Manhood
Manhood 2003, NR, 82 min. Directed by Bobby Roth, Starring Nestor Carbonell, John Ritter, Janeane Garofalo, Bonnie Bedelia. Masculinity in America is explored through the eyes of a commitment-phobic Casanova.
Mamadrama: The Jewish Mother in Cinema
Mamadrama: The Jewish Mother in Cinema 2001, NR, 73 min. Directed by Monique Schwarz. A documentary exploration of the stereotype from silent films to the Yiddish cinema to the present day.
Master of the Game
Master of the Game 2002, NR, 90 min. Directed by Jeff Stolhand, Starring Uygar Aktan, Garry Peters, Steven Chester Prince, Alex Affolter, David Stokey. Austin filmmaker Jeff Stolhand tells a tale of survival and metaphysics in a WWII concentration camp.
The Last Letter
The Last Letter 2002, NR, 61 min. Directed by Frederick Wiseman, Starring Catherine Samie. This one-woman sate show is film in black-and-white by the great documentarian Frederick Wise. The French stage actress Catherine Samie plays a physician interned in a Ukrainian ghetto and delivers a monologue about the incremental horrors of her life.
Malliswari: The Princess
Malliswari: The Princess 2004, NR. Directed by Vijaya Bhaskar, Starring Venkatesh, Katrina Kaif, Balaiah, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Brahmanandam, Tanikella Bharani. A princess, who is a poor little rich girl, escapes the palace and falls in love with a bank clerk.
High Above This Wall: Cinematexas Roadshow
High Above This Wall: Cinematexas Roadshow NR, 85 min. Directed by Various. According to the press release, this collection of short films “reflects the inner and outer landscapes of battle, the social and emotional architectures of war.” Included in the program are Carola Dertnig’s “A Room With a View in the Financial District” (2003, Austria/U.S.,…
Pepe le Moko
Pepe le Moko 1937, NR, 86 min. Directed by Julien Duvivier, Starring Jean Gabin, Mireille Balin, Gabriel Gabrio, Marcel Dalio. The gangster Pepe le Moko is charismatically played by the great Jean Gabin in this film noir precursor from France. He hides from the Parisian authorities in the Casbah of Algiers, where the people treat…
SXSW Live Shots
in-store (and booth)-o-ramaTop left: Petty Booka serenades Cheapo Discs once again; top right: one wink from the Winks at Austin’s soon to be extinct Tower Records; bottom: Robyn Hitchcock loves the Chronicle’s Convention Center tradeshow booth only for its Ho Hos;
SXSW Film Reviews
Mail Order BrideD: Huck Botko, Andrew Gurland; with Andrew Gurland, Eugenia Yuan, Adrian Martinez, Sam Lisenco Narrative Feature Special Screenings, Regional Premiere When documentary filmmaker Andrew Gurland (playing himself) decides to make a movie about doorman Adrian Martin (Martinez) ordering a bride from Burma, it comes as little surprise when Martin turns out to be…
SXSW Live Shots
Jolie HollandAntone’s, Friday, March 19San Francisco’s Jolie Holland shouldn’t be playing SXSW. In fact, Holland shouldn’t be playing any festival or show nationwide right now. The reason for this is not lack of talent or embarrassment onstage. It’s solely because Jolie Holland shouldn’t be playing anytime in this decade – or the last eight for…
SXSW Film Reviews
Paper Clips D: Elliot Berlin, Joe Fab Documentary Feature Special Screenings This polished (and Miramax-supported) documentary weaves the lovely tale of Whitwell (Tenn., population: 1,600) Middle School’s Paper Clip Project, wherein the eighth-grade language-arts students collected millions of paper clips from across the world to commemorate the lives lost during the Holocaust. The film unites…
SXSW Live Shots
Scout Niblett Buffalo Billiards, Friday, March 19 She’s a princess, and queen of everything that bubbles and burbles behind your eyes, behind your heart, little pumping chunk that it is, seething, loving, weak and then strong when the worst and the best happens. It’s far too easy to describe Scout Niblett as “Cat Power with…
SXSW Live Shots
The VeilsRockstars, Friday, March 19 Finn Andrews, frontman for the Veils, is a tortured artist. Seriously. So much so that at one point in the band’s set, he looked so distressed as to be in physical pain. And it wasn’t really a pleasant thing to endure. His emotionally overwrought voice would start low like a…
Second Helpings: Bakeries
Central Market 4001 N. Lamar, 206-1000 Daily, 9am-9pm 4477 S. Lamar, 899-4300 Daily 9am-9pm If you’re shopping for a picnic, the bakery at Central Market is a good place to start. Their fresh breads will turn any sandwich into a conversation piece. Other noteworthy items include croissants almost as big as footballs and huge peanut…
SXSW Live Shots
David CrossEmo’s, Friday, March 19 It’s no easy feat for a stand-up comedian to hold court in the middle of a punk rock show. On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine the Laugh Barn in Anytown, USA, being a much better venue for a sardonic, left-leaning contrarian like David Cross. Like other comedians, Cross…
Second Helpings: Downtown Coffee Shops
Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse & Cafe 1501 S. First, 416-1601 Monday-Friday, 7am-12mid; Saturday-Sunday, 9am-12mid This inviting Bouldin neighborhood haunt features a funky lime-green exterior and an interior that’s probably more homey than the place you sleep. Pick up a book, play Battleship, and enjoy all your favorite coffee drinks along with some killer honey lemonade. Bouldin…
SXSW Live Shots
Toots & the Maytals, Joss StoneTown Lake Stage, Friday, March 19 With welcomed signs of spring and a picturesque skyline framing the Town Lake stage, Toots & the Maytals showered a mostly local crowd with a fine mist of reggae sensuality. As polished and energetic as ever, Toots Hibbert projected his raspy voice of wisdom…
Spotlight: Iron & Wine
Beard grooming tips from Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam
SXSW Live Shots
The Baptist GeneralsBlender Bar @ the Ritz, Friday, March 19 What does it mean when you see an audience member at a showcase reading a book, but also singing along to the lyrics? It just might mean that the songs of the Baptist Generals are actually doing their work. Chris Flemmons writes songs about interpersonal…
Spotlight: Dramarama
I’ll give Dramarama anything to reunite
SXSW Live Shots
Old Crow Medicine ShowMother Egan’s, Friday, March 19 There’s a rising tide of young string bands these days, acts that eschew drums and favor acoustic instruments, relying on fiddle, banjo, Dobro, harmonica, and stand-up bass. One of the best is Nashville’s Old Crow Medicine Show. On their just-released self-titled debut, they demonstrate an ability to…
Spotlight: Dizzee Rascal
Dirty South makes Brit rap star Dizzee Rascal dizzy
SXSW Live Shots
Andrew BirdHole in the Wall, Friday, March 19 Hoping to turn the Hole in the Wall into a Bowl of Fire, Andrew Bird began his set – the halfway slot of the InRadio-sponsored eve – by playing his violin in a seemingly simple manner. Soon, things changed. While Bird’s classical technique immediately screamed through his…
Spotlight: Scott H. Biram
Scott Biram stays one step ahead of the devil
SXSW Live Shots
Broken Social SceneStubb’s, Friday, March 19 “Enjoy your lives,” a jubilant Kevin Drew exhorted at the end of Broken Social Scene’s energizing set at Stubb’s. “You’re supposed to enjoy your lives!” Enjoying life is all but impossible when you’re watching 14 people strumming, thumping, blowing, leaping, clapping, singing, and generally having more fun than the…
Spotlight: Flatstock 4
Two poster artists at Flatstock 4 equal dozens of SXSW 04 showcasers
SXSW Live Shots
Amsterdam CallingFriends, Friday, March 19 What is it with bands that don’t rock? It’s one thing to be all fretful and atmospheric, but for your songs to be boring and never even show much in the way of vital signs … that’s something else entirely. The Hague’s Venus Flytrap played the moody card all night,…
Spotlight: Zykos
Zykos, the early years
Freedom’s Just Another Word
Pona knows she will live out her days at Kukuo, a “witches’ home” in rural northern Ghana, where women accused of witchcraft are sent. Pona is one of several women featured in Witches in Exile, Allison Berg’s SXSW Film 04 Special Jury Award-winning documentary about the Kukuo Witches Camp. These women are scapegoats for the…
SXSW Live Shots
SXSW Interview: Walter Yetnikoff Austin Convention Center, Friday, March 19 As head of CBS Records from 1975 to 1990, Walter Yetnikoff amassed an amazingly lucrative talent roster led by Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, and Billy Joel. He also did lots of drugs, chased lots of skirts, and made lots of enemies with his classically cantankerous…
Reality Really, Really Bites
A meth-snorting schoolgirl talks her girlfriends into bed with drug dealers. Desperate to talk, an agoraphobic traps a deliveryman in his bungalow. A mom slugs wine to the Teardrop Explodes while her 11-year-old son practices arson. Sound like typical reality-show fare? We’re not even to the really sleazy part: None of these “contestants” even realize…
SXSW Live Shots
