The city’s SummerDance series is well under way, and today’s fusion of live music, dance instruction, and outdoor activities takes place in Englewood’s Ogden Park (6500 S. Racine). The fun starts at 4:30 PM with a free poster and printmaking station run by the Hyde Park Art Center’s Youth Board 0f Artists (a group of teens well-versed in art making who will show you how to make your own prints), and a short dance performance by Quimaya “Maya Unique” Sewell (a recent grant recipient from the Englewood Arts Collective, who helped to coordinate today’s activities). At 5:30 PM, the Majestic Gents offer a workshop in Chicago-style stepping, followed by open dancing at 6, with music provided by DJ Myron. The entire day is hosted by Englewood Arts Collective cofounder Rob Smooth. It’s free to attend and open to all ages. (SCJ)

Dancers at an event hosted by Majestic Gents

There’s only a few more sessions of Veggie Bingo left for this summer: the popular weekly event at the Hideout (1354 W. Wabansia) starts at 6 PM each Wednesday night through 8/31. Veggie Bingo benefits a variety of Chicago community gardens under the umbrella of the local nonprofit NeighborSpace, and that benefits a variety of Chicago community gardens under the umbrella of the local nonprofit NeighborSpace, and bingo winners have a chance to receive a bounty fresh produce and locally made food products. Advance tickets are $10, and guarantee you entry to the event plus one bingo card; additional cards are available for purchase, and the bar is open for libations. More information is available at the Hideout’s website, and doors open at 5:30 PM. (SCJ)

If you’re looking to take advantage of the nice weather and get your motor running, ride over to Montrose Saloon (2933 W. Montrose) tonight as they host Pints and Pistons, a sidewalk motorcycle show and gathering, happening from 6-10 PM. Compare notes with fellow bike enthusiasts and enjoy food trucks, beverages from the bar, and live music in this get together co-organized by Motoblot. Go to Motoblot’s Facebook page for more information. (SCJ)

Access Living, Women’s Justice Institute, and the Chicago Community Bond Fund have partnered to present a screening of the film Any Given Day tonight at 6:30 PM at Lacuna Lofts (2150 S. Canalport). The documentary looks at the criminalization of mental illness by following three incarcerated people navigating Cook County’s Mental Health Court. How do they rebuild their lives after prison? After the screening, a panel discussion featuring members from each organization will talk about the harm that can happen when punishment is used as a substitute for mental health care. The venue is wheelchair accessible, and light refreshments will be provided. Masks are required. This is a free event, and registration is encouraged at Eventbrite. (MC)

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Chicago’s Central Camera is a great example of a small business that has persevered through multiple challenges–check out contributor Zinya Salfiti’s cover story in our latest issue to read more. And if you’re inspired to seek out more local legacy businesses, go no further than roughly a mile north to Atlas Stationers, who celebrate their 83rd year in business this year. A stationery store is a rarity these days, and Atlas keeps their inventory stocked with fountain pens, fancy journals, and other items that make the writing life more luxurious. Atlas Stationers is hosting their 35th annual sidewalk sale today and tomorrow from 9 AM-4 PM, with plenty of specials on pens and inks that you can’t find at big box office supply stores. It’s all at 227 W. Lake (near Franklin), so stop by and stock up.

Grown Folks Stories hosts a special edition of their two hour “gathering of nonprofessional, unrehearsed storytellers” tonight at the Smart Home, a new private event space located within the Museum of Science and Industry campus (5700 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive). Expect real stories from real adults–the sad, the hilarious, the slightly uncomfortable, and the ridiculous—all can be heard on a Grown Folks Stories night. Food and drink will be available for purchase from the museum’s cafe, and complimentary beer samples from Funkytown Brewery will be on tap, so this evening is for those 21 and over only (natch). Doors open and sign-up starts at 6 PM, with the show following at 7.

Reader contributor Ayana Contreras writes about the legendary Chicago arranger and composer Charles Stepney for our latest issue; read all about him here and check out tonight’s event at Pritzker Pavilion (201 E. Randolph) for more. Charles Stepney: Out of the Shadows will feature Rotary Connection 222, a large ensemble led bassist Junius Paul, who will perform songs from Stepney’s vast catalog. Damon Locks and Black Monument Ensemble open. The music starts at 6:30 PM, and the event is free and open to all ages.

