Cover Stories
‘You Were Right, Andy’
Getting beneath the surface of Andy Warhol with Tom Sokolowski
On Ondine on Film
The pope and the artist, the hotel and the factory
Lemora: A Child’s Tale of the Supernatural
Lemora: A Child’s Tale of the Supernatural 1973, PG, 113 min. Directed by Richard Blackburn, Starring Lesley Gilb, Cheryl “Rainbeaux” Smith, William Whitton, Steve Johnson, Hy Pyke, Maxine Ballantyne, Parker West, Richard Blackburn. Long believed to be lost forever, Lemora has recently resurfaced in a 16 mm print and has subsequently been enjoying something of…
The Honor of Dongfang Xu
The Honor of Dongfang Xu 1983, NR, 92 min. Directed by Xhang Huanxun, Starring Li Junfeng. This is the story of one family’s valiant attempt to survive hardships and avenge their nation’s honor when it was invaded by the West in 1900. The film is presented in conjunction with the Academy of Oriental Medicine at…
Mondo Trivia
Mondo Trivia The Alamo’s ongoing audience-participation trivia contest.
Chemistry 101
Chemistry 101 The Alamo’s audience-participation, reality dating show. See www.drafthouse.com for info.
Land for Rose (1987) and Land for Rose – 10 Years Later (1997)
Land for Rose (1987) and Land for Rose – 10 Years Later (1997) The first documentary details the stuggle of approximately 1,000 Brazilian families who fought for the right to own land and other elementary human rights on the Annoni plantation, and Rose, the woman who led the fight. The second documentary revisits the families…
Naked City
Kucinich comes to Austin on his “formal announcement” tour.
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
VOMIT is an acronym for “voice over misconfigured Internet telephones.”The Price Is Right’s Bob Barker spent most of his boyhood days on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in Mission, South Dakota, where his mother was a schoolteacher and later superintendent of schools for Todd County.New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson holds the Guinness Book of World Records…
Phases and Stages
Willie NelsonGreatest Hits (& Some That Will Be) (Columbia/Legacy)Willie NelsonTougher Than Leather (Columbia/Legacy)Willie NelsonPancho & Lefty (Columbia/Legacy)Willie NelsonAlways on My Mind (Columbia/Legacy) Hard to believe it’s been 20 years since these albums came out. Greatest Hits is just that, a fine overview of Nelson’s Seventies output that includes “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow up…
Unrelentingly Hostile
Three decades later, ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ is still about everyday evil. In 1977, two UT grad students explained.
September 11
Compelling but uneven omnibus film showcases 11 films by 11 international directors.
Naked City
Leave no child untested — for drug use, that is
Daytrips
County courthouse yard art around the state is some of the most eclectic statuary available to the general public. There are 254 counties in Texas and at least 60 have a monument to some fallen hero or local icon, ranging from modern art in the park across the street from the Tarrant County Courthouse in…
Phases and Stages
Chip Taylor & Carrie RodriguezThe Trouble With Humans (TMG) Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez kick aside any hint of the sophomore slump on The Trouble With Humans, one of the finest duet discs since Gram Parsons’ (and Emmylou Harris’) beloved Grievous Angel. Taylor is the cat with nine lives, the singer-songwriter whose career summarizes simply…
Short Cuts
Marc Savlov’s not mad, but everyone else is.
Prey for Rock & Roll
Gina Gershon plays a rock & roll grrrl pushing 40.
Naked City
Madame Comptroller gets her back up over HB 7.
To Your Health
Why do so few calcium supplements have phosphate? Isn’t phosphate needed for bones?
Phases and Stages
Lyle LovettMy Baby Don’t Tolerate (Curb/Lost Highway) Finally! It was starting to look like Lyle Lovett had Willis Alan Ramsey syndrome, where a songwriter releases one classic then the well runs dry. Even if two of its 14 tracks were previously released on 2001’s Anthology Volume One (“The Truck Song” and “San Antonio Girl”), Lovett’s…
TV Eye
NBC’s Boomtown might be bust, while Independent Lens’ Foto-Novelas 2 saves the day.
Naked City
A federal indictment charges Patric Davidson as an “accessory after the fact.”
The Common Law
I got laid off from my job more than three weeks ago. How can I get my old boss to pay me without a big hassle?