Health Care for Musicians: The AFTRA DealAustin Convention Center, Friday, March 19 Health care is a problem nationwide. It especially affects musicians and anyone who works on a freelance basis, since the costs for coverage can be daunting. Esteemed music journalist Dave Marsh has chaired a panel on this subject for three years at SXSW,…
SXSW Film Reviews
Able Edwards D: Graham Robertson; with Scott Kelly Galbreath, Michael Shamus Wiles, Keri Bruno, David Ury, Steve Beaumont-Jones, Johari Johnson Narrative Feature Emerging Visions, World Premiere Able Edwards, shot on green screen without sets and using only scanned images for background, took 15 days to shoot on mini DV and a budget of $30,000 –…
SXSW Live Shots
Mastering Engineers Talk ShopAustin Convention Center, Friday, March 19 Imagine musicians as carpenters, measuring, cutting, and assembling the wood, and mixing engineers as designers that envision the end product, this drawer here, that knob there. Mastering engineers, then, are the artisans who apply the finishing touches, some light sanding here, polishing there, etc. Technically speaking,…
SXSW Film Reviews
Animated Shorts D: Various Proof, if any were needed, that Disney’s rumored recent decision to scrap its traditional cel animation facilities in favor of leaping full-bore into the digital fray might not be their best idea yet: Half of these 10 shorts use to grand effect old-school methods, including Aron Stienke’s dreamy “Palo Alto, 1879″…
TCB
Spring Training SXSW Creative Director Brent Grulke looks a little less bleary-eyed than years past, and there’s a good reason for that. He’s staying in the Hilton just across from the Convention Center. “It’s given me at least 20 minutes more sleep a day,” he says. “That’s extra valuable.” Grulke said he figured this year’s…
SXSW Live Shots
The End of the Record Store?Austin Convention Center, Friday, March 19 Conventional wisdom says the short answer to this panel’s interrogative title is: “Yes,” or rather, “Except for Amoeba, and Waterloo, yes.” That means four of the five panelists were either brilliant or blind because they were very bullish on the state of record retail.…
SXSW Film Reviews
Haute Tension D: Alexandre Aja; with Cécile de France, Maïwenn le Besco, Philippe Nahon, Oana Pellea Narrative Feature ‘Round Midnight, Regional Premiere If you were one of the few, the brave, the thoroughly repulsed who managed to catch this French import at Harry Knowles’ latest Butt-Numb-a-Thon like we did, then you already know that Mel…
Our Country Mapped in Music
The Austin Symphony’s concert with Grantham’s Southern Harmony, Copland’s Appalachian Spring Suite, and Gershwin’s Second Rhapsody gives audiences a chance to hear how some composers describe an American sense of place through music
San Francisco in South Austin
Finding dim sum and Cantonese seafood, early birds and all-nighters, at Marco Polo
SXSW Records
The ChurchForget Yourself (Cooking Vinyl/spinART) The Church isn’t a one-hit wonder, and this is not a comeback. “Under the Milky Way” notwithstanding, this elegant pop quartet from Sydney, Australia, has remained active since 1981, putting out one solid effort after another. The fires still burn bright on Forget Yourself, their 17th album, which cooks like…
SXSW Records
StarsHeart (Arts & Crafts) Move over Williamsburg. To the chagrin of Trey Parker, Matt Stone, and Celine Dion haters everywhere, the new musical hot spot is Toronto, Canada. A spin-off of Broken Social Scene, which is less a band than a collective with as many as 15 members and several interlocking musical projects, Stars is…
SXSW Interactive 04
20×2 Sunday, March 14 Love. Voting. Jesus-themed consumer products. You. These are a few of the 20 two-minute responses to the question posed by the 20×2 event Sunday night at La Zona Rosa: What’s the Big Idea? The answers varied. Props were used prolifically. Performers used their two minutes in a dizzying range of ways,…
SXSW Live Shots
PFFRBeerland, Thursday, March 18 “PFFR stands for ‘pity the poor hobo vomit that dreams of being privileged diarrhea.'” If you’re still reading after that evocative self-description, there’s a good chance this Brooklyn duo’s 15-minute blast of a set would’ve warmed your sick little cockles. Leading off the eclectic Birdman Records showcase Thursday night, PFFR (pronounced…
SXSW Records
Scout NiblettI Am (Secretly Canadian) If nothing else, she’s got the cutest name going for her. Thankfully, Nottingham, England’s Emma Louise Niblett (the “Scout” is from, yes, To Kill a Mockingbird) has much more than that, as these 13 achingly beautiful songs of loss, love, and not a little bit of anger handily confirm. Compared…
Naked City
Environmentalists fear natural gas well will interfere with sea turtle nesting
SXSW Film Reviews
This Land Is Your LandD: Lori Cheatle, Daisy Wright Documentary Feature Competition, World Premiere “I’m just going to be myself and wear what I’m wearing,” says a teenage girl in a man-on-the-street interview. Ironically, she asserts her individuality in an Old Navy T-shirt and a Nike visor. This ambitious social-issues documentary considers what it means…
Song of the Year
RUNNERS-UP: “She Likes purple,” by Abby Leger, Scott Leger, Eddie Willis, Nate Navarro, Steve Rude, and Curtis Ryker for Wideawake; “Float,” by Katy Belle for Matson Belle; “Tennessee Whiskey,” by Shelley King and Tony Velasco for Toni Price; “Screw You, We’re From Texas,” by Ray Wylie Hubbard; “On a Roll,” by Lisa TIngle and Bruce…
Best Pop
RUNNERS-UP: Matson Belle, Pieces of East, The Atlantics, Cruiserweight, Monte Montgomery, Echoset, Spun, Taylor Davis Band, The Lower Level
Best All Ages Venue
RUNNERS-UP: Antone’s, Flipnotics Coffeespace, Stubb’a Bar-B-Q, The Backyard, Back Room, The Vibe, Hill’s Cafe, Ruta Maya International Headquarters, Flamingo Cantina
Dancing the Desert
Music isn’t the only performing art to map our country. You can see an example of dance doing the same thing just a couple of days after ASO’s American-flavored concert, when the exhilarating company MOMIX returns to town with their Opus Cactus. Conceived by Artistic Director Moses Pendleton, the full-evening work creates a portrait of…
The Insatiable Taste for Tunes
In Austin, the self-proclaimed Live Music Capital of the World, seeing great music doesn’t always have to mean fighting the crowds at a smoky nightclub
SXSW Records
Willard Grant ConspiracyRegard the End (Kimchee) Fronted by vocalist and songwriter Robert Fisher, the Willard Grant Conspiracy is a musical collective of sorts, featuring a rotating cast of 31 from around the world. Recorded in Slovenia, since, as Fisher notes, that’s where the band happened to be when the album needed to be born, Regard…
SXSW Records
The MekonsPunk Rock (Quarterstick) In late 2002/early 2003, the Mekons celebrated their 25th anniversary with a select tour of Europe and North America. The influential group stuffed their set list with some of the dusty punk anthems that launched this eclectic punk collective. Happy with the result, the Mekons decided that their next album would…
SXSW Interactive 04
Dewey Winburne Award: Janet Blake Sunday, March 14 Janet Blake looked composed standing with the other finalists for the Dewey Winburne Community Service Award. But when her name was called as the winner she couldn’t hide her excitement. She threw her hands up, squealed, and ran up to the stage where she promptly kissed her…
SXSW Live Shots
The Sleepy JacksonExodus, Thursday, March 18 The Sleepy Jackson’s debut, Lovers, is all over the place. The Aussie outfit swings wildly from the lush orch-pop of “This Day” to the straight Ryan Adams Americana of “Miniskirt.” Largely the work of one man, Luke Steele, Lovers is delightfully uneven. It misses in spots, but when it’s…
SXSW Records
Preston School of IndustryMonsoon (Matador) Following up a grand debut is always a tough trick. Pavement’s criminally overlooked second guy, Scott Kannberg (aka Spiral Stairs), brought the goods to his first album as Preston School of Industry. After having his songs shut out of the last Pavement album, Terror Twilight, by His Dryness Stephen Malkmus,…
Austin @ Large: While Elephants Sleep
The breakdown of the Travis Co. primary vote suggests interesting possibilities come November
SXSW Film Reviews
Up for GrabsD: Michael Wranovics Documentary Feature Competition, World Premiere On Oct. 7, 2001, Barry Bonds launched his record-setting 73rd homer into the outfield stands of San Francisco’s Pac Bell Park. In the bedlam that ensued, the man who walked away with the potential million-dollar ball was not the same man who claims to have…
Best Alternative/Punk
RUNNERS-UP: Endochine, Wideawake, The Applicators, The Midgetmen, Isola, Spun, Kissinger, Opposite Day, Truepenny
Best Rock
RUNNERS-UP: Wideawake, Endochine, Vallejo, Echoset, Kissinger, Pieces of East, Pushmonkey, Monte Montgomery, Truepenny
Best Band Website
RUNNERS-UP: www.matsonbelle.com, www.kevinfowler.com, www.endochine.com, www.bobschneidermusic.com, www.loslonelyboys.com, www.kissingerband.com, www.recklesskelly.com, www.vallejomusic.com, www.losjazzvatos.com
Mothersbaugh’s Antique Freaks
Mark Mothersbaugh’s “Beautiful Mutations” aren’t vintage shots of circus freaks but antique photos altered to make their subjects look disturbing yet eerily beautiful
Food-o-File
