. Elevator & laundry room. No Application Fee. 1-773-919-7102 or 1-312-8027301

FALL SPECIAL $500 Toward

Rent Beautiful Studios 1, 2, 3 & 4 BR Sect. 8 Welc. Westside Loc, Must qualify. Also Homes for Rent available . 773-287-4500 www.wjmngmt.com MIDWAY AREA/63RD KEDZIE Deluxe Studio 1 & 2 BRs. All

modern oak floors, appliances, Security system, on site maint. clean & quiet, Nr. transp. From $445. 773582-1985 (espanol)

1BR, 63RD & PULASKI. Spacious & Attractive. $675/mo.

Heated Steadman Rlty.

773-284-5822 After 5pm 773-835-9870 NEWLY REMOD 1BR & Studios starting at $580. No sec dep, move in fee or app fee. Free heat/hot water. 1155 W. 83rd St., 773-619-0204 232 E 121ST Pl.

BACK TO SCHOOL SPECIAL - $300 Move in Fee - Nice lrg 1BR $565; 2BR $650 & 1 3BR $800, balcony. Sec 8 Welc.

773-995-6950

LOOKING

FOR

house to lease with option to purchase. 630-452-0516

1 BR $700-$799

CHATHAM CHARMER! S u n n y 1BR, 4 rms, 2nd flr, Heat incl & dbl door sec. $735/mo 708-524-0428. stevensonap artments.com

83rd & Loomis, large 1BR & 2BR apts, newly remodeled, hdwd flrs, appls & heat incl $750 & $850 plus $350 move in fee 773-507-8534.

CHATHAM 2BR, BEAUTIFUL mirrored LR, 3rd flr, Appls, heated, nr trans & shops, Ready Nov 15. $900/mo.773-723-3482

LARGE 1 BR hdwd floors, updated kitchen, ceiling fan, secure bldg, heat & hot water incl $795 /mo + move in fee 773-233-6673 735 N. LOREL. 4rms, 1BR, Fresh rehabbed, new appliances, new heat and water incl. $750/mo + 2 mo sec. 847-451-1669

1 BR $800-$899 1524 W. 89th St., newly updated, 1BR, hdwd flrs, LR/DR, kitchen, heat & appliances incl. quiet non smoking bldg. $850 708-647-0150

CHICAGO, HYDE PARK Arms Hotel, 5316 S. Harper, maid, phone /cable, switchboard, fridge, priv bath, lndry, $165/wk, $350/bi-wk or $650/mo. Call 773-493-3500

CLEAN ROOM W/FRIDGE & micro, Near Oak Park, Food -4Less, Walmart, Walgreens, Buses & Metra, Laundry. $115/wk & up.

773-637-5957

STUDIO $700-$899

7520 S. COLES - 1 BR $520, 2 BR $645, Includes appliances & AC, Near transp., No utilities included (708) 424-4216 Kalabich Mgmt

1 BR $900-$1099

Newly decorated 4 room, 2BR apt. 5200 block S Racine, $650/ mo., stove/refrig, enclosed back porch. Ask for Mr. Lambert 773370-7744

Park and Metra. 6800 N. Wolcott.

Hardwood floors. Cats OK. Heat included. Laundry in building. $900925/month. Available 11/1. 773-7614318.

LARGE STUDIO

APARTMENT

near Loyola Park, 1339 W. Estes.

Hardwood floors. Cats OK. Heat included. Laundry in building. Available 11/1. $700/month. 773-7614318.

HOMEWOOD- 1BR new kitchen, new appls, oak flrs, ac, lndry/ stor., $950/mo incls ht/prkg, near Metra. 773.743.4141 Urban Equit ies.com LARGE STUDIO APARTMENT .

HEAT INCL 773-955-5106

EXECUTIVE

$475-$570/mo.

Call 773-955-5106

to Foster ave beach/bike/jogging paths.In building laundry . Wood floors. $150.00 move in/ out fee.

Heat included.1st and last. Credit check. One year lease. 650.00 Contact Kevin 773 297 4108

1BR Garden apt, heat, electric and appls incl. $550/mo.

773-206-4737

FALL SPECIAL: Studios starting at $499 incls utilities, 1BR $550, 2BR $599, 2BR $699, With approved credit. No Security Deposit for Sec 8 Tenants. South Shore & Southside.

312-656-5066 or 773-287-9999

CHICAGO - HYDE PARK 5401 S. Ellis.

Studio/1BR Apartments.

STUDIO 918 W Winona Steps

7129 S. EAST END AVE,

DOLTON - All newly remod 1 &

2BR. $825-$900/mo. New appls, Heat, cooking gas & water incl, balcony, laundry. 708-224-5052

ONE BEDROOM NEAR Warren

6824 N. Wayne. Hardwood floors.

Heat included. Pets OK. Laundry in building. Available 11/1. $710/month 773-761-4318.

EDGEWATER 900SFT 1BR, new kit, sunny FDR, vintage builtins, oak flrs, Red Line, $1095/mo heated www.urbanequities.com 773-743-4141 NO. SOUTHPORT 1500SF 2BR: new kit w/deck, SS appl, oak flrs, cent heat/AC, lndry $1595+util pkg avail 773-743-4141 www.urbanequities.com E ROGERS PARK: 1800 SF. 3BR / 2BA + den, new kitchen, SS appliances, FDR, $1900/heated, walk to Red Line & Beach 774743-4141 www.urbanequities.com E Rogers Park: Deluxe 1BR + den, new kitc., FDR, oak flrs close to beach. $950-1050/heated, 774743-4141 ww.urbanequities.com

