Cover Story
Porn Busters!
Investigators run roughshod over rights in hunt for cybersex offenders
‘Absolut’ly All Out For NOLA
Come hang with Gay Place tonight at Rain as we welcome Absolut’s new vodka flavor: New Orleans, with 100% charitable proceeds!
On the New City Manager ‘Profile’
Tell us what you think … but nothing mean about Toby!
Live-Blogging the Budget Talks
Wow, is this gonna be as much fun as the title makes it sound? Let’s hope so! Buckle up! Whatever, we all know the real action is gonna be in an hour, “to receive comment on the profile of a new City Manager.” I’ve prepared an interpretive dance to share my feelings on the matter…
Taste the Rainbow
Psych show at Mohawk sound good.
Girlie Gossip
Girlie Action gossips not-so-glibly.
The Killing Fields
What Bush didn’t know about Cambodia.
Wild Appointments
There’s three new members of the board of Texas Parks and Wildlife, but are they all equally qualified?
Red Bull Flugtag Returns to Austin
There’s a simple explanation for how we’re brought into this world, but how exactly is the pilot of a homemade, human-powered flying craft produced? When Kevin Stanley, 22, heard of the first Flugtag Texas, in 2003, it was too late to gather a team of Austinites to compete, but that lit the fire inside of…
News From Around the World: Austin, Tajikistan, Manchester, and Two World Cups
The UT Lady Longhorns open their season this weekend, with an exhibition game in Albuquerque against UNM. The regular season kicks off Friday, Aug. 31 at home against TCU. St. Edward’s women open their season Friday, Aug. 24 at 5pm, hosting Truman State. The men are in Colorado this weekend. The U.S. lost to Tajikistan,…
Big News Day
Are the day’s two big stories intertwined?
SAFER Strikes Again in Denver
Mile High City Council members approve signatures needed to place a new pot initiative – making minor pot possession the lowest policing priority– on the November ballot.
POTUS Candidates on Pot, Pt. 2
Barack Obama supportS a ban on using federal resources to raid and prosecute seriously ill patients that use medi-pot.
Bunny Luv
Lady Bunny is coming to Austin!
Perry vs. the European Union
Rick Perry re-fights the War of Independence over the right to execute.
Richardson Tells Bush to Back Off
Democratic Prez candidate Bill Richardson firES off a letter to Prez George W. Bush, urging him to end the feds’ “heartless” policy of harassing seriously ill medi-pot patients.
Will Immigration Make or Break Cornyn?
The GOP base wants a crackdown, but a leading Hispanic Republican defects.
City Council Notebook
A look at what’s on the agenda for this week’s meeting.
Safe Travels
Amy Annelle and Ralph White head West.
Change for the Bus
Capmetro to hold public hearings on the proposed doubling of fares next year.
Daryl Hall Not Out of Touch (or Time)
Pitchfork remembers Hall & Oates are cool.
Leffingwell Gets Faulked Over?
Did the City Council member accidentally wade into a debate with SOS?
Chrontourage ‘Balls of Fury’ Ping-Pong Tournament This Thursday!
The Austin Chronicle’s Chrontourage and La Zona Rosa Backstage Bar (612 W. Fourth) are teaming up to host this superbadass Ping-Pong tournament celebrating the release of Balls of Fury starring the one and only Christopher Walken. The action takes place Thursday, August 23rd with registration starting at 6pm (21 and older) and the first serve…
A Night at the Opera House
Perhaps the best idea since Whirlyball, South First odds and ends boutique the Opera House, located directly behind End of an Ear, presents Teddy & Marge Thursday night. The Attic Ted side-project warps old timey tunes from the Twenties and the Thirties into oddly charming waltzes of accordion, banjo, and cello. The show is coupled…
UK Out of Iraq?
The UK’s ranking military officer wants his troops out on the double.
Austin Toros Unveil New Logo
The Austin Toros were purchased by Spurs Sports and Entertainment (as in the San Antonio Spurs) earlier this summer and unveiled a new logo last Friday that falls in line with the Spurs’ sleek black-and-gray look. This direct affiliation with the Spurs can only mean good things for the Toros following a troubling year in…
Trapped in the Alamo
Trapped in the Closet‘s new chapters at the Alamo.
Campaign Karl
Amid all the rumors about Rove getting into the ’08 campaign somehow, an old story might show some GOP wariness.
