FREAKIN’ ON DEKE
I arrived at the venue a little late, and was bowled over by Deke Dickerson playing “Peroxide Blonde,” and obscure covers such as the Merle Travis classic, “Gambler’s Guitar.” Dickerson, Biller, and Wakefield flew through jump blues and boppin’ Western swing reminiscent of Bob Wills’ little brother, Billy Jack Wills. Dickerson played hot Joe Maphis-inspired…
NOT TAXATION WITHOUT (GREEN) REPRESENTATION
“The open secret that everybody knows, but is not talking about, is that the lion’s share of political donations come from the `wealthiest` top one percent in the country,” Mahajan explains. “Most of that money comes from wealthy individuals rather than corporations. But they are really interchangeable, because they are same people who are in…
MORE THAN THE SUMS OF THEIR PARTS
But Karate isn’t a ’70s soundalike any more than it mimics its indie contemporaries. The group has been putting out spare, beautifully quiet (but not shoe-gazing) records since the mid-’90s, and is ripe for wider discovery. Though the “automatic writing” lyrics can be baffling, they’re as great at creating moods as they are indifferent to…
POLITICS ON THE NOT-SO FRINGE
Voters have long felt like losers, even when they cast their ballots for winners. And for good reason: The difference between most Democrats and Republicans is determined by their contributor lists, their commitment to the issues as solid as a path of smoke. Enter the Greens and Libertarians. By attracting alienated Americans from the Left…
HAVING BEEN FUNKED
Friends of the P knew what to expect at the Sunset Station show on Sunday, October 27: the bounce, the boogie, the extended jams, the scatopsychological testification, the rotation of what seemed an army of musicians (reportedly about 25) across the stage, from mic to mic, and through multiple instruments. And if the security at…
WAR: WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR?
“I call for a moment, a year, a lifetime of peace,” bellowed Democrat John Courage, who is running against U.S. Representative Lamar Smith in the 21st District. “For me to vote to go to war would be a last resort with no alternative,” added District 28 U.S. Representative Ciro Rodriguez, a Democrat. He voted against…
FEAR AND LOATHING IN WITCH CITY
“Where are you going?” she asked cheerfully when we gave her the address of a car rental outfit. “Salem,” we said. With all the dynamic, world-class entertainment available in the city, driving 204 miles to a place in history that was resonant with terror, sorrow, and insanity seemed like a fun weekend. “Is that where…
SAME OLD SONG
At the bottom of this year’s ballot are two important issues facing northern Bexar County voters: an opportunity to formalize the Trinity Glen Rose Conservation District, which the state legislature temporarily established to protect the Trinity Aquifer from contamination and overpumping; and to vote for board members. (Taxes will fund the district, but residents will…
POSTMODERN MADNESS
Pelon turned out to be the auteur vehicle of one Jack Stamps Jr. Prolific, sincere, and smart about his craft, Stamps was less about promoting a gig, or the CDs (still) for sale on the site, than just letting people hear the music (www.artists.mp3s.com/artists/15/peln.html). Since that first contact, Stamps has organized a couple of shows…
WEIRDNESS AT THE WITTE
“I’ve seen lights turned on that I could have sworn I turned off earlier,” said Contreras, now the museum’s assistant manager of public safety and security. “I’ve felt a presence.” For decades, Witte staffers like Contreras have experienced weird phenomena, from spectral figures to shuffled papers on their desks. Paranormal investigators have recorded strange interference…
OFRENDAS AND OFFERINGS
Of course, the most touching tributes will be paid at thousands of gravesites around the city, as families gather with wreath, ribbon, and picnic basket to commune with the dead, drawing together at the physical resting places of family and friends to celebrate the memory of people who meant so much to them — in…
DIVING THE DORIA
Kevin McMurray, the author of Deep Descent, has dived the Doria and lived to write about it. Not everyone does. Sharks, hypothermia, oxygen toxicity, nitrogen narcosis, and the bends are major hazards facing divers. Add to those swift currents, dark murky silt, entanglement in abandoned fishing lines and nets snagged by the hulk, and twisted…
LITERARY LOVE FEST
Sixty-seven writers from the United States, Mexico, Nicaragua, Chile, Cuba, and Puerto Rico will participate. José Rosario, Carmen Tafolla, and Sergio Ramírez are among a handful of writers giving pre-fair workshops exploring topics such as Songwriting in Spanish, Writing Stories for Children, and Writing Novels in Spanish. During the days following the workshops there will…
DEMME-FYING A CLASSIC
DeFore: You were very reverential toward Silence of the Lambs — consulting the author even about minor changes — but here you take lots of liberties with your source material. Demme: I don’t think it ever occurred to me that there was any need for such a discipline in making this movie. I think I…
NEW REVIEWS
Auto Focus “Hooked on Hogan’s goatish hero” Dir. Paul Schrader; writ. Robert Graysmith (book), Michael Gerbosi; feat. Greg Kinnear, Willem Dafoe, Maria Bello, Rita Wilson, Ron Leibman (R) The running joke in Lord Byron’s mock epic “Don Juan” is that the legendary debaucher is really a schmo, a feckless fellow at whom gorgeous women choose…
Armchair Cinephile
Kino Video recently packaged some of the most important spooky silents as German Horror Classics: The set contains two old favorites, Nosferatu and Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, and two more obscure films, The Golem and Waxworks. The latter alone make the set noteworthy: Waxworks for its Expressionist extravagance and Golem for its timeliness (the Jewish…
SHIVERING OVER SAFFRON
Here’s the skinny: Saffron calls itself a wine bar with tapas, although the definition of tapas (the word originally came from the tiny plates used to “tapar” a wine or sherry glass so, not to put too fine a point on it, the flies wouldn’t fall in) has been stretched far beyond the simple olives,…
DRINK ALL WEEKEND, FOR A GOOD CAUSE
In what they hope becomes an annual initiative, San Antonio’s food worthies are introducing the “New World Wine and Food Festival.” The event is an opportunity for several area chefs to showcase their wares, as well as guest chefs from points south and across the U.S. Some of the now-local goodies had their start in…
FINALLY, A BEER TO HAVE WITH GINGER SNAPS
What we found was a pumpkin ale, courtesy of a northern brewery (Portland, Oregon), where the weather is no doubt more in keeping with the concept. The brew is available at Central Market, and attractively presented in a brown glass bottle with a suitably orange label. The payoff, though, is what’s inside — a spicy,…
HELLBOUND TRAIL
Formed as a five-piece band in Tucson, Arizona in 1988, the then-Black Supersuckers relocated to Seattle in 1989, just in time for the unforeseen grunge explosion. After parting ways with the original vocalist and shortening the name, the Supersuckers landed a deal with Sub Pop in 1992. The rest, as some say, should be history.…
