Uptown Exchange Reporter Kept from Meeting page 2

Financial Aid Awareness Day Helps Students page 3

Wilco Takes Chicago page 7Chase Out Chase

page 5

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Geek Out!

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News Arts&Events

Opinion

Calendar

March : 2008

One free issue per personThe premier news source for Trumsaman College and the surrounding community

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NEWS

Editorial Department Editor-in-Chief

James Villalpando

Managing Editor Christina Dalrymple

News Editor Lauren Vandermar

Arts & Enteraiment Editor Lucas SiegelOpinion Editor

Jamie M. Kraut Editorial Assistants Manar Kittaneh

Iqbal Muhammad Kiesha Scherrer

Staff Writers Eddie Aponte

Erika Buchancow Nandika Doobay

Valerie Sieth Kevin Rushing

Design & Production Department

Graphic Designer

and Production Manager Aneta Takeva

Photographers Maasai Amewa

Chirag Patel Business Department

Business Manager Tekoa Tinch

Faculty Adviser Benjamin Ortiz Assistant Professor

College Media AdvisersIllinois Community College

Journalism Association Student Press Law Center

C o r r e c t i o nBy Lauren Vandermar

By Lauren Vandermar

and Erika BuchancowNews Editor

News Editor

Staff Writer

Dear Mr. Editor:I thought the article was a positive one

but there were a few statements that were mis interpreted. In the first paragraph it states the CDLS is available to the Truman Community this is correct but it is also available to the community at large not just Truman College. Which means if you are attending another college or is not a student at all but working your child can still come to the Truman College Child Development Lab School. We have two state-pre-k class-rooms and one Head start classroom. The Head start Performance Standards is the guidelines of Excellence we follow to have a great school. There are many different guidelines to qualify for federal funding not always do you have to be in school for four hours Monday through Friday we look at each individual case and find out which is the best way to get the funding for the fam-

ily therefore all families don’t have the same co-pay, a lot of it is determined by house-hold income and size. My quote doesn’t even make sense it’s been awhile but what I probably was saying was Truman College Child Development Lab School is here to provide a high quality program for the community, working parents and families of all income levels. We are NAEYC ac-credited and serve as a model to students in many areas such as Child Development,nursing,psychology,Health etc.We have a strong relationship with the education depart-ment who advises us on continued good practice and upto date information on cur-riculum. All teacher’s on staff have creden-tials and many years of experience in Early Childhood. We welcome families to come and take a look at our center. Thank you for allowing me to respond to your article.

Sincerely,Mildred GarciaInterim DirectorTruman College Child Development

Lab School(773)907-4740

In response to Ms. Garcia’s letter, Truman’s Uptown Exchange would like to correct the following errors from the Feb. article “Helping Parents Juggle College and Kids”:

Ms. Garcia was misquoted in the origi-nal article, with the corrected quote as fol-lows: “The Lab School exists to facilitate the students, the community, working par-ents and as well to educate parents also, that’s the component to make the family successful.”

We regret not explaining basic details of the Child Development program to a fuller extent and any confusion our inaccu-racies may have caused

.Lauren Vandermar

News Editor

Uptown Exchange Reporter Kept from MeetingCCC’s Athletics Forum not for Press, Sources Say

City Colleges administrators barred this reporter from attending an athletic meet-ing for all city colleges held at Malcolm X College on Sat. Feb. 2. Administrators claimed that the meeting pertained only to athletes, athletic directors and administra-tors.

Various staff members told this re-porter that the meeting was only open to persons directly involved in athletics at the City Colleges.

This statement was repeated by Ralph Passarelli, Risk Assessment director for CCC. According to Passarelli, general topics were discussed like GPA requirements and behavior expectations. Specific instances that might have been covered by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act were also to be addressed. This reporter was, however, able to obtain a copy of the meet-ing’s agenda.

Josh Sharp, lobbyist for the Illinois Press Association said “This is a First Amendment violation. They discriminated against you for being a member of the press. If press can attend a Chicago City Council meeting, then they can certainly at-tend an athletics meeting.”

