Exhibitionism
Paramount Theatre through August 17 Running Time: 2 hrs, 30 min Perhaps it was the pumped-up opening night crowd. Maybe it was the grandeur of the Paramount. It could have been the snazzy new costumes or the high-tech lighting. But, honestly, these were merely delightful accoutrements to what really made the Zachary Scott Theater Center’s…
The Brotherhood
photograph by Todd V. Wolfson It’s a brotherhood — these are my brothers,” explains drummer Brannen Temple. “What else can I say?” Originally organized as a means for Temple to surround himself with musicians who share a common vision (and who just happened to be good friends), the six-piece Hot Buttered Rhythm have quickly established…
Hot Buttered Rhythm
On Hot Buttered Soul, the Isaac Hayes landmark that begat this band in name and spirit, there’s a funk mini-symphony with a relentless hook called “Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic,” a title that, loosely translated, means “no wank, all groove.” Surprisingly enough, the same holds true for Hot Buttered Rhythm’s debut, a 13-track, 63-minute, mostly live jam that’s all…
Aliens, Martian Colonies, and Dwarves
illustration by Jason Stout Once again, it is that time of year when a young girl’s heart turns to fancy. And aliens. And Martian colonies. And dwarves. You just have to love Hugo season. These annual awards presented to the year’s best speculative fiction are always a ripe cross-section of what is happening in the…
Live Shots
La Tropa F at Aqua Fest Saturday, August 2 photograph by John Carrico DOODLE BUG THE CLOWN, SPINNERS Austin Aqua Festival, July 24 I may have been five-or-so minutes late for Doodle Bug The Clown’s highly anticipated opening night set, but it was obvious that she’d already pulled off quite a magic trick — by…
Postscripts
Much to report this week in Austin’s book world, but first the news…The summer edition of Nova Express, a locally based SF fanzine, acknowledges that their “Shameless Politicking” paid off in bagging a Hugo nomination for Best Fanzine. Other nominees, who Nova good-naturedly calls the “loyal opposition,” include Ansible, File 770, Mimosa, and Tangent. Nominees…
Road Shows
AUGUST FRI 8 Seven Mary Three, Stir, Liberty Lunch FRI 8 Stitch, Blue Flamingo FRI 8 The Mollys, Waterloo Ice House 6th FRI 8 Stick Wigglies, Atomic Caf� FRI 8 Ho Hum, Electric Lounge FRI 8 Stich, Blue Flamingo FRI 8, SAT 9 Cookie & the Cupcakes, Continental Club FRI 8, SAT 9 Joseph Vincelli,…
Hearth & Soul
Dear Suzy, We have been living in a 25-year-old suburban brick house for about seven years. We have done some remodeling and generally like what we’ve done to the inside of the house. The outside, however (okay, just the front), is some really ugly multicolored brick. It’s reddish, reddish-brown, and black, and the stuff in…
Spanish Harlem Sounds
photograph by Todd J. Wolfson In an early scene from The Big Chill, Jeff Goldblum’s character, a music writer for People magazine, brags about his terse writing style, boasting that can describe any band in under 200 words. The punchline? “And that band had two drummers!” Grateful Dead, Allman Brothers, and .38 Special aside, even…
Benefits
Austin Cat Fanciers’ Charity Cat Show to benefit various organizations, at Palmer Auditorium, 9am-6pm. Cost is $3 adults; $2 seniors; $1 children (under 12 free). 454-2327. MON 18 Shortgame Shootout Golf Tournament to benefit the Capital Area Food Bank, at Blackhawk Pflugerville Golf Course. 464-4997. The Chronicle benefits database extends a year or more into…
Sin Buddhism
David Collins guides other Zen Buddhists. photograph by Crawford Morgan David Collins, 39, moved to Austin three and a half years ago with the idea of forming a Zen Buddhist church. Having completed two master’s degrees in religious studies and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, and having been formally recognized by a religious association, Collins…
Coach’s Corner
I swore to god I wouldn’t do it, but I did. A few years passed, dumb shit that I am, I did it again. I’ll never do that again! Four years passed — ahh, it wasn’t so bad — so, now, well, you guess. The first time was a room addition. The contractor promised it…