Phases and Stages
Rodney HaydenLiving the Good Life (Audium) You’re definitely setting the bar pretty high for yourself when you’re a country singer and you title your first album The Real Thing, like Rodney Hayden did just last year. Barely out of his teens, Hayden comes across as billed, though. He’s got a great, confident baritone that sounds…
In Space
There’s a new -tober in town, or at least online. Try “Gothtober,” as in Gothtober.com — the advent calendar for the grue-lovin’, candy-corn-pervertin’ set.
Naked City
“PR critic” Sheldon Rampton takes on Bush’s Iraq adventure.
About AIDS
HIVers Should Not Take Nasal Flu Vaccine The FDA has approved a new form of flu vaccination for fall: The vaccine is sprayed inside the patient’s nose, so no injection is required — no shots! However, because the product (FluMist) contains live influenza germs, immunocompromised persons should not take it. That would include people with…
Phases and Stages
Kinky FriedmanSold American 30th Anniversary Edition (Vanguard) Long before he became a celebrated mystery novelist, salsa magnate, and friend to George W. Bush, Kinky Friedman injected country music with a much-needed dose of high-minded irreverence. He epitomized the Swiftian notion of equal opportunity offender, rattling the cages of both rednecks and radicals. Even today, “The…
DVD Watch
Poor Orny Adams.
Second Helpings: Farmstands
“Second Helpings” offers tasty, bite-sized restaurant listings compiled from new and previous reviews, guides, and poll results. This week’s entries were updated by Erin Mosow. For quick, reliable info about Austin eateries, check here. Angel Valley Organic Farm 10804 Ridgeway, off FM 1431 in Jonestown, 512/267-2785 Saturday, 10am-2pm 11713 Jollyville Rd., between Oak Knoll &…
The Golden Plum Shines On
“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” You said it, Bardo. Downtown, we call it Castle Hill; in Northwest Austin, it’s Mirabelle Restaurant, but either way it’s a haven of outstanding and creative dining. And like the fragrant rose that can come in various hues and sizes, these sister restaurants, too, have…
Phases and Stages
The Lucky Tomblin Band(Texas World Records) Lucky Tomblin is an old running buddy of Doug Sahm’s, which no doubt explains Augie Myers’ accordion on one song. For his first solo disc, Tomblin rounds up local all-stars Earl Poole Ball (piano), Redd Volkaert (guitar), Cindy Cashdollar (steel), and Sarah Brown (bass) for 11 suave country numbers.…
Soccer Watch
Women’s World Cup Finals: Germany 2, Sweden 1 (Championship, OT); USA 3, Canada 1 (Third Place) Germany staked their claim to being the new No. 1 in the world in women’s soccer, though Sweden gave them a far stiffer challenge than many expected. Don’t worry too much about the U.S., though. The veterans — Hamm,…
TCB
Slow news week in the Live Music Capital
I’ll Be Your Mirror
Andy Warhol found an artistic vision that not only inspired and excited him but was also accessible to the public. Although he stated, in a famous quote that has varying versions, “If you want to understand me or my art, look at the surface — it’s all there,” it’s not quite as simple as all…
Food-o-File
Virginia B. Wood loads up your plate with events and a piece of the Big Apple.
Phases and Stages
Flaco JimenezSqueeze Box King (Compadre) For a musical tradition born in dusty back yards and reared in border cantinas, conjunto music — real, old-school conjunto featuring bajo sexto, accordion, and guitar — has come a long way to become a celebrated American roots music. That’s what makes Squeeze Box King, the new album by the…
Naked City
To understand just what Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber do, think of Toto in The Wizard of Oz, tugging at that curtain, yapping away in hopes that someone will look behind it. Rampton and Stauber edit PR Watch (www.prwatch.org), the quarterly newsletter devoted since 1993 to exposing the public relations industry’s influences on public policy.…
Master of the Speedy Stroke
Gordon Fowler wastes no time when it comes to making his mark in watercolor.
