The release of a new album from Chicago blog-era rap legends the Cool Kids is a high point in what’s been a banner year for ...

An Ayler Xmas Josh Berman (cornet), Dave Rempis (saxophones), Peter Maunu (guitar, violin), Brian Sandstrom (bass, guitar, ...

Since 2018, Little Village band Iron Years have been releasing frigid, danceable postpunk—a sound most associated with its ...

Local horror-punk four-piece Won’t Stay Dead purge their demons through breakneck riffs and passionate harmonies.

Chicago Pulp opened this past September, and offers classes, open studio sessions, and custom pulp to artists and curious ...

At iO, the Orbit, an "artful, immersive show," experiments with long-form improv in the round that puts vulnerability first.

More than 40 years after noisy no-wave band Bag People broke up, Drag City released a collection of their blistering ...

Young People's Theatre of Chicago's production of A Year With Frog and Toad is a delightful holiday outing for families.

The incentives in music journalism say it makes economic sense to cover popular artists. But loving music isn’t about making ...

Midwestern vaudevillian Dennis Scott discusses his early memories of music, his mentor, and the joys of playing during the ...

TUTA returns for the holidays with a moving and thoughtful production of Thornton Wilder's The Long Christmas Dinner.

Bylines labeled “Chicago Reader Staff” are used for features that contain nonwritten, nonreported information like listings, ...