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Music, Music Feature Jan 30, 2020
The best Chicago albums of the 2010s: the critics’ ballots

Here’s where to see who voted for what and how the points got divvied up.
- By Reader staff and contributors
- Tags: Music Feature, Chicago albums, best albums, best albums of the decade, best Chicago albums of the decade, best Chicago albums of the 2010s, poll, ballots, ranking, Katie Got Bandz, C.H.E.W., Salsa Boricua de Chicago, Ohmme, King Louie, Ono, DJ Taye, DJ Taye, Serengeti, La Armada, Cupcakke, Tink, Spektral Quartet, Bangs and Works, Third Coast Percussion, Rempis Percussion Quartet, Dead Rider, Willis Earl Beal, Tree, Ganser, Lord Mantis, Freakwater, Dustin Laurenzi, Nicholas Szczepanik, TALSounds, Cave, Melkbelly, Young Pappy, G Herbo, Toupee, Meat Wave, Vandermark, Marker, Living by Lanterns, Weekend Nachos, Slow Mass, DJ Rashad, Bruised, Robbie Fulks, Hieroglyphic Being, Mako Sica, Arriver, Damon Locks, Black Monument Ensemble, Disappears, Fire-Toolz, Tomeka Reid Quartet, Pastor Donald Gay, Kaina, Lala Lala, Coping, Charles Joseph Smith, Monobody, Saba, Noname, Chance the Rapper, Kanye West, Chief Keef, Jamila Woods

Music, Music Feature Jan 30, 2020
The best Chicago albums of the 2010s

The Reader polled dozens of critics to arrive at an absolutely indisputable ranked list of several hundred records that will definitely not start any arguments.
- By Reader staff and contributors
- Tags: Music Feature, Chicago albums, best albums, best albums of the decade, best Chicago albums of the decade, best Chicago albums of the 2010s, poll, ballots, ranking, Katie Got Bandz, C.H.E.W., Salsa Boricua de Chicago, Ohmme, King Louie, Ono, DJ Taye, Serengeti, La Armada, Cupcakke, Tink, Spektral Quartet, Bangs and Works, Third Coast Percussion, Rempis Percussion Quartet, Dead Rider, Willis Earl Beal, Tree, Ganser, Lord Mantis, Freakwater, Dustin Laurenzi, Nicholas Szczepanik, TALSounds, Cave, Melkbelly, Young Pappy, G Herbo, Toupee, Meat Wave, Vandermark, Marker, Living by Lanterns, Weekend Nachos, Slow Mass, DJ Rashad, Bruised, Robbie Fulks, Hieroglyphic Being, Mako Sica, Arriver, Damon Locks, Black Monument Ensemble, Disappears, Fire-Toolz, Tomeka Reid Quartet, Pastor Donald Gay, Kaina, Lala Lala, Coping, Charles Joseph Smith, Monobody, Saba, Noname, Chance the Rapper, Kanye West, Chief Keef, Jamila Woods

Music, Gossip Wolf Oct 11, 2016
Chicago label Deep Space Objects compiles a constellation of diverse electronic tracks

Plus: Argot releases the serenely funky 90s house of Shifty Science, Lord Mantis drummer Bill Bumgardner dies at 35, and more.
- By J.R. Nelson and Leor Galil
- Tags: Gossip Wolf, Beta Orionis, Deep Space Objects, Del Dot, Saki, Anuj Girdhar, Foodman, Jana Rush, electronic music, footwork, juke, ghetto house, OB, Jon Monteverde, Lily, Ultrademon, Jeremiah Fisher, Steve Mizek, Argot, Shifty Science, John Kardaras, Chris Ike, Lab Work 91-96, Versions for Modern Dancerfloors, house music, Savile, Straight to Hell, clothes, jackets, East Room, Ravagers, Dirty Fences, Mama, White Mystery, Lord Mantis, Bill Bumgardner, obituary, death, suicide, Indian, Burning Churches, Flat Iron, Empty Bottle, Green Street Smoked Meats, Will Lindsay, Ken Sorceron

Blogs, Bleader May 18, 2016
Dark Lord Day pays homage to Blade Runner on the gig poster of the week