Mini-Review
From My Mexican Kitchen by Diana Kennedy, photographs by Michael Calderwood Clarkson Potter, 320 pp., $40 On the back cover of Diana Kennedy’s new book, a quote from The New Yorker describes her as “the woman who rescued Mexican food.” I suppose I was rather unaware that Mexican food needed rescuing. As far as I…
Phases and Stages
Lavelle WhiteInto the Mystic (Antone’s/TMG)Texas Soul Sisters(Dialtone) Lavelle White’s third album for the Antone’s label asks why she isn’t as revered as some of Texas’ other famous female vocalists. Into the Mystic gathers a dozen old favorites from disparate sources such as the Box Tops (“Soul Deep”), Merle Haggard (“Today I Started Loving You”), and…
On Ondine on Film: Editor’s Cut
This is an extended version of the story that ran in the print edition.
House of the Dead
Students are stranded on an island of zombies; viewers are stranded by the filmmakers.
Phases and Stages
Pieces of EastShadow Box Looking at their recent trophies, Pieces of East is a veritable supergroup. At the 2003 Austin Music Awards, members of the formerly monikered Shadow Box landed AMA nominations for acoustic guitar (Anuj Timblo), female vocals (Laura Giammona), miscellaneous instrument (Abhinit Bhatt, tabla), and Musician of the Year (bassist Pat Cieply). The…
Articulations
Last week for comments on the revamp of the city’s cultural funding process, and chroegrapher Ann Carlson returns to UT.
Liquid Assets
Since we’re reviewing Mirabelle’s food, we thought we’d give you a rundown on their wine. Owner Michael Vilim’s wine list is full of interesting wines that you won’t see elsewhere, and his markups are the lowest in town. A further nice touch is that almost all of his wines are available by the glass! Here…
Phases and Stages
SpeerSixes & Sevens Hesitation has nowhere to hide on Sixes & Sevens, the debut from local rock quartet Speer. Stutters pop in and out, but arrangements are so assured, nearly every second feels confident. This is the kind of sing-for-your-supper entertainment you get from a session band as seasoned as the one Austin vocalist/pianist James…
Ondine on Edie, On Warhol, on Ondine
A ‘Chronicle’ reprint
Phases and Stages
Harvest Moon FestivalWimberley, Oct. 11 This year’s Harvest Moon Festival was a soggy affair. Next to Jacob’s Well in Wimberley, the festival site was a charming spot, with ample shade and plenty of camping space. Unfortunately, the day’s constant rain turned it into a mud bog. The skies were a threatening gray when the Onion…
Exhibitionism
The Zachary Scott Theatre Center revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a real horror show, making the clash of Edward Albee’s middle-aged marrieds George and Martha both titanic and terrifying.
Down South Jukin’
The South rises again even if Southern rockers deny it.
Naked City
Will midwives be allowed to practice at the Austin Women’s Hospital?
The Eyes of CinemaTexas
A brief reminiscence
Phases and Stages
Golden Hornet Project: Symphony IIIThe Off Center, Oct. 11 As Peter Stopschinski awoke from ambitious dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a composer of symphonies. His newfound powers apparently caused him to bug out, as he thrust nothing less than a full-fledged Kafka-style tale of critter warfare upon this unconventional orchestral assemblage…
Exhibitionism
Mister Z Loves Company: An X-Rated Self-Help OdysseyBlue Theater, through Oct. 18 In her book Purity and Danger, anthropologist Mary Douglas theorizes that the orifices of the body are dangerous sites of contagion. Purity rules must be established within societies to prevent any infections, either literal or symbolic. Keep this in mind when seeing Mister…
Big Hairy Dudes From Kentucky
Even if they are BHDFKs, don’t call My Morning Jacket “Southern rock.” “We’re proud of where we’re from, and we’re proud of who we are,” states Jim James, the Kentucky quintet’s Southerworldly voice. “I just wanna say that first of all. But I think it’s fucking bullshit. It just sucks. “[Critics] are always trying to…
Austin @ Large: Austin at Large
Despite the outrage of the land pimps, Austin’s dis-invitation to Wal-Mart is democratic, legal, and honorable.
Unrelentingly Hostile: Editor’s Cut
This is an extended version of the story that ran in the print edition.
Why Is Doil Lane Still on Death Row?
Despite a Supreme Court ban on the execution of the mentally retarded, those prisoners remain on Texas’ death row.
Exhibitionism
A concert showcasing a variety of tempos, intensities, and moods — from cheeky Beethoven to hypnotic Kilar — made this particular outing of the Austin Symphony with the Eroica Trio a memorable success.
