Cover Story
Salsa, Cumbia, Merengue, Everything
What do Grupo Fantasma, Brownout, and Ocote Soul Sounds have in common? Prince, Maceo Parker, and Larry Harlow!
Help Conserve – Message From Austin Energy
Power utility says it has electricity to last the summer, but please cut down usage anyway
Goodbye Johnston, Hello ?
Austin ISD looking for new name for former Johnston campus
Bonnaroo (From the Pit)
My trip to Bonnaroo began back in early December when I got an email telling me I had won a trip to Hollywood for the premiere of PS I Love You starring Hillary Swank. My wife and I were excited to go not so much for the movie, but because we have friends and family…
“Not the Finest Moment for the DPS”
Investigator blames inadequate and poorly trained security staffing, malfunctioning equipment for security breach
Pride Ride
New-ish blogger Dacia weighs in on riding in the Austin Pride Parade.
Sing Me Back Home
Merel Haggard at the Paramount
Tony Visconti Part 1
If you don’t know who Tony Visconti is, you don’t own enough David Bowie albums. Simply shelving The Man Who Sold the World, Low, Heroes, Scary Monsters, and Heathen made him a household name in my music library. That producer’s credit carried over onto my Thin Lizzy CDs: Bad Reputation, Live and Dangerous, Black Rose.…
Another beer-n-bikes-centric weekend…
Perhaps this is becoming a pattern but I doubt it. If you felt that last weekend’s motorized mayhem spoiled your lungs and your liver then may I introduce you to a bike that won’t soil your lungs, it may in fact help your breathing. That’s right, it’s the good old fashioned bicycle! This weekend we…
The Good, the Bad, the English & the Deutsch
“I’ve never seen so many men wasted so badly.” — The Man With No Name “It was a million pounds of fun.” — Austin filmmaker Ron Deutsch “I made the local paper!” — Austin design shaman Marc English The dust has settled, the six-guns have gone silent, and the sleepy Spanish township of Alméria is…
Euro2008 Quarterfinals Set; Aztex to Host Tigres
The Austin Aztex got another road win Saturday, beating Houston, 2-0 – their eighth shutout in nine league games – and cementing their spot atop the Premier Development League Mid South. The Aztex are off this weekend, but make up for that next week when they play three home games on consecutive days: Friday, Saturday,…
Veggie Hot Dog Eating Contest
It’d been real quiet out there on the local competitive eating circuit – a little too quiet. Now, just in time for the first scorching day of summer, comes the return of ilovemikelitt’s Veggie Hot Dog Eating Contest. During last year’s inaugural event, 40 contestants wolfed down 600 dogs. Saturday at Scholz Garten promises double…
Recounting Recount
Laura Dern’s outrageous “Kitty” Harris hits the mark.
It’s Still About Time
A rare blues album rises from the dead
Bush Gets Back to Business
President says mine for oil.
Laid Back with Mirage
Part two of Summer in the City
Getting To It Later: Putting Off That Bad Habit Yet Again
Procrastinate Your Way To Greater Productivity
Midsummer Night’s Derby Dream
Texas Rollergirls announce night of fan action
Their Eyes Were Watching Wright
Local author bugged
Oooh, Size Does Matter
Study show say folks brains to be more similar to that of their straight counterparts… of the opposite sex.
A Texas Dance Legend Passes
Legendary dancer and actress Cyd Charisse (Singin’ in the Rain, Brigadoon) passed away yesterday at the age of 86. An Amarillo native, Charisse was inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in 2002. In a recent After a Fashion column, Style Avatar Stephen Moser remembered the Hall of Fame night: “I remember standing backstage…
Wah-Wah Me a River
French blues from a white guy
Man-Babies, Cat-Ladies, and Cuckolded Husbands
If you spend all day goofing around on the Internet like me, you can’t help but cross paths with a certain amount of Photoshop humor, often called “photo memes,” or ultimate time-wasters. Lately, you can’t click ‘back’ without seeing another link to manbabies.com, where users submit a photo of a man with a baby; and…
‘And Then I Realized the Only Reason I Was There Was Because Ricky Was Bored’
Podcast puny giant Karl Pilkington on the web
Farewell, Stan Winston
FX guru dies, and a nation reaches fondly for its Pumpkinhead DVD.
Claytie Comes Back
The man that shot his own campaign against Ann Richards in the foot does it again for John McCain
Wranglers Succeed With Backs Against the Wall
Tied for first place with the opponent. Their backs against the wall. Home crowd against them. Fourteen seconds left. Down by 3. It’s always interesting to see who steps up their game and wants it more. Sometimes it’s a single player and other times it’s a team. Kamau Jackson was that player for the Wranglers.…
Summer’s Here, and the Time Is Right
Rock camps: open!
How Do You Say ‘Ouch’ in Caveman Speak?
