Cover Story
Welcome to the Machine
Local label roundup 3.0
Welcome to the Terrordome
Pencil these events into your Pagan calendar.
Pow! Thud! Chemo!
Halloween cops vs halloween marijuana legalizers, and charity wins!
Land Trade in Crestview Not Happening
The proposed land swap between Austin Energy and Crestview Station LP is off. AE owns property adjacent to the Capital Metro commuter rail station being built at Airport and North Lamar, and its current use as a pole yard is the exact opposite of the dense, transit-oriented development city planners desire near transit hubs. Its…
Brow Watch
As the fuller, Eighties-era eyebrow has emerged from foreheads this fall, so has the predictable confusion between two very distinct looks. The celebrated Feral Brow, as it is often called, evokes Brooke Shields at her most hirsute, kind of a glamorous version of Eddie Munster with a dewy, presumably pre-fellatio pout. There is another big…
Will Wynn: Downtown’s Fabulous
Fabulous, we tell you!
Compare and Contrast
Can the Federal Government pay for Iraq and California at the same time, and which comes first?
Cop Says Denver Initiative Makes Sense
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition for Denver pot-decrim.
Socially Responsible Investing Discussion
Benedictine nun has included Wal-Mart, among others, in her targets.
Seven Days of Costumes for Homoween!
Halloween: Another scary dilemma of what to wear? Fret a porter no longer!
Tale of the Lion Tamer
Former WWE wrestler Chris Jericho’s autobiography, released today, talks about the art that makes choreographed entertainment out of a sport.
Maker Faire: Happily Ever Crafter
Imagine, if you will, the ghosts of Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla puking their wackiest dreams of science all over the Travis County Expo Center grounds. Puddles of the stuff, filled with wires and gears, wheels and capacitors, invention and obsession. Shining inside the outdoor tents, grinding away under a vast metal roof more accustomed…
Beachy Keen
Galveston to build new beaches to replace the old ones.
Cute + Goth = ?
I basically hate pink. When I was pregnant, I refused to find out the gender of my child so that, in the event it was female, I wouldn’t be cursed with a cotton-candy explosion in the nursery. Now that two years have passed, I have a fabulous, high-energy daughter. And I’m tired of fighting. I…
My First Etsy
When I was at the age when I had a lot of time to do crafty things, crafty things were not cool. The epitome of crafty things then, in fact, could be summed up in the Christmas present my best friend Kristi received our sophomore year of high school – a vest made by her…
College Soccer Season Is Flying By, and More
Does the college season zip by, or what? It hasn’t been two months since the UT Longhorns were playing a preseason exhibition; conference play started three weeks ago, and we’re already down to the last three games of the season. The Horns – coming off a thrilling 3-2 overtime win over No. 16 Missouri, followed…
Les Freaques, Sont Chics
I don’t know if you’ve ever attended a “real” fashion show. I know I haven’t – at least not the kind that are in New York/Paris/Milan and feature celebrities and much pouting and frantic snubbing and all that Prêt-à-Porter stuff. Even so, I know the fashion shows I have attended – the kind that take…
Newtral
By now, I’m sure you’ve all noticed that gray is the new beige. Those of us who overhauled our kitchens/bathrooms/wardrobes with various shades of umber/cocoa/toast are now going to be compelled to start again with this fabulous new shade. My theory is that this trend began when stainless steel became so popular; seldom can an…
Aus Bat
Its stageside banners emblazoned with images of idyllic nature and iconic hipsterdom, the midway stocked with funky stores, her weed presumably smokable, the Austin City Limits Fest is truly a godsend to city-boosting, chamber-of-commerce types with a trace amount of ‘tude. So who better to be an ambassador of this funky goodwill than Austin’s Batman…
National Lampoon’s Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell
National Lampoon’s Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell 2007, R, 102 min. Directed by Kevin Wheatley, Jonny Gillette, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Kevin Wheatley, Bill English, Chandler Parker, Jonathan L. Davidson, Ted Schneider, Jamie Bullock, Alex Reznik, Daniel Baldwin, Jane Seymour, Paul Whitty. If you’ve ever wondered what it would look…
Might Wanna Reconsider This One
Council making trip to San Diego.