Sweet Home Armadillo
Lynyrd Skynyrd wasn’t hip in 1976. The band sold millions, but it wasn’t cool. My ears were tuned to local blues, away from the last gasp of progressive country and the prevailing sound of Seventies rawk. My younger brothers listened to Skynyrd in all its fist-pumping, lighter-holding, beer-bellied glory. I razzed them, yet I secretly…
Capitol Chronicle
The gavel comes down on the Lege that wouldn’t Leave
‘There’s Going to Be Some Changes’
The latest Mala Sangre testimony dismantles the APD party line
In Person
There’s something infinitely comforting in knowing, finally, that British fantasist Terry Pratchett is just as big a geek in person as he is on the printed page. More so, actually: Monday night’s booksigning at BookPeople attracted a floodtide of both hard-core sci-fi and fantasy fans.
Decoration Day
A friend of mine blew out his hearing at a Kinks show 20 years ago. My left ear is still wondering whether the Drive-by Truckers’ ACL Music Festival aftershow will go down in similar infamy. Seems the earplugs in my pocket never had a chance against the promise of three guitars. Three guitars. Who has…
On the Lege
In John Ashcroft we trust. That’s the small and bitter prayer left to Texas voters, after the Legislature approved its congressional re-redistricting plan (HB 3) this week and sent it to the Department of Justice for preclearance under the federal Voting Rights Act. Democrats on Sunday night filed a court challenge, in U.S. District Court…
Good Boy!
A boy is the only human who can understand the mission of his dog from outer space.
The Beast Wins a Round
Preliminary approval — but still grave concern — for two South Austin Supercenters
Page Two
Contemplating the devastating effects of redistricting on democracy and the transformational effects of knowing Ondine and Ed Lowry.
The Allman Brothers Band Reviewed
The Allman Brothers BandAt Fillmore East Deluxe Edition (Mercury)The Allman Brothers BandLive at the Atlanta International Pop Festival (Epic/Legacy) The Allman Brothers Band at Fillmore East was always a hack job. Nineteen stitches from “You Don’t Love Me,” the jazz caress of “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,” and 23 long, hard lashes of blues history…
Tom Delay Faces Judgment Day (O’Connor)
Contiguous! Compact! Communities of interest! Remember those words? Well, you can forget them now, just like the Republicans did. Instead, look at these pleasing and intriguing shapes. And weep. It’s up to the courts now to put the Texas puzzle back together. (You don’t expect John Ashcroft to help, do you?) This isn’t such a…
Mystic River
Clint Eastwood’s newest is a dark, lachrymose tale of slowly snaking evil.
Naked City
Headlines and happenings from Austin and beyond
Letters at 3AM
Forgive Elia Kazan his sins, but never forget his lousy deeds.
The Derek Trucks Band Reviewed
The Derek Trucks BandSoul Serenade (Columbia) After flunking a recent magazine “blindfold test,” Derek Trucks admitted he doesn’t listen to other guitarists much. The nephew of Allman Brothers percussive engine Butch Trucks, as well as the band’s slide guitar phenom, Derek’s too busy exploring other facets of the musical spectrum. Since his overlooked debut in…
The Hightower Lowdown
Wellstone supporters continue his legacy; and the Beef Association crams more fat into your arteries.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Texas hills are again alive with the sound of chainsaws.
Naked City
Dueling proposals for tweaking — or gutting — the smoking ordinance
After a Fashion
How badly did Stephen’s illustrious editor screw up his column last week? You’ll just have to read to see — but trust us, it’s worth it, if only for the amazing list of haute fashion events listed herein. Your social calendar will thank you.
Phases and Stages
Knife in the WaterPlays One Sound and Others (Aspyr)Knife in the WaterRed River (Aspyr)Knife in the WaterCut the Cord (Aspyr) To celebrate their nabbing of steely popsters Knife in the Water, Austin’s Aspyr label has re-released the band’s first two albums, Plays One Sound and Others (1998) and Red River (2000) in conjunction with the…
Veronica Guerin
Journalist’s brave story remains curiously aloof.
Luv Doc Recommends: The 16th annual AIDS Walk
AIDS Walk as a name doesn’t really convey the sense of urgency associated with the disease. Walking implies a leisurely pace, basic ambulation, a level of activity just beyond lounging and just short of jogging. As an epidemic, AIDS/HIV is setting a blistering pace. More than 45 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS and…
