After a Fashion
Austin's friendly neighborhood (not to mention cuddly) Style Avatar, Stephen Moser makes the scene as the scenesters take over Austin! Be sure to catch AAF in each of our SXSW dailies!
By Stephen MacMillan Moser, Fri., March 18, 2005
THE SCENE The week has been packed with screenings and screaming – my big screen debut in Marci Winters-Allen's Queer Eye for the Austin Guy brought the desired result by keeping the audience entertained. We were much relieved to see that editor Dave Rehm (who was also assistant director) had been very kind to us… The Austin Chronicle Film Party at La Zona Rosa rocked with Reckless Kelly and the Gourds – good food and good company with Werner Campbell, Bob Sherman, Will Wynn, and Marc English, but (except for the above mentioned of course) the dress code was strictly camera-bag chic… Strolling past the very long line for the Queens of the Stone Age concert at Stubb's, I thought I was in Seattle – everyone seemed to have been required to wear a navy blue hoodie with ragged jeans dragging on the ground… The BMI Dinner at Stubb's was a terrific event, featuring Charlie Robison; News 8 producer Rachel Elsberry, BMI's Hanna Pantle, and her local deputy Jill McGuckin were all in attendance; and we visited with Mexiclan and the Real Heroes. Went to Ray Benson's Birthday Party at La Zona Rosa, featuring a silent auction benefiting the Austin Music Foundation; what a great nonprofit they are, with their Music Industry Boot Camp, Spotlight Series, and Incubator programs. Go to www.austinmusicfoundation.org for further info. Bob Schneider played a beautiful set with Ray Benson, and the crowd lapped it up. Meanwhile, watching RJ Da Silva broadcasting from the patio, we lapped it up with Hotel San Jose's Liz Lambert (her place is the happenin' spot on the SoCo Strip this week), Will Wynn (again – he must think I'm stalking him), KUT's Julie Moody, Giacomo Forbes (who has just opened two new Paul Mitchell salons), and the dreamy Will Sexton…
SUNDANCING Just as I recently wrote about the swag houses at Sundance, it appears the Sundance-ing of SXSW is occurring. Yesterday, I visited the Levi's House, which along with Urban Outfitters, has opened a temporary outpost on East Sixth. Definitely not open to the public (I'm not really sure how they decide who gets in and who doesn't), they've been decking out a large number of bands. Aside from the racks of clothes, I loved the décor – famous album covers and rock art featuring Levi's (think Springsteen's Born in the USA, the Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers, and the eponymous Ramones). We watched as L.A.'s lovely Vanessa of La Symphonia tried on outfits to wear at her showcase, and as Keith, Destin, and Dirty Little Pedro of LA's Drugstore Cowgirls posed for Levi's photographers before their show.
AUSTIN MUSIC REWARDS We thanked meteorologist Mark Murray for the cool weather at the Austin Music Awards. He said he was happy to oblige and put in a special request for the next few days. Both of us admitted guiltily to having missed the Eddy Awards this year (We're sorry, guys, we'll make it up to you next year!), but buckled down for a great night of music and extreme socializing. The VIP tent is always the place to be; crawling with local and international legends (and lots of beautiful women, of course), the vibe is always giddy, high energy. The beautiful Patricia Vonne and her handsome hubby Robert LaRoche waded through the throngs to find her place in the stage lineup, and we caught up with two other music legends, Clifford Antone and Pinetop Perkins. I headed back to the production area and met with John Cale and Nita Scott. Watching Cale perform with Al Escovedo is always enchanting, and Escovedo (in black suede pants from Blackmail) will also be making other appearances during SXSW, as will Cale. Industrial/Goth winners Lucid Dementia easily won the awards for most eclectic costume (including white-face), and other fashion sightings include Guys in Kilts (we didn't know who they were but they looked great), Lance Morgan, James Walker, AMN's Miss Kitty and hubby Zack Garrison, Bob Schneider, Dale Watson, Rita Garza, Nanci Griffith, and Blake Buffington and friends.
INSTANT MESSAGE I'm determined to engineer a summit meeting between Robert Plant and his erstwhile onetime lover Pamela Des Barre. Stay tuned.
TONIGHT 6:30pm Pink Salon presents Alejandro's Night opening with Amanda Dumas, 1204 S. Congress, $3… Lounge Productions presents Lazy, Incorporated (the reincarnation of the Supreme Beings of Leisure) and DJ Architektur at Sky Lounge, 416 Congress, 9pm to midnight. Benefiting the Sims Foundation, cover $5 SXSW badge holders/$8 general public, and doors open at 8pm… The legendary Scottish Invasion Party is at midnight at ALLGO's Tillery Street Theatre, sponsored by Austin's own Real Heroes… and, FYI, Saturday, March 19, legendary British rock photographer Mick Rock will be signing copies of his books (featuring his portraits of Iggy, Ziggy/Bowie, Jagger, Blondie, Warhol, John Cale, and Lou Reed) at FactoryPeople, 1325 S. Congress, 2-4pm. FactoryPeople also features the Bloody Mary Beauty Bar, among so many other activities. See www.factorypeople.com for more info.
