Pumpkin Carving TONIGHT... and Halloween Week!

IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF YEAR ONCE AGAIN!

One of my biggest critiques of humanity - and there are PLENTY - is that people don't have the GUTS (or the taste or the panache) to just leave their Halloween decorations up all year round. 

Imagine a world where goblins and ghouls and diabolical critters of all kinds howled at you anytime you approached a neighbors door. This is the kind of sanity that could carry us past this little evolutionary hiccup we've been mired in as of late and carry us onto the promise of the Future, I tell you.

Halloween is almost here and, as you probably suspected, we have a bunch of events to help you celebrate this wonderful season. Starting TONIGHT!

Come on down, by a beer or four and decorate a pumpkin. You can decorate here or at home, but make sure you get it back here so that you have a chance to win our jack-o-lantern contest at our Halloween party on 10/26.

And, because Thursday's are always butthead to Broderick here at our troubled little Lodge, it's also FRANKENSTEIN THURSDAY!

That's TONIGHT for the FrankenSTEIN build your 1L stein of either TRUST or ORANGE SUNSHINE (D&P is out and I don't feel like fixing the graphic). For $10 you can drink the stein, but for a measly $20 you can take this fancy IBW stein home with you. GOOD LORD, that's a mighty fine deal. If you're nice and you ask and you shovel out the cash, we'll give you a 1L of Ecto-Slushy for $30. But we're only doing the $30 deal on that.

And, also, just in case it gets too crowded in here tonight we've got this month's installment of THE ELASTIC TELEPATHIC WORKSHOP!!!

If you're a moderately capable musician and bring your own crap you can sit in with us and help drive all the remaining customers out of this place. 

Can I be Sirius for a second? This ELASTIC TELEPATHIC WORKSHOP has really blossomed into a beautiful and musically engaging kind of thing. Run by America's Sweetheart, John Vernon Forbes, and featuring the drum wizardry of BARBER DEREK, we've assembled a pretty exciting line up of musicians who , somehow, always seems to find our musical asses even amidst seemingly improbably odds. We're going to stream tonight's set on INSTAGRAM so, if you're skeptical you can sit home like a creep and judge people who are actually doing something while you are at home judging people. WHAT A DEAL!! We designed that just for YOU.

This Saturday is the 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY of the incredible Modular Synth night we host here with our friends from DAY GLOW PRODUCTIONS!
 

If you're a Modular Synth freak this is the perfect evening to feed your addiction... and there's NEVER a cover. If I could cap lock that further I would. And Video Waste... oh man, sweet, sweet Video Waste.

We haven't even gotten to Halloween week yet....

NEXT THURSDAY!! It's my favorite night of the Halloween Season when we bring you the 4TH ANNUAL DOG COSTUME CONTEST!!

Come get your pet's photo taken and we'll even let you get in there as well if you like. If you participate, you get 10% off your tab for the evening and you might even win one of our AMAZING prizes.

This year we'll have IBW Gift Cards and a FREE Dog Training class from CANINE THERAPY CORPS. If you don't recall, what we do is post the photos the next day on IG and Creepbook and we let you THE PEOPLE vote. For once in this god-forsaken world your voice might be heard. Vote early, vote often and make sure the most adorable dog wins... AGAIN!

AND THEN...

It's all right there. Read the flyer and live content knowing that I will be blowing up your inbox next week with more reminders.

OH! Also... on SUNDAY OCTOBER 27TH we've got... wait for it... BEETLEJUICE THEMED TEAM TRIVIA. Oh boy, that's gonna be fun on a bun.

October is truly the greatest month of the year.

Hopefully we'll see some of you beautiful people tonight!

ECTO-SLUSHY RELEASE TOMORROW

Hola!

BIG NEWS for people who like weird things that aren't beer!!!

Tomorrow we are releasing this year's batch of ECTO-SLUSHY hard sparkling fruit yummy!! This weird-ass green monstrosity is back and ready to fill your brains full of swervy, delightful dreams!

We're limiting 3 4-packs per customer so everybody gets their fair shake at this Halloween treat.

And for the release, FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY, you can get a 1L stein filled to the rim with ECTO-SLUSHY and keep the IBW glass for $30. That's a screaming deal that you aren't likely to see again anytime soon.

And, for those of you who LIKE beer and can't wait to acquire one of these lovely IBW INGEST steins...