1 BR $1100 AND OVER HEART OF RAVENSWOOD

4883 N Paulina, 1BR completely remodeled apartment, brand new kitchen and bath, separate dining room, ample closet space, floors sanded, painted throughout, mint condition, heat & cooking gas included. Cable, storage locker, on-site laundry. Must be seen. Available immediately. $1300/mo. No security deposit. Call/text 773-230-3116 or call 773-477-9251, email: herbmalkind@ comcast.net

EDGEWATER 1000SF 1BR: new kit, SS appls, quartz ctrs, built-ins, oak flrs, lndry, $1050/ heated 773-743-4141 www. urbanequities.com EDGEWATER 2 1/2 RM STUDIO: Full Kit, new appl, dinette, oak flrs, walk-n closets, $850/mo incls ht/gas. Call 773-743-4141 or visit www.urbanequities.com

1 BR OTHER LAWSON HOUSE FURNISHED Single Room Occupancy Now

Leasing SRO’s from $445.00 to $58 0.00 *Inquire about special programs* Twin Size Bed, Dresser, Microwave & Mini-Refrigerator Incl.

Heat, Hot Water, & Electricity! Hot meal ea. month & On-Site Laundry Community Room & Computer Lab Free Wi-Fi 30 W. Chicago Avenue Chicago, IL 60654. 312-506-2674 Professionally Managed by Holsten Management Corporation IL. Real Estate Sponsor Broker License #478.

007600 The President of Holsten Management Corporation is an Illinois Licensed Real Estate Broker # 47 1.000665

APTS. FOR RENT PARK MGMT & INV. Ltd. SUMMER IS HERE!!

Most units Include..

HEAT & HOT WTR Studios From $475.00 1Bdr From $550.00 2Bdr From $745.00 3 Bdr/2 Full Bath From $1200 **1-(773)-476-6000** APTS. FOR RENT PARK MGMT & INV. Ltd. Hot Summer Is Here Cool Off In The Pool OUR UNITS INCLUDE HEAT, HW & CG Plenty of parking 1Bdr From $795.00 2Bdr From $925.00 3 Bdr/2 Full Bath From $1200 **1-(773)-476-6000** SOUTH SHORE APTS: 7240-48 S Phillips 1BRs 500-650 SQ FT. Utils & heat incl, gated parking for $50/mo. Call 312-619-8517

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APTS. FOR RENT PARK MGMT & INV. Ltd. SUMMER IS HERE!!

Most units Include..

HEAT & HOT WTR Studios From $475.00 1Bdr From $550.00 2Bdr From $745.00 3 Bdr/2 Full Bath From $1200 **1-(773)-476-6000** ROUND LAKE BEACH, IL Cedar Villas is accepting applications for subsidized 1BR apts. for seniors 62 years or older and the disabled.

Rent is based on 30% of annual income. For details, call us at 847-546-1899 ∫

MOST BEAUT. APTS! 6748 Crandon, 2BR, $875. 7727 Colfax, 2BR, $875.

6220 Eberhart, 2 & 3BR, $850-$1150.

7527 Essex, 2BR, $950 773-9478572 / 312-613-4424 CHICAGO - BEVERLY, large studio, 1 & 2BR Apts. Carpet, A/ C, laundry, near transportation, $680-$1020/mo. Call 773-2334939 74TH/KING DR & 88TH/DAUPHIN. Sunny, spacious 1BRs, great trans, laundry on site, security camera.

312-341-1950 CHICAGO 1 BEDROOM. Section 8 Welcome. Heat included.

7804 Champlain Call 773-874-1679 SUBURBS, RENT TO OW N! Buy with No closing costs and get help with your credit. Call 708868-2422 or visit www.nhba.com CHICAGO, RENT TO OWN! Buy with no closing costs and get help with your credit. Call 708868-2422 or visit www.nhba.com

108th St., Lovely 4 rm, 1BR, liv rm, din rm, updated kitchen, heated Close to transportation.

Available now 773-264-6711.

NO SECURITY DEPOSIT NO MOVE IN FEE 1, 2, 3 BEDROOM APTS (773) 874-1122

ACACIA SRO HOTEL Men Preferred! Rooms for Rent. Weekly & Monthly Rates. 312-421-4597

2 BR UNDER $900 69TH & CALIFORNIA 1 BR $720 / 2 BR $820 + Sec Dep. FREE HEAT, appl incl, coin laundry, off street parking O’Brien Family R.E. agent owned. 773-581-7883 CHICAGO 7600 S Essex FALL SPECIAL 2BR $599, 3BR $699, 4BR $799 w/apprvd credit, no sec dep. Sect 8 Ok! Also Homes for rent available. Call 773-287-9999 Westside Locations 773-287-4500 SOUTH CHICAGO, Near /Ingleside, lrg. 2BR, all flrs, large kitch/bath, dry. $800/mo.

Tenant heat. 708-921-9506

82nd hdwd launpays

LAWNDALE: NEWLY DECORATED 2BR, enclosed back

porch, living room, dining room, heat included. $850/mo + 1 mo. security. 773-259-6728

9235 S. Laflin, 2BR, 3rd floor, no stove /fridge, heat incl., quiet building. $800/mo. Secure credit check. 773-445-1524, leave message.

OPEN HOUSE AT 7202 S. Michigan 10/21, 11-1!!! Come see our available two bedroom units, light refreshments served.

7410 S EVANS , 2 BR, 1st fl Newly remodeled, must see!

New everything! $850 plus 1 mo sec deposit 708-474-6520 7202 S. MICHIGAN. Three available units. 2 Bed 1 Bath, $775, $825, $850. Call 312.208.1771.

2 BR $900-$1099 65th & WOODLAWN: large 1BR, stove, refrig., gas, light included. No security deposit. Section 8 ok. $875/ mo. Call 773-684-1166.

WEST SIDE - 2 Bed Apartment.