This week's gig poster was designed by local artist Dan Grzeca of Ground Up Press.
- By Luca Cimarusti
- Tags: Gig Posters, Music, Arts, Visual Art, gig poster, gig posters, gig poster of the week, Dan Grzeca, Ground Up Press, Dark Lord Day, Three Floyds, Dark Lord Day with Skeletonwitch, Eyehategod, Municipal Waste, Plague Bringer, Barrier, Lord Mantis, beer, heavy metal

Music, In Rotation May 17, 2016
Video
Lord Mantis drummer Bill Bumgardner on the Melvins’ speaker cabinets of choice

Plus: Bill’s bandmate Andrew Markuszewski on a guide to the dark heart of nightlife, Reader music editor Philip Montoro on Japanese junkyard posthardcore, and more
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: In Rotation, Bill Bumgardner, Andrew Markuszewski, Lord Mantis, New Density Records, Avichi, Burning Churches, Nick Lowe, Jesus of Cool, I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass, Birushanah, Makyo, Iso, Sano, Funeral Dance in the Mountains, Canary Records, Meinl, Meinl cymbals, Godflesh, Messiah, Sungod, Tyrant, Tyrant cabinets, The Brvtalist, Heavy Leather, Chicago Music Exchange, CME, Sovtek Mig 100H, Video

Blogs, Bleader Apr 28, 2016
Video
New faces, same ugly: Blackened-sludge kings Lord Mantis drop the first record from their retooled lineup

Lord Mantis celebrate the release of NTW, their first recording since last year's lineup change, by headlining the Empty Bottle tonight.
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: 12 O'Clock Track, Do This, Music, Lord Mantis, NTW, Nice Teeth Whore, SIG Safer, Death Mask, Empty Bottle, Dylan O'Toole, Scott Shellhamer, Andrew Markuszewski, Will Lindsay, Bill Bumgardner, Charlie Fell, Video

Music, Gossip Wolf Mar 11, 2015
Let the Lollapalooza lineup predictions begin!

Plus: A shakeup for Lord Mantis births another nasty metal band, and newcomers Buckingham Palace SVU play a free show.
- By J.R. Nelson and Leor Galil
- Tags: Gossip Wolf, Lollapalooza, ASAP Rocky, Drake, Florence and the Machine, Andrew Barber, System of a Down, Mick Jenkins, Twin Peaks, Lord Mantis, Bill Bumgardner, Andrew Markuszewski, Will Lindsay, Dylan O'Toole, Scott Shellhamer, American Heritage, Charlie Fell, Ken Sorceron, Abigail Williams, Missing, Jef Whitehead, Leviathan, Sanford Parker, Corrections House, Fade Kainer, Batillus, Jeff Wilson, Wolvhammer, Buckingham Palace SVU, Humboldt Park, Archie's, Nones, DJ Todd Novak, HoZac, Arman Mabry, Rabid Rabbit, Casey Harris, Sharing Mass Graves, ake Acosta, Famous Laughs, Kevin Spain, Dead Letter

Blogs, Bleader Mar 4, 2015
Chicago doom band Indian confirms breakup

Indian is definitely done, but three of its four members are already working together in Lord Mantis.
- By Leor Galil
- Tags: Jumping Ship, Music, Indian, From All Purity, Roadburn, MetalSucks, Dylan O'Toole, Lord Mantis, Bill Bumgardner, Psycho California

Blogs, Bleader Dec 1, 2014
Penrose Brewing achieves infinitely self-similar deliciousness with Fractal

Geneva's Penrose Brewing renews its push onto retail shelves with four-packs of the Belgian-style IPA Fractal (and the Belgian-style white IPA Desirous).
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: Beer and Metal, Music, Food & Drink, Beer and Metal, beer, metal, Penrose, Penrose Brewing Company, Eric Hobbs, Tom Korder, P-2, Proto Gradus, Desirous, Fractal, Belgian IPA, Wild V, Geneva, bottles, four-packs, Avichi, Lord Mantis, The Devil's Fractal, Andrew Markuszewski, Aamonael, Profound Lore

Blogs, Bleader Apr 24, 2014
Best shows to see: Princess Nokia, Lord Mantis, Loop

Best shows to see on Thu 4/24 through Sun 4/27
- By Luca Cimarusti
- Tags: Do This, Music, best shows to see, Loop, Lord Mantis, Princess Nokia, Berlin, Bottom Lounge, Cobra Lounge

