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CHICAGO’S FREE WEEKLY SINCE | DECEMBER JANUARY

What le alWeedman’s cannabis means to a dealer, a stoner caramel not corn recipe, worriedand other tales to take you into 2020 THIS WEEK CHICAGO READER | DECEMBER JANUARY | VOLUME NUMBER

IN THIS ISSUE T R - CITY LIFE 08 Comic What federal law means 27 Movies of note Cats is a @ for some Chicago residents who towering achievement in furry porn want to smoke pot Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of Little P T B 10 Dukmasova | Feature Illinois’s Women is a beautiful masterpiece ECS K K H cannabis legalization may be CL S K designed to put dealers out of MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE M EP M business but their business is about ARTS & CULTURE 28 In Rotation Current musical TDK R more than just selling weed 22 Visual Art “Restrain” appears obsessions of drummer Tim Daisy C EB W AEJL static but the works and the cellist Lia Kohl and Reader music SWDI viewers dance editor Philip Montoro BJ MS 29 Shows of note Sleep Renaldo SWMDL G EAS N L THEATER Domino Blake Saint David and LCS C -J 03 Sightseeing A sheriff a pack 23 Review DanceNation captures more this week C E B N B of journalists and three sergeants the authenticity and vulnerability of 34 Early Warnings Chris Farren L C M DLC M C J F S F J walked into a fi eld of weed with adolescence Yundi Li Taj Mahal Quartet and H I HC M J fl amethrowers 24 Picks Cure the wintertime blues more justannounced concerts MK S K with these hot January options in 34 Gossip Wolf Chloe the punk N DL JL MM A M -K FOOD & DRINK performing arts scene pug crosses the rainbow JRN JN M 05 Recipe How to make cannabis bridge online ecology publication O M S C S caramel corn 19 Communing Even with MidMagazine launches with an ------legalization on the horizon these Ariel Zetina mix and more DDJ D women of color feel safest creating DP E &P K K spaces for weedinfused activities OPINION SMCJ G on their own terms 36 Savage Love Dan Savage off ers MP C 21 Law The dos and don’ts of adult advice to people considering YD A AT A use cannabis in Illinois opening their relationship ADVERTISING -- - @ CLASSIFIEDS C @ 38 Jobs FILM 39 Marketplace SDP F 25 Reviews The script is sometimes VPSA M CR MT P NEWS & POLITICS wanting but StarWarsTheRiseof SA R 06 Joravsky | Politics Mayor Skywalker is a fun conclusion to the L M-H L S Lightfoot’s cannabis cultivation movie saga Pedro Almodóvar strips O I CSMW R centerfi nally a TIF expenditure away emotional facades in Pain F OF O’ NA that makes sense andGlory VM G - - - JL SB ------D C [email protected] -- LETTER FROM A DESIGNER STM READER LLC BPD R L T E R S J S A-S V

Versions of Sue C C E B ------THESE ARE THREE versions of me: at the R ISSN- beginning, middle, and end of my time at STMR LLC SM S C IL the Reader. Long-hair-don’t-care, doe-eyed -- and hopeful; accomplished and arrogant; C ©C R established and at peace. On any given week, P C IL depending on my responsibilities, I have been A C R R any one of these. It’s been an honor to shape RR T ® the visual identities of the Reader. — S K - ANNAGRACENOLIN

2 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll CITY LIFE

UNIVERSAL NEWSREEL NATIONAL ARCHIVESCOLLEGE PARK

SIGHTSEEING When Cook County enlisted the Marines to fi ght marijuana A sheriff , a pack of journalists, and three sergeants walked into a fi eld of weed . . . with fl amethrowers.

By J N

n July 15, 1957, officers from the him as a goo all machine hack. He was, in ac- Cook County Sheri ’s o ce, a squad tuality, a nationally respected lecturer in so- of journalists, and three U.S. Marine ciology at the University of Chicago. Running sergeants arrived at the banks of as a Democrat in 1954, he didn’t campaign the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal for sheriff as an antidrug warrior, but as a Onear Route 83, northeast of Lemont. The Ma- criminologist who could take on the problems rines were veterans of the Korean War, includ- of gambling and juvenile delinquency and ing one of nine survivors of a 32-man combat professionally manage the county jail. Also team. in Lohman’s resume was his work with the Under the watch of Sheriff Joseph D. United Nations, repatriating prisoners of war Lohman, the Marines used ﬂ amethrowers to at the end of the Korean War. torch a ﬁ eld of marijuana, some of which was His campaign survived a major hit after growing over eight feet tall. “Marijuana is a Governor William Stratton released a tape weed and spreads like crabgrass once it goes in which a speaker, who sounded a lot like to seed,” intoned the narrator of the Universal Lohman, mused, “Did you ever know that Newsreel that captured the event. The three police officers have a disproportionately Marines “live up to the Corps’s boast. They high number of wives that were formerly have the situation well at hand!” prostitutes?” Lohman claimed that the Watching Sheri Lohman perform for the tape—in which the speaker also suggested newsreel camera, it might be easy to imagine that “a prostitute who hasn’t really J ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 3 CITY LIFE

continued from 3 tractors, and herbicides to eradicate marijua- gone down the drain is one of the most sym- na. Weed killers were applied by workers with THE pathetic, understanding human beings that hand-pump canisters and sprayers mounted ever lived”—had somehow been spliced and on barges. On occasion, Sanitary District I LLINOIS manipulated in a “criminal hoax” and that the workers experienced sabotage: the lights voice on the tape was not always his. After of their trucks would be left on overnight to his election, the Tribune noted that Lohman’s drain batteries and parts were removed from CANNABIS principal duties involved managing “a big jail sprayers to make them inoperable. and a smallish police department.” After four weeks of undercover work in- In the year Lohman was elected, there were volving deputies dressing as hobos, the Cook CONVENTION 312 charges involving the sale of marijuana in County Sheri ’s o ce arrested seven men in Chicago. In contrast, there were more than September 1949 for cultivating a 25-acre lot 21,000 arrests for possession of cannabis in not far from the plot the Marines would torch 2011, the year before the City Council passed in 1957. The accused men admitted that they an ordinance giving the police the option of sold joints for as much as 50 cents, roughly issuing tickets for petty marijuana posses- $5.35 when adjusted for infl ation. Two years sion, according to the Sun-Times. In a 1955 later, the Cook County Sheri ’s o ce super- APRIL 3-4, 2020 U.S. Senate hearing, Joseph J. Healy, head of vised the cutting and burning of ten acres the Narcotics Bureau of the Chicago Police near Willow Springs—“[e]nough marijuana THE CHICAGO HILTON, IL Department, loosely estimated there were to supply half the south side,” in the words of 1,400 to 1,500 marijuana smokers in Chicago. the Tribune. Nonetheless, law enforcement in Chi- Only seven months after Lohman was elect- cago was concerned about the increasing ed, the Cook County Sheri ’s o ce announced consumption of marijuana. Both Healy and that they had destroyed a four-mile strip of Albert E. Aman, district supervisor of the marijuana along the Cal Sag Channel. The Federal Bureau of Narcotics, admitted that space had been under surveillance for several THE LARGEST CANNABIS they didn’t believe marijuana was addictive months, but there was not enough manpower but expressed their belief that a large per- to case the entire area around the clock. Fear- INDUSTRY FOCUSED centage of heroin addicts had “graduated” ful that the crop would go to seed and spread from cannabis use. Aman contended that “sex in August, Lohman brought in Marines with ON ILLINOIS! perversion and rape,” as well as other crimes, fl amethrowers to fi nish the job. The following were commonly committed while under the year Lohman brought in a mobile land clear- infl uence of marijuana. ance saw and bulldozer to destroy another According to the Federal Bureau of Narcot- patch near the Cal Sag Channel. ics—a precursor to the Drug Enforcement Ad- In 1957, Lohman supervised a second torch- ministration—the main supply of marijuana ing of a marijuana fi eld along the Sag Channel, in Chicago came from Mexico. These import- this one running a mile long and 200 feet 150+ VENDORS ed strains were more potent than local ones. wide. Lohman gave fluctuating estimates of 100+ SPEAKERS While authorities periodically came across how many millions of dollars of marijuana he the patches of marijuana cultivated in vacant destroyed. But Lohman had ambitions beyond lots, there was one corner of southwest Cook the Cook County Sheri ’s o ce. In 1958 he was County that repeatedly came up in the press elected state treasurer. His path to the gover- as a problem area. If you were to fl oat down nor’s o ce was blocked by Mayor Richard J. the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal from Daley, with whom he frequently clashed. Willow Springs to the Calumet Sag Channel, After Lohman’s departure, the Sanitary then sail east along the Cal Sag west to Worth District continued its war on marijuana, al- in the 1950s, you would be passing along the beit in a low-key fashion. In 1969, the State’s Golden Crescent of illicit marijuana culti- Attorney’s office destroyed a field growing vation in Cook County. Far from the eyes of near the confl uence of the Chicago Sanitary necann.com/2020-illinois suburbanites, farmers, and police officers, and Ship Canal and the Cal Sag Channel. this undeveloped, unincorporated space was Harvesters had come from as far away as partially accessible by car. California and Washington, D.C., and included Contact [email protected] The Sanitary District—now called the members of the Head Hunters Motorcycle Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of gang. Times had changed from the afternoon or call 312-392-2970 Greater Chicago—oversaw both waterways. in which Sheri Lohman and the Marines had As early as 1941, the Sanitary District em- “the situation well in hand.” v ployed crews to cut down marijuana growing along its land. It also experimented with fi re, @backwards_river 4 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll Search the Reader’s online database of thousands of Chicago-area restaurants at chicagoreader.com/food. FOOD & DRINK

When you smoke a joint, your lighter does this. When you’re making edibles, the process RECIPE is a bit more complicated. In this recipe, given the use of plant material (as opposed to isolates), the end result will How to make smell and taste unmistakably of weed. If this isn’t your bag, you can minimize it somewhat by not grinding your fl ower too fi nely before cannabis you infuse it into your chosen fat. There are a number of fancy gadgets you can buy that make the de-carbing and infusing caramel corn process easier and faster, or you can use a slow cooker or sous vide for an odorless process. Elevating a Chicago standby Co-Op Sauce’s jefe off ers a This stovetop method is as simple as it gets. MARKWIEDER/UNSPLASH crackerjack update on the city’s Determining dosage is much trickier and oldest snack. less reliable, but there are plenty of online guides to dosing your own edibles that can By MS help you roughly determine the amount of THC and/or CBD in the mix. In this case, half a stick of butter infused with a strain with an average 17 percent THC is going to yield a batch racker Jack o cially debuted at the with an estimated total of about 162 mg THC. World’s Columbian Exposition, but That’s just an estimate, but in any case it’s its founder (if not inventor) Freder- going to be a lot for an all-out binge session. ick Rueckheim was hawking some Take it slow, big shooter. This recipe o£ ers an form of the caramel corn-peanut exercise in moderation. Cracker Jack is a snack Csnack mix on the streets of Chicago more than that’s inherently meant to be scarfed, but 20 years earlier, in 1871. Yes, Garrett Popcorn’s this one will fuck you up if you don’t practice Garrett Mix—formerly known as the Chicago restraint. Mix—usually gets more credit, but debuting Step 2. Extract cannabinoids Store in an airtight container out of the nearly a century and a half earlier makes Lime Chili Munchy Jax Melt the butter or coconut oil in a small sauce- light, away from kids and pets. The fin- Cracker Jack Chicago’s most enduring stoner Mike Bancro , Co-Op Sauce, pan and heat to around 200 degrees Fahren- ished caramel corn will last at least a couple snack; for stoners, sure, and now those about Sauce and Bread Kitchen heit (medium low heat), never boiling. Add the weeks. v to be stoned. decarbed fl ower and stir until immersed. Gen- Mike Bancroft, of Co-Op Sauce fame and Yield: Approximately 14 one-cup servings with tly simmer for at least two hours, and up to six @MikeSula Sauce and Bread Kitchen, is a Cracker Jack about 12 mg THC each, based on a 17 percent hours, stirring regularly. Strain off the butter/ fan, though he was always disappointed with strain. coconut oil through cheesecloth, squeezing the prizes. For the past few years he and every last drop from the fl ower. partner Anne Kostroski of Crumb Chicago / ounce cannabis fl ower, or / ounce shake #TVKUV9TKVGT have been conducting edibles R&D, scaling / cup (1 stick) salted butter, or coconut oil Step 3. Make that mix up and fine-tuning some of their recipes for 12 cups popped popcorn (1 cup kernels) Heat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. 2GTHQTOGT! the legal cannabis market, namely their Nutty 1 cup light brown sugar (packed) Pop the popcorn. Using a stock pot large %4'#6+8' 51.76+105 (14 Buddy Munchy Bar, and this more demograph- / cup honey enough to hold all the ingredients, bring the %4'#6+8' 2'12.' ically representative caramel corn recipe / teaspoon baking soda strained butter/coconut oil, brown sugar, update, with pepitas and hot-and-sour Tajin 2 tablespoons Tajin, or similar lime chili salt, and honey to a simmer, stirring until golden 5WRRQTVKXG #HHKTOKPI CPF )QCN seasoning. divided brown, about six minutes. &KTGEVGF 2U[EJQVJGTCR[ CPF Co-Op is working with some aspiring equity / teaspoon maple extract Add the baking soda, half of the Tajin, *[RPQVJGTCR[ HQT #FWNVU cannabis licensees with the aim of, Bancroft 1 cup pepitas, toasted and the maple extract and stir. Add the pop- says, “bringing back full circle some of the corn and pepitas to coat evenly. Spread the /#: - 5*#2'; .%59 social justice aspects of what we like to do” Step 1. Decarb fl ower coated mixture on the same sheet tray and .QECVGF KP &QYPVQYP 'XCPUVQP (more about that in the future). Heat the oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. parchment, and place it in the oven for 15 In the meantime, he offers this enhanced Grind the cannabis with a coffee grinder, to 20 minutes, mixing as needed to toast version for the home cook made with decar- or by hand. Place the ground cannabis on a evenly. YYYOCZUJCRG[EQO boxylated cannabis infused into butter or sheet tray lined with parchment. Cook for Remove and add the remainder of the OCZUJCRG["CQNEQO coconut oil. Decarboxylation is the process of about 30 minutes. Remove the sheet tray Tajin. Cool to room temperature. Break NWG TQUU NWG 5JKGNF 2TGHGTTGF 2TQXKFGT gently heating cannabis fl ower to convert non- from the oven and let it rest for at least 30 apart with your hands or keep the resulting KIPC 2TGHGTTGF 2TQXKFGT psychoactive THCa into psychoactive THC. minutes. clusters. ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 5 NEWS & POLITICS

The Chicago Reader is community-centered and community-supported. CHICAGO FOR

CHICAGOANS The cannabis cultivation center would give people of color access to the most lucrative part of the business. ANUBIS

POLITICS You are at the heart of this newspaper. Founded in 1971, we have always been free, and have always centered Chicago. Help us to continue to curate Reefer sanity coverage of the diverse and creative communities Mayor Lightfoot’s cannabis cultivation center—ﬁ nally, a of this fabulous city. TIF expenditure that makes sense.

Your donation keeps the presses rolling. By B J

CHIP IN HERE: or the last decade or so, I’ve been wag- not really broke. There’s always a million or www.chicagoreader.com/members ing what you might call a two-front two or three in the good old TIF banana stand. journalistic war on TIFs and reefer. As for the first question, the state’s TIF I’ve argued that one should be law is larded with so many loopholes that the blown up and the other legal to smoke mayor is free to spend TIF money on pretty Fup. much anything, anywhere. Well, for a brief moment last week, these That’s why, over the years, various mayors two fronts came together as Mayor Lori Light- have gotten away with doing things like taking foot proposed creating the city’s fi rst “coop- TIF money intended to build a hotel in the erative cultivation center” funded with about South Loop and using it to fix up Navy Pier, $15 million from the tax increment fi nancing which, as I never tire of pointing out, is neither program. blighted nor a community. All right, fi nally a TIF expenditure even I can Mayor Lightfoot announced her idea for a endorse! cultivation center as the reefer revolt heated OK, so I know what you’re thinking. You’re up in the City Council. thinking . . . That revolt—led by 28th Ward alderman One, how can a program intended to erad- Jason Ervin—erupted when it became appar- icate blight in low-income communities be ent that none of the 11 dispensaries given the used to cultivate marijuana? green light to sell marijuana on January 1 were And two, how can we afford to pay for a owned by Black people. This was painfully ironic as one of the WANT TO DONATE VIA CHECK? Make checks payable to “Chicago Reader” and cooperative cultivation center when we don’t mail to Chicago Reader, Suite 102, 2930 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60616. even have enough money to reopen the mental most legitimate reasons for legalizing reefer Include your mailing address, phone, and email—and please indicate if you are health clinics in poor, high-crime areas that was that the law against it was so unfairly okay with us thanking you by name in the paper. Mayor Rahm cruelly closed in 2011? enforced. People of every race smoked it. But To answer the second question fi rst—we’re basically, only Black people were busted for 6 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll NEWS & POLITICS AMERICAN SCIENCE & SURPLUS

it—as Mick Dumke and I fi rst chronicled back is for the city to invest its own resources to get in 2011 when we wrote the Grass Gap. engaged, get diverse entrepreneurs involved Last Chance for the To sum things up . . . in the most lucrative part of the business, The funding from TIF, the economic devel- which is cultivation,” Lightfoot added. opment program intended to benefi t low-in- Sounded like a good idea to me—so long World’s Greatest Gifts! come communities, was largely going to rich as they put the cultivation center in an actual Zivko STEM white ones. And the law against marijuana was poor or blighted community. As opposed to Robot Kit Tesla mainly enforced on Black people. sticking it someplace like Lincoln Park or Lin- $42.95 Socks So white people got the economic develop- coln Yards. $9.65 ment money and Black people got busted. And Which, considering how things go in Chica- you wonder why so many Black people have go, is probably where they’d stick it. left Chicago over the last 20 years. Eventually the reefer revolt fi zzled as some Anyway, it was especially di cult for Black aldermen who said they were going to vote for aldermen who came to realize that the main the delay backed o . The measure calling for Wooden Collectible Star benefi ciaries of ending the war on marijuana a delay wound up being defeated by a vote of Catapult Kit Wars Pint Glasses were people who had su ered no consequenc- 29-19. $19.95 $12.50 es from that war at all. Namely, rich white Nonetheless, I’m hoping Mayor Lightfoot people. doesn’t give up on her idea for a cooperative It would be as though the government cre- cultivation center, even if the pressure has Receive $5 off any purchase of $25 with this coupon! ated a program to aid Vietnam vets and gave passed. all the money to Donald Trump, one of our It could actually have some residual bene- Not valid with other offers. Expires 12/24/19. In store only. Limit (1) per customer. country’s most prominent draft dodgers. fi ts for the very low-income communities the Ervin mustered up enough council votes to program was intended to help, as opposed to Geneva store: Chicago store: threaten to pass an ordinance that would have watching more TIF funds go up in smoke. v 33W361 Roosevelt Rd. 5316 N. Milwaukee Ave. delayed opening the recreational marijuana Geneva, IL 60185 Chicago, IL 60630 dispensaries until July. @joravben That got everyone’s attention, as city and state o cials pointed out that they were depending on tax revenue from the sale of legal weed. You know, it’s funny how these things work. For decades, when Black people were getting unfairly locked up for possessing weed, no one appeared to be in a hurry to do anything about it. But as soon as some Black aldermen made a move that might have kept rich white people from being even richer? Man, all hell broke loose. It was in the midst of the reefer revolt that Mayor Lightfoot trotted out her idea for the cultivation center. “Lightfoot said up to $15 million generated Find hundreds by tax-increment financing could be used as seed money for the plan to open a ‘coop- of Reader- erative cultivation center’ that residents of color could ‘buy into’—either with a ‘modest recommended cash investment’ or with ‘sweat equity,’” Sun- restaurants, Times writers Fran Spielman and Tom Schuba reported. exclusive video “This is a very, very expensive business to get involved with,” Lightfoot said. “The basics features, and sign up to be a cultivator requires about a $13 million for weekly news at to $15 million investment. There are not a lot of people that have that, particularly in a mar- chicagoreader.com/ ket that a lot of banks and traditional lenders food. won’t touch.” “I think the only way to really crack this nut ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 7 8 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 9 10 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll FRANK OKAY