Sharp pointed out that a student who pays activity fees should have access to a

meeting that was posted on Malcolm X College’s website and listed as a forum. “They either needed to invite a specific group of people, or they needed to make the meeting entirely public.”

Truman President Lynn Walker dis-agreed with Sharp’s assertions, stating that an invitation was extended to a set group. “It was a training activity,” says Walker. “I don’t believe that, as a rule, students are al-lowed to attend training activities or work-shops or things of that nature.”

Passarelli said “It was a mandatory meeting, the audience was specific and fi-nite.” He mentioned that schools were re-quired to submit team rosters with names of all attendees.

When Passarelli was asked about the term “forum,” implying the meeting would be open for dialogue and discussion, he explained that it was just a word used to describe the meeting. Regarding Malcolm X’s web post of the meeting, he says it was a courtesy. He feels postings do not auto-matically imply the meeting was open to the public.

Both President Walker and Passarelli is-sued apologies. “There was definitely some misinformation,” Walker said, “As President of this college I need to apologize and that’s what I’m doing.”

Passarelli claimed he did not directly bar this reporter from the meeting. “What

Low-income households reap benefits

I said was, ‘We had not extended an invita-tion to the press,’ there could have been some interpretation that you were not al-lowed. If I inadvertently caused you to feel excluded, I apologize. I remain convinced that this was a specific discussion. If there was a beneficial portion, then yes, (the press) should have been allowed.”

Both administrators stopped short of admitting a First Amendment violation.

Walker and Passarelli agreed the meet-ing was positive and presented much useful information to students. Resources for ath-letes needing assistance with grades or guid-ance were outlined. The Chancellor also discussed his vision for athletics. The first half of the forum was attended by faculty only; athletes joined the meeting later.

Passarelli believes that athletics at the City Colleges could benefit from the sup-port of the student press, having gotten the idea from his experience with this reporter on the Feb. 2 meeting. “You don’t often read about community college sports in the papers of this city, maybe this would be a good starting point, to help everyone be-come more involved.”

In the future, student press will be in-vited if the meeting calls for it, Passarelli promises. Josh Sharp maintains that report-ers need no invitation. “A meeting is either closed or open. If it’s open, the press can come.”

NEWS

FINANCIAL AID AWARENESS DAY HELPS STUDENTS

Truman Offers Free Tax Preparation Service

Truman’s Black

Student Union To Host Variety Show

Editorial Assistant

Opinion Editor

Opinion Editor

Truman Aims to Answer FAFSA Questions

Low-income households reap benefits

Performances to showcase diversity, unityBy Jamie Kraut

By Jamie Kraut

By Iqbal Nawaz

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Truman College held a Financial Aid Awareness Day in the main lobby on February 28 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.. Financial Aid Office representatives were available, free of charge, to assist students in complet-ing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, (FAFSA) applications during these hours.

FAFSA applications are the first step in receiving financial aid from both federal and state programs. Many students may not know where to start.

Newly appointed director of Financial Aid, Cynthia Grunder energetically told the paper, “We are aiming at creating awareness among the students for federal government and state financial aid programs for those

who qualify. We actually provide applicants with assistance in completing applications and assessing student eligibility for finan-cial aid.” She emphasized that “What we are seeking is the interest of students and their response toward Financial Aid programs.”

Applications can also be completed on-line. To fill out FAFSA online, students need to first apply for a Federal Student Aid PIN number, which they will receive via email. The PIN is used to sign the application elec-tronically, as a signature of some kind is re-quired to process the application. If a parent is co-signing the application, they will also need to apply for a PIN.

Emma Rodriguez, financial aid advi-sor for the school, explained the guidelines for financial aid eligibility. Students must be enrolled in credit hour programs lead-ing to a degree or an advanced certificate.

Cosmetology programs are included, as well as remedial course hours that total 30 hours or less. Ineligible coursework includes per-credit, adult education and continuing edu-cation courses.

FAFSA forms need to be completed as soon as possible to receive financial aid for the 2008-2009 school year. Students will need their social security number, as well as their parents’ numbers if they are provid-ing parent information. Students also need a driver’s license number if they have one. An alien registration number is needed for non-US citizens. Required documents in-clude 2007 federal tax information or tax re-turn including IRS W-2 information, as well as records of any un-taxed income including social security benefits, welfare benefits like TANF, and veterans benefits for yourself and your parents. Information on savings,

investments, and business and farm assets for yourself and your parents are also nec-essary if you are providing parent informa-tion.

