Cover Story
The Rebirth of Doyle Bramhall II
For his first solo LP in 15 years, Eric Clapton’s top lieutenant may have put out the blues album of 2016
Other Worlds Austin Announces Mary Shelley Award Finalists
Shortlist for prize for rising female film talents
Cochon555 Heritage BBQ Is All About the Old-School Pork
Nat’l culinary competition delights with food, drink, and knowledge
Red Fang Sinks Its Hooks In
Oregonian hard rockers can’t let up
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
A soldier returns home in Ang Lee’s war movie
Moana
Set sail for Disney’s gorgeous new adventure
Rules Don’t Apply
Beatty’s Howard Hughes film is a frantic mess
The Eagle Huntress
Real-life heroine soars above tradition
Allied
WWII espionage thriller can’t hold a candle to Casablanca
Bad Santa 2
A tired sequel that’s more offensive than transgressive
Texas Judge Blocks New Federal Overtime Rules
Rule won’t go into effect Dec. 1 thanks to Paxton, 20-state coalition
City Looking for Faces of Austin
Film competition could mean SXSW screening
Austin Art Boards 2016: We Have a Winner! In Fact, We Have 10 of Them!
Reagan Outdoor Advertising renews its artful billboard gift to the ATX
Springsteen Is Born to Sign in Austin
BookPeople snags the Boss for his only memoir tour stop in Texas, Dec. 1
ACA Debuts Creative Infrastructure Initiative
New $100K initiative will aid displaced arts and music venues
After Filing Bill Forcing Schools to Out LGBTQ Kids, Legislator Bullies Media
Sen. Konni Burton’s SB 242 isn’t being misreported; it’s anti-trans
UVH Premieres “Innervisions”
Video daydreams of a better destiny
Cece Winans, Reluctant Star
Gospel great tapes for PBS on the Sabbath
Sheri Gallo’s Darned Emails
District 10 council member faces scrutiny for use of city email
Warpaint’s New Song
Still caught in the undertow of four L.A. women
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
A delightful return to the world of Harry Potter
Bleed for This
A boxer returns to the ring in this conventional drama
Nocturnal Animals
A dark meditation on regret and revenge
The Edge of Seventeen
Teen dramedy gets the growing pains right
Almost Christmas
Home for the holidays (again)
Shut In
Naomi Watts stars in ho-hum thriller
A Street Cat Named Bob
An addict’s life is saved by a feline friend
Texas Platters
Over 21 years and across 11 LPs, Wayne “The Train” Hancock has played Texas roadhouse country music like it’s 1955 and he’s Ernest Tubb or Hank Thompson. Rockne-born in Bastrop County, he arrived in Nineties Austin fully formed, distilling his music to its absolute essence. Now Denton-based, he has detractors maintaining it’s all one album…
Page Two: True Stories: Then and Now
David Byrne’s True Stories, filmed in Texas, opened on Oct. 10, 1986 to disappointing box office sales. When released on home video, however, it became a hit. True Stories, Sordid Confessions and Music From the Heart of the City is a fundraising event presented by the SIMS Foundation on Dec. 3, at Emo’s. There isn’t…
Texas Platters
“Sometimes I forget that it’s good enough,” declares Corey Baum with a lazy, scratchy croon in opening Croy & the Boys’ debut LP, capturing Austin’s still-surviving slacker vibe circa 2016. Produced by Adrian Quesada, Hey Come Back flows an easy country sway, honky-tonk born in the smoky haze of the White Horse more than the…
Headlines
City Council met Wednesday afternoon in a joint discussion session with the Land Development Code Advisory Group, to update Council and the public on the work in drafting CodeNEXT. The next regular Council meeting is Dec. 1; for a report on the most recent actions, see “Council: Pilots, Roses, and Champions.” Mayor Steve Adler has…
AC Food Fight: Poke
Ola Poke and Poke Poke get raw
Texas Platters
Indie country act Kevin Fowler’s eighth disc begins impressively enough with a titular promise: “Hardcore troubadour hillbilly blues/ Bringing country back, a little old, a little new.” Problem is, Coming to a Honky Tonk Near You depends on the latter rather than the former. Woodshedding in Eighties ATX metallurgists Dangerous Toys, Fowler began as a…
Public Notice: Planning for Better Plans
What’s been going on at the local Planning and Zoning Department?
Review: Ah Sing Den
Amateur Asian-inspired fare pales to impressive cocktails
Playback – Still Standing: Savannah Welch
Austin songbird Savannah Welch rehabs serenely after losing her right leg
Quote of the Week
Everyday fear in Trump’s America
The Luv Doc: Sunshine Patriot
We’ll never really know if he’s the Antichrist until we shave his orange toupee
Gay Place
Honoring those we’ve lost at the Transgender Day of Remembrance
The Hightower Report: Takeaways From the Election
Trump is in the White House, but the takeaway from voters in this election is a mandate for progressive economic populism and more diversity among public officials
CAMIBAart Gallery’s Troy Campa
Troy Campa left behind a successful career in architecture to develop a new creative life with CAMIBAart Gallery
Dear Glutton: Healing Through Food
Comfort food for a post-election world
Doyle Bramhall II Record Review
Rich Man (Concord)
A Secure Platform for the Rights of Airport Workers
With a new concessions contract looming, airport workers introduce a platform for employee rights
Welcome to the Working Week-and-a-Half
A new federal provision mandating overtime pay for a new pool of salaried employees goes into effect in December. What does it mean, and how long will it last?