PROFILES IN POT

early 20s with scruffy hair and a beard who Weedman’s customers are more often emerged from a courtyard apartment building women than men. Most of them are white-col- Weedman’sIllinois’s cannabis legalization may be designed to put dealers day out of business, in Lincoln Square and got into the back of the lar types. There are a few lawyers and a lot of but their business is about more than just selling weed. car. He wanted tinctures. These are liquid teachers. Some work in media or advertising, concentrates of THC: a few drops under the others sell medical supplies. He once had a By M D tongue can get you high faster than an edible client who made sets for Sesame Street. and keep you high longer than a joint. It’s $60 The rhythmic sounds of Afro Medusa eedman’s workday someone told you the guy sells weed, you for a 600 milligram bottle. “Can I spot two pulsed through the speakers as Weedman began as the sun set on wouldn’t be surprised. But you’d never pick joints?” the man asked, drawling the vowels drove west. He pulled up next to an apartment a clear December day. him out of a crowd as the obvious dealer à la Keanu Reeves in Bill and Ted’s Excellent building in Logan Square and parked in front He jumped behind the either. Dressed in a Bulls beanie and a pu er Adventure. Weedman obliged. The man was a of a fi re hydrant. “Cops in Chicago don’t give wheel of a nondescript jacket, Weedman has a relaxed and confi dent regular, so they briefl y chatted about Weed- a shit about this,” he explained in response to vehicle to start the night’s deliveries: $60 manner. His sneakers hit the sidewalk at just man’s upcoming holiday road trip to the south, my perplexed look as he exited. “What are they baggies of dry cannabis flower containing an the right pace. He’s a rare example of a man and wished each other well as he exited. gonna do? Give you a ticket? That’s fi ne.” eighthW of an ounce each of strains with names about midway through life’s journey who both Weedman wasn’t concerned that someone Ten minutes later he settled back behind the like Black Cherry Pie, Cheesy Rider, Wedding projects total confi dence and puts you at total might notice the tra c in and out of his car and wheel. He was amused that the customer’s par- Cake, Zweet Inzanity, and Gelato #45; a Mason ease. He leans Bob on the Jay-to-Silent-Bob call the police. “I don’t think the cops would ents were there, visiting from North Carolina. jar fi lled with $10 pre-rolled joints; $20 packs of spectrum. He is the opposite of creepy. He has even entertain it,” he said. “I’ve had friends “His dad bought the weed for him. He was like THC-infused gummies, chocolate bars fl avored the thoughtful, measured speech befi tting a call 911 to get an ambulance sent over to them ‘Ooh the Afghani, we’ll take that!’” Weedman with raspberry and Himalayan salt, and bottles cannabis purveyor. When he says herb he pro- and they had to call three times because the said in a creaky voice imitating the older man. of tinctures. nounces the H. cops didn’t believe them . . . there’s people get- “That’s one of the weirdest things I encounter. If you saw Weedman on the street, and His first customer was a white man in his ting killed in this city left and right.” Americans are super casual about pot. J

ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 11 continued from 11 from the main source. In some cases you’re White American people. The Hispanics that the third person touching [the weed]. It’s the buy weed in front of their parents—that’s very grower, me, and then you.” unusual.” Weedman’s carved out a safer space for Weedman’s been running his underground his work. He operates at the intersection of cannabis delivery business since the early his own sound judgment and neighborhoods 2000s, selling dry bud and THC-infused with sparser policing. He describes himself products sourced from growers in Colorado, as “cruising like a mouse in a fi eld, just mov- California, and the Pacific Northwest. His ing along. Or moving under a ledge—nobody "This is the most healing form of clients text or call him to order, and he usually sees you, you’re just chilling, hiding in plain swings by later the same day. The legalization sight.” He stays o the Internet and keeps his activism that I have seen in my life." of recreational cannabis in Illinois is meant business to strictly weed: “I’ve never sold any- to put guys like Weedman out of business. thing to anybody to put up their nose.” He only -GQ, The Q Brothers But he’s not worried. In fact, he predicts he’ll works with customers referred by people he thrive and perhaps even attract new cus- trusts. Weedman buys herb from growers at tomers as more people feel comfortable with wholesale prices usually ranging from $1,000 cannabis. He’s also banking on the loyalty of to $2,500 per pound. Sometimes he gets it his customers, their commitment to what he delivered through the mail. “It just needs to represents. While some might appreciate the be packaged really well,” he said. “Just like any anonymous consumer experience of buying other smuggling it needs to be sealed and not weed at one of Chicago’s dispensaries, Weed- stinky.” Other times, he or someone he trusts man’s services cultivate a human connection drives it from the western states. that the Walmartization of cannabis could “If I’m driving it I’m going for the gold,” never replace. A person’s relationship with he said, meaning he buys up to 40 pounds of their dealer is one of mutual trust and vulner- dry cannabis fl ower at a time. The weed gets ability and o ers as much of a respite from the secreted away inside inconspicuous vehicles, grind of daily life as the intoxicating power of but since the consequences of getting caught the herb itself. transporting it over state lines would be severe no matter the quantity, “I just take as eedman’s longevity in the un- much as I can drive.” He never buys more than derground delivery business is he can afford, though. He’s seen people take unusual, according to him anyway. out loans to buy enough product to fi ll a semi No city or state data o ers a statistical perspec- truck and then have trouble selling it all and tiveW on the prevalence of services like his or the paying back creditors. “A lot of bad stories frequency of such dealers’ apprehension by with debt.” law enforcement, but Weedman’s seen many If he’s driving with his supply, he has a plan competitors come and go over the years. His for how to deal with the cops if he’s stopped: JANUARY 14 - 25, 2020 place in the cannabis ecosystem is somewhere “Never be in a rush, that will save you eight on par with artisanal co ee shops. He’s the $4 times out of ten.” The second rule is to never latte on the spectrum between Dunkin’ Donuts talk to the cops. “If you’re being stopped doing and owning your own espresso machine. what I’m doing, you’re already being caught,” KENNEDY-KING COLLEGE “There are businesses out there that are way he said. “Your best bet is just to shut the fuck RD more brazen than I am,” he said. “A lot of rich up.” 740 WEST 63 STREET white kids in this game, they sell stu on Ins- Weedman smokes his own inventory and tagram.” These people tend to get caught for sometimes worries about getting pulled over making stupid mistakes, he said, like fl aunting and called out on smelling like weed—which their money in front of too many strangers. cops in Illinois will still be allowed to use as Meanwhile, street dealers work with lower-in- probable cause for a vehicle search despite www.collaboraction.org come clients and sell herb in packages as small legalization. But he’s also got a medical mari- FOR TICKETS & MORE INFORMATION as a gram, often sourced from Mexican cartels juana card and, if questioned, he’d just admit or other criminal organizations. “[Dealers] on that yes, he had recently smoked. (Deter- STUDENT, SENIOR & GROUP DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE the street usually buy from a guy who has an mining cannabis intoxication is notoriously army of people,” he said, explaining that they di cult, but, according to the Chicago Police often get caught because they’re working in Department, no new fi eld sobriety tests for fi g- neighborhoods oversaturated by police. These uring out if someone is high have been added dealers’ supply chains also tend to be long to the existing DUI investigation protocol.) If and include a lot of middle men who may cut he’s pulled over with his daily delivery supply, and mishandle the product. “With me, you’re Weedman has a lockbox to throw his stash probably one or two steps away, at most three into. He’d refuse to open it if asked. “They 12 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll can’t make me open it without a warrant,” he clients text, the dealers send back a list of just doesn’t like the taste, he’ll replace it for eedman was born and raised in said. “And I would be ready to go to jail over what’s available. Customers have to make spe- free. Even if the customer has already eaten all South America (but didn’t want not answering cops. They’d have to book me cifi c orders and then get only whatever they the gummies or smoked all the herb. to reveal which country). He grew for who knows what, come up with a crime for asked for delivered. Weedman operates more Another edge he’ll have on the dispensaries up as a “latchkey kid” with a strict mom. Where me on the spot—they would have a hard time like the Avon lady and brings his entire day’s is that he’s able to sell much more potent prod- he’sW from, weed wasn’t seen as a harmless getting into that box.” Weedman has a lawyer. supply to every customer to let them peruse in ucts in larger quantities than will be permit- indulgence but as a hardcore drug, on par with He declined to comment on whether he’d ever person. ted under the new Illinois law. While he can cocaine, heroin, and the rest of it. “Pot was a big been busted before. “People will be psyched about the dispensa- sell you as many $40 chocolate bars with 200 no-no for me.” Weedman avoids texting too many details ries, but then I think people will call me back,” mg of THC each as you’d like, the dispensaries Still, teenage Weedman did try smoking and talking too explicitly on the phone. His Weedman said. “Because of the prices.” At $60 will only be able to sell 500 mg of edibles at a once. He and a friend bought some herb, which competitors often work with menus and when for an eighth of herb, his prices are on par with time. For people dealing with chronic pain, “was all super shwaggy and dry.” They were what dispensaries charge for medical canna- this is a crucial di erence. One of his custom- rolling a joint behind a bush in a public park bis, but he’s sure that recreational pot will be ers, for example, buys six chocolate bars every when a man pulled a gun on them and told more expensive—especially because demand two weeks. “He says some days he eats a whole them they were breaking the law. (Turned out “I’ve smoked will soar and supply will be limited. The state bar,” Weedman said. “Some people su er from he was a neighborhood watch vigilante, not pre-rolls all has warned that recreational dispensaries a lot of pain.” an actual cop.) Weedman and his friend ran over this will run out of product quickly in the new year. Not all of Weedman’s customers are medici- away, then smoked the joint. “I was so nervous Since the dispensaries will only be able to sell nal users though. Younger people buy more for I didn’t even feel anything, but my friend got country, and pot grown in Illinois and it takes a few months the fun of getting high, while “the older ones— sick,” Weedman said. They went to a local I’ve paid top for a plant to mature and produce optimal bud, it’s their beer at night.” Many of his clients clinic, where a doctor brought in a gaggle of Weedman will be there to fi ll the void with his are “nine-to-fivers” and “office people stuck medical residents and used the stoned friend dollar or them. fully operational year-round supply chain. in cubicles.” Like him, they often turn to weed “as an example of what happens to people on But to me, mine He’s been getting ready for months, “just to unwind after a long day at work. “I like pot drugs.” Young Weedman was freaked out. stacking [one-pound] units, waiting for the because it helps me relax,” he said as we drove He didn’t get back to pot until he came to are the best. dry spell.” He predicts that the recreational south on Western to his next delivery. “Just America after high school to live with family Mine are all dispensaries will be “more for the guy who the stupid stress that the city puts on you—it in the southwest. He went to a community comes from Indiana with his friends.” Plus, he helps a lot with that.” college where he first met “real” stoners flower.” has a satisfaction guarantee. If someone fi nds who showed him that smoking weed was as —Weedman something wrong with his product, or even much a culture as it was a fun way to J

ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 13 14 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll continued from 13 night, usually around 11 PM. Less scrolling. temporarily mess with brain chemistry. The night I tagged along was unusually Weedman dug the culture. “That’s when I slow, just five scheduled drops. To kill some started learning about Cypress Hill,” he re- time, we stopped at Weedman’s legit business. called. “I was into Rage Against the Machine Three of his employees were drinking beer too. And I realized that it was on the left side of and chatting with customers who seemed at things, smoking pot.” Since the cops and other home and lingered long after they finished representatives of power and authority hate what they came there to do. One of the guys weed, he thought, there must be something who works in this business is also one of Weed- inherently radical about it. “To this day I think man’s partners in the delivery business. He’s it’s like a revolutionary thing to do.” got a round face, short beard, and easy laugh. In the late 1990s, Weedman came to Chi- His client base is still small, only about 20 cago. For a while, he was a ramp worker for a people, because he got “spooked.” Not long ago major airline and also tried to start his own he was doing lunchtime weed delivery to o ce business. One day he met a man who ran a weed buildings, alongside delivering food through delivery service in New York City. Weedman an app. A security guard in a Loop skyscraper fi gured he’d try supplementing his income by searched him and found the weed and threat- creating something similar in Chicago. ened to call the cops if he didn’t hand it over. Procuring the wholesale supply at the time Weedman Jr. lost an ounce of herb on that day. turned out to be a nightmare. “It was way out The three of us talked in the back of the in the burbs and it was such an ordeal to get establishment. (Weedman’s casual about this weed and it ended up being super shitty discussing the “dog walking” business here; weed,” he recalled. “I bought my fi rst ounce of his other employees know about it.) He’s weed and it must have taken me a whole month proud of how he’s distinguished himself in the to get rid of it,” he said. “I didn’t know that delivery game, even through small touches many people.” The stress of juggling three like the design of his inventory. The gummies, jobs was getting to him; his legal business which contain 10 mg of THC each and come in More strumming. faltered and he was eventually fi red from the packets of ten, are shaped like tiny monkeys, airport. “I was trying to hug too many things penguins, and lions. He opts for stiff brown at once,” he said. “You can only hug one person paper pouches to sell the fl ower, with brightly at a time properly.” colored stickers indicating the name of the Weedman got deeper into the weed busi- strain. And he’s generous when he stu s them, ness. He heard stories about the wonderful often putting in a bit more than the 3.5 grams world of cannabis cultivation in Colorado and equivalent to an eighth of an ounce. “My bags slowly connected with high-quality suppliers are fat,” Weedman said. there. At fi rst he rolled all the joints, packaged I asked how they make the pre-rolled joints, the fl ower, baked brownies, and made all the which are perfect cones packed tightly from deliveries himself. He started out making a filter to tip and twisted shut on the ends. couple hundred dollars a week (“That was Weedman pulled up a YouTube video on a awesome”), then $500, then $1,000. Eventu- dusty computer monitor. It showed a man’s ally he realized he couldn’t handle it all on his meaty hands loading dozens of empty Raw own and brought in some trustworthy friends brand rolling paper cones into a beehive-like to help. Weedman’s modest empire has grown machine. The man’s voice was matter-of-fact, to nearly 300 customers, most of whom are and gallon-sized freezer bags of bud littered friends of friends of friends of friends. In a his work surface. “This guy’s doing a shitty good year he now easily makes six fi gures. He job,” Weedman said as we watched the man said he’s poured much of his proceeds into re- using a co ee grinder to pulverize the delicate tirement savings and health insurance costs, herb into dust. Weedman uses a hand-cranked and also to help capitalize his legitimate gig, grinder the size of a fi ve-gallon bucket, which which now employs half a dozen people. breaks the dry bud into more delicate chunks. “I’ve smoked pre-rolls all over this country, Give your digital life a break. eedman spends a typical day and I’ve paid top dollar for them,” Weedman grinding at his day job, managing said. “But to me, mine are the best. Mine are Connect over music, dance & more. the mundane affairs of a small all fl ower.” business. Most weed deliveries happen after Weedman tries to stock only organic Anyone can play! Find your hours,W though some customers who work in strains grown in the sun or in controlled summer class at oldtownschool.org restaurants like to buy in the mornings. He indoor environments. (He spoke at length collects orders by noon so he can plan a route about the virtues of outdoor-grown versus that’ll land him closer to home by the end of the greenhouse-grown versus indoor-grown J ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 15 16 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 17 continued from 15 quality of his products will outshine what’s Weedman is old school. He doesn’t accept tips. ties of immigration. He still wants to go back pot.) His dry flower is carefully selected for sold at the dispensaries. Plus, some customers He likes to “slow the roll” when he’s with cus- to his home country one day, but, as the years potency and fl avor and is “at most four months will surely keep buying from him for political tomers, to ask them about stu he sees in their go by, he fi nds it harder and harder to be com- old from when you harvest it.” Weedman’s and philosophical reasons, as well as cost and home or how their day has been, to talk about fortable there. The longer you live somewhere best-selling strains are indicas (which tend to convenience considerations. Many pot smok- Bernie Sanders, or breakups, or the Beatles for else, the more the place you’re from changes relax and bring on drowsiness and the munch- ers who have long been into weed culture have a spell. beyond recognition, “and you become a gringo ies) and “hybrids,” which are crosses between no interest in supporting a state that crim- Weedman treats each delivery like a visit too.” indicas and sativas (which tend to deliver a inalized them and their friends for decades with an acquaintance and not just a transac- This work has kept him grounded, though. more heady, euphoric high). and now aims to shore up its budget with tax tion, even though sometimes stepping into His relationship with customers is based on a Weedman predicts that legalization will revenue generated in businesses owned by someone’s home can be unpleasant, especially shared secret and on trust. Every transaction make weed like craft beer. “I think there’ll be rich white men. if people hoard or don’t clean. “I’ve met a lot of is an act of faith: he puts himself at risk being guys famous for the joints they roll—you want Ultimately, Weedman wants to cut down gross people,” he said. a dealer, but so do they, in welcoming a dealer a joint shaped like a turkey for the holidays? his supply chain even more by growing his Sometimes, a relationship with a client into their homes. “You get to know people, you There you go.” But he’s confident that the own strains “to have my own brand.” As he’s fosters a deeper connection, even friendship. become friends with their pets,” he said, smil- been dabbling in cultivation he’s learning that The next delivery is to a longtime customer ing through the cloud of smoke. He learns their it’s “not rocket science” as long as you’ve got who didn’t mind me accompanying Weedman tastes, the kind of art and music they enjoy, good seeds and the right conditions. “If you into her home. A blond woman in her 30s with the ups and downs of their lives. Weedman’s make the conditions of prehistoric times then a bubbly voice, she welcomed us into her cozy sort of like a therapist. But even though he’s your bud is gonna be strong and powerful.” It living room wearing slippers and loungewear. performing emotional labor, in the original takes “a lot of CO2. When these plants were Weedman opened his bag on the couch and sense of the term, it doesn’t weigh too heavily evolving that’s what the environment was pulled out a heavy-duty ziplock pouch full of on him. “It’s mostly them telling me about like.” He seemed to notice me making mental herb packets. She described herself as a “really their life and me, I’ll say stuff about myself calculations about what was going on in pre- seasoned pot smoker,” and was relieved to fi nd that applies to what they’re talking about. I historic times. “Dinosaur weed,” he said, his Weedman after moving here from Los Angeles like to hype people up. If you’re having a shitty lips dissolving into a grin. where she’d been used to “really bougie” weed day and I can see it in your face, I’ll just tell culture. She decides what strain to consume you something to get you better.” Weedman’s enjoy doing it,” Weedman said of his depending on her mood or the tasks at hand. “I happy to be part of customers’ self-care rou- work as the car rolled east toward do like a sativa when I need to clean my house,” tine, to be a person they look forward to seeing Ukrainian Village and the last of the she said. “A sativa edible and my house will be and who connects them with something that night’s deliveries. “Ninety-nine percent of the sparkling clean!” Weedman laughed and noted brings joy and relaxation to their lives. “Ipeople I’ve met doing this are just awesome that people rarely buy sativa, which makes When the customer he’d been waiting for people. Family people. They just love to smoke many paranoid. “I have a fi ve-star review for came home, Weedman went up to his apart- pot.” Most of his customers are white, perhaps this guy,” she said as we prepared to leave. “He ment for the sale. He came back fi ve minutes because he lives mostly among white people. always comes through for me.” later. “Easy peasy,” he said. “There’s a cool Weedman’s fi ne with it, though. “White people “My thing has always been just show up kitty in there. This guy lets the cat pick his are chill, they’re never trying to find a deal,” with some weed, that’s the reason I’ve been weed.” he said. In his experience, people of color and successful,” Weedman said. “I always come. The haze of the hotboxed car began to immigrants like him love to haggle. (Weed- The moment you don’t, someone else will.” dissipate, and Weedman prepared to head man is the kind of guy who manages not to The last customer of the evening was run- home, looking forward to a hot dinner with his sound harsh even when he’s saying something ning late, and Weedman parked his car in front girlfriend and probably another joint. He told judgmental.) “White people don’t haggle. I’m of the man’s building in Ravenswood to wait. me he’d enjoyed talking about what he does. open to haggling but as long as it’s something He used the lull to spark up a joint, one of his “It’s cool to get to say something,” he said. reasonable—I can give you a better deal if you own pre-rolls kept in a long plastic canister in “I’ve never spoken about it.” I asked if there’s buy more.” He has a lot of south Asian custom- the center console. His tinted windows were something he wanted people to know about ers. “Doctors. They like to haggle and they have shut and as he puffed, the vehicle fogged up weed, about people like him. He stared over money too. They’re rolling up in BMWs and with fragrant smoke. “It’s romantic,” he said, the steering wheel for a few seconds. “Weed’s Mercedes.” referring to joints, his favorite way to consume awesome,” he said finally. “Weed makes Younger customers and first-time buyers herb. “It’s nice to sit and grind the weed and friends. Sometimes it makes things better. It can be shifty and nervous and in a rush. smell it and have your own joint. It’s an event, makes you hungry, makes food taste better. They don’t appreciate the romance of the it’s not just smoking weed out of a bowl. But It’s a lovely, lovely herb that someone put on weed deal, Weedman said. “Young people I hey,” he added, chuckling, “as long as you’re the planet and you smoke it.” He paused again, don’t always groove with . . . But they usually smoking weed it’s all good.” weighing whether there was anything to add, don’t stick with me anyway because I’m not We talked about music. Weedman loves or perhaps considering who that someone on their schedule. They want the Uber.” The punk and salsa—some of which is quite punk, might have been. “Don’t hate on weed,” he on-demand commodifi cation of almost every he argued, and put on a Henry Fiol track to said, “it’s been here longer than you have.” v service has taken personal rapport out of drug demonstrate. We talked about relationships, dealing as much as any other business. But his decision not to have children, the di cul- @mdoukmas 18 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll NEWS & POLITICS

will: the underground, the black market. It’s a place where anyone, not just those with money, can blossom and feel a sense of community. Getting to this point has been an exercise in building trust. I visited Alejandra twice before at her makeshift Pilsen bakery during Thanksgiving week, but didn’t actually meet her. Both times, I was left standing in front of a three-story apartment on a deserted street, scrolling through my texts to check and double-check the address. There’s no doorbell, and Alejan- dra’s name didn’t match any of the ones on the mailboxes. Alejandra had warned me that her phone was “acting hella crazy” lately, but she posted a few pictures on her Insta-story shortly before our scheduled interview. I wondered if she saw any of my calls and texts. I wondered if this was more than a coincidence or bad timing. Maybe she didn’t want to be a part of this story. Those in Alejandra’s position have a lot to lose and a lot at stake. Alejandra is a single mom of three, and her day-to-day fears range from robbery to run-ins with the law. An entrepreneur in the black market, Alejan- dra has to be selective of her clientele. From se- curing her own cannabis fl ower from a grower The new state law has yet to address regulations surrounding recreational events like canna-paint parties. JOHN GARRISON to guarding her recipes and making deliveries, the risk gets higher with every move. While CANNABIS her social media profi le is public, she screens her followers and blocks anyone under 21. “This is such an industry, where it’s like, Communing with cannabis—underground ‘who do you know?’” she says. “It really has to be like that. I’ve had situations where I have to Even with legalization right around the corner, these women of color in Chicago feel safest creating fi lter people. I had some guy, for example, he spaces for weed-infused activities on their own terms. messaged me on Instagram. He has no pictures on his Instagram. Never posted, and he’s fol- By F AT lowing like four people. I don’t know who that is.” nside a west suburban bungalow-style who-knows-who game rests on the vendors including her prized bite-size brownie, the At the pop-up, Alejandra experienced her home, Alejandra* sits at a small table in and organizers—tickets could only be pur- dessert that inspired her to leave her full-time fi rst sellout. A man purchased ten bags of her her newly remodeled kitchen and asks me chased with the organizers’ fi nal approval. paralegal job and leap into Chicago’s cannabis homemade gummy bears, her entire stock that if it’s OK if she smokes during our inter- By the night’s end, Atlanta rapper Waka industry. This is the fi rst time I’ve seen Alejan- night. Sold at $30 a pack, each one had ten in- view. I say yes. She hops o the stool and Flocka made a guest appearance, weaving in dra’s treats outside of Instagram. Her infused dividual gummies inside, each dosed with 100 Imakes her way behind the counter, pulling out a and out of an exclusive crowd. And I was sup- mini coquitos, Puerto Rican eggnog cook- milligrams of THC. rolling tray from an old shoebox. posed to be Alejandra’s plus-one. ies—a nod to her roots—and rainbow-colored Alejandra’s excitement quickly turned into It’s past noon on a Wednesday in early She apologizes that we weren’t able to meet. gummy bears outline the rest of her red plate. skepticism. “I don’t know if he’s going to sell December, and Alejandra’s still riding o the The garden apartment she rents in Pilsen, she Alejandra is Latina, and in an industry them,” she says, adding she once had a custom- high of a wild weekend. She was at a pop-up says, is built like a fortress. Not only does it dominated largely by wealthy white men, she er buy her gummies and place his own labels featuring everything from cannabis-infused cancel out her cell service, but she also keeps stands out. While much of the conversation on them. empanadas to body care products. The three- her windows covered for additional protection on cannabis in Illinois has focused on the new Maria,* another cannabis homecook with and-a-half-hour long event was billed as a fes- of herself and her business. I tell her I caught a law (on January 1, 2020, recreational marijua- a penchant for making infused Latin food, tival for the canna-curious and the canna-nov- whi of baked goods outside her building, but I na will be legalized), there’s this world that echoed Alejandra. In fact, at the end of our ice, the perfect way to close out Thanksgiving couldn’t fi nd her. She laughs, her smile disap- already exists where people like Alejandra interview, Maria told me that she scanned my week. pearing behind a thick cloud of white smoke. are able to play, experiment, and flourish. Instagram beforehand. The deciding factor? This was a private party, deemed “referral On the countertop, there’s a holiday tray It’s a world protected by private accounts, She says I “looked chill” and she didn’t think only.” That means the burden of proof in the stacked with leftover samples of her edibles, passwords, and invitations. Call it what you I’d rob her. J ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 19 NEWS & POLITICS continued from 19 were men and 81 percent were white. In Novem- as they think back to their first edibles, the try and get her products on the shelves left a This is what happens when you live in this ber, the city held its fi rst recreational marijuana classic brownie. One of the reasons Alejandra “sour [taste] in my mouth. In a medical space, “gray area,” Alejandra says. You hope for the lottery, further pulling back the curtain on the says she started baking edibles was because it’s supposed to be patients over profi t, right? best, expect the worst. industry’s lack of diversity. she kept fi nding “old-ass brownies” that tasted For them, it’s just like, ‘Well, what can I do for For many, the underground proves to be the By May 1, 2020, up to 75 adult-use dispensa- like they were missing key ingredients. minimal costs, and what can I mass produce?’” safest place to prosper. Leila* is a yoga instruc- ry licenses will be issued, according to the Illi- It’s the reason why they insist on making That mentality, alone, conflicts with Ma- tor, who has embraced cannabis in her own nois Department of Financial and Professional their products from scratch. As consumers, ria’s mission. Her menu—which includes an holistic practice and leads cannabis-friendly Regulation. And, while these applications Alejandra and Maria have both bought edibles impressive collection of infused savory dishes classes. Jessica* is a Black artist who hosts appear to be open for everyone, the $5,000 from sellers who weren’t keen on sharing inspired by her Bolivian heritage—deviates canna-paint parties with her best friend, nonrefundable application fee can be a barrier. their ingredients or the type of cannabis from the state’s requirements. In order to sell Jackie.* There are restoration fund grants, which are strains used. They say sellers are responsible edibles and infused products legally, they have On average, their events pull in at least 15 geared toward women and people of color, to for educating their customers and need to be to be tested in state-regulated labs, which guests, who are encouraged to bring their own alleviate the industry’s hefty costs, but it all transparent about their infused food, as some makes shelf life a major priority. cannabis, snacks, and water. But just because seems intangible for self-starters. people might have dietary restrictions or may “I feel like we’re literally in that time when it’s not o cially legal doesn’t mean there’s not This is just for dispensaries. For Alejandra have never consumed cannabis before. we’re watching all the trial and error,” Maria a code of conduct enforced at these gatherings. and Maria, who dream of opening their own “That’s why I have to trust and know what says. “It’s interesting to see how we are going Leila, Jessica, and Jackie outline the details: cannabis cafes with freshly made treats and I’m doing, too, so I can tell the people that I’m to continue to protect everyone in this space, guests need to come at a certain time before meals, the rules are still being pieced together. dealing with and I have a connection with. as it continues to grow, because at some point, the doors are locked to prevent unwanted And the new state law has yet to address how They’re trusting me,” Alejandra says, adding it’s kind of scary to think about. Sometimes, guests from coming in. Leila often checks in Leila, Jessica, and Jackie can combine recre- that her products come with a set of instruc- you grow to the point where you can’t control with her yogis to ask them how high they are ational activities and recreational marijuana. tions and an emphasis on portion control. it anymore, and you got to fi nd a way to still and if this is the fi rst time they’ve gotten high There are a lot of steps to climb before they can Two years in, Alejandra and Maria have built protect the community.” or been around cannabis. She also limits their claim their place in the Green Rush, which is a clientele that includes medical professionals When I meet with Leila, she brings me to the use of social media; guests are not allowed to why they’ve chosen to stay under the radar. and patients, and both thought they could get Wing Chicago, a luxurious co-working space livestream or post photos of their experience “I want to be able to see that people like their foot in the door by pairing up with larger tucked in the heart of the West Fulton Market. and tag her. me can open up a cafe,” Maria says. “That I corporations. Alejandra and Maria, who are We make our way to a comfy royal blue couch, At these events, respect and courtesy are don’t have to wait for this lottery system that both regular cannabis users, began this ven- and Leila starts to unpack the reasons she expected. And participants aren’t required to is consuming, just cost-wise alone. I already ture to promote the benefi ts of medical mari- started her yoga classes. In the last couple of smoke cannabis. They can just come to do yoga know people that have fallen for licensing and juana. Maria started making edibles to provide years, Leila lost both of her parents to cancer, or paint. saying that they’ve wasted anywhere from like another alternative for her grandmother, shifting her role from big sister to the head of $50,000 and up to just get started. The zoning who had failed back syndrome and arthritis. the household. s women of color, this particular group board can still tell you no, at the end of the day, Though she was prescribed a “laundry list of To her, venturing into the cannabis industry makes up a small—but growing—per- and it’s just like to go through all that process medications,” her grandmother still expe- is not only a means of survival, but it’s about Acentage of business owners in the canna- to be told no, it’s just, it’s disheartening.” rienced some pain and developed insomnia, leaving behind a legacy. Leila, who has a back- bis industry. In 2017, Marijuana Business Daily I ask Alejandra and Maria why they entered Maria says. ground in counseling, wants to “be an empire” reported that 73 percent of cannabis executives the business in the fi rst place. They each laugh, Maria says attending cannabis fairs to and make her classes, which she calls “alternative spaces of healing,” accessible to people across the U.S.—and she wants to do all of this Chicago’s odd without selling out. & The expectations that come with the legal- Curious gifts ization of recreational marijuana are slowly unraveling into hurdles of harsh realities. At The Wizard of odd the Wing, Leila sits on the edge of her cushion and tries to peer out the window, which over- looks a quiet city and an empty highway. “As the law comes in, in January, I’m worried about all the people that are going to be left behind. People will be impacted, families will be impacted, communities will be impacted, individuals will be impacted,” she says. “I feel a lot of pressure to maintain—what, this has been underground for two years—to maintain the community, to maintain this as an intimate experience.” v free t-shirt. FIRST 75 people. Saturday. 843 W. belmont ave | 873-883-1800 *Names have been changed thealley.com @writefelissa 20 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll NEWS & POLITICS

bis or while intoxicated a er smoking. DO • Smoke or consume in your apartment • Pay with cash. without your landlord’s consent. • Smoke or consume cannabis or • Smoke or consume in your condo with- THC products at home and out- out the condo association’s consent. side of the view of your neighbors. • Smoke or consume in a public housing unit. • Share your cannabis, THC product, or • Smoke or consume on any proper- infused goods free of charge with any- ty owned by the federal government. one older than 21. For example, you can • Go to work while high. host a dinner party of cannabis-infused • Smoke or consume any cannabis or THC food at your house for guests who are at products if your employer maintains a least 21, but you can’t charge them for the zero-tolerance workplace. You can still be cost of the cannabis, and you must advise ﬁ red if you test “positive” for THC in an them in advance that the food is infused. employer-mandated drug screen, regardless • Grow up to ﬁ ve cannabis plants in your of whether you’re actually high at the time. home if—and only if—you’re a medical • Pay for cannabis products with patient. Make sure the plants can’t be seen a check or credit card. from the street or by your neighbors. • “Dose” another person with canna- • Travel with cannabis within Illinois, as long bis or THC—including edibles—without as you aren’t traveling by public transporta- the person’s knowledge and consent. tion and/or using cannabis while in transit. • Smoke, consume, or engage in any • Enjoy this long-awaited opportunity to