In order to be eligible, a student must be a US Citizen, a permanent resident, or other eligible non-citizen. A person cannot cur-rently be in default on a federal student loan or owe repayment of financial aid. A student must receive a GED or pass the Ability to Benefit test. In order to receive benefits, stu-dents must demonstrate financial need and be a degree-seeking student who is making satisfactory academic progress. A student cannot already have a B.A. - either US or foreign. Students must not have been con-victed of a drug charge while receiving fi-nancial aid.

Advisors at the Financial Aid office are always available to answer questions dur-ing office hours. Students looking for more information, or looking to fill out an appli-cation online can go to www.fafsa.ed.gov. PIN numbers can be obtained at www.PIN.ed.gov.

Truman’s Black Student Union will host a variety show exhibiting multiple talents on March 27 in room 3426 at noon. This is the first event of its type presented by the BSU. It will be open to the public and CCC stu-dents and faculty free of charge.

The BSU encourages all ethnicities from the City Colleges of Chicago not only to at-tend, but to perform. BSU president Tekoa Tinch has an open mind and welcomes any and all types of talent. He hopes to line up martial arts experts, rappers, dancers and musicians, to name a few. The lineup for the variety show isn’t secure yet, but Tinch knows what he wants. “Anything you can put on a stage,” he said.

The original purpose of the show was to observe Black History Month and was set for late February, but due to time constraints had to be postponed. The new theme is “A Celebration of Inspiration,” Tinch said. He hopes that the diverse performances will motivate and unify the audience. “The event is supposed to be inspirational,” he

“The event is supposed to be in-

spirational.” -Tekoa Tinch

said. “Unity and togetherness is what we all long for in the end. Although everyone in an organization may not get along, we all be-long.”

For more information regarding the Black Student Union Variety Show or the BSU, contact Tekoa Tinch at tekoatinch@

Truman College, in cooperation with Mayor Daley’s Tax Assistance Program, is providing free tax preparation services in room 1571, Monday though Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

There are certain requirements in order to take advantage of the free service. An in-dividual who seeks assistance must have an annual income of less than $15,000, and a family must have a combined annual income of less than $40,000.

Documents to bring include W-2s and 1099s, a Social Security card, copies of previ-ous tax returns if available, and a valid photo ID. If you would like your refund deposited directly, bring your bank account and rout-ing numbers as well.

In addition to filling out tax forms, the volunteer counselors urge everyone to apply for the Earned Income Tax Credit, which can increase take-home pay. Governor Blagojevich recently signed legislation mak-ing the EITC available to 100,000 more Illinois residents than in previous years.

The counselors also ensure that the people they assist claim all of the benefits and credits they qualify for. On-site financial coaches then teach them how to use their refund wisely, such as saving it towards the

purchase of a home.Carla M. of Andersonville was thrilled

when she learned of her refund amount. “I didn’t know there were so many things I could claim,” she said. “When I did my own, I was getting a smaller refund, and with bills I had to pay, there wasn’t very much left to save.”

Mayor Daley started the free Tax Assistance Program in order to help citizens in need get their maximum refund from both the state and the federal governments. The program also urges people to stay away from anticipation loans with high interest rates.

Ernest Hill used professionals to pre-pare his taxes because he didn’t know there were other options. “I always used to get a rapid refund, and the fee was always high. A lot of my refund went to the place that helped me get it.” With the help of the free tax assistance, he is getting a larger refund, and he gets to keep all of it. “I always seem to need money, and when I get it, it’s gone,” he said. “Hopefully with this, I will get back more and be able to save a little.”

There are locations across the city and suburbs participating in Daley’s Tax Assistance Program. All will offer free as-sistance through April 12. For a list of sites visit www.Illinois.gov. For more informa-tion about the Tax Assistance Program, visit www.taxassistance.org.

gmail.com, or visit the Academic and Cultural Club Center in room 1145.

