Cover Story
Luminaria Returns With a Bold New Vision for San Antonio
With March, there came rain, but no Luminaria. Months passed, and some gave up hope that the annual festival would return to San Antonio’s cultural landscape. But on November 7 and 8, Luminaria comes back for its seventh year with bold intentions. Historically, Luminaria has been an ever-shifting entity. Mayor Phil Hardberger originated the festival…
Aural Pleasure: ‘Primus and the Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble’
Primus and the Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble / Primus / Prawn Song Records, ATO Records **** There always was something sinister lurking in the technicolor, sickly sweet musical Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory based on Roald Dahl children’s novel. Who can deny the nightmare-inducing, acid-laced tunnel, the chicken getting butchered or the scheming…
10 Things You Have to Do This Weekend
Thu 11/13 Pepper, The Movement, New Beat Fund Are you one of the many people who find themselves wishing that Texas had passed similar legislation to Oregon last week? Take solace. Thursday’s reggae-rock, g-punk bash at the Aztec should suffice to at least make you feel like you’re living in the land of the legally…
Uber, Lyft One Step Closer to Operating Legally in SA
After another long Public Safety Meeting where more than 60 people signed up to speak, proposed regulations that would allow ride-share companies like Lyft and Uber to legally operate in San Antonio are finally moving to the full Council for debate. City Council will take up the proposed rules during its December 3 B Session.…
BLK Sheep’s A1 Pusha Releases Video for “Commander in Chief Pt. 2”
“San Antone, we here,” San Angelo native A1 Pusha declares in his new video for “Commander In Chief Pt. 2.” From the sounds of it, he’s here to stay. Backed by the decorated video label BLK Sheep Music Group, winner of Best Video and Best Record Label in the 2014 San Antonio Music Awards, A1…
After Statewide Campaign, Leticia for SA Mayor?
Arriving at Davila Pharmacy on the Westside for her first shift since Election Day, Sen. Leticia Van de Putte immediately picks up where she left off after her year-long campaign for lieutenant governor, which she lost last week to Republican Dan Patrick. She greets her fellow pharmacists and techs with hugs and kisses, dons her…
3 Reasons to Head to New Orleans in November
New Orleans festivals are unique celebrations, and there are many to revel in this month. November falls in the lull between the Halloween and Mardi Gras crowds. The oppressive, humid heat begins to let up, and tropical storms are less likely to disrupt your stay. The real New Orleans is not the drunk, manufactured tourism…
SA Lawmakers File First Bills for the 2015 Legislative Session
Was the last week enough time to recover from election season? Good. Because the 2015 Texas Legislature meets in just eight weeks, and lawmakers started filing bills Monday, giving us a first glimpse at their wishlists for the upcoming session. Here’s a quick rundown of what some of our San Antonio reps filed on day…
9 Free Events Happening This Week
Wednesday, November 12 – Wednesday, December 31 “Go Spurs Show” Hailed as “an artistic tribute and convergence of professional basketball and fine arts,” the team-spirited exhibit “Go Spurs Show” unites more than 20 local artists – Agosto Cuellar, Amada Clair Miller, Ana Fernandez, Vincent Valdez, Ethel Shipton, Jake Zollie Harper and Avi Avalos (AKA Mr.…
Man Accused of Stabbing Pregnant Woman Posts $100K Bail
A 27-year-old man accused of stabbing a woman who was eight months pregnant was released on $100,000 bail Monday afternoon, county records show. Jesse Cervantes Jr. is facing one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly stabbing the victim in her abdomen after she attempted to ignore his harassment. San Antonio Police…
‘Call of Duty’ Makes Advancements With Latest Game
As another holiday season approaches, video game fans are faced with the annual question of whether they should still care about “Call of Duty.” Consumers know they will get a solid multiplayer game every year and a compelling, albeit cliché story mode, but with more competition in the first person shooter genre than ever, is…
Air Force Band’s Free Show at the Majestic Theatre
Support our troops this Veteran’s Day with a bang. The United States Air Force Band of the West, made up of America’s peacekeepers, will be performing a colorful array of USA’s greatest composers. As an extra treat, the USAF Band of the West will be joined by the Texas Children’s Choir. The concert will feature…
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Restoration Projects Approved
Last month, state and federal Natural Resource Damage Assessment trustees approved five projects, including three artificial reefs, to compensate Texas for lost resources due to the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the five projects, which total about $18 million, are part of a larger plan that includes…
5 Things You Have to do This Week