Serving up more news than you can shake a badge at …
SXSW Records
Grant-Lee PhillipsVirginia Creeper (Zöe) In February, Grant-Lee Phillips and his band appeared on Gilmore Girls, debuting Virginia Creeper’s sweetly contemplative opener, “Mona Lisa.” You might think The Gilmore Girls set is the wrong market for an artist like Phillips, but you’d be wrong. Virginia Creeper reveals the cult favorite styling himself as either the perfect…
SXSW Records
Metal UrbainAnarchy in Paris! (Acute) Paris-born in 1976 by guitarist Rikky Darling and drummer Eric Débris (who took over vocal duties from Clode Panik), Metal Urbain, which initially took Lou Reed’s cacophonous Metal Machine Music and Hawkwind as influences, relied on Débris’ mastery of a drum machine and synthesizers to remix/shred the music into metallic…
SXSW Interactive 04
Neal Pollack Explains It All to You Monday, March 15 Catching up with the “World’s Greatest Living Writer” on an escalator that’s going down is an ironic experience, right? Neal Pollack likes it that way. After his SXSW Interactive book reading, the punk and semipopular blogger shared his impressions on his presentation as we descended…
SXSW Live Shots
Export Sweden ShowcaseB.D. Riley’s, Thursday, March 18 First off, B.D. Riley’s ain’t exactly the most band-friendly venue on Sixth Street. The stage and PA didn’t work in Kristofer Alstrom’s favor last night; his introspective acoustic guitar singer-songwriter material would’ve worked better for a happy hour in some downtown bar. Alstrom’s got a good voice and…
SXSW Records
Ani DiFranco Educated Guess (Righteous Babe) Since respected punk folkie guitarist and singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco has no productivity problems – putting out albums yearly since 1990 – each new release is greeted with questions of significance. Educated Guess opens with “Platforms,” where Ani plainly speaks: “Life knocked me off my platforms, so I pulled out…
Austin @ Large: The Primaries, by the Numbers
All figures are percentages except as indicated. See map for locations of Travis Co.’s Texas TEXAS HOUSE DISTRICTS U.S. HOUSE DISTRICTS OVERALLD 46D 47D 48D 49D 50D 51CD 10CD 21CD 25 Total turnout17.818.617.119.020.516.214.718.017.518.0 Dem turnout12.415.810.210.717.28.912.811.211.116.1 GOP turnout5.42.86.98.33.37.31.96.76.51.9 Dem/GOP (index)2.35.61.51.35.21.26.81.71.78.3 200TH DISTRICT COURT Gisela Triana56.057.357.446.955.756.663.754.553.360.5 Jan Soifer28.826.127.738.129.128.421.430.631.523.9 John Hathaway15.316.614.815.015.114.914.914.915.215.6 CO. COURT-AT-LAW NO. 5 Nancy Hohengarten65.264.860.874.772.265.945.169.367.858.1 Leonard…
SXSW Film Reviews
When Ocean Meets SkyD: Crayton Robey Documentary Feature Special Screenings, World Premiere When Ocean Meets Sky makes us all wish we were nearly as fabulous as the artists, gay men, and lesbians who have populated Fire Island Pines over the years. The film traces the resort community (situated a ferry’s ride from Long Island) from…
DVD Watch
Catherine Deneuve. Assez dit, n’est-ce pas?
Best Blues
RUNNERS-UP: Los Lonely Boys, Toni Price, W.C. Clark, Antone’s Monday Night Blues Band, Malford Malligan, Guy Forsyth, Ruthie Foster, Eric Johnson & Alien Lovechild, Scott Biram, Marcia Ball, Carolyn Wonderland, Eve Monsees, Gene Taylor Band, Will Knaak
Best Roots Rock
RUNNERS-UP: Harris & Ryden, Shelley String Band, Los Lonely Boys, Milton Mapes, Onion Creek Crawdaddies, The Gourds, Dead End Angels, Nathan Hamilton $ No Deal, Taylor Davis Band
Best Concert By a Touring Artist
RUNNERS-UP: Robert Randolph & the Family Band, ACL Festival, Sept. 20; Hank III, Stubb’s, Jan. 11; Audioslave, Austin Music Hall, March 11; My Morning Jacket, the Parish, Oct. 16 & 17; Widespread Panic, the Backyard, Oct. 3-5; Nickel Creek, Stubb’s, May 20; The Mavericks, La Zona Rosa, Dec. 9; Raul Malo, Continental Club, July 26;…
Happy Bachday!
What do you give a famous composer for his 419th birthday? The Budjanova Quartet is giving J.S. Bach a concert of his music performed by some of Austin’s most gifted musicians.
Wop-bop-a-loo-bop
Little Richard, the pompadour himself, raps a little
SXSW Records
Michael FracassoA Pocketful of Rain (Lone Star) Michael Fracasso has been away from recording too long. Not counting 2001’s live album, his last studio release was 1998’s World in a Drop of Water. The unbounded joy and straight-from-the-heart freshness of A Pocketful of Rain renders the question, “What took you so long?” moot. Simply put,…
SXSW Records
CoachwhipsBangers vs. Fuckers (Narnack) It should surprise no one that the Coachwhips hail from San Francisco. After all, you can practically taste the Barbary Coast whiskey-sweat and fisticuffs oozing out of your speakers during the 76-second rave up from Hades that is “I Drank What?” And you can almost catch the heady tang of a…
After a Fashion
Austin style avatar Stephen puts his most certainly Queer Eye on a local band, gives them an up-do for the festival, and gets away with it… Plus, where’s he going tomorrow and upon whom did he spy at the Mark Mothersbaugh art show?
SXSW Live Shots
GelbisonThe Drink, Thursday, March 18 A young quintet from Sydney, Australia, Gelbison might not have earned the prefestival buzz that some of the other bands from Down Under have. But after this gutsy performance, they might generate talk of their own next time they come to America. Starting with a deep rumble, they showed off…
SXSW Records
The EndWithin Dividia (Relapse) Canadian grindcore band the End is teetering on the edge of two genres. That is if grindcore and death metal are considered different. Within Dividia has a bit of both in its grasp. The intricate beats of the former mix with demonic vocals of the latter to create something both repulsive…
Austin @ Large: The Democrats’ Core Support
Once again, the primary elections told a tale of two counties: a core of rabid Democrats in Central, East, and Southeast Austin, and a periphery of not-so-rabid Republicans to their north and west. The map shows the degree to which Democratic turnout exceeded GOP turnout in each of Travis Co.’s 261 election precincts; only in…
After a Fashion
Hangin’ with your Style Avatar, the B-52’s, Pam Des Barres, Miss Kitty, and mo’ – oh, and some ho’s … San Ho’s that is …
Best Country
RUNNERS-UP: Reckless Kelly, Dale Watson, Harris & Ryden, Willie Nelson, Pat Green, The Derailers, Cornell Hurd Band, Weary Boys, Onion Creek Crawdaddies, Kelly Willis, Heybale!, Dixie Chicks, Asleep at the Wheel, Cory Morrow, Pauline Reese, Billy Joe Shaver, Elizabeth McQueen & the Firebrands, Shelley King Band, James Hand
Best World Music
RUNNERS-UP: Del Castillo, Atash, Grupo Fantasma, Ghandala, Teye & Viva el Flamenco, Brobdingnagian Bards, Sarah Dinan Band, Sambaxe, Cluan, Cadaques, Stingers ATX, Los Afrodeliques, La Tribu, Oliver Rajamani
Best Concert Poster
RUNNERS-UP: Austin City Limits Festival by Jeff Miller, Cornell Hurd at Jovita’s by Guy Juke, Bass Babes Battling Breast Cancer by Angela Crosby, Medicine at Texture by Andrea Burden, Jorma Kaukonen at the Cactus Cafe by Jeff Miller, Roky Erickson Ice Cream Social at Threadgill’s by Danny Garrett, Turbonegro at Emo’s by Jared Conner, Willie…
Articulations
The LBJ Library swaps paintings with the National Gallery of Art, the Blanton Museum of Art gets $1 million for a new gallery, and Patsy Cline teaches you how to apply make-up
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Blurbing the SXSW music festival
SXSW Records
Slaid CleavesWishbones (Philo) Four years have passed since Slaid Cleaves’ Broke Down, a breakthrough album that brought the Austinite a national fan base and identified him as one of the best singer-songwriters in the state. Wishbones reveals that Cleaves was not only up to the task of a suitable follow-up, but capable of surpassing it.…
SXSW Records
ConsonantLove and Affliction (Fenway) Consonant is another chapter in the amazing Mission of Burma comeback. Clint Conley, the band’s bassist and author of anthems “That’s When I Reach for My Revolver” and “Academy Fight Song,” retired from music for a career as a television producer shortly after the band’s 1983 demise. Months before Mission of…
Second Helpings: Barbecue in Town
Artz Rib House 2330 S. Lamar, 442-8283 Monday-Saturday, 11am-10pm; Sunday, noon-9pm Wood floors, checkered tablecloths, a lush patio, and the sumptuous smell of barbecue surround you. The burgers are incredible, the country-style pork ribs massive and divine – great barbecue of all types, available as combos, plates, or sandwiches. Go there. BBQ World Headquarters 1519…
SXSW Live Shots
Madeleine PeyrouxCaribbean Lights, Thursday, March 18 Bitchface. You may be familiar with the phenomenon that occurs primarily in the female of our species and can best be described as the expression worn when one smells something putrid or is simply very pissed off. It also happens to be the expression worn by Madeleine Peyroux for…
Welcome to Tomstown
In the burgeoning Tomstown scandal, you can’t tell the players or the plot without a program
The Hightower Report
Costco breaks the corporate greed mold; and mad cow disease may already be here
Taking Lives
Angelina Jolie and Ethan Hawke star in this disappointing thriller.
