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A primer for idiots who refuse to understand Illinois’ money crisisDennis Byrneon June 20, 2020 at 5:32 pm

The Barbershop: Dennis Byrne, Proprietor

A primer for idiots who refuse to understand Illinois’ money crisis

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A primer for idiots who refuse to understand Illinois’ money crisisDennis Byrneon June 20, 2020 at 5:32 pm Read More »

Why Veterans Want to Keep the Postal Service Alivebadjackon June 20, 2020 at 5:51 pm

The Amused Curmudgeon

Why Veterans Want to Keep the Postal Service Alive

©2020 CTMG – A Chicago Tribune website –
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Why Veterans Want to Keep the Postal Service Alivebadjackon June 20, 2020 at 5:51 pm Read More »

A Comeaux: Love Letter To My FutureSix Brown Chickson June 20, 2020 at 7:22 pm

Six Brown Chicks Media

A Comeaux: Love Letter To My Future

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A Comeaux: Love Letter To My FutureSix Brown Chickson June 20, 2020 at 7:22 pm Read More »

Chicago sets date and guidelines for indoor diningCarole Kuhrt Breweron June 19, 2020 at 8:50 pm

Show Me Chicago

Chicago sets date and guidelines for indoor dining

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Chicago sets date and guidelines for indoor diningCarole Kuhrt Breweron June 19, 2020 at 8:50 pm Read More »

The next owner is really going to enjoy this boatGlenn McCarthyon June 20, 2020 at 12:49 am

Live Your Dream: Sail Lake Michigan

The next owner is really going to enjoy this boat

©2020 CTMG – A Chicago Tribune website –
Crafted by the News Apps team

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The next owner is really going to enjoy this boatGlenn McCarthyon June 20, 2020 at 12:49 am Read More »

Feature Friday: Near-Field Communication TechnologyJill Ciminilloon June 19, 2020 at 8:55 pm

Drive, She Said

Feature Friday: Near-Field Communication Technology

©2020 CTMG – A Chicago Tribune website –
Crafted by the News Apps team

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Feature Friday: Near-Field Communication TechnologyJill Ciminilloon June 19, 2020 at 8:55 pm Read More »

Release Radar 6/19/20: Doves vs Lewis Del Marradstarron June 20, 2020 at 5:15 am

Cut Out Kid

Release Radar 6/19/20: Doves vs Lewis Del Mar

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Release Radar 6/19/20: Doves vs Lewis Del Marradstarron June 20, 2020 at 5:15 am Read More »

THE CIVILIZATION OF PATIENCE + THE SPINES OF PERCEPTION AND ALL THINGSIMPROV CLASS FOR THE SOULon June 20, 2020 at 12:55 am

Improv Class For The Soul

THE CIVILIZATION OF PATIENCE + THE SPINES OF PERCEPTION AND ALL THINGS

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THE CIVILIZATION OF PATIENCE + THE SPINES OF PERCEPTION AND ALL THINGSIMPROV CLASS FOR THE SOULon June 20, 2020 at 12:55 am Read More »

Indian death-metal band Heathen Beast tell fascists to fuck offNoah Berlatskyon June 19, 2020 at 4:01 pm

Kolkata blackened death-metal band Heathen Beast are atheist, antifascist, and pointedly anonymous, and their self-released album The Revolution Will Not Be Televised but It Will Be Heard is 35 minutes of vitriol aimed at the anti-Muslim bigotry of India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, and the Indian government’s turn toward authoritarianism and hate. The song titles are direct, pithy, and profane: “Fuck Modi-Shah,” “Fuck Your Police Brutality,” “Fuck the Economy (Modi Already Has),” and “Fuck the B.J.P.,” which takes aim at India’s current ruling faction, the Bharatiya Janata Party. For those not familiar with current Indian political issues, clips of news announcements provide brief context about anti-Muslim citizenship laws and sexual-assault allegations against religious gurus. Carvaka (vocals, guitars), Samkhya (bass), and Mimamsa (drums) don’t write complex or varied tunes, and their lyrics can come across as a bit schematically dry, when they’re intelligible at all (“Humanity suffers for your hate / Religious disharmony you create / Exploit the poor for your gains / Your powerful friends have their way”). But Heathen Beast have a gift for channeling rage into pounding, anthemic assaults that beg for headbanging–they scrape away layers of flesh, viscera, and bone to reveal a pulsing mass of adrenaline and righteous anger. The revolution can definitely be heard, and even from a couple of continents away, it will make your ears bleed for justice. v