TV Terrorist
On July 25, KTBC/ Channel 7 reporter Gabe Caggiano was suspended pending an internal investigation and, in accordance with station policy, was escorted out of the office building by security guards. Before he exited the newsroom, he turned to his fellow reporters and, in a MacArthurian vow, declared: “I’ll be back.” But unlike the famed…
Day Trips
Sebastopol, the 139-year-old Greek Revival-style house in Seguin, sits in the middle of a well-manicured lawn shining bright white like a pearl in a field of green velvet. Preserved as a state historical park, the former home is the finest surviving example of early concrete construction in the Southwest. Like the families that once lived…
Class War
by Kayte VanScoy illustration by Doug Potter Rubbing shoulders in council chambers last week were the makings of a class war. Crisply dressed businesspeople sporting newly printed “Keep the Camping Ban” stickers, and disheveled street people hoisting well-worn “House the Homeless” posters all signed up to speak at a public hearing on homeless issues. The…
Page Two
It is Saturday afternoon and the recently turned seven-year-old and I are sitting in the theatre watching Good Burger. Marjorie Baumgarten had evoked Abbott & Costello and Martin & Lewis in her review of this movie, so I knew it was my turf. When we were teenagers, film critic Leonard Maltin and I would go…
Outgunned in the Greenbelt
They’re undermanned, under- paid, and underequipped. And it doesn’t look like they’ll get help anytime soon. The officers who patrol Austin’s parks are the most neglected law enforcement officers in the city. The murder that occurred last month on the Barton Creek Greenbelt thrust the issue of parks security into the spotlight for about 48…
Public Notice
We Want You Autumn is approaching with the ominous buzz of a cricket swarm. Time for school, new projects, and that general reassessment known as: What-the-hell-are-you-doing-with-your-life? It’s also a great time to consider making commitments to the public service community. And if you’re a student, it’s a fine time to consider interning at one of…
Naked City
Karen Hadden is moving back to her home town of El Paso, but it’s not exactly by choice. The former city council candidate and environmental activist will teach high school biology, something she’s always done in Austin. Hadden says the Austin Independent School District had offered her a job this year, but then rescinded the…
Mister Smarty Pants Knows
Scientists can tell the geographical origin of any gold object by using a technique known as “gold fingerprinting.” The 16,293,830 pound jackpot in the UK National Lottery on January 14, 1995 was split between 133 winners. The winning numbers were 7, 17, 23, 38, 42. Each of California’s 116,000 lawyers uses about a ton of…
Dial “M” for Money
illustration by Doug Potter Over a three-month period this year, Austin residents donated an estimated $50,000 to a relatively obscure non-profit group called the Austin Police Benevolent Association (APBA), an affiliate of the national Fraternal Order of Police. The local APBA contingent formed last year under the direction of Randy Malone, an Austin police officer…
Food-O-File
Last week saw some major transitions in the downtown restaurant scene. After 27 years in the same campus-area location, Les Amis served its last cup of coffee and slice of carrot cake. The ramshackle sidewalk cafe proudly demonstrated Austin’s now infamous “slacker-style” waitservice and was the definitive hangout to thousands over the lifespan of the…
The Doughnut Man
Randall Lee Malone tends to fancy himself the Joan of Arc of the Austin Police Department. In his 25 years as a police officer, he has fought more battles in the department than he has out on the streets — standing up, he says, for the little guys in blue. At least that’s Malone’s explanation…
La Vista at the Hyatt
208 Barton Springs Rd, 480-2034 Mon-Thu, 6:30-11pm; Fri-Sun, 6:30pm-midnight Because La Vista is on the second floor of the Hyatt Hotel, chances are you’ve already been there, or somewhere eerily similar, even before your first visit. A meal in a fern-filled restaurant with a hotel spreading up and around you is a familiar enough sight,…