Best Cover Band
RUNNERS-UP: The Atlantics, The Newsboyz, Detroit Steel, Memphis Train, Diamond Smugglers, Bigg Balls, Dysfunkshum Junction, Juice, Sauce
Best Acoustic Guitar
RUNNERS-UP: Rick del Castillo; Anuj Timblo, Pieces of East; John Pointer; Eric Johnson; Eddie Willis, Wideawake; Mark del Castillo; Casper Crawls, Toni Price; Willie Nelson; Marvin Dykhuis, Tich Hinojosa
Best Cover Art
RUNNERS-UP: Justin Petro/Punkhaus for the Midgetmen, Pool Party Emergency; Traci Goudie for LIsa Tingle, Trophies and Baggage; Teye and Belen for Teye & Viva el Flamenco, Flamencobsesionarte; Endochine for Day Two; Paula Beard for Pieces of East, Shadow Box; Rob Jones for Pink Swords, One Night High; John Paul Cruz for Chloe’s Honey, Frequency Front;…
Exhibitionism
Cole Porter’s ‘Kiss Me Kate’ is revived by the Austin Playhouse in such an atmosphere of fun (and ever-so-slightly wicked humor) that the production is rather endearing
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Thursday Picks All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. Relapse 8pm-2am, Emo’s Annex Point.click.grind, advises Philly’s Relapse Records (Relapse.com), and three more suitable commandments never existed for metal in the nü millennium. Leavening the indie’s now annual SXSW showcase with the Euro ambience of its Release imprint is Boston’s 27, whose sample sorcerer…
SXSW Records
Walter TragertLousy With Desire Flying well below Austin’s critical radar, Walter Tragert’s Lousy With Desire is a tribute to his seldom-noted talents. With a wry, acerbic flair for words and a voice well suited to the bluesy organ that sometimes accompanies him, Tragert’s songs are so impressively crafted it makes one wonder where he’s been…
SXSW Records
AliasMuted (Anticon)Dosh(Anticon) Instrumental hip-hop in the vein of DJ Shadow and Prefuse 73 is its own evolving animal. Grafting dissonant nods to Brian Eno, Autechre, and My Bloody Valentine, Anticon affiliates Alias and Dosh inject their own genetic peculiarities into the ever-pulsing pedigree. Dubbed the “godfather of goth-hop” Alias departs from his usual rhyming schtick…
Second Helpings: Barbecue Out of Town
Black’s Barbecue215 N. Main St., Lockhart, 512/398-2712 Sunday-Thursday, 10am-8pm; Friday-Saturday, 10am-8:30pm Bragging rights in this longtime Lockhart mainstay are that Black’s is the oldest barbecue restaurant around continually operated by the same family. Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que 505 W. Dallas, Llano, 915/247-5713 Sunday-Thursday, 10:30am-8pm; Friday-Saturday, 10:30am-9pm This joint is admired by hunters from all…
SXSW Live Shots
Robbers on High StreetRockstars, Thursday, March 18 “We played this song earlier, but this is the drunk version of it.” Words to live by, from Ben Trokan of New York City’s Robbers on High Street, who, like that other Ben guy, folds piano into guitar licks that weld catchy, oddly downbeat lyrics to jittery beats.…
The Talk of Tomstown
Major figures in the Tomstown Scandal on the record
SXSW Film 04 Awards
The best of the Fest
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Love is never having to say “I erased you.”
Best Electronica/DJ
RUNNERS-UP: Govinda, Trey lopez, Echo Base Soundsystem, NickNack, Alpha Rythm, DJ Mel, Hedda Layne, Lust Murder Box, Scorpio Rising
Best Bass Guitar
RUNNERS-UP: Bruce Hughes, Bob Schneider Band, Resentments; Clay Karch, Kevin Fowler Band; Albert Besteiro, Del Castillo; Omar Vallejo, vallejo; Chris Maresh, Eric Johnson; Lucky, Kissinger; Pat Cieply, Pieces of East; Rae Goldring, Echoset; Roger Blevins Sr., Mingo Fishtrap
Best Instrument/Equipment Store
RUNNERS-UP: South Austin Music, Strait Music, Ray Hennig’s HEart of Texas music, Musicmakers, Tommy’s Drum Shop, Rock n Roll Rentals, Austin Vintage Guitars, Guitar Resurrection, Brook Mays Music Co.
Exhibitionism
Through the vision and skill of choreographer Stephen Mills, Ballet Austin told the story of ‘Hamlet’ with an urgency and imagination made the prince’s pain palpable
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Thursday Sleepers All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. Lookout! 8pm-2am, Blender Bar @ the Ritz Though built on pop-punk, Berkeley’s Lookout! Records showcase focuses on the hybrid’s former half this year. Vancouver old-school party punks the Smugglers are on hand to hype their forthcoming LP, Mutiny in Stereo. If the quintet lives…
SXSW Records
ShearwaterWinged Life (Misra) Originally a side project for Jonathan Meiburg and Will Sheff of Okkervil River, Shearwater has become a full-fledged band. Describing its sound isn’t easy, made harder by their decision to use a virtual kitchen sink of instruments to get their musical ideas across. Winged Life, Shearwater’s third effort, steps away from their…
SXSW Records
All Night RadioSpirit Stereo Frequency (Sub Pop) Fifty years ago, it was a kid under the sheets with a transistor pressed to his ear. In the 21st century, it’s two buddies channeling satellite radio in their living room. Bark off the ol’ Beachwood Sparks, Los Angelinos Dave Scher and Jimi Hey wound down from the…
The Insider: Joe Perry
Who: Joe Perry Why He’s Here: The Aerosmith guitarist is in town to support his band’s new album of blues, Honkin’ on Bobo. Perry is here for the other side of the business, too: He heads up his own Columbia imprint, Roman Records. On Texas Blues: Johnny Winter is probably my biggest influence as a…
SXSW Live Shots
Runner & the ThermodynamicsCaucus Patio, Thursday, March 18 Marc Pinansky plays a Gibson SG through a Marshall stack – and he’s very pretty. Mike Oor is given to an impressive bass solo or four, and he, too, is very pretty. So what does this Boston rock trio have that separates them from all the others?…
American Ho
An old friend from work turns up in a very different occupation
Something More Than Just Cerebral
This is a different Kaufman, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind marks a different kind of picture for the writer
Best Experimental/Instrumental
RUNNERS-UP: Explosions in the Sky, McLemore Avenue, Echo Base Soundsystem, Opposite Day, Atash, Golden Arm Trio, Alpha Rythm, Govinda, Tia Carrera
Best Drums/Percussion
RUNNERS-UP: Chip Vayenas, Mingo Fishtrap; Ron Dixon, Kevin Fowler Band; Ringo Garza, Los Lonely Boys; Jay Nazz, Reckless Kelly; Alejandro Vallejo, Vallejo; David Fore, the Eggmen; Brannen Temple, Blaze; Darwin Keys, Pushmonkey; Mike Zeoli, Del Castillo
Best Live Music Venue
RUNNERS-UP: Stubb’s Bar-B-Q, Emo’s, Continental Club, Red Eye Fly, Saxon Pub, Back Room, The Parish, Cactus Cafe, Room 710, Flipnotics Coffespace, La Zona Rosa, The Vibe, Hill’s Cafe, Cedar Street Courtyard, Flamingo Cantina, Broken Spoke, Austin Music Hall, Lucky Lounge, Beerland
In Print
Julia Preston and Samuel Dillon want to do two things in their book. Roger Gathman finds out if they pull it off.
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Friday Picks All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. Joss Stone, Toots & the Maytals, Kris Kristofferson6-10pm, Town Lake Stage @ Auditorium Shores Though UK teenage soul sensation Joss Stone headlines as a new generation’s Joan Osborne, and opener Kris Kristofferson promises to help you make it through the night, it’s Toots Hibbert…
SXSW Records
Ian McLaganRise & Shine! (Gaff) Only an older demographic would recall a UK musical movement from the Seventies known as “pub rock.” It was just bar bands playing rock & roll, country, and blues in a loose, unpretentious way. The music on Ian McLagan’s fourth solo disc, Rise & Shine!, recalls that pub rock sound…
SXSW Records
TV on the RadioDesperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes (Touch & Go) Tunde Adebimpe is a crooner. Not in a Johnny Mathis way, but in a lay it all on the line, no time for BS sort of way. He floated into the orchestrations of bandmate David Andrew Sitek, who produced Desperate Youth as well as…
Spotlight: The Ends
The Ends just wanna destroy
SXSW Live Shots
La Conquista, Los Terribles del Norte, El TriAuditorium Shores, Thursday, March 18 If there was ever a more eclectic collection of acts at SXSW’s yearly Latin blowout at Auditorium Shores, it’s hard to recall. The most traditional of the lineup was the straight-shooting Norteño band Los Terribles del Norte. Cutting fine figures in hot-pink cowboy…
Will Supremes’ Ruling Scuttle Yogurt-Shop Cases?
