Remy — Petraits RescueChicagoNow Staffon July 7, 2020 at 1:45 pm

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Remy — Petraits RescueChicagoNow Staffon July 7, 2020 at 1:45 pm Read More »

Park Hye Jin’s house music transforms your room into an emotive, prismatic dance floorJoshua Minsoo Kimon July 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm

South Korean producer Park Hye Jin makes evocative house music for late nights. On her new EP, How Can I (Ninja Tune), her vocal delivery and production are poised and searing, building on the template of her 2018 debut, If U Want It. On the EP’s first track, “Like This,” she accompanies a swell of synth pads and percussion with a repeated line about how she’s opening her eyes, as if she’s been in a hypnotic trance. While If U Want It featured the scorching kiss-off “I Don’t Care,” Park takes the art of rejection to the next level on “No,” when she switches from Korean to English–and from a breathy murmur to a piercing, remorseless declamation–to tell someone to “shut the fuck up.” She’s equally frank on “Can You,” despite describing conflicting feelings; as she vacillates between singing “Can you be my baby?” and “I fucking hate you,” the barreling kick drum seems to further unsettle her already tortured mind. Park’s diverse musical palette has been evident since her 2018 self-titled mixtape, which incorporates snatches of funk and hip-hop, and she pushes her eclecticism even further this time around. On the footwork-indebted “How Come,” the most notable example, she adds a midsong blanket of shimmering synths to suffuse a vocal sample and a skittering beat with the emotional tension of her other work. No matter which mood or style she’s trying to invoke, Park transforms whatever space you’re in into a prismatic, makeshift dance floor. v

Park Hye Jin’s house music transforms your room into an emotive, prismatic dance floorJoshua Minsoo Kimon July 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Blackhawks: New CBA extension is great news for HawksVincent Pariseon July 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm

The Chicago Blackhawks are hoping to bring some young guys in while their legends ride off into the sunset.

The Chicago Blackhawks have some legendary players on their team right now. They aren’t all in their prime anymore but it is hard to see many players having as much of an impact that they have had in a very long time. With that said, we want to see those guys ride off into the sunset with the new guys taking the torch from them. That is why the new collective bargaining agreement extension is a very good thing for the National Hockey League and this roster specifically.

The Blackhawks are going to see Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Jonathan Toews, and Brent Seabrook all retire during the 2020s. It might be earlier for some than others but it will happen eventually. That is why passing the torch to guys like Adam Boqvist, Ian Mitchell, Kirby Dach, and Alex DeBrincat is very important.

If there was a lockout right smack in the middle of it, there would be some very tough headlines for this team. For one, and perhaps the most important, it could slow down the development of some of the young guys. There are young guys here already and more on the way via their prospect pool and upcoming drafts. Hockey being delayed or canceled for a long period of time would be bad for some of these guys. It is bad enough that they had to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The other reason it would be awful is the fact that it would take away some time of watching the legends sail off. Guys like Kane, Toews, and Keith are going to decline eventually but they are always going to be fun to watch because of the memories they bring to the table. We want to watch them play as long as we possibly can.

With this, we also learned a few other things. August 1st is going to be the day that the “return to play” plan begins. COVID-19 needs to cooperate for that to happen but the bubbles in Edmonton and Toronto could help that. We also learned that there is a good chance that there is going to be Olympic participation during this in 2022 and 2026. We don’t know which Blackhawks players will be Olympians by that time but it is exciting nonetheless.

This is the kind of news that all hockey fans needed after a rough couple of weeks following the “return to play” plan. All fans of this game should be happy as long as they are able to handle things in a safe and secure matter. We are almost there, keep that mask on in public!

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Chicago Blackhawks: New CBA extension is great news for HawksVincent Pariseon July 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Bears: Patrick Mahomes extension is a bad lookVincent Pariseon July 7, 2020 at 12:00 pm

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - DECEMBER 22: Quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs and Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears meet after the Chiefs beat the Bears 26-3 at Soldier Field on December 22, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) — CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – DECEMBER 22: Quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs and Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears meet after the Chiefs beat the Bears 26-3 at Soldier Field on December 22, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

We all know how bad the Chicago Bears messed up the 2017 NFL Draft but the Patrick Mahomes extension makes it look even worse.

The Chicago Bears really ruined their chances of winning a Super Bowl anytime soon during the 2017 NFL Draft. Ryan Pace made a bold decision to trade up from pick three to pick two to select Mitchell Trubisky from North Carolina. He hadn’t had that great of a resume there, but he had enough talent to be a first rounder according to a lot of scouts. However, it hasn’t worked out the way they planned. They built a championship-caliber defense but failed miserably at the most important position.

Obviously, Trubisky doesn’t look like he will ever help the Bears get over the hump. It is also sad because there were two quarterbacks taken after him that are on Hall of Fame trajectories. Deshaun Watson was the stud coming out of Clemson which seemed like the likely first quarterback off the board, but the real mistake was passing on Patrick Mahomes.