Music, Record Roundup Apr 21, 2014
The Pixies' deflating Indie Cindy and 15 more record reviews

A dozen far-flung Reader writers cover Future's conscience-stricken coke rap, Todd Terje's playfully colorful nu-disco, Triptykon's lightless armor-plated epics, and points further afield.
- By Luca Cimarusti, Leor Galil, Kim Kelly, Monica Kendrick, Peter Margasak, Bill Meyer, Philip Montoro, Erin Osmon, Miles Raymer, Tal Rosenberg, and Kevin Warwick
- Tags: Record Roundup, Kent Burnside, Crime & the City Solution, My World Is So Cold, Lucky 13, R.L. Burnside, Cuddle Magic, Phyllis Chen, FYO, Brian Eno, Karl Hyde, Someday World, Warp, Underworld, Fushitsusha, Peter Brotzmann, Nothing Changes No One Can Change Anything I Am Ever-Changing Only You Can Change Yourself, Keiji Haino, Utech, Future, Honest, Epic, Alexander Hawkins Ensemble, Step Wide Step Deep, Dylan Bates, Otto Fischer, Shabaka Hutchings, Neil Charles, Tom Skinner, Ibn Inglor, New Wave 2, JACK Quartet, Helmut Lachenmann: Complete String Quartets, Mode, Kelis, Ninja Tune, Dave Sitek, TV on the Radio, Lord Mantis, Death Mask, Profound Lore, Charlie Fell, Pixies, Indie Cindy, Black Francis, Screaming Females, Live at the Hideout, Don Giovanni, The Hideout, Steve Albini, Marissa Paternoster, Todd Terje, It's Album Time, Olsen, Bryan Ferry, Triptykon, Melana Chasmata, Prowling Death, Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, Thomas Gabriel Fischer, V. Santur, Simone Vollenweider, The Space Project, Lefse, Antlers, Blues Control, Beach House, Jesu, Zomes, Spiritualized, Jason Pierce, Wovenhand, Refractory Obdurate, Deathwish Inc., David Eugene Edwards

Blogs, Bleader Mar 31, 2014
At long last Penrose blesses Chicago with its beer

Two Goose Island veterans who've set up shop in Geneva debut with a trio of balanced, nuanced Belgian-style session beers.
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: Beer and Metal, Music, Food & Drink, Beer and Metal, beer, metal, Penrose, Penrose Brewing Company, Geneva, Proto Gradus, P-2, Navette, session, session beer, Devoir, Tom Korder, Eric Hobbs, Jeff Cagle, Une Annee, Belgian, Lord Mantis, Body Choke, Death Mask

Blogs, Bleader Feb 15, 2013
12 O'Clock Track: "At the Mouth" by Lord Mantis, who play Cobra Lounge tonight

The suffocatingly hateful "At the Mouth" will let you know what sort of good times to expect from Lord Mantis at Cobra Lounge tonight.
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: 12 O'Clock Track, Music, 12 O'Clock Track, Lord Mantis, metal, Pervertor, At the Mouth, Cobra Lounge, Zath, Roadburn

Best of Chicago, Music & Nightlife Jun 20, 2012
Critics' Picks
Best Band That Sounds Like the Robot Squid From the Matrix Movies

Lord Mantis
- By Philip Montoro
- Tags: Music & Nightlife, Best of Chicago 2012, Lord Mantis, black metal, Critics' Picks

Music, Three Beats Mar 12, 2012
Three Beats: Cellist Tomeka Reid steps out with Hear in Now

Plus: Super Minotaur hit the ground running with their first LP, and Lord Mantis outdo their vile debut with Pervertor
- By Peter Margasak, Leor Galil, and Philip Montoro
- Tags: Three Beats, Tomeka Reid, jazz, Mike Reed, Nicole Mitchell, Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, Great Black Music Ensemble, Siliva Bolognesi, Mazz Swift, Chicago Jazz Festival, Woma Jazz Festival, Super Minotaur, punk, South Bend, Cold Slice Cassettes, Lord Mantis, Andrew Markuszewski, Nachtmystium, Indian, Sanford Parker

