Whysowhite party
Photo: Derek Tam
As one angry Keg-goer points out this week, “The only advantage to The Keg is convenience and this is not convenient!” Right on, dude, let’s stick it to the man. So we took solace in the city and its dollar drink specials. More titillating Party Report details after the jump.
Wednesday Night: Bar night
Frat stars and their female companions crowd on buses to head to Wrigleyville for a Margaritaville-themed party. Some partygoers take the Jimmy Buffett theme quite literally and don oversized Hawaiian shirts while others just wear summer attire. When attendees arrive at the bar, the bouncers are surprisingly lax on IDs until, well, it becomes obvious that most partygoers intend on entering as 21+. The bouncers quickly whisk the under-21 crowd to the second floor, while the “21-plus” crowd is allowed to linger by the bar on the first floor. While the bar night includes many all-too-enticing drink specials like $1 tequila shots and $2 lemon drops, the bar spikes the prices of carbonated alcoholic beverages, and partygoers are shocked by the $10 rum and cokes. Also noticeably absent from the drink list? Margaritas. So much for a themed party.
Thursday Night: Sorority crush party
A sorority crush party fills up Wicker Park’s Debonair Social Club. In keeping with an “If college doesn’t work out…” theme, gold diggers, trophy wives, and army men alike board the bus for a fun night downtown. The line to show IDs is ginormous, so anxious sorority girls pee in convenience stores, a hookah shop, and even on the sidewalk. The dance floor is full of Playboy Bunnies, while the bathroom is full of people washing the underage Xs off of their hands with chapstick in hopes of scoring a nice cold PBR to get them through the night.
Thursday Night: Birthday party
Three seniors intent on turning 22 with a bang book a school bus to shuttle 50 of their closest friends and acquaintances to a Lincoln Park bar. The bus ride is raucous but not unpleasant—a half-wine, half-Sprite BIT (booze in transit) is passed up and down the aisles, while others squirt wine all over the bus during a game of slap the bag. Needless to say, most are sufficiently wasted upon arriving at the island-themed bar. The glam rock band playing 90s covers sends conflicting messages: What is the theme here? A washed up rock band shipwrecked on a tropical island but actually in Lincoln Park? We don’t know. In any case, the birthday theme is clear: Drunk. It’s dollar drink night. We’re not sure how, but several people end up with a tab of $60, which probably explains why no one remembers.
Friday Night: Fundraiser party on Maple
An off-campus film fundraiser fills up quickly and only gets crazier as the night goes on. The Gatorade-based jungle juice (whose idea was that?) is balanced out by the dozens of 40s floating around. In a game of flip-or-dare, the mostly innocent dares include the usual exchanges of clothes, inappropriate text messages, a lap dance, and some face-licking. However, a dare to lead the national anthem causes the entire party to spontaneously stop drinking as the song spreads throughout the house. The same thing happens ten minutes later with Northwestern’s fight song, though not as loudly. We might not be as proud of our sports teams these days, but at least we love the USA.
Friday Night: Whysowhite party
You know it’s going to be a good show when the band blows a fuse just a couple of minutes into their set. And opens their set with a cover of the “All That” theme song. Whysowhite, fresh from their DM gig, plays for a packed basement on Pratt on Friday night. Campus media are there in full force, as are the band’s faithful, clad in fluorescent colors and plenty of Greek regalia. Overheard praise for the band: “They’ve got really good crowd control.” True enough. After the lights suddenly go out, the band calms everyone down via megaphone, and within a few seconds, the music blares once more. One audience member also blows a fuse, calling out another fan for his overly-aggressive dancing. That exchange eventually fades out, and everyone resumes watching the show. The four or five kegs lined up behind the crowd probably help with that.
Saturday Night: The Keg
Another crowded night at The Keg begins with a very upset shuttle driver yelling at students to get off the damn bus. One Keg-goer, upon seeing the line to the door, yells out, “The only advantage to The Keg is convenience and this is not convenient!” Inside, a mix of students and random adults try to buy drinks but are stymied by a bartender shamelessly flirting with girls easily two decades younger than he is. Rumors abound that a certain Kansas college frat visiting for the weekend is clogging up the dance floor. Unable to recognize some of the beefier guys milling about, we decide to corroborate this. Glad to know The Keg has become a tourist attraction in modern day Evanston.