Wednesday, November 12 – Sunday, November 16 Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Edward Albee intertwines illusion with reality in his iconic play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? George and Martha are middle-aged and married. George and Martha are also drunk. When a much younger couple arrives at their door, drinks flow, inhibitions fade, and reality…
Uber and Lyft are on the Public Safety Committee Agenda (Again)
Earlier this year, the Public Safety Committee turned down a San Antonio Police Department recommendation to move proposed rules that would allow ride-share companies to operate in San Antonio in favor of having another task force tackle the subject. And on Wednesday, the task force will bring its final recommendations to the Public Safety Committee…
Tobin to Host Alton Brown in April
Last September we bitched about Alton Brown, everyone’s favorite food nerd, skipping San Antonio while on a 40-city tour. It was a total bummer considering SA is beefing up its food game. Maybe he was just waiting for the right venue? Enter the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, which hosted Christopher Kimball of America’s Test…
Mike Villarreal Resigns from Legislature to Focus on Mayoral Race
Update Monday, Nov. 10, 2:28 p.m. Monday morning as he was filing his first bills for the 2015 Texas Legislature, State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D- San Antonio, expressed interest in running for Sen. Van de Putte’s Senate seat should she decide to run for mayor of San Antonio: “If Senator Van de Putte chooses…
Dispatch: Fun Fun Fun Fest Day Two
Gary Numan In 1979, London adventurer Gary Numan pumped out the spectacular “Cars,” an impeccable pop tune whose bouncy synths and awesomely-corny whiplash-snare effect helped usher in the idea of commercially successful electronic music. For a crowd mostly familiar with “Cars” and his similarly excellent Pleasure Principle debut, the Numan on stage was a stylistic surprise,…
Pelicans Prevail in Military City 100-99
Watching the Spurs take the floor in their garish camouflage-patterned uniforms on Saturday night I was reminded of Dwight Eisenhower’s dated dictum which stated that “The true mission of American sports is to prepare young men for war.” On military salute night, the Spurs had their hands full with Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans…
Dispatch: Fun Fun Fun Fest Day One
Fun Fun Fun? No, no, no Big Boys—more like Line Line Line Fest. At its worst, the que to get into the festival wrapped from Auditorium Shores across the Colorado and on to the other side. But eventually, we made it in for some headlining Fun. Judas Priest Best background display: Interactive LCD image of a…
Texas Cheese Cellar on the Way Via GauchoGourmet
We’ll be working on our Night Cheese really soon, fellow Liz Lemon fans. The folks behind GauchoGourmet (935 Isom) announced a new project on Friday afternoon. The Texas Cheese Cellar will open at 401 Pearl Pkwy inside the same complex as Stay Golden Social Social House and the upcoming Panzanella Pizzeria. Luciano Ciorciari, one of…
14-year-old Tiger Dies at the San Antonio Zoo
Pour one out for Raguno, guys. The San Antonio Zoo’s 14-year-old male Sumatran tiger passed away early Tuesday morning. Preliminary analysis suggests the animal succumbed to internal bleeding, possibly related to cancer of the spleen. A full pathology report, due in two to three weeks, will determine Raguno’s official cause of death. Tigers have a…
Perry Spends Wedding Anniversary in Court
The now infamous saga of Governor Rick Perry’s legal debacle continued to unfold Thursday as the Texas politician was in court for his third pretrial hearing. Perry—who at 13 years and 320 days enjoys the title of the longest-serving governor in Texas’ history—was indicted in August and accused of two charges: abuse of official capacity, a first-degree…
NDO News: Complainant Can Depose AT&T Employees
Matthew Hileman secured another win in an uphill battle he is weighing against mega-corporation AT&T. Hileman’s attorney, Justin Nichols, said a Bexar County judge gave the green light Wednesday for depositions of Hileman’s former manager at AT&T and two employees Hileman accuses of making threatening and discriminatory remarks about transgender people. “The parties are currently…
2015 SA Rodeo Music Lineup
Who needs the CMA Awards in Nashville, when you can party with your favorite stars deep in the heart of Texas at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo. The cherished Alamo City tradition will kick off February 12 and run through March 1 at the AT&T Center/Freeman Coliseum Grounds. Single tickets and season passes…
6 Shows to See this Weekend
Gardens & Villa (Friday, November 7)On Gardens & Villa’s sophomore album Dunes, the Santa Barbara quartet reps a retrospective ’80s feel, with warm synths and falsetto language in Brat Pack-speak. With a lo-fi flute soloing over a few tunes in their new collection, singer Chris Lynch’s woodwind helps separate the band from the chaf of…
Shot of the Week: Wild Turkey