SUEKWONG permitted cannabis transaction smoke or consume your favorite cannabis, while in possession of a ﬁ rearm. THC, or infused products and appreciate just how far we’ve come as a society. v KEEP IT LEGAL If you smoke or consume cannabis outside of those restrictions, you can still face arrest and criminal charges. To avoid confusion during the rollout (pun intended) of this new How to stay on program, here are the dos and don’ts of adult- use cannabis in Illinois:

the right side DON’T • Smoke or consume cannabis in public, including: on the street, public transporta- of the new law tion, sporting events or concerts, restaurants, cars, public spaces or buildings, and Because getting arrested is the yes, even your own back porch or backyard. biggest buzzkill. • Purchase from any source other than a By L M state-licensed adult-use cannabis dispensary. Saturday, January 18 • Be in possession at any one time of more than 30 grams of cannabis ﬂ ower, 5 grams 11:00 am We’ve enlisted Larry Mishkin, a local attorney of cannabis concentrate, or 500 milli- who specializes in cannabis law in association grams of THC contained in cannabis-in- with the Hoban Law Group based in Denver, to fused products (like edibles). For out-of- Grant Park lay out the dos and dont’s of the new cannabis state residents the possession limits are law. This information is provided for infor- 15 grams of cannabis ﬂ ower, 2.5 grams 5 issue areas mational purposes only, and should not be of cannabis concentrate, and 250 milli- construed as legal advice. grams of cannabis-infused products. • 2020 Census • Grow your own cannabis (unless you • Climate Change he state’s adult-use cannabis legislation are an authorized medical patient). • Gun Violence Prevention goes into e ect on January 1, 2020, at 6 • Sell cannabis to anyone. • Women’s Health Rights TAM, but that doesn’t mean weed will be • Provide cannabis to anyone under the age legal in Illinois. The adult-use legislation car- of 21 (whether for payment or for free). and Access ries an array of restrictions and limitations to • Travel with cannabis on public transportation. • Get Out The Vote navigate: users must be 21 or older, products • Travel with cannabis across state lines. must be purchased at a licensed dispensary, • Allow cannabis/THC or any infused www.womensmarchchicago.org transported home in their unopened original products you’ve purchased to [email protected] packaging, and consumed in private homes be accessible to children. out of sight of neighbors. • Drive while smoking or consuming canna- ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 21 “R” R Through / , gallery hours Tue-Sat AM- PM, Mon-Sun closed, ARTS & CULTURE Monique Meloche Gallery, N. Paulina, moniquemeloche.com. F ARTS & CULTURE

the fetish, the role of the body and how it acts VISUAL ARTS while dancing.” The Kenyan and Indian artist grew up in Toronto and now splits his time between New ‘Restrain’ appears static, but the York City and Chicago. His work has been shown at the Whitney Biennial, the Smithso- nian American Art Museum, the New York City works (and the viewers) dance AIDS Memorial, and the Museum of Contem- porary Art here in Chicago. A former dancer, Brendan Fernandes’s bronze sculptures congeal pain and pleasure. Fernandes conflates his experiences with ballet, queer identity, and BDSM through in- By S NL stallation, video, performance, and sculpture. His performance-based work at the MCA, “A Call and Response,” which closed in October, centered on how we react to one another in a rtist Brendan Fernandes has been the body to do more, to be better. Fernandes space and how visibility is challenged by the having conversations about ballet fi nds the kinds of demands in another of his presence of others. and mastery within his work for interests—BDSM. Dance and BDSM derive Fernandes’s interest in the idea of masters years. The call and response in- from the same formula: discipline, rigor, and and hierarchies, dominance and subordina- teraction focuses on the idea that authority. tion, within the worlds of BDSM and ballet are Brendan Fernandes's bronze rope sculpture COURTESYTHEARTISTANDMONIQUEMELOCHEGALLERYCHICAGO Aballet is tied to the process of perfection. It “In ballet we learn and are molded by our on my mind as I walk throughout the space. can be di cult for ballet dancers to let go and teachers who we call ‘masters,’” Fernandes We have our ballet master. We have our mas- let loose. It’s endurance, labor, and an intense says. “Ballet is its own form of fetish and kink, ter in the dungeon. Both imply masochism, e ort for the body to stretch, hold, and pose. with its own sets of rules. We challenge and whether you’re tied up in rope or tied up in The body is challenged to push through any change our bodies to perform acts of fortitude pointe shoes. chose to leave out the moving, live, and danc- sort of pain to gain a reward. Ballet demands and show no e ort in doing so. In part this is It’s interesting then that Fernandes’s work ing body,” Fernandes says. He adds that he in “Restrain,” now at Monique Meloche Gal- wants the “audience to be the body that is now lery, eliminates the physical body—absent of activating the space and work.” Even though dancers, what’s left behind are bronze rope there appears to be no live component in this sculptures seemingly wrapped around an in- show, visitors who move through the space are visible fi gure. Hanging on walnut structures, participating in a performance. “For me this is the pieces encapsulate an emptiness and form still a form of dancing and choreography,” he a shape with no clear molding. The artist con- says. tours the body into the shape of Shibari, often Although “Restrain” eliminates traditional called kinbaku or rope bondage. This tech- choreography and trained dancers, the hang- nique originated from martial arts in Japan ing works and artist renderings still seem and uses a fi ber rope that wraps into several to dance. The Shibari rope harnesses are patterns around a person to, well, restrain stagnant and rigid, yet their bodily structures them. “My choice to remove the body in this suggest movement. I make circles around each work is mainly to instill a sense of fragility but piece, gliding between them, even standing on also to fi nd strength,” he says. “By making the my tiptoes to get a better view. body one that is not identifi ed to one type of Fernandes’s work is known to break the person, it can be read by all. I aim to fi nd sol- standards of what we expect to see in a muse- idarity for all and in that I defi ne ‘queer’ as an um space. In “Restrain,” we are unknowingly open moniker for self-inclusion. The missing a part of the artist’s performance as we trace body is a space for all to see themselves in and our steps around each sculpture and activate to fi nd empowerment.” the space. Are we the dominant or the submis- In “Restrain,” Fernandes works with leath- sive? What are the hierarchies between the er, walnut, bronze, and steel to create stand- viewer and the artist? Here, artwork itself is alone sculptures. With the piece Kinbaku Arm, the master. Being an obedient submissive is the artist created a bronze sculpture with a an obsession toward perfection, and in “Re- vertical walnut base. This piece is the most strain” the works hang with confi dence. The stimulating—it features a rope technique that viewers can’t help but admire the sculptures’ is situated around the arm creating a coil-like shape and excellence as we waltz together shape. The support creates a sense of height under their overarching authority. v within the exhibition space. “This show is different in that I specially @snicolelane 22 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll R READER RECOMMENDED b ALL AGES F THEATER

Dance Nation MICHAEL BROSILOW (Shanésia Davis) roars with the savage energy of a phenomenal woman under the sheen of sweat of a girl not sure whether she’s allowed As diverse as possible in age and all other re- to fi nd herself beautiful. And the drama that spects, on the one hand. On the other, brutally occurs when Zuzu gets cast as the soloist over selective against any ability to dance: “The her more gifted friend is only the beginning dances should take up time and space and be of the pain of an adult world of ambition and fully and gorgeously embodied performative achievement. events, even if the actors possess no real dance Minimalist scenic elements designed by Ar- talent. (In fact, better if the actors possess no nulfo Maldonado combine with the recurrent real dance talent),” she writes. The Steppen- character of a mother who hovers and vanish- wolf production, directed and choreographed es to complete the picture of the claustropho- by Lee Sunday Evans, is adherent in both bia of youth, where every place you go looks regards. This makes for the most flagrantly approximately like all the other places you graceless dancing you have ever paid money have been with slightly di erent lighting. And to see. And yet there is method to this mad- yet there is wonder in the details—the cra- REVIEW military or sports (aka military pageantry for ness, which allows us to see the authenticity tered and shadowed paper moon that sways casual civilian consumption), only with more and vulnerability of adolescence, and, rather and bulges onstage, the Astroturf hillside that operatic soliloquies to break up the monotony beautifully, the continued relevance of these rolls onstage like a magic carpet when a girl There can only of training in between the brief melees that moments of shame, solidarity, and self-asser- needs to escape, the way everyone touches determine whether or not your team goes to tion in our adult lives. Connie’s lucky horse before they step onstage. Nationals (this year in Tampa, Florida!). Ellen Maddow as Maeve, the oldest mem- Girls grow, shaped as much by the wilderness be one star Dance Nation captures the essence of this ber of the cast, still has the fragility of a teen of each other as by the adults that guard and milieu without succumbing to a rehash of scolded for forgetting her hair clips, still has hem them in. v Dance Nation captures the what’s best not seen on the small screen. In- the ambition to be an astrophysicist, and still authenticity and vulnerability of stead, it focuses on the dynamics of a group of contains the memory of what it is to fl y. Ashlee @IreneCHsiao adolescence. girls on the verge of blossoming, particularly that between talented dancer Amina (Karen By I H Rodriguez) and her best friend Zuzu (Caro- line Ne ), as their coach, Dance Teacher Pat (Tim Hopper) develops a new routine called he curtain never rises on Clare Bar- “World on Fire,” to celebrate the legacy of ron’s ferocious, Pulitzer-fi nalist play Gandhi and annihilate their opponents. In Dance Nation. The lights come on this “acro-lyrical” number, there are citizens, and they are simply there, so many and there is Gandhi. This is the true and sad of them: sailors, tapping their hearts way of things—there can be only one star. (“I Tout with militant glee, their eyes piercing the hope we’re both just Gandhi,” says Zuzu after space like periscopes looking farther into a landscape than their age or experience would seem to allow and undaunted by whatever lies D N in the darkness ahead. The unison is heart- R Through /: Tue : PM, stopping, almost terrifying. They have trained Wed and : PM, Thu-Fri : long for this moment, and whether they suc- PM, Sat and : PM, Sun PM; also Sun / and /, : PM; ceed or fail, their courage will be remembered. no shows Tue /, Wed /, But they are not seamen or soldiers. They are or Wed /, Steppenwolf Theatre, 13-year-old girls (mostly) on the Liverpool N. Halsted, --, steppenwolf.org, $-$. Dance Works team (that’s Liverpool, Ohio), and they are (sometimes) winners. One moment of silence for the fallen, here named Va- nessa (Audrey Francis, who also plays all the the audition. “Oh my God!” says Amina. “That moms), whom we will never see again. would be perfect!”) If you foresee an imperfect If you have ever watched an episode of time ahead for these otherwise loving and Dance Moms, the TV show that inspired this supportive friends, you would be correct. play, you know that competition dance is Every breath you take, another person in the nothing pretty. It’s cutthroat, nasty, and kind world dies, Dance Teacher Pat reminds the of absurd, with (mostly) girls serving as the team. This dance is for them. pawns of the egos of their mothers and coach- Key to the experience of Dance Nation are es. In other words, it is very much like the the guidelines Barron indicates for casting. ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 23 THEATER

Aura CuriAtlas NICKOLAIROSTER

Dream Logic & The Fool and the World Aura CuriAtlas combines dance, theater, and acrobatics in an evening that takes the 22 Major Arcana cards of the Tarot deck as a starting point for movement inquiry. These cards, starting with the Fool and ending with the World, “symbolize phases and encounters throughout a person’s journey through life,” explains co-artistic director Dan Plehal. “Together, the Fool and the World bookend a cycle that is always beginning again.” Thu-Sat 1/9-1/11, 8 PM, Steppenwolf 1700 Theatre, steppenwolf. org The Space Between One of the pleasures of watching string quartets is the drama that emerges among the players: the side conversations, the jokes, the polite competition. Gram- my-nominated Spektral Quartet brings their bodies and voices into space in a collaboration between composer Lisa R. Coons and choreographer Mark DeChiazza that explores power dynamics and social interaction. Fri-Sat 1/17-1/18, 8 PM, Steppenwolf 1700 Theatre, steppenwolf. org Family Reunion Allen Gilmore, and Alex Goodrich. Court Theatre, 1/16- Last spring, inspired by the community created in a PERFORMING ARTS PICKS 2/16, courttheatre.org support group for gender-expansive folks at IntraSpec- trum Counseling, choreographer Nora Sharp created Top Girls Family Portrait as part of Synapse Arts’s New Works 11 cures for the wintertime blues I saw Remy Bumppo’s fi rst production of Caryl Chur- program. “What would it be like to cultivate this gener- Get out of the house for these hot January options in performing arts. chill’s Top Girls 18 years ago, and there are still moments ous witnessing energy in a rehearsal and performance that stick in my mind. The company revisits Churchill’s context?” they wondered. Sharp continues this improvi- By I HK B W 1982 play interrogating feminism in the age of Thatcher sational exercise in movement, conversation, sound, and through Marlene, the hard-charging head of the titular live video with a larger group of multitalented queer temp agency. Her search for empowerment takes her performers. Fri-Sat 1/24-1/25, 8 PM, Steppenwolf 1700 from a fantastical dinner party with famous women in Theatre, steppenwolf.org history and legend (including 19th-century explorer THEATER PICKS (KERRY REID) Rhinoceros Theater Festival Isabella Bird and Dull Gret, seen leading a group of COMEDY PICKS (BRIANNA WELLEN) Maybe it’s the “rhinoceros” in the room: now in its women into battle against demons in hell in a painting Whisper House 31st year, RhinoFest has been around so long that, by Pieter Bruegel the Elder) to her strained relationship TNK Fest Duncan Sheik’s fi rst musical theater eff ort—2006’s Spring paradoxically, it’s sometimes easy to overlook. But for with her working-class sister, who is raising Marlene’s Don’t be fooled into thinking this is just a music festi- Awakening—won him two Tony Awards. He followed fringe theater fans, Rhino is indispensable. The tickets sullen daughter. Keira Fromm directs. Theater Wit, 1/16- val—the fi ve-day-long lineup features some of the best that up by collaborating with book writer Kyle Jarrow are cheap, the variety dizzying, and the vibe both 2/22, remybumppo.org comedy acts to come through Chicago, including the on this haunting tale of a young boy sent to live with communally warm and cool enough to spark your brain. triumphant returns of hometown favorites Helltrap his aunt at a remote lighthouse a er his father is shot Among this year’s highlights are Ghosts of Whitechapel, Nightmare (Sun 1/19) and Megan Stalter (Sat 1/18). Filling down over the Pacifi c in World War II. Black Button Eyes about the victims of Jack the Ripper, created by Kate DANCE PICKS (IRENE HSIAO) out the lineup are not-to-be-missed national acts the Productions, which brought stellar spookiness to Ghost Black-Spence and Chris Brickhouse; the return of David New Negroes with Baron Vaughn & Open Mike Eagle Quartet last summer, stages the Chicago premiere Shapiro in Wallace Shawn’s monologue The Fever, which Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series, presented on their black (Thu 1/16), Whitmer Thomas (Fri 1/17), Three Busy Debras under Ed Rutherford’s direction. Athenaeum Theatre, won raves back in the 1990s; and Curious’s own Four box stage at 1700 N. Halsted, is hosting such a variety (Sat 1/18), and Liza Treyger (Sun 1/19). The whole fest is 1/10-2/15, blackbuttoneyes.com Story Animal Plus Dessert, dramatizing stories by Samuel of dance this month, it’s impossible to look away. spread across fi ve venues, but all the laughs are at the Beckett, Flannery O’Connor, Anton Chekhov, and Eliza- Hideout. Thu-Sun 1/16-1/19, various times, the Hideout, Voice of Good Hope beth Bishop (and yes, there will be dessert). Prop Thtr, aMoratorium 1354 W. Wabansia, tnkfest.com, $15-$20 per show, $100 On the heels of the Trump impeachment, City Lit 1/11-2/23, rhinofest.com Invited to make a work for the Art Institute, choreog- for fi ve-day pass. may have snagged the “good timing” award with this rapher J’Sun Howard found himself drawn to portraits revival of Kristine Thatcher’s 2000 play about Barbara The Mousetrap of struggle, resilience, and joy in the works of Chicago The Haggard Unicorn Jordan, the Black Texas congresswoman (and the fi rst True confession: I have never seen Agatha Christie’s artist Charles Wilbert White, who was determined to Stand-up and rightfully self-proclaimed “Queen of rad- elected from the deep south) who fi rst came to national murder mystery, despite it being the longest-running create “images of dignity” that document Black history ical comedy” KJ Whitehead records her new half-hour prominence during the Watergate hearings. Thatcher’s show in London’s West End and being produced at and culture. Mourning lives lost and damaged by police special, fi lled with thoughtful, personal, and, above all, play also delves into Jordan’s longtime relationship seemingly every high school and community theater in violence, aMoratorium creates space for “generous, hilarious material about gender, race, and the world with speechwriter Nancy Earl and her struggle with the world. If you’re in the same boat, you have a chance compassionate, loving play between Black men,” with today. The night also features performances from Devin multiple sclerosis. Terry McCabe directs, with Andrea to rectify that with Court’s production, directed by Sean reference to the Black church and spiritual traditions. Middleton and Mo Less. Fri 1/31, 8 PM, Collaborac- Conway-Diaz starring as Jordan. City Lit Theater, 1/10- Graney. The cast for the whodunit is a murderer’s row Fri-Sat 1/3-1/4, 8 PM, Steppenwolf 1700 Theatre, step- tion, 1579 N. Milwaukee, facebook.com/iamkjwhitehead, 2/23, citylit.org of talent, including Kate Fry, Hollis Resnik, David Cerda, penwolf.org $10. v 24 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll S WTRSsss Directed by J.J. Abrams. PG-, min. Now in wide release. FILM