This is a song that Bears fans are probably so tired of hearing but it keeps playing. It got even worse on Monday when the reigning Super Bowl MVP and former league MVP signed a 10-year contract extension worth upwards of $503 million.

That’s right, he is so good that an NFL team wanted to add another ten years on top of the two that were left on his deal to make it a contract with a total of 12 more years on it. Normally, that is a bad idea, but everyone agrees that if someone was to have it done for them it would be Mahomes.

Also, half a billion dollars? Sheesh.

There is a long list of bad looks for the Chicago Bears team but passing on Patrick Mahomes in favor of Trubisky is the worst of them all. It feels even worse because it seems like they didn’t really do their due diligence in the draft process either. If they took Mahomes we wouldn’t be talking about when the Bears would win the Super Bowl, we’d be talking about how many they would win. This news is a disaster for Pace and company.

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Chicago Bears: Patrick Mahomes extension is a bad lookVincent Pariseon July 7, 2020 at 12:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Bears: 3 worse mistakes than Trubisky over MahomesRyan Heckmanon July 7, 2020 at 11:00 am

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Chicago Bears (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Patrick Mahomes is now the richest man in the NFL, but did the Chicago Bears make the ultimate mistake not drafting him?

It is a topic that will live on to haunt Chicago Bears fans for the rest of their lives. The 2017 NFL Draft could have shifted the winds of the league in a different direction, but instead, it was Mitchell Trubisky off the board at no. 2 overall.

Just imagine, for a second, having Patrick Mahomes on the same team featuring a defense led by Khalil Mack. At this point, we would be reminiscing of the time when the Bears won the Super Bowl — not in 1985, but within the past two seasons.

As the narrative goes, it was Mahomes at no. 10 for the Kansas City Chiefs and the rest is history. In just two seasons, Mahomes has won a league MVP, made the Pro Bowl and earned the title, NFL Champion.

He’s tossed 76 touchdowns in those two seasons, as opposed to just 17 interceptions. He’s thrown for over 9,100 yards and made it look easy. The kid has a cannon for an arm, mixed with all of the right nuances and mental capabilities you want in an elite quarterback. Mahomes is truly a generational talent.

Monday, the Chiefs signed him to a record-breaking contract, which included numbers that were before unheard of. Mahomes made them a reality in Kansas City.

The #Chiefs and QB Patrick Mahomes have agreed to terms on a 10-year extension worth $503 million, sources tell me and @TomPelissero. He gets $477M in guarantee mechanisms and gives the ability for Mahomes to have outs if the guarantee mechanisms aren’t exercised. No trade clause

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 6, 2020

So, as the story is written, this is a tale we’ll never be allowed to forget as Bears fans. But, need you be reminded that there were even worse mistakes made during that draft.

Yes, believe it or not, there were even worse picks than the Bears taking Trubisky over Mahomes. Let’s look at three of them, specifically, that no one seems to mention. It’s time we all remember.

Next: Mistake No. 1

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Chicago Bears: 3 worse mistakes than Trubisky over MahomesRyan Heckmanon July 7, 2020 at 11:00 am Read More »

Shots fired into crowd, wounding 6 in GreshamSun-Times Wireon July 7, 2020 at 6:54 am

Six people were wounded when someone fired shots into a group of people Monday in Gresham on the South Side.

About 10:40 p.m. a group of people were hanging out in the 1300 block of West 76th Street, when someone began shooting in their direction, striking six people, Chicago police said.

A 25-year-old man was struck in the chest and taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, police said. Two other men, 23 and 21, were stuck in the left thigh and buttocks and taken to the same hospital in good condition.

A 19-year-old man was struck multiple times in the back and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, police said. A 20-year-old man was struck in the ankle and taken to the same hospital in good condition.

A 22-year-old woman was struck in both legs and taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in good condition.

Minutes later, three people were wounded in a drive-by in the 7500 block of South Carpenter Street.

Area Two detectives are investigating the shootings.

Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.

Shots fired into crowd, wounding 6 in GreshamSun-Times Wireon July 7, 2020 at 6:54 am Read More »

Chicago Cubs: Uh oh, potential for Kris Bryant to opt-out?Ryan Sikeson July 6, 2020 at 7:15 pm

As a new dad, Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant is not feeling particularly safe playing baseball this season. Is he going to opt-out?

Everything from how Major League Baseball has handled the negotiations for resuming play to, most recently, the delay in COVID-19 test results has been a complete disaster. And while the Chicago Cubs have returned to Wrigley Field to ramp up activities ahead of play resuming on July 24, third baseman Kris Bryant isn’t feeling too keen on the idea of playing baseball amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“I wanted to play this year,” said Bryant. “Because I thought it would be safe. Honestly, I don’t really feel that.”

The Cubs media spoke with manager David Ross and Bryant on a Zoom call on Monday, with testing being the bulk of the conversation. Bryant was tested nearly a week ago and wasn’t tested again until Sunday, indicating that he knows that there will be hiccups, but you can’t have hiccups with this.