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
In 1981, Medicare and Medicaid accounted for 9.5% of all federal outlays. In 2001, that number had jumped to 25%. A combination of CHIP, marketplace subsidies, Medicare, and Medicaid accounted for 25% in 2015. The swastika was used as the official national marking of the Finnish Air Force and Tank Corps between 1918 and 1945.…
East Austin Studio Tour Goes Boom
For 2016, EAST explodes to more than 500 stops for art
Trans Day of Remembrance
Countries across the world prepare for the 18th annual Trans Day of Remembrance on Sunday
Getting to the Truth of Teen Life in The Edge of Seventeen
Producer James L. Brooks and director Kelly Fremon Craig talk about their acclaimed teen dramedy
EAST 2016: A Crash Course
Five recommendations for a quick education on the Eastside arts scene and beyond
Potential Neuter to Austin’s No-Kill?
The rules dictating when city animal shelters should spay or neuter lost pets may be changing, and may have an effect on the future of no-kill shelters
Point Austin: Circle the Firing Squad
When you look for villains, look in the right direction
Texas Platters
Tele Novella drapes itself in aesthetic, their debut LP House of Souls swooning with a throwback Sixties psych-pop that nevertheless sounds fresh and authentic. Beginning with opener “Sacramento,” the Austin quartet paints a world that’s eerie, intoxicating, and both visually and sonically vibrant. Former Voxtrot rhythm section Jason Chronis and Matt Simon hold down a…
Spread Is CuisinArt
Photographers Yvonne Montero and Terra Schneider cook up sensual imagery of food
Rejecting the Text
Finally, some good news from the State Board of Education
Council: Pilots, Roses, and Champions
Marathon days of zoning are soon over
The 25th Annual Austin Chronicle Short Story Contest
Hold on to your tales just a little longer, writers!
That’s Commissioner David Hall Now
The longtime friend of Jimmy Fennell Jr., a key figure in the murder of Stacey Stites, just became a Calhoun County Commissioner
APD’s Social Media Monitoring Efforts Face Crackdowns
Facebook denies access to third-party companies
Niche Streaming Sites for the Holidays
Give the gift of worlds of entertainment just a click away
Early Filing at the Lege
Early filing began this week for the upcoming state legislative sessions. Already, the war on women’s health is on.
Election Notes: After the Fall
The fun continues through the Dec. 13 run-off
Texas Platters
As Austin grows, the musicians it attracts come from farther away. Giulia Millanta hails from Florence, Italy, and as evidenced by her fifth effort, Moonbeam Parade, she’s made herself a welcome local addition. Unlike most singer-songwriter or folk artists currently calling Texas home, Millanta’s music plays out edgy yet swells with heart. Assistance from a…
UT Theatre & Dance’s Lost Girl
Kimberly Belflower’s new play is a snapshot of a woman consumed by love long lost
The Race for House District 46
The pool of potential candidates is filling up for Dawnna Dukes’ seat
Local Businesses Warn Lege on Anti-LGBTQ Laws
Discriminatory laws not just morally corrupt but financially damaging
Texas Platters
Led by former Sword drummer Trivett Wingo, Funeralizer boils hard rock down to its essence. No song breaches the two-minute mark, some even shorter at a mere seven seconds. Repeating the title “The Real Tragedy Would Have Been If Romeo and Juliet Had Lived” takes longer than the actual track. Rocking without a jot of…
Salvage Vanguard Theater’s With Great Difficulty Alice Sits
Hannah Kenah’s new play presents an unsettling battle of wills between a mother and daughter before birth
Lege Limits Use of Cannabis Oil for Epileptics
Compassionate misuse
Texas Platters
Combining previously released singles with a new song, Concepts of Math: Book One frames the unexpected return of Austin 1982-born prog metal pioneers Watchtower. Fielding the Alan Tecchio/Ron Jarzombek version from 1989’s Control and Resistance, the mini LP works best as a time capsule. Fleet-fingered pyrotechnics by Jarzombek and bassist Doug Keyser haven’t lost a…
“Moving Mountains: Extractive Landscapes of Peru” at the UT VAC
Edi Hirose’s documentation of massive construction projects altering Peru’s landscape can put the viewer in a state of visual shock
Texas Platters
Stoner metal bands aren’t expected to progress, and there’s nothing shameful about being good at commingling psych and doom metal. Local trio the Well reaffirms its mastery of the genre on second full-length Pagan Science. “Black Eyed Gods” and “One Nation” demonstrate the pure pleasure of mating heavy riffs with savory melody, while “Drug From…
Soccer Watch
The U.S. men had their worst week in memory, losing to Mexico at home, 2-1, and at Costa Rica, 4-0, to open the final round of World Cup qualifying. There’s a long way to go yet, of course, with no more games until March, which gives U.S. Soccer a long time to brood and ponder…
Texas Platters
Kicking around Austin since at least 2009, Ricky Stein doesn’t boast name recognition beyond perhaps his book on a singularly seminal local psych imprint (revisit “Sonobeat Records,” Feb. 7, 2014). That’s likely to change with his second solo release, Long Summer, 11 songs in the Americana vein filled with glimpses of his life as a…
Day Trips: Cave Without a Name, Boerne
Hill Country underground rock formations are too beautiful to be named