NEWS 4

By Erika Buchancowstaff Writer

UPDATE: NEW MULTI-USE BUILDING DELAYED

Construction on Truman College’s new parking and student services building has been postponed for three months, due to delays in the acquisition of land from the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA).

According to Truman Vice President Dr. Pervez Rahman, Chancellor Wayne Watson and Alderman Helen Shiller are still in negotiations with CTA Chairman Ron Hooberman. The discussions have led to a letter of agreement for the land acquisition, which is in the process of finalization.

“Once that letter is in place and that agreement happens between the CTA and the CCC, we will then be able to take this matter to the City Council to get approval,” said Rahman.

According to Ira Hunter, Security Director at Truman, “This project is defi-nitely going to get done because the money is out there. The design is finalized. There are just little details we need to work out.”

Rahman targets a start date of mid-May and says the project will be completed in 2010. “We’re hoping at the begin-ning of the spring semester to have the parking facil-

Construction to commence mid-May

Truman’s paking lot still awaits a facelift

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ity available to our students, and then by March of 2010, the student services build-ing will be available.”

The new structure will add 1,100 park-ing spaces, a student services building, and will incorporate new technology such as computer kiosks for the aide of students.

Students should find alternate means of parking for the 2008 – 2009 Fall se-mester. Alternate parking will be located at Wilson and Lake Shore Drive. From there, shuttle buses will take students to Truman. “The shuttle buses will continue all the way to the end of construction,” said Rahman. Continuous shuttle service will run be-tween Truman and the lot from 7a.m. until 10:30p.m.

In addition, Rahman stated, “There will be some parking available here. It will be for people with disabilities.” Parking will still be available on campus for parents who drop their children off for the Child Development Lab School, also.

As the project progresses, students will be updated with the most current informa-tion on the Truman College website. “We would like everybody know that we are be-ing proactive so that there is little to no dis-location, especially for our students,” said Rahman

5

Letters To The Editor

Chase Out Chase

Dear Editor,I am a second semester student in

Truman College. I have been in Chicago for almost one year. Even though Chicago has many interesting places to visit, I have not had the chance to see all of them. There are many students from all over the world study-ing at Truman College who are interested in exploring all the attractions Chicago has to offer. If the Student Activity Center at Truman could arrange student tours around the city of Chicago during summer time, it would be a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the sights in the Chicago metropolitan area. In addition, the touring events could generate revenue and publicity for Truman Henok Ghirmay

Dear Editor,As a disabled student, I have often been

inconvenienced by the abuse of handicapped privileges at Truman College. On two occa-sions I saw someone with a handicapped sticker park in a handicapped spot, get out, and run to the main building. Campus secu-rity needs to keep a better eye on exactly who is parking in the handicapped spots. There is only one set of public elevators that is often used by students or staff fully capable of tak-ing the stairs. I sometimes have to let eleva-tors pass because they are full of able-bod-ied co-eds even though there is a sign giving me priority. Students should be told at orien-tation and by their professors that elevators are to be used only if absolutely necessary. Amanda Quisenberry

Dear Editor,I am a fourth semester Truman stu-

dent, and like many others who use Federal Financial Aid to offset education expenses,

OPINION

I purchase my textbooks from Beck’s book store, used, of course. Beck’s bookstore is the only one near the campus that sells text-books. Beck’s has helpful programs for stu-dents such as buying back old books, and sell-ing them to the other students; however, nei-ther sellers nor buyers seem satisfied. There are many Web sites which everyone can visit and purchase text books cheaper than they may pay at Becks bookstore, such as Amazon and eBay. For example I purchased a text-book online for $8.00, and my classmate paid $45.00 at Becks bookstore for the same text-book. It is very important and will be help-ful for the students if the college officials take necessary steps to solve this problem. Anonymous Student

Dear Editor,As a first semester part-time student,

I just went through the process of apply-ing to Truman College, taking the college assessment test and attending the college orientation. Even though the course book states that appointments can be scheduled for both the orientation and the interview part of the assessment test, I was informed that these mandatory dates are always held on Thursday afternoons which created a se-rious problem for me because I work during the week from eight to five. Only because I could work out an arrangement with my employer was I able to attend the interview and the orientation. I would suggest that these two dates are also held on Saturday mornings to make Truman College more accessible to students who work during the

