Cover Story
How Green Is the Music?
Festivals, bands, and musicians seek environmental harmony
Details on Would-Be Bombing of Women’s Clinic
APD delivers details of bomb-squad’s call to Austin Women’s Health Center.
Making Abortion Harder, Vol. 877,834
A bill that passed through senate today puts a new level of bureaucracy on medical staff practicing abortions.
What Is a Dow Jones, Anyway?
Is it all smiles with the US economy?
Thank You, Central Time Zone: A Preview of the 2007 NFL Draft
I moved to Texas from the East Coast for a multitude of reasons. I don’t like to wear pants (this is cut-off country). I like my food to stand on the tongue and howl at the moon Texan-style, and I need to have the draft an hour earlier in the day than I did in…
Primarily Primates Lawsuit Settled?
Sources tell the Chronicle that the attorney general has reached a “settlement” with the original managers of Primarily Primates Inc.’s sanctuary outside San Antonio, handing control of the troubled institution back to the original board of directors. Stay tuned throughout the day for more info on the decision. For more info on PPI’s recent legal…
The Final Word on the Toros’ ’06-’07 Season
What can you say about the recently concluded Austin Toros season except that it was a topsy-turvy affair from the jump, punctuated by periods of inspired play, extended stretches without a win, disappointing cameos from former NBA stars, energizing performances from former unknowns, incidences of high levity and low farce (witness the crime and punishment…
UEFA Champions League 2006-2007 for the Xbox 360
Considering the last soccer video game I played was Pelé’s Soccer on Atari 2600, I’m probably pretty easy to impress. “Awesome!” I couldn’t help shouting after I put the game in. “The players have legs now!” So I’m probably not the target market, but neither are you, most likely. In the U.S., where we hear…
Champions League Semifinals, Athens Frowns Upon Drunk Fans, and More Soccer News
The first leg of the Champions League semifinals was this week, and Manchester United and Chelsea each took a big step at home toward a possible title meeting. First, injury-depleted Man U came from behind on two second-half goals by Wayne Rooney to beat AC Milan 3-2 on Tuesday, and after the game, it’s Milan…
The Department of Irresponsible, Unconfirmed Rumor
Is the city facing a secret crunch this budget?
Taking Austin for a ‘Spin’
TCBlog make the Austin rounds in the new Spin.
Hell Freezes Over
Spinal Tap reunites to play Live Earth.
TXRD Lonestar Rollergirls Tryouts
You know you’ve always wanted to get in on the camaraderie and fun of the Roller Derby, and now opportunity is a-knockin’. Sign up now for your chance to skate as a Holy Roller, Rhinestone Cowgirl, Hellcat, Cherry Bomber, or a member of the Putas del Fuego. E-mail recruitment@txrd.com your name, age, and the date…
I Almost Thought It Was Second Street
So many pretty pictures of the proposed Northcross Wal-Mart
Could Cannabis Cure Cancer?
Scientists at Harvard University’s Division of Experimental Medicine say recent research indicates that tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC – the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana – reduces the size of human lung cancer tumors, inhibits their growth and reduces the incidence of lung lesions. The scientists’ first round of THC research – conducted in the lab and…
Bad Blood in Transport
Frayed tempers lead to a sharp rebuke in the Senate Transportation committee today.
On the Road Again
Willie Nelson and two cohorts – his sister, Bobbie Nelson, and David Anderson, his tour manager – were in a Louisiana court April 24, where Nelson and Anderson pleaded guilty to possession of pot and mushrooms, which were found on Nelson’s tour bus during a routine commercial vehicle inspection back in September. The Red-Headed Stranger…
Big Boned
Fishbone returns to Emo’s.
Bush Awarded Purple Heart. No, Really.
“We feel like emotional wounds and scars are as hard to carry as physical wounds.”
A New Separate but Equal?
Are private schools really being oppressed by not being allowed in the UIL?
Voter ID Bill Passes
Because election volunteers are so incredibly overworked, Republicans try to make voting a little harder.
Stalling Between Flights
Be careful what do when you do it in the loo.
Take This Roll and Shove It
Sheryl Crow says one square of toilet paper is enough, buddy.
Don’t Call It a Comeback
Looking back at this year’s Old Settler’s Music Fest.