The Daytime TV Diaries
Modern classicist Loreena McKennitt rarely tours, but No Journey’s End, a half-hour special about the various influences of her Celtic-based sound, is a star in KLRU’s programming crown. Then there’s Austin City Limits…. Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Grateful Dead, Loreena McKennitt, B.B.King, Leo Kottke, Benny Goodman, Peter, Paul & Mary… sound like a genre-expanded Austin…
illustration by Taylor Holland Town Lake
1. La Vista at the Hyatt Hotel, 208 Barton Springs Rd. Lake Austin 2. Hula Hut, 3826 Lake Austin Blvd. 3. Lodge at Lakeview, 3826 Lake Austin Blvd. 4. Mozart’s Coffee Roasters, 3826 Lake Austin Blvd. 5. County Line on the Lake, 5204 FM 2222 6. Gator’s Restaurant, 6203 Capital of Texas Hwy. 7. Ski…
Smilin’ & Dialin’
The following story is one man’s true account of the time he spent as a telemarketer for law enforcement agencies. The names have been changed to protect the Chronicle. — Editor “Miz Smith?” “Yay-uss?” “Miz Smith, this here’s Tom Acres callin’ today on behalf of the Lone Star Rangers Association, How the gosh darn heck…
Triangle Property Design Contest
Got an idea for what you think ought to be done with this controversial tract of land adjoining Hyde Park? Here�s your chance to put your drafting skills where your mouth is. The Chronicle will bestow modest prizes and fame, of course, when we print the winners. But don�t expect the developer to chuck its…
Sea Feed
There’s no denying this was just about the greatest food assignment ever. I mean, who wouldn’t want to cruise the lake with friends on the hottest, sunniest day of the summer, intermittently swimming in gorgeous alcoves and eating nachos? So what if the swimming turned to floating and the nachos kept on coming until one…
Scanlines: Ruby in Paradise
When the box office closes on the summer of 1997, it’s a safe bet that Ulee’s Gold — the low-key drama about a taciturn Florida beekeeper and his family — will be remembered as one of the season’s highlights. Although the summer release was a smart move of counter-programming, appearing as it did as a…
Articulations
With the departure of Eva Paloheimo as managing director, Frontera@Hyde Park Theatre has suffered a loss of inestimable experience and devotion to that company’s home space and the local theatre community. But while Paloheimo is irreplaceable in her own right, Frontera certainly won’t be hurting for experience or devotion to Austin theatre when her successor…
Overstanding
photograph by Todd J. Wolfson Two weeks ago at the Victory Grill, a local jazz ensemble ran through an impressive set of improvisational numbers that proudly displayed their influences: Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Doc Cheatham, and the like. Also that night, two more locals, a pair of MCs, rapping about themselves…
Shortcuts
This week brings us two painful examples of how the task of getting your film in the can often represents a mere fraction of the work that’s required to get your movie onto the screen. Case #1: Letter From Waco. Don Howard’s idiosyncratic documentary about his hometown`s four dominant passions — race, religion, death, and…
A Patron Though Poor
I am the friend of the artist. I must be available from the beginning to the end. I offer my spiritual, empathetical, and financial support. I work for them as they work for me. And may their creations make our earth a better world. — Clint Boelsche The most recent issue of ARTnews, a national…
Dancing About Architecture
Before there was the Internet, there were the bars. The former has been cluttered with recent debate over whether it’s such a big deal that the Austin Music Network may be worked clear out of the city’s budget (and therefore, off the air); it’s a pretty safe bet to say that’s been a standby conversation…
The Star Maps Hustle
photograph by Todd V. Wolfson Perhaps the first thing you notice about Miguel Arteta is his voice. It’s subdued in tone, restrained and boyish, but Arteta himself is quick to laugh at his good fortune and seemingly eager to tell his story to yet another journalist over one more decaf at the fourth Four Seasons…