The Abbott and the Hare
AG Greg Abbott finally fines the manager of an unlicensed old people’s home, three years after the initial report.
Say Qua?
Qua adds its “oonce oonce” to the warehouse scene.
Perry’s Eyes on the Prize?
What does a Fort Worth special election potentially mean for a possible special session and a rumored veep run?
Statesman Transportation Writer Can’t Read Road Signs
You’d think that would be a prerequisite for the job.
Yamadonga
Yamadonga 2007, NR, 185 min. Directed by S.S. Rajamouli, Starring Jr. NTR, Mohan Babu, Mamta Mohandas. Fantasy action comedy epic directed by S. S. Rajamouli (RRR).
Mini Projects for the Mildly Energized
Introducing 10 cheap-and-easy projects you can mark off your Kill-a-Watt Challenge to-do list this weekend. [For a more comprehensive list of energy-saving activities, see Tips and Resources.] 1) Run only full loads in the dish- and clothes-washers, and air dry as much as possible (choose the permapress setting on your clothes dryer). 2) Weather-strip your…
Bush: The New Mr. Blackwell?
Dubya: Fashion icon?
Thankyaverramuch
30 years after Elvis’ death, the homages remain a hunka hunka burnin’ love.
Saturday Brain Washing
Saturday night in South Austin melts 4 out of 5 faces.
Paint It Black
The New Sabbath Festival floats into Denton.
City Planning: Goodbye Riley, Hello Weiss
Planning Commission loses attorney, gains architect
Parallelogramophonograph: Supercalifragilisticexpiali motherfuckingdocious
When Parallelogramophonograph does improv, it’s like watching hyperintelligent, human-shaped, joyously goofy otters at play
The Gospel According to MPH
The Albums: Micah P. Hinson and the Opera Circuit (Jade Tree, 2006) The Baby & the Satellite (Jade Tree, 2006) Micah P. Hinson and the Gospel of Progress (Sketchbook, 2005) The Singles: “A Dream of Her” b/w “Me and You” and “The Disappearing” (Houston Party, 2007) “Yard of Blonde Girls” b/w Viva Voce’s “Pleasant Street”…
Day Trips
Rancho de las Cabras left a legacy of agriculture terms and techniques that survive today
Point Austin: No Bill
Grand jury clears APD’s Olsen, but questions remain
Marigold
An American actress is stranded in India in this Bollywood/Hollywood co-production.
Readings
Kate Christensen’s fourth novel is reminiscent of that particular breed that can only be weaved and wielded by a true artisan
The Elephant in the Living Room
Spencer Gibb tiptoes atop 54 Seconds
Soccer Watch
The European season gets started, Beckham makes his MLS debut, and more
Beside the Point
Preternaturally talented rogue city manager tries escaping ‘The Company’ before it does her in
Arctic Tale
The filmmakers crafted their nature footage into a kid-friendly “narrative” about the itty-bitty walrus and the little polar bear that could.
Readings
The phenomenal Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski left behind a sticky legacy when he died earlier this year at the age of 74
54 Seconds Reviewed
54 Seconds Postcards From California(BMG/Rock Ridge) Spencer Gibb’s plaintive burr of a singing voice, tantalizing in its warm, wanting detachment, wafts akin to English crooners like James Blunt or Tom McRae, a Bowery version of Coldplay’s Chris Martin (with a hint of Dave Matthews’ rasp). Paired with a delicious horn arrangement right off of Abbey…
Off the Record
Peeping inside a Broken Clock; Stag Records rolls out the red carpet; the Jazzus Lizard meet their maker, and more
Naked City
News briefs from Austin, the region, and elsewhere
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
This is a winning, sweet, and occasionally disturbing documentary about otherwise sensible adults who vie for the title of World’s Best Donkey Kong Player.
After a Fashion
Stephen trips down memory lane. Whoops!