World Series: Red Sox in Five
The National League bores the crap out of me. I really wanted to see the Cubs go to the World Series but with Ted Lilly coming up to bat with the bases loaded I knew it was going to take a lot more luck. Something the Cubs aren’t really known for. I hear the arguments…
Fire in the Sky
Dark vacation photos from San Diego.
Hey, John Cornyn’s Not All Bad
But he’s a little batty.
Names Project AIDS Quilt
Wrap yourself up in the love of community this weekend: The AIDS Memorial Quilt is visiting our town!
Community College Funding Crisis Resolved
Deal restores $154 million Perry vetoed in June.
Goth Hard in a Funky Place
It’s almost – but not quite – too late to herald the fourth anniversary of Gothtober.com, an online Halloween advent calendar with an animated treat behind each day’s “door.” Here’s what someone (okay, I) said about it in 2003: “Commandeered by one Juliana (JP) Parr and co-animated by a tag team of cheeky CalArts grads…
Watts Goes, Dems Respond
Watts is no longer a candidate for senate, but does that mean he won’t be in the race?
Remaining Texas Football Is Pure Peanut Butter
My buddy Earl calls it the peanut butter effect. It’s reserved for the woman whom you should think is beautiful, the movie that everyone says you’ll like. Or the football team whose winning record should impress you. But instead there’s that stick-to-the-top-of-your-mouth sensation that isn’t quite right. Can you say Texas Longhorns? The Burnt Orange…
Cornyn vs. Noriega
With Watts gone, Rep. Noriega becomes the sole serious challenger for Cornyn’s U.S. Senate seat.
Farmers Market Owner Invites Brentwood Tavern to Stay
Eatery’s last scheduled day of business is Oct. 25.
Watts Withdraws From Senate Race
San Antonio trial lawyer says stress on family too great
Early Voting, Day 1
And the oppressed masses trickle to the polls …
TCRP Hands TYC Mom Civil Rights Nod
Texas Civil Rights Project awards abuse-case whistle-blower.
Ad Creep Alert
Group launches letter-writing campaign against introduction of electronic billboards to Texas
String Theory
In the shade at the second Austin String Band Festival.
Jury Duty Scam
Thieves posing as court officer try to steal your identity.
Can You Spell I-N-E-B-R-I-A-T-E-D?
It’s that time of year again, when the sun sets a little earlier, the pie-eyed buttercups have to wear sturdier fishnets to protect themselves from frostbite, and curling up to a dictionary and an Irish coffee can be a form of convivial entertainment, or what the downtrodden members of the hoi polloi like to call…
Gates Loves Kiev in the Spring Time
The Secretary of Defence (and former A&M president) attacks NATO over Afghanistan.
‘NHL 2K8’
I recently made the jump from PlayStation2 to Xbox 360 so it is safe to say I was majorly impressed when I slipped this puppy into my new machine. The graphics are freakin’ amazing. Seriously. I was playing this game and watching the Dallas Stars/Columbus Blue Jackets game on Fox Sports recently and was blown…
Kim Withdraws Panhandling Ordinance
Council Member Kim calls for better enforcement of current rules and more effort in getting the homeless off the street.
Mangiasaurus Rex vs. Signage Ordinances
Will Wynn to defend Guadalupe’s iconic pizza-promoting dinosaur.
Early Voting Starts Today
Early voting runs Oct. 22-Nov.2; election day is Nov. 6
Halloween 4 & Halloween 5 Double Feature
Halloween 4 & Halloween 5 Double Feature R, 210 min. A double dose of horror with Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers will be presented with two featurettes: “Halloween: Faces of Fear” and “Meet the Michaels,” which feature cast and crew interviews and behind-the-scenes footage.
Death Proof
Death Proof 2007, R, 114 min. Directed by Quentin Tarantino, Starring Kurt Russell, Zoe Bell, Rosario Dawson, Sydney Tamiia Poitier. Death Proof>i> is Tarantino’s half of Grindhouse – and it’s practically two films in itself. The first part a talky jamboree of girls’ night out and the second a gloriously staged car chase/vengeance film.