Recently remodeled, hdwd floors, laundry on-site. $975/mo. Section 8 welcome. Call 773-420-8570.

MORGAN PARK 1534 W. 114th Pl.

2BR, 1BA, A/C, heat and appls incl. $ 950/mo + 1 mo sec. Tenant pays electricity. 773-339-0259

7900 S. WABASH. 2 Bed 1 Bath,

Hwood floors, eat in kitch, $950. Call 312.208.1771.

2 BR $1100-$1299

DIVISION / SPRINGFIELD Large 2 Bedroom Apartment. $750/month, tenant pays gas and electric. Call 312-401-3799

BELLWOOD - 2BR, appl incl tenant pays heat, gas & electric, $850/mo + 1 month sec dep, no pets, close to trans.708-450-9137

2 BR OTHER ROUND LAKE BEACH, IL Cedar

Villas is accepting applications for Subsidized 2 and 3 bedroom apt waiting list. Rent is based on 30% of annual income for qualified applicants. Contact us at 847-546-1899 for details

BRIDGEPORT MINI LOFT. Two

bedrooms, parking, track lighting, beamed ceiling, tub and shower, close to Red Line. Only $895/ month. video@bestrents.net 773-373-7368.

2BR APT IN newer building, com-

pletely rehabbed, laundry in unit, heat incl. 59th & California. Sec. 8 welcome. Call 773-517-9622

64TH & CICERO, nr Midway

airport. Newly remodeled 1BR, 1BA, hdwd flrs, separate utils. $950/mo.

Sec dep req’d. 773-908-1080

3 BR OR MORE UNDER $1200 2-3 BEDRMS, 1 bath Heat & Ap-

pliances incl $1000-$1260 Sec 8 ok 773-368-1264

3BR, 5258 S. HERMITAGE. $665. 5246 S. Hermitage: 3BR, 2nd floor, $625 & 2BR basement $400. 1.5 mo sec required. 708574-4085.

WOODLAWN AREA, Beautiful, renov. 2BR, 2BA, hdwd flrs, granite counter tops, all SS appl.

W/D, sec. prk. $1,200 + sec. 708-717-2109

CALUMET CITY, 3BR, 2BA, living rm, kitchen/dining rm, 2nd floor, beautiful, newly decor. $1100. 1 mo sec + 1 mo rent.

708-647-8061

CALUMET PARK, 2BR House, completely remodeled, $1100 /mo + security. Tenants pay own utils. Section 8 ok. 708388-5701

CHICAGO 6747 S. PAXTON , newly renovated, 2BR,

2BA, HWFs thru out, $975/mo, appls, heat & prkg space incl., 773-2853206

WEST ROGERS PARK: 2BR, new kit. FDR, new windows, $1295 /heated, 774-743-4141 www.urbanequities.com

CALUMET CITY - 3BR house, A /C, 2 car garage, basement, kitchen, living room, Section 8 preferred. Call 708-674-7447.

ELMHURST: Dlx 2BR, n e w appls & carpet, a/c, balcony, $1195 /mo. incl heat, prkg. OS lndry, 773743-4141 www.urbanequities.com MONTROSE & KIMBALL , good transportation. 2BR, new appliances, newly decorated & more. No pets. $1200/mo. 847-965-1508

Find hundreds of Readerrecommended restaurants, exclusive video features, and sign up for weekly news chicagoreader.com/ food.

5104 N WOLCOTT, 1st F loor , 2BR with hardwood floors, tile bath & kitchen, newer appliances, central air & heat. Quiet, small building. Pets ok. Public transportation & shopping. Storage & coin laundry in building. $1350/mo + utilities + security deposit. 773368-4633 for more information

CHATHAM, 720 E. 81st St. Newly remodeled 2BR, 1BA, hardwood floors, appliances & heat included.

Call 847-533-5463.

CHATHAM - 22 East 70th St. 2BR. $750/mo. Sec 8 OK. Heat & appl. Call Office: 773-9665275 or Steve: 773-936-4749 CHICAGO, 3BR APARTMENT, newly remodeled, heat included, $ 900/mo. Also, Storefront, $800/ mo. Call 773-297-4784

2 BR $1300-$1499

ADULT SERVICES

12415 NORMAL. 4BR w/appls,

SOUTHSIDE - 6 room, 3BR, 1.

34BA, formal dining room, 2nd floor, very clean, heat included, $1,000/mo. 773-213-7129 Chicago, 3BR, $900/mo. incl utils, near Pink Line, newly remodeled, no smoking or pets.

Credit check. call 630-898-6490 WEST - $1000/mo. + move in fee, 3 Bedrooms, 1 Bath, Living Room, Kitchen, Dining Room.

Call 773-287-2077 Chicago 1646 W. Garfield.

3 bdrm, 1 bath, newly renovated, hardwood floors, appliances included. $850/mo. 773-285-3206

3 BR OR MORE $1200-$1499 RIVERDALE/DOLTON - 4BR, 1.5BA, 2 car garage, unfinished basement, Section 8 OK. $1200/ mo + security. 847-909-1538 Beautiful brick 4BR , 1.5 BA, off st prkg, ADP alarm $1300/ mo. Move-in Fee $650, Sec 8 Ok. 773-720-9787 or 773-483-2594 3

BEDROOM

TOWNHOME,

Great Neighborhood. Tier 1 School, Section 8 ok. Call 312-501-0509

3 BR OR MORE $1500-$1799 BUDLONG WOODS, 5500N/ 2600W. Three bedrooms plus, two

levels, DR, spacious LR, 1.5 baths plus, many closets, first floor, near transportation. $1600 includes heat.

Available now. Marty, 773-784-0763.

