Cover Story
Parisian Chanteuse Lou Rebecca Is the Complete Pop Package
Personas, dance, fashion, and Holodeck-ian synth transform into the electro crooner
U.S. Rep Will Hurd Walks the Purple Line at Trib Fest
Outbound GOP rep tells opening-night crowd: “Texas is a jump ball.”
Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar Renamed Bong Joon Ho Cinema
Home of Fantastic Fest honors the South Korean director
Sean Dorsey Dance Unpacks Masculinity Onstage
Trailblazing choreographer’s latest dance theatre piece hits Austin
Austin Film Festival Revs Up With Ford v Ferrari
Honey Boy, Motherless Brooklyn in feature lineup
Fantastic Fest Review: Koko-Di Koko-Da
Enigmatic Swedish-Danish chiller revels in its mysteries
Fantastic Fest Review: Fractured
Workmanlike thriller is a lost opportunity
San La Muerte Fest Imports Acts From Far and Wide
First-time visitors abound among some two-dozen imports
Fantastic Fest Interview: Nail in the Coffin – The Fall and Rise of Vampiro
The split life of a lucha legend and a father from Canada
Fantastic Fest Interview: “Butt Fantasia”
Short and sweet Q&A with director Mohit Jawal
Fantastic Fest Review: The Golden Glove
True-life serial killer drama is too real and grimy for its own good
Noble Sandwich Co. Closes Remaining Location on Burnet Road
Delivery apps turn out to not be the fix; Interstellar BBQ remains open
10 Not-To-Miss Oktoberfest Events in Central Texas
We know you’ve been waiting to bust out the dirndl and lederhosen!
Anthony Bourdain’s Personal Collection to Be Auctioned in New Braunfels
Even more items for sale in October benefiting The Culinary Institute
Fantastic Fest Review: After Midnight
We’re definitely digging Jeremy Gardner’s scene
Goblin’s Claudio Simonetti Paints Austin Deep Red
Italian horror soundtrack maestro emails bloody tidbits
Fantastic Fest Review: The Deeper You Dig
Family-made home movie is a supernatural eye-opener
Massive Shakeup in Top Management at Rooster Teeth
New roles for longtime RT personalities as Jordan Levin becomes GM
No Headline
Oct. 24-31, 2019 www.austinfilmfestival.com Top: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: Oh My God I Think It’s Over, Harriet, The Blair Witch Project Middle: Portrait of a Lady on Fire, A Hidden Life Bottom: Waves Founded in 1993, the trailblazing Austin Film Festival and Conference was the first event of its kind to celebrate and elevate the role of…
Garth Brooks Packs Into Gruene Hall
Promotional tour takes tiny town by storm
Fantastic Fest Interview: Gazing Into The Vast of Night
Director Andrew Patterson’s cosmic debut is turning the right heads
Trey Edward Shults Returns for Austin Film Festival
Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Blair Witch retrospective
Fantastic Fest Interview: Recalling a Memory of Dan O’Bannon
Alexandre O. Philippe finds the myth behind the space horror classic
Fantastic Fest Review: The Pool
A man, a woman, and a crocodile add up to hilarious carnage
Fantastic Fest Review: Jallikattu
Buffalo hunt is a deceptive cover for a brilliant political allegory
New, Improved Camping Ban Fizzles at Council
Consensus collapses as the hot summer of homelessness drags on
Fantastic Fest Review: Ride Your Wave
Surfing romance becomes a smart, lovely story of loss and growth
Austin Chefs Return to El Paso to Support Migrant Families
Locals head back to their hometown for Annunciation House benefit
Fantastic Fest Review: Iron Fists and Kung Fu Kicks
Documentary charts the global impact of Hong King action cinema
Fantastic Fest Review: The Other Lamb
Cult drama’s inevitable twists may not convert you
Morrissey and Interpol Go Classic Post-Punk on the Erwin Center
Weekend’s double headliner doesn’t disappoint
Local Savory Baby Food Inspired by the Paleo Diet
Austin parents create Serenity Kids for health-conscious infants
Climate Strike at the Capitol Adds Austin Voices to Worldwide Movement
Students spark rally to combat climate change
Fantastic Fest Review: The Lodge
Family drama becomes an exercise in cruelty that may go to far