Travis Residents Love to Vote
County gets award for highest turnout in the November 2006 election.
Miss West Texas in the House
Donning the tiara under the dome
Voter ID Bills up for House Vote Today
Supporters say voter ID bills are needed to stop voter fraud; critics say they would more properly be called “voter roadblock” bills.
Wranglers Ward off VooDoo 45-38 in Overtime
Some new players helped the Wranglers improve their losing season Saturday in an overtime upset of the New Orleans VooDoo. Increasingly impressive FB Chad Dukes scored on the first drive on a goal-line plow set up by the still-inconsistent QB Adrian McPherson’s 25-yard broken-play dash. The Wrangler defense then stopped the VooDoo from crossing the…
Other Victims, Other Bills
As the clock ticks down on the current Lege session, what bills are dying in Committee?
Roads to Nowhere
It’s make-or-break week for toll roads, and the road through the Senate is bumpy.
Savin’ the Desert, One Thorn at a Time
New legislation may help save the state’s prickliest plants.
Cute Band Alert!
Signal Lost unleash Prosthetic Screams.
Lil’ Flip Does the Hokie Pokey
Lil’ Flip’s got your back
The Best and the Brightest (in Talk Radio)
More letters from the brilliant minds of Dan Patrick listeners.
Here’s to You, 4/20 and 4/22
Reefer Madness would be remiss if we did not send a shout out to everyone, wishing you a happy “high holiday” today, 4/20. And while we’re at it, here’s to a happy Earth Day, April 22. So, here’s to you Mama Earth and to your divine bounty….
Medi-Pot Moving Along in Minnesota
Minnesota lawmakers on April 17 got one step closer to passing a medi-pot bill that would protect patients from arrest for using pot on the recommendation of a doctor, when the Senate Health and Human Services Budget Division passed the bill out of committee on a 6-4 vote. The bipartisan measure now moves to Finance…
Council Sticks With KAZI
The community station to keep broadcasting council meetings
Slow Burn
Slow Burn – starring Ray Liotta, LL Cool J, and Mekhi Phifer – becomes one of those movies that’s so bad, it’s almost entertaining. Almost.
Redline
Redline dives headfirst into onanistic autoeroticism, but this exotic-car movie feels ill-lubed and mechanical all the way.
Hot Fuzz
Simultaneously smart and silly, Hot Fuzz demonstrates that it’s not necessary to be a buffoon in order to lampoon.
Fracture
This legal thriller pits two brilliant actors against each other in a sustained battle of wills that has enough sizzle to keep us rapt even when the storyline sags.
Green Guide
A preview of our ongoing guide to green living
In the Land of Women
Adam Brody stars in this movie, which also features Kristen Stewart and Meg Ryan, as a young man creeping toward adulthood.
R.I.P., Rollo Banks
By way of farewell to a fine friend, a gallery of amazing Chronicle covers
Mafioso
This genius Italian comedy from 1962 has been plucked from obscurity and given a sparkling new cleanup job.
Everything’s Gone Green
In this amusing film based on a screenplay by Douglas Coupland, a 29-year-old contemplates life’s purpose and the meaning of “winning.”
Avenue Montaigne
A young Frenchwoman moves to Paris from with nothing but the knapsack on her back and the innocent gleam in her eye.
First Snow
A moody thriller that tries to thumb its nose at fatalism, First Snow features another great performance from Guy Pearce.
The Tripper
David Arquette directs this horror film in which a Ronald Reagan-obsessed serial killer targets a bunch of hippies.
Perfect Stranger
The fishy smell that permeates Perfect Stranger comes from all of the red herrings flopping around this absurdly plotted Hollywood thriller.
Pathfinder
A Viking movie with this many graphic decapitations shouldn’t be such a bore.