Gossip Wolf reminded us this week that musician and memoirist Ava Cherry will visit Gman Tavern (3740 N. Clark) tonight to celebrate the release of her new book All That Glitters, which tells the story of her journey from collaborating with David Bowie, singing backup for Luther Vandross, and making music of her own all along the way. Reader contributor Aaron Cohen will discuss the book with Cherry. Entry is $10 at the door and the venue is open to those 21 and older. The talk starts at 7:30 PM.

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Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.

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Last year Chicagoland multi-instrumentalist Eric Reyes broke out in emo and pop-punk circles with his debut as Snow Ellet, the EP Suburban Indie Rock Star. It injects the sugar rush of pop punk and emo into crisp, straightforward power-pop hooks, a balanced approach that lets fans indulge their sweet tooth without getting cavities. After the release of Suburban Indie Rock Star, Reyes mixed Kirby Grip’s November 2021 album, Portrait of Bliss, where the local four-piece shifted gears into rocket-engine ambience. That sound has bled into Reyes’s work, judging from Snow Ellet’s June EP, Glory Days (self-released under license to Wax Bodega): though its sounds stay grounded in intimate, earthly concerns, they also sparkle with space rock’s larger-than-life euphoria. Reyes’s blastoff guitars supersize the quotidian emotions around romantic missed connections and twentysomething nostalgia for teenhood until they feel as big as a starlit sky. On “Can’t Hear the Phone,” Reyes’s cross-stitched guitars and sharp, plaintive vocals convey an itchy, queasy lovesickness that’s amped up by dreamy synth melodies and brittle electronic percussion—this sleek song can trigger Proustian recollections of that particular teenage feeling where you’re convinced you’re not from the same planet as all these other people.

Snow Ellet Ogbert the Nerd headlines; Arcadia Grey, Snow Ellet, and Superkick open. Thu 8/25, 8 PM, Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont, $12, 17+

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Brooklyn is so closely associated with the American cultural zeitgeist of the early 2000s that it’s easy to forget how newly “cool” the borough was at the time. During Oneida’s late-90s infancy, the freak rockers would be met with bemusement when they told music journalists they were from Brooklyn. “People would laugh—Brooklyn was not hip,” says Oneida drummer Kid Millions. Fast forward a couple decades, and the bandmates have largely been priced out of the neighborhood, just like fellow longtime residents and starving-artist types in similarly hip locales around the country. The cost-of-living problem is exacerbated because some have started families: Millions is raising his kiddos in the Woodhaven area of the Bronx (“near a park with trees!”), while keyboardist Fat Bobby has relocated to Boston. For several years now, any time the band has reconvened has been an event worth celebrating. The current lineup consists of Millions (who also leads Man Forever and has played with Royal Trux, Spiritualized, and the Boredoms) and Fat Bobby (also of Oneida side project People of the North) as well as guitarists Hanoi Jane (of postpunkers New Pope) and Shahin Motia (formerly of Ex Models, currently of Knyfe Hyts) and synth player Barry London (you must hear his old project Jäh Division).

Millions describes Oneida’s brand-new album, Success (Joyful Noise), as having a bit more “straight-ahead” rock sound than previous material, name-checking Jonathan Richman, the Velvet Underground, and the guitar pop associated with New Zealand’s Flying Nun label. All those influences can be heard on lead cut “Beat Me to the Punch,” but in true Oneida fashion, it turns a simple, shambly riff reminiscent of the Clean or the Chills into something sinister—the tune erupts into blasted-and-wasted howls of feedback, a la the Velvets’ “I Heard Her Call My Name.” I also hear traces of New Zealand in the catchy “I Want to Hold Your Electric Hand,” the abrasive, churning “Rotten,” and the fuzzed-out “Opportunities.” The long-form “Low Tide” grows more manic and cacophonous as it unfolds (with a touch of Joy Division and maybe some Daydream Nation-era Sonic Youth), then gives way to Fat Bobby’s signature key pulses. “Paralysed” and “Solid” conjure the Oneida of yore, channeling the metronomic Krautrock pulse pioneered by Faust and Can; they add expansive synth textures and guitar squeals, and the latter ramps up the aggression with snarly multitracked vocals and pure rockist triumph.

Oneida’s Success is available through Bandcamp.

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The Chicago Bears woke up on Saturday with their first preseason game on the slate. It is an exhibition game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Soldier Field. It should be a lot of fun to have Bears football back, even though it doesn’t count for much.

What it does do, however, is bring what we’ve been seeing in practice to game type of situations. The biggest story from this camp season has not been a good one. Roquan Smith has requested a trade because contract negotiations are not getting anywhere.