Fantastic Fest Review: The Death of Dick Long
A mystery in the South shines a weird but moving spotlight
Fantastic Fest Review: Vivarium
Suburban weirdness never quite keeps up with the Joneses
Fantastic Fest Review: Saint Maud
Tragic, enthralling, and shocking tale of religious obsession
Fantastic Fest Review: First Love
Takashi Miike’s bloody romance is all beating heart
Weekend Wine: White Wines of Northeastern Italy
Don’t sleep on this affordable biodynamic Chardonnay
Fantastic Fest Interview: Every Body Has a Story in The Mortuary Collection
Ryan Spindell brings period creep to the horror anthology
Fantastic Fest Review: Jojo Rabbit
Taika Waititi takes on hate and Hitler with humor and pathos
This Week on The Austin Chronicle Show: The Big Cheese
Jessi Cape hosts and talks veganism and Plano with Wayne Alan Brenner
Theatrical Provocateurs Rubber Repertory Return to Austin
Two of the best and oddest come back for their own good and ours
Austin Celebrates International Day of Peace With Tiny Pies and More
Plus ice cream, cocktails, and an open-to-the-public meal on Sept. 21
LBJ Library Spotlights the Little House That Motown Built
Collection stars Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Supremes & more
Local Grain-Free Mexican-American Food Launches at Target
Siete Family Foods makes better-for-you chips, tortillas, and queso
Round Rock Honey’s Special Bourbon Barrel Honey Is Perfect for Fall
A day in the life of a local beekeeper for National Honey Month
Gender Unbound Is Back and Bigger Than Ever
Austin’s trans, intersex art fest returns with headliner Ryan Cassata
American Dreamer
Jim Gaffigan shows a flair for darkness, but this rideshare thriller stays in neutral
The Wedding Year
Can too much romance kill the mood?
Edie
Sheila Hancock braves the elements in a tale of defeating old age
Downton Abbey
The beloved Masterpiece series makes a royal return
Hustlers
True crime drama gets an A-list female empowerment sheen
The Goldfinch
Donna Tartt’s metaphorical novel gets an award-season adaptation
Desolation Center
Before corporate fests, Desolation Center blew the Mojave apart
Ad Astra
Brad Pitt deals with a case of the space … madness!
Villains
Delicious black comedy finds bad guys in a battle of the generations
Running With the Devil
Nicolas Cage’s Cook goes into the coke business
City Council Aims to Calibrate Camping Rules
Three-phased approach reflects growing consensus on dais
Death, Grief, and Buddhism in Fantastic Fest’s The Long Walk
Laotian cinema pioneer Mattie Do’s patiently ponderous tale
Soccer Watch
Ouch! Sunday was brutal for our local soccer teams, with a couple of deflating losses on the college and pro levels. Still, life goes on … The Texas Longhorns laid a goose egg on Sunday, Sept. 15, with an 0-4 loss to Monmouth, that came just two days after a strong 2-0 win over Washington,…
Democrats and Their Campaign Teams Train Up to Turn Texas Blue
The Texas Democratic Party focuses on flipping the state as early as 2020
Five Ways YOU Can Fight Climate Change
Yes, you can do things to help the planet
Summer’s Vegan Queso
Makes enough for a party
Quote of the Week
“My AR is ready for you Robert Francis.” – State Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, Twitter-taunting Beto O’Rourke and his call for an assault-weapon buyback at last Thursday’s Democratic debate in Houston. After reporting Cain to the FBI for making a terrorist threat, O’Rourke helped his Democratic challenger Josh Markle raise $68,000 over the weekend.
Texas Platters
As one half of short-lived but highly acclaimed indie roots duo Sons of Fathers, Paul Cauthen grew accustomed to wrapping hard truths in gorgeous Everly Brothers harmonies and music from the Big Pink. Their weight felt more substantial than more celebrated like-minds like Mumford & Sons. Going solo with 2016’s My Gospel, Cauthen steered hard…
Austin at Large: The Oldest Story in Town
Will Austin ISD’s “School Changes” be our last chance to learn our lesson?