That's TONIGHT for the FrankenSTEIN build your 1L stein of either TRUST or DOG & PONY SHOW. For $10 you can drink the stein, but for a measly $20 you can take this fancy IBW stein home with you. GOOD LORD, that's a mighty fine deal. I mean, look at this stein:

There's other stuff happening this month as well. You know, things like a DOG COSTUME CONTEST, pumpkin carving and a pumpkin carving contest and, on October 26th, our Halloween party. 

OH! Also... on SUNDAY OCTOBER 27TH we've got... wait for it... BEETLEJUICE THEMED TEAM TRIVIA. Oh boy, that's gonna be fun on a bun.

October is truly the greatest month of the year.

"IBW: We're here for you as long as you have cash."

IBW Lodge #1 3-Year Anniversary Party on Saturday!

Welp, now... I sure hope you all enjoyed that beeeee-euatiful Super Full Moon Eclipse last night and that you survived its lovely tendrils in one or two pieces. She was a doozy, for sure!

What a gift to live on a planet where the best show available takes place every night and doesn't cost a damn thing to get into. And you only gotta trade your life to get out! 

As I hope you all already know and have been wracking your noodles to come up with the finest costume you can find for it, we've got our 3 YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY this Saturday, September 21st here at our humble little beer hovel, IBW Lodge #1. 

To help celebrate, we're releasing a collaboration Bock we made with our friends at THE BUCKLAND MUSEUM OF WITCHCRAFT & MAGICK in Cleveland, OH. Steven Intermill and Toni Rotunda have been stewarding this wonderful museum since around 2017, inheriting it from a long line of curator/owners and locations since its inception by it's namesake, Raymond Buckland, back in the 1960's. 

There's truly very little like this hovering treasure of history. Of course, they have a ton of artifacts from Buckland's collection including robes and ritual gear and other such treats. But they also have pieces from all kinds of characters from the very rich history of Witchcraft & Magick including Kenneth Grant, NEMA, Lon Milo DuQuette and even the Great Beast himself, Aleister Crowley. Not to mention their lovely collection of newspaper pieces and magazine articles on Buckland and the Dark Arts. And don't miss their very fine Ouija Board collection. I'm telling you... I'm telling you!!

If you're near Cincinatti, take the time to stop. Not only is the collection fantastic, but Steven is an incredible host and will keep you on your heels for hours with stories and curious finds. And don't leave without communing with the OOSER!

Small businesses and operations like the Buckland Museum of Witchcraft & Magick are the lifeblood of the soul of the personality of any city you can visit. Not only do they deserve your attention and support, they demand it. If you love Mystery, if you love Art, if you love the curious and continued drive by humans to make sense of this hair-brained world we live in, then you would agree with me that we need more places like this around.

Speaking of incredible small businesses, we're going to have some of Chicago's most wonderful small businesses at our 3 Year Anniversary Party on Saturday.

Places like:

• BUCKET O BLOOD Books & Records! with their unparralleled selection of Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi and fiction, if you care about books and you love the Weird, the strange & frightening humans at Bucket O Blood are just for you.

• SIDESHOW GALLERY has everything you need for your Witchy bender or life-style or curiosity or obsession. Everything from books, to tarot decks, to taxidermy and Frazetta prints, Cherie & Anne have lovingly assembled a playful little fairy ring to slip into for days on end. They also curate some incredible classes with local artists and writers as well out some hot-shot out-of-towners.

• ALCHEMY ARTS Metaphysical Books is one of our longer standing Occult book stores in the city. The rare book collection at Alchemy Arts is pretty great, but so is their herb & oil collection not to mention their statuary. And, while you're there, take a ride in the glorious Throne of Pan (or whatever they call it, that's my name for it). 

• MALLIWAY BROTHERS MAGIC & WITCHCRAFT store is a newer addition to Chicago's solid Occult line-up but they bring a stellar game to the table. They have an incredibly diverse and well-programmed book selection and also offer herbs and oils and odds and ends for your journey into your own weird self. The brothers themselves and the rest of their staff are about as nice a group of folks as you're going to meet in a vicious little city like our lovely Chicago.

• GRAVEFACE has an incredible records selection, taxidermy, Ghana film posters as well as running their own film imprint, TERRORVISION. And, while you're there, buy a ticket for their museum, they have an original David Huggins print there that I've been trying for months to figure out who I have to butter up to acquire it from them.

• METALEDGE RECORDS & TAPES is Edison Park's best place for used records. I've bought everything from the Kink's to Steely Dan to the 13th Floor Elevators from these guys at great prices and in great condition. I hear they also have some metal...