Take Chase for What They’re Worth

Chase is on campus every so often of-fering students abject crap in exchange for their hard earned dollars. Students can choose from a Frisbee, a flashing blue LED light, or a hat in exchange for opening an account. What they won’t tell you is that they offer up to $100 new accounts opened in one of their branches. What they will tell you is that if you act now, you can take ad-vantage of their College Checking Account which offers students a single advantage and the opportunity to rack up more fees with less security than any other type of account! The Chase representative on campus said, “Students are going for this. If they want to sign up [for an account] for a flashing light or a Frisbee, we’ll do it.”

It’s not hard to imagine the problems a lost debit card can create for anyone, let

alone a student who must divide his or her time between school and work. It follows that those in school are in a more precarious financial situation than those who can fully devote their time to making a living. Why, then, does Chase not offer these people the opportunity to protect their finances and their credit by providing them the simple assurance of Fraud Protection? If you lost your debit card and someone saw that as an opportunity to purchase that new flat screen TV they’ve been wanting, you wouldn’t want to wind up footing the bill. Without protec-tion, that scenario isn’t so far fetched.

Student accounts also do not qualify for overdraft protection. With the added expense of tuition, books and meals away from home, on top of bills, rent, etc., it’s easy to see how things can add up to more than anticipated. Overdraft protection offers a safety net for account holders that ensure

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By James VillalpandoEditor-in-Chief

that Chase doesn’t levy a $32 insufficient funds fee at a time when their customers are already in an insecure financial position. Taking away the ability for the overdraft to be deducted from savings or credit is just one more way Chase can ensure more op-portunities for Student Account holders to rack up fees.

When asked about the reasoning behind the discrepancy against students, Michelle Crabtree, a Chase Corporate spokesman said, “Because the student account is on a lower level. With the Basic or the Better Checking, there are more advantages to hav-ing that account.” That’s apparent, Michelle. The only benefit to students we could agree on was the fact that monthly service fees are waived. This is hardly a consolation when weighed against an insecure, fee laden ac-count given in exchange for toys.

“Every once in a while our marketing

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dept will send out vouchers. I don’t know why they sent out toys,” said Crabtree when asked about the tactics utilized by Chase rep-resentatives on our campus. If you’re going to open a Chase account, don’t do it with the guys offering you flashing lights or hats. Walk into a Chase branch holding one of the aforementioned vouchers and claim the $100 offered and take money back from the bank that would take all they can from you. The vouchers seem to be mailed out almost monthly, but are also available on ebay if one hasn’t come your way lately. Or show Chase how you really feel about their promotional tactics here on campus and walk into a Bank of America and get $75 for opening a new account with promo code AOU260208.

People sitting in the hallways offering something for nothing are often times not giving you the whole scoop. Press them on the details and why they are taking the time to offer you such a “great deal” in the first place. More often than not you’ll find their motivations are less about improving your life and more about fattening their pocket-books. Now that you’ve been given the op-portunity, go out and fatten yours at their expense, for a change.

week and thereby holding a greater appeal to them. Katrin Wohlgemuth

Alt-rock band entertains with 5 day concert ‘CCC Idol’ Seeks Student Talent

Do you want to be a star? The CCC Student Government Association (SGA) is holding auditions for the first ‘CCC Idol’ tal-ent competition!

The audition will have four categories – DJ, Spoken-Word, Singing, and Dancing, with professional judges choosing one win-ner per category. Winners will receive a prize package donated by local sponsors and be automatically entered into the final compe-tition, being held after Spring Break on the brand new Kennedy King College stage. Auditions have already been held at Truman and Malcom X College. Your last chance to enter is 2p.m. - 5p.m. March 6 at Olive-Harvey College.

Anyone with a valid CCC ID can en-ter, including Middle School, Tech School, and ESL students from any City College of Chicago. According to Chris Callas, Vice President of the SGA at Truman, the com-petition is only open to solo performers, DJs must bring their own equipment, auditions must not exceed 5 minutes, and content must be suitable for a PG audience.