MARKHAM NEWLY REHABBED 3BR, 1BA, new appls

Wrigleyville 1800 S.F. 3BR, new kit, private deck & yard, FDR, oak floors, sunroom, $1950/heated 773-7434141 urbanequities.com

3 BR OR MORE $1800-$2499 LARGE 3 BEDROOM apartment near Wrigley Field. 3820 N. Fremont.

Two bathrooms. Hardwood Floors.

Cats OK. $2175/month. Special!

Sign a lease starting by November 1, and get a free tandem parking space for one year. Available 11/1. 773-7614318.

OLYMPIA FIELDS Newly remodeled 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath house, full basement. Beautiful area. 708-935-7557.

3 BR OR MORE OTHER

CHICAGO HOUSES FOR rent.

Section 8 Ok, w/app credit $500 gift certificate 3, 4 & 5 BR houses avail.

Call 708-752-3812 for Westside locations 773-287-4500

CHICAGO S: 2809 E. 76th St. Newly renov, Large 5BR House, In unit laundry, hdwd flrs, very clean, No Deposit!

Avail Now! 708-655-1397 IRVING PARK & CALIFORNIA,

W.HUMBOLDT PK 1500W remod spac. 1BR, new kitc/appls, OS lndry, storage. $825-$975 + util NO DEP 773-743-4141 www. urbanequities.com

MAYFAIR

1600 SF 3BR, new

1-3pm. 5141 Touhy Ave, Skokie. Solid retro style home! 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, full basement with family room and much more! Walk to Fairview School, shopping. MLS #09770855. Call Mary, Solid Realty Services, 773-590-6500

BUENA PARK BRICK home. Over

6100 sq.ft . 2,5 car gar.$1,249,000, 8479876622, owners.com

SELF-STORAGE CENTERS. T W O locations to serve you. All

units fully heated and humidity controlled with ac available. North: Knox Avenue.

773-685-6868.

South: Pershing Avenue. 773-523-6868.

OFFICE SPACE WITH waiting

room for rent as of Oct. 15. Evergreen Park/Beverly area. All util. & parking incl. $450-$500/mo. 773-406-7891

CHICAGO, BUSY 110TH & Mich-

igan Retail 525-1500 SqFt / $12 SqFt & office suites from $275. Move In Ready. Call Kamm, 773-520-0369

KILL TEED!

ROACHES-GUARAN-

Buy Harris Roach Tablets.

Odorless, Effective, Long Lasting Available: Hardware Stores, The Home Depot, homedepot.com

Buy Harris Bed Bug Killers/KIT Complete Treatment System Available: Hardware Stores, The Home Depot, homedepot.com

HEALTH & WELLNESS FULL BODY MASSAGE. hotel, house calls welcome $90

special. Russian, Polish, Ukrainain girls. Northbrook and Schaumburg locations. 10% discount for new customers. Please call 773-407-7025

BUSINESS OPS

FREE LEADS FOR life. Get them

roommates

CHICAGO S: Newly renovated, Large 3-5BR. In unit laundry, hardwood flrs, very clean, No Deposit!

Available Now! 708-655-1397

SOUTH SHORE, Senior Discount. Male preferred.

Furnished rooms, shared kitchen & bath, $545/mo. & up. Utilities included. 773-710-5431

ing, newly remodeled, hdwd flrs throughout. Section 8 welcome. 773-406-1676

CLASSICS WANTED ANY CLASSIC CARS IN ANY CONDITION. ’20S, ’30S, ’40S, ’50S, ’60S & ’70S. HOTRODS & EXOTICS! TOP DOLLAR PAID! COLLECTOR. CALL JAMES, 630-201-8122

KILL BED BUGS!

non-residential

CHICAGO, ROOMS FOR RENT. Very nice & modern.

5926 S. Peoria St., 448 W. 60th Place. Call Sharon, 773744-9915

MARKETPLACE

GOODS

daily. www.myspringlist.com/FoodMoney

legal notices NOTICE IS HEREBY given, pur-

suant to “An Act in relation to the use of an Assumed Business Name in the conduct or transaction of Business in the State,” as amended, that a certification was registered by the undersigned with the County Clerk of Cook County. Registration Number: D17152327 on October 6, 2017 Under the Assumed Business Name of DAGGETT PROPERTY INSPECTIONS with the business located at: 802 LATIMER LANE, FLOSSMOOR, IL 60422. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner (s)/partner(s) is: GARY EDWARD DAGGETT 802 LATIMER LANE, FLOSSMOOR, IL 60422, USA

SECTION 8 OK. 8457 S. BRANDON, 4BR. 2BR or 1BR voucher ok. Call 847-312-5643.

NOTICE IS HEREBY given, pur-

GENERAL CHICAGO SOUTH - YOU’VE tried the rest, we are the best.

Apartments & Homes for rent, city & suburb. No credit checks.

773-221-7490, 773-221-7493

bsmt w/ laundry. $1300/mo. 69th/ Wabash. 2BR, bsmt w/laundry. $950. No Sec Dep. 773.568-0053

kit, SS appl, granite, oak flrs, onsite lndy, prkg, $1495/+ util. 773743-4141 www.urbanequities.com

11748 S. BISHOP. 3BR, 2BA, full finished bsmt, 20x20 covered deck, 2.5 car gar, sect 8 welc. $1500 / mo.

708-889-9749 or 708-256-0742

ALB PK 1600SF 3BR + den, new kit, SS appl, granite, oak flrs, onsite lndy, $1495/+ util. 773-7434141 www.urbanequities.com

CHICAGO Southside Brand New 2BR, 3BR & 4BR apartments.

Exc. neighborhood, near public transp. For details call 708-7742473

ADULT SERVICES

ADULT SERVICES

ADULT SERVICES

OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY 10/22,

Large 3 Bedroom, newly renovated, wood floors. Close to Brown Line, schools, good transportation. Available immediately. 773-588-0359

incl washer/dryer, sec 8 welcome.

