Though it might not be widely discussed, given the context of snowstorms and mayoral elections, 2011 was a very good year for Chicago music, both locally and nationally, in mainstream circles and outside them. more ›

The Chicagoist food staff is in the kitchen all year long to bring you seasonal home cooking recipes that are appropriate for our Chicago climate and food availability. Here are highlights from 2011. more ›

We always eagerly await the Chicago Reader's Best of Chicago issue - especially the food and drink section, of course - for two reasons. First, it allows us to vehemently disagree with the results of the public polls (Paulina Meat Market beats Butcher and Larder? Margie's Candies beats Black Dog Gelato?) and because of the great categories the critics come up with so they can include the restaurants they want to include. more ›

Of course he managed to make a somewhat family-friendly fucksaw joke. And a lot of other really good jokes. more ›

One of the more unusual festival success stories of recent years, 2010's Neon Marshmellow Festival gathered a multitude of artists who fall under experimental music's wide-reaching, hard-to-define grasp, and set them out over four days at the Viaduct Theater. In a world of Lollapaloozas and Pitchforks, Neon Marshmellow's esoteric bent toward the wide-ranging avant-garde from around the world -- artists traveled from as far Japan, Belgium and Australia to play -- helped it stand out from the summer festival pack. So much so that, despite the niche focus and the financial uncertainty for organizers Dan Smith and Matt Kimmel, a 2011 edition is a go. more ›

Having just celebrated their first year anniversary with a whole host of events, not to mention a profile in the New York Times. Not one to rest on their laurels, the indie radio station recently announced dates for its annual record fair on its blog. more ›

So the snow projected for tomorrow through Thursday is expected to finally give us the whole "Thundersnow/Snowpacalypse" big dump of white powder worthy of dibs that we've really been missing so far. Already, meterologists are comparing this to previous large blizzards. Second City Cop said Mayor Daley, since he's a lame duck, should just "Bilandic" snow removal operations, which would drive residents to do more than "stomp SOS and HELP in the ground." One reader suggested we call the forthcoming snow a "snownami;" Karl coined the term "blizzaster." We're just gonna call it "Tuesday." more ›

January 2011 hasn’t even reached its halfway point yet, but Chicago is already putting itself on the musical map for the entire year. Next week, highly anticipated efforts from well-regarded local acts Smith Westerns and Disappears are set into the wild, while rapper Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco are repping for the city’s hip-hop scenes with new upcoming efforts. In short, it’s a good time to be a Chicago music fan. As a kick-off, we figured we’d go through our most anticipated local albums for 2011. more ›

Nearly 200 new laws take effect this week in Illinois. This laundry list of legislature covers everything from campaign finance to monkey ownership. Here’s a quick look at a handful: more ›

Continuing with our staff predictions for 2011. more ›

We've been giving you our best of 2010 lists all week. With 2011 just about to crest the horizon, we thought it would be fun to ask the staff to gaze into the office crystal ball, do a little divination and see what might be on the horizon for the next year. Stay tuned for part two later! more ›

After months of waiting, Heather Campbell's wildest dreams came true: she made the final cut of the Hooters 2011 calendar. Campbell, who is a waitress at the Hooters location in Orland Park, had no idea she would be featured in the calendar even after what we imagine to be a stressful (but fun!) photoshoot:

She sent in a photo in May and was told a short time later she had been chosen to be part of a professional shoot with eight other women who work at Chicago-area Hooters. They met in June at a mansion in downtown Chicago, where Campbell was photographed in a bikini and in the shot that made the calendar.

So now the news has sunk in and...well, now what? There's plenty of speculation, mainly around the idea that Oprah will simply relaunch her show on OWN once she closes down shop here. Kind of what Nikki Finke suggested a few weeks ago. So who knows what we'll find out in a few minutes when her show goes on the air, the last live taping of the calendar year (new taped episodes will still be shot). She'll address her audience and we're guessing it'll be mostly the same as what we've already her. But maybe we're wrong. Maybe we'll get specific details about what she plans on doing when that mystical date of September 9, 2011 flips over on the calendar. more ›