B.Y.O.B. Performed By Classical Musicians

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If you ever wondered what System Of A Down’s “B.Y.O.B.” would sound like performed by three Cellists and a Bongo Drummer, well now you will know! Not going to lie, this is actually really catchy and creative! Check the video below!

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The Anti-Smartphone: Will The “Light” Phone Actually Be A Thing?

It has no games or apps.  It has no e-mail.  You can’t check Facebook or Snapchat.  You can’t even text with it.  But one company is banking that you will want a slim device that is only capable of making phone calls

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The company is calling it the “Light” phone.  But am I too far off in calling the antithesis of a smart phone….the “dumb” phone?  To me, texting has changed how we communicate on the go.  So I’m not sold that a “phone-only” option is going to be the answer.  But maybe you think a smart device is too tempting and would be interested in having a secondary device.  What do you think?

 

The Bears Could Have Moved To — Gary, Indiana?

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The San Diego Chargers abandoned their home for over half a century this week — they told the world that Los Angeles is the place they ought to be.

At which point I was reminded — our own Chicago Bears made their own threat a few years back, too.

In 1995, the McCaskey family had grown tired of Soldier Field. It was in a word — old. In order to entice taxpayer funds to keep them in Chicago, they began talks with a group from of all places — GARY, INDIANA — to build them a new home.

That new home would have been called “Planet Park.” A revolutionary idea of the time, it would have created an entire entertainment complex around the new Bears stadium — shopping, bars/restaurants, hotel and camping accommodations, and a nine hole golf course.

Mayor Daley hit back at the proposed move, hinting that the Bears would not be missed because of a possible Canadian Football League expansion franchise coming to our fair city. Canadian Football! Their receivers don’t even come set before the snap of the ball. The audacity!

In the end, Lake Country officials wouldn’t pass the new tax that would fund the project. And now, we are left with a spaceship squatting on Greek colunnades.

Bear down, Chicago. Bear down.

Billy Corgan On The Smashing Pumpkins Future

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Billy Corgan was on our sister station last week, WLUP, when he co-hosted with Mancow. During the show, Billy touched on the current state of The Smashing Pumpkins. While on the topic, he said, “we’re talking about it” and “things look good” regarding a possible reunion. While we all want to believe that the Pumpkins will be returning to a stage soon, we can not take these phrases as confirmations and have to wait for an official announcement from the band. I won’t lie, I got extremely excited after reading what was trending on social media, but you can’t always believe what you read on there! In conclusion, we are right back to where we started on The Smashing Pumpkins, a reunion has NOT been announced, but that doesn’t mean they are not thinking about it. Check out the video below from Billy Corgan himself on his Twitter that will hopefully clarify what was said!

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Ringling Bros. Circus to end after 146 years

After 146 years ‘the Greatest Show on Earth’ will come to an end in May. The owners of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus told the Associated Press yesterday the popular circus touring company will end forever. Feld Entertainment, owners and operators of the show expressed that changing tastes, drawn out battles with animal rights groups over the treatment of the animals featured in the show, and high operating costs as just some of the contributing factors in their decision to close the curtain. The removal of Elephants in 2016 from the show after years pressure and legal fights with animal rights groups, has seen unexpected drops in recent attendance making the show unable to maintain a touring schedule.

“There isn’t any one thing,” said Kenneth Feld, chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment. “This has been a very difficult decision for me and for the entire family.” The Feld family has owned Ringling Bros. since 1982, running it’s two separate touring companies, and also producing the Monster Jam, Disney on Ice, and Marvel Live shows in arenas.

Ringling Bros. from Wisconsin merged their juggling acts, clowns, acrobats, exotic animals, and sideshows with the acts of Barnum and Bailey in the 1919. It brought live entertainment on a large scale to both small and big towns across the country with acts from around the world. It was at one point one of the biggest forms of live entertainment in America.
This 1990’s documentary covering the craft, showmanship, and progression of the Ringling Bros Barnum and Bailey Circus is a thought-provoking watch, especially when you know the show for ‘children of all ages’ ends this spring.

