Cover Story
Stand-Up Comic Tai Nguyen’s Improbable Rise to Hilarity
Vietnam-born comedian on insecurity and his shot-in-the-dark TV special
Five Arty Things to Do This Weekend: Sept. 22-24
Not too many, right? Just enough. Just enough for the city.
Depeche Mode Saves
UK electro survivors assuage COTA’s masses
Judge Clears Van Boven of Mistreating Patients
Whistleblower “vindicated” after charges of sexual improprieties
Swervedriver Cruises Satansville
Two-album re-creation levitates Moody offshoot
2017 Payne Theatre Award Nominees
E.A. Poe musical Nevermore leads the way with 11 noms
No Escape From Island Zero
Rizzolli & Isles creator on her creature feature
Theorist Festival Goes Multimedia on the Zilker Hillside
Tech haters gonna love hating technology (and vice versa) this Sunday
The Church Cuts Loose
Aussie jangle-pop legacy encores SXSW 2015
Wild Bill Gets in the Ring
Rock opera births boxing video trilogy
Ink & Paper & the Dark Ambience of Demdike Stare
Because one thing leads to another until we’re all, you know, dead
The Bestest Dystopian Flick of All Time
Pick the one that you think is the best, obviously. Probably don’t need this text here to explain it, right? You totally get it! You’re all over it.
The Texas Craft Brewers Festival’s Rotating Beer List
27 Texas craft brewers showcase their suds
CodeNEXT Version 2.0 Is Here
Adler, Hart reveal second draft of land use code rewrite
Flatbed World Headquarters: Opening! Opening! Opening!
Yes: Three gorgeous gallery openings at Flatbed on Friday
Five Austin Museum Day Recommendations
Back, tyranny of choice! Back, we say!
Home Again
a lifestyle comedy with a soupçon of pain
Marjorie Prime
Marjorie Prime 2017, NR, 98 min. Directed by Michael Almereyda, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Jon Hamm, Geena Davis, Tim Robbins. Jordan Harrison’s play, on which Michael Almereyda’s exceptional, deeply empathetic film is based, was nominated for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and I won’t be a bit surprised if this version…
Infinity Baby
Babies (young and old) who can’t grow up
Lemon
Lemon 2017, NR, 83 min. Directed by Janicza Bravo, Narrated by , Voices by , Starring Brett Gelman, Inger Tudor, Judy Greer, Michael Cera, Gillian Jacobs, Nia Long, David Paymer, Fred Melamed, Martin Starr, Shiri Appleby, Rhea Perlman. Like Cannibal Holocaust and Woody Allen’s Interiors, Lemon falls under the category of great first-date litmus-test films.…
The Midwife
Two screen legends deliver in a mildly sappy drama
Rebel in the Rye
The early life of J.D. Salinger is explored
Justice
A Western surprisingly concerning revenge
Ryde
Do you even Ryde, bro?
Punk Rock Patron of Austin Music Richard Lynn
Super Secret founder and Sonic Transmissions Festival underwriter expands operations
My Obsession: Therapy With Nineties Supermodels
Escape via the long gay tradition of diva worship
What Now for DREAMers?
The clock is ticking for the 120,000 DACA recipients in Texas
Council: Nickels, Dimes … and Millions
Budget readings slog through a difficult fiscal year
Sonic Transmissions Festival III
Founded and curated by bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, the third annual Sonic Transmissions Festival encompasses everything from free jazz and improvisational electronics to cumbia. “It’s based in a group that I have going here in Texas,” explains the Norwegian native. “The Young Mothers are a melting pot of free jazz, hip-hop, and punk rock. That…
A Week in the Life of Budget Deliberations
Divvying up the pot
City, Fire Union Reach Contract Agreement
Membership to vote on terms this month
Five Significant Super Secret Records
We have a playlist on Spotify that includes tracks from most records we’ve released. Search “Super Secret Records Sampler” or use: open.spotify.com/user/1235112150/playlist/7m2dXXpRAt57KLDrSn2IfX. OBN IIIs “No Way to Rock N Roll” 7-inch (2011) The first OBN IIIs record. I swear it almost sets my turntable on fire every time I play it. Ralph White & Thor…
Activists’ Hopes for Police Negotiations Hinge on Statute of Limitations
Focus part of effort to overhaul culture of APD
Vive la France! (and Its Cinema)
Ciné-Club brings Gallic gems to Austin
Which Way to CodeNEXT?
A conversation with Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo and Council Member Greg Casar
Vortex Repertory Company’s Storm Still
Gabrielle Reisman’s script refashions King Lear into the daughters’ story, and the Vortex stages it with admirable heart
Point Austin: Looking for a Magic Bullet
CodeNEXT arguments reflect the complexity of affordability problems
The Luv Doc: Tell It Like It Is
Not everything you hear is true
Teatro Vivo’s Enfrascada
Tanya Saracho’s dark comedy about moving on from heartbreak is staged with humor, honesty, and magic
What’cha Watchin’?
Digital Strategist Michael Bartnett queues up his next great binge fests
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
The Republic of Texas had 23 counties in December 1836 based on the existing Mexican municipalities. The state of Texas has 254 counties. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a “100-year flood” is not something that happens once every 100 years. Instead, it’s a flood that has a 1% chance of happening in any given…
“Dana Younger: Contemporary Figurative Works” at the Elisabet Ney Museum
This show of new clay-based sculptures contrasts smartly with Elisabet Ney’s marble statuary, and its breadth of style is stunning
Day Trips: Charreada, San Antonio
A ranch work competition rooted in Mexican tradition
Soccer Watch
For the first time in a good long while, each of Austin’s three NCAA soccer programs are up in the national rankings this week. The UT Longhorns, at 7-0, have recorded the best start in the program’s history, and their first national ranking in coach Angela Kelly’s six seasons here. They’re ranked 21st in the…
Headlines
Money, Money, Money: By the time you read this, City Council will have approved the city’s fiscal year 2018 budget. Or not. The usually pro forma three days of budget “readings” (beginning Monday) were consumed with detailed and occasionally tense discussions of how to stretch small dollars for large needs. “Council: Nickels, Dimes … and…
Texas Will Use Racial Maps in 2018 Elections
SCOTUS ruling puts stay on gerrymandered cases
Review: Pitchfork Pretty
Bringing the new back to New American
Doggett Seeks Info on Prison Evacuation (or Lack Thereof)
The Federal Bureau of Prisons kept some prisoners in place during Harvey flooding
Seen / Soon Sept. 15
Winding up 11:11‘s 11 dances in 11 months and preparing to go string quartet off-roading with invoke and Beerthoven
Quote of the Week: Trinity White
The Planning commissioner spoke on institutional racism prior to a high-profile Tuesday vote
Austin’s New Batch of Supper Clubs
Three of the city’s latest additions to the underground dining scene
Texas Book Festival
Texas Book Festival announces its full lineup of authors for 2017
Amazon in Austin?
Online retail giant has rumored interest in Austin for second HQ
Gay Place
Snark, sass, and absurdity will be on display at the Princess Pageant
Public Notice: The Negro School
Preserving whose historical legacy?
Playback: Sizing Up Music’s Bite of the Hotel Tax
Two new municipal funding schemes look to finally impact Austin music
Local Duo Crafts Texas-Inspired Tarot Deck
The founders of Mesquite Tarot talk cards and compassion
Signs of Optimism at Troubled Crime Lab
Continued efforts aim to right past wrongdoings at the DNA lab
A Fasten-ating Tip
Where do riders feel most generous?