Dumbledore the Bear?
One for your closeted wizard files.
Pretend That We’re Dead
… and gone to Heaven. This monkey’s gone to heaven. Musically, the Nineties are fenced in by locale: Nirvana. Pearl Jam lives, transcended, but sometimes we remember Soundgarden, maybe Mudhoney. Mia Zapata’s Gits. Seattlites all. My favorite was L7. Moments when your eyes roll back white with ecstasy hit nightly in rock & roll. The…
Downtown North, Here We Come
Council moves to adopt the North Burnet/Gateway Area Master plan, but UT gets some tweaks.
Ice Bats Drop the Puck on a New Season
In case you haven’t noticed, the 2008-09 hockey season has begun. With no national television coverage to speak of (outside of the Versus network) many casual sports fans may not even know that the NHL season is in full swing. Well, it is, and Austin’s own hockey squad, the Ice Bats, gets their 12th campaign…
Within These Walls
A chat with Damon Krukowski and Michio Kurihara.
TYC: Getting Better, Not Better
Texas Youth Commission ombudsman tells legislators: having the tools to fix TYC is not the same as it being fixed.
After a Fashion
Stephen needs an assistant: The devil wears Versace knockoffs
Arclight Records
A classic tale: Man has band; man needs label; man starts label for his band. That was the story for Austin musician Mauro Arrambide, who co-founded Arclight Records in early 2003. “Basically it was started to put Speedloader’s first album out,” he says. “I had previously put out a 7-inch split with Speedloader and the…
AI by Any Other Name
Austin Interfaith is moving toward a broader, Central Texas future
Point Austin: Animal Passions
If the dogs recognized their spokesmen, they’d run the other way
Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?
The creative powerhouse known as Tyler Perry is back in front of and behind the camera with this predictable film about four married couples.
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
The widest street in Europe, the true meaning of the word ‘buster,’ and more
Dead Oceans
In the past year, the tides have shifted considerably for Phil Waldorf. After nearly a decade managing Misra Records, Waldorf jumped ship to form Dead Oceans. The local imprint is the newest branch of Bloomington, Ind., cottage industry Secretly Canadian/Jagjaguwar, a hotbed for indie rock with an impeccable national reputation and a collective roster that…
The Hightower Report
Gut-Check Time for Congress; and Betrayal on Trade by Democratic Leaders
Beside the Point
Council moves to temper city manager’s authority
30 Days of Night
This film’s high-concept stroke of genius lies not with its vampire clan but with the setting: a tiny Alaskan hamlet where nightfall indeed lasts all month.
The Common Law
Nuts and bolts of trademark registration
Furniture Records
“A friend of mine in college used to call me ‘Furn,’ because he said I was like a piece of furniture in his house,” explains Jesse Hodges, one of Furniture Records’ four principal owners. “I was always around and didn’t really do much besides listen to music and play video games. Any type of music…
Media Watch
Despite naitonwide tune-out trend, Austin viewers keep watching local TV news
Gone Baby Gone
Ben Affleck’s feature directing debut is strong on atmospherics and moral quandaries.
Dinner Partier
Anthony Bourdain comes back to Austin
On the Fringe
C-Side Established by Matt Pittman in 2002 (see Music feature “All My Love,” Jan. 26, 2007), familial imprint C-Side Records provides a communal outlet for songwriting collective the Channel, led by brothers Brent and Colby Pennington of Secret Sideshow and Driftin’ Luke respectively, and indie rock offshoot Golden Bear. Misc. Music The self-proclaimed “Dysfunctional Music…
Game Reviews
Halo 3
Run for Shelter
City takes first significant step toward relocating Town Lake Animal Center
Rendition
Intelligent and well-meaning, Rendition is nevertheless an oversimplified and uneven attempt to arouse righteous indignation among its viewers.