Phantogram’s Sarah Barthel + Josh Carter (PLAYBOY INTERVIEW & PHOTOSHOOT)

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(playboy.com) Photography by Will Richter

Singer Sarah Barthel, one-half of rock duo Phantogram, all smoked-out eyes and sardonic lyrics. The energy she brought to this shoot, along with her dog, Leroy, (The Good Boy on IG) was effervescent. Despite Leroy’s typically adorable antics, all eyes were on the effortless Barthel. (MORE HERE)

Read the full interview with the band (here)

 

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VIDEO: A Home Robot that speaks only in GIFs

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In December, tech wizard Abhishek Singh promised on Reddit to soon reveal a domestic robot that communicates exclusively displaying GIFs and seems to show a humorous alternative to the new wave of at-home computers that answer to commands. Well in a video posted today on Youtube, Singh just proved he can make the coolest robot that everyone will want in their home at some point.

His name is ‘Peeqo’ and Singh ingenuously shows off the bot’s personality and ability to instantly pop up an isolated piece of media in the form of GIFs, that answers questions and communicates a point. Think of the way that Bumbllebee from the ‘Transformers’ movies would express himself with pieces of audio from other movies and Tv shows, but far more advanced while also very practical. Watch Peeqo in action here.

 

Judah and The Lion on Conan

If you missed it, Judah and the Lion did “Take it All Back” on Conan last night. They’ve come a long way from the Lounge!

Here’s it is in the Lounge.

More form their SL visit HERE.

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Taco Bell is going national with fried chicken taco shell

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(from redeyechicago.com)

Taco Bell plans to go nationwide this month with its latest concoction: a taco with a shell made entirely out of fried chicken. Taco Bell says the shell of the Naked Chicken Chalupa is made up of all-white seasoned chicken. The rest of the taco is packed with lettuce, tomatoes, cheddar cheese and avocado ranch sauce. (MORE HERE)

Just when you  thought they couldn’t create something better than Cool Ranch Doritos Locos they turn around and do this!! So far 2017 is not so bad.

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CHiPS trailer is out

Jimmy Kimmel aired the FIRST trailer for CHiPs starring Dax Shepard, Michael Peña and more, in theaters March 24th.

And the internet is split.  Bradley is soooooo excited:

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Travis, no so much:

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Brandon is feeling violent:

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I never got into the tv show CHiPS, so cannot compare the two, but the movie doesn’t look bad…

I will probably wait for it to come to redbox, tho. #oldschool

<3 @laurenoneil

 

Looks Like “Gus” is Coming to “Better Call Saul”

Another “Breaking Bad” character may be joining “better Call Saul” season 3. They released this promo video of Giancarlo Esposito as “Gus” the owner of “Los Pollos Hermanos.”  Pretty creepy slogan, too. “Taste the family.”

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3D PIZZA PRINTER!?!

Thank you to the person that texted this to me!! IDK if this pizza would be edible but you gotta start somewhere right? Maybe by 2020 we’ll have a GIORDANO’S app that can print pizza on our phones!!

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Woody Harrelson joins Han Solo Star Wars film

Woody Harrelson has come a long way from being a dimwitted bar back in the sitcom ‘Cheers’ to a fierce Haymitch Abernathy in the ‘Hunger Games’ film series, and now he’s going to a galaxy far far away. Harrelson is confirmed to appear in the upcoming Star Wars spin off film with Alden Ehrenreich playing a young Han Solo and Donald Glover as a young Lando Calrissian. Harrelson’s role is believed to see him as a mentor to Solo, but it certainly adds a proven vet to the new wave of Disney produced SW films.

“We couldn’t be more excited to work with an artist with as much depth and range as Woody,” the film’s directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The LEGO Movie) said in a statement through LucasFilm. “His ability to find both humor and pathos, often in the same role, is truly unique. He is also very good at ping pong.”

Harrelson is quite busy this year already with three films set to be released including ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’, the R-rated comedy ‘Wilson’ and the experimental ‘live movie’ experiment he’s doing in limited theaters next week called ‘Lost in London’. Get the lowdown on all the big movies of 2017 in our 17 to Anticipate article here.

This Han Solo is scheduled to come out in May 2018, but could get pushed back to December 2018. It goes into production this month.

Struggling at work?

The first thing I did when we moved to our new location at NBC tower was scout out places to nap.

What I didn’t know then is that naps are GREAT for work productivity!  An hour long afternoon nap improves memory and critical thinking!

Researchers examined the sleeping patterns of nearly 3,000 people to learn whether taking a nap had any effect on mental health.

Nearly 60 percent of the people in the study said they napped after lunch for between 30 and 90 minutes, with the average nap time at about 63 minutes.

