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Texas Platters

Omar & the Howlers I’m Gone (Big Guitar Music) When Omar Dykes moved to Austin in the Seventies, he imported the earthy grit and Delta hoodoo of his home state Mississippi, qualities distinguishing his sound from Lone Star contemporaries like the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble. I’m Gone celebrates a half-century…

by Jay Trachtenberg

Texas Platters

Michele Solberg Harvest Time (Bones and Dreams) In the early Nineties, Michele Solberg was one of Austin’s hottest new talents. Just past 20 years old, the singer-songwriter was featured prominently in the Austin Music Awards from 1992-95. She moved to Europe late in the decade, but returned in 2001 to release the sultry Beyond the…

by Jim Caligiuri

Headlines

› No regular City Council meeting this week, as members are knee-deep in budget review – final adoption readings are scheduled for Sept. 10-12, with questions remaining about tax rate, bond spending, public safety costs, park funding, wildfire prevention, and lots more. Check the council budget questions on the Budget Office page at www.austintexas.gov/finance. ›…

by Chronicle Staff

Branded

In a dystopian society, corporations can see inside people’s minds and keep them deluded, but one man fights back.

by Marc Savlov

Texas Platters

Haun’s Mill Away Like a gang of buddies boozily reminiscing on the back porch behind the bar, Haun’s Mill hoists a glass to the spirit of love lost and found on its second LP Away. Singers/songwriters Nord Anderson and returning Austinite Eliza Wren pledge their devotion in “Down,” “Stay That Way,” and “All for You,”…

by Michael Toland

Chilean Olive Oils at Con’ Olio

In response to the rampant misrepresentation in the olive oil industry, specialty olive oil and balsamic vinegar shops have sprung up around the country. In Austin, that shop is Con’ Olio Oils & Vinegars, which has two locations, one in the Arboretum and one Downtown on Lavaca across from the W Hotel. All of the…

by Kate Thornberry

Texas Platters

Harold Whit Williams The Daily Worker Songbook Despite its title, the debut album from Cotton Mather guitarist Whit Williams skips the soapbox in favor of earnest storytelling. Eschewing his group’s power pop for a largely acoustic sound rooted in folk, blues, and country, the Alabama-bred troubadour sings with a plaintive resolve matching the subject matter,…

by Greg Beets

Texas Platters

Nervebreakers Hijack the Radio! (Get Hip) When the story of Texas punk is told, Nervebreakers often get overlooked. A shame, that, since the Dallas-based band predates more (in)famous Lone Star bashers the Dicks and Big Boys. Like the Ramones, Nervebreakers are punk by association – the quintet’s stripped-down rock & roll ethos was informed more…

by Michael Toland

And You Are Me

Uncle Lucius And You Are Me (eOne) Stewing together the choicest Southwestern roots – country, rock, folk, new blues, and R&B – Uncle Lucius’ third LP takes familiar sounds to original places. Launching bluesy rumble “Set Ourselves Free” and Skynyrd-ish lead single “Pocket Full of Misery,” the Austin fivepiece goes for the gusto on the…

by Kevin Curtin

Strange Magic

Andrew Porter does not write about himself. And, given that his latest book includes a scummy slew of academics and torn-up alkies engaged in upper middle-class angst, this must be very reassuring news to his family and co-workers. His debut novel In Between Days (Knopf) is deep, dark stuff, a striking assemblage of generational disintegration…

by Roberto Ontiveros

Texas Platters

The Flatlanders The Odessa Tapes (New West) More a shelved Jimmie Dale Gilmore album than a long lost Flatlanders’ 8-track, The Odessa Tapes reiterates the fact that the all-star West Texan troupe originally formed as a backing band for the golden warbler from Amarillo. Remember that in 1990, when Rounder Records floated More a Legend…

by Raoul Hernandez

Texas Platters

Willie Nelson Heroes (Legacy) At 79, Willie Nelson rebounds from spotty recent additions to his catalog, including 2006’s Songbird and Moment of Forever two years later. Featuring a roster that includes Sheryl Crow, Merle Haggard, and Snoop Dogg, Heroes draws 14 tracks from songwriters as varied as the late Jerry Livingston, Tom Waits, and Pearl…

by Dan Oko

Texas Platters

Seth Walker Time Can Change Leap of Faith, Seth Walker’s previous release in 2009, was an unexpected success. A savvy mix of country, blues, and folk, it drew recognition from critics and audiences nationwide. The follow-up retains the locally woodshedded guitarist’s soulful groove, yet takes a more intimate approach. While Walker’s become known as a…

by Jim Caligiuri

The Luv Doc: Status Whoa!

Dear LuvDoc, My best friend from high school keeps posting insane, right-wing, inflammatory, and borderline racist political status updates on Facebook. Should I try to set him straight or should I just unfriend him? Otherwise he really is a nice guy. – Shelly Shelly, remember the old saying, “Opinions are like assholes. Everybody has one…

by Chronicle Staff

Compliance

When authority is ceded to a disembodied voice on the other end of a phone line, all bounds of human propriety are lost in this story’s fast-food joint.

by Marc Savlov

The Words

As an examination of the writer’s world, this film offers nothing new; as a romance it’s not half bad.

by Marc Savlov

Quote of the Week

“You can’t be pro-business unless you’re pro-education.” – San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, in his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention

by Chronicle Staff

Portrait of Wally

UT film professor Andrew Shea’s documentary is an engrossing account of how this Egon Schiele painting changed hands over the years.

by Kimberley Jones

Mr. Smarty Pants Knows

After his retirement, Johnny Carson taught himself Swahili. In the past, manual-transmission cars got better mileage, but not anymore. Thanks to computers, today’s automatics get the same or better fuel economy. According to a 2007 UCLA study, American families spend about 52 minutes preparing their dinner every night. It didn’t matter if they used processed…

by Mr. Smarty Pants

Civics 101

Thursday 06 ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES UC Santa Barbara professor George Lipsitz, a social movements and inequality expert, talks about why Asian-American studies matter now. 3:30-5pm. Avaya Auditorium (ACES 2.302, UT campus). www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/aas/events/23227. CAP METRO BUDGET OPEN HOUSE Review the transit org’s proposal for FY 2013, and discuss components of the $274.4 million budget. 5-8pm. Capital…

by Chronicle Staff

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