The high court’s unanimous Sixth Amendment ruling gives hope to attorneys for Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott
SXSW Interactive 04 Web Awards
SXSW Interactive 04 announced its Webbie Award winners on Sunday, March 15
Best Folk
RUNNERS-UP: Brobdingnagian Bards, Harris & Ryden, Ruthie Foster, Tish hinojosa, Sara Hichman, Onion Creek Crawdaddies, South Austin Jugband, Taylor Davis Band, Vanessa Peters
Best Electric Guitar
RUNNERS-UP: Eric Johnson; Henry Garza, Los Lonely Boys; Kieth Davis, Kevin Fowler Band; Monte Montgomery; David Abeyta, Reckless Kelly; Steve GArvey, Kissinger; Heath Clark, Vallejo; Redd Volkaert; Gary Clark Jr.; Travis Cohee, Echoset; Will Knaak, Knaak Attack; A.J. Vallejo, Vallejo; Nathan Harlan, Endochine; Mike Barnes; Scrappy Jud Newcomb; Chris Duarte; Billy Harvey; Russ Scanlon, Los…
Best Local Music TV Show
RUNNERS-UP: All Access Live, KNVA 54 (WB); Raw Time, ACTV Channel 10; AMN Archives, AMN; Local LIcks Live, AMN (KLBJ Simulcast); Fox 7 Morning Music, KTBC (Fox 7); Fiday Night Videos, ACTV Channel 10); Prime Time Tejano, AMN; Texas Request, AMN; AMN Classics, AMN
Page Two
The nose knows when SXSW is coming
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Friday Sleepers All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. Secretly Canadian/ Sounds Familyre8pm-2am, Buffalo Billiards If you like your indie pop skewed and scrambled, the Secretly Canadian/ Sounds Familyre showcase is a treasure trove. Chicago septet Manishevitz, with their fourth disc City Life (on the SC-distributed JagJaguar), brims with lush instrumentation and warm…
SXSW Records
The Holmes BrothersSimple Truths (Alligator) Only a family could offer up Simple Truths’ tight knit, home-cooked servings of African-American roots music. Popsy Dixon (drums) and brothers Wendell (guitar, keyboards) and Sherman Holmes (bass) were all born in Virginia, honing their chops in church and at clubs. The trio eventually held court at Dan Lynch’s club…
SXSW Records
Graham ParkerYour Country (Bloodshot) Roots rock has always been a defining element to the music of Graham Parker. The UK’s mid-Seventies pub-rock scene consisted of bar bands that played rock & roll, country rock, and blues, and Parker’s backing band at the time, the Rumour, consisted of bar vets from bands Brinsley Schwarz and Ducks…
Spotlight: Jessi Colter
Jessi Colter picks up the pieces and the pace.
SXSW Live Shots
Big Star #1 PanelAustin Convention Center, Thursday, March 18 According to local Big Star superfan-turned-moderator Kent Benjamin, Alex Chilton isn’t the kind of guy who wants to sit in front of an audience and talk about his music. Chilton’s absence from Thursday’s panel was keenly felt, but it offered an opportunity to discuss the late…
AISD Board to Consider $420 Million Bond Package
The Citizens’ Bond Advisory Committee settles on a figure that offers relief while still being acceptable to voters
Hell on Earth
Packed house at the Paramount for a first look at Hellboy
Best Hip Hop
RUNNERS-UP: Mingo Fishtrap, Overlord, John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox, NOOK, Bavu Blakes, DJ Mel, Smackola, D-Madness, Big Game Hunter
Best Female Vocals
RUNNERS-UP: Patty Griffin; Liisa Tingle; Ruthie Foster; Kelly Willis; Laura Giammona, Pieces of East; Kay Belle, Matson Belle; Patrice Pike; Stella Maxwell, Cruiserweight; Sarah Hickman; Trish Murphy; Beth Puorro, Echoset; Tish Hinojosa; Michelle Mayfield; Sarah Dinan; Elizabeth McQueen; Seela; Shelley King; Tamara Russell, the Newsboys; Ginger Leigh
Best Music Writer
RUNNERS-UP: Margaret Moser, Andy Langer, Michael Chamy, Michael Corcoran, Raoul Hernandez, Jay Trachtenberg, Greg Beets, JIm Caligiuri, Belinda Acosta
Letters at 3AM
The Bush-Ashcroft Justice Department is invading our privates
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Saturday Picks All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. <hr noshade size="1"Grupo Fantasma5pm, Town Lake Stage @ Auditorium Shores After a yearlong Wednesday night residency at Antone’s, this dynamic, climbing toward a dozen members horn- and percussion-driven Latin powerhouse has developed into one of the hottest bands in Austin. – Jay Trachtenberg Dirty…
SXSW Records
Iron & WineOur Endless Numbered Days (Sub Pop) When Sub Pop came across Iron & Wine in 2002, its sole member Sam Beam had been writing original Southern country songs for well over a decade, documenting them at his modest home studio for half as long. Sub Pop liked what they heard and wanted more.…
SXSW Records
John VandersliceCellar Door (Barsuk) No one will ever accuse John Vanderslice of being up with people. The prolific San Franciscan goes on a Nick Cave kick with his fourth solo full-length, Cellar Door. While these aren’t tales of junkie waste and spiritual decay, they’re just as dark. The rogues’ gallery of miscreants and misanthropes dart…
Spotlight: Broken Social Scene
Strike the “next” from Next Big Thing
SXSW Live Shots
Finding the Grownup AudienceAustin Convention Center, Thursday, March 18 Contrary to what MTV might lead you to believe, music isn’t just for hard-drinking spring breakers and mall rats sporting belly-button jewelry. Fully 60% of CD sales comes from the wallets of geezers aged 30 and up. How then, queried Texas Monthly Editor Evan Smith, do…
Midnight Art Heist at Z’Tejas
Z’Tejas art theft has the artist, restaurant, and police baffled
Short Cuts
How is this year’s South by Southwest Film Festival and Conference shaping up compared to previous years?
Best Jam
RUNNERS-UP: John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox, Patrice Pike & Black Box Rebellion, Groovin’ Ground, Attash, South Austin Jug Band, Los Lonely Boys, Spacetruck, Explosions in the Sky, Larry
Best Horns
RUNNERS-UP: Mingo Fishtrap Horns; Los Jazz Vatos Horns; Grupo Fantasma Horns; Carlos Sos, John Pointer, @ Carlos Sosa’s Boombox; David Cheru; Mace Hibbard, Odd Man Out; Ephraim Owens; Ghansaia Horns
Best New Club
RUNNERS-UP: Oslo, Tambaleo, Bigby’s, Longbranch Inn, Rockstars, D&L’s Texas Music Cafe, Alligator Grill, Love. on the Lawn, Sidekicks
Second Helpings: Irish Pubs
B.D. Riley’s Pub 204 E. Sixth, 494-1335 Monday-Wednesday, 4pm-2am; Thursday-Sunday, 11:30am-2am B.D. Riley’s is a subtly elegant place with a real Irish feel. Great beer by the Imperial Pint (20 ounces) including Guinness, Bass, and Harp. Excellent pub grub, especially the Fish & Chips. Irish music on the sound system includes everything from Van Morrison…
Day Trips
Fickle Pickles, the best in the world
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Saturday Sleepers All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com. Rachael Yamagata7:30pm, La Zona Rosa Save Dizzee Rascal, this Chicago singer-songwriter may have appeared on more 2004 artists-to-watch lists than anybody playing this SXSW. For good reason: Last year’s introductory EP for Private Music featured whip-smart songwriting and graceful performances. – Andy Langer Danish…
SXSW Records
Faun FablesFamily Album (Drag City) Somewhere to the left of folk, but not as far left as filk, Oakland’s Dawn McCarthy is eking out her own niche as Faun Fables. She calls her musical hybrid “song-telling,” a handy, descriptive phrase for a most unusual approach. Sounding at once tribal and ethereal, the lengthy “Eyes of…
Spotlight: Secret Machines
The secret railroad from Dallas to NYC
SXSW Live Shots
SXSW Roundtable: Policy, Legislation & the Next Music BusinessAustin Convention Center, Thursday, March 18 Mark Cuban is not your typical SXSW panelist. As the Dallas Mavericks’ owner and No. 1 superfan, the controversial and outspoken Cuban is one of pro basketball’s most recognizable courtside figures. Thankfully, he spared attendees the sight of his typical tight-fitting…
Meet-and-Confer Draws Fire
Council takes a deep breath, gets reassurances from staff about police contract
TV Eye
Is the old genre new again with Deadwood, a gritty, decidedly unromantic look at how the West was won?
Best Jazz
RUNNERS-UP: Blaze, The David Chenu Quartet, John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox, Ephraim Owens Trio, Jon Barry Project, Gnappy, Torch, The Brew, Hot Club of Cowtown
Best Keyboards
RUNNERS-UP: Chris Sater, Matson Belle; Laura Giammona, Pieces of East; Aeron Riordan, Mingo Fishtrap; Derek Morris, Shane Bartell; Ian McLagan; Marcia Ball; Earle poole Ball; Tom Burgess, the Eggmen; Laura Scarborough
Best Radio Personality
RUNNERS-UP: John Aielli, KUT 90.5FM; Jody Denberg, KGSR 107.1FM; Kenvin Connor, KGSR 107.1FM; Dale Dudley, KLBJ 93.7FM; Sammy ALlred, KVET 08.1FM; Charlie Hodge, KLBJ 93.7FM; Mary Jane, KROX 101.5FM (101X); Loris Lowe, KLBJ 93.7FM; Trina Quinn, KROX 101.5FM (101X); J.B. Hager, KAMX Mix 94.7FM; Sandy Rivers, KAMX Mix 94.7FM; Brian Beck, KGSR 107.1FM; Larry monroe…
TCB
Will Wynn has it in for AMN, as does the Austin Hotel & Lodging Association
After a Fashion
Is Stephen your style avatar or Eddie Izzard? Who was that man behind the shades at the Texas Film Hall of Fame?