Avail Immediately $1400/mo. 708-377-6374 1 BEDROOM, 3 rooms, heat & hot water included. Super clean, newly remodeled, $690 rent. Big rooms, WRIGLEYVILLE 1800 SF 3BR, Sun- 773-405-9361 Call today!! ny New Kit, SS appl, deck, close to be ach/ Cubs park, Ldry/storage, $1995/ heated 773-743-4141 urbanequities.

3BR in quiet 2 flat brick buildcom

ALBANY PK 3100W 3BR, gran. ctrs, SS appls, wood flrs, OS ldry/ stor. $1495-$1575 + utils NO DEP. 773-743-4141 www.urbanequities. com

FOR SALE

AIREDALE PUPS BORN 9/2.

AKC Located 200 miles south of Chicago in Taylorville, IL. Email btraynor77@gmail.com or phone or text 217 820 0129

ADULT SERVICES

suant to "An Act in relation to the use of an Assumed Business Name in the conduct or transaction of Business in the State," as amended, that a certification was registered by the undersigned with the County Clerk of Cook County. Registration Number: D17152402 on October 12, 2017 under the Assumed Business Name of The Chocolate Shoppe with the business located at 5337 W Devon Ave, Chicago, IL 60646. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/ partner(s) is: Ronald Mondel, 6301 N Sheridan Road Apt 23H, Chicago, IL 60660, USA

ADULT SERVICES

COLLEGE GIRL BODY RUBS $40 w/AD 24/7

224-223-7787

OCTOBER 19, 2017 | CHICAGO READER 43

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STRAIGHT DOPE

By Cecil Adams

SLUG SIGNORINO

FINDHUNDREDSOF

Q: There are certain sounds

that drive us batty. For many people, it’s nails on a chalkboard.

For me, it’s the squeaking sound of styrofoam. What causes this reaction? —BREPARK, VIA THE STRAIGHT DOPE MESSAGE BOARD

1-312-924-2082 More Local Numbers: 800-777-8000

www.guyspyvoice.com

Ahora en Español/18+

Never miss a show again.

EARLY WARNINGS

chicagoreader.com/early 44 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

A : I’ve gotta say, it’s a tribute to the unique

awfulness of the sound made by nails on a chalkboard that we’re even still talking about it. Back in 2000, dry-erase whiteboards were reportedly outselling the traditional blackboard four to one; now the latter is practically a relic. Here at the Straight Dope, we’ve been on the case for 30 years, first in a 1986 column where I reported on a study of the psychoacoustics of chalkboard scraping. The authors noted that the waveforms of the sound resembled the alarm cries of macaque monkeys and speculated that perhaps our aversive reaction is a vestigial reflex, triggering something in our primate brains alerting us to danger.

I threw a little cold water on this back then, and I’m pleased to report the science has now caught up with me. One study from 2003 looked at another primate relative, cotton-top tamarins, comparing their reactions to aversive noises with those of their closest human relatives, Harvard undergraduates. In the experiment, both monkeys and undergrads were exposed to white noise and to a sound “produced by scraping a three-pronged metal garden tool down a pane of glass,” a “variant of the fingernails-on-a-blackboard sound”— actual blackboards having already grown scarce in Cambridge, I guess.

Anyways, researchers found that the undergrads stayed put when exposed to the white noise but high-tailed it out of there for the scraping. The authors concluded that “although such preferences may be innate in humans, they likely have evolved after the divergence point with our primate cousins.”

That’s what most of the research on this subject is aimed at: innateness. Is our aversion to the sound of nails on a chalkboard—or any number of other commonly detested noises, like your squeaking styrofoam—a learned aversion, or is there something instinctual that causes our discomfort? One 2008 paper out of England sought to determine whether age or gender played a role in how people reacted to a series of noises including our acoustic bete noire, the nails-on-chalkboard sound.

If aversion is innate, went the reasoning, one might see links to reproductive success: the

females of the species would have a stronger negative reaction, given they might be protecting themselves and their offspring, and older folks might have a higher tolerance given their lower procreative potential.

Females found NOC to be “slightly worse” than others did, while folks in the 15-35 age range found it “significantly worse” than older or younger people.

Intriguing, but not only were the numbers far from conclusive, they were obtained via Internet survey. For a slightly more rigorous analysis, we turn to a 2011 study that attempted to physically quantify reactions to the nails/chalkboard sound. Two European musicologists hooked subjects up to a battery of devices measuring heart rate, electrical conductivity of the skin, and the like; participants heard recordings of various sounds including fingernails and chalk against slate, some modified to exclude certain audio frequencies.

Results? Skin conductivity changed pretty consistently in response to sounds the subjects described as unpleasant, NOC rated foremost among them. The key frequencies for auditory unpleasantness, the data indicated, were those between 2,000 and 4,000 hertz—right in the middle of the range found in human speech. The researchers took this to suggest that the problem may indeed be inbred, if not exactly instinctual: the shape of our ear canals amplifies sounds in that range, meaning we might naturally experience NOC as more intense than sounds at higher or lower frequencies.

There was also evidence pointing to a learned response: subjects who knew the provenance of the awful noise rated it as more unpleasant than those told it came from music. Which, I submit, means we may yet evolve our way out of this situation. Imagine repeating the study with five-year-olds. Their perception wouldn’t be colored by learning where the offensive sound came from. They’d say: What’s a chalkboard? v Send questions to Cecil via straightdope.com or write him c/o Chicago Reader, 350 N. Orleans, Chicago 60654.

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SAVAGE LOVE

By Dan Savage

Help, my family member is/was/may be a perv!