trilogy. Particularly engaging this time is the indestructible sorcerer in some relatively increasingly complex relationship between Rey undefi nable setting. But with Supreme Leader and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), the evil First Or- Snoke (Andy Serkis) gone, and Kylo Ren’s char- der’s supreme leader. Their psychic bond was acter too emotionally embattled to be a full-on one of the most interesting aspects of The Last villain, the Emperor was the only remaining an- Jedi, and Abrams uses it to great e ect here. tagonist for Abrams and Terrio to fall back on. Carrie Fisher, who died in 2016, is given top Star Wars won’t be going anywhere soon, billing as General Leia Organa. Her footage, with Disney launching the TV series The made up largely of deleted scenes from The Mandalorian and introducing Galaxy’s Edge Force Awakens, is believably integrated into themed areas to its parks. But the narrative the new film. Though her dialogue sounds disconnect between Johnson’s and Abrams’s like it was largely culled from greeting fi lms illustrates that the studio has been work- cards, The Rise of Skywalker affords her ing without a net on these movies. It’s obvious character particularly dignified closure. that few larger storylines were mapped out Numerous other characters—human and in detail; that’s especially dangerous when a otherwise—from the past are also on hand, filmmaker like Abrams, so fond of injecting Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker among them Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee moments infused with long-term mystery, is Williams), who is given much too little to do. involved. Some questions The Force Awakens But the most signifi cant return is of course asked still weren’t answered by The Rise of REVIEW Palpatine; the explanation for that return is Skywalker’s end. But Abrams, unlike Johnson, pretty half-baked, as are the logistical implica- has a sense of what the audience wants and tions for his fi nal confrontation with the heroes. needs—space battles, weird creatures, cute Skywalker rises above The fi lm slows down in its second half and falls robots, and characters who have become victim to one unfortunate trope of contempo- friends. He was the right choice to direct here, rary genre cinema: fi lm climaxes that amount pulling the disparate pieces of Star Wars back slippery story slopes to a showdown with an all-powerful, seemingly together for one last movie go-round. v The script is sometimes wanting, but Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is a fun conclusion to the movie saga. By M S THIS WEEK AT

irector J.J. Abrams leans in hard on to this day, so Abrams is now back on board, our nostalgia for the previous Star left with the unenviable task of retroac- THE LOGAN Wars trilogies with the ninth entry in tively adjusting some of Johnson’s ideas, the saga, Star Wars: The Rise of Sky- wrapping up myriad storylines he himself walker. If a creature was cute, they introduced, and concluding the entire Sky- Dmake an appearance. If a Jedi Master was wise, walker saga with some semblance of dignity. their voice will most assuredly emanate from As The Rise of Skywalker opens, the galaxy the Dolby Atmos speaker above you. has been alerted to the presence of Emperor Abrams directed The Force Awakens (2015), Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), the Sith Lord which was also heavy on the nostalgia—the who was the architect behind most of all that TRADING PLACES director there essentially repeated George was evil in the previous two trilogies and has Lucas’s story beats from the 1977 original. But somehow survived the events of Return of DEC 27-30 AT 11 PM Rian Johnson was not so sentimental about the Jedi. The heroic Resistance receives word Star Wars mythology in his 2017 follow-up, The that they don’t have long before Palpatine will Last Jedi. Johnson’s story killed o major char- unleash a fleet of Star Destroyers, each with acters and pulled apart threads that Abrams planet-destroying capabilities, against the had obviously intended to span the scope of the galaxy and establish a “Final Order” to rule all. sequel trilogy. Johnson’s narrative pivots un- The Rise of Skywalker is certainly fun and dercut lore established over the course of the moves at an especially zippy pace in its ﬁ rst half. entire Star Wars saga, most signiﬁ cantly embit- Heroes Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), CADDYSHACK tering the series’ central character, Luke Sky- and Poe (Oscar Isaac) are together through walker (Mark Hamill), from his core idealism. much of the story, and Abrams and Chris Ter- DEC 31 - JAN 2 AT 10:30 PM Star Wars fans didn’t buy it. The Last Jedi rio’s script extols the themes of friendship and provoked an online backlash that continues camaraderie that were so pivotal to the original 2646 N. MILWAUKEE AVE | CHICAGO, IL | THELOGANTHEATRE.COM | 773.342.5555 ssss EXCELLENT sss GOOD ss AVERAGE s POOR • WORTHLESS ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 25 Pain and Glory FILM

REVIEW Pedro Almodóvar strips away emotional facades in Pain and Glory The reﬂ ection on the director’s later-in-life preoccupations is one of his best ﬁ lms yet. By K S

ohn Waters aptly expressed both his Bergman’s seminal masterpiece, these mov- In the contemporary setting, Salvador and my feelings about Pedro Alm- ies reflect their directors’ later-in-life pre- experiences choking bouts due to a growth odóvar’s latest fi lm, Pain and Glory— occupations. Almodóvar’s follows an older, in his throat, and his malaise surrounding among my favorites of the year and ailing, and creatively stifled film director, this and other physical ailments affects his one of the Spanish iconoclast’s best Salvador—played by frequent Almodóvar creative voice. Almodóvar’s own voice, how- Jworks—when, in his annual top ten list for collaborator Antonio Banderas, whose ten- ever, persists even throughout this apparent Artforum, the fi lth maestro himself declared der, understated performance ranks among thematic evolution. Salvador begins smoking it the “fi rst Almodóvar movie to shock me.” the year’s best—around the 30th anniversary heroin as though it were the natural thing Anyone familiar with Almodóvar’s work of one of his most famous movies. The event to do; that it’s broached without any fanfare who’s not yet seen the film, now awash in a ords him the opportunity of reconnecting accounts for Almodóvar’s provocative—and award season buzz, can only wonder what with the fi lm’s leading man, Alberto, whose amusing—candor. Also present is one fully Waters means. At this point in his career, it realized meta production (and another, would seem unlikely that Almodóvar could less fully realized, though I won’t say more outdo himself, having made two films that about that one). In this case, the one-person received an NC-17 rating and many more P Gssss stage show, performed in front of a vibrant Dir. Pedro Almodóvar. R, handsomely appalling melodramas that min. Now playing at red background, that symbolic color, which, incorporate such verboten activities as rape, Gene Siskel Film Center like the bull to the cape, draws our eyes to drug and sex abuse, and incest, in addition to the screen as we eagerly await whatever his general inclusion of characters whose sex- delicious visual onslaught Almodóvar has ualities are wholly liberated from the paltry in store for us. This motif of the meta pro- limitations of labels. use of heroin during production resulted in a duction, included in so many of his previous Waters elucidated his point by clarifying falling out with Salvador. Having reconciled, fi lms, speaks to his unrelenting creative spir- that Pain and Glory is “not one bit funny or the two embark on a new creative project, it; Almodóvar’s is a garish utopia, in which, at melodramatic.” I’d argue that humor and a one-person stage show in which Alberto any time, a person can stage a play or make a melodrama are present in every Almodóvar delivers a monologue Salvador had written movie. fi lm, as both are such a part of his fi lmic DNA about an ex-lover’s heroin addiction. This Though I’ve always admired Almodóvar’s that they’re present even when not conspic- leads also to Salvador beginning to smoke films, I’ve nevertheless felt detached from uously on display. Still, Waters gets at the heroin himself, a habit he reevaluates after them. There’s no denying that they are per- heart of what makes the fi lm—teeming with reconnecting, in some of the films’ best sonal, but those elements that make them so much of that indefi nable quality, heart—an scenes, with said ex-lover. so shocking, ironically, are what often keep extraordinary digression. It’s one that I hope Interwoven within the contemporary nar- them from feeling intimate. Almodóvar has marks a new phase of Almodóvar’s career, rative are what appear to be flashbacks to gone back and forth over whether or not which could be said to have started with his Salvador’s childhood in Paterna, where he, Pain and Glory is autobiographical; further- subdued 2016 fi lm Julieta, an adaptation of his mother Jacinta (Penélope Cruz, another more, nothing in the film is especially new three short stories by Alice Munro from her frequent Almodóvar collaborator), and his for him, as several of his earlier films also book Runaway, decidedly restrained source father live in a whitewashed cave house. feature people, places, and things analogous material for the likes of Almodóvar. During these scenes we learn about Salava- to those in the director’s own life. Yet, while Pain and Glory is yet another entry in dor’s formative years as both a creative and still embracing the visual facades that make this year’s cycle of Wild Strawberries-esque sexual being; in more recent fl ashbacks, we his fi lms such a pleasure to watch, Pain and fi lms, which also includes Martin Scorsese’s see Salvador with his elderly, ailing mother, Glory fi nds him stripping away the emotional The Irishman and Quentin Tarantino’s Once the complexity of their relationship having facades, bringing us closer to him than ever Upon a Time . . . in Hollywood. Like Ingmar extended far past childhood. before. v 26 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll R READERRECOMMENDEDb ALLAGESN NEWF Get showtimes and see reviews of everything playing this week at chicagoreader.com/movies. FILM

NOW PLAYING and pensive way than the character has typically been Law of Desire portrayed. Still Chalamet shines showing the joy Laurie Beverly Hills Cop which: Let us all send thoughts and prayers to Dame R Pedro Almodovar’s vibrant treatment of gay life feels being around the March sisters, and in particular, Eddie Murphy as a Detroit detective who heads west Judi, as she is clearly dealing with catastrophic fi nancial in post-Franco Madrid has a lot to recommend it, but his love and admiration for Jo. The most surprising to avenge the murder of a pal. It’s a satisfying star issues. How else to explain her presence as “Old Deuter- little of this has to do with its contrived plot, which bears performance comes from Florence Pugh, who portrays vehicle of the old school, in which the undisguised plot onomy,” the head cat who decides which Jellicle (Don’t a queasy resemblance to the earlier Fatal Attraction and youngest sister Amy. In earlier adaptations and in the mechanics of the scenario serve only to allow Murphy know? Don’t worry, doesn’t matter) gets another life via resorts to hackneyed devices such as amnesia. What novel, she has typically been portrayed as a spoiled and to do his thing—razzing uptight, white-bread authority the Heavyside Layer (same) provided she isn’t murdered keeps this 1987 movie alive are the characters: a porn vain child—from here Pugh transforms her into a smart fi gures—and do it o en. The fi lm is overloaded with by Macavity (Elba), who (in a completely preposterous director (Eusebio Poncela); his transsexual sister and and practical woman as an adult, who is almost similar to commercial elements, but director Martin Brest (Going departure from the musical) takes her hostage with a onetime brother (the wonderful Carmen Maura), whom Ronan’s Jo in how deeply she feels the limitations placed in Style) does his best to fi nd personal variations, band of pirate cats and makes her walk the plank. This he casts as the lead in his stage production of Cocteau’s on her as a woman. Little Women is a beautiful story teasing some pleasing silent-comedy rhythms out of is patently ridiculous because as anyone who has seen The Human Voice; a devout little girl (Manuela Velasco), about family and love, the creativity and imagination the opening chase and inserting some aff ectionate the stage musical knows, Macavity is the Best Cat of whom the sister takes over from her lesbian ex-lover that comes with childhood, the challenges and sacrifi ces Laurel-and-Hardy byplay between two supporting cops the lot of them because he can make himself invisible, (Bibi Andersen) as her own; the director’s working-class we make as we grow up, and a celebration of feminism. (Judge Reinhold and John Ashton) during the climactic hence you don’t have to look at him. Warning: Jennifer lover (Miguel Molina); and the lover’s neurotic replace- —D G Full review at chicagoreader. shoot-out. It’s one of the few star comedies of the early Hudson’s “Memory” will stay with you. Cats is a movie ment (Antonio Banderas), who causes all the trouble. com/movies. PG, 134 min. Opens 12/25. In wide release, 80s to allot some humor and personality to the minor you cannot unsee. —C S PG, 110 min. In It’s typical of Almodovar’s wit that he casts a man as the including Davis Theater and Music Box Theatre v characters. With Lisa Eilbacher, Ronny Cox, and Steven wide release, including Harper Theater little girl’s real mother and a woman as her false one. In Berkoff . —D K R, 105 min. Tue 1/7-Thu 1/9: 10:30 Spanish with subtitles. —J R NC-17, PM. Logan Theatre Cure 97 min. Sat 12/28, 5:15 PM and Thu 1/2, 8:15 PM. Gene The prolifi c Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa has Siskel Film Center Cats been at work for nearly two decades, sometimes making Cats the movie makes Cats the stage musical look like straight-to-video features but more recently receiving Little Women Hamilton, never mind that Cats the stage musical is some belated international recognition. The engrossing R When we fi rst meet Jo March in director Greta to Hamilton as 45’s Sharpie notes are to Shakespeare. Cure (1997) stars Koji Yakusho (Shall We Dance?, The Gerwig’s adaptation of Little Women—based on author Though that’s not entirely fair. Cats on fi lm is a towering Eel) as a troubled detective exploring a series of mur- Louisa May Alcott’s beloved nineteenth-century novel achievement in furry porn. In that niche genre, director ders committed through hypnotic suggestion (as in The of the same name—she is standing outside the door of Tom Hooper’s take on the 1981 Andrew Lloyd Webber Manchurian Candidate), and while its creepy mystery a newspaper offi ce in New York as an adult, pausing to musical is now and forever. Those sleek tails standing plot is easy enough to follow even when it turns meta- take a deep breath before entering, as she prepares to at rigid attention. The overlarge tongues dripping with physical, it’s unsatisfying as a story precisely because it sell her fi rst story to the editor. Jo is played by Saoirse milk. The fuzzy full-frontal licking of frontals as sleek as aspires to create a mounting sense of dread by enlarg- Ronan, who captures her fi ery spirit and temper per- a Ken Doll crotch. The twitching whiskers. The moaning ing questions rather than answering them. Like other fectly, not only in her words and actions but her body meows. The human eyes gaping like lost souls, trapped recent thrillers by this director, it’s fairly grisly, though language, too—Ronan moves around in every scene and in a Dante’s tenth circle of hell, land of hypertrichosic Kurosawa’s frequent long shots impart a cool, detached never seems to sit still. Emma Watson gracefully por- chin beards. Remember Jeff Goldblum, at the end of tone to the cruelty and violence. Stylistically it’s the most trays eldest sister Meg, expressing the side of her char- The Fly? Cats is kind of like that, only instead of Jeff inventive Japanese feature I’ve seen in some time, much acter that desires pretty things while also emphasizing Goldblum as a mutant human/insect hybrid, we get more unpredictable than Takeshi Kitano’s recent yaku- her poise and thoughtfulness. Shy and kind Beth, played Idris Elba, Sir Ian McKellen, Rebel Wilson (lots of licking za exercises. In Japanese with subtitles. —J by Eliza Scanlen, beautifully executes some of the most herself), and Dame Judi Dench (thank god never licking R 111 min. Fri 12/27, 8:15 PM and Mon 12/30, 6 heartbreaking scenes in the fi lm. Timothée Chalamet herself) as mutant cat/people hybrids. Speaking of PM. Gene Siskel Film Center plays charming boy-next-door Laurie in a more quiet

Little Women

ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 27 A Reader staﬀ er shares three musical obsessions, then asks IN ROTATION someone (who asks someone else) to take a turn.

TD LK Drummer and composer Cellist and performance artist

Sessa, Grandeza I heard Brazilian artist Sessa Anything by Paolo Pandolfo, but especially perform recently at the Hungry Brain and Bach: The Six Suites The viola da gamba is was completely blown away. The songwrit- the six- or seven-stringed ancestor/cousin of ing is obviously influenced by his country’s the cello. It’s like the goat cheese of stringed rich musical history (Caetano Veloso, Anto- instruments, slightly nasal and gamey and nio Carlos Jobim, Arthur Verocai), but his rich. In 2001 Pandolfo released Bach’s famous group offers a fresh perspective by using a set of six solo cello suites, adapting it for the stripped-down, minimalist instrumentation gamba, which allowed him to do harmon- as well as tasteful applications of psychede- ic and ornamental acrobatics that express lia, tropical, and experimental jazz textures. the original improvisational possibilities of I look forward to more from Sessa and his Baroque music—and a contagious, unbridled amazing band! joy.

