Chicago Best Weekend Bets October 20-23

Tom Hanks hosts SNL this weekend. Tom Hanks still seems like a really great guy, which is an impressive feat.

Also, tell all your friends to subscribe to the Chicago mailing list. We give away stuff.

We write stuff. Here’s some of that stuff from the last week that may be applicable to your preferences!

Lizzy Cooperman is our Funny Human of the Week.
We interviewed Bill Burr.
The seasonal pumpkin flavors will never end! This week we try Trader Joe’s Petite Pumpkin Spice Cookies + Way Better Snacks Pumpkin Cranberry Tortilla Chips + Trader Joe’s A Pumpkin Walks Into A Bar + Garden of Eatin’ Pumpkin Chips + Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Chai Spice Loaf

Three hugely exciting rappers, Mick Jenkins, Smino, and Kweku Collins play a very cheap and awesome looking show at Thalia Hall tonight. Get over there, you guys.
NOTS is a great rock band. They play live at the Empty Bottle, supported by Trampoline Team, The Sueves, and Bottomfeeders, who are all also good at rock music.
Grateful Dead legend Bob Weir’s got an evening’s worth of material for you. Enjoy!
Well-loved storytelling open mic Grown Folks Stories returns to The Silver Room.
Ghostface Killah and Oddcouple coheadline a special Chicago Ideas Week afterparty at the Metro. Hell yes.
M83 headlines the Riv, with special guest Shura.
Cut Copy DJs at the Mid, which is cool. Cut Copy is good.
New weekly workshop series Public Newsroom launches this week, for all you fans of actual capital J Journalism.
Clear Plastic Masks and Brendan & The Black Jackets play Schubas.
Go reminisce about the times when early 2000s pop punk wasn’t nostalgia and was just the music you listened to, tonight at Chicago Emo Night at the Burlington.
Hey teens, Citizen, Nicole Dollanganger, and Free At Last play the Beat Kitchen.
Aussie singer-songwriter RY X plays a special extended set at Lincoln Hall tonight.
Kelly Clarkson (yes THAT Kelly Clarkson) signs and reads from her new book today at the Barnes & Noble in Skokie.
Helado Negro is a very good band, see them at the Hideout with Metal Tongues and Sonorama.
And then stick around for the late night Sonorama Dance Party afterwards at the Hideout.

Wildly talented (and frustratingly underrated) singer/songwriter Cass McCombs brings his Band to the Empty Bottle, joined by Delicate Steve.
Genre filmmaker extraordinaire Ti West stops by the Music Box for a opening night screening of the very good looking western In A Valley of Violence.
Alt rock legends Teenage Fanclub play the Bottom Lounge, with opener Sam Evian.
Garage poppers Sunflower Bean headlines a nice looking show with support from The Lemon Twigs and Joe Bordenaro + The Late Bloomers.
Indie kings Deerhunter come to the Metro for an intimate performance, with special guests Aldous Harding and Jock Gang.
See the Top 3 Drag Super Stars from RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 8 live for one night only at Roscoe’s Tavern on Halsted! What a dream!
Sum 41 brings their “Don’t Call It A Sum-Back Tour” to the House of Blues. Recent setlists seem to point to 3-4 songs from All Killer, No Filler, max, which is bogus.
Singer songwriter fella Ben Rector plays The Chicago Theatre, of all places.
Local garage scene royalty White Mystery play a free show at the Goose Island Clybourn Brewpub.
Culty podcast duo Jake and Amir (Hurwitz & Blumenfeld, respectively) bring their “If I Were You” ‘cast to Park West.
Jam heroes Poi Dog Pondering plays the Vic with guests DJ-Baby Blu and Brother StarRace (!!!!!!!).
J&L Defer, RXM Reality, and The Evening Glow play The Hideout.
Head to CHI PRC for the opening reception of In-Between Panels: A Comics & Illustration Show, featuring art from a bunch of local graphic artists!
Colbie Caillat’s Malibu Sessions Acoustic Tour rolls through Thalia Hall tonight, with opening sets from High Dive Heart and Justin Young.

Do some daytime stuff:
The Music Box has an afternoon screening/Q&A with Kirsten Johnson, director of the new cinema-geek baiting documentary Cameraperson.
Wicker Park is overrun by two iconic undead creatures-zombies and vampires-as a part of the Zombies vs. Vampires Halloween pub crawl.
Try a bunch of different chili’s in addition to other tailgate food treats and college football today at Chili Fest Chicago.
The Patio Theater’s Massacre 24 hour horror movie marathon kicks off at noon today, with a bunch of awesome screenings and special guests!
Get artsy and scary in equal measure at the daylong Halloween Gathering Festival & Parade downtown.
18th Street Pilsen Open Studios is like an expanded version of their monthly Second Fridays event, with even more art studios opening their doors throughout the weekend, starting this afternoon.
The Morton Arboretum’s Cider & Ale Festival is gonna be a whole big blowout. Get drunk surrounded by fancy trees.
Future Hits’ 5th Annual family-friendly Halloween Spectacular is BACK at Schubas. Duke Otherwise and The Ravens also play!

Then, night stuff:
Let’s spend an evening with Nick Offerman at the Music Box, yeah? He’ll be talking about and reading from his latest book and introducing a late night screening of Highlander.
Rootsfolk Jamestown Revival and Jonny Fritz play Park West.
Catch Blackstreet, En Vogue, Jagged Edge, Next, and more at The Chicago Theatre as a part of the Love In The ‘90s Tour.
Subterranean’s got a heavy assed show from Skeletonwitch, Iron Reagan, Oathbreaker, and Homewrecker. Nice.
St. Lucia and Baio play the Concord. Go dance.
DJ extraordinaire Jonathan Toubin brings his Haunted Hop and Dance-off to The Hideout.
Night 2 of Poi Dog Pondering’s “Illumination” residence at The Vic.
The very funny Dwayne Perkins does three (three!!!) shows tonight at Zanies. Get over there for one of them, at least.
Lord Snow & Birds In Row play the Downstairs space at Subterranean with guests Mercy Ties and Stay Asleep.
Haircut-having Brits Temples play the Empty Bottle with Vinyl Williams.
Matt Hires and Volunteer plays Schubas.
And the Cubs play.

Grimy rock band Paint Fumes storms the Empty Bottle tonight, with opening sets from Beastiii and Poison Boys.
Grab the kids and see the world-famous Octonauts live at the Rosemont Theatre. Damn!
Billie Joe and the boys in Green Day play an intimate (for them) show at the Aragon. Damn!
The Moth brings one of it’s acclaimed StorySLAM events to Lincoln Hall. Got a story to share? Bring it!
Kayo Dot, The End of the Ocean, Vaskula, and The Gabriel Construct play Cobra Lounge on Ashland tonight.
ZINEmercado takes over the Comfort Station in Logan Square, with a celebration of all things DIY and zine-related.
Longtime electronic bloopsters VNV Nation celebrate their 20th anniversary at the Metro tonight.
The Empty Bottle Book Club convenes to discuss the incredible Phoebe Robinson’s You Can’t Touch My Hair this afternoon.
If you’ve got the heart/stomach, catch a screening of the very heavy/necessary doc Blood Lions with a Q&A with the film’s director Bruce Young, at the Music Box.
Head out to the Hyatt Regency O’Hare for damn ‘80s Toycon, with special throwback guests and vintage vendors.
Logan Square book/record shop Bucket O’ Blood hosts their first-ever Recovery Sundays hangout/chilltime/hangover support group event. Go hang!
And the Cubs (maybe) play.