Raffles will be held at each audition and at the final competition to benefit the Liberian Nurses Program at Olive Harvey College. Raffle winners will also receive prizes donat-ed by local sponsors. For more information on the CCC Idol Competition, please con-tact the office of Student Government or email DistrictSGA@gmail.com.

Staff WriterBy Nandika Doobay

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Geek Out!All the Geek News you can use

Arts and Entertainment EditorBy Lucas Siegel

Tuesday, Feb 12, 2008 After 100 days, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) vot-ed to end their strike. The WGA was fight-ing for better compensation in so-called “new media”; they sought compensation for internet broadcasts accompanied by ads and a larger piece of DVD sales. What does this mean for your favorite tv show? Well, that depends. Some, like Lost will go back into production, producing 4 or 5 extra epi-sodes this season. Most newer shows like Chuck and Pushing Daisies however will wait until the fall to debut new episodes.

TV:Technology:

Comics:Locke and Key, a mini series from

IDW Publishing launched February 20th, 2008. The series is written by Joe Hill, an acclaimed novelist in his own right, who happens to be the son of legendary horror novelist Stephen King. King has worked as an executive producer of sorts on the Dark Tower comic for Marvel Comics, driving thegstory with plot discussions and first looks, but his son opted for the full writing duties.

Video Games:

French researchers have invented a self-healing artificial rubber. The new ma-terial can be cut or broken and re-attach itself, reforming its bonds to the original state. Dr. Ludwik Leibler of the Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution headed the research. Possible applications include self-repairing children’s toys and tires that can “heal” punctures.

Developers showed off a device allow-ing for brain controlled video gaming and

Science:

Arts and Entertainment EditorBy Lucas Siegel

Truman clubs seek new members

Join the Club

The 19 clubs and five sports teams at Truman College are looking for new members. Maegan Reddick, who became Coordinator of the Club Center after an eight month vacancy in the position, contin-ues to launch initiatives to spread the club mentality at Truman.

The Student Services Fair at the start of the Spring 2008 semester followed a similar Club Fair in Fall 2007. Now, Meagan tries to provide “consistent guidance” to the vari-ous clubs. This includes a move of the Club Center to the current game room, which re-sides in a room attached to the cafeteria.

From Arts clubs to Service clubs to the Cultural clubs, a club exists for most tastes. The Truman Soup Kitchen became one of the newest clubs this semester, offering re-lief for Truman students low on cash for food.

Reddick stresses the need for clubs at a college stating, “The importance of hav-

“The importance of hav-ing clubs is creating a sense of community on campus, getting students involved

in college culture.” Meagan Reddick, Coordinator of

the Club Center

There will be a graphic header to be used in conjunction with this. I’ll forward it to you and you let me know which you like.Branded, unsigned mini-column:

Looking for ways to make a personal difference for the envi-ronment? Always use the revolv-ing door and you will save 74% more energy than swing doors. According to a MIT study, eight times the amount of air is ex-changed when using a conven-tional swing door over their evolved revolving brethren.

ARTS & EVENTS 6

The Geek

Truman has a variety of clubs to enrich your college experience.Sent from my BlackBerry wireless handheld.

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ing clubs is creating a sense of community on campus, getting students involved in college culture.”

Students interested in

joining or starting a club of their own should visit the Club Center in Room 1625, or call (773) 907-4830. Additionally, a complete list of the clubs and all contacts can be found on the web at http://www.trumancollege.cc/studentservices/clubs.php.

Photo by Chirag Patel

computing at the annual Game Developer’s Conference (GDC). The Emotiv Brain Computer Interface is a headset that reads neuro-electrical impulses. By gesturing, making facial expressions, and yes, thinking, you can control a character and objects on screen. While the live demo showed kinks, Emotiv hopes to release the sci-fi tech win-ter 2008 at a price of $299.oposed price tag

Toshiba officially ended production on HD-DVD. A format war divided those wanting high definition DVD between the HD-DVD camp and the Blu-ray group. With HD-DVD dead, the Sony-led Blu-ray group hopes to see a faster adaptation of their high definition format, which boasts 1080p reso-lutions and support from every production studio.