Emma-Jean Thackray, Ley Lines (2018) I dis- covered Emma-Jean Thackray through her collaboration with Makaya McCraven. A The author’s 1988 cassette copy of Glass producer and multi-instrumentalist based Eye’s tragically out-of-print Bent by Nature in London, she seems to be a true poly- math: she performed all of 2018’s Ley Lines— drums, synths, singing, brass—by herself. She P M describes the process as stepping out of her Reader music editor usual role as bandleader and creating a community of characters (including outﬁ t chang- Glass Eye, Bent by Nature I stingily ration es and fake names). I am entirely convinced the remaining plays of my deteriorating cas- by this groovy band of Emma-Jeans. sette copy of the 1988 sophomore album by this wonderful art-rock band from Austin, Texas—Bent by Nature has been out of print for ages, and it’s barely streaming anywhere. Its mix of playfully eccentric arrangements, hair-raising melodies, creepy lyrics, rambunc- tious beats, bizarre avant-garde funk bass, Sessa played material from the solo record and heartbreaking vocal harmonies (by gui- Grandeza at the Hungry Brain this past July. tarist Kathy Mc Carty and bassist Brian Beat- tie) is very much of a time and place, which is I guess a way of admitting it sounds dated— Abu Obaida Hassan & His Tambour, The but that’s my time and place, damn it. Shaigiya Sound of Sudan New York-based

Est.Est.1954 1954 Ostinato Records offers listeners positive Celebrating over Frank Rosaly’s ¡Todos de Pie! Drummer stories by releasing music from countries 6165 years of service service Frank Rosaly debuted his ¡Todos de Pie! proj- that have had their international image torn to Chicago! 1800 W. DIVISION ect in 2012, and its fi rst album arrived in Octo- apart by one-sided reporting in major media— (773) 486-9862 ber, three years a er he moved from Chicago including Somalia, Cape Verde, and Haiti. to Amsterdam. He honors his Puerto Rican The Shaigiya Sound documents the music of Come enjoy one of roots by using a 12-piece ensemble (with four northern Sudan’s Abu Obaida Hassan, who percussionists from Chicago’s Las BomPlen- plays a modifi ed fi ve-string tambour. Though Cristal Sabbagh’s series Freedom From and Chicago’s finest beer gardens! Freedom To invites artists to improvise in FEBRUARYSEPTEMBERJADECEMBERNUARY 11...... 20 23 2712 ...... MIKEDA NOFLABBYVID HERO QUINN FLABBY FELTEN HOFFMAN HOFFMAN SHOW SHOW 8PM 8PM eras) to update bomba, plena, son, and other a legend in his own country, Abu was virtual- randomly chosen groups. RICARDOADAME SEPTEMBERJADECEMBERNUARY 12...... 21 2813 .....WAGNER RICKYDSTRAY AMERICAN&BOLTS MORSEBLUES POWER DRAFT traditional idioms, refracting them through ly unknown in the West until this release. The FEBRUARYSEPTEMBERJADECEMBERNUARY 13...... 22 24 29 .....THE ..... THEJEFFDADY RKNAMOSLEAGUE AND DJRO SKID MARIOOM OF LICIOUS MEN ERICS SEPTEMBERDECEMBER 23 14 ....WHOLESOMERADIOPHIL JOE LANASAO’REILLY & SOMEBODY’S DJ NIGHT SINS jazz and improvised music. The band juices sonic experience he creates with his band is Cristal Sabbagh’s Freedom From and Free- JANUARY 14...... GARYSKIPPIN’WHITEWOLFSONICPRINCESS TONOBODY NYROCKS DO ROSARIO GROUP DECEMBER 30MURPHY JONMOJO RARICK THOMPSON 49 NONET 9:30PM 8PM up its joyous horns and simmering drums with rich, hypnotic, and soulful. dom To at Elastic Arts (upcoming April 9) JADECEMBERNUARY 17...... 31MIKE THOMASFOSTER FELTENJA MIE &A HIGGINS MATECKIWAGNER BAND & FRIENDS 10PM JAJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 18...... 1 15 SMILIN’TONY DO MIKE BOBBY ROSARIO FEL TOANDN GROUP THE CLEMTONES 3PM FEBRUARYDECEMBER 25 16 .....WHOLESOMERADIOTHE PROSPECT RON AND RACHELFOUR 9PM SHOW DJ NIGHT dissonant electronics, scalding free improv, Sabbagh is a Chicago-based dancer who puts SEPTEMBERJAJANUARYNUARY 19...... 242 .....RC AMERICAN BIG BAND SITU 7PMAT TROUBADOURION DAVID NIGHT DECEMBER 18KYLE MORSE SADOWSKIMAXLIELLIAM & WAGNER 6PM ANNA acidic noise-rock guitar, and vocal acrobatics Joëlle Léandre and Elisabeth Harnik, Ten- together a quarterly series with a simple, FEBRUARYJANUARY 3 26 .....RCBIRDGANGS THETHOMAS LAY-DOWN BIG 9:30PMABA MATECKIND RAMBLERS 7PM BAND JAJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 20...... 4 19TITTY FIRSTDANNY CITTY FIRSTWARD DRAHERWA PROBLEMSRD PROBLEMS by inimitable Dutch weirdo Jaap Blonk. der Music This powerful and engaging set unusual setup: she invites around 20 impro- FEBRUARYJAJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 21...... 5 28 20 .....PETERDUDE ANDREWOBLIQUE SAMETO CASANONY DSTRATEGIES HUBER DO ROVASARIOQUARTET GROUP 8PM of duo improvisations by Austrian pianist and visers (musicians and dancers), then asks SEPTEMBERJAJANUARYNUARY 22...... 266 .....PETER PROSPECTBAD CASANOVAFORUM RC BIG FOUR QUARTETBAND 9PM 7PM MARCHSEPTEMBERJANUARY 1...... SMILIN’ 278 .....DORIAN ELIZABETH’SNO HEROTAJ BO BBYCRAZY AND LITTLE THE THING CLEMTONES A mortar and pestle I don’t make it to the composer Elisabeth Harnik and French dou- the audience to pick names out of a hat to JADECEMBERNUARY 24...... 21 FEATURINGZ28 PETER PAUL CASONO RAMIREZVA QUARTET 9PM SEPTEMBERJAJANUARYNUARY 25...... 289 .....TO FLABBYURS THE HOFFMAN WICK SHOW 8PM MARCHJANUARYDECEMBER 2...... ICE 10 22BULLY AMERICANWHOLESOMERADIO PULPITBOX AND DRAFT BIG DJ HOUSE NIGHT practice space where I keep my drum kit ble bassist and vocalist Joëlle Léandre docu- choose small groups. The results are experi- JAJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 26...... 11 23 THERC BIG IONS THE BAND HEPKATS 7PM SEPTEMBER 29 .....SOMEBODY’SRICK SHANDLINGSKIPPIN’ SINS RO DUOCK 9:30PM o en enough, but I do cook most weekends— ments a live set recorded in Graz, Austria, in mental, unexpected, and fun, inciting laugh- MARCHJANUARY 3...... CHIDITAROD 12FEATURING HEISENBERG JOE LANASA UNCERTAINTY AND TARRINGTON PLAYERS 10PM 7PM JAJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 27...... 13 28 RCRICKYD BIG THE BANDBLUES STRAY 7PM POWERBOLTS and making a Thai curry paste from scratch 2016. The compelling dialogue and focused ter, audience participation, and performers MARCHSEPTEMBERJANUARY 7...... 301 .....OFFPROSPECT SMILIN’JA THEMIE VINE WABOBBY 4:30PM GNERFOUR AND 9:30PM & THE FRIENDS CLEMTONES 3PM JAJANUARYNUARY 28...... 142NUCLEAR FLABBYAMERICAN WHOLESOMERADIO JAZZ HOFFMAN QUARKTETTROUBADOUR SHOW 7:30PM NIGHT8PM DJ NIGHT in a granite mortar tickles similar parts of my intensity on display here reinforce my belief fluidly switching disciplines—dancers sing EVERYEVERY TUESD TUESDAY (EXCEPT 2ND) 2ND)ATAT8PM8PM brain. Sure, it’s like playing only one drum, that live recordings of improvised music are into mikes and musicians rove around the OPEN OPENMIC ON MIC TUESDAY HOSTED EVENINGS BY JIMIJON (EXCEPT AMERICA 2ND) OPEN MIC HOSTED BY JIMIJON AMERICA and the tone is lousy, but it smells a lot better. o en the most rewarding. stage. v

28 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll Recommended and notable shows and critics’ insights for the weeks of December 26 and January 2

b ALLAGESF MUSIC

to Twinight (home of Syl Johnson), where he cut his PICK OF THE WEEK masterpiece, the single “Not Too Cool to Cry,” a sophisti- cated funky number full of wicked strings (including a vi- Chicago soul dynamo olin solo!) and gorgeous harmonies—with his impossibly supple pipes, Domino could even give Smokey Robinson Renaldo Domino brings a run for his money. Sadly, his career foundered in 1971, after he’d released just two more 45s; despite oodles of his sugary-sweet pipes talent and tours with the likes of the Chi-Lites and Major Lance, Domino failed to break into the mainstream. to “Never Thought” He spent the next several decades raising his family and selling insurance, but then in 2007 the Numero Group reissued “Not Too Cool to Cry” and put out the IN A JUST AND PERFECT WORLD, Renaldo Domino compilation Eccentric Soul: Twinight’s Lunar Rotation, would be as widely revered as legendary Chicago soul which features a photo of a young, dapper, velvet-suited greats Curtis Mayfi eld, Jerry Butler, and Gene Chandler. Domino on the cover—releases that provided him with In my opinion, the only reason the south-side native isn’t the fi rst royalty payments of his life. The following year, a household name is that he simply didn’t get as many Numero dropped an archival 45 of the formerly shelved chances to record as some of his peers. Born Renaldo “I’ll Get You Back,” further burnishing his rep as a golden Jones and raised near 49th and Forrestville, he had his soul boy. This year Domino released the reggae-tinged earliest gigs at mid-60s talent shows and sock hops put “Never Thought” on a split single with Polish reggae on by celebrated DJ Herb Kent, and he was such a prod- producer xRob Black, and he’s still in the fi nest of vocal igy that he landed a deal with Mercury imprint Smash form. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing him perform several before he graduated high school. Renaldo took the name times over the past decade, and the seemingly ageless “Domino” because his singing was sweet as sugar, and singer (the man seriously looks like he could be in his his smooth, honey-dripping vocals on his debut 45, early 40s) still puts on a hell of a show. Dressed to the COURTESYTHEARTIST RD HS 1967’s “I’m Getting Nearer to Your Love,” showcase his nines and oozing pure class, Domino still has the power Sat 1/4, 9 PM, Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, $10. 21+ remarkably mature high tenor and goosebump-inducing to use his perfect sugary voice to give listeners instant falsetto. Two years later, at age 19, Domino was signed cavities. —SK

mer Isaiah Spencer. In all of these settings, Paul’s vise long forms that have the cohesiveness of writ- Junius Paul FRIDAY27 intricate, visceral solos and aggressive grooves ten songs. A quarter century later, they deliver on MARCMONAGHAN lead from the front. Lengthy stretches of the album that promise so consistently that it’s easy to forget Junius Paul See also Mon 12/30. 9:30 PM, are audio verité, but McCraven also cut and re or- how extraordinary it really is that they not only whip Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, $12. 21+ dered some improvised passages to turn them into up hard-swinging grooves, aching blue melodies, big, bold grooves (much as he’s done for his own and intricate contrapuntal themes on the spot, but The band is already midflight as the sound fades records). Paul leads several ensembles on Ism, but also make them hang together over the course of a up at the beginning of “You Are Free to Choose,” for both of these shows he’ll play acoustic and elec- set. While each musician is in high demand and out the opening track of the Junius Paul double LP Ism tric basses with just one lineup: Corey Wilkes on of town for much of the year, they have made it a (International Anthem). Perhaps unintentionally, this trumpet, Justin Dillard on keyboards, and Vincent point to reconvene annually in the last weekend of parallels his career, which has also been in motion Davis on drums. —B M December. —B M for some time. The Chicago-born-and-raised bassist fi rst performed in 2002 at Fred Anderson’s legendary Velvet Lounge, and his early experiences in the DKV Trio See also Fri 12/28. 9 PM, Elastic Arts, club’s storied jam sessions led to an enduring rela- 3429 W. Diversey, second fl oor, $20 per show, $30 SATURDAY28 tionship with the Association for the Advancement advance discount ticket for both. b of Creative Musicians. Paul has since performed DKV Trio See Fri 12/27. 9 PM, Elastic Arts, 3429 with the AACM’s big band and celebrated Ander- In January the DKV Trio released The Fire Each W. Diversey, second fl oor, $20 per show, $30 son’s legacy in a quartet led by AACM elder Ros- Time (Not Two), a six-CD box set documenting advance discount ticket for both. b coe Mitchell, and he’s now a member of the recon- a string of gigs that percussionist Hamid Drake, stituted and upsized Art Ensemble of Chicago. He’s bassist Kent Kessler, and reedist Ken Vandermark also laid down the root notes for ensembles led by played with multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee in Slum Village Add-2 and Jay Illa open. peers such as trumpeter Corey Wilkes and drum- four diff erent countries during the last two months 8 PM, Promontory, 5311 S. Lake Park Ave. West, mer Makaya McCraven, both of whom appear on of 2017. This set—and previous DKV recordings $25-$40. 21+ Ism. The double album, which was recorded mostly featuring the likes of Fred Anderson, Joe Morris, live between 2016 and 2018, encompasses hurtling and Mats Gustafsson—testify to the trio’s willing- Slum Village has been through numerous lineups proto-fusion in the vein of Miles Davis’s lost late- ness to collaborate with other improvisers, but the over its 23 years, but unlike other legacy groups 60s quintet, spacy excursions reminiscent of Sun essence of the group’s art is the music they make that keep rehashing the hits long after key mem- Ra’s mid-1970s small groups, and intricate acoustic on their own. When DKV formed in 1994, the three bers have left, the influential hip-hop group hon- improvisations with cellist Tomeka Reid and drum- members gave themselves this mission: to impro- ors its roots while moving in fresh directions. J ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 29 Find more music listings at MUSIC chicagoreader.com/soundboard. N LINCOLN AVENUE, CHICAGO IL OLDTOWNSCHOOL.ORG ..

JUST ADDED ON SALE THIS FRIDAY! continued from 29 2000’s Fantastic Vol. 2, they remind me of the inter- ed into a scene from an Arthur cartoon so it looks Global Dance Party: Currently a duo of T3 (aka RL Altman III) and long- pretations of J Dilla’s compositions by composer like the band’s music sends Binky Barnes on a hal- Bossa Tres - Samba Party Global Dance Party: Carpacho y su Super time producer “Young RJ” Rice, Slum Village was Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. The new albums aren’t lucinogenic journey. One of my favorites features Combo: Noche Colombiana founded in 1996 by T3 and two childhood pals from track-by-track remakes, but include lush orchestral cult dance sensation, singer, and wannabe model FOR TICKETS, VISIT OLDTOWNSCHOOL.ORG Detroit’s Conant Gardens neighborhood, Baatin versions of most of the songs from each original Buff Correll busting hyperfast moves to the song’s (aka Titus Glover) and J Dilla (James Dewitt Yancey). album. V.1 especially sounds like a love letter to Fan- cycling guitars. These homages aren’t just enter- Their smart lyricism and original beats made them tastic Vol. 2, with its instrumental versions of songs taining—they also underscore the staying power FRIDAY, DECEMBER PM popular in late-90s alternative and lo-fi hip-hop cir- such as “Climax” and “Hold Tight” made just a little of American Football, which got barely any atten- cles, and after Dilla left Slum Village in the early fancier with Abstract Orchestra’s horns and strings. tion when it first came out. Singer-guitarist Mike Bettye LaVette 2000s, he became a breakout producer and writ- —S C-J Kinsella, guitarist Steve Holmes, and drummer and er for hip-hop and R&B musicians, including Janet trumpeter Steve Lamos formed American Football SATURDAY, DECEMBER PM Jackson and A Tribe Called Quest. He died in 2006 in 1997, while studying at the University of Illinois; due to complications from lupus, but his work in and they were already immersed in emo and posthard- Mariachi Herencia out of Slum Village continues to inspire a stagger- SUNDAY29 core, but their new music also refl ected their aff ec- ing amount of hip-hop production and attract praise tion for minimalist composer Steve Reich, Chica- de Mexico from artists such as Common and Q-Tip, which in American Football See also Mon 12/30 and go postrock groups Tortoise and the Sea & Cake, A Very Merry Christmas Concert turn has drawn new fans to the group. Baatin left Tue 12/31. 9 PM, Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, sold and bossa nova. Though it took years for Ameri- the group in 2003 (he passed away in 2009), leaving out. 18+ can Football’s gentle sound and radical approach FRIDAY, JANUARY PM T3 as the sole original member. In 2015 Slum Village to catch on, it feels like half the emo or indie acts released Yes!, which relies on unused Dilla beats In fall 2018, user-generated Internet in-joke data- to emerge this decade bear their infl uence. In cel- Masters of Hawaiian Music: reworked by Young RJ, and the following year they base Know Your Meme added a page. Funny riffs ebration of American Football’s 20th anniversary, put out Vol. 0, a compilation of previously un re- on the band’s 1999 self-titled debut album and its the band recently put out Year One Demos (Poly- George Kahumoku Jr, leased material from the original lineup. On their scene-famous cover art—a green-hued off-center vinyl), a collection of recently unearthed instrumen- Led Kaapana, Kawika recent tours, though, they’ve been mixing up work image of the Urbana house where photographer tal recordings made in Lamos’s childhood home in from the Dilla era with new material that they’ve Chris Strong lived at the time—have pervaded May 1997. Year One collects a previously unreleased Kahiapo said will be recorded in the future. And this month Internet emo and indie-rock circles at least since track (“Song #1 / Song #2”) with material that later they’ve dropped two collaborative albums with the Illinois band reunited in 2014. Plenty of video appeared on American Football’s 1998 self-titled EP SUNDAY, JANUARY PM British hip-hop big band Abstract Orchestra, titled memes incorporate the sylvan and bittersweet and 1999 album. The light electronic percussion and Fantastic 2020 V.1 and Fantastic 2020 V.2 (Ne’Astra “Never Meant,” including a recent cover that uses resonant guitars on the instrumental version of “For The Sweet Remains Music). Comprising instrumental tributes to Slum synths that sound ripped from a water level on Sure” give it an avant-garde lounge feel, showcas- In Szold Hall Village’s fi rst two albums, 1997’s Fantastic Vol. 1 and Super Mario 64, and another where the song is edit- ing a group testing the bounds of their burgeoning sound. Though American Football are keeping the SATURDAY, JANUARY PM anniversary celebration going with these Schubas shows, they aren’t just dwelling on the past. Since regrouping and adding bassist Nate Kinsella to their Mipso with special guests Bridget Kearney & Benjamin Lazar Davis lineup, they’ve released two full-lengths, including 2019’s American Football (LP3)—it’s one of the best albums of the year, and proves that these guys are FRIDAY, FEBRUARY PM still trying to push their style further. —LG Sam Bush Sleep See also Mon 12/30 and Tue 12/31. Circuit FRIDAY, FEBRUARY PM des Yeux opens. 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport, sold out. 17+ iLe in Szold Hall Most band reunions don’t live up to the hype, but most bands aren’t Sleep. In the early 90s, the North- OLDTOWNSCHOOL.ORG ern California trio—bassist and vocalist Al Cisner- os, guitarist Matt Pike, and drummer Chris Hakius— laid down a guttural strain of Sabbath-worshipping blues metal, fi ltered through a crusty psychedelic lens. They broke up in 1998 following a years-long struggle surrounding their third full-length, Dope- smoker—their label balked at releasing a single hour-long song centered on a bong-toting desert caravan, and the band refused to compromise their vision. (An edited take came out as Jerusalem in 1999, and the full version fi nally arrived in 2003.) Ten years later, Sleep announced a set of reunion gigs at All Tomorrow’s Parties 2009, and followed up with are good for a set at ATP New York 2010 (Hakius had retired by then, and Jason Roeder of Neurosis stepped in). The concert gods smiled on me, and I saw that 2010 show—from the foot of the stage, Sleep sounded so massive that I le wondering if any metal concert would ever be as earth-shaking, or if my equilibrium would ever be the same. The huge power of Sleep Buy gift certifi cates at 2.0 befi ts musicians who’d established two of modern heavy music’s most essential outfi ts: Pike started the feral power trio High on Fire in 1998, and