SXSW Picks & Sleepers
Sunday Sleepers All showcase times subject to change. Please check www.sxsw.com.<hr noshade size="1"Dung Beatles/Ping/ Diamond Smugglers9pm-1am, Emo’s Main The Dung Beatles do Beatles covers locked inside the ‘loo, while the Diamond Smugglers are still smarting over Jack Black stealing their concept for a cinematic treatment of an all Neil Diamond covers band. Ping plays their…
SXSW Records
The Sleepy JacksonLovers (Astralwerks) It starts off as a dreamy little trip, this tale of Lovers wrought by Australian collective the Sleepy Jackson, but quickly becomes dramatically different from track to track. Luke Steele crafts poignant poetry for his songs, even when it’s painfully mundane as with, “I ate all my food which should have…
Spotlight: British Sea Power
Two if by land, one if by British Sea Power.
SXSW Live Shots
What Do A&R People Tell Artists?Austin Convention Center, Thursday, March 18 Those who work A&R for major labels may have the toughest job in the music business. Working at the intersection of art and commerce can either be a nightmare or incredibly rewarding, depending on what day it is, and the six men (do women…
Naked City
Headlines and happenings from around the world
After a Fashion
Your Style Avatar goes out of his way to not mention his sister’s fashion faux pas from last year’s Austin Music Awards Show but somehow manages to … and how is that new Nicole Kidman movie at the film festival, anyway?
Best Kid
RUNNERS-UP: Dissident, The Wild Things, Cat Scratch/the Quicks, Red-Headed Stepchild, LBJ High School Marching Band, Palm School Choir, McCallum High School Steel Band, Sarah Jarosz, Anderson High School Band
Best Male Vocals
RUNNERS-UP: Kevin Fowler; John Pointer, John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox; Bob Schneider; Alex Ruiz, Del Castillo; Henry Garza, Los Lonely Boys; Willy Braun, Reckless Kelly; Malford Milligan; Monte Montgomery; Jojo Garza, Los Lonely Boys; Anuj Timblo, Pieces of East; A.J. Vallejo, Vallejo; Shane Bartell; Tony Park, Pushmonkey; Roger Blevins Jr., Mingo Fishtrap
Best Radio Program
RUNNERS-UP: Dudley and Bob Show, Dale Dudley, Bob Fonseca, Charlie Hodge, Angela Davis, and Ed Clements, KLBJ 93.7FM; Eklektikos John Aielli, KUT 90.5FM; J.B. and Sandy in the Morning, J.B Hager, Sandy Rivers, Debi O’Keefe, Digitz, and Autumn Bouakadakis, KAMX Mix 94.7FM; KGSR in the Morning, Kevin Phinney Kening Connor, KGSR 107.1FM; The Morning X,…
Hall Ball
The Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards, March 12, Austin Studios. Photos by Todd V. Wolfson.
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
A tribe of Native Americans once planned to boil Santa Anna and turn him into a giant tamale.Wedding veils came into vogue in the United States when Nelly Curtis wore a veil at her wedding to George Washington’s aide, Maj. Lawrence Lewis.The oldest known literature is the Vedas of India, dating from 1500 to 4000BC…
SXSW Records
Eliza GilkysonLand of Milk and Honey (Red House) It’s understatement to suggest that Eliza Gilkyson is merely on a roll; everything she’s ever written or recorded was to this end. The Austin singer-songwriter’s last two albums, Lost and Found and Hard Times in Babylon, were such wonderfully realized efforts that they stand as crowning achievements…
SXSW Records
Les Baton RougeMy Body – The Pistol (Elevator Music) Call Homeland Security, the Portuguese have landed! Les Baton wild woman Suspiria Franklyn is an unabashed revolutionary. Her womanifesto promotes “feminism and equal rights while fighting for musical renovation,” and you gotta be from some outpost like Portugal to get away with this literal political sentiment,…
Spotlight: American Music Club
The American Music Club is open
I’m Not Really Lovin’ It
Morgan Spurlock and ‘Super Size Me’
Naked City
Texans join call to limit coal waste dumping, and New Source Review changes get panned
Second Helpings: Comfort Food
Arkie’s Grill 4827 E. Cesar Chavez, 385-2986 Monday-Friday, 5:30am-3pm This homestyle cafe, founded in 1948 by the late Arkie Sawyer, serves breakfast and lunch each weekday with come-back-soon hospitality. Lunch specials include meat loaf, pork ribs, and chicken & dumplings. Thursday’s turkey and dressing special is highly recommended, and Arkie’s now serves steak, too. Austin…
Band of the Year
RUNNERS-UP: Reckless Kelly, Wideawake, Kevin Fowler Band, Bob Schneider Band, Del Castillo, Endochine, Grupo Fantasma, Vallejo, Los Jazz Vatos
Best Latin Contemporary
RUNNERS-UP: Grupo Fantasma, Los Lonely Boys, Ghandala, Teye & Viva el Flamenco, La Tribu, Vallejo, Cadaques, Beto y los Fairlanes, Patricia Vonne
Best Miscellaneous Instrument
RUNNERS-UP: Abhinit Bhatt, Pieces of East, tabla; Glenn Suchan, Kevin Fowler Band, steel guitar; Rick Holeman, Del Castillo, percussion; Cody Braun, Reckless Kelly, fiddle; Chris Sater, Matson Belle, programming; Teye, Teye & Viva el Flamenco, flamenco guitar; Diego Simmons, Vallejo, percussion; Marc gunn, Brobdingnagian Bards, autoharp; Lynda Millard, Dreamtrybe, flute
Best Radio Station
RUNNERS-UP: KVET 98.1FM, KUT 90.5FM, KLBJ 93.7FM, KRIX 101.5FM, KOOP 91.7FM, KOOP 91.7FM, KAMX Mix 94.7FM, KPEZ 102.3 FM (Z102), KQJZ Smooth Jazz 92.1FM & 106.3 FM, KMFA 89.5FM, KQBT The Beat 104.3FM, KDHT Hot 93.3FM, KVRX 91.7FM, KAZI 88.7FM
Big Fat Independent Movies
Falling AngelsD: Scott Smith; with Miranda Richardson, Callum Keith Rennie, Katharine Isabelle, Kristin Adams, Monté Gagné Narrative Feature Special Screenings, U.S. Premiere Canada, 1969. Three teenage girls care for their mother, sick with alcoholism. Their father comes home from his car-sales job every day and immediately inspects their fingernails for cleanliness before he, too, begins…
The Common Law
My friend said that she just got a traffic ticket for not slowing down when a police car with flashing lights was stopped on the side of the road. Can you really get a ticket for that?
SXSW Records
Abra MooreEverything Changed (Koch) Clive Davis was right. The music industry mogul who signed Austin’s Abra Moore to J Records then tried to Avril Lavigne her knows major label caliber talent when he hears it. And seven years after Strangest Places, which came out on (surprise!) Davis’ Arista Records, Moore has delivered the goods. Of…
SXSW Records
Franz Ferdinand(Domino) “It’s always better on holiday,” squalls Franz Ferdinand, so switch off those iPods, turn down the Walkmen, and tune out TV on the Radio. Bursting at the seams with New Romantic optimism cut by post-punk sarcasm, this young Glaswegian quartet’s Domino debut deserves to be on all the afterparty turntables. Song two, “Tell…
SXSW Interactive 04
Joe Trippi Sunday, March 14 Displaying the inclusive optimism that earned him the rapturous love of hundreds of thousands of Deaniacs, the man who built the Howard Dean campaign (who would probably call himself the man who put the tools in place that allowed people to build the Howard Dean campaign) declared Sunday that the…
Big Star Myths
Dispelling Big Star myths
‘Antone’s: Home of the Blues’
The world premiere: Friday, March 12, Paramount Theatre
Naked City
The Hays Co. suburb takes a two-month break to get its land-use act together
Second Helpings: Mexican Breakfast
Arturo’s Bakery & Cafe 314 W. 17th, 469-0380 Monday-Friday, 6:30am-3:30pm; Saturday, 7:30am-1:30pm This cozy little treasure tucked into a side street is a real find in the artsy district between the Capitol area and the UT campus. You can’t go wrong with more than 50 varieties of hearty breakfast tacos, an assortment of breakfast sandwiches,…
Best New Band
RUNNERS-UP: Echoset, The Midgetmen, Onion Creek Crawdaddies, Dynah, Richy Calmbach & texas Standard Time, Taylor Davis, The Srah Dinan band, Knaak Attack, John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox, Michelle Mayfield, Spun, Dead End Angels, Vanessa Peters, Oliver Future
Best Latin Traditional
RUNNERS-UP: Del Castillo, Cerronato, Sangre de Chamgo, Sambaxe, Mary Welch y los Curanderos, Flaco Jimenez, Catavento, Son y No Son, Maneja Beto
Best Songwriter
RUNNERS-UP: Bob Schneider; Eric Johnson; Katy Belle, Matson Belle; Patty Griffin; Monte Montgomery; Shelley King; Chopper, Kissinger; Willy Braun, Reckless Kelly; Tish Hinojosa
Best Record Producer
RUNNERS-UP: Mark Hallman, Pieces of East; Andy Sharp, Echoset, Volcano, I’m Still Excited!!; Carl Thiel, LIsa Tingle, Robert Rodriguez; Roger Blevins Jr., Mingo Fishtrap; Lloyd Maines, Dixie Chicks; Alejandro Escovedo, the Dead End Angels; Gurf Morlix, Ray Wylie Hubbard; Dwight Baker, Dirty Wormz; Spencer Gibb, Parade
TCB
Police on My Back Since the Mardi Gras riots in early 2001, the Austin Police Department and large beverage-consuming masses of citizenry haven’t gotten along. After storming the Mercury (now Parish) last February for what many saw as specious reasons and clashing with a local band this New Year’s Eve, the latest round came Wednesday…
To Your Health
Can any nutrients help fend off an imminent headache?