Grammy Award-winning Chicago na-tive alt-rock band Wilco played a sold-out 5 night stint at Uptown’s Riviera Theater Feb. 15-16 and 18-20. Their goal, according to front man Jeff Tweedy, was to perform every song they had recorded; a catalog that spans 8 albums and a handful of B-sides. These “Winter Residency” shows kicked off the band’s second U.S tour promoting their Grammy nominated album “Sky Blue Sky.” For a band like Wilco, whose eclectic song collection bounces from alt-country to tradi-tional folk to avant-garde art rock, many of their studio songs were difficult to reproduce on stage. Armed with a three page checklist of 107 Wilco tunes and tickets to each of the 5 nights, I decided to find out if the band could pull off this amazing feat.

Wilco took to the stage with business-like workmanship, cranking out hit after hit. They played so many fan-favorites that it left me to wonder what they would leave for the next four nights. After a few songs, Tweedy addressed the crowd with his usual friendly banter, asking “You guys doing alright? Is the sound okay? Are you all frost-bitten?” “Yes!” the audience shouted in unison as the frontman asked each question. Surprised by the crowd’s loud response, Tweedy added, “Will you give me a million dollars?” Once again, the audience responded with a delight-ed, “Yes!”

Wilco Takes ChicagoAlt-rock band entertains with 5 day concert

Staff WriterBy Nandika Doobay

Night 1

Night 2

Night 3

Night 4

Night 5

”You’ve spoiled us for the rest of the tour. Now we

have to go out and play in front of lame audiences in all those other cities.” -Jeff Tweedy, lead singer, Wilco

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Wilco takes the stage for one of five sold out shows at the Riviera

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The band then resumed rocking the socks off of the place, pulling out rare mu-sical gems that many Wilco fans have never heard live. With 2 impressively long sets and a 6-song encore reminiscent of a Grateful Dead concert, I was able to cross 31 titles off my list by the end of the night.

Saturday night’s show was met with a louder, rowdier crowd, surprise guests, and another long set list. Tailored for the more casual Wilco fan, or perhaps weekend war-riors who were just looking for a great night out, this set included quite a few repeats of the band’s more well-known songs that were already performed on Friday night. “Its not like you weren’t going to hear some re-peats…we still have to put on a good show!” Tweedy announced to the fans, like me, who were there for both shows.

The crowd roared as surprise guest per-former Andrew Bird took to the stage with violin in hand, accompanying the band on the Wilco hit, “Jesus, Etc.” Bird remained on stage for a string of songs, his violin lend-ing the twangy feel needed for Wilco’s more country-based arrangements. “We’re the fast-est growing band in America!” announced Tweedy, before introducing The Total Pros, a 3-man horn section, onto the stage. With the wails of a trumpet, saxophone, clarinet add-ing to the band’s bombastic guitars, Wilco made this Saturday night at the Riv one to remember. Overall, the band played 31 songs with 8 repeats, checking only 23 off my list.

“We’ve been waiting for this day for a long, long time. Finally…it’s President’s Day.” joked Tweedy, after taking the stage. Once again, Andrew Bird and the Total Pros joined Wilco for most of the night, as Wilco at-tempted to strike more songs off their cata-log. Monday was full of deep cuts and rarities, pleasing fans who were still hoping to hear it all. “Impossible Germany”, a newer song the band seems to want to play ev-ery night, led the repeats. The song, if left off the set, would rob the audi-ence of an amazing auditory experience. Building from a poetic mid-tempo ballad to a whirlwind of searing guitars, “Impossible Germany” highlights the strengths of each member’s musical ability. I doubt any fan would mind witnessing this 3 nights in a row, or even 5 for that matter. Song count for the night, minus repeats: 18.

Incredibly close to accomplishing their goal, Wilco rocked the Riviera for the pen-ultimate time on the fourth night. This show was certain be special, being broadcast live on Chicago radio station WXRT. No room for Andrew Bird’s violin on this night’s set,

with nothing but high-volume, rip roaring, rock and roll on the agenda. Wilco pulled some of the best riff-laden tunes out of their bag of tricks. Nels Cline displayed the skill of crafting guitar solos that left the au-dience in awe. At some points, his hands jerked the upper neck of the fret board, fre-netically strumming until his hand became a blur. He moved like a hummingbird. Multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone dazzled on the keyboards but really shined on guitar, add-ing his layers with comical Rock-god moves, like “The Windmill”. Tweedy’s voice has never sounded better, and he even flaunts it by showing the audience his octave range a Capella during “Too Far Apart”.