Smith feels that he is being treated unfairly and that negotiations are not being done in good faith. He doesn’t have an agent representing him so it is hard to know what is actually going on here as that usually doesn’t go well for players.

For the next few weeks, we have to wait to see if the Bears will honor his request or convince him to stay by giving him a contract that he deems fair. Letting him go is a scary idea because he is an incredibly impactful player on this defense.

The Chicago Bears have some decisions to make on the defensive side of the ball.

He probably doesn’t deserve to be the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL but he does deserve to be paid amongst them. The Bears can’t ruin their salary cap for the next few years but they can give him a fair deal.

If they are forced to trade him, that might cause a trickle effect that isn’t great. There is no point to keep Robert Quinn if they don’t have Roquan Smith anymore. These are definitively the two best players on the team but there is no reason to have Quinn without Smith.

Quinn is an older player that was amazing for the Bears in 2021. Smith is a younger player that can be built around on the defensive side of the ball. While the Bears are rebuilding, keeping Quinn without Smith makes no sense because it will take longer to rebuild anyway.

They might as well try to get something good for Quinn if they have to tear the defense down to nothing anyway. It is a shame that this Bears team has come to this but it is where we are at this current point in time.

If both of these players are traded, you would assume that the future assets that are acquired by the Bears come in and make an impact one day.

Quinn is a great player but he isn’t at an age where you build around him so if Smith goes he should go too. If Smith stays, they both can stay and be a part of the team in 2023 where they might be pretty good.

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The Chicago Bears are a team that has very little expectations for this season. They are expected by many to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. That showed when the first team of the Kansas City Chiefs went up against them in the early stages of the first preseason game on Saturday.

However, as the game went on, there were some players that stood out above the rest. These players are all trying to earn starting jobs on the team as they transition into the new regime’s vision.

Of course, Justin Fields had his moments early in the game. It was up and down but he showed some big play ability from time to time.

We know that stars like that are going to be good but right now it is about some of the players that people might not know about yet. These three players deserve recognition for the way that they played on Saturday:

1. Trestan Ebner

Trestan Ebner was outstanding for the Bears. He was one of the most notable players that the Bears used no offense. He is a running back and he led the Bears’ offense in rushing with 31 yards on six carries. He clearly is one of those guys that runs hard on every play.

He also made an impact with his receiving abilities. He made one catch but it went for 12 yards and a touchdown. It was the first score of the Bears’ preseason and got them back in the game on the scoreboard.

Having him as a specialty player this season might help the Bears’ offense but it will also help their special teams’ units. He had two kick returns for 53 yards. He averaged 26.5 yards which is really solid.

2. Jack Sanborn

Jack Sanborn was probably the most noticeable player on the entire defense for the Bears. The Illinois native was signed as an undrafted free agent when the event came to an end. This could end up being a really smart move by Ryan Poles and his staff.

Sanborn had a big interception for the Bears that led to points on offense. He followed that up with a fumble recovery later in the game He also had five tackles which means that he was in the middle of a few plays that didn’t involve the interception or fumble.

In fact, you can say he was all over the place in this game. Even on special teams, Sanborn made a big open field tackle. If he can impact the game on many different units all preseason long, he is someone worth keeping around.

He made a great first impression during exhibition game action and now has a much better chance to make the team. The defense played very well in the second half and he was a big part of it.

3. Trevon Coley

It isn’t all about the youngest kids making an impact either. Trevon Coley is a veteran player that was noticeable in this game as well. He had two sacks in the game and created some really nice pressure for the entire game.

Getting to the quarterback is going to be big for this defense so the Bears might be trying to keep anyone that can help them do that with consistency. Coley is someone to watch as the preseason continues to roll along.

The Chicago Bears had a lot of good that came out of the first preseason game.

The Chicago Bears may need to get some more talent as the years go along but it is clear that they are a well-disciplined team that will give themselves a fighting chance this season. With the way that some of these standouts played, anything is possible for them going forward.

If all of these guys continue their upward trajectory, the quarterback develops the way that we think he can, and the offense continues to grow around him, this team is going to impress no matter what their record is.

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Justin Fields’ Chicago Bears defeated Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs by a final score of 19-14 on Saturday in their first preseason matchup of the season. It was a nice showing for a lot of players, especially in the second half when the Bears scored 19 unanswered points to complete the comeback.