Advice for the would-be sex-positive.

Q : My only child is 16 years

old. He was curious about sex from a very young age, and went through a crossdressing phase when he was small—mostly wanting to wear nail polish and try on mascara. I felt like I navigated those waters pretty well, but his father made attempts to squelch those impulses. (He and I are divorced and he’s now less involved.) Then last year, I caught him trying to shoplift a pair of panties. I’m not the sort of mom who freaks out, but I made him put them back and talked to him about his actions. When I asked him why he tried to steal them, he refused to tell me.

I asked: “Did you want them to masturbate with? Did you want to wear them?” He said he wanted to try them on.

I told him that if he wanted to explore, he needed to do that with a legal purchase.

Today, I found a girl’s bra in the laundry. He says he doesn’t know whose it is or how it got there, but this isn’t my first rodeo. What on earth do I do? If I send him to a therapist and this is about being trans or cross-dressing tendencies, I’m afraid that will shame him. However, this is now something of a criminal/ethical concern, and I want to nip that in the bud. Is this just the same kid who has always been curious about sex? Or are these warning signs of some sort of sexual deviance?

Please help. —MOM IN SLEEPY SOUTH CAROLINA LOVINGLY EDUCATES OFFSPRING

A : Take a deep breath,

MISSCLEO, and get back in touch with your inner mom, the one who doesn’t freak out.

Your son may be a cross-dresser or he may be trans or he may find bras and panties titillating because

women wear them and he wants to sleep with women.

(Lots of gay boys are titillated by jockstraps.) We can’t know, but he’s clearly exploring and wants to do so privately rather than go to his mom about it. He knows you’ve always accepted him for who he is (but a reminder never hurts), so if this is about his gender identity, well, you’ll have to trust that he’ll share that with you when he’s ready. But if this is about a kink, he may never share that info with you, because why on earth would he? Kinks are for sharing with lovers, not mothers.

Give your son some space, including the space to make his own mistakes. As teenage misbehavior goes, swiping a single pair of panties isn’t exactly a crime spree, and you’ve already cautioned him from stealing. My hunch is you have a slightly pervy teenage boy who’s curious about sex and who may, like millions of other men, have a thing for women’s undergarments.

Q : My father passed away

suddenly. I had a very idyllic childhood and was close to both him and my mother (also deceased).

Upon sorting through his stuff after his death, I stumbled upon his erotica collection. If it were just a stack of Playboys, I would think nothing of it, but his collection contained material that was quite disturbing to me, including photos depicting violent sexual acts and fictional erotica with themes of incest. Additionally, there were letters from people with whom he was obviously having extramarital affairs, including during the time that I was a child and believed that we were a “normal” family. Since discovering this, I’ve found

it hard to think of my father in the way that I used to.

I can barely stand to look at a photograph of him.

I consider myself to be a sex-positive person, and I realize that even parents are entitled to be kinky, but I simply can’t get over this.

Any suggestions for how to deal with what I’m feeling and how to try to get past it?

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A : Sex-positive, huh?

Could’ve fooled me.

Your dad was a kinky motherfucker, and if you’ve been reading Savage Love for a while, you’ll know that lots of people are kinky and, distressingly, lots of people out there “enjoy” incest porn. “Of the top hundred searches by men on Pornhub,” Seth Stephens-Davidowitz writes in his book Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are, “sixteen are looking for incest-themed videos.” And it’s not just men: “Nine of the top hundred searches on Pornhub by women are for incest-themed videos.” That’s cold comfort, I realize, and it doesn’t make it any less squicky, but your dad’s tastes weren’t as freakish as you thought.

As for his affairs, your mother isn’t with us, PARENT, so you can’t ask her what her arrangement was with your father. But it’s unlikely you would have had such an idyllic childhood if your parents’ marriage was contentious and your mom was miserable about your dad’s cheating and his kinks. It’s not impossible she was an active and happy participant. v Send letters to mail@ savagelove.net. Download the Savage Lovecast every Tuesday at thestranger.com. v @fakedansavage

OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 45

St. Vincent ò NEDDA AFSARI

NEW

Adventurer 11/2, 6:30 PM, Wire, Berwyn, 18+ Gabrielle Aplin 3/1, 8 PM, Bottom Lounge, 17+ Rayland Baxter 1/20, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Bedouine 1/21, 8 PM, Schubas, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Tab Benoit 12/16, 8 PM, City Winery, on sale Thu 10/19, noon b Big Tymers, Tee Grizzley 11/4, 8 PM, Portage Theater, 18+ Bilal 1/4-5, 8 PM, City Winery, on sale Thu 10/19, noon b Amy Black 1/17, 7 PM, City Winery, on sale Thu 10/19, noon b Chase Atlantic 11/15, 7 PM, Beat Kitchen b Clean Bandit 4/11, 7:30 PM, the Vic, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM b Diane Coffee 1/19, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Count Basie Orchestra 11/19, 4 and 7 PM, FitzGerald’s, Berwyn, on sale Fri 10/20, 11 AM

Davina & the Vagabonds 1/17, 8 PM, City Winery, on sale Thu 10/19, noon b Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe 11/17, 9 PM, Park West, 18+ Destroyer, Mega Bog 1/20, 9 PM, Metro, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Excision 1/22, 9 PM, Aragon Ballroom, on sale Thu 10/19, 10 AM, 17+ Exhumed 12/5, 7 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 17+ Flatliners 1/12, 8 PM, Cobra Lounge, 17+ Green Jelly 1/5, 9 PM, Beat Kitchen Helado Negro, Cuco 1/17, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Hinds 1/21, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Ryan Kinder 1/27, 7 PM, Schubas, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Lawrence Arms 12/14-16, 7:30 PM, Cobra Lounge, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 17+ Led Zeppelin 2 1/26-27, 9 PM, House of Blues, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 17+ Los Lonely Boys, Lisa Morales 3/17-18, 8 PM, City Winery, on sale Thu 10/19, noon b