Texas Platters
While Austin’s costumed collective fails to reach the gentle valleys of homegrown psych legacies the Golden Dawn or the exponential heights of astro visionary Sun Ra (1914-93), they once again successfully merge Afrobeat and Eurodisco. More social than hermetic, Darkness Falls on the Edge of Time relays and delays spare doomsday lyrics laced with digestible…
Austin’s Best Food and Drink Events This Week
Dinner parties, farmers’ markets, beer, wine, and more for the week of September 19, 2019
Former Council Member Don Zimmerman Sues to Travel Back in Time
Suit alleges new abortion support funding would violate Pre-Roe state law
Texas Platters
Four years have elapsed since the last release from this top-shelf Austin aggregation, and their sophomore release arrives as a clear indication that their brass hasn’t lost any of its gleam. Once again, the three veteran Austin blowers – saxmen Mark “Kaz” Kazanoff and John Mills, and trumpeter Al Gomez – sound ultra tight as…
Death Watch: Failures at Trial Anchor Last-Chance Appeal for Sparks
If SCOTUS does not act, Sparks will be the third man executed in Texas this month
Texas Platters
Under “education,” in the hilarious vital statistics grid from the booklet to the fifth full-length from local garage janglists the Ugly Beats, each member lists one of the first five Ramones LPs. Which may seem peculiar unless you recall the Buddy Holly-oid covers of JohnnyJoeyDeeDeeTommy hits like “Suzy Is a Headbanger” that chief Ugly Beat…
Shrewd Productions’ Jump
In Charly Evon Simpson’s drama, characters caught in the dark currents of grief and depression seek a way through
APD Weed Arrests Decline, but Racial Disparities Remain
Of the 86 people jailed, 41 were Hispanic, 31 were African American, and 14 were Caucasian
Texas Platters
Riding 2017’s double Grammy-nominated debut, Midland’s sophomore LP continues to walk an impeccable line of throwback Eighties neo-trad country that’s both radio-polished and spiked with a modern, hipster-fashioned flair. Credit hit songwriting duo Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne, who find a perfect vehicle in the Texas trio and clearly know how to drive it. Lead…
“Andy Coolquitt: Pinto Beans” at Bale Creek Allen Gallery
The artist’s solo show is a public display of well-organized chaos, a sculptural nirvana of randomness and resourcefulness
Headlines
Climate Strike Friday: Much of Sept. 20 will be spent trying to persuade public officials across the globe to take the climate change crisis seriously. In Austin, students will lead a rally at the Texas Capitol to demand the state “acknowledge the immediate and pressing threat of the climate crisis.” See Civics 101 for details.…
Texas Platters
This is hands down one of the best, purest country albums released in Austin this year, and already there’ve been a few (Mike & the Moonpies, Croy & the Boys, Paul Cauthen). Wallace escaped his native Tennessee in 1994 to pursue his vision of honky-tonk glory in Austin. Twenty-five years grinding it out here alongside…
“Valerie Fowler: The Story of the Deer in the Road”
Wonderfully painted memories of where the wild (and even-toed ungulate) things are
What’cha Watchin’?
Editorial Intern Charlie Mangan hangs with hit men and heavy hitters
Faster Than Sound: 523 Thompson Sticks Around
DIY venue co-runners recap a year ahead of Vans event, Rev. Merrill Wade ends the Soul of a Musician Series, and Hi, How Are You Project announces Daniel Johnston tribute
Gun Activist Cody Wilson Gets Probation in Sex Case
The man behind 3D-printed guns takes plea deal after high-profile arrest
Luv Doc: A Taste for Ballin’
20-inch blades on the Impala
Grassroots Leadership Sues to See Contract Between ICE and CoreCivic
The organization hopes to shine light on ICE and the T. Don Hutto facility
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
Pangolins are the world’s most trafficked non-human mammal. They are also the only mammal wholly covered in scales. Cornelius Vanderbilt “C. V.” Wood, who grew up in Amarillo, was not only the chief developer of Disneyland, but also supervised the creation of the first Six Flags amusement park. John Wayne imitators are bound to use…
Lou Rebecca Album Review
Restless (Holodeck)
Fast Color Is the Superhero Movie We Really Need
Actor Gugu Mbatha-Raw is a beacon to behold
Paper Chairs Makes Theatre With a Little Lone Star Surregionalism
The Texas premiere of Will Arbery’s Plano play knows place like home
How Fantastic Fest Is Shaping the Genre Film Scene
Fifteen years in and still fantastic
Public Notice: Think Global
Act local: Flooding and more
Travis County District Attorney Moore and Her First Assistant Sued
Sexual assault survivor alleges the D.A.’s Office lied to undermine her
Fantastic Fest Asks “Who Is Wrinkles the Clown?”
And why do we want him to scare us?
Qmmunity: 2020 Hopefuls Tackle Queer Rights Convo
Gender Unbound, AIDS Walk with Big Freedia, Butch Queen, and more
Vegan Magazine Founder Summer Burton Talks Reason and Queso
Former Buzzfeed exec and Texas native is obsessed with animals
Scream, Queen! and the Legacy of the “Gay” Nightmare on Elm Street
Fantastic Fest’s monster in the closet
Day Trips: Sitting Bull Falls, New Mexico
Hidden recreation area in the mountains
