Draylen Mason Studio
Zeke Barbaro
Volume 41, Number 16
ON THE COVER:
WE HAVE AN ISSUE:
BY Kimberley Jones
news
2021 Top 10s
Top Austin Headlines of 2021: A Hard Restart
The biggest news stories of the year
BY MIKE CLARK-MADISON
Top 10 Local Political Quotes of 2021
Some spoke truth to power and others introduced foot to mouth
Public Notice: Top 10 Stories of 2021
Some top topics on the community news front
BY NICK BARBARO
Headlines
Civics 101
Old Tensions Flare Anew at End of Mayor Pro Tem’s Term
Clashing symbols at City Council
BY AUSTIN SANDERS
Election 2022: We Got Ourselves Some Contests!
Filing has now concluded for the March 1 primaries
BY MIKE CLARK-MADISON
AISD Special Education Lawsuit Moves Forward
Federal district judge denies Austin ISD's motion to dismiss suit
BY MORGAN O’HANLON
Austin Campuses Still Closed, But Not (Yet) for Sale
What to do with Austin's closed elementary schools?
BY MORGAN O’HANLON
Austin Chronicle Nonprofit Wish List
Your guide to charitable giving
food
2021 Top 10s
The Top 10 Austin Food & Drink Stories of 2021
Another up-and-down year in Austin food
BY MELANIE HAUPT, JESSI CAPE, WAYNE ALAN BRENNER AND ERIC PUGA
The Best Dark Beers in Austin
It's the best time of year for dark roasty ales
BY ERIC PUGA
10 Perfect Patio Cocktails in Austin
Sun, sip, repeat
BY MELANIE HAUPT
The Best Outside-the-Box Barbecue (and Barbecue-Adjacent) Dishes in Austin We Ate This Year
Brisket tacos, nanner pudding, and mutton cooked low and slow
BY ROD MACHEN
Brenner’s Top 10 Breads of Austin
Because every week is bread week
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Our Favorite Comfort Food Fixes in Austin
When it's someone else's turn to make the meal, these restaurants delivered comfort on a plate (or bowl)
BY JESSI CAPE
Copper Closes, Oasthouse and Asahi Expand, AFWA Grants Locals, Holiday Dining Recos, and – what’s this about a Bloody Mary Festival?
All the news that’s fit to get your taste buds quivering
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Austin's Best Food and Drink Events This Week
Dinner parties, farmer's markets, beer, wine, and more for the week of December 16, 2021
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
music
2021 Top 10s
In My World of Disorder, the Top 100 Austin Records of 2021
Kevin Curtin ranks his favorite local releases of the year
BY KEVIN CURTIN
Faster Than Sound: Musical Top 10s of 2021
One writer's favorite Austin-sourced albums, songs, and such from the last 12 months
BY RACHEL RASCOE
What We're Listening to Right Now
Ayo Tamz, Blushing, Whookilledkenny, Chief Cleopatra, and more have us dialed in
BY E. RYAN ELLIS, CLARA WANG, MORGAN-TAYLOR THOMAS, ALEJANDRA RAMIREZ AND GREG STITT
Crucial Concerts for the Coming Week
Paul Wall, Why Bonnie, Jim Keller, El Combo Oscuro, and a Punk Rock Lottery lead our recommended shows
BY JULIAN TOWERS, KEVIN CURTIN, MICHAEL TOLAND, TIM STEGALL, CHRISTINA GARCIA AND CARYS ANDERSON
Live Music Events
BY DEREK UDENSI
screens
2021 Top 10s
The Austin Chronicle Top 10 Films of 2021
Jane Campion's stunning high plains drama The Power of the Dog takes a bite out of our critics
BY RICHARD WHITTAKER
Local YouTube Project Proves There’s Still a Creative Community
Austin Sunset brings back the wild days of public access for filmmakers and artists
BY RACHEL RASCOE
Film Reviews
Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
Sex and satire in this Romanian polemic comedy
Drive My Car
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s second masterpiece in a year finds the pain of love
The Lost Daughter
Olivia Colman is coiled and complex in this portrait of motherhood
Nightmare Alley
Guillermo del Toro goes into the dark of greedy souls in this noir remake
Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1
High-stakes and danger in India's wood smuggling underground
Red Rocket
Simon Rex gets under the skin of this year’s most fascinating scumbag
arts & culture
2021 Top 10s
Top 10 Arts Stories You Cared About the Most
From racist comedy to new books, returning theatre, and new textile joy, the most read stories about the Austin arts scene in 2021
BY RICHARD WHITTAKER
Jay Trachtenberg’s Top Books of 2021
In a lost year, retrospectives and reprints with new context were comfort reads
BY JAY TRACHTENBERG
Hamilton's Return Still Lives Up to the Hype
Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway smash returns to the Bass refreshed and revitalized
BY BOB ABELMAN
Five Things That Are Worthy of Your Generous Support
Local arts organizations need your help when it comes to end-of-year giving
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Arts Events
Art galleries, live performances, and more
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Community Events
Local events, volunteer opportunities, fitness classes, and more
BY KATHERINE MCNEVINS
columns
We Have an Issue: It’s Been a Year, All Right
It's the Top 10s issue; plus, meet the new Food Editor
BY KIMBERLEY JONES
2021 Top 10s
Qmmunity: Looking Back on 2021 Through a Queer Lens
This year's biggest LGBTQIA stories
BY BETH SULLIVAN AND JAMES SCOTT
Day Trips: Top 10 Out-of-Town Spots of 2021
Looking back at a year of Texas travel
BY GERALD E. MCLEOD
The Luv Doc: Top 10 Austin Bachelors of 2021
The real lede, of course, is ... celebrities!
BY THE LUV DOC
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
BY MR. SMARTY PANTS
Free Will Astrology
Your weekly horoscope, December 17-23
BY ROB BREZSNY
Feedback
Letters to the editor, published daily
sports
2021 Top 10s
The Verde Report: Top 10 Defining Moments of Austin FC’s Season
The highs and lows of the squad's Q2 debut
BY ERIC GOODMAN
comics