46 CHICAGO READER - OCTOBER 19, 2017

Majid Jordan 2/21, 7:30 PM, the Vic, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Milo 12/8, 9 PM, Hideout No Age, Little Junior, Slow Mass 1/20, 9 PM, Schubas, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Allan Rayman 1/18, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Joe Russo’s Almost Dead 2/17, 9 PM, Riviera Theatre, on sale Fri 10/20, 11 AM, 18+ Shamir 12/5, 7:30 PM, Subterranean b Silverstein, Tonight Alive 2/24, 6 PM, Concord Music Hall b Sonny Smith 1/18, 8 PM, Schubas, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ St. Vincent 1/12, 8 PM, Chicago Theatre, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM b Tedeschi Trucks Band 1/25, 7:30 PM, Chicago Theatre, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM b Trash Talk 11/12, 6 PM, Cobra Lounge b Typhoon 1/19, 9 PM, Metro, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+ Vesperteen 12/16, 8 PM, Schubas, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM b Erika Wennerstrom 12/14, 9 PM, Hideout “Weird Al” Yankovic 4/6-7, 8 PM, the Vic, on sale Fri 10/20, noon b Yumi Zouma 1/17, 8 PM, Schubas, part of Tomorrow Never Knows, on sale Fri 10/20, 10 AM, 18+

UPDATED Ducktails 12/5, 8 PM, Lincoln Hall, canceled Marilyn Manson 2/6, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, rescheduled from 10/10, 18+ Andrew W.K. 5/12, 8 PM, the Vic, rescheduled from 10/21, 18+

UPCOMING Alvvays 11/3, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Amigo the Devil 11/9, 9 PM, Beat Kitchen Ariel Pink 10/28, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Avett Brothers 11/9-11, 8 PM, Chicago Theatre Beach Slang, Dave Hause & the Mermaid 11/25, 7:30 PM, Bottom Lounge b Big Dipper 11/22, 9 PM, SPACE, Evanston b Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Night Beats 2/10, 8 PM, the Vic, 18+

b Cannibal Corpse, Power Trip, Gatecreeper 11/24, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Cloud Rat 12/30, 7 PM, Subterranean, 17+ Coven 10/31, 8 PM, Metro, 18+ The Darkness 4/11, 8 PM, Park West, 18+ Death From Above 11/4, 8 PM, the Vic, 18+ Earthly 11/12, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Echosmith 4/14, 8:30 PM, Metro b Flosstradamus 12/27, 8 PM, Concord Music Hall, 18+ Frankie & the Witch Fingers 11/1, 8:30 PM, Beat Kitchen, 17+ Liam Gallagher 11/21, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, 18+ Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds 2/24, 8 PM, Chicago Theatre Peter Hook & the Light 5/4, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Insane Clown Posse 10/29, 6:30 PM, Portage Theater b Joywave 11/21, 8 PM, Lincoln Hall, 18+ Judge 11/5, 8:30 PM, Beat Kitchen, 17+ Kid Cudi 11/4-5, 8 PM, Aragon Ballroom b Dave Koz 12/9, 8 PM, Chicago Theatre Krewella 11/10, 7 PM, Aragon Ballroom b Mary Lambert 11/10, 9 PM, Beat Kitchen, 17+ Lemon Twigs 10/26, 8 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Phil Lesh & the Terrapin Family Band 11/15-16, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, 18+ Marbin 3/3, 7:30 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 17+ JD McPherson 11/16, 8 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Milky Chance 1/26, 7:30 PM, Riviera Theatre b NRBQ 10/27, 9 PM, FitzGerald’s, Berwyn Gary Numan, Me Not You 11/29, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Angel Olsen 12/9, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, 18+ Omni, Facs 11/5, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Parquet Courts, Meat Wave 11/15, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Pickwick 10/27, 9 PM, Schubas Pink 3/9-10, 8 PM, United Center Queens of the Stone Age, Run the Jewels 12/2, 7 PM, Aragon Ballroom b Red Red Meat 11/22, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Todd Rundgren 12/16-17, 8 PM, Park West, 18+ Saba 11/25, 6 PM, House of Blues b A. Savage, Jack Cooper 11/2, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Sleigh Bells, Sunflower Bean 1/31, 8 PM, Metro b Slow Magic 11/15, 9 PM, Bottom Lounge, 18+ Slowdive 11/5, 8 PM, the Vic, 18+ Sonreal 11/18, 8 PM, Schubas b

ALL AGES

WOLF BY KEITH HERZIK

EARLY WARNINGS

CHICAGO SHOWS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT IN THE WEEKS TO COME

F

Never miss a show again.

Sign up for the newsletter at chicagoreader. com/early

Sza 12/20, 6 PM, Concord Music Hall b Tokio Hotel 2/16, 7 PM, Concord Music Hall, 17+ Turnover, Elvis Depressedly 11/10, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Turnpike Troubadours 11/11, 8 PM, the Vic, 18+ Shania Twain 5/19, 7:30 PM, United Center Warning, Thou 10/26, 8 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 17+ Weather Station 12/2, 9 PM, Hideout Yung Lean & Sad Boys 1/31, 6 PM, Concord Music Hall b Zombies 3/19-20, 8 PM, City Winery b

