Our diversions can't all be happy. And this one certainly isn't. Lost in the recent shuffle of the Gulf Coast oil geyser and the Times Square bombing suspect arrest was another major event: the devastating floods in the Southeast. At least 27 people have been reported killed from the weekend storms - 18 in Tennessee - and many portions of a major American city - Nashville - were under water and yet it's garnered little national attention (at one point last night, the New York Times' website didn't even mention it on its front page while giving links to stories on compost and the LPGA). Scenes from the floods will most likely resonate with many here in the Midwest (and Chicago), which has certainly seen its fair share of flooding in recent years. The below video comes via Mashable. more ›

, Chicago has long been home to one of Steve Earle's strongest fan bases. He's such a gifted songwriter that fans often overlook the fact that he's essentially made the same record since 1996, right down to the obligatory duet with a female singer, "state of my life" liner notes and beautiful artwork by his good friend, the local artist and noted unemployed film-goer Tony Fitzpatrick. more ›

All week, Chicagoist will be breaking down the Schubas Tomorrow Never Knows Festival by day to take a look at the sometimes raw, always promising talent that's creating some of most deafening buzz on the independent music horizon. more ›

The Chicago Blackhawks have released a schedule for home televised games for the 2007-2008 season that includes seven dates starting with Sunday's 6pm game against the Detroit Red Wings. more ›

You’ve got to hand it to the University of Chicago for releasing the findings of a study that calls out the City of Chicago for not nurturing its hometown music scene, right on the heels of the most lucrative 3 days on the city’s annual music calendar. The study examined the economic impact of the music industry on the 50 most populous metro areas of America, pulling together data like number of jobs related to... more ›

Chicagoist is a big fan of alternative sports. No we are not talking about underwater hockey but sports that are popular around the world that have just-under-the-mainstream-radar following here in Chicago. We're talking Gaelic Football, Rugby, and Australian Football. Chicagoist was excited to see there are some great alternative sporting events heading to town in the coming month. This weekend, Chicago United Australian Football Club is hosting the Nashville Kangaroos in a Mid-America Australian Football... more ›

, while we're weekending in Nashville. more ›

Chicagoist had a debate with a friend a few months back about the deficiency of really influential musicians coming out of Chicago in the past several years. We argued about the semantics of “coming out of Chicago” – does that mean born and raised here? Still living here? Commonly associated with the Second City? more ›

Any weekend that has the Cubs and White Sox playing each other is exciting, but since the Sox added A.J. Pierzynski to the mix he seems to have developed an uncanny ability to fan the flames even more. Remember his little run-in with Cubs catcher Michael Barrett last year? A.J. didn't disappoint this year, either, causing fireworks at the beginning and end of the weekend, both on the field and off. On Friday, during Mike... more ›

In what was billed as a possible preview of Arena Bowl XXI and lived up to the hype. Two of the Arena Football League's best teams faced off in an exciting affair that wasn't decided until the final seconds. Unfortunately for the Rush it did not go their way. more ›

Seeing Artimus Pyledriver play last night at Double Door made Chicagoist want to grow our hair long(er), stop bathing, quit our jobs, start drinking, and just hit the road. We missed the band last time they were in town, but were told by no small number of attendees that these Georgian upstarts nearly stole the show with their energy and antics. Last night confirmed these reports as the five-piece's stoner Southern-boogie metal tunes drenched the... more ›

Two Allstate Arena-based franchises are finding success. The Chicago Wolves kicked off their playoff campaign this weekend against their rival to the north, the Milwaukee Admirals. The Wolves took advantage of home ice, winning the first two games in the best of seven series. They won the first game 3-2 and skated to an easier victory in the second game, 4-1. more ›

Last week, we went to Chalkboard, the new restaurant in North Center owned by former SushiSamba Rio chef Gilbert Langlois (we'll have a recap of the experience in "Your Friday Food Buffet" later this week). Now, Langlois and his staff have compiled a pretty impressive wine list, but on the day of our visit it was so warm. We wanted a beer that complemented the weather as well as the food. This wasn't a problem... more ›

"When I was a kid, I wanted to be a pilot," started Abeng Stuart (at right in the picture, with partner Dre Palmer), owner of the Bronzeville eatery Wings Around the World. "With these wings, it's the next best thing." Stuart isn't just spouting mere hyperbole. Since opening last September, Wings Around the World has steadily been bringing in customers from all over the city. more ›

Some days it seems like the next time we have to interview for a job that the only way that will happen is on television. Of course, we’re not sure who would watch America’s Next Top Admin Assistant. It also seems like television is the top way for a band to get that next boost forward these days. Nashville Star is no American Idol in terms of ratings, but Evanston native, Meg Allison, has survived two episodes on the country music industry’s answer to AI. more ›

As we noted yesterday, winter is on its way (though you’d never know it), which means it’s harder to convince yourself to leave the house and spend time seeing great live music. But it also means it’s time for Tomorrow Never Knows, the “mini-winter-indie-fest” at Schuba's, now in its third year. We’ve got a pair of tickets to give away for the five-day fest that are yours for the having, if we pick your name. more ›

Denis Savard can make Blackhawks history with a victory at Minnesota on Tuesday night. On Saturday night when the Blackhawks came from behind to defeat the Nashville Predators 4-3 in OT, Denis Savard became only the second Blackhawks coach to win his first three games as head coach, the first being Sid Abel (1952-53 season). No Blackhawks coach has ever won their first four games as coach of the team. Prior to Savard's promotion the... more ›