SXSW Records
Dizzee RascalBoy in da Corner (Matador) Proclaiming, “I do the fuck what I want,” Dizzee Rascal discards the American rap template and disseminates hip-hop indigenous to his East London locale. Fusing “rudeboy, Don Gorgon raps” with post-garage rhythms, the 19-year-old MC and producer has distilled the clashing chaos of South London’s So Solid Crew into…
SXSW Records
ClearlakeCedars (Domino) With their sophomore full-length, Brighton, UK’s Clearlake grab the reins of Britpop from Blur and run away with the race. Things start off at full gallop with the glimmering guitars of “Almost the Same,” then take a sharp left turn into the lush, orchestrated gloom of “The Mind Is Evil.” Clearlake’s m.o. is…
SXSW Interactive 04
Thinking, Writing, Moving, & Shaking Ethan Watters talks about his book, Urban Tribes: A Generation Redefines Friendship, Family, and Commitment; geek guru Howard Rheingold talks about organizing on the move Monday, March 15 When writer and journalist Ethan Watters heard sociologists, psychologists, and other academic types talking about the flaws of his generation, he began…
Flatstock 4
SXSW’s poster exhibition has grown exponentially in only its second year
SXSW Film Reviews
Blackballed: The Bobby Dukes StoryD: Brant Sersen; with Rob Corddry, Paul Scheer, Dannah Feinglass, Rob Riggle, Curtis Gwinn, Seth Morris Narrative Feature Competition, World Premiere Onetime legend Bobby Dukes (Corddry), who 10 years back defiled the great game of paintball by trying to cheat, is back, and ready to prove himself a changed man in…
Naked City
The year-old Austin Independent Business Alliance hires a paid staff
SXSW Film Reviews
I Love Your Work D: Adam Goldberg; with Giovanni Ribisi, Franka Potente, Joshua Jackson, Marisa Coughlan, Christina Ricci, Elvis Costello, Vince Vaughn Narrative Feature Competition, U.S. Premiere Giovanni Ribisi can convey more emotion using only his nostrils than most actors can with their whole bodies. In I Love Your Work, it’s Ribisi’s nose, not the…
Musician of the Year
RUNNERS-UP: Kevin Fowler; John Pointer, John Pointer & Carlos Sosa’s Boombox; Henry Garza, Los Lonely Boys; Ernie Durawa, Los Jazz Vatos; Eric Johnson; Monte Montgomery; Scott Leger, Wideawake; Patty Griffin; Pat Green
Best Metal/Industrial
RUNNERS-UP: Pushmonkey, HeKill three, Human, Lust Murder Box, Tungsten Coil, Ghadzilla Motor Company, Pong, Broken Teeth, Sycamore
Best Strings
RUNNERS-UP: Omar Lopez, Matson Belle; Will Taylor, Will Taylor & String \s Attached; Macr Gunn, Brobdingnagian Bards; Warren Hood, South Austin Jug Band; Cody Braun, Reckless Kelly; Eamon McLoughlin, the Greencards; Jennifer Mulhern, Matson Belle; Carrie Rodriguez; Heather Gilmer, Cary Street
Best Record Store
RUNNERS-UP: Cheapo Discs; Thirty Three Degrees; Jupiter Records (RIP); Antone’s Records (RIP); Tower Records; Encore; Hastings Books, Music & Video; Alien Records; Musicmania
About AIDS
Then come to ASA on Thursday, March 25, for Dining with the Doctor, and learn How to Stress-Manage Your HIV. Stress is second only to HIV as an immune system depressant, so the last thing a poz person needs is stress out of control! The presenter will be Nadine Thomson, ACRN, MSN, FNP-C, a nurse…
SXSW Records
The Fiery FurnacesGallowsbird’s Bark (Rough Trade) It’s about time that something fresh and unique was put on tape. The last decade has been wrecked with nothing but emo, metal, electro, and the now-infamous “return to rock,” but Brooklyn’s Fiery Furnaces are taking it back to the roots. Brother and sister duo Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger…
SXSW Records
ElectrelaneThe Power Out (Too Pure) British girl group Electrelane is one of the first generations benefiting from rock’s post-riot grrrl era. This is a fortunate place for female artists to be, because the focus is on music rather than political statements. Electrelane can actually perform the act of ass kicking instead of engaging in Muhammed…
SXSW Interactive 04
Weblogs and Emergent Democracy Sunday, March 14, 2004 If thousands of people or more speak at once, will anyone be heard? Whose voice is more important? Who should speak first, and, most importantly, who decides what is the most important thing to be said and heard? The answer, according to several panelists who gathered to…
SXSW Live Shots
Little RichardKeynote Address, Austin Convention Center/SXSW Showcase Set, Austin Music Hall, Thursday, March 18 In his SXSW 04 keynote address and then later in his evening showcase set, Little Richard shared three things with Austin. One, work the best at your craft, no matter what you do. Two, “sign your own checks.” And three, live…
SXSW Film Reviews
The Hunting of the PresidentD: Harry Thomason, Nickolas Perry Documentary Feature Special Screenings, Regional Premiere Brush up on your history of troopergate, Whitewater, and Gennifer Flowers with The Hunting of the President, which details the well-funded effort to dig up some Arkansas dirt that could bring down Clinton. Based on a bestselling book, Harry Thomason…
Naked City
Rick Perry waves at public school finance on his way to Italy
SXSW Film Reviews
Still Doing ItD: Deirdre Fishel Documentary Feature Competition, World Premiere Secret trysts in the nursing home, finding a lover who’s 40 years younger, witnessing the onward technological march of self-pleasuring devices: This is what the frank (if not obsessively confessional) interviewees in Still Doing It promise women can look forward to after 65. Of course,…
Album of the Year
RUNNERS-UP: Bigger Than Ourselves, Wideawake; Architexture, Matson Belle; Under the Table & Above the Sun, Reckelss Kelly; Los Jazz Vatos, Los Jazz Vatos; Born to Be Blue, Toni Price; The Story of Love, Monte Montgomery; Live at Billy Bob’sTexas, Kevin Fowler Band; Tropies & Baggage, Lisa Tingle; The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place,…
Best None of the Above
RUNNERS-UP: Pieces of East, The Jolly Garogers, Texas Hot Flash, Dreamtrybe, Will Taylor & Strings Attatched, Warrior, Shorty Long, Flametrick Subs, Mr. Fabulous
Best Acoustic Venue
RUNNERS-UP: Saxon Pub, Flipnotics Coffespace, Lucky Lounge, Momos, Ruta Maya International Headquarters, Hill’s Cafe, Cafe Mundi, Whisky Bar, Elephant Room
Best Video
RUNNERS-UP: “Pinwheel,” Echoset; “Heaven,” Los Lonely Boys; 8 More Miles, Reckless Kelly (DVD); “Pirates of the Caribbean,” the Jolly Garogers; Del Castillo LIve, Del Castillo (DVD); “Luna Llena,” Grupo Fantasma; “Mexican Radio,” Vallejo; “Talkin’ to My 40 Oz.,” Dirty Wormz; “Get it Up,” Scorpio Rising
SXSW Interactive 04
Today’s Gaming, Tomorrow’s Virtual Worlds Friday, March 12 The speakers at Friday’s presentation Today’s Gaming, Tomorrow’s Virtual Worlds opened their discussion of the future of gaming with its past. For Richard Garriott, it was days spent programming punch cards and nights lost in Dungeons & Dragons at high school science camp, where he started penciling…
SXSW Live Shots
Julie Delpy Friends, Wednesday, March 17 Willowy French actress Delpy has a voice to match her gamine frame; two parts sultry lounge chanteuse, one part Johnette Napolitano rocker chick equals … well, at the very least a full house. Delpy, the thinking man’s femme fatale and eternal flame of Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise (and the…
SXSW Interactive 04
Silicon and Celluloid An Interview With Peter Jacobson Today, “synergy” isn’t just a word for Hollywood-type rabid gum chewers looking to integrate vertically. It’s a concept that means a lot to both savvy Web designers and independent filmmakers. A film’s first run isn’t so much on the silver screen anymore. Silicon and Celluloid panelist Peter…
SXSW Live Shots
The Pink SwordsBeerland, Wednesday, March 17 At first blush, the Pink Swords are punk rock band No. 29,372, straight from the 1981 model. You know the drill, charging through medium-fast riffage, singer barking like a rabid Rottweiler on a short chain. Austin’s Swords are head and shoulders above the pack, more rock than punk, with…
SXSW Interactive 04
Craigslist and Online Community Saturday, March 13 Don’t be fooled: Craigslist, the free San Francisco-based classified ad and discussion site, is not thrilling, exciting, or revolutionary. It is, as founder Craig Newmark repeatedly reminded attendees of his Saturday panel, really quite mundane. “This is all very down-to-earth, mundane, everyday kinds of stuff,” Newmark said. But…
SXSW Live Shots
