January 7, 2009
“I want to walk around with you…”  5 January 2008: Domino and WHPK Present Merriweather Post Pavillion, a Listening Party at Sonotheque. A well-organized event from Hyde Park’s very own radio station (in collaboration with Domino Records, now home to Animal Collective), the party started ‘round 9pm with a brief DJ set, comfy-couches and - of course - beer. Sonotheque’s drink selection is what you might expect from a craft-minded pub owner rather than a hotshot Chicago club mogul. Also unlike the typical club scene, the drink prices hover pretty steadily around an affordable 5 bucks. Remember - the pale, stale swillers don’t even appear on the list! (But hey, if you’re looking for an Old Style, they’ve got ‘em… tucked away at $2.) Since the event was free of charge (yeah, we still have day jobs and/or classes to attend), Beerhunter had a real nice opportunity to try a few American craft-brews before the much-anticipated album release. Goose Island’s Bourbon County Brand Stout (for the dancers lookin’ for some liquid assistance: be aware - this jet-black stout packs a 13% ABV);  Three Floyds Gumballhead; Robert The Bruce (TF’s Scottish Ale); and Dogfish Head’s 60 minute IPA, to name among the many delicious “re-buys.”  So, in short: good beer and good beats. Sonotheque’s definitely a spot we’ll be returning to. As for Merriweather Post Pavillion: Yeah, yeah - I know Pitchfork gave it a 9.6 immediately upon release, guaranteeing easy and instant fame, glory and greatness among the urban Hipster set (who seem, as our friend Phil often complains, to form the cultural zeitgeist these days), but this album absolutely, legitimately rips. There’s some debate here as to whether it edges out Strawberry Jam or even Feels as AC’s best (yeah, some of us miss  Josh “Deakin” Dibb’s ambient contributions), and we’re not even close to settling that score. Pick it up for yourself: the close visual approximation of AC’s tripped out, hippie-folk-dubstep-techno on the cover is itself worth the purchase. (Thanks to some trivia-answering skills, we own it in movie poster size… Whoa, man.) 

“I want to walk around with you…” 

5 January 2008: Domino and WHPK Present Merriweather Post Pavillion, a Listening Party at Sonotheque. A well-organized event from Hyde Park’s very own radio station (in collaboration with Domino Records, now home to Animal Collective), the party started ‘round 9pm with a brief DJ set, comfy-couches and - of course - beer.

Sonotheque’s drink selection is what you might expect from a craft-minded pub owner rather than a hotshot Chicago club mogul. Also unlike the typical club scene, the drink prices hover pretty steadily around an affordable 5 bucks. Remember - the pale, stale swillers don’t even appear on the list! (But hey, if you’re looking for an Old Style, they’ve got ‘em… tucked away at $2.)

Since the event was free of charge (yeah, we still have day jobs and/or classes to attend), Beerhunter had a real nice opportunity to try a few American craft-brews before the much-anticipated album release. Goose Island’s Bourbon County Brand Stout (for the dancers lookin’ for some liquid assistance: be aware - this jet-black stout packs a 13% ABV);  Three Floyds Gumballhead; Robert The Bruce (TF’s Scottish Ale); and Dogfish Head’s 60 minute IPA, to name among the many delicious “re-buys.” 

So, in short: good beer and good beats. Sonotheque’s definitely a spot we’ll be returning to. As for Merriweather Post Pavillion: Yeah, yeah - I know Pitchfork gave it a 9.6 immediately upon release, guaranteeing easy and instant fame, glory and greatness among the urban Hipster set (who seem, as our friend Phil often complains, to form the cultural zeitgeist these days), but this album absolutely, legitimately rips. There’s some debate here as to whether it edges out Strawberry Jam or even Feels as AC’s best (yeah, some of us miss  Josh “Deakin” Dibb’s ambient contributions), and we’re not even close to settling that score. Pick it up for yourself: the close visual approximation of AC’s tripped out, hippie-folk-dubstep-techno on the cover is itself worth the purchase. (Thanks to some trivia-answering skills, we own it in movie poster size… Whoa, man.) 

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