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12. Klaxons (October 6, Vic Theater, Chicago)
13. The Go! Team / Cool Kids / Hood Internet (October 13, Double Door, Chicago)
14. Justice (October 17, Metro, Chicago)
15. Thyestes at the Court Theater, Chicago
16. Gun With Occasional Music (October 20, Cobb Coffee Shop, Chicago)
17. The Thermals (October 24, Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago)
18. Picasso at the Lapin Agile at University Theater, Chicago
19. Alleyway Sex (November 2, Cobb Coffee Shop, Chicago)
20. Battles / Caribou (November 8, Metro, Chicago)
21. Kyle Mann Combo / The Queensmen (November 10, Cobb Coffee Shop, Chicago)
22. What The Butler Saw at the Court Theater, Chicago
23. Top Girls at University Theater, Chicago

1. Fuck Your Face / Alleyway Sex (March 2, Cobb Coffee Shop, Chicago)
2. Asobi Seksu (March 13, Vic Theatre, Chicago)
3. Lightning Bolt (March 31, Cobb Coffee Shop, Chicago)
4. Fuck Your Face / Gun With Occasional Music (June 2, University of Chicago)
5. James Moore aka Sawgrass (June 3, Beat Kitchen, Chicago)
6. The Walkmen (June 16, Taste of Randolph, Chicago)
7. Alleyway Sex (June 20, The IMC, Champaign IL)
8. Pitchfork Music Festival (July 15, Grant Park, Chicago)
9. The Thermals (July 27, Subterranean, Chicago)
10. The Octopus Project / Stereo Total (August 31, Abbey Pub, Chicago)

Oh, and also
11. Arcadia at the Court Theater, Chicago

UMM WHAT CAN I SAY. The show was supposed to start at midnight but was an hour and a half late, so I was exhausted but it was worth it. The lead singer came out in a gold halter bodysuit covered in balloons, and at one point the audience all got on stage and took off their clothes and danced!

The Metro is a really cute, small venue and I had a lot of fun. The Thermals are adorable and really great live – I was less excited about Cursive, so we only stayed until they played the one song of theirs that I like.

plus: a band whose name I did not catch but was too loud to really bother with, Matt Boyle (?) and Bicycles and Gravel – all at a gorgeous industrial “loft apartment” (former rehearsal space) in Wicker Park. I haven’t been to a venue this cozy since two years ago when I went to see Mirah in a tiny art gallery.

Not being old enough to go to 21+ shows means that it’s a rare occasion that I get to go to a show that’s in a smaller and more informal venue – so I liked that a whole lot, as well as the people I was with. And obviously it made me feel really cool to know the people in the band, hahaha.

I should probably change this goal to “go to one show every week this summer.” That is pretty ambitious, for me.

It was really relaxing. We sat outside on the grass at Millenium Park while old people danced and 30 year old hipsters smoked and drank wine.

It was so much cuter than I thought it was going to be – the venue was so small and, I don’t know, it was just adorable. There were SEATS, which was weird, but I guess it didn’t matter because a kid got up during Rogue Wave’s set and got everyone to stand up and dance (best ever).

Chin Up Chin Up was pretty awesome live but did not look the way I thought they were going to look. I guess Rogue Wave didn’t really either, but maybe that’s just because I associate the Sub Pop sound with, you know… looking like Ben Gibbard.

1. No Exit – I love the play a lot so it was kind of upsetting to see it butchered by this production. There were good things about it too, though – like the eventual final sound and light designs.

2. Valparaiso – UM AMAZING. That is all I have to say about that. The production was fantastic and I loved the play and all of the acting was great and the set worked so well and, uh, yeah, it was like, the best thing ever. If Ivona and Valpo are the caliber of plays that go up tenth week, I am slightly anxious about living up to that standard for our play in the fall.

for John and I to go to the Pitchfork Music Festival (not to be confused with Intonation, which was curated by Pitchfork last year but is being organized by Vice Magazine this year).

Bands I am most excited about:
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
The Mountain Goats
Spoon
Yo La Tengo
Devendra Banhart
Aesop Rock
Chin Up Chin Up

I was really worried that it wasn’t going to be that fun. They played a few songs from their new album but after a very lukewarm reception switched to playing all the stuff from Is This It and a few from Room on Fire. Overall I had a really good time, maybe this has something to do with going in with low expectations (a philosophy I should take into other arenas of my life, maybe?).