Mars
When Mars landed on South Congress, citizens of the 78704 didn’t flee in horror from the invaders
Off the Record
Word of amendments to Austin’s sound ordinance prompt a town hall meeting, Marcus Rubio discusses The Life of Pillows, and Flipnotics turns 15
Game Reviews
NBA 08: The Life v3 Sony Entertainment $39.99 PlayStation2 games are still being made? Sony attempting to keep The Life alive? Indeed, Sony has returned to the PS2 platform, trying to upgrade on NBA 07: The Life v2 with flashy add-ons and extras, keeping The Life on the table with a respirator. Trying to keep…
Closing Time? Attorneys Call for Justice’s Head
Public cries foul over Keller’s killer instincts
Into the Wild
Sean Penn adapts Jon Krakauer’s bestselling mystery adventure to the screen with frequently stunning but ultimately unsatisfactory results.
The Master Builder
The impeccable craft and enduring genius of Arthur Miller, as explained by Tony Kushner
Food-o-File
Adventures in Kitchen Space, the Big Top Candy Company, and the world of chili cook-offs
Off the Record
Random Play • Willie Nelson is set to receive the inaugural Bridging Divides Award from the University of Texas at Austin Project on Conflict Resolution for his efforts in peace advocacy. The private dinner, hosted by Humanitarians Engaged in Respectful Dialogue, takes place Friday at the Frank Erwin Center with musical guests Amy and Paula…
Game Reviews
NBA 2K8 2K Sports $59.99 Once again, 2K Sports has control of the ball with this ’08 version of the NBA 2K franchise. What really makes this game shine like Shaq’s reflective, bald head are the graphics: crowd members’ facial expressions; worn, individual planks of wood on the court; three-dimensional sweat; and even the braille-like…
Naked City
Quote of the Week “We close at 5.” – Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller, rejecting any extension of court hours for a pending death penalty appeal, for which colleagues were waiting Headlines • The Austin Revitalization Authority had a rough night at the Urban Renewal Board Monday, as the ARA tries to…
Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour
A 17-year-old girl encounters, um, paranormal activity.
Miller in Austin
The Ransom Center is currently showing the exhibition “Rehearsing the American Dream: Arthur Miller’s Theater,” drawn from the center’s archives of Miller’s papers from 1935 to 1953. The exhibition runs through Dec. 30 at the Harry Ransom Center, 21st and Guadalupe. For more information, visit www.hrc.utexas.edu. In conjunction with the exhibition, Tony Kushner will speak…
Event Menu
Oct. 19-25
Off the Record
Heavy Ornamentals Flipnotics on Barton Springs Road celebrates its 15-year anniversary in October. “Flipnotics was our South Austin home until the people started complaining about live music coming out of there,” recalls the Gourds’ Kevin Russell. “Every show I played there was memorable for me. It’s like a little church. People really listen to every…
Game Reviews
Cabela’s Trophy Bucks Activision $39.99 The very idea of a hunting video game seems doomed from conception. The rub for games that re-create activities the average American could do lies between being true to the experience and making the game fun. Trophy Bucks achieves neither. Place the blame on the solitary game mode for the…
Municipal Court May Move Northeast
Move authorization passed without comment at council meeting, but raised dust afterward
For the Bible Tells Me So
Various men and women of the cloth provide a systematic dismantling of the idea that the Bible condemns homosexuality.
Jessica Mathaes: A concertmaster flies solo
ASO’s top violinist readies for her first solo concerto performance with the orchestra
Yates Family Buys Spicewood Vineyards
Manigolds set to live the good life
Off the Record
Smoke Signals A grass fire in a parking area at the inaugural Big State Festival, hosted by C3 Presents this past weekend in Bryan-College Station, spread to more than 15 vehicles. No injuries were reported. Like Austin City Limits ’07, the remainder of the festival went off without a hitch. Notable sightings included the father-son…
Game Reviews
World Series of Poker 2008 Activision $49.99 Is poker still a viable game when there’s no actual money at stake – your pride maybe but not your money? Like most good Americans, I’d much rather give up my pride than my money. That absence of fiscal commitment in video-game poker makes for a lack of…
ARA Given Ultimatum on Redevelopment Plans
Either bid redevelopment projects as they were outlined in the city’s original plan or city will seek outside partners to redevelop East 11th Street
Pete Seeger: The Power of Song
More than an appreciation, this documentary portrait of the great American folksinger and activist is an inspiration.
