Smile Politely. Speak Directly. A Champaign-Urbana Culture Blog

When the line for Lifehouse wrapped around the Canopy Club to the School of Music building on Nevada entered the venue, they fully packed the main floor and filled every seat in the balcony. Every fan dripping with anticipation for the ensuing performance.

And they got exactly what they were looking for when the band took the stage Thursday night.

The evening was an incredibly pure splash into the world of rock music. There was no frill to the concert; with simple lighting and minimum effects, the result was a refreshing taste of real, good noise.

When gawking at the enormous steel and concrete structures bursting forth all around you, be thankful that you live in a town where something, anything, is happening.

It keeps you thinking.

While you're thinking, you may wonder about the the plots on which those new buildings are sited. What was there before? Nothing? Something?

Perhaps a magic building, with weird beer, and the best sandwich you've ever eaten?

Nature's Table got bulldozed to make way for an enormous building. I suppose it would have been impossible for the university to build that same structure across the street — perhaps over the
parking lot that sits there still. The technology for building over parking lots has been around for a while. Heck, you can even construct a parking deck smack dab in the middle of your new building.

I've seen it done!