We are very sad to hear news that Robert Altman, one of our favorite filmmakers, has died at age 81. His last film A Prairie Home Companion was one of his few to deal overtly with death, so we can't help thinking that it was on his mind. At last year's Oscars, the long-overdue presentation of a lifetime acheivement award to Mr. Altman filled us with pride. A true maverick who directed everything from M*A*S*H to Popeye, The Player, Nashville, Short Cuts and Gosford Park, Altman was known for making films exactly the way he damn well felt like making them. As irrational as it sounds, to this day we have a soft spot for Popeye and often still hum "He Needs Me," as sung in the film by Shelley Duvall. more ›

It's often said that the best ideas are the ones that are stolen. With that in mind, leave it to McDonald's to test market chicken biscuit sandwiches in 800 stores, including a handful in Ohio and Michigan. Can Chicago, the Promised Land of the Great Migration, be far behind? The sandwich is a response to the successes of the popular Chick-fil-A chain and Wendy's, whose premium chicken sandwich menu consistently outsells Hamburger U's. It could... more ›

Chicagoist is not advocating the mass quantity purchase of aluminum foil to build your own Stanley Cup just yet. We are, however, encouraged to see the Blackhawks start their regular season off on a positive note, building on a successful pre-season by winning their season opener against a tough Nashville Predator team. ESPN calls the Predators "The Thinking Man's pick" to represent the Western Conference in this year's Stanley Cup. more ›

Over the weekend, the Blackhawks reduced their roster to 22 by sending seven players down to the AHL Norfolk Admirals in preparation for the start of the 2007 regular season. The 22-player roster includes 14 forwards, 6 defensemen and 2 net-minders. For those playing at home, the players shipped out were Michael Blunden (F), Brandon Bochenski (F), Dave Bolland (F), Jonas Nordqvist (F), Dustin Byfuglien (D), Danny Richmond (D), and James Wisniewski (D). more ›

The last couple of years have seen the Canadian cities of Montreal and Vancouver acquiring reputations as hotbeds of indie rock. But the most recent northern export we’ve heard takes equal parts metal and Mountain and mixes it together to form a bluesy stew. We’re speaking here of Priestess. more ›

Last year, the Blackhawks won just 26 games, ahead of only two teams in the NHL. Although it is just the preseason, Blackhawk fans have to feel good about the upcoming season. The Chicago Blackhawks have played five of their eight preseason games and are off to a perfect 5-0 start. The Blackhawks have not had troubles sounding the horn, scoring 19 goals for an average of 3.8 goals per game. In four of the... more ›

During a two-year process, approximately 200 nations competed for one of 32 coveted spots in the 2006 FIFA World Cup Finals. What are the rest of the teams left to do while the best teams prepare for the world's biggest sporting event? Many are scheduled to be opponents in final warm-up matches for teams that have qualified. The United States, for example, is simulating the first round of the World Cup by playing three matches... more ›

Earlier this year Chicagoist told you about Chicago United, Chicago's very own Australian Rules Football team. This weekend they will be hosting the St. Louis Blues at 3pm on Saturday at Waveland Field. This is Chicago's home opener for the Mid-American Australian Football League (MAAFL) season. The MAAFL is a division of the United States Australian Football League and is made up of seven teams: Atlanta Kookaburras, Chicago United, Cincinnati Dockers, Dallas Magpies, Milwaukee Bombers,... more ›

The Chicago Australian Football Association (CAFA) is preparing for their 2006 season. The sport that is wildly popular down under, also known as Aussie Rules or Footy, has been growing in popularity and participation in Chicago and across the United States for more than 10 years. Aussie Rules is played on a gigantic oval that can be as long and as wide as two American football fields. It is a fast-paced, hard-hitting game that provides... more ›

The Chicago Blackhawks return to the United Center ice on Wednesday night versus the Nashville Predators. The National Hockey League took a break so many players could represent their countries in the Winter Olympics. This weekend Sweden earned the Gold, Finland the Silver and the Czech Republic took the Bronze medal while the States come home empty handed. The break was badly needed for a Blackhawks squad that had lost five of their last six... more ›

The Bears have been on the golf course for almost three weeks now and the Pittsburgh Steelers are off to Disneyland. Football fans fresh off their Super Bowl feast are prepared to hibernate until the 2006 season. That is unless you choose to become a Chicago Rush Arena Football fan. Chicagoist had put little credence in the Arena Football League (AFL) until recently. We first took notice of the sport when the Arena Football League... more ›

Down in Nashville there’s an obsession with a dish called “hot chicken.” Legend has it that it started when the girlfriend of a man named Thornton Prince- a notorious womanizer- decided to exert payback on Prince’s whoring around by spiking his fried chicken with enough hot spices to fell an elephant. But the girlfriend discovered the hard way that revenge is indeed a dish best served cold: Prince loved the hot chicken so much he asked for seconds and thirds. more ›

There happen to be dueling reports of when the tickets actually go on sale for this – it’s either tonight at 9 pm or tomorrow at the same time. We thought we’d give advance warning either way. Bobby Bare Jr’s Young Criminal Starvation League will be shooting a video on Monday the 21st at The Hideout ($10, 9 pm). Finding the perfect hipster/non-hipster outfit for this should be an adventure. Chicagoist first stumbled upon... more ›