Skip to contentTouring in support of their new record Data Doom, LA-based psych-rock band Frankie and the Witch Fingers brought heavy riffage and a snappy atmosphere to Bottom Lounge. Fans of Ty Segall and Thee Oh Sees will doubtless be familiar with the ludicrously-named quartet, and it’s hard to imagine the overlap between fanbases being far from 100%. The quartet traffics in those delectable psychedelic guitar tones, punchy beats, howling vocals, and sludgy bass. There are also heavy horror, sci-fi, and fantasy themes across their lyrics and iconography, which recalls Australian...…Skip to contentTouring in support of their new record Data Doom, LA-based psych-rock band Frankie and the Witch Fingers brought heavy riffage and a snappy atmosphere to Bottom Lounge. Fans of Ty Segall and Thee Oh Sees will doubtless be familiar with the ludicrously-named quartet, and it’s hard to imagine the overlap between fanbases being far from 100%. The quartet traffics in those delectable psychedelic guitar tones, punchy beats, howling vocals, and sludgy bass. There are also heavy horror, sci-fi, and fantasy themes across their lyrics and iconography, which recalls Australian...WW…

Skip to contentReview written by Lauren Katz.Gracie: “I just can’t get as excited as you do about it, Gram. At the end of the day, it’s just a big ol’ poofy white dress.”Grace: (A beat) “A Nacirema white is no ordinary ball gown. There are only six of them in the world, designed and hand stitched by Jennifer Turner fifty years ago and lovingly altered by her to fit each new debutant in each subsequent year.” (Pearl Cleage, The Nacirema Society)Pearl Cleage’s farcical play is about a lot of things—love, class, and family to name a few. At the root is also a story about tradition. For Gracie,...…Skip to contentReview written by Lauren Katz.Gracie: “I just can’t get as excited as you do about it, Gram. At the end of the day, it’s just a big ol’ poofy white dress.”Grace: (A beat) “A Nacirema white is no ordinary ball gown. There are only six of them in the world, designed and hand stitched by Jennifer Turner fifty years ago and lovingly altered by her to fit each new debutant in each subsequent year.” (Pearl Cleage, The Nacirema Society)Pearl Cleage’s farcical play is about a lot of things—love, class, and family to name a few. At the root is also a story about tradition. For Gracie,...WW…

Skip to contentTank and the Bangas are a genre of music unto themselves, so playing with the venerable Chicago Philharmonic was a further illumination of their poetry and music. The group is led by Tarriona “Tank” Ball with Bangas Joshua Johnson on Drums and Norman Spence on keyboards. The show was originally scheduled for February but had to be pushed back due to the pandemic. So, on September 30, the Auditorium Theatre was filled with a beautiful quilt of people from teens to more seasoned fans (I am not claiming old), who were eager to finally get their buzz from the gorgeous poetry,...…Skip to contentTank and the Bangas are a genre of music unto themselves, so playing with the venerable Chicago Philharmonic was a further illumination of their poetry and music. The group is led by Tarriona “Tank” Ball with Bangas Joshua Johnson on Drums and Norman Spence on keyboards. The show was originally scheduled for February but had to be pushed back due to the pandemic. So, on September 30, the Auditorium Theatre was filled with a beautiful quilt of people from teens to more seasoned fans (I am not claiming old), who were eager to finally get their buzz from the gorgeous poetry,...WW…

Skip to contentAmerican Psycho as originally conceived by author Bret Easton Ellis has a great elevator pitch. “A novel about an investment banker in the Reagan eighties who at night becomes a serial killer.” Just on its face it sounds brilliant. Blood n’ guts n’ satire. I’m hooked. Take my money.But it’s Ellis’s stomach-curling pitch-black comedic execution that implanted the tale in the public’s memory (who can forget the bit with the rat?) and made the story ripe for adaptation. Ellis’s 1991 book became a highly memified Mary Harron-directed 2000 film and a successful 2010 musical by...…Skip to contentAmerican Psycho as originally conceived by author Bret Easton Ellis has a great elevator pitch. “A novel about an investment banker in the Reagan eighties who at night becomes a serial killer.” Just on its face it sounds brilliant. Blood n’ guts n’ satire. I’m hooked. Take my money.But it’s Ellis’s stomach-curling pitch-black comedic execution that implanted the tale in the public’s memory (who can forget the bit with the rat?) and made the story ripe for adaptation. Ellis’s 1991 book became a highly memified Mary Harron-directed 2000 film and a successful 2010 musical by...WW…

Skip to contentThe current exhibition at the Swedish American Museum—Tattoo: Identity Through Ink—takes an in-depth look into the history of tattoos as it traces tattoos from ancient civilizations to the present. The strength of this exhibition is not only the vibrant photos that are on display, but also the informative text that takes visitors on an anthropological journey through the many facets of tattoos.There was a time, after World War II, when tattoos were viewed as something seedy and low class, something that only prisoners and gang members would get. But over the past 40 years,...…Skip to contentThe current exhibition at the Swedish American Museum—Tattoo: Identity Through Ink—takes an in-depth look into the history of tattoos as it traces tattoos from ancient civilizations to the present. The strength of this exhibition is not only the vibrant photos that are on display, but also the informative text that takes visitors on an anthropological journey through the many facets of tattoos.There was a time, after World War II, when tattoos were viewed as something seedy and low class, something that only prisoners and gang members would get. But over the past 40 years,...WW…

One of the things I love about speculative literature is its ability to capture the emotional impact of real, plausible experiences through fantastic metaphors. It’s also just really fun to read. You get both imaginative worlds and deep allegories in the short story anthology Survivor, curated by UIC’s Mary Anne Mohanraj and UIUC’s JJ Pionke. Over a late-night conversation, the two editors discussed the ideas of survivorship, trauma, and healing, and this unique collection was the eventual product. In seventeen stories, Survivor offers terrific speculative fiction—science fiction, fantasy,...…One of the things I love about speculative literature is its ability to capture the emotional impact of real, plausible experiences through fantastic metaphors. It’s also just really fun to read. You get both imaginative worlds and deep allegories in the short story anthology Survivor, curated by UIC’s Mary Anne Mohanraj and UIUC’s JJ Pionke. Over a late-night conversation, the two editors discussed the ideas of survivorship, trauma, and healing, and this unique collection was the eventual product. In seventeen stories, Survivor offers terrific speculative fiction—science fiction, fantasy,...WW…