Phases & Stages
Rufus Wainwright, Neko Case Stubb’s, Aug. 11 What better way to mark the sudden onslaught of a long-delayed summer than by cramming into the Stubb’s clown car, keeping heatstroke at bay with $5 Lone Stars and Rufus Wainwright? L.A.-based opener A Fine Frenzy warmed up the already populous crowd before the clock struck 8 with…
Off the Record
Slow Ride Local rockabilly troupe the Road Kings are tuning up two of their old European releases, Lonestar Hoedown and Rockabilly, for a compilation to be released stateside on Stag Records later this year. Frontman and Stag co-owner Jesse Dayton duets with local country and gospel songstress Brennen Leigh on Holdin’ Our Own, due in…
Kenneth Foster’s Execution Still Looms
Court of Criminal Appeals denies appeal of death row inmate Kenneth Foster, clearing one last legal hurdle before his scheduled execution
Letters @ 3AM
Ingmar Bergman, Michelangelo Antonioni, Federico Fellini: The great achievement of these film directors was to create living souls to look at, that we might know ourselves
Phases & Stages
Imperial Teen The Hair the TV the Baby & the Band (Merge) This is the sound of a band with nothing to lose. Four bosom buddies and their trusted George Martin behind the boards, Redd Kross medic Steve McDonald, making aural joy because their chemistry is perfect. Shinsian popsters rejoice. Here’s another dreamsicle caked with…
Off the Record
Fly on the Wall Before shutting down shop a few weeks ago, Woody’s South received an unexpected patron at a Jazzus Lizard performance. Legendary Scratch Acid and Jesus Lizard bassist David Wm. Sims stopped by while in town visiting family and was so impressed with the jazz tribute band that he offered to produce the…
Acevedo Unveils APD Reorganization Plan
Calls for beefing up traffic enforcement, rotating officers more frequently among shifts, and centralizing specialized units in effort to make department more flexible
Mr. Smarty Pants
The real-world Lasso of Truth, Kerouac’s childhood fantasy, and more
Phases & Stages
Charlie Mingus Tijuana Moods (RCA Victor/Legacy) Charles Mingus Sextet Cornell 1964 (Blue Note) Charles Mingus Music Written for Monterey 1965 Not Heard… Played in Its Entirety at UCLA (Mingus Music/Sunnyside) This trio of new releases from revolutionary bassist/composer/bandleader Charles Mingus spotlights three different bands and three different periods in his remarkably fertile career. Tijuana Moods,…
Off the Record
Celebrate Good Times Antone’s Record Shop on Guadalupe commemorates its 20th anniversary this Sunday with in-store performances from blues staples Omar Kent Dykes of Omar & the Howlers, Derek O’Brien, Mike Buck, Eve Monsees, and others, while Saturday, Aug. 25, bears the explosive sounds of the Freddie Steady 5 and the Ugly Beats. The Antone’s…
Staff Changes Afoot at animal shelter
WilCo Regional Animal Shelter gets new director, kennel manager
The Common Law
Investment property & 1031 exchanges
Phases & Stages
Gogol Bordello Super Taranta! (SideOneDummy) Ukraine immigrant Eugene Hütz and his nomadic tribe are reinventing world music. Following up the now-NYC troupe’s 2005 breakthrough blast, Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike, fifth album Super Taranta! begs for an audience. The punk ‘tude of the Steve Albini-produced Gypsy Punks has been replaced with an hourlong mind spasm…
Off the Record
Music for the Masses The 22nd South by Southwest Music and Media Conference and Festival is now accepting industry registrations and applications for the 2008 Music Festival. All national bands have until Nov. 9 to apply and can do so now online at SXSW.com or through SonicBids.com. SXSW Live 2007, the festival’s first-ever video compilation,…
Cross-Border Craziness Continues
Erroneously deported man returns home; Congress urges action on Juarez murders
Shanghai Restaurant
If the name sounds familiar, it’s because the Yim family helped introduce Austin to dim sum at the original location way back when
Phases & Stages
King Khan & the Shrines What Is?! (Hazelwood) King Khan: the wig-wearing half of the King Khan & BBQ Show, a former Montrealer, and current Berliner. Along with his eightpiece Shrines, he’s one of the most promising contemporary welders of genuine psych and soul. Progressing from 2002’s Three Hairs and You’re Mine, the band, electrified…
Page Two: Along the Bias
Lack of media objectivity cuts all ways
The Real ID: Big Brother’s Comin’ Our Way
Federally mandated ID card will be linked to at least a half-dozen or more databases
Patsy’s Cowgirl Cafe
