Urban Initiatives had their sixth annual Halloween Bash at OHM in Bucktown. The total turnout  was 650 people. Peter came in from Minneapolis to spin and a whole slew of people made an appearance. It seems that each year the number in attendance doubles.

UI HalloweenBrother Dan and me.

UI Halloween 2008Colin as a bathroom wall early on in the night.

UI Halloween 2008Didactic Diddy as Uncle Sam.

UI Halloween 2008Leigh ruined my Halloween by denying me the opportunity to go as the slutty pirate. Next year I’ll wear my pajamas like she did this year.

UI Halloween 2008Bennie and Liz. Ben’s costume is quite a step up from last year’s failure.

UI Halloween 2008Dan and Alexis with the annual penguin costume worn by Davis this year.

UI Halloween 2008Lara Croft

UI Halloween 2008Peter not quite looking like Clark Kent.

UI Halloween 2008Pissed that they stopped serving the free stuff at 11:45pm.

UI Halloween 2008prime.

UI Halloween 2008Why I never use toilet paper with any costume.

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David Byrne at the Lyric Opera House

David Byrne came through Chicago a couple of weeks ago touring in support of his new album with Brian Eno titled Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (which is damn good by the way). CJ and I managed to score 8 tickets in total and I somehow wound up in the eighth row.

Much of the material covered over the course of the show was taken from the new album but also included some classic Talking Heads numbers such as Burning Down the House and Take Me to the River.  Byrne talked for a brief bit about the exciting possibility Barack Obama being elected president and then began the number One Fine Day from the new album.

The venue was amazing as one might expect and surprisingly lax.  By about halfway through the show people were running up and down the aisles dancing to the more lively numbers.  Even David Byrne seemed quite blown away by the rather ecstatic Sunday crowd — once even saying “My God” in disbelief.

I will note that some friends found the 4 encores, 3 of which included a full stage bow as a coda, overly self-congratulatory but not unlike with Bob Dylan I turn a blind eye to the idiosyncrasies of Byrne and anxiously await his next release.  You can read his take on the Chicago performance and his time in the city here — alas it’s not as lengthy as some of his other destinations on the road.

David Byrne at the Lyric Opera House

David Byrne at the Lyric Opera House

Encore David Byrne at the Lyric Opera House Chicago

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