We Have an Issue: Maybe Youth Isn’t Wasted on the Young

A UT journalism student who only recently wrapped up an internship with us, Mars Salazar makes her cover debut this week with her feature story "10 Bands Under 25 That Make Me Feel Alive." Mars told Music Editor Kevin Curtin she thought the story demanded a photographer under the age of 25 – a suggestion that made all us olds smile – but damned if her instincts weren't dead on. This week's cover is such a mood. I love its energy and aesthetic, how perfectly it evokes the messiness of youth and the physicality of it. Isabella Martinez shot the cover and most of the band photos that accompany Mars' feature. I'm told the cover shoot came about when Mars' parents went out of town and she invited all the musicians over for a party at their house – a detail I find endlessly charming.

Check out the story on p.44, and head over to austinchronicle.com/music to sample the 10 featured bands' music.

Online This Week

Inside BLK VINTAGE REPRISE: Music Editor Kevin Curtin chats with BLK ODYSSY about collaborating with George Clinton and Benny the Butcher, plus new label Earth Child Ent.

Wunderkeks' Mission of Acceptance: Camila Llorente explores how the queer- and immigrant-owned Austin-based cookie company is building safe spaces with baked goods.

Has Donald Fagen Finally Learned to Vibe? Julian Towers reviews the Steely Dan show at ACL Live on June 5.

Dispatches From ATX: Read up on the highlights from last weekend's television festival, including the Scrubs reunion, Euphoria breakout Sydney Sweeney's presentation, and an interview with Station Eleven showrunner Patrick Somerville.

Three Headed Beast: Culture Editor Richard Whittaker speaks with the filmmakers of Austin-made relationship drama Three Headed Beast, debuting at Tribeca Film Festival on June 13.

The Story Behind Sing Out!: Austin Artists Project and Playbill collaboration, a Pride-inspired musical revue, takes the long way to Lincoln Center debut.

Big Win for Van Boven: Michael King reports on the Texas Supreme Court's recent ruling that the Texas Medical Board acted beyond its authority in refusing to clear neurologist Robert Van Boven's name with the National Practitioner Data Bank.

Five Great Gifts for Father's Day: Wayne Alan Brenner has suggestions for how to honor your paterfamilias again.