Music, Music Column Jun 17, 2010
A Weirder Shade of Black

Nachtmystium advances black metal by breaking all its rules.
- By Miles Raymer
- Tags: Music Column, Black metal, Leviathan, Wolves in the Throne Room, Nachtmystium, Blake Judd, Azentrius, anti-Semitism, Zionist, Metalreviews.com, Unholy Terrorist Cult, Reign of the Malicious, Vinland Winds, Unholy Records, Zadok Day, Scion Rock Fest, Bruce Lamont, Yakuza, Bruce Finkelman, Robert Lowe, Lichens, Merrick Jarmulowicz, white powder not white power, Instinct: Decay, Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. I, Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. II, Will Lindsay, Indian, Jeff Wilson, Andrew Markuszewski, Charlie Fell, Lord Mantis, Pat Clancy, Corpse Vomit, Empty Bottle

Blogs, Bleader Dec 22, 2009
Seventh Rule Wishes You a Happy 666-mas

Metal CDs devilishly discounted
- By Miles Raymer
- Tags: Crickets, Music, Seventh Rule Recordings, Sharp Darts, Chicago, Indian, Lord Mantis, Wetnurse, Thoughts of Ionesco, metal, servicey

Blogs, Bleader Feb 27, 2009
Friday playlist

From glam rock to booty electro: what I've been listening to today
- By Miles Raymer
- Tags: Music, Crickets, Death, T.I., Lord Mantis, Charles Hamilton, playlist, Thunderheist, Machel Montano, Micachu & the Shapes, Dublin Duck Dispensary, Our Brother the Native, Dead Man, Shrimpss, Katie Stelmanis, Alice Cooper

Blogs, Bleader Dec 18, 2008
This weekend: Kuma's Doom Fest

Kuma's Corner serves up all the doom you can eat.
- By Monica Kendrick
- Tags: Music, Crickets, Metal, Kuma's Corner, Yakuza, Minsk, Kuma's, Indian, benefits, Rabid Rabbit, Kuma's Doom Fest, Kongh, Samothrace, Blood of the Tyrant, Beneath Oblivion, Rue, Ganon, Plague Bringer, Harpoon, Across Tundras, doom, doom metal, Lord Mantis, Battlefields, Jungle Rot, Lair of the Minotaur, Atlas Moth

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Here’s where to see who voted for what and how the points got divvied up.

The Reader polled dozens of critics to arrive at an absolutely indisputable ranked list of several hundred records that will definitely not start any arguments.

Plus: Argot releases the serenely funky 90s house of Shifty Science, Lord Mantis drummer Bill Bumgardner dies at 35, and more.

This week's gig poster was designed by local artist Dan Grzeca of Ground Up Press.

Plus: Bill’s bandmate Andrew Markuszewski on a guide to the dark heart of nightlife, Reader music editor Philip Montoro on Japanese junkyard posthardcore, and more

Lord Mantis celebrate the release of NTW, their first recording since last year's lineup change, by headlining the Empty Bottle tonight.

Plus: A shakeup for Lord Mantis births another nasty metal band, and newcomers Buckingham Palace SVU play a free show.

Indian is definitely done, but three of its four members are already working together in Lord Mantis.

Geneva's Penrose Brewing renews its push onto retail shelves with four-packs of the Belgian-style IPA Fractal (and the Belgian-style white IPA Desirous).

Best shows to see on Thu 4/24 through Sun 4/27

A dozen far-flung Reader writers cover Future's conscience-stricken coke rap, Todd Terje's playfully colorful nu-disco, Triptykon's lightless armor-plated epics, and points further afield.

Two Goose Island veterans who've set up shop in Geneva debut with a trio of balanced, nuanced Belgian-style session beers.

The suffocatingly hateful "At the Mouth" will let you know what sort of good times to expect from Lord Mantis at Cobra Lounge tonight.

Lord Mantis

Plus: Super Minotaur hit the ground running with their first LP, and Lord Mantis outdo their vile debut with Pervertor

Nachtmystium advances black metal by breaking all its rules.

Metal CDs devilishly discounted

From glam rock to booty electro: what I've been listening to today

Kuma's Corner serves up all the doom you can eat.

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