The participants took several tests to assess their mental status, answering simple questions about the date, time of year and basic math problems.

According to the study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, those who took an hour-long nap performed better on the mental tests compared to those who did not nap!

nap 📷: http://1000awesomethings.com

More on naps HERE.

This is great news!  I’m off to grab some shut eye.

<3 @laurenoneil

Chilling ‘Daily Show’ Report on Gun (Emoji) Control

(from splitsider.com) Roy Wood Jr. reporting

Here’s a clip from Tuesday night’s Daily Show, where correspondent Roy Wood Jr. investigates the new war being waged in the US around gun control — more specifically, gun emoji control. (MORE HERE)

 

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10 STANDOUT BANDS @ BONAROO 2017 (WIN TICKETS!)

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Here are 10 bands in no specific order that you should seek out at the just-announced Bonaroo Music & Arts Festival 2017. Win the trip and tix to Bonnaroo by texting FEST to 64636. More on that here.

 

The Irish rock titans are jumping on the road to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their magical ‘Johsua Tree’ album. This date on a massive fest has not been the norm for Bono and company due the band being able to play football stadiums on their own, like the recently announced June 3rd show at Soldier Field (WIN TICKETS HERE) 

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS

The Peppers deliver live every time. They have tons of songs you will hear live that make you go “OH , I LOVE THAT” and then wiggle your butt wildly. Yes, instant wiggling going down. If you are not able to do roadtrippen to Manchester, Tennessee here is your shot to see RHCP during their two night residency at the United Center on June 30th  and July 1st. 

THE XX

This duo of dreamy alternative has been coming up strong, and this recent breakout performance on Saturday Night Live makes them that ‘band you’ve heard about that you need to checkout’ on this year’s ‘Roo lineup. The XX plays Aragon on May 1st. 

LORDE

The New Zealand lady boss of alt is preparing to return in 2017 with this festival set one of her biggest shows announced so far. Could this allude to seeing her perform in another giant music fest? Maybe one that takes place in Grant Park in August….WHOA! Slow down, just speculating about how this affects the Chicago area live music fests, for more on who could be at Lollapalooza and Riot Fest, check out our Palooza Possibilities predictions/wants.

COLD WAR KIDS

CWK has made memories at Piqniq and Lolla in the past, so the sunny southern skies should be no problem. They also know how to amp their shows with alternate versions of their recorded material to give it a fresh feel for their live show that makes it feel unique and special.

CAGE THE ELEPHANT

This band is one of the best live acts in music, not just alternative, all of it. Their sets which have seen singer Matt Schultz become a puppet-master of jumping crowds at our Piqniq and Nights We Stole Christmas shows have proven that Cage is band you can see multiple times and enjoy more each time.

GLASS ANIMALS

Their groovy Lounge session with us showed how much the Oxford-based group can get and that ability to be chill yet energized is an underrated part of a festival experience.  You can only crowd surf so long before people don’t want to carry you, so this band provides that buzzy cocktail hour music for the modern age.

TEGAN & SARA

These loveable Canadians have been able reinvent themselves and bring their diehard fans with them along the way. We were fortunate enough to be able to feature them on at No Dough Show a few years ago and just a few months back in an intimate Lounge session. There songs have this real resonance live that you might not catch on your first or third listen, so get closer ..get it,…closer with this video.

ROYAL BLOOD

A UK band who the Foo Fighter’s Dave Grohl says is his one of his “favorite bands”, Royal Blood  won us over in 2014 with “Figure it Out” when they opened for Rise Against on our ‘Twas the Night Before show at House of Blues. They got this feeling you can gravitate very quickly with fist-bumping breakdowns and hooks that get stuck in your head.

THE FRONT BOTTOMS

When I got to chat with this band at Lolla’16 the energy was loud and pronounced: happy! This punk-influenced act from New Jersey had a standout set in the main field at Grant Park earned over people who never knew them and fans who fell in love with them online stood by the rails for their set for hours.

THE ORWELLS

These wild boys with a head-bobbing sound that meets at a cross section of the Stooges, the Strokes, and Cage the Elephant come right from our area, specifically Elmhurst. Catching one of their sold-out shows at Lincoln Hall a few years ago was a ride in itself with crowd surfing extravaganzas, collective stomping, mass clapping and mandatory hip-shaking. Based on their 2016 release ‘Terrible Human Beings’ that fire is still burning.