HiFi Critics

150,000 Americans succumbed. 5,000,000 infected. An economy that shed 20,000,000 jobs. We lost the battle, but now we settle in for the war. This once-a-hundred year event may have been caused on purpose to sabotage the chances of a high-flying president. Alternatively, said president may have calculated that letting the governors lead was the best course of action. Nonetheless, here we all are staring at another year of quarantine life. What will be the effect of this pandemic and it’s...

In the face of two major crises, while the President is leading from the front through Lafayette Park with only a bible to protect him, Hidin’ Joe Biden is in his basement, like Punxatawny Phil, afraid of his own shadow. Or is he? Comparing Hidin’ Joe from 2016 with now, people are saying that this could be a Weekend at Bernie’s election. As the bedwetting liberals of this show, how concerned are you that Hidin’ Joe could be knocked out of the race by medical trauma before November? Is...

El Presidente, the self-proclaimed boss of the deal, is pushing to change a 1977 law that makes it illegal for businesses to bribe foreign officials to win business abroad. What’s wrong with a little payola, especially since America’s economy grows stronger with every deal we win? Who stands to gain most if this law is repealed?

Chicago’s very own bonafide superstar, Jenny McCarthy, is leading the crusade for parents to be freed from the tyranny of government oppression. Specifically, the public school requirement that children be vaccinated against preventable debilitating diseases measles, mumps and rubella. Although the 1960s were known for fighting the government’s lies, it took the internet to connect these crusaders for freedom to find their voice in the late 1990s. If you managed to find a partner with whom...

Vinyl Nation premiered online on what was supposed to be Record Store Day to feed the tired, the poor, the huddled masses self-isolating and yearning to breathe that vinyl smell since Record Store Day was delayed. As a vinyl “expert”, did the movie stir your soul to evangelize the vinyl industry or cause you to throw up on the inside, just a little bit?

2019 was the year vinyl subscription services managed to grab the cash of your humble panelists. Vinyl Me, Please, the 21st century incarnation of the BMG music club, has hit on a successful formula of shipping a record a month to their thousands of subscribers. Artist labels like New West, Secretly Society and Rough Trade followed on with subscription services of their own, with their own twists. What made you subscribe to these services and what is your hype level about the 2020 releases?

As if loyal Cubs fans haven’t suffered enough, now the dark lord himself, private polo club member Tom Ricketts is launching the “best relationship with our fans of any professional sports team in the world.” In other words, he’s trying to line his pockets at your expense, Cubs fans! Want to watch the Cubs on tv? That’ll cost you. Want to meet a Cubs player? That will cost you. Want to watch the YouTube replay of Sandberg crushing an extra inning homer off of Bruce Sutter? Forget it. What is...

You’ve been Punk’d! Who likes April Fools Day all year round, especially when it’s Hollywood that’s getting fooled like 63 million American voters? After cancelling his world tour last year due to poor ticket sales, Chicago Superstar Chance the Rapper is hosting a reboot of the famous MTV show, Punk’d, on the new liberal zoo sounding streaming service Quibi. Will Chance save his career with this move or is he destined to be forgotten for Chance the Snapper?

Our esteemed panel of HiFi Critics unload on the biggest, the best and the most tremendous answers of everything that happened in 2019.

Our esteemed panel of HiFi Critics unloads on the biggest, the best and the most tremendous answers of everything that happened in 2019.

Our esteemed panel of HiFi Critics unloads on the biggest, the best and the most tremendous answers of everything that happened in 2019.

The corner dive bar is endangered! Government regulation, property taxes and lazy apple users are driving the dive bar to jump from the top of the Sears Tower. Into this environment enter two hipsters saving a Bucktown neighborhood pub. Should we be thankful or does Chicago need another Philz coffee chain store across from Starbucks?

Lori Lightfoot rode seventeen percent support all the way to the Mayor’s office. Following her taxpayer funded trips to the coasts, reality has smacked her in the face like a newborn baby: The City of Chicago has an $838 million dollar 2020 budget shortfall. As a typical attorney with no business knowledge, she’s backtracking on some of her campaign promises to increase tax revenue. What position has Lightfoot taken for the 2020 budget that most surprises you and why?

Record Store Day Black Friday 2019 Cashgrab - HiFi Critics by HiFi Critics

The Record Store Day official list is out and it comes in three inches! Cosmopolitan elites love to appear anti-establishment by bashing this annual event, but they are the first ones with their hands out. There’s a new three inch format this year and it’s proof that the #cashgrab is in full effect. Looking at this year’s RSD exclusive list, what are the top three releases that you must have and why?

Some cosmopolitan elites like to hate on the cashgrab of Record Store Day. Perhaps it’s their mass produced iWatch or chain coffee shop, but they love to hate big business. Move over Record Store Day, because HMV launched Vinyl Week to release independent artists like Bruce Springsteen and Madonna. They sold 77,000 lps over 9 days, answering vinyl owner’s prayers for the latest macro brew music. Are you supportive of HMV’s Vinyl Week or are you a big vinyl hater?

This year marks the 30th anniversary since the fall of the Berlin Wall. The conventional wisdom is that Ronald Reagan’s speech in front of the Wall was the defining moment. However, you’ve been lied too, Eagles. The real hero that dismantled the Berlin Wall with nothing but his feathery wordsmithing and crooner’s mullet is none other than Germany’s greatest export, David Hasselhoff. Where does Looking for Freedom rank in your top 25 all-time world changing songs

Another installment of RSD BF is upon us. There’s definitely a different vibe associated with the Black Friday event compared to the April event. What do you notice about the difference in lists from the two events?

El Presidente Trumpo’s America First agenda strikes again when he instructed his people to pull the US out of the Universal Postal Union. This obscure UN agreement stipulates that the USPS has to charge a below market rate for foreign originated package shipments. No one loves the USPS more than the Presidente, but is this just a love letter to the USPS?

Richard Ashcroft, lead singer of the Verve, will finally begin earning royalties on soft rock schlock Bitter Sweet Symphony, his 1997 chart topper. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have gracefully donated their songwriting credit back to Ashcroft after having sued for breach of sampling contract when the Stones were so down on their luck after Voodoo Lounge. Did the Stones do the right thing in suing or did Ashcroft get treated like a farm animal the last 22 years?