Car Con Carne

This is a historic first for the podcast: The cast of the beloved (and rapidly-growing) Spectral Silhouette Radio Show performs a scene created exclusively for Car Con Carne. What is the Spectral Silhouette? Before the performance, I had a great…

(Yes, the episode numbers are out of sequence. It’s a long, not terribly interesting, story.) FITZGERALDS (6615 Roosevelt in Berwyn) was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Park Service at the end of last…

Threadless – the online artist community and design marketplace – is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.  Founder and CEO Jake Nickell joins me for char dogs at Poochie’s (a favorite for hot dog fans north of the city) and…

I’m joined for this episode by Carla Harvey, who we first came to know through her 15-ish years with the band she co-founded, Butcher Babies. At the beginning of this year, Carla Harvey announced that she’s the new “Acid Queen”…

Comasoft, the “gothy little rock band from Chicago,” is back! Jay and Chris jump in the car to talk with me about the band’s history and future plans. Actually, Chris joined us for the last few minutes, but we were…

The next Car Con Carne live event is coming up: Car Con Carne Live Featuring: James VanOsdol Thursday May 15th Legit Dogs & Ice: 322 s. Randall rd. South Elgin, IL 60177 Doors: 6:30pm Event: 8:30pm FEATURING LIVE MUSIC AND…

Recorded at Siren Records, McHenry IL (3902 Main) on Record Store Day 2025 at 6:30 a.m. Siren Records owner Bill Linquist joins me for a conversation about this year’s RSD, as well as the impact RSD has on local record…

Writer, fundraiser and pizza pro John Carruthers of Crust Fund Pizza is a Car Con Carne favorite, and it was awesome to have him back in the car to talk about his new cookbook, “Super Pizza World.” I met him…

East Moon joined me for a live recording at Legit Dogs & Ice in South Elgin on Thursday, 4/3. They performed two songs, including “Deaf Ears,” a crowd-pleasing, earwormy, delight.

This episode was recorded live at Legit Dogs & Ice in South Elgin (322 S. Randall Road), and includes interviews with East Moon, artist Chris Pienta and comedian Joseph Christopher (who also does a live comedy set for this episode!)…