We're also going to have a 3D printer and engraver here (Chicago Pyro Shop) so bring ideas and things you want to get engraved. Alec will even engrave the Natal chart you get from Spiros' reading if you do it while you're here. We've got a screen printer, a sculptor and a wood worker as well!!! There's probably more and I'm a jerk for forgetting.

One thing I didn't forget is that the wonderful humans from AERIZ CANNABIS will be here to help either ruin or really expand your day. Only you can be the judge!!

And did I tell you that you'll be able to get your Tarot cards read or your Astrological birth chartanalysed? Come ready to dig under the hood. We'll have beer for you to help digest the bad news. 

You can also eat great wood-fired pizza from CHUCK'S WOOD-FIRED PIZZA.

Oh, aaaand the DUNK TANK is back!!!! Take out all of your headaches and heartaches by dunking a stranger into an icy cold bath of water. AND WIN PRIZES DOING IT.

And this is all just during the day (2p-6p to be exact).

At 7pm Steven & Toni will tell stories and show you artifacts from the Buckland Museum. Shortly after that, we're going to have a little procession lead by TWO GIANT PUPPETS for crepes sake. So please, no matter what you do, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU COME DRESSED IN A COSTUME!!!

At 9:30 we've got 3 of the best metal bands in Chicago giving you a night of soul-pickling sounds. We've got DRUUNA, BECOME DEATH & C.O.M.A. for all your audio terrors and delights.

Man, that's a lot. It's gonna be so freaking great. I can't wait to see you all. AND WEAR A DAMN COSTUME THERE ARE PRIZES ON THE LINE THAT YOU WILL WANT.

But, even before Saturday, we've got some pretty great stuff going on. Have you ever floated in a sensory deprivation tank? Are you interested?

We've teamed up with our friends at TrueRest Float Spa in Skokie to host a little gathering of flotation tank enthusiasts. We're going to play this one pretty loose depending on the needs of those showing up - do you want to learn about floating or do you want to share your experiences.... or both! - but, one thing I can say for sure is that everyone who comes to this meet up will receive a FREE FLOAT at TrueRest. That is a screaming deal worth updwards of $60.

I love floating, I do it at least twice a month and have been doing it since the late 1990s. Not only is it exceptional for meditation and consciousness exploration, I've also found, in my older days, that it is an exquisite analgesic and cure for minor aches and pains (the kind a brewer picks up now and again). I can't say enough great things about the benefits I and others have derived from floating. If this at all in interesting to you, come by, talk to some folks who have done it and get a free float out of the deal. Come on! This is Thursday @ 7pm.

Bonus points if you want to hang around for our monthly Improvisational Jam afterwards, THE ELASTIC TELEPATHIC WORKSHOP. Lead by Chicago GIANT John Vernon Forbes, this is a mostly judgement-free space to come and explore the world of improvisational music with other talented players. You must bring your own backline and everything need to make whatever strange sound you like making. Try it sometime. We start at 9pm with that.

Friday SMOKESTAFF is back making their phenomenal BBQ. I hear tell Mark is making some crazy hot sauce from J's peppers called like SATAN'S SNAPPER or something like that. Do Satans have snappers? It must be called something else.

That's all I've got for now. I'm beyond excited for what we've got coming. I hope you all are as well. Let's make Saturday a celebration of time, small business, curiosity and JOY and make it one for the ages!!

"IBW: We're here for you as long as you have cash."

SMART ASS Trivia Game TONIGHT @ IBW LODGE #1

Hiya!

Tonight we're doing a live version of SMART ASS, a fun little card trivia game from University Games. Winners will take home IBW Gift Cards and EVERYONE who plays will get their very own copy of SMART ASS to take home with them. Who doesn't like FREE stuff?

Your esteemed brewer Bucky will be hosting this sure-to-be-a-mess mess. But whatever?! Right? Right. Come, have a few beers and take home a fun card game for FREE. And have fun in the process. 

Did you know this will be fun?

Starting this SUNDAY we'll be brining back FREE HOT DOGS FOR BEARS GAMES. What a world.
 

And then, please mark your calendar for our 3 Year Anniversary Party where we're releasing a collaboration Bock we made with our friends at THE BUCKLAND MUSEUM OF WITCHCRAFT & MAGICK. We'll have vendors, tarot readers and a DUNK TANK during the day and 3 metal bands after 9pm to put a clear and thunderous capstone on the day.
 

 "IBW: We're here for you as long as you have cash."

Zombie Tarot & Murder Bingo TONIGHT @ IBW Lodge #1!