The Music Is Pretty Much Incessant
P. Kellach Waddle, the River City’s ‘educated hillbilly,’ composes himself a life
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
Lenin’d last words, the derivation of skiddoo, and Wikipedia gets more cred than the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Texas Platters
David NewbouldBig Red Sun (North Star Media) David Newbould has quite a history. Originally from Toronto, the earnest singer-songwriter caused quite a stir in New York City before moving to Austin. Previous to Big Red Sun, his first full-length, Newbould issued three EPs and had his songs featured on TV’s Dawson’s Creek, Joan of Arcadia,…
Sen. Dan Patrick: State Theologian
Blowhard legislator from Houston insists he’s just misunderstood
The Bonds of Filth
The boys behind Hot Fuzz dish the dirt
Screens String
Cine las Americas goes around the world in seven days
New & Noteworthy
Connie Rodriguez expands her catering business for eat-in or takeout
Texas Platters
Nathan Singleton & His Sideshow Tragedy Borrowed Guitars, Unwound Hearts, and Broken Strings Like the unwieldy title of this debut, Nathan Singleton’s music is a hodgepodge of ideas and sounds. Borrowing from a broad range of other artists can only work if you’re either extraordinarily talented and/or possess the cojones not to care while spilling…
School Board Election Preview
Race to fill District 2 spot on AISD board of trustees promises to be highly contested, with four candidates vying for empty seat left by board’s longest-serving member, Rudy Montoya
DVD Watch
Overlord
Fuse Box: Now with more electricity
The newly expanded Fuse Box Festival continues to shower sparks across Austin, with the second week packing in even more new dance, theatre, screenings, bands, and art
Lamberts
Upscale barbecue in an Austin landmark
Texas Platters
Gurf MorlixDiamonds to Dust (Blue Corn) From Lucinda Williams to Ray Wylie Hubbard, Robert Earl Keen, and Slaid Cleaves, Gurf Morlix fills his work with the tattered charm and frightful honesty of exceptional songwriters. Veteran Austinite, favored sideman, guitarist, producer, and singer-songwriter, Morlix’s solo albums might be inconsistent, but Diamonds to Dust, his fourth, finds…
What’s Next for Bankrupt SOS?
Staff says life will go on, but tactics may change
TV Eye
Who’s in Charge?
Austin Arts Hall of Fame: Class of 2007
The Austin Critics Table has named the sixth group of individuals to be inducted into the Austin Arts Hall of Fame
Uncle Boudreaux’s
There’s a pot of gumbo waiting for you
Texas Platters
Steve BedunahPlug It in and Play (Dog Trot) Fort Worth-born Steve Bedunah’s writing has been compared to James McMurtry, but stylistically he rides somewhere between Townes Van Zandt’s monotone and Kris Kristofferson’s gravelly vocals. Plug It in and Play isn’t his first recording, but it’s the one that should bring him the right audience. Bedunah’s…
Rafting the Great Waller
Outdoorsman envisions converting sluggish creek into hardcore white-water rafting rapids
‘floodlines’: Hyde Park again awash in wonders
This Sunday, when Jaclyn Pryor’s floodlines is presented again, the Hyde Park neighborhood will be abloom with mystery and have wonders wending their way down its streets
Food-o-File
New restaurants and foodstuffs: It’s enough to drive a man to a larger belt
Texas Platters
Robert GomezBrand New Towns (Bella Union) Following its success with Midlake, British label Bella Union continues to mine Denton’s underground and may have struck gold once more with Robert Gomez. Although he achieved international recognition as a young Cuban guitar sensation, performing with Nelson Gonzalez and Turkish composer Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Gomez’s Brand New Towns…
On the Lege
Tired arguments and middle-aged men set anti-woman agenda
Harry Ransom Center: They f**king scored the f**king Mamet papers
UT’s Ransom Center – which has long held to the motto, ‘Always be closing’ – has acquired the archives of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter, and director David Mamet
Event Menu
April 19-26
Texas Platters
Gulf of MexicoRooms You’ve Never Seen Before (Nest) While the title would suggest otherwise, Gulf of Mexico occupy a distinct place on their debut, all a squall with sudden distortion, slightly bored vocals, and loud-quiet-loud sensibility. If you didn’t know better, Rooms could have been recorded in 1991, which is where you’ve seen the local…
Capitol Briefs