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Indian death-metal band Heathen Beast tell fascists to fuck offNoah Berlatskyon June 19, 2020 at 4:01 pm Read More »

Run the Jewels reflect 2020’s unrest with the sociopolitical Molotov cocktail of RTJ4Scott Morrowon June 19, 2020 at 5:34 pm

The fourth Run the Jewels full-length, RTJ4, is the hardcore rap duo’s first since Donald Trump’s inauguration. Not at all by coincidence, it’s also the most sociopolitically outspoken album they’ve released to date. On their third, released at the end of 2016, rapper-activist Killer Mike and rapper-producer El-P let poignant, sober lyrics about war, religion, love, and redemption shine through the cracks in their armor of car-bombing braggadocio. Their fuck-the-power attitude and rap-battle instincts also inform RTJ4, which features plenty of the group’s characteristic mix of John Carpenter-esque synth sounds, boom-bap beats, and trap rhythms. The album unflinchingly addresses the societal ills dominating the zeitgeist of 2020, and it feels especially prescient given the nationwide protests against racist police brutality that had started by the time of its release. “Walking in the Snow” begins by addressing the Trump administration’s child-separation policy: “Pseudo-Christians, y’all indifferent?” raps El-P. “Kids in prisons ain’t a sin? Shit / If even one scrap o’ what Jesus taught connected / You’d feel different.” Killer Mike then references the tragic killing of Eric Garner and similar cases of police brutality, and sadly foreshadows the murder of George Floyd by law enforcement: “And everyday on the evening news, they feed you fear for free / And you so numb you watch the cops choke out a man like me / Until my voice goes from a shriek to a whisper, ‘I can’t breathe.'” On “JU$T,” the most trap-inspired track on the album, guests Pharrell Williams and Zack de la Rocha take turns telling us to “look at all these slave masters posin’ on your dollar” before El-P makes his own allusion to Garner: “The X on the map where the pain keep hitting / Just us ducks here sitting / Where murderous choke-hold cops still earnin’ a living.” Other tracks talk about murdered oligarchs, unions for sex workers, and media-manufactured propaganda. Even the video for “Ooh La La,” one of the biggest bangers on RTJ4, depicts the end of capitalism, with people dancing and burning money in the streets. What began as two new friends making fun, cocky rap tracks that bridged El-P’s old-school east-coast roots and Killer Mike’s southern style has grown and matured over four albums. The duo still drops lines about being “cool as penguin pussy on the polar-cap peninsula,” but these days even their most violent fantasies and most boastful we’re-the-shit swagger reflect a deeper understanding of the human condition. RTJ4 also touches on issues of the heart and soul, with recurring themes of gratitude, personal growth, self-medication, and being broken down by the world’s evils. On “Pulling the Pin,” special guest Mavis Staples sings the most heart-wrenching refrain on the album: “There’s a grenade in my heart / And the pin is in their palm.” The album is an unflinching criticism of the world, packaged in hilarious chest-thumping bombast, dystopian synth sounds, and head-banging beats. Run the Jewels might not be soothsayers, but RTJ4 will go down as a defining soundtrack of 2020. v

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Run the Jewels reflect 2020’s unrest with the sociopolitical Molotov cocktail of RTJ4Scott Morrowon June 19, 2020 at 5:34 pm Read More »