Another highlight of Tuesday night’s show was the audience participa-tion. On songs like “The Thanks I Get”, “Misunderstood”, and “Kingpin,” Wilco’s hometown crowd knew exactly when to chime in. “You’ve spoiled us for the rest of the tour,” shouted Tweedy, before adding “Now we have to go out and play in front of lame audiences in all those other cities.” I scratched 17 songs off the tally, leaving me with 18 songs left for the final show.

On this final night, my checklist was weathered and littered with notes. 18 songs were left unmarked, with fans anxiously awaiting those difficult ones like “Pieholden Suite”. The complex orchestral arrange-ments and punchy horns are tackled by the band, once again with the help of Andrew Bird and The Total Pros. As more and more songs made their way off my list, it started to look like Wilco will pull this off, until Jeff Tweedy stopped abruptly in the middle of the set. He made what sounded like a public service announcement. “Look at your tickets! Nowhere do we promise to play all our songs. In fact, if you look closely, there are no prom-ises at all.” Tweedy then went on to explain

that they would play every song on every Wilco album, but that they would prob-ably not get to all of the songs that appear on the Mermaid Avenue Volumes, on which the band arranged and recorded unfin-ished Woody

Guthrie songs.The crowd groaned in a short lived dis-

appointment as the band finished with a stir-ring rendition of the song ‘Less Than You Think’ that ended with the band leaving the darkened stage under the cover of looped violin and bass drum. The lights came on, but the audience cheered on until the band finally came back to finish with a rocking en-core. Despite leaving approximately 6 songs off the list, Wilco still gave their hometown crowd 5 hot nights of rock music in the dead of a cold Chicago winter.

CALENDAR

Truman Events“CCC Idol” Auditions Olive-Harvey CollegeThursday, March 6, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Georgy Porgy and Other Stories by Roald DahlThe Annoyance TheatreSaturdays in March, 8:00 pm

In a Dark Dark HouseProfiles TheatreOpening Night- March 27, 8:00 pm

Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind; 1 hour of 30 playsThe Neo-FuturariumFridays and Saturdays, 11:30 pm

Thing: Comedy at Kate’s: Comedy Over Coffee Kate the Great’s Book EmporiumFirst Saturday of every month, 7:00 pm

Little Shop of HorrorsQuest Theatre Ensemble Resident SpaceFridays and Saturdays (ends March 23), 8:00 pm

“French Cinéma from Yesterday and Today” Room 3416Tuesday, March 11, 2:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Spring Break!AwayMarch 17-21, All Week

Ballet Presentation of Sleeping Beauty, Women’s History Month event. The Front LobbyDate: Thursday, March 27, 2:00 pm – 6:00 pm

New member induction ceremony for Phi Theta Kappa, the International Honor Society for Two-Year Colleges. The Front LobbyDate: Friday, March 28, 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm

The PoguesRiviera TheaterMarch 5, 7:00 pm

Missy HigginsPark WestMarch 6, 7:30 pm

Rockstar Taste of Chaos: Avenged Sevenfold, Atreyu, and Many MoreAragon BallroomMarch 11, 5:00 pm

Yellowcard with The Spill Canvas, PlayRadioPlay!, and Treaty of ParisThe MetroMarch 11, 6:30 pm

The Paper ChaseThe Beat KitchenMarch 28, 8:00 pm

10,000 BCRoland Emmerich, Director of The Patriot and Independence DayMarch 7

DR. SEUSS’ HORTON HEARS A WHO!Dr. Seuss, Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Seth Rogan, Dane Cook, Amy PoehlerRelease: March 14

TYLER PERRY’S MEET THE BROWNSAngela Bassett, Tyler PerryMarch 21

STOP-LOSSRyan Phillippe, Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-LevittMarch 28

21Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Laurence FishburneMarch 28

Concerts

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