aliveOne Bar / Live Music Venue

Lincoln Park, Chicago –

A hipster haven in Lincoln Park, aliveOne draws fans with its all-live music jukebox, regular band and DJ nights, and a rotation of specials that keep the microbrew-centric taps within easy monetary reach.

Tuesday’s $2 craft night alone entices a varied mix of beer lovers, when even a few scattered dudes in polos can be spotted along the two-tops lining one side of the narrow room, or on stools tucked against the velvet-curtained front windows.

Stacks of concert bootleg CDs line the shelves next to big photos of classic rock artists and portraits of the likes of Marley and Lennon, while above the bar a trippy American flag shimmers with golden fabric.

As the evening unfolds, plaid-shirted locals sip draft Gumball Head and pick rock anthems off the jukebox – from Dylan to Cash to Phish – as a TV above the bar plays concert DVDs.

Past the lone pool table, a back room fills with dreadlocked music lovers and lumberjack lookalikes who keep their whistles wet at the smaller second bar as they take in the DJs spinning soul and old-school hip-hop, the regular funk-fusion band, or the special performances, like bluegrass, that pop in once or twice a month.

As in much of Lincoln Park, a rowdier crowd of barhoppers regularly crashes in on the weekends, but with its varied shows and specials, any night at aliveOne promises lots of fun(k).