Holy Moses, I've been obsessing over this Silver Jews song "Smith & Jones" for the past few days. It's one of those songs that you hear a million times but then on that one million and oneth (or is that onthe?) time you finally listen to it.

Give this Dylan-esque masterpiece from the late but never forgotten David Berman a deep listen. It’s like so much of his work: tonally simple and catchy as hell on the surface, but it gets increasingly steep, beautiful and haunting the more you circle in.

One thing I can't yet resolve about this melodic riddle is whether or not it's about the prison of personality. In the classic sci-fi TV show "Lost In Space" Dr. Jeremiah Smith was portrayed by the actor Henry Jones. And I'm certain, if you spoke to Henry Jones after his run as the diabolical and dented Dr. Smith, at some point your conversation would turn to him belly-aching about how he's going to be locked into that character for the rest of his career.

"Yeah, sure, it made my career," he'd say in that impish way only Henry Jones could summon. He'd probably take a long melodramatic pull on his cigarette at this point, staring off into that Space where he appears to still be Lost. "But the same thing that made my career ended it immediately as well."

I can't listen to this song without wondering what personalities that I've inhabited have kept me in a prison longer than my sentence demanded. Smith & Jones, forever. Indeed. Bon appetite.

But my exceptional taste in music is not why we're here. I'm here to tell you that TONIGHT at America's #1 hot spot for non-sequitur pickle ball we've got a lovely human being that calls herself Emerald Acorn doing walk-up ZOMBIE TAROT readings. Here's what she says about this new spread style:

"I will share with you that I am terrified of zombies! That slow pursuit of hungry, emotionless humans freaks me out. But we can learn and grow by dissecting our discomforts. The 5-card zombie spread asks the hard and poignant question:How you survive what you fear?"

For MURDER BINGO tonight we'll be showing the summer camp classic "The Burning"! Here's the synopsis:

At summer camp, some teenagers pull a prank on the camp's caretaker, Cropsy (Lou David). But the joke goes terribly wrong, and the teens leave Cropsy for dead after setting him on fire. But no one keeps Cropsy down. A few years later, the burned and disfigured caretaker returns to camp equipped with his trusty shears, ready to unleash his particular brand of vengeance on a whole new group of teens. The murderous Cropsy stalks the campers in the woods, one by one.

I mean, sure, it sounds a leeeetle bit like another film that dropped about a year previous, but I'm sure that's just a coincidence. But, honestly, I dig The Burning more than that other unmentioned movie. Plus, this one also features the special effects wizardry of Tom Savini who designed, deployed and, uh, executed that iconic scene with the hedge clippers and... oh, you'll just have to come see it.

MURDER BINGO starts at 9pm and is always strictly 21+

We packaged a fresh batch of Watermelon Gun yesterday. I love this beer and this batch is particularly splendid. We never use anything but hand-processed and fresh, real watermelons for Watermelon Gun. We do this, well, because real watermelon is just transcendental. There is no replacement for that cold, crunchy deliciousness of the watermelon rind in this world, so there is no way to achieve that other than putting real watermelon in the beer. This year's batch has a lovely balance of the fruit sweetness with the green cucumber yumminess of the rind as well. I hope you dig it. It's available at the Lodge in 4-packs and will go on draft this weekend. J is dropping these at accounts as I write this.

Oh, hey, all you Phishy people out there. We're streaming the tour again this Friday at 6:30p and then again on Sunday August 11th. On Sunday we'll start with Saturday night's show at 4pm and then do the Sunday night show live when it starts.

I might make some burgers or something on Sunday so come by early and let's make a day of it!

If you're one of those strange people that likes to wake up early on a Saturday so you can run and then drink beer, then we've got you this Saturday, August 10th. Come by the shop and run a 5k and receive a pint of IBW beer on the house and a chance to win some other raffle prizes. You can still sign up for this by following this link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/5k-beer-run-x-illuminated-brew-works-2024-illinois-brewery-running-series-tickets-760660374657?aff=oddtdtcreator

And, of course, this Saturday night we've got another installment of WAX DISASTERS our no-genre, all vinyl dance party:

And, hey, if you're going to the Great Taste of the Midwest (which you 100% should be) then come by and say hi to J and Rick out there.

"IBW: We're here for you as long as you have cash."

You can see all of our events on our event calendar at https://www.ibw-chicago.com/events

You can see what's currently on tap at IBW LODGE #1 at https://www.ibw-chicago.com/whats-on-tap