• Texas is inching closer to a journalism shield law, with the Senate Jurisprudence Committee sending Senate Bill 966 to the floor. Authored by Sens. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston; Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock; and Chuy Hinojosa, D-McAllen, it’s a bipartisan bill that protects journalists and their confidential sources. Nicknamed the Free Flow of Information Act, the bill…
Arts Review
Ah, Wilderness!, Eugene O’Neill’s only comedy, is given a lavish treatment at the Mary Moody Northen Theatre, resulting in a dream production full of bright, endearing charm
Liquid Assets
Broker’s Gin
Texas Platters
Red LeavesDisposable Parts When we last left Red Leaves, the local trio was dodging zombies. Here, on their second EP, they’re building something bigger. Opener “Kill Your Sister” is a slow start, but “Bicycle Escape Plan” goes double Dutch on the jump-rope basslines of Singer Mayberry and the hopscotch drumming of Javier Cruz. More singing…
Doing Right on Drugs
A needle-exchange program moves toward a Senate vote
Arts Review
Somewhere between Alan Bennett’s strictly surface script and Lisa Scheps’ direction, the Coda Project’s production of Kafka’s Dick falls flat
The Great Pyramid
Bill Callahan can see clearly now
Texas Platters
DamesvioletUpside Down (Simple Living) Considering the commercial success of Houston’s Blue October, Damesviolet’s third full-length, Upside Down, could be just as easily bombarded across the FM broadband. Led by brothers Beaux and Zak Loy on guitars and vocals, opener “Stay Away” and “Everyone Else” recall Muse’s Black Holes and Revelations without the adumbration and sonic…
Naked City
Quote of the Week “The bill says those that are married live longer. It’s not really true. It just seems longer.” – Rep. Pat Haggerty, R-El Paso, during a debate on Rep. Warren Chisum’s bill that would require couples applying for a marriage license to take a marriage classHeadlines• State flags are lowered and the…
Arts Review
‘The Geometry of Hope’ at the Blanton Museum of Art provides a survey of abstract art in Latin America over the 20th century, segmented into chapters by cities and decades
Bill Callahan Reviewed
Woke on a Whaleheart
Texas Platters
LeBlancThis Is Me Mandi LeBlanc left the comfortable confines of Austin for Brooklyn two years ago, but her blend of riot grrrl and folk rock has River City written all over it. Don’t be fooled by opener “Cute Boyfriend” as the fourpiece LeBlanc is more Ani than Liz, more roots than rock, which goes limp…
Round Rock Drops Charges Against Immigration Demo Students
City Council saves face, and possibly a lot of money, by voting to drop misdemeanor charges against 70 students involved in pro-immigration demonstrations last spring
In Person
Helena María Viramontes
Texas Platters
Peter StopschinskiChamber Music (Pecan Crazy) Peter Stopschinski can transform damn near anything into a soundtrack. With his work in Austin’s Golden Hornet Project and Brown Whörnet, the ubiquitous local composer managed to balance experimental with classical. Chamber Music collects a dozen project pieces from the past eight years, a communiqué somewhere between Forbidden Planet and…
Texas Platters
The Pleasures of Merely CirculatingFour Songs: 530 Seconds of Pleasure This is what you want in a punk rock EP: short, cheeky, fast. Marfa trio TPOMC spit and sputter beneath the flirty vox of Jeanne Sinclair, her balance bringing the girl next door into the garage for a PBR and seven seconds in the closet.…
Development on the Down Low?
General Land Office responds to last week’s coverage of House Bill 699, a bill that expands office’s ability to keep information about development deals confidential
Page Two: All in the Family
Debunking the hippie Mafia theory, and starting to say goodbye to Rollo Banks
Texas Platters
Attack FormationWe Are Alive in Tune (Australian Cattle God) Only during the warped electronic beat of closer “Study Break Dancing” does its computer-generated voice finally explain Attack Formation. To summarize, the 189-member, revolving-door Austin ensemble constitutes a broken social scene, an avant-garde collective based on the pendulous relationship between improvisation and experimentation. As such, the…
Texas Platters
Rivercity SevenEve Only in Austin can you get away with this sort of contrived, exhausted, glittery pseudo music. A mishmash of Latin beats, electronica, and Antone’s weekday rock, Austin three- to fivepiece the Rivercity Seven are McDudes who get together on weekends and record pointless tracks for their girlfriends/wives to listen to. Too harsh? Listen…
MoPac Expansion Update
Sound walls trumped new lanes at open house meetings to take initial look at proposed plans to expand MoPac from Parmer Lane down to Town Lake
Oops!