SOLD OUT Aminé, Pell 11/18, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile 10/26, 7:30 PM, Rockefeller Memorial Chapel; 10/27, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall; and 10/28, 9 PM, Empty Bottle Brendan Bayliss & Jake Cinninger 12/15, 8 PM, Park West, 18+ Bleachers, Bishop Briggs 11/11, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, 18+ Daniel Caesar 11/20, 9 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 18+ Front Bottoms 10/26, 7 PM, Metro b Greta Van Fleet 11/30, 8 PM, Lincoln Hall, 18+ H.E.R. 11/9, 8 PM, Bottom Lounge, 17+ Jesus Lizard 12/9, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Johnnyswim 11/10, 7:30 PM, the Vic b King Krule 10/30, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Knox Fortune 11/13, 7:30 PM, Lincoln Hall, 17+ Mura Masa, Tennyson 11/16, 9 PM, Concord Music Hall, 18+ The National 12/12-13, 7:30 PM, Lyric Opera House b Noname 11/21, 9 PM, Concord Music Hall, 18+ Robert Plant & the Sensational Space Shifters 2/20, 8 PM, Riviera Theatre, 18+ Rich Chigga 11/11, 7 PM, Bottom Lounge b The Struts 10/30, 9 PM, Bottom Lounge, 17+ Syd 11/8, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Grace Vanderwaal 11/15, 7 PM, Park West b Whitney, Ne-Hi 11/2, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Young Thug 11/1, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ v

GOSSIP WOLF A furry ear to the ground of the local music scene GOSSIP WOLF LOVED grungy stonermetal band Alma Negra, but alas, they played what turned out to be their last show in 2015. Singer-guitarist Erin Page— who also runs print-art operation Kill Hatsumomo—says her new band, Reivers, arose “after several lineup changes and my desire, along with my copilot, guitarist Greg Hamilton, to take Alma Negra in a slightly different direction.” Joining Page and Hamilton in Reivers are drummer Madison Maloof and bassist Tim Preciado; the name, says Page, refers to the Scottish border clans of her ancestry, “known as gypsies, robbers, and thieves and damned by the church.” Last week on Bandcamp, Reivers posted “Lucky Man,” where Page’s authoritative wail pushes through a flood of swaggering, fuzzy guitar. Reivers debut onstage at LiveWire Lounge on Saturday, October 21, with Arriver, Witchcryer, and Bible of the Devil.

The Chicago Independent Radio Project worked for years to help get the Local Community Radio Act through Congress, and after operating solely on the Web since 2010, it finally begins broadcasting via terrestrial radio at noon on Saturday, October 21, at 107.1 FM. CHIRP volunteers and board members are gathering at the Hopleaf’s upstairs bar on Saturday, October 21, at 11:30 AM to celebrate—arrive by noon for the toast! The station will also throw a public launch party on November 4 at Dovetail Brewery, with beer, food, CHIRP DJs, and a set by most of the Flat Five; tickets cost $20.

Last week Gossip Wolf ran into former Radar Eyes and CoCoComa guitarist Anthony Cozzi, who moved to Los Angeles a few years ago. Cozzi still has a local connection: Moniker Records, which remains based in Chicago despite its founder’s own move to LA, recently dropped his self-titled tape as Sin Asps.

With grim vocals and sparse synths in a Mute Records vein, it’s a big departure for him—except for its typically excellent hooks. —J.R. NELSON AND LEOR GALIL Got a tip? Tweet @Gossip_Wolf or e-mail gossipwolf@chicagoreader.com.

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JIM CAMPILONGO TRIO THIS WEDNESDAY! OCTOBER 25 • GREEN MILL

New Album Parking Lot Symphony Out Now

SPECIAL GUESTS:

THIS SATURDAY! OCTOBER 21

AGES & AGES / THE HEART OF

THIS SATURDAY! OCTOBER 21

SPECIAL GUESTS:

LUNA SPECIAL GUESTS:

NOVEMBER 8

SEVEN DAVID JR. / PBDY

NOVEMBER 14

SOCCER MOMMY

BIG MOTHER GIG

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2

NOVEMBER 7 & 8

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 17

JOHNNY CLEGG –Oct. 29 • THE MOTET / DOPAPOD – Friday, Nov. 10 • GRACE VANDERWAAL– Nov. 15 - Sold Out! • TRAVELIN’ MCCOURYS-CHICAGO JAM –Nov. 19 RUGGEDLY JEWISH-BOB GARFIELD– Dec. 9 • BRENDAN & JAKE HOLIDAY SHOW– Friday, Dec. 15 - Sold Out! • TODD RUNDGREN – Dec. 16 & 17 JON MCLAUGHLIN – Friday, Dec. 22 • LEFTOVER SALMON / INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS– Feb. 16 & 17 • THE DARKNESS – April 11

PVRIS –Oct. 22 • BEN FOLDS – Saturday, Oct. 28 • BLEACHERS –Saturday, Nov. 11-SOLD OUT! • THE MOUNTAIN GOATS –Friday, Nov. 17 • LIAM GALLAGHER –Nov. 21 MORRISSEY –Saturday, Nov. 25 • GRIZZLY BEAR –Nov. 29 • ANGEL OLSEN –Saturday, Dec. 9 • GREENSKY BLUEGRASS –Friday & Saturday, Dec. 29-30 & NEW YEAR’S EVE-Dec. 31 STICK FIGURE –Friday, Jan. 19 • BLACK VEIL BRIDES / ASKING ALEXANDRIA –Jan. 20 • MILKY CHANCE –Jan. 26 • BORNS –Saturday, Jan. 27 • FIRST AID KIT –Friday, Feb. 2 MARILYN MANSON –Feb. 6-Rescheduled from 10/10 • JOE RUSSO’S ALMOST DEAD –Saturday, Feb. 17-On Sale Friday-11am • ROBERT PLANT AND THE SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS –Feb. 20-SOLD OUT!

BUY TICKETS AT OCTOBER 19, 2017 - CHICAGO READER 47

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