Cavemen crash, but there’s a new hope
‘Crawford’ Criss-Crossing State, National, World
Ran into Austin filmmaker David Modigliani at Barton Springs yesterday, and he had nothing but good news to report. First, there was the June 4th Crawford, TX, premiere of Crawford, Modigliani’s doc about W’s effect when he set up house in the small Texas town. He deemed it a wildly successful night, netting about 400…
The Permanent Campaign Ends
Morrison wins over Galindo, but both raise questions about the wisdom of Austin’s current run-off system
Final Run-Off Totals
Morrison wins in landslide
That’s It – We’re Calling It for Morrison
Morrison headed for 2-1 victory
Morrison Appears Headed for Victory
Early voting totals show Morrison with a 60% to 40% lead over Galindo
Today Is Election Day
City Council run-off between Galindo and Morrison
Farewell, Tim Russert
Newsdesk says farewell to the best reason for watching Sunday morning TV
Outlaws Update
In last Saturday’s game, the Austin Outlaws shutout the New Orleans Blaze 48-0. It’s no wonder defensive coordinator Narlen Baker felt fairly confident going into their first away game against the Blaze. The Outlaws killed New Orleans 42-6 in their home opener this season. But as Baker explains, the Outlaws need big wins in these…
TSOP
Just south of midnight, Scott and I staggered down Broad Street. Well, not staggered – lurched, tripped, stumbled. Three sizzled days accompanying 3am nights of “Philadelphia Freedom” in conjunction with last week’s 31st Annual Association of Alternative Newsweeklies Convention had reduced us to fondue. “Do you know where we are?” whimpered Sancho Panza. “Of course…
Paul Ends Campaign
Where do former GOP presidential candidates go?
It’s a Dog’s Life … Well, If Muffy Was More or Less a Trained Monkey
Even dogs have show moms and dads
Mixed Bag
The summer mixtape circuit heats up
SOS Wilson: Going Already?
Perry loyalist, former Gramm man steps down as Secretary of State
Trash-Talking in Court
Whiny Razorbacks!
Learn to Use Mass Transit
Cap Metro offering “Xtreme Transit Makeovers”
Muses II: Memories of a House: Home Theatre
A special house in Travis Heights becomes even more special as the setting for Vestige Group’s collection of playlets
Restaurant Review
Downtown tacos, El Paso-style
Cheat Sheet: Digital TV facts
Here’s all you need to know about the end of analog television, set to occur at 12mid Feb. 17, 2009. If you use: • an analog TV set and an antenna, your TV set will need a converter box to receive digital signals. (Your old set will also work with cable or satellite service.) If…
Respectable Street
As Austin Pride revs up, will its soul get lost on the roadside?
War, Inc.
John Cusack’s War, Inc. rails against the military-industrial complex in a barely disguised contemporary story about covert operations.
CreateAustin: The City Gets the Plan
After two years in the making, the community cultural plan has been presented to the Austin City Council
‘Chronicle’ Endorsements
June 14 City Council run-off
gAyTX Fun Guide
Austin spots so hot, they’re flamin’
The Total Package
The Decoder Ring’s Christian Helms provides everything you could want in a design – or a designer
‘Sonidos Gold’ Reviewed
Grupo Fantasma Sonidos Gold (Aire Sol) Wah-wah guitar flips the circuit breaker, and in rolls a banging boogie, the drum circle doing laps under the organ as a Spanish street barker starts versing, horns blaring over hot coals of percussion. At precisely 1:53, the breakdown: that one neon keyboard figure lighting every pan-Latin Afro-Caribbean carnival…
The Hightower Report
Blackwater’s Reward; and Who Benefits From Cloning?
Austin Pride 2008
The party goes on all month long …
Arts Review
Salvage Vanguard turns Jason Grote’s new play into a rare slice of performance: funny, frightening, visceral, violent, and totally unforgettable
‘Ocote Soul Sounds & Adrian Quesada’ Reviewed
Ocote Soul Sounds & Adrian Quesada The Alchemist Manifesto (ESL Music) Grupo Fantasma’s Adrian Quesada and Antibalas founder Martín Perna are well-versed in aural alchemy, the process of transmuting common breaks into instrumental elixirs, and their second collaboration as Ocote Soul Sounds is their manifesto. Whereas the group’s cinematic debut, 2004’s El Niño y El…
The Present Beware! The Future Beware!