When I heard that the founders of Esther’s Follies were opening a restaurant/music venue, two questions immediately came to mind
Phases & Stages
Storms: My Life with Lindsey Buckingham and Fleetwood Mac by Carol Ann Harris Chicago Review Press, 383 pp., $24.95 “A flash of movement, a fist to the side of my face, and the back of my head slammed into the wall. I crumpled to the floor.” Lindsey Buckingham’s fist and the head of Carol Ann…
Arcade Fire
Competitor Steve Wiebe on The King of Kong
The Continuing Education of Rick Perry
An old refrain was sung yet again Tuesday in a Senate hearing – the governor goes on a veto rampage, leaving legislators (and others) to wonder why his objections to their bills didn’t come up earlier
The Great Dictator
The Great Dictator 1940, NR, 128 min. Directed by Charles Chaplin, Starring Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Jack Oakie. Chaplin plays two roles in his legendary satire of Adolf Hitler, which he also wrote and directed. Released one year before the U.S. entered the war, the film ridicules an enemy that most Americans had not yet…
Event Menu
Aug. 18-23
Rain, Broken Glass, and a Dead Body in the Dumpster
Fourteen hours of Elizabeth Reeder’s A Very Bad Day
DVD Watch
Brigitte Bardot: 5-Film Collection (Lions Gate, $39.98) Of Naughty Girl, Love on a Pillow, The Vixen, Come Dance With Me, and Two Weeks in September, none would be watchable if not for Bardot. With her, each very much is, male gaze be damned. She’s at her most alluring as a wayward nightclub dancer in 1956’s…
@ Chronic
Turd Blossom gets godly
Will Travel for Food
Oregon Brewers Festival
TV Eye
The Women’s Realm
The $360 Million Question: Where to Put WTP4?
City Council is re-re-rethinking WTP4
Preparing for the Hatch Chile Invasion
Batten down, y’all …
Acting on Directors
The spring retirement announced by City Manager Toby Futrell raises the question of how the city will fill key openings
Skinwalkers
Another subpar, bite ‘n’ slash, PG-13 bloodless-bath.
Food-o-File
Amelia Sweethardt conquers Vermont, plus a Texas Book Festival update
Hunting Cybersex
What Fourth Amendment?
Animal Shelter Drops the Ball on Missing Dog
Was Reba the dog euthanized or stolen?
Superbad
Cera and Hill are comic gold in this comedy, which is from the Judd Apatow stable and which has credits populated with refugees from Arrested Development.
Art of the State
Retiring director Rick Hernandez reflects on three decades with the Texas Commission on the Arts
The Hightower Report
Foreign spying on Americans; and where are they now?
Arts Review
Rainbow Family of the Serendipitous Now refracts the Orpheus myth through the lens of the Manson family in a seamless, complex, color-coded vehicle
Developing Stories
Two city boards and commissions take opposing stands on corridor preservation
Death at a Funeral
Pure farce served straight up and directed by the man who moonlights as the voice of Yoda and Miss Piggy.
Gobotrick Theatre Company: Keeping the Soul Happy
Naomi Wallace’s drama One Flea Spare is the latest venture from Gobotrick Theatre Company
The Gospel of Progress
Micah P. Hinson lands in Austin – hopefully not on his back
Arts Review
Allison Orr’s choreographic tribute to Elvis Presley, The King and I, is perceptive, inventive, and surprisingly engaging
Reefer Madness
Feds remain illogically steadfast in opposition to medicinal marijuana
Lights in the Dusk
How does one say “cherchez la femme” in Finnish?
‘Krishnam Vande Jagatgurum’: Saluting the Guru to the World
Silambam Dance Company of North America treats Austin to an Indian classical ballet dramatizing the life of Krishna
The Late Cord
Although the Late Cord’s debut EP, Lights From the Wheelhouse, was released only last year, like much of Hinson’s work, the album contains songs recorded previously. The project stemmed from Hinson’s collaboration with John Mark Lapham on the song “The Late Cord,” a trial to determine whether Hinson or the Danes’ Brandon Carr would better…
Arts Review
‘Interchange,’ this year’s three-part summer MFA show at Creative Research Lab, marks a positive departure from last year’s
Happenings
August 16-22
The Ten
Quirky comedy sketches illustrate each of the Ten Commandments.
Luv Doc Recommends: Austin Ice Cream Festival
Somewhere back in the hairy-assed Stone Age one of our thirsty, unibrowed ancestors had the audacity to get his milk from an entirely different species. Who knows? Could have been a precocious 2 year old or simply some prehistoric Benny Hill, the point is that regardless of the motivation, it must have been a hard…
