hot off the press
When You Die
By Kyu Kyu Thein Trigger warning: Death People always say that when you die, your life flashes right before your eyes in your last moments. So, these are things that I think will happen when the time comes: When you die, your best friend in first grade walks you home…
A Review of Useless Majors
By Ryan Cox I’ve been off Tiktok for a while now. It hasn’t seemed worth my time and while I feel it is inevitably going to become the new standard for media consumption, I’d like to avoid the content sludge for as long as possible. But during my hiatus, I…
Premiere: BANK BROKE by Skuff Micksun
By Izzy Braico If Skuff Micksun’s new single, “BANK BROKE” is anything, it is energetic. The song even begins with the likes of a motivational speech: “Alright, let’s try and be positive, okay? Okay,” he says. Throughout the last few years, Micksun’s upbeat energy and positive vibes have amassed him…
Another Week In The Life
By Maggie McHale Illusions of misery, cascade the shelves of my mind. Delicately, I intertwined another thread of this mysterious existence, hoping she brings me petals on Sunday.
interviews
Chris James: From Computer Science, to Youtube, to the World Stage
By Kaylee Sugimoto WHEN Chris James answered the Zoom call, I honestly didn’t really know what to expect. We had to agree on an early time, since there was a major time zone difference between central Illinois and Vienna. At that moment, I really wondered which place I would rather be in. I immediately apologized…
Turning Water into Vinegar: A Chat with Great Value Jesus
By Izzy Braico When I met with Noah Renken-Kapatos in a sound booth tucked in the basement of ISU’s Center for the Visual Arts, my first question was about his stage name: Great Value Jesus. It had been the question at the forefront of my mind in the days leading up to our chat about…
A Chat With Racoma, From Seattle to my Laptop
By Sarah Levin Damn. Racoma was just playing in my car last week. As I see the small square pop up on my laptop screen filled with two faces, my eyes divert to the first — singer Glenn Haider. “We’re actually waiting for a third, our guitarist,” he mentions. Him and bassist Spencer Templeman sit…
Blu Heaven: How “Chicago’s Finest DIY Hip-Hop” Is Just Getting Started
And why they’re not stopping anytime soon By Kaylee Sugimoto DIEGO TORRES, known onstage as Roman, burps into the microphone immediately as I start recording the interview. “Welcome to the podcast,” guitarist Zach Schwoebel says into the mic, who himself has admitted to seriously thinking of starting one (after some banter, we came to the…
ISSUE 01 — ALIVE
reviews
Premiere: BANK BROKE by Skuff Micksun
By Izzy Braico If Skuff Micksun’s new single, “BANK BROKE” is anything, it is energetic. The song even begins with the likes of a motivational speech: “Alright, let’s try and be positive, okay? Okay,” he says. Throughout the last few years, Micksun’s upbeat energy and positive vibes have amassed him a following of over 50k…
Is Abe Vigoda Dead? Yes. No. Probably.
A Review of trust blinks.’ New Album, Streaming Now By Izzy Braico When we got an email in our inbox asking us to put out a piece on Is Abe Vigoda Dead, the new album from LA-based trust blinks., my interest was immediately piqued. I’m not much of a movie buff, so I hope you…
What’s All the “Worry” About?
By Izzy Braico Introspective and profoundly ethereal, “Worry” is the second single from Las Vegas native Joey Miceli in anticipation of his upcoming album, The Standard Portrait. Although the deep pulse of the beat and captivating vocals make “Worry” sound primed for radio play, they do not disguise the simple poetry of Miceli’s lyrics. The…
Controlled Explosions: We Have to Talk About Good Game
By DJ Jelinek Dissecting Good Game’s 2018 EP “Good Luck Have Fun” I found Good Game hiding in the depths of my Spotify Discover Weekly. Their top rated track, “Cheating the Nasa Space Physical,” snuck its way into my speakers one day while doodling in my sketchbook. It was my first impression of this self-described…
most liked by you
An Open Letter to Illinois State University’s Interfraternity Council: Your Apology Fucking Sucks.
This is the letter that was posted to Instagram by the Interfraternity Council (@ilstu_ifc) around 5:00PM CST on September 29th, 2022. It addresses an act of vandalism that occurred sometime the night prior by brothers of the chapter known as Kappa Sigma. News of the crime spread throughout social media platforms on September 28th, 2022.…
Atheena: The Greek Goddess Trio That’s Rocking Underground Chicago
And the faithful dinner at Denny’s that started the up-and-coming garage punk band By Kaylee Sugimoto with photos by Charlotte Steiger A while back, Atheena put up an ad on their Instagram story looking for a drummer. A few minutes later, sixteen-year-old Josh Beardsley sent them a message saying he was interested. “We were like,…
Ten Things To Consider Before Dating A Straight Man
By Charlotte Steiger I like to think that there’s potential in everyone. As equivalent as an alcoholic on their fifth rehab attempt. Or a chronic college smoker who swears they’ll cut cold turkey one of these days. It’s not until you hear a grown man call you a “silly goose” that you really start to…
“Garage Rock for Hot People” and the Slow Struggle to Rejuvenate Alternative Music Culture at Illinois State University
Illinois State University doesn’t really have a good music scene, but Harrison Gordon is trying anyway. I was able to hear the bass pounding from miles away. Flashing lights fill the garage and the air feels sweaty. Someone’s hanging from the ceiling, people are jumping and filling every corner of the foul-smelling room, and the…
White Noise Zine 