Better Than Your Garden-Variety Chicago Saturday: 2nd Annual Brew Not Bombs Benefit + Local Favorite The Gnomes at Bottom Lounge

By Scarlett Stoppa (with bits by David Shuey), September 16, 2009

Local indie bands! Home brew and vegan pizza-making contests! Brew and pizza samples! Raffle prizes! And all for just $8, with proceeds to benefit Cob Connection and Iraq Vets Against the War.

What: Brew Not Bombs II
Where: 3951 W. Fullerton (map)
When: Saturday, September 19, 2009, starting at 5 p.m.
Offering: Local bands This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb, Defiance Ohio, Sass Dragons, the Read, Al Scorch, and The Rust Belt Ramblers. Good Samaritan sponsor – and one of the handful of locally produced beers – Half Acre.

Cob Connection is a local nonprofit practicing a veg-friendly translation of the popular Chinese proverb: "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Through one of their after-school programs local young adults convert vacant lots into thriving community gardens and farms, develop farmers' markets, and donate a portion of their crops to the local food pantry. That's almost as tasty as their $25 organic market basket filled with chard, kale, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, Brussels sprouts, herbs, tomatoes, and more! Become a Facebook fan of "Cob Connection - Urban Organic Produce," show up any Saturday between 10:30am and noon (bring your own bag) at the site on the corner of Crystal and Kedzie (between North and Division on the west side of Kedzie), or call The Cob directly at 773-346-1205 to get your basket and connect with this great organization.

And if you still happen to be riding the Iraq War fence, the collective opinions of 1700+ Iraq War veterans may just help you make up your mind.

David Shuey says: "I happened to catch the Iraq Vets Against the War Benefit at Epiphany Church last fall. It was breathtaking. Before Mucca Pazza came out to raise hell, the entire crowd was entranced by one ex-soldier talking about hell – and humanity. The stuff you don't see on TV. Everyone was completely silent, and some moved to tears by the stories. But it's not depressing, it's real – and provides context, much more than your standard anti-war speech. One was about being hugged by an Iraqi under the strangest circumstances, I remember. On the stage were people, some barely of drinking age, who saw the counterproductive 'regime change' and nation-building bullshit firsthand, then reversed their minds on why they were there. I admire that."

Both are worthy causes – and did you catch that part about CRAFT BEER?

Same night, different channel: The Gnomes.

There's little in the world more magical than a songwriter rich with allusion, and Andy Larson, The Gnomes' frontman and songsmith, is rolling in it. Noting his fondness for the jellyroll-style entendre perfected by Mississippi Delta bluesmen like Bo Carter, you might even call him filthy rich. But, like Shakespeare, he's more than a bawd. He’s a lover, intoxicated by the world around him, a balladeer eager to pay homage to life’s intoxicants – whiskey, zen, gin, the night sky, music & musicmakers, "human emotion & physical love," unconditional love, and, of course, cunning wordplay & delicious irony (a la “Elizabeth Kubler Ross Has Died”). He drinks them all in and, with gnominous benevolence, crafts songs that leave us tipsy. And our pain...“a memory, and memory's history.” For this show, and on the forthcoming album Gnomes III, Andy says: listen for a veer between late-Beatles-inspired introspective pop and garage rock paeans to physicality "Human Emotion / and Physical Love." There's a psychedelic waltz thrown in for slow dancers as well called "The New Aire."

Who's Rockin' Indie-Style: The Gnomes
Also Playing: Soft Targets, Last Fast Action, and Hey Zeus
Where: Bottom Lounge, 1375 W. Lake (map)
When: Saturday, September 19, 2009. The Gnomes play second, at approximately 10 p.m.
Free CD: Sayeth the always endearing Gnomes, "We'll be previewing songs from forthcoming 3rd release. Get a free copy of Gnomes I or Gnomes II [ed. note: their excellent first 2 albums] with admission. See you there!"
What? Even More Free Stuff: Free MP3 download of "The New Aire" here.

David adds: "I said it all in my previous Gnomes write-up here. They'll make you drunk-happy, or a happy drunk. You won't even need the beer. Also, rock 'n roll heaven dwellers Richard Wright (and Sad Syd) would have loved that homage cover on the left. Animals mastermind Roger Waters would sue. "

Canadian Biker Ladies Down Shift to Chicago, Handlebar

Almost four years ago a talented and driven group of writers, photographers, designers, artists and bikers relaunched a magazine for pedal-powered people in Vancouver, BC. Soon after, in true grassroots fashion, they asked people here to write stories and send photos about Chicago bike haunts, such as Handlebar and Cal Liquors. The magazine grew (both online and physically), distribution extended beyond Canada, to several cities in the States. Then it showed up in Chicago – free and widely available thanks to distribution by local gear-heads like T.C. O'Rourke.  

And this week, you can meet, drink, chat bike history, and talk about bike collaborations (hey, you too can write stories and get published in 14 North American cities) with the publisher, Amy Walker, and reps from Momentum Magazine. Or as Amy put it:

Do you live in Chicago? If yes, the 3 ladies of Momentum (Amy, Tania, Mia) are coming to visit you! Come down to the Handlebar for a low-key celebration of bike culture in Chicago. Thanks to the wonderful and incredibly organized T.C. O'Rourke for arranging this party! For those of you that pick up Momentum for free in Chicago, you can thank the lovely T.C for delivering them - by bike - all around the city.

Where: Handlebar, 2311 W. North Ave
When: Monday, February 23, 2009 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
What For: Meet Momentum Magazine people; drink beer; talk bikes; offer your ideas and talent!