30 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll MUSIC

who left the group after making his psychedelic, MONDAY30 so -rock debut as Matty in 2018. With their latest single, a cover of “Key to Love (Is Understanding)” Sleep American Football See Sun 12/29. 9 PM, by 80s Milwaukee soul group the Majestics, BBNG TIMBUGBEE Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, sold out. 21+ make a return to reinterpretation. A soulful, psych- tinged ballad that features neosoul artist Jonah Yano on vocals, the track introduces a brand-new Badbadnotgood See also Tue 12/31. Junius interlude whose sax, classical guitar, and fl ute give Paul opens (see Fri 12/27). 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, it a jazzy coloration. Fans of fearless genre hopping 2424 N. Lincoln, sold out. 18+ with an old-school edge could fi nd worse ways to close out 2019 than at these two Lincoln Hall shows. Over the past decade, Toronto instrumental quar- —S M Cisneros and Hakius formed the colossally medi- back vibes. And Sleep had a major part in that. In tet BadBadNotGood have evolved into convincing tative duo Om in 2003. The reunion lasted, in part 2012 Southern Lord put out a gorgeous remas- musical chameleons. Shi ing through postbop, funk, because the musical climate Sleep had returned to tered Dopesmoker, and in 2014 Sleep released their rock, jazz fusion, and soulful hip-hop, the four-piece Doleful Lions Earth Program headlines; was arguably more welcoming than the one they’d fi rst new track in more than 15 years, “The Clarity.” group employ a timbral palette as diverse as their Doleful Lions and Camp Edwards open. 8:30 PM, le behind. Long the domain of outsiders and weir- Then in 2018 they surprised everyone by dropping influences, accenting their retro jazz-rock setup Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western. 21+ F dos, metal had found its way to more mainstream a new full-length, The Sciences, and though its 4/20 with keys, synths, a digital sampler, and a bevy of ears by the mid-00s. Many who’d grown up on it release date was obviously a joke, its mountainous guest vocalists. Similar to contemporaries the Bad Chicagoan Jonathan Scott founded his indie-rock were now working in media or academia, and those riff s sure as hell aren’t. Sleep recently announced Plus, BadBadNotGood rose to popularity in part band Doleful Lions in 1996, and though they’ve been making metal themselves o en carried it into new that they would take a lengthy hiatus in 2020, a thanks to deconstructed covers of famous hip-hop active ever since (albeit with a revolving-door line- realms; at the same time, the blandness of commer- decision that comes at the end of a year in which and pop-rock artists. They’ve also become in-de- up), they’ve mostly gone overlooked. That could cial hard-rock radio drove listeners online to search High on Fire won a Grammy (for 2018’s Electric Mes- mand collaborators: they’ve made an entire album be in part because Scott has avoided aggressively for stronger stuff they could buy, stream, or steal. siah) and Om released the live album BBC Radio 1. with Wu-Tang Clan rapper Ghostface Killah, 2015’s promoting his group, but I still wonder why more As with any trend, metal’s surge in popularity result- If there’s anything to be learned from Sleep’s story, Sour Soul (Lex), and they’ve racked up produc- people haven’t found and fallen for Doleful Lions. ed in some absurdities that bordered on parody, but it’s to never assume a goodbye is permanent, but tion credits for the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Fred- Their effervescent power-pop melodies, topped plenty of sincere exploration happened too. As rela- this residency will let us celebrate a full decade die Gibbs, Danny Brown, Little Dragon, Kaytrana- with Scott’s unsettlingly sweet and appealingly out- tively esoteric styles such as black metal and drone since one of the fi nest doom bands of all time rose da, and Earl Sweatshirt. Now, three years since the of-focus vocals, should’ve at least made the band grew past their niches, doom metal became one of from their slumber and give them a proper send-off release of their fifth studio LP, IV (Innovative Lei- a sleeper success. They had a great start, quick- the defi nitive sounds of the 2010s, with its familiar before their next hibernation. —J L sure), BadBadNotGood have begun a new chapter ly signing to downstate Illinois indie label Para- blues and psych infl uences and comparatively laid- without cofounder and keyboardist Matt Tavares, sol, which released their first seven albums J

JANUARY 15-19

ALLDAY | BILL MACKAY | BLACK MARBLE | BORN DAYS | BOY BJORN | BUCK MEEK BURR OAK | CAROLINE POLACHEK | CB RADIO GORGEOUS | CJ RUN | CORRIDOR

DAVIS THE DORCHESTER BULLY | DEEPER | DESERT LIMINAL | FAUVELY | FRAN TNKFEST.COM FRANCES QUINLAN | GARCIA PEOPLES | GOTH BABE | HAND HABITS | HANNAH COHEN HARRIET BROWN | HOOPS | IDER | INDIGO DE SOUZA | JILLIAN X | JUDE SHUMA LALA LALA / NNAMDI / SEN MORIMOTO | LUKE TITUS | MODERN NATURE | N0V3L OLDEN YOLK | PULASKI SQUARES | RESAVOIR | SLOW PULP | STELLA DONNELLY STUCK | TAYLOR MCFERRIN | THE HECKS | THE OPHELIAS | T0TH | TWAIN VV LIGHTBODY | VALEBOL COMEDY AT HIDEOUT THE NEW NEGROES WITH BARON VAUGHN & OPEN MIKE EAGLE LIZA TREYGER | MEGAN STALTER | WHITMER THOMAS | THREE BUSY DEBRAS HELLTRAP NIGHTMARE | WHY? FOOTCLAN

ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 31 Find more music listings at 3730 N. CLARK ST MUSIC chicagoreader.com/soundboard. METROCHICAGO.COM @ METROCHICAGO

continued from 31 Kinobe 3 PM, May Chapel at Rosehill between 1998 and 2008, and since then Scott has Cemetery, 5800 N. Ravenswood, $22. b SONS OF THE remained prolific—for seven years or so he’s aver- FLOSSTRADAMUS SILENT AGE aged almost two Doleful Lions full-lengths per For the better part of two decades, virtuosic multi- SAT JAN 04 MICHAEL SHANNON year, which he records himself and releases either instrumentalist Herbert Kinobe has composed exqui- THE READY FREDDIES through his own Crowned and Conquering Child site Pan-African music from a Ugandan perspec- SAT JAN 11 imprint or with somebody else’s microlabel. Maybe tive. Born in 1983 in a small village outside Kampala if Doleful Lions had ever gone dormant, indie-rock near Lake Victoria, Kinobe (he performs under his obsessives might’ve had the chance to miss Scott last name) grew up hearing the music at the near- TOMORROW NEVER and “rediscover” his work. I’m glad he never put by Kanyange Nnamasole Tombs, a historic Buganda KNOWS 2020 WITH OBSCURE WELCOMES the project to bed, though, because he’s consis- cultural site that regularly holds ceremonies and rit- BLACK ROBERT HOOD tently made music that gets stuck in my head for uals, and at age nine he joined his school choir, which MARBLE LOWKI / CINNA weeks. His two 2019 albums, Hidden Thunderdomes toured Europe. Kinobe’s journey has since taken him HOOPS FRI JAN 24 and Doleful Lions (the latter on Chicago’s Tastee around the world, and since 2008 he’s divided much SAT JAN 18 Records), contain plenty of charming, bucolic songs of his time between Kampala and Washington, D.C. that might even stay in my rotation when Scott inev- Kinobe’s repertoire of original and traditional songs itably releases even more equally excellent material. creates mesmerizing journeys that o en highlight a —L G single instrument at a time, fl owing from one sonic texture to another as he complements his arrangements with his velvety voice. He always includes the Sleep See Sun 12/29. Joshua Abrams Natural sounds of his Bugandan roots, including shimmering Information Society opens. 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, cascades of notes from the bowl-shaped endongo 1807 S. Allport, $32–$45. 17+ lyre and reverberating plinks from the metallic keys of the akogo thumb piano, but he’s also spent much of his life strengthening his grasp of musical tradi- Avery Sunshine See also Wed 1/1 and Thu 1/2. tions beyond his homeland. At age 18, in 2001, Kinobe 8 PM, City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph, sold out. b traveled to Bamako to study with Malian kora master Toumani Diabaté, eventually becoming a highly Some neosoul artists focus on torch songs and accomplished player himself; he’s also learned many heartbreak, but as her name suggests, pianist and other West African instruments. A committed educa- singer Avery Sunshine (aka Denise Nicole White) tor and activist, he o en tackles social and political sticks to the brighter side of the genre. Working subjects in his lyrics, always couching them in beauti- with guitarist and arranger Dana Johnson (who’s ful, delicate, and near-meditative grooves that weave also her husband), Sunshine mixes old-school R&B together East and West African traditions at the grooves, gentle funk, and jazzy gospel vocals on fl ir- intersection of Afropop and Afrofolk. He hasn’t been tatiously humorous songs of requited love. The cou- to Chicago since early this decade, and at this show ple’s best-known track, 2005’s “Stalker,” is typical of he’ll perform in a duet with Ugandan percussionist their good-natured approach to romantic despera- and painter Denis Sewanyana. Against a backdrop of tion, but they deviate from their usual fare with the Sewanyana’s paintings, Kinobe’s remarkable collec- song’s disco-fied house beat. Their characteristic tion of instruments—many of them homemade—will style is perhaps best exemplifi ed by the rollicking make for a rich visual feast to accompany the musical retro-soul rave-up “Used Car,” from 2017’s Twenty one. —CMJ Sixty Four (Bigshine/Shanachie): the rhythm section locks into a groove, Johnson plays stinging, twangy guitar lines, and White wails, growls, yodels, and Sleep See Sunday. Big Business opens. 9 PM, winks her way through double entendres with such Thalia Hall, sold out. 21+ cheer that they barely even sound dirty. “Come Do SMARTBARCHICAGO.COM Nothing” (from the same album) ends with a sweet- 3730 N CLARK ST | 21+ ly nervous answering-machine message as the nar- Avery Sunshine See Mon 12/30. 7:30 PM and rator tries to ask her ex, who’s already moved on, 11 PM, City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph, $65-$78 for over for a date—attempting to lure him with home- either show. b made gumbo rather than explicitly saying she miss- es him. If you’re looking for a romantic, upbeat start ARIEL ZETINA to the New Year, it’s an invitation to accept —N DJ HEATHER B WEDNESDAY1 MICHAEL SERAFINI Avery Sunshine See Mon 12/30. 5 PM, City OLIN Winery, 1200 W. Randolph, $38-$55. b PHILLIP STONE TUESDAY31 SEVRON American Football See Sun 12/29. SOLD 10:30 PM, Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, $50, $45 in THURSDAY2 advance. 21+ 2019 Blake Saint David Huron John headlines; INSTALLATION BY MANIFEST Angry Blackmen, Blake Saint David, and Slomo DECEMBER 31 Badbadnotgood See Mon 12/30. Angel Bat Kanofsky open. Subterranean, 2011 W. North, 2019 Dawid & tha Brothahood open. 10:30 PM, Lincoln $10. 17+ Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln, $45, $40 in advance. 21+ Brockhampton, Billie Eilish, Khalid, and scores of TICKETS AVAILABLE VIA METRO + SMARTBAR WEBSITES + METRO BOX OFFICE. NO SERVICE FEES AT BOX OFFICE! other musicians who’ve emerged in the past few

32 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll MUSIC

Avery Sunshine DEREKBLANKS

years have taken a wrecking ball to genre divides good measure). Over the years it’s grown in ambi- and gotten hugely popular in the process. The tion and in its commitment to inclusivity and artistic genreless state of pop has also produced a lot of diversity. Even those who consider themselves par- gray, emotionally static music, of course, just like ticularly well-versed in the scene are all but guaran- happens within any genre, but it’s been a boon to teed to be introduced to a local act that they didn’t artists such as Chicagoan Blake Saint David, giv- know they were waiting to hear. For the 2020 edi- ing them permission to be as fl exible as their vision tion, a totally ridiculous number of artists will take dictates. The gender-nonbinary rapper, singer, and over Subterranean and Chop Shop for a decadent producer grew up in Auburn-Gresham, where they three-day weekend of sensory overload. The line- used the Internet to connect with other rising musi- up includes longtime scene pillars (Bobby Conn, cians who take a similarly genre-fl uid approach to Cheer-Accident, Ono) as well as up-and-comers pop and hip-hop, including Malibu’s Billy Lemos such as cinematic duo In Masks, feminist hip-hop and Waukegan’s Jackie Hayes (formerly known as acts Glitter Moneyyy and Fury, intense Black-power Family Reunion). David has been on a prolifi c streak experimentalists Blacker Face, punk thrash trio No over the past year, releasing a debut album (April’s Dead Heroes, trippy metal quartet Reivers (ex-Alma Cairo, Illinois), a couple of EPs (February’s Blake Negra), and queer postpunk trio No Men. At Ian’s on Dirt and October’s For When I’m Ready), and a Party, scheduling is more of an art than a science, stream of singles—all of which explore distinctive but thankfully the two venues are close enough to sonic territories. On Blake on Dirt, for example, each other to make for easy staggering back and David echoes the sound of classic 90s Memphis forth between sets. Just keep in mind that showing street rap, busting out a fl ow as thick and smooth up to see an artist you already like without taking a as molasses atop grimy beats that sound as washed chance to explore is very much against the spirit of out as a sixth-generation cassette dub. David has the festivities. —MK also become an adventurous producer over the past year, juggling diff erent moods or bending their voice to suit the feel of each song. On “Late on My Rent,” off For When I’m Ready, David’s pitched- SATURDAY4 down vocals threaten to render the lyrics incom- prehensible, expressing anxiety about econom- Renaldo Domino See Pick of the Week, ic instability better than crystalline diction could. page 29. Heavy Sounds open. 9 PM, Hideout, 1354 —L G W. Wabansia, $10. 21+

Ian’s Party See Fri 1/3. Today’s bands include FRIDAY3 Cheer-Accident, Blacker Face, Ono, Malci, Reivers, and Hitter (upstairs and downstairs at Ian’s Party See also Sat 1/4 and Sun 1/5. Subterranean) as well as the Brokedowns, Rezn, Today’s bands include Absolutely Not, Two No Men, Paper Mice, and Glitter Moneyyy (at Houses, Joshua Virtue, and Avantist (upstairs Chop Shop). 6:30 PM at Subterranean (2011 W. and downstairs at Subterranean) as well as Rad North), 6:25 PM at Chop Shop (2033 W. North), Payoﬀ , Kali Masi, and Vacation (at Chop Shop). $20 per night, weekend passes $45. 7 PM at Subterranean (2011 W. North), 7 PM at Chop Shop (2033 W. North), $20 per night, weekend passes $45. 17+ SUNDAY5 Since debuting in 2008, Ian’s Party has evolved from its humble suburban punk origins into an annu- Ian’s Party See Fri 1/3. Today’s bands include al Wicker Park-based mini fest showcasing under- Meat Wave, C.H.E.W., Ganser, Bruges, and Lovely ground Chicago artists (though there are always Little Girls. 5 PM, Chop Shop, 2033 W. North, $20 a few acts from the greater midwest thrown in for per night, weekend passes $45. v ll DECEMBER - CHICAOREADER 33 CHICAGO SHOWS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT IN THE WEEKS TO COME