New Art in Austin 2008: The 20 to watch
AMOA names the 20 Austin artists for its next ‘New Art in Austin’ exhibition
Green Corn Project Fundraiser
Sunday, Oct. 21, noon-4pm
Off the Record
The Life of Pillows Marcus Rubio isn’t your average high school senior. Along with juggling college applications and orchestral competitions, the 18-year-old San Antonio native has written string arrangements for Bill Baird’s Silent Sunset project and San Antonio’s Buttercup and Druggist and has sat in with Peter & the Wolf, the Summer Wardrobe, and Alejandro…
Game Reviews
Recent Chronicle cover boy and all-around PR wunderkind Richard Garriott continues his domination of my inbox this month. First was the news that he’s going into space in fall of ’08, making him the sixth private citizen and the second Garriott to conduct a space mission. Owen Garriott, Richard’s father, beat his son to that…
Nightmare on Second Street
Eight store owners served with lease-default notices on their properties
Things We Lost in the Fire
This film starring Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro is an impeccably constructed and perfectly paced drama of domestic and internal volatility.
Volitant Gallery: Volitant, we hardly knew ye
After 18 months, the Downtown showcase for contemporary art shuts down
Off the Record
Vogue Fifteen dollars gets you in the door at Momo’s and a year’s worth of visual stimulation as the Austin Music Foundation unveils its annual She Rocks calendar on Saturday with performances from poster child Hope Irish, Full Stride, Shelly Knight & the Livin’ Dead, and Velvet Brick. 2008 pinups include Patrice Pike, Sabbath Crow’s…
Happenings
Oct. 18-24
Bhool Bhulaiyaa
This new Bollywood film is a comic haunted-mansion story.
Art Alliance Austin: At 50, a rejuvenated mission and new name
After five decades, Austin Fine Arts Alliance has renamed itself Art Alliance Austin
Australian Cattle God
The Australian cattle dog is a breed known for its intellect, independence, and wily tenacity. The same might be said of Australian Cattle God, the 3-year-old local label run by scene veterans Bryan Nelson, Win Wallace, and Lee Brooks. From their home office in East Austin, ACG has unleashed avant-rock recordings from as far afield…
Texas Platters
Big State Festival Texas World Speedway, Bryan-College Station, Oct. 13 & 14 “Where my rednecks at?” yelled Luke Bryan, rousing the crowd to sing his chart-topping hit for Billy Currington, “Good Directions.” He found ’em. The inaugural Big State Festival was nothing if not a gloriously celebratory ‘neck fest, mixing radio superstars, country legends, and…
Film News
Jeff Nichols’ Shotgun Stories wins the Narrative Jury Award at AFF; plus, Pras, NAMAC, and Willem Dafoe
Cross-Border Craziness
Temporary injunction blocks feds’ plan to use ‘no match’ Social Security letters, Senate authorizes construction of large chunk of border wall, and more
Randy and the Mob
This Southern-fried comedy, directed by and starring Ray McKinnon, is a flat-footed take on the suburban Southern gentleman in disrepair.
