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Last night, some old friends rolled through town on tour with their bands Arma Secreta and The Coach and Four. The guys played at Fireside Bowl, which had an odd rule of no bowling while the band was performing. It only seemed like that would have been the attraction. Oh well, we didn’t get to bowl but it was nice getting to hang out with some hometown folks.
Arma Secreta
The Coach and Four
Congratulations to WEVL 89.9FM for reaching their Fall Pledge Drive goal (and then some)!
Photos from Music for Tomorrow’s World: A Dedication to Sun Ra
Every Thursday, The Art Institute of Chicago offers free admission from 5-8pm. I have been meaning to check out the world reknown museum ever since we moved to the city. But it was always one of those things you put off. Well, yesterday was such a beautiful day that I decided today was the day. So I boarded the Blue Line and made my way downtown.
The Institute certainly lives up to it’s reputation for being one of the best art museums in the World. Since I was by myself (Apryl was at school), I moved around from gallery to gallery at my own pace. Of course, I had to take advantage of being able to see some of the greatest masterpieces of all time.
How crazy is the photo above? Amazing, that one can view a classic like Grant Wood’s American Gothic this up close and personal.
A large Roy Lichtenstein piece welcomes you into the entry way for the Contemporary Art gallery.
Above, a couple take in Georges-Pierre Seurat’s classic example of pointillism, Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. Again, you are able to get so extremely close to these works. Imagine the tip of your nose a mere inches from the canvas. Heck, you could accidentally sneeze all over the piece. Actually, on some of these priceless works, there is a very thin plastic sheet in the frame protecting the art. And seeing smudge marks on the plastic shows you that some just can’t reisist the temptation to get even closer.
One of my favorite galleries was the Minature Rooms exhibit. It was all a bit like very detailed dollhouses that showcased various quarters from different moments in history as well as varied cultures. The photo above is from a century’s old kitchen. What I loved about this exhibit is how they illustrate the effect sunlight would have luminating the rooms.
The only dissapointment was that part of the Modern Art exhibit was closed due to consturction which I’m pretty sure held a Warhol. And I was looking forward to seeing Edward Hoppers’ Nighthawks in person, but it was on vacation at the Whitney.
Still, it was a great time spent downtown, and I look forward to future visits.
That night, I attended my first jazz show. I’ve really only started getting into the musical form, so I’m sure no expert. But I do know that whenever you get the opportunity to see a true innovator of any form of music, you should take it. And that evening, Peter Brötzmann was making an apperance at Elastic Arts, a non-profit organization which holds its location above a Chinese restaurant in Logan Square. Brötzmann is a “free jazz” legend whose 1968 album Machine Gun is a classic in the genre. His intense style of playing has been an influence not only to the jazz world but also to folks like Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth.
Brötzmann started everything off with a thirty minute solo set. I was about twenty feet away from Brötzmann which was quite an extreme experience because you can hear every breath, every puff, every piff.
Next up, Chicago’s own Ken Vandermark with Ingebrigt Haker Flaten and Raymond Strid performed a few compositions. One of the main reasons I wanted to attend last night was to see this local legend Vandermark whose various works under his own name and the Vandermark 5 were the start of my appreciation of the jazz genre. Needless to say, he put on a highly energized set.
The evening set ended with a quartet of all four gentlemen. Getting to see a live jazz performance (especially in such proximity to the musicians) is far more awarding than sitting at home listening to a mp3 on iTunes. After visiting the Art Institute earlier in the evening, the night’s performance had me thinking: You know, watching jazz musicians perform live is like watching a painter in fast motion.
– Tonight, I am catching a Sun Ra Tribute at The Hideout with the Avreeayl Ra Quartet and Thurston Moore.
(Highlights: “Queen of Eyes,” “I Wanna Destroy You,” a cover of “Eight Miles High,” and Robyn’s rambling 5 minute synopsis of the film Magnum Force)
Listening online to WEVL’s Fall Pledge Drive all this week has really got me homesick for being part of the fundraising party. As a programmer, it was one of the few times throughout the year that you were really able to hang out with the other programmers at the station. The environment was often chaotic but never dull. And it was great to see everyone working together so hard for one purpose. I should also add that there was always great food donated by local restaurants. And on the last day of the pledge drive, Apryl would bring her amazing chocolate pie (and if you were at our wedding you know just how amazing it is)! I really hadn’t done much volunteer work before coming to WEVL. And I have to say that my service there has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. And, of course, it was the Fall Pledge Drive where me and Apryl first met.
In 2005, I took these photos from the Fall Pledge Drive. Great times!
If you would like to help WEVL reach their goal of $62,000 by Saturday, you can give them a call at 901-528-1990 or pledge online.
So, while I was moving from one bar to the other yesterday, I took some photographs of our neighborhood:
The Bears (or is that Da Bears?) are no longer undefeated. Grossman and Co. put on quite an embarrassing performance this afternoon, and the struggling Miami Dolphins were able to leave Solider Field with their second win of the season. Oh well, I figured that the Bears would have to slip up sometime. I’m just glad that me and my dad were witnesses to last week’s victory as opposed to today’s sad outing.
So, I wasn’t at the stadium this week. But I was a spectator.
Let me explain:
One of the great things about the Chicago neighborhood is that everything that you need is right around the corner. Restaurants, coffee shops, cleaners, supermarket, etc. And of course, the neighborhood bar. It’s hard to walk a few blocks into any direction without running smack into one. So I decided I would leave Apryl to her studies and try out a few Bucktown bars that were “in the neighborhood”.
First up was Burke’s Web Pub, which by its name, I thought would be full of youngsters sipping on foamy brew and typing away on their labtops. Okay, perhaps “web” has nothing to do with the WWW, because the bar was only occupied by older gentlemen who seem to have arrived at the pub years ago and decided never to leave. I stepped up to the bar and was immediately questioned by one of the regulars.
“You’re not from Miami are you?”
“No.”
I ordered my Old Style and took in the environment. These were all hard workin’ men who were diehard Bears fans. Everyone was wearing some type of Bears merchadise. And they were all shouting out F Bombs on a regular basis, as the TV with poor reception hanging from the ceiling gave them plenty of opportunities to be colorful with their vocabulary. As the game got worse and worse, I was fearing they might start to see me as a hex in their Sunday ritual. I finished my beer and moved on a few more blocks…
…to Charleston. There were only three men at the bar, who all gave off the impression that they came together. I picked up another Old Style from the young bartender and glanced over my new environment. Things were a lot calmer here. There was a pool table in the back room next to a piano. And over the bar there was a sign: No Smoking Please. Of course the game was on. And everyone was watching and rooting for the home team. But I didn’t get the impression that any of them were as devoted as those at the Web. I finished my beer and decided I would check out one more bar before the end of the fourth quarter. While I was leaving, everyone at the bar told me goodbye and wished me a good day.
Final stop was The Corner. And it was packed. I mean not packed like a Saturday night. But in a standing room only way. I noticed that their complementary buffett (which is pretty standard at local bars on Sundays) had more to offer than the other places’. There was a sign by the jukebox: No Music When The Bears Are Playing. I got a pint of Old Style, which was a buck and a quarter. As I was reaching in my pocket for the exact change, a guy at the bar offered up his own quarter. “Thanks.” This was primarily a young crowd. Again, the game was on and most were enthralled but a few didn’t seem to care (though who could blame them at this point). Smoking was allowed. And dogs (was I back home at the Lamplighter?). Another thing I noticed was that this was the first place where both sexes were present. As the game clock expired, I finished up my last beer and stumbled (just kidding) back home.
Chicago Bears 13 – Miami Dolphins 31
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