I’ve been to quite a few of the House of Vans shows and it’s safe to say that they are a special thing; especially in the colder months, where the warehouse’s […]
Review: House of Vans Transformed into a Multicolored Sea of Sound
Review: Makaya McCraven’s Universal Beings is a 10-Piece Jazz Explosion at South Shore Cultural Center
Makaya McCraven, the 35-year-old Chicago jazz drummer, composer and producer, is making waves crossing free jazz with hip hop. Collaboration and spontaneity are pillars of his cause, as demonstrated on October’s Universal […]
Mykele Deville Announces New Album Maintain
Chicago hip-hop scene has been on fire recently. Noname‘s Room 25, Saba’s Care for Me, Ric Wilson‘s BANBA, Rich Jones‘ The Shoulder You Lean On barely scratch the surface on this year’s amazing […]
Review: Inside Noname’s Room 25
“Maybe this the album you listen to in your car When you driving home late at night Really questioning every god, religion, Kanye bitches Maybe this is the entrance before you get […]
Vic Mensa Kicks Off This Summer’s Vans House Parties
As the days get warmer and the nights get shorter, Chicago kicks into full summer mode with concerts and festivals all across the city. To start things off right, the House of […]
Album Review: uuskhy’s Monstrous Drain the Maker Comes to Life
Drain the Maker, the debut full-length from avant-garde electro-pop act uuskhy (stylized in lower case letters) is at once very modern and surprisingly old-school. The album haphazardly mixes a blend of eclectic […]
Dessa Goes Pop at Subterranean
Minneapolis hip-hop backpack rapper Dessa has started a new chapter. She’s experimenting with different producers to create a unique new sound, no longer sharing the stage with longtime collaborator Aby Wolf, went […]
An Orchid is Born: Sidewalk Chalk Album Review
If you didn’t know who Sidewalk Chalk was before, you probably should now. The Chicago soul/hip-hop band’s fourth full-length, out June 2, 2017 via Ropeadope Records, is bombastic to say the least. Opening […]
Mykele Deville Drops Third Album in Two Years, And Isn’t Stopping Soon
We haven’t seen a Chicago music scene like this before. With the newfound attention on our city following Chance The Rapper’s rise to fame, every artist in the city that can say […]
TCR Mixtape No. 16: New Year, Same Me
We’re 26 days into 2017. It’s no secret that it’s starting to feel like we’re living in a parallel universe, but let’s take a moment to focus on you. How are you […]
Nerdin’ Out with mc chris
There was a girl standing on the second balcony of SubT dressed as a jester. Her red and black attire was striking even under the dimmest of lights. Her face was painted […]
Hip-Hop is American Art: A Talk with a Critic, an Audio Engineer and a Rapper at Chicago Ideas Week
When names like Drake or Kanye West become household names, it marks a time in our culture when mainstream America widely embraces hip-hop as an original art form. Teachers and professors have […]
