Beyond the plethora of music venues, record stores and starving musicians looking to make more than a peep in this city, Chicago is one of the leading hubs for record labels.

As Velicity Metropolis, the boisterous blonde drag queen and host of Hamburger Mary’s weekly Bingo, will be sure to tell you, this really isn’t your grandma’s church basement Bingo.

Transistor is one of those hard-to-define Andersonville stores. Is it a record store? A bookstore? With art for sale on every inch of wall and amps, instruments, and headphones on display, I had to ask—what is Transistor?

Mark Smith runs a tight ship at the poetry slam held on Sunday nights at the Green Mill.

Looking for a place to get into the holiday spirit with friends and family? Check out these 5 kickass decked-out holiday bars!

We are on a mission to perfect the art of the neighborhood bar crawl… and I’m not gonna lie, I think we may have accomplished our goal with this one. Good beer, good pub food, so-bad-it’s-good karaoke, and one member mysteriously disappearing mid-crawl? Yep, we’ve officially done it.

Ah, ice skating. A winter tradition, and one of the only things that will tear Chicagoans from their cozy fireside cocoons before heading back for a cup of hot cocoa or cider. Whether you’re a novice or pro, getting out for at least one skate is a must.

Starting in late November, a Chicago holiday tradition will be unveiled at the Lincoln Park Zoo. More than a million sparkling lights fill the zoo, creating one of the brightest parts of a Chicago winter.

Chicago’s Chinatown neighborhood on the South Side is one of the city’s least-appreciated yet coolest places to visit. Check out our visual representation of a night in Chinatown… then visit and experience it yourself!

Chances are, if you’re a buyer of Vinyl records or rare CD’s then you enjoy the hunt for music almost as much as you enjoy the music itself. It was with this mentality that I attempted to tackle every record store within Chicago city limits.

If you’re on the south side of Chicago and you’re a wee bit thirsty for a pint, Western Avenue’s got you covered.

Grab some cash to tip the DJs and do some vocal warmups, because readers, you’re going to have a hell of a time at any of these kickass Chicago Karaoke Bars.

For part two of Chicago Record Labels, I look to span the gamut between independent success stories, the unfortunately-short-lived-but-loved, and totally-unheard-of-but-making-waves-in-certain-crowds.

A great place to have a bar crawl, the gentrifying neighborhood of Humboldt Park had lots of places for us to explore.