also, there was a conversation in the studio for Polish Eurosport between rounds about rivalry in ski jumping which I found thought–provoking. one of the experts was Krzysztof Biegun, former Polish ski jumper and now one of the base coaches for Polish Ski Federation, was asked – ofc in a humorous manner – by the host if the top jumpers ever do any acts of pettiness towards their opponents before their jumps, like kicking someone in their ankle (again, it wasn't serious) because in football or volleyball for example it isn't uncommon to act provocatively towards your rivals. Biegun responded that while he cannot speak for everyone, being in the WC for quite some time and living amongst other top jumpers, he personally never witnessed or heard of such a thing. Biegun said there's always a huge amount of respect for the competition and acts of violence wouldn't really help anyone's case. I added in my thoughts that it could potentially be a reason for injury or worse, a terrible accident on the hill so it would be reckless.
and then I remembered when Andi Wellinger destroyed his chance of winning the first RawAir edition in his very last jump, ending up in tears and Kamil Stoch came up to him and gave him a hug we all need in our lives because it would put the broken pieces of us together.
and of course when tearful Anže brought in a cardboard copy of Dawid Kubacki on the podium and made this entire end–of–season flower ceremony about him and kept shedding tears during all interviews.
I think ski jumping has a level of respect not many other sports have.
Welcome to the yellow line, aka the Skokie Swift. It has exactly 3 stops spread across only 5 miles and yet still has the title of shortest CTA line robbed from here by the purple line during non-express hours. It is the least used line in the system, and while it’s suited for for cars, it typically only runs two per train.
It is without a doubt my favorite line for those reasons—it’s just my pathetic fucked up little guy, y’know—as well as its view, which the shitty timelapse below does not do justice, and the fact that it got me away from a guy who is following me once.
I’ve thought about actually making a skokie-swift-official, in part because it’d be funny and in part out of genuine love and appreciation for this creature
Courtney Barnett, Bob Mould, & Squirrel Flower Live Review: 7/26, Illinois Science & Technology Park Field, Skokie
Courtney Barnett
BY JORDAN MAINZER
The three artists who played the inaugural night of Out of Space Skokie at its temporary new location took advantage of the open space's clear sound and turned up the fuzz.
Headliner Courtney Barnett, three years removed from her third studio album Things Take Time, Take Time (Mom+Pop), made even that album's understated songs come alive, live. Backed by bassist Thomy Sloane and drummer Stella Mozgawa (of Warpaint, and co-producer of Things Take Time), Barnett elevated sad sack jam "Rae Street", the motorik "Turning Green", the wiry "Before You Gotta Go", and jangly single "Write a List of Things to Look Forward To", emphasizing sounds and lyrics performed and delivered much more subtly on record. "Time is money, and money is no man's friend," she sang on set opener "Rae Street", as if to contextualize the drawn-out nature of some of her back catalog highlights: the wandering "Avant Gardener", bluesy dirge "Small Poppies", and driving bass-led "City Looks Pretty". Vocally, Barnett's screamed rasp was as gravel-throated as ever, a perfect contrast to her droll sprechgesang, confirming the status of "Pedestrian at Best" as a justified shout-along.
Barnett
Stella Mozgawa
Barnett
Thomy Sloane
Yet, true to Barnett's penchant for storytelling, the anthem of the night was also the slowest song, perhaps her best: the prescient "Depreston". At once a treatise on gentrification, mortality, and time itself, it's the type of song that stops you in your tracks when you realize you're singing back at Barnett, "If you've got a spare half a million / You could knock it down and start rebuildin'," occupying the persona of the grimy real estate agent viewing what was someone's home as a pure capital good. I suppose, after all, the ease at which we sing the song is a tribute to Barnett's empathy, evidence that those of us who participate in the same society with the same set of restrictive rules, have the potential for good and evil. Or maybe it's just a catchy melody.
Barnett
Barnett & Mozgawa
Bob Mould
Bob Mould, meanwhile, performed solo, but electric, and the set was basically the answer to the question, "What would it sound like if you took away bassist Jason Narducy and drummer Jon Wurster from a normal Bob Mould band set?" Indeed, Mould played at the same breakneck pace as always, running around the stage during solos as if he was hyping up his invisible band. The warmth of his vocals was discernible even beside his distorted guitar tones, whether burning through a Hüsker Dü song or solo material (my one gripe from the setlist: only one Sugar song, the chintzy classic "Hoover Dam"). "Out of Space...out of breath!" Mould proclaimed in triumph after finishing "Siberian Butterfly", nonetheless a reminder to himself to keep on going even when you're the one doing all the work.
Mould
Mould
Squirrel Flower
Local artist Squirrel Flower, the project of singer-songwriter Ella O'Connor Williams, opened up the night, playing what she said may be her last show in Chicago for a while. For one, drummer Jacob Getzoff is going to nursing school, an announcement that garnered rapturous applause from the crowd. Moreover, ever prolific, Williams shared she hopes to take a break from playing live and write and record, despite having released her most recent and best album Tomorrow's Fire (Polyvinyl) less than a year ago. I'm glad I got to catch Squirrel Flower now, then, each song from Tomorrow's Fire leveled up, the slowcore "Almost Pulled Away" becoming full-on shoegaze, the crunchy "Intheskatepark" featuring drums that could have been audible even at the expansive Canal Shores. If you really want to get a sense for what Squirrel Flower sounds like live, though, simply take a look at the project's discography from start to finish. In other words, the same artist who self-released the stark early winter songs from middle america in 2015 is now faithfully covering "Cortez the Killer". To clarify, Squirrel Flower played only original material for Williams' first ever show in Skokie. "I've only been up here to get bagels," Williams said. No word on whether she's a New York Bagel & Bialy or Kaufman's person.