Our latest batch
Texas Platters
Digital tools have greatly facilitated certain musical forms. Three fresh local examples span instrumental, vocal pop, and ambient. Funky Down Tronic (Real Summit), the debut of Austin’s Lush Logic (aka Jake Scarbrough), has three goals: funk, downtempo, and electronic. The last is easy, as few analog sounds appear in 10 cuts, though given the disc’s…
Texas Platters
The Small StarsTijuana Dreams How can you take a band seriously that dresses in matching jackets/vests/tiger-strewn outfits when you know they don’t do the same? Guy Fantasy (aka Fastball’s Miles Zuniga) and his Vegas troupe of nonchalants blast through catchy yet trite odes to the grind on their second LP. Highlights “Twentyfourseven” and the Joe…
Happenings
April 19-26
After a Fashion
Celebrity sightings and Cheaters revisited
Texas Platters
ShearwaterPalo Santo [Expanded Edition] (Matador) Shearwater’s pivotal fourth album, Palo Santo, released last year on then-local indie label Misra, signified a transcendental transformation for the Austin ensemble, establishing them as a viable, free-flowing entity apart from Okkervil River and allowing Jonathan Meiburg to soar as the band’s cardinal lead singer and sole songsmith. Featuring complete…
Texas Platters
Stealth Utd.Rational Anthem (Flak) If Rational Anthem is “the sounds of peace through rocking analog dance beats,” then we’re in for a bumpy ride. The Austin fourpiece attempts crossing Ghostland Observatory with Rage Against the Machine’s political agenda on their 48-minute debut. It’s like Haddaway found a copy of GarageBand and is trying to reinvigorate…
Judge Condemns Conditions at Taylor Detention Center
U.S. District Court Judge Sam Sparks denounces conditions at T. Don Hutto Family Detention Center, ruling finds American Civil Liberties Union “highly likely” to prevail in lawsuits filed on behalf of minors housed at facility
Luv Doc Recommends: Austin Reggae Fest
It’s spring. You should be outdoors. Don’t be a wuss about it, make an Allegra cocktail, grease up with some SPF 45, and find yourself a place in the sun while there’s still enough ozone to keep it from baking you into a corporeal crouton. Soon enough the ice caps are going to melt, and…
Day Trips
The Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge is an excellent place for birders and nature lovers to soak in the beauty of the great outdoors
Texas Platters
The Biscuit BrothersOld MacDonald’s EIEI Radio To assess the relative merits of the Biscuit Brothers’ second self-released album without the input of the Austin-based, grassroots musical educators’ target demographic would be to overlook the importance of their audience. So, like Jane Goodall with her chimps, here are the results of this critic’s nonscientific study of…
Texas Platters
StickponyHead First Through the Sound (Club de Musique) Alt.country might be losing out to the more traditional, but local fourpiece Stickpony follows in the footsteps of the Old 97’s to create loose and galloping countrified jams. Catchy and familiar, their fourth release jumps from beer ad opener “Dime Droppers” straight to the addictive “White Picket…
Point Austin: How Are We Managing?
Targeting city manager may be hunting the wrong game
TCB
Old Settler’s Fest digs in as Okkervil River’s Will Sheff digs out, and Marijuana Law for Musicians tokes on
Soccer Watch
Manchester United and Chelsea on track for a series of showdowns, and more
Texas Platters
The Ugly BeatsTake a Stand (Get Hip) Joe Emery is the Zelig of Austin rock. Whatever genre of music he’s near he becomes. This is especially true of his Sixties revivalist quintet the Ugly Beats. Jeanine the Farfisa Queen highlights the frantic instrumental go-go beat of the Ventures’ “Action Plus,” while the whole band renders…
Beside the Point
Just one word: canvas
A Stroll Along Waller Creek
Photo feature
The Common Law
Choice of Small-Business Entity
Texas Platters
Tee DoubleThe Return of the Artform (Kinetic) When Austin rapper Tee Double joined ’04’s nationwide Cali Comm tour, initial benefits included priceless exposure and direct sales opportunities. Three years removed from a stretch opening for Aceyalone and Zion I, Tee Double demonstrates further bountiful excursion through his 11th album, The Return of the Artform. Much…
Cleaning Up the Campsite
Festival organizers employ varying tactics to keep mess to a minimum
The Hightower Report
Circuit City’s ‘Wage Management’ Scam; and Tell FDA What You Think!