Austin animator Brad Neely drinks beer, hates British children
Page Two: A Threat and a Promise
The city takes on live music, again
Arts Review
Austin Playhouse’s production of this early Sondheim musical features some strong work, but it also feels dated and safe
Off the Record
Soaring gas prices put local bands in a pinch at the pump and a homecoming of sorts for Janis Joplin and the Butthole Surfers
Even the Undead Gotta Dance, Gotta Sing
John McLean’s labor of love, Z: A Zombie Musical
Dems in Austin: Taking the Next Step
The State Convention looks ahead to November
Anthony Graves Case Raises the Dead … Again
Judge once again okays testimony of dead witness
Arts Review
Throughout his latest group of collages, Letscher is always exploring how we work through ideas and emotions
Texas Platters
Bun B II Trill (Rap-a-Lot) II Trill but never too trill, the second solo swagger from UGKer Bun B spins triumphant, Houston hip-hop ripped both in celebration of properly executed gangster prophecies and passed partner-in-slang Pimp C. The opening title cut cruises both roads, citing Pimp’s eternal presence in the H-town scene before a relentless…
DVD Watch
Louis Malle, lobbing smart bombs
Newsdesk
Joe “Thundersticks” Jaworski revs up his bid for S.D. 11 and the Bad Precedents
ICE Draws Cool Reception in Austin
Immigration comes calling at the jailhouse
When Creative Types Combine Powers
Monofonus Press’ multimedia ambitions
Texas Platters
Lydia Mendoza The Best of Lydia Mendoza (Arhoolie) “La Alondra de la Frontera,” Lydia Mendoza – “the Lark of the Border” – passed away in 2007, so it’s rightfully time to start anthologizing. Best of features 17 songs laid down in chronological order, starting with an early rendition of her signature “Mal Hombre” (1934) and…
In Play
This one’s designed by the hardcore gamer for the hardcore gamer
Sessions: From Vodka to Voter ID
Dems rally to fight voter ID law
Headlines
• OK, folks – Saturday, June 14, is decision day for the City Council Place 4 run-off between Laura Morrison and Cid Galindo. Get out and vote: This is the hands-on part of citizenship! • Investigators are still sifting through the damage and trying to find the culprit who set fire to the Governor’s Mansion…
Remembering RFK
Three new tomes examine the legacy of RFK in pictures and words.
Texas Platters
Rae Davis Positive Thinking! (Exponential) Like the two-toned floral pattern artwork that adorns this downtempo gem, Rae Davis’ local debut, self-produced in his South Austin home, captures simple beauty, at once complex and completely soothing. Leaning on the keys of a tricked-out Fender Rhodes, the Austin-by-way-of-San-Antonio beatsmith cooks jazzy instrumental electronica with a helping of…
TV Eye
Suddenly, a reason to watch The View again
Johnston Seniors Bid Final Farewell
A bittersweet occasion for Johnston’s last graduating class
Quote of the Week
“It is a sin and a shame that all of you all are going to be paying for a damnable war that never should have been started in the first place.” – Texas Democratic Party Chair Boyd Richie, addressing the Texas Young Democrats at the state convention
The Common Law
Political Asylum Project of Austin
Texas Platters
Alexander’s Dark Band Music to Stand by the Fireplace To Floating beyond the standard rubric of lyrically quirky indie pop, Alexander’s Dark Band demonstrates the power of thoughtful arrangements in moving novel narratives toward individual distinction. Named for the unlit sky between two rainbows, the kitchen-sink symphonic sextet colors a half-serious/half-kidding approach that wouldn’t be…
Ride to Live
Local biker clubs share the secrets of the open road
Place 4 Run-Off Heats Up
Morrison and Galindo exchange accusations as election day approaches
Naked City
News briefs from Austin, the region, and elsewhere
After a Fashion
Stephen MacMillan Moser is enjoying a well-deserved break this week. Come see him at the Austin Pride Parade, this Saturday, June 14 (see “Respectable Street”).
Texas Platters
Sisters Morales Talking to the River (Luna) If Heart had grown up in the Southwest, they’d have sounded like Sisters Morales. The duo currently calls Houston home but spent their childhood in Tucson, Ariz., and Talking to the River, their fourth release, teems with country, Latin, and traditional folk influences. Produced by Steve Berlin of…
The Bard of Blast
Steve Wolf’s pyro-antics are poetry in motion
The Cat Did It: WilCo off the Hook in Shelter probe
Animals blamed in abuse case (and for squealing to the pigs)
Beyond City Limits
• In two opinions handed down late Monday, the state Court of Criminal Appeals cleared the way for Texas executions to resume after an eight-month hiatus imposed by legal challenges to lethal injection as an inhumane method of execution. At press time Wednesday, the state was readying to execute its first inmate since September, Karl…
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
The Mary Tyler Moore Show airs somewhere in the world every hour of every day, solitary gaming, and more
Texas Platters
Brian Birdwell Volume 1 Given the sudden superstar re-emergence of Jack Johnson, it’s not surprising to discover a new contingent of mellow-minded balladeers surfing in his wake. Though locally landlocked, Brian Birdwell’s debut breezily pops with beach bonfire bon mots. The lawn-chair philosophy of “Jesus & Buddha” and “Free Ride” lap expectedly playful but ultimately…
Welcome to the Motordrome
One of the last Wall of Death barrels comes to town
Billboard Plant: Newest Travis Heights Resident?