Arts Review
Strange choices and weak acting cripple City Theatre’s take on Arthur Miller’s magnum opus
Natrix Natrix
Nestled between Highway 71 and the greenbelt, the Natrix Natrix house is a secluded enclave amid the sprawl of South Austin. Inside the rented one-story home, plates of cinnamon buns and French toast harden after Sunday morning breakfast. Ghost Night’s Steven Garcia and Real Live Tigers’ Tony Presley jam in the converted garage studio; meanwhile,…
Texas Platters
The Dark Water Hymnal (A Kid in Milk) Leaving his past as Inkbot behind him, electronic guru Jeremy Ballard picks up an acoustic guitar as the Dark Water Hymnal. His self-titled debut dims the lights beneath his whisper and strum, but Andrea Couch’s violin sparks the candles. True to its name, DWH is eerie, melancholy.…
DVD Watch
This week Milestone is releasing the director’s edition on DVD for the first time, complete with 10 minutes of previously unseen footage, and even with no other extras to speak of, it’s a cause for celebration
Roaming Celebration of Bikes and Beer Rolls Into Austin
New Belgium Tour de Fat on mission to convert cycling nonbelievers
Arts Review
Blue Lapis Light transforms Seaholm into a grand cathedral where the spirit is free to soar
I Eat Records
Few local labels have launched as ambitious an inaugural assault as I Eat Records. Formed in 2005 by Jason Callahan and Athens, Ga., native Lynn Boland, the label released seven albums its first year, corralling new local acts like the Casting Couch and the Glass Family alongside Ethan Azarian and the Orange Mothers’ Greatest Hits.…
Texas Platters
High Tension Wires Midnight Cashier (Dirtnap) Don’t call it a supergroup. High Tension Wires, comprising Riverboat Gambler Mike Wiebe, Marked Men’s Mark Ryan and Mike Throneberry, and Chris Pulliam of the Reds, may sound like a cathartic amalgam of the Texas garage punk scene, but the Denton-based quintet still owes more to the original punk…
TV Eye
Moonlighting and the future of the medium
Student Housing, Decades of Biological Research Up in the Air
Brackenridge Tract Task Force recommends removing or relocating student housing and lab west of campus
Arts Review
Collage is a valid form, and artist Ronnie Weeks uses it well
Western Vinyl
The reality of running an independent music label typically does not coincide with the financial stability afforded a normal small business. It’s a labor of love that doesn’t compute well with the Internal Revenue Service. Just ask Brian Sampson, sole owner and operator of Western Vinyl Records, who was audited April 2006. “I’ve been claiming…
Texas Platters
Honeypot Dirty Mother Fuzz Although Honeypot’s cut-to-the-core sonic minimalism bears a passing resemblance to early-Nineties Olympia grrrl groups, the Austin trio’s riff-centric songs owe more to Joan Jett’s reconciliation of glam rock and punk. Honeypot certainly isn’t the first act to mine this formula, but vocalist Krit Livolsi breathes excitement into the proposition with a…
Page Two: Sweat Lodge
Scenes from a cinematic teepee
@Chronic
Susan Combs named Texas state chair for Rudy Giuliani campaign
Readings
In his latest (and first all-color) graphic novel, indie-comix star Jeffrey Brown has stepped slightly out of form
Business Deal
“We’re not business people. In fact, we don’t really know what we’re doing.” Dirk Michener had no real intention of starting a label. When he and longtime friend Smokey Farris formed their first band at age 12 in Cypress, Texas, just outside of Houston, it was two friends jamming. The name Business Deal came about…
Texas Platters
Ringo Deathstarr’s superb debut EP (SVC Records) is instant gratification for early-Nineties noise pop. Right from the gummy guitar of opener “Swirly” – its gorgeous, looped midsection could be a lost track from MBV’s Loveless – the local fourpiece wears its influences smartly. Guitarist/singer Elliott Frazier’s voice flows low and come-hither, adding to the narcotic…
Day Trips
Dr. Joe Smith’s eye-catching sculptures have been attracting folks to Caldwell for decades
‘Austin Chronicle’ Endorsements
General Election, Nov. 6 – Proposed Constitutional Amendments
Readings
Best American Fantasy replicates the success of the late The Year’s Greatest Science Fiction and Fantasy series by combing nontraditional genre haunts and delving into mainstream, literary and online magazines
Chicken Ranch
Chicken Ranch Records owner Mike Dickinson is calling from London. From there, he’s headed for Germany and Holland to do tour support for Nashville-based alt.country songwriter Willie Heath Neal. Call it business as pleasure, if you will. It’s a long way from Ruston, La., where Dickinson started Chicken Ranch in 1994. The label’s initial purpose…
Another Side of Travis Heights
In a South Austin apartment complex, residents organize for change
Soccer Watch
Longhorns and Hilltoppers unbeaten streaks snap, and more
Luv Doc Recommends: Austin Haunted Forest
Haunted Houses are like assholes. Everybody has one and most of them are pretty scary. If you’ve ever been in one, you know it involves a lot of moaning and screaming and blood, and very likely you’ll want to get out just as soon as you go in. You might even wonder why you wanted…