We all know that the final score really doesn’t matter in the preseason but it is good to see some of these guys do what they need to do to become noticeable. However, everything with this team starts and ends with their quarterback.

Justin Fields did okay as he only had a few reps early in the game. He went three and out on the first drive so he was given another one to try and get something going. They didn’t go three and out on that one but they did fail to score any points.

To say that it was an up and down performance would be accurate. Fields went 4/7 for 48 yards passing. One of his passes was a big gain on a connection with Darnell Mooney. These two clearly have some insane chemistry and are poised for a big season.

Fields also had one big rushing gain where he earned ten yards. Making plays with his legs is going to be a big key to this offense getting the most out of themselves. If he is a legit duel threat in this league, he will become one of the better quarterbacks in the league.

Justin Fields had an up and down start to the preseason on Saturday.

It isn’t all going to happen in one season. Everyone needs to pretend that the Matt Nagy/Justin Fields year never existed because nothing good happened for him in that year. There are going to be growing pains all year long and this preseason game showed some good and some bad.

Fields clearly needs to be better at getting rid of the ball quickly. This offensive line isn’t going to be good so he has to do that while also making those big plays with his legs on the fly.

There was one play where he gave himself up to slide on a run and was hit high anyway. That was a smart decision by him because he needs to take as few hits as possible but the officiating needs to punish defensive players who don’t stop on those. Hopefully, Fields continues to try and protect himself as much as he can.

With a couple of more preseason games left to go, you should start seeing Fields progress with more playing time. If all goes well, he should be ready for week one against the San Francisco 49ers. This game was one where he looked good at times but there is room for a lot of improvement.

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Opening the 2022 NFL preseason with a victory has to be a great feeling for the Chicago Bears. Regardless of the fact that it’s preseason, these new-look Bears got out with the win and proved a lot along the way.

This roster is full of new faces, including several young players. Whether it be via free agency or this year’s draft class, general manager Ryan Poles added plenty of youth.

The story of this game was just that — a youth movement, and that movement is trending upward.

As the Bears came away with a 19-14 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs, much can be said about the young core of this team.

The Chicago Bears’ youth was on full display in their preseason opener, and many of these younger players shined bright.

Justin Fields had a lot of positives in his preseason debut. His highlight came when he hit Darnell Mooney downfield, who made a phenomenal grab going up over the defender. Fields also used his legs a couple of times, showing fans that this offense is going to allow him to be far more comfortable in his second year.

Braxton Jones had some strong reps against Frank Clark, holding his own. He also blocked the outside zone rushing attack well. There were a couple of rough snaps for Jones, but overall, he certainly looks the part as the future at left tackle.

Khalil Herbert could have passed as David Montgomery. He ran the outside zone very well.

Trestan Ebner ran hard and looks to be the clear-cut number three running back, but could also assume third down duties. He looked shifty as he did in college, but the most impressive part was the way he ran with purpose. His legs don’t stop moving, and he clearly belongs.

Equanimeous St. Brown is clearly one of the Bears’ starting wide receivers, especially given that he came out of the game with the starters when they sat. He had a great effort on an end-around play, gaining eight yards, and proving that Luke Getsy’s offense is going to utilize players in a variety of ways.

Jack Sanborn’s energy was intense all game. He started on the first team special teams. Sanborn was the unanimous player of the game for the majority of viewers, ending with seven tackles, one interception, one pass defensed and one fumble recovery.

Jaquan Brisker was close to the play on nearly every down. He was up at the line of scrimmage often, looking to assist in run support. There was one point where he looked to take out backup quarterback Chad Henne, but the quarterback slid just before Brisker could lay the wood.

Brisker also nearly came up with a pick, after back-to-back plays in on the football as well. What’s apparent about Brisker and his skill set is that this coaching staff is going to allow him to be himself in this defense, and do what he does best — attack.

Trevis Gipson had a nice hit on Patrick Mahomes, although it was for a long gain to Travis Kelce. The aggression was there for Gipson during his snaps. He looks as good as ever playing defensive end, rather than playing upright as an outside linebacker.

Khyiris Tonga was in on a handful of run stops, and it’s clear the Bears want to utilize him in their rotation. He is going to be a weapon in stopping the run. Tonga looked excellent.

Lastly, rookie edge rusher Dominique Robinson looks like a gem. His motor is immensely high and he was in on the quarterback a few times, one rush ending with a sack. Robinson is relentless in pursuit, and seems to be a real Eberflus type.

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