Neighborhood questions what will go on in Reagan National Advertising’s planned warehouse
Point Austin: Heat Wave
From Philadelphia to Austin, the air is burning
Food-o-File
Avoid salmonella and other dangerous bacteria by eating locally grown produce
Texas Platters
Nathan Singleton & His Sideshow Tragedy Itinerant Youth (Nondescript) His debut, an impressive set of stylized Americana, pegged Nathan Singleton as a local artist to watch. Itinerant Youth, his second effort, is a head-scratcher, however. He’s turned to the weaker aspects of what he does and expanded on them, while mostly ignoring those things that…
We Can Rebuild It
Build a bike in two days
Happenings
For more details and events, see Community Listings. Thursday 12 BIKERS AGAINST CHILD ABUSE honors the work of Judge W. Jeanne Meurer. 5:30pm. Parkside, 301 E. Sixth, 474-9898. www.parkside-austin.com. CENTRAL WEST NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING WORKSHOP 6:30pm. Lower Colorado River Authority Headquarters, 3700 Lake Austin Blvd., 974-2857. Free. www.cityofaustin.org/zoning/central_west_austin.htm. COMMUNITY MEETING ON FUTURE OF JOHNSTON HIGH SCHOOL…
Beside the Point
Exciting things to see and do at this week’s council meeting
Event Menu: June 17
• Austin’s original Z’Tejas Grill outlet (1110 W. Sixth, 478-5355) hosts a wine dinner sponsored by Veramonte wines of Chile. Corporate chef Jack Gilmore will join Executive Chef Santos Garcia-Hernandez and pastry chef Debbie Jones to present a six-course Southwestern-inspired dinner paired with excellent Chilean wines. $65 per person, all inclusive. Reservations necessary; call Kimberly…
Texas Platters
Mario Matteoli Golden State Mario Matteoli’s in love, and he doesn’t care who knows it. The local songwriter’s passions are splayed all over his second solo disc, but in a way that’s easygoing and rarely gushing. Gone are his Weary Boys alt-bluegrass days, replaced by a sunlit vibe that recalls the disc’s title, his California…
A Four-Cone Event
ROT Rally parties from curb to curb
Playing Through
Wolfgang Suhnholz is more interested in building a robust soccer community in Austin than scoring a big-time coaching gig
Blanco Lavender Festival
Fragrant entertainment is to be had at Blanco’s Lavender Festival
Texas Platters
Windsor for the Derby How We Lost (Secretly Canadian) Windsor for the Derby’s catalog, composed by former Austinites Dan Matz and Jason McNeely, marks a series of sequential relationships, each album a reflection of what preceded it. With eighth LP How We Lost, WFTD’s tales of distance and time finally come full circle, balancing the…
Two-Wheeled Texas
Bikers’ best bets on the highways and byways
The Incredible Hulk
Finally, the Hulk is truly incredible. As of right now, it’s Marvel’s universe; we just live in it.
Day Trips
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, outside of Glen Rose, seems to get better with age
Austin Home Brewer Honored
Local Austinite Kerry Martin wins the 13th annual Big Batch Brew Bash
Texas Platters
Monkeywrench Gabriel’s Horn (Birdman) Trumpeted by inimitable Mudhoney whine connoisseur Mark Arm and wingman Steve Turner, plus former U-Men and fellow Seattle scenester Tom Price, Aussie drummer Martin Bland, and Austin’s prince of the punks, Tim Kerr, Gabriel’s Horn throws another spanner in the works. With the same five men in black monkeying up 1992…
Rally Listings 2008
Your calendar for some wheelie great events
Baghead
Kind of funny and kind of scary, the lo-fi Baghead is not so much a horror movie as a four-character study of relationships and the drive to find meaningful work.
The Velveeta Room: Vive la Difference de le Fromage!
Nearly three dozen comics are flocking to Sixth Street to pay tribute to Austin’s other comedy club
Restaurant Review
Freshness and simplicity brighten palates in a former steak house
Apocalypse February!
When digital TV arrives next year, you may not notice
What’s on the Slab
Texas roadhouses are far from middle-of-the-road
The Promotion
Forgettably bland, this comic film features Seann William Scott and John C. Reilly vying for the same job promotion.
Luv Doc Recommends: Pride Texas Festival
This weekend both the ROT Biker Rally and Pride Texas are knocking knees Downtown. Talk about a summer blockbuster. It’s like Jerry Bruckheimer, Judd Apatow, and the Cohen Brothers had a business lunch at Hooters, smoked a fatty, and dreamed up this weekend. Bikers … gays … lesbians … if the Convention and Visitors Bureau…