I’m sorry, but you cannot go that long between testing players, especially with several teams experiencing significant delays getting the test results back. The Astros, Cardinals, Nationals, and Padres were among the teams that had players tested on Friday, but as of Monday morning, they still had not received the results.

Bryant: “It feels bad but I try to stay away from my teammates as much as possible.”

— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) July 6, 2020

More from Da Windy City

Right now, it seems wreckless the way MLB is handling this, especially given how much of a priority the league and MLBPA seemed to make testing protocols before even looking at the economics of the return-to-play plan.

However, with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s recent statement that there was never going to be more than 60 games played this year – and thus making it apparent that the negotiations were a waste of time – it’s difficult to believe anything they say.

We’ve already seen several big names opt-out of the 2020 season, at the expense of their service time and salary, most notably David Price, Ian Desmond, Nick Markakis, and Ryan Zimmerman.

Angels’ star Mike Trout has been on the fence about playing, and if he were to opt-out, MLB would have to take a long, hard look whether this season was really worth the risk.

As for Bryant, he is a new dad, and I would undoubtedly understand if he decides not to further risk the health of himself or his family. Let’s just hope MLB can get their act together in order to make the players as safe as possible by the end of the month.

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Chicago Cubs: Uh oh, potential for Kris Bryant to opt-out?Ryan Sikeson July 6, 2020 at 7:15 pm Read More »

Tatiana Hazel knows she was meant to shineCatalina Maria Johnsonon July 6, 2020 at 5:00 pm

Chicago native Tatiana Hazel has been on a journey that merges fashion, visual design, and music since she was 13 years old, when she began posting videos of herself singing and playing acoustic guitar on YouTube. Now in her early 20s, the Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter has developed a solid following while deepening her talent for applying an optimistic, determined lens to her confessional reflections on relationships, sexuality, breakups, career impasses, and other life dilemmas. On her new EP, Duality, Hazel uses her velvety vibratro to share personal tales made irresistible with sugary pop hooks, all wrapped in shimmery 1980s-inspired synth textures and the occasional disco beat. Created almost completely by Hazel, Duality is a more confident, polished production than her previous work. When I spoke to Hazel last month–shortly after she won the Latin Alternative Music Conference’s Discovery Award, which highlights the work of up-and-coming Latinx artists–she told me that the songs on Duality emerged from her determination to resist being pigeonholed into any one category. “I feel a lot of duality within myself—I’m known as a Latinx artist, but I grew up with American pop culture and spent a lot of time between Mexico and the U.S.” The EP’s upbeat, breezy tunes suggest that Hazel is resolving those tensions with ease. On “Right There,” when she sings “It’s going to be O-fucking-K,” she seems pretty convinced–and the feeling is contagious. v

Tatiana Hazel knows she was meant to shineCatalina Maria Johnsonon July 6, 2020 at 5:00 pm Read More »

Old comrades Peter Brotzmann and Fred Lonberg-Holm reunite on Memories of a TunicateBill Meyeron July 6, 2020 at 1:00 pm

German reeds player Peter Brotzmann turned 79 in March, so it would be developmentally appropriate for him to take a look back. But memories are a mixed blessing for a devoted practitioner of improvised music. While they can build up a shared understanding between partners, making it easier for them to come up with something that works in a pinch, they can also dilute or foreclose on the in-the-moment magic between players that makes the music so thrilling. Knowing this, Brotzmann has kept himself moving creatively by dissolving many productive relationships and putting others on ice for decades. The Chicago Octet/Tentet, which consisted of players living in or associated with this city, was one of his most productive ensembles between 1997 and 2011. But since Brotzmann disbanded it, he has rarely played with any of its members–until now. In 2019 Brotzmann reconnected with cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, a founding octet member and once a frequent duet partner, for this 62-minute studio session. (Lonberg-Holm moved from Chicago to Kingston, New York, in 2017.) Neither man’s playing has mellowed, but they pay close attention to each other’s musical choices–a sharpened focus that may have arisen from their time apart. The resulting improvisations are musically varied but consistent in their dark emotional tone. The coarse tenor-sax cries and arcing, feedback-sharpened bowing on “Salp” (all the tracks are named for marine invertebrates) sounds like a funeral keen. “Pyrosomes” feels even more tragic, with Brotzmann playing slow melodies on a Hungarian tarogato while Lonberg-Holm surrounds his lines with electronically distorted smears. And on the closing “Stolidobranchia,” delicate pizzicato figures give way to a bracing spray of electronically reversed notes while the saxophonist eases into a restrained, sorrowful blues. If you’re looking for a soundtrack to your opening-up party, you should look elsewhere, but if you need to hear something that takes the full measure of what it feels like when things end, this album is your companion. v

Old comrades Peter Brotzmann and Fred Lonberg-Holm reunite on Memories of a TunicateBill Meyeron July 6, 2020 at 1:00 pm Read More »