EARLY WARNINGS b ALLAGESF

Never miss WOLFBYKEITHHERZIK a show again. Band Royale, Tomblands, Plan- etsexploder 1/22/20, 8 PM, Sign up for the Lincoln Hall, 18+ newsletter at William Basinski performs On Time Out of Time 1/3/20, chicagoreader. 9 PM, Empty Bottle com/early Beach Bunny, Field Medic, GOSSIP Niiice 2/22/20, 7 PM, Metro b Chris Renzema 3/24/20, 8 PM, Donny Benét 2/13/20, 8:30 PM, WOLF SPACE, Evanston b Empty Bottle Revolt Coda, Hit Sleep 1/4/20, Dr. Dog, Michael Nau 2/5- A furry ear to the ground of 7:30 PM, Lincoln Hall, 18+ 2/6/20, 9 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Saariselka, Lea Bertucci Echosmith 2/20/20, 7:30 PM, the local music scene 1/30/20, 9:30 PM, Hideout Park West b Shivas 2/25/20, 9:30 PM, Electric Guest, Soleima LAST WEEK, popular Chicago punk- Hideout 2/17/20, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Shopping, Automatic 4/4/20, Ensemble Dal Niente presents scene pug Chloe died at age 13. She was 8 PM, Subterranean, 17+ Andrew Nogal & Daniel a constant presence on the long-running Soup & Bread benefi t featur- Pesca 1/18/20, 7 PM, DePaul music and culture podcast Better Yet, ing DJ Carrie Weston 1/8/20, University, Holtschneider whose host, Tim Crisp, frequently photo- 5:30 PM, Hideout Performance Center b Spiritual Cramp, Truth Cult Ethnic Heritage Ensemble graphed Chloe alongside his interview- 1/10/20, 8 PM, Cobra Lounge, 2/7/20, 7 PM, SPACE, Evan- ees. If you’re plugged into the local punk 17+ ston b and rock scenes, chances are you’ve seen Josephine Beavers COURTESYOFGILESCOMMUNICATIONS Spite, Varials, Orthodox, I Am, The Exile Follies featuring pics of Chloe relaxing on a couch with Dealer 3/12/20, 7 PM, Beat John Doe, Kristin Hersh, and Kitchen, 17+ Grant-Lee Phillips 2/14/20, the likes of Kelly Hogan, Touche Amore’s Chris Farren, Retirement Laughing Hearts, Boo Baby, Télépopmusik, Alex Zelenka 8 PM, Maurer Hall, Old Town Jeremy Bolm , Lala Lala’s Lillie West , Pie- NEW Party 1/23/20, 8 PM, Beat Nicole Amine 1/21/20, 3/4/20, 8:30 PM, Lincoln School of Folk Music b bald’s Travis Shettel , Stef Chura , Eleventh Kitchen, 17+ 9:30 PM, Hideout Hall, 18+ Flosstradamus 1/4/20, 9 PM, Dream Day’s Rick Rizzo , and Laura Steven- Acacia Strain, Rotting Out, Gone West, Colbie Caillat Le Vent du Nord 1/8/20, Thy Art is Murder, Fit for an Metro, 18+ Creeping Death 3/25/20, 1/9/20, 8:30 PM, Joe’s 8:30 PM, Maurer Hall, Old Autopsy, Enterprise Earth, For Frankie! A Celebration son. “Chloe was a magnet of cheer. She 7 PM, Subterranean, 17+ Hanami featuring Mai Sugimo- Town School of Folk Music Aversions Crown, Extinction of Frankie Knuckles’s 65th loved meeting people and wowing them All-American Rejects 2/20/20, to 1/6/20, 7 PM, Green Line F b AD 4/10/20, 7 PM, Reggies’ Birthday featuring Michael with her mile-wide smile and snorts,” says 8 PM, Concord Music Hall, 17+ Performing Arts Center Riley Leitch, Jonathan Hannau Rock Club, 17+ Serafi ni, Garrett David, Alan Crisp. “I can only be grateful to have loved Bari, Sean Deaux, Lil Blessin, F b 1/12/20, 8:30 PM, Constella- Vanner 1/17/20, 8 PM, Avondale King, and more 1/19/20, 10 Cliff Cozy, Wemmymo, Hardy, Sean Stemaly 1/31/20, tion, 18+ Music Hall b PM, Metro her and to have that love returned so J-Hop, Ambi Lyrics, DJ Sky 8:30 PM, Joe’s Yundi Li 3/9/20, 8 PM, Audito- Violet, Overland, Mistervaca- Sawyer Fredericks 1/19/20, deeply.” RIP Chloe—you were a good dog. Jetta 1/8/20, 7:30 PM, Subter- Hey Nonny Winter Blues rium Theatre b tion, Ariel Zetina 2/15/20, 7 PM, City Winery b A loose team of Chicago music people ranean, 17+ Summit day one featuring Lnr Tmb, Velvet Curtain, Neo- 10 PM, Smart Bar God Awful Small Aff airs, just launched the free online nature and Beartooth, Motionless in Big James & the Chicago ten 1/9/20, 8:30 PM, Empty J. Roddy Walston 2/6/20, 8 PM, Tigershark, Don’t Quit, White, Stick to Your Guns, Playboys, Kinsey Report, Bottle SPACE, Evanston b Neighbors You Know, Wet ecology publication Mid Magazine. The Nothing Le 1/15/20, and more 1/31/20, 6 PM, Hey Louden Swain 2/22/20, 9 PM, Waltzer 2/7/20, 9:30 PM, Wallet 1/15/20, 8 PM, Subter- debut issue includes an interview with 5:30 PM, House of Blues b Nonny, Arlington Heights Subterranean, 17+ Sleeping Village ranean, 17+ rapper Adamn Killa, poems by Kimani Josephine Beavers 1/21/20, Hey Nonny Winter Blues Sum- Taj Mahal Quartet 4/24/20, Wesli 1/15/20, 8:30 PM, Maurer Green Jelly 1/9/20, 8 PM, Beat Rose and Ben “Neon Pajamas” Niespod- 8 PM, City Winery b mit day two featuring Toron- 7 and 10 PM, City Winery b Hall, Old Town School of Folk Kitchen Bodega, Wants 2/10/20, 9 PM, zo Cannon, Jimmy & Syl Raul Malo 3/6-3/7/20, 8 PM, Music F b GZA & Liquid Swords 1/25/20, ziany, and art by DJ Jermaine Collins (aka Schubas, 18+ Johnson, John Primer, Jerry SPACE, Evanston b Jontavious Willis 6/15/20, 9 PM, Concord Music Hall, 18+ Composuresquad) and UK producer Kai Boogie T, Boogie Trio, So Hunt, Brother John Kattke, Raul Midón & Lionel Loueke 8 PM, SPACE, Evanston b Hand Habits, Garcia Peoples Whiston. Chicago DJ and producer Ariel Down 3/20/20, 9 PM, the and more 2/1/20, 10 AM, Hey 2/26/20, 8 PM, City Winery b Wol one, Katet 1/5/20, 1/18/20, 8 PM, Schubas, 18+ Zetina made a companion mix that cor- Vic, 18+ Nonny, Arlington Heights Moore, Rotten Mouth, Space 8:30 PM, Constellation, 18+ Juliana Hatfi eld 1/16/20, 8 PM, DJ Cash Era 1/3/20, 9 PM, Hey Nonny Winter Blues M a fi a 1/9/20, 7 PM, House of Xenopredator, Fleshbore, SPACE, Evanston b rals 100 Gecs, Shygirl, and DJ Genderfl u- Sleeping Village F Summit day three featuring Blues, 17+ Green Leaves, Crusadist, King Princess 2/5/20, 7:30 PM, id into a riotous 22-minute party. You can Chicago Music 2020 featuring Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials, Mortiis, Tomb, Magick Potion Her Worst Nightmare, Riviera Theatre b hear Zetina’s mix and download the issue Funkadesi, Phenom, Amyna Smiley Tillmon, and more 1/25/20, 7 PM, Reggies’ Rock Vicious Attack 1/24/20, 7 PM, Ben Lee 1/24/20, 8 PM, SPACE, at soundcloud.com/midmag. Love, Chicago Bucket Boys, 2/2/20, 10 AM, Hey Nonny, Club, 17+ Live Wire Lounge Evanston b Ugochi, and more 1/2/20, Arlington Heights Murder by Death, Amigo the Zivert 2/2/20, 8:30 PM, Con- Lil Tjay 2/21/20, 7 PM, Concord Before 13-year-old Patrick McNamara 7 PM, City Winery b Hoodie Life 2/6/20, 8 PM, Devil 3/15/20, 7 PM, Thalia cord Music Hall, show moved Music Hall b died in 2011 from brain tumors called Church of Misery 2/19/20, Schubas, 18+ Hall b from Petergof Nightclub; Roddy Ricch 2/10/20, 7:30 PM, ependymoma, friends and family inspired 7 PM, Reggies’ Rock Club, 17+ House of Bodhi featuring Next to Eternity, Vile Cynic, tickets purchased for original Patio Theater b by his bravery (he’d undergone more than Charlie Coff een and friends Bodhi House Band directed Backlash, Station 6 1/3/20, venue will be honored, 17+ Shadow of Intent, Inferi, present J. Dilla’s Donuts by Ameerah Tatum 1/7/20 & 9 PM, Live Wire Lounge Signs of the Swarm, Brand 15 surgeries since age two) had estab- 2/8/20, 7:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 2/4/20, 7 PM, City Winery b Nightly, Wldlfe, Sawyer 2/1/20, of Sacrifi ce 1/22/20, 6:30 PM, lished the charity Pat Mac’s Pack to fund 17+ Joshua Jern Jazz Orchestra, 6:30 PM, Beat Kitchen b UPDATED Reggies’ Rock Club, 17+ pediatric brain tumor research. On Friday, Elena Colombi, Leesh, Higgy Batavia Jazz Ensemble Objekt, Darwin, Flower Food Siames 1/31/20, 8 PM, Subter- January 10, Thalia Hall hosts Fck Cncr 2/22/20, 10 PM, Smart Bar 1/8/20, 8 PM, FitzGerald’s, 2/21/20, 10 PM, Smart Bar Gordon Lightfoot 3/29/20, ranean, 17+ Dadju, LP Offi shal 2/12/20, Berwyn Pro-Pain 3/29/20, 7:30 PM, the 8 PM, Copernicus Center, 69 Eyes, Wednesday 13, Sumo Fest to benefi t the Pack, with music from 7 PM, Concord Music Hall b Johnny V’s Wildfl owers Forge, Joliet b tickets purchased for the 9/27 Cyco, Crowned 1/29/20, Rookie, American Grizzly, Jennifer Hall, Miguel de León 1/22/20, 1/23/20, 8:30 PM, FitzGerald’s, Frances Quinlan, Indigo De show will be honored b 7 PM, Reggies’ Rock Club, 17+ and psych rockers Tongues Unknown— 8:30 PM, Szold Hall, Old Town Berwyn Souza 1/19/20, 9 PM, Sleeping Slow Crush, Grivo, Aurora whose lineup includes Pat’s neighbor and School of Folk Music F b Keith Relief benefi t featuring Village, part of the Tomorrow L’Orealis 1/24/20, 9 PM, Sub- Deals, Feeders, Cheap Randy Houser 1/12/20, Never Knows festival UPCOMING terranean, 17+ friend Connor Grant. Hall dropped the Vacation 1/14/20, 9:30 PM, 7:15 PM, Joe’s Josey Rebelle, Shaun J. Sons of the Never Wrong, booming “In the Water” in October, and Sleeping Village Kembe X, Alex Wiley 2/9/20, Wright 2/7/20, 10 PM, Smart Bad Ambassadors, Manasseh, Katie Dahl 1/12/20, 7 PM, City she’s got more material coming in 2020. Earthgang, Mick Jenkins 7 PM, Schubas b Bar Free Snacks, Sunblvd 1/10/20, Winery b —JRNLG 1/31/20, 10 PM, House of Dermot Kennedy 3/18/20, Red Death, Enforced, Another 9:30 PM, Hideout Soul Asylum, Local H 2/14/20, Blues, 17+ 7 PM, Aragon Ballroom b One Dead, Millions of Dead Marcia Ball, Sonny Landreth 7:30 PM, Metro, 18+ Tinsley Ellis 3/31/20, 8 PM, Stacey Kent 6/18/20, 7 and Angels, Bovice 1/26/20, 7 PM, 2/16/20, 7 PM, FitzGerald’s, Svdden Death 1/10/20, 8 PM, Got a tip? Tweet @Gossip_Wolf or e-mail SPACE, Evanston b 9:30 PM, SPACE, Evanston b Cobra Lounge, 17+ Berwyn Concord Music Hall, 18+ v [email protected].

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SAVAGE LOVE because they want to act on their same-sex attractions (or, Built for monogamy indeed, have their first same- sex encounter), keeping out- Instead of opening your relationship, side sex same-sex—at least at it might be time to end it. first—isn’t an entirely unrea- sonable request. But this is By D S irrelevant in your case, since GetYour Swag! your girlfriend is already fucking anyone she wants. www.chicagoreader.com/shop : I’m a mid-20s cis straight (2) My male/female hook- 3. Your soon-to-be-ex-girl- man. A er my girlfriend and up distinction. (3) How to friend is hilarious. People I fi nished college, she moved move forward if your part- who are bad at monogamy overseas to start her job. ner is unsure whether they don’t get better at it once We’ve broken up twice and are built for monogamy but they’re married. If anything, gotten back together twice. nonetheless wants to settle people who were good at We are interested in opening down in a married, monoga- monogamy tend to get worse up our relationship, but I mous relationship. —O at it the longer they’re mar- have reservations. She wants P E N ried. If your soon-to-be-ex- the freedom to throw herself S girlfriend isn’t bullshitting, into her new world without if she isn’t bringing up mar- the constraint of having a: 1. Don’t open it. End it. It’s riage and monogamy to to shut down non-platonic time to put this dumb, messy, complicate and extend your sparks. My girlfriend has past-its-expiration-date conversations about open- brought up marriage several shitshow of a relationship ing up this doomed rela- times. While she admits she behind you. Would knowing tionship, then she’s deluded. doesn’t have a good track your girlfriend is already And if your girlfriend cheats record with monogamy, she fucking other people help because she gets off on risk, insists marriage will change you do that? Because your danger, or deception, getting that. Another concern: The girlfriend is almost certainly married—which would obvi- Make the holidays easy & delicious! last time she was in an open fucking other people. ously make cheating riskier relationship, she cheated on Already. Because when and more dangerous—could her then-boyfriend with me. someone with a shitty track make cheating more appeal- “No exes” was one of their record where monogamy ing to her, not less. rules, and I was her ex at the and nonmonogamy are time. (I didn’t know she was concerned asks their partner : I’m a bisexual man with someone else.) for an open relationship while married to the most Another wrinkle: When I at the same time demanding beautiful trans woman. I confided in her recently that their partner “abort” any can’t keep my hands off I had developed romantic potential “non-platonic” her. But why can’t I fuck her feelings for another per- friendships they might have anally like we both want? I son, she asked me to choose . . . yeah, that motherfucker is can’t seem to push past the Whole Foods Market Lakeview between her and them, and already fucking other people. gates, which sends a signal so I aborted this burgeoning They just don’t want to to my brain that I’m doing connection. That felt unfair, give their partner the same something wrong, which For your catering, personal shopping seeing as she wants her free- freedom they’ve already make me Mr. So ee. Every & delivery needs. dom. She is also bisexual seized for themselves. other thing we do in bed is and wants to have experi- 2. It seems like a silly dis- smooth as silk. Help! ences with women. I would tinction to me, OPENS, one —LI ’M JP Pierson be fine with her hooking up that comes from a place of P Off Your Plate (OYP) Service Experience Liaison with women, but it makes insecurity. (And a “no other me sick to my stomach to dick” rule would make most a: I’d have to see video 773.244.4200 think about her with other gay open relationships to guess at what might be [email protected] men. She would be willing impossible.) But sometimes, wrong—not an ask, LIMP, to put her desire for expe- working with your partner’s don’t send video—but it riences with other women insecurities—accepting them, never hurts to use more lube, to the side in order to be not fighting them—is the key engage in more anal foreplay, with me, she says, once we to a successful open relation- and sometimes do butt stuff are married. I would love ship. And since many bisex- without even attempting anal to hear your thoughts on uals in monogamous oppo- intercourse. And when you these things: (1) Whether we site-sex relationships often do go for it, maybe instead should open our relationship. ask to open the relationship of you trying to fuck her/

36 CHICA OREADER - DECEMBER ll OPINION

push past the gates, LIMP, but how can I get her to He might also ask if there’s a you could lie still and let her understand my bisexuality way she’d feel more comfort- take charge. In other words: is not a threat? —B -B able allowing him to be sex- Don’t fuck her with your dick, B ? ual with a man. Maybe they let her fuck herself with your have a threesome. Maybe she dick. a: “BBB obviously isn’t going prefers that it be someone to leave his girlfriend for the she knows, or someone she : I’m a twentysomething bi ﬁ rst man he sleeps with,” said doesn’t know. There’s a lot to man in a loving relationship Zachary Zane, a “bisexual discuss.” of three years with a straight inﬂ uencer” and a sex writer But eventually, for your woman. Last year, we for Men’s Health. “All bisexual own sanity, you’re going to opened up our relationship. men are not secretly gay. have to insist that your girl- At the beginning, we set But this is a lie—a vicious friend get over her biphobia. some ground rules. One of stereotype—that BBB’s She can’t just throw up her her rules was that I could get girlfriend has heard countless hands and say, “I can’t help together only with women, times. So even though she it!” no men. It bothered me knows this logically, she still “Perhaps I’m giving BBB’s at the time, but it was the can’t shake that concern. girlfriend too much cred- only way she would be okay Fear o en isn’t rational and it, but it sounds to me like opening up, so I didn’t press it can override logic. She’s she’ll come around in time,” her on it. Fast-forward to simply insecure.” said Zane. “And while BBB a couple days ago, when And while accommodating is angry—and validly so—the I brought it up again. She a partner’s irrational insecuri- anger shouldn’t be placed eventually admitted she’s ty is sometimes the price we on his girlfriend. It should be afraid I will leave her for a have to pay to make an open placed on a society that has man, and that’s why the idea relationship work, accommo- ingrained in her the belief of me being with other men dating your partner’s insecu- that bisexuality isn’t valid makes her uncomfortable. rity—one so clearly rooted in and that bi men will always She knows these are biphobia—isn’t going to be leave their wives/girlfriends stereotypes, but she says sustainable over time. You’re for another man if given the she can’t get over it. I ended already angry and hurt, BBB, opportunity.” that night angry and hurt. and you’re going to get more And if she never comes Now I don’t know what to do. upset with every dick you around, BBB, then you can To be honest, if we weren’t have to pass up. So what do show her how silly and irratio- in an open relationship, I you do? nal her fears were by leaving wouldn’t be bothered by the “The key to helping BBB’s her for another woman. v fact that I can’t be sexual girlfriend understand that with men. But now that I his bisexuality isn’t a threat is Send letters to mail@ know she is not okay with me for him to reassure her often savagelove.net. Download doing so because of these that he’s not going to leave the Savage Lovecast every bi stereotypes, it drives me her for a man,” said Zane, Tuesday at savagelovecast. nuts. I’m not going to end “and to tell her and show com. our relationship over this, her how much he loves her. @fakedansavage

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