Cass McCombsLa Zona Rosa, Wednesday, March 17 It’s OK to not rock. Yo La Tengo can not rock all day and still tear it up. What’s not OK is to be a monotonous bore. And Cass McCombs, sorry, he was a monotonous bore. Baltimore’s McCombs, who on disc sound like the spawn of Daniel Johnston…
SXSW Interactive 04
Keynote: Democracy in Action, Zack Exley and Eli Pariser March 14, 2004 “Somabitch, the Calvary has arrived!” said political writer Molly Ivins, who was introducing Zack Exley and Eli Pariser, two forces behind the online phenomenon known as MoveOn.org. Those attending the Sunday afternoon keynote agreed with Ivins. All, except Exley and Pariser. “We’re not…
SXSW Live Shots
Nellie McKayLounge, Wednesday, March 17 The pop landscape would certainly look a lot different if all young blond singers working today were as witty, articulate, and wry as Nellie McKay. Then again, acts like McKay wouldn’t be the breath of fresh air this business so desperately needs if that were the case. McKay played it…
Luv Doc Recommends: SXSW Free Concert
You see, there is this thing called South by Southwest that happens every year during spring break. It started out as a little music conference designed to lure big record industry types to town with the promise of spicy food, cheap booze, and even cheaper bands. It worked. What was once a modest little dustup…
2003-04 Austin Music Awards
It’s probably no coincidence the year the Austin Music Awards were on St. Patrick’s Day was the year punk rock, assisted handily by Texas insanity and Celtic soul, stole the show. Or damn close. Time constraints kept the Chronicle from staying through AMA runaways Los Lonely Boys, but the fact that the brothers Garza took…
SXSW Live Shots
Rojo, Caliente y Verde ShowcaseExodus, Wednesday, March 17 SXSW is a world of overlapping circles. Famous/unknown, loud/soft, local/international, original/rehash, English/Spanish, etc. Future SXSWs will no doubt expand this last linguistic circle with events like BMI’s Latin showcases, which reflect the evolving ethnoscapes of Texas and the nation. The multistoried Sixth Street club Exodus hosted Latin…
The Insider: John Pantle
Who: John Pantle The Job: Pantle, a former talent buyer for House of Blues and Knitting Factory, now represents Latin alternative acts like Cafe Tacuba, Control Machete, El Tri, and Plastilina Mosh for the Agency Group. The Music: As far as Latin alternative, we’re reaching a renaissance. Cafe Tacuba recently won the Latin Alternative Grammy…
SXSW Live Shots
Shane BartellLava Lounge Patio, Wednesday, March 17 At the onset of this outdoor patio showcase on Seventh Street, Shane Bartell took a seat to survey the scene. There was no time to get comfortable, though, because before you knew it, Bartell was belting out a set of fire, salt, and cotton candy that would make…
Spotlight: DJ Jester the Filipino Fist
Breakdancing with Willie, Biz, and Weird Al.
SXSW Live Shots
Rite Flyers Club DeVille, Wednesday, March 17 Drummer Terri Lord fought crosstown traffic after her appearance at the Austin Music Awards, so this gig got a late start. But the Rite Flyers made the most of it with a fervent blast of melodic rock. One of Austin’s newer bands, the Rite Flyers are nevertheless a…
Spotlight: Mission of Burma
Once I had my heroes…
SXSW Live Shots
The Von BondiesStubb’s, Wednesday, March 17 Seeing the Von Bondies take the stage just as Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” finished playing on the house PA could’ve been taken as a hopeful sign of magical Motown convergence. Except, of course, for the cold, hard fact that this Detroit quartet is far too predicated on a thoroughly worn…
Spotlight: Mindy Smith
Don’t pigeonhole Mindy Smith … just ask Dolly
SXSW Live Shots
Rhymesayers ShowcaseEmo’s, Wednesday, March 17 Assembling a squadron of artists that transcends its roots as strictly a Minneapolis phenomenon, Rhymesayers hit Emo’s with all paddles in the water. After DeeJayBird warmed up the audience with a series of crowd-pleasers, the Opus gave a full demonstration of hip-hop as percussive overload. The Chicago duo of Mr.…
Music String
Will Work for Rock”Dirty Gillespie” shills for the Yuppie Pricks outside the Austin Convention Center Wednesday afternoon. Gillespie said the capitalist Austin punk rockers weren’t actually paying him money, but did promise him a hot meal “and maybe a wristband.” He was starting to wonder if he’d been duped, though: “One of them was supposed…
Spotlight: Gary U.S. Bonds
Gary U.S. Bonds, still partying after all these years.
Daydream Believer
George Hickenlooper and ‘Mayor of the Sunset Strip’
SXSW Film Reviews
A Hard StraightD: Goro Toshima Documentary Feature Competition, World Premiere How can ex-convicts be expected to cope in society if they’re never taught the skills needed to live an honest life? Goro Toshima follows three recently released felons through life immediately after prison. Regina Allen, a drug addict who has been incarcerated multiple times, is…
Spotlight: HeKill Three
Austin’s Hekill Three, a cock-rock band stuck in a heavy-metal band’s body
Past Is Prologue
Rodney Evans and ‘Brother to Brother’
SXSW Film Reviews
A League of Ordinary GentlemenD: Christopher Browne Documentary Feature Competition, World Premiere When was the last time you went bowling? Weeks, maybe? Years? If so, you’re testimony to how far this pastime has fallen in 50 years. Back in the day, bowling alleys were second homes to a generation of Americans, weekly schedules revolved around…
Spotlight: The Cooper Temple Clause
No more games with customs
SXSW Film Reviews
Read ’em and see ’em – or not
SXSW Film Reviews
Mind the GapD: Eric Schaeffer; with Alan King, Elizabeth Reaser, Eric Schaeffer, Jill Sobule, Charles Parnell Narrative Feature Competition, World Premiere An elderly man takes his first steps out of a New York City brownstone and gruffly meets with a young thing grooming her mangy dog on his way to the tip of Manhattan. A…
SXSW Live Shots
Crash Course No. 5: Writing About MusicAustin Convention Center, Wednesday, March 17 “We are here to make you like us,” Jaan Uhelszki began. Uhelszki, a founder of Creem magazine and a rock critic since the early Seventies, wasn’t talking about companionship; she was talking about cloning – in a good way. Joined by British journalist…
SXSW Film Reviews
The Grudge (Ju-on)D: Takashi Shimizu; with Megumi Okina, Misaki Ito, Misa Uehara, Yuya Ozeki Narrative Feature ‘Round Midnight, Regional Premiere This episodic haunted house tale follows character after character as they fall victim to the sprits of tormented homeowners past. The film lacks in character and plot development (like any good horror movie) but certainly…
SXSW Film Reviews
A Night of Ferocious JoyD: David Zeiger Documentary Feature 24 Beats Per Second On Mother’s Day, 2002, West Coast hip-hop artists, slam poets, visual artists, and speakers gathered to tell George W. Bush that he couldn’t wage war on the innocent. The first anti-war concert after 9/11, A Night of Ferocious Joy captures the Latin…
SXSW Live Shots
Crash Course No. 1: Handbook for HellAustin Convention Center, Wednesday, March 17 “The music industry is dead. Long live the music industry!” Thus summarizes Justin Goldberg’s Crash Course, a distillation of his book, The Ultimate Survival Guide to the New Music Industry, a “philosophical mediation on where the industry is going.” The discussion was blissfully…
SXSW Film Reviews
Reel Shorts One “Fake Stacy” kick-starts RS1 as a bittersweet paean to alienation. When a beguiling sitcommer is pseudonymously billed, the in-joke resonates throughout her life. Excellent, and not unlike sleeping with Princess Leia. “9:30” follows one Singaporean expatriate as he flees a lover to anonymous hostels and an urban din. “We Have Decided Not…
SXSW Live Shots
How Indie Labels Find ArtistsAustin Convention Center, Wednesday, March 17 In this age where the music business changes on a daily basis, one thing remains static. According to the label representatives on this panel, word of mouth still plays a major role in how new music/new artists are discovered. A wide range of indies was…
SXSW Interactive 04
Exclusive Web-only ‘Austin Chronicle’ coverage of the wonks, the weekend, and the wilder side of cyberspace
SXSW Live Shots
NARAS Texas Chapter ReceptionDriskill Hotel, Wednesday, March 17 Daniel Carlin, chairman of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, wants you to know that the Grammy givers are not the Recording Industry Association of America. Speaking at the NARAS Texas Chapter reception Wednesday night, he related how NARAS had conducted focus groups around the…