Ok, so the shot of the week this week isn’t super creative. It’s not some fancy libation that people are going to look at and instantly want to start a conversation over. It also isn’t the kind of shot that is going to piss off your bartender. It is what it is and it serves…
4 Ways to Get Your Drink/Grub on this Week
Friday, November 7: Take a trip up I-35 and enjoy Wurstfest, which is launching a brand new craft beer garden. Stop in for the “10 best days in sausage history,” carnival rides, music, dancing, bratwurst, beer, and then some. $10, 4pm-11:30pm opening Friday; 11am-12:30am Saturdays, 11am-9:30pm Sundays; 5-9:30pm Monday-Wednesday; 5pm-11:30pm Thursday and Friday; 120 Landa,…
Vote for UTSA ‘Lego Movie’ Costumes in George Takei’s Halloween Costume Contest
George Takei, God’s gift to both homosexuality and the internet, is running a Halloween costume contest on Facebook, and it’s a perfect opportunity to let the world know that everything is awesome over at the University of Texas at San Antonio. A group from the UTSA Student Financial Aid & Enrollment Services are in the…
SA City Council Amends Distracted Driving Ordinance
You might want to consider making your New Year’s resolution to not talk on the cellphone while driving in the Alamo City. San Antonio City Council on Thursday amended its distracted driving ordinance to outlaw talking on a hand-held cellphone while driving. Texting while driving is already illegal. After January 1, there will be a…
Disney’s ‘Big Hero 6’ Fuses Genres with Imaginative Results
The premise of Big Hero 6 is familiar: In the near future, a teenager must overcome tremendous personal loss to, with the help of newfound friends, defeat the villain who wants to destroy society. This is Disney Animation’s version of the highly profitable young adult, comic book and action genres merged into one, and the…
‘Interstellar’ an Epic Adventure Fueled by Ideas and Optimism
This is big. It’s huge. We don’t make movies like this anymore—we hardly ever did. I’m not talking about big in the sense of budget or even big like epic. We do that plenty: spend the Gross Domestic Product of a small nation to make men in capes fly or monsters stomp or toys sing.…
Brace Yourselves, Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick Now Lead Our State
Now that it’s official, let’s think about the kind of shit storm we’re in for with Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick at the helm of our state government. If these sounds familiar, sorry, but they bear repeating. They hate healthcare for poor people. Texas Republicans have been vehemently opposed to expanding Medicaid under the Affordable…
Savage Love: Spank U
Is this even Dan? Probably not, probably an assistant, but maybe this will eventually get to him. I have a spanking fetish. I love to be spanked. I live in Oakland, California, so San Francisco is 10 minutes away. Seems like I’m in one of the best places in the country to have a kink,…
Jake Gyllenhaal Carries Creepy, Obsessive ‘Nightcrawler’
In the pitch-black satire Nightcrawler, director Dan Gilroy captures the cult of the American entrepreneur in all its amoral, sociopathological glory. It comes in the guise of Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal), an intensely buggy mouthpiece for our current obsession with self-actualization through capitalism. When we meet Lou he’s stealing chain link fence and manhole covers…
Ab-Soul and Big K.R.I.T.: Two of Rap’s Most Exciting Players Hit SA
Ab-Soul: These Days… Ab-Soul, in permanent shades and cool in demeanor, is the wildcard of the riotously successful Black Hippy Collective. Kendrick Lamar, Black Hippy’s undisputed leader, seismically shakes the rap world when he appears on guest verses (see 2013’s “Control”). ScHoolboy Q is the horny, bucket-hatted sidekick with a talent for making non-sequiturs work…
Butch Hancock: Flat land Renaissance man
Even if you fancy yourself a fan of Americana, it’s entirely plausible that you’ve never heard of Lubbock legend Butch Hancock, which is a shame because there are very few who do it so well. Certainly Hancock’s low-profile, workman-like approach plays a part in the criminal lack of notoriety that attends his illustrious career of…
The Timeless Appeal of The Psychedelic Furs (At Least the Early Stuff)
With a velvety fondness for sunglasses, the Psychedelic Furs emerged from the London punk scene in the late ’70s with a predetermined swing at success. As brothers Richard and Tim Butler got the band together, they met with the Manfactory Wave label, polishing a moneymaking sound that held on to the excitement of punk. Through…
Bottle & Tap: We are gruits
We’ve just passed October, the most ubiquitously beer-centered month of the year. Beer weeks, fests and regular imbibing occasions aside, it is 31 days totally dominated by all things Oktoberfest. It was the Germans, after all, who drafted the rules of what is and isn’t beer with their Reinheitsgebot (“German Purity Law”) in 1516: water,…
A Visit to SA’s First Claude Hopper’s
It takes a special kind of place to woo me to the Land of Loops. Needless to say, I’m rather apprehensive of heading outside of 1604, where most everything is manicured to look like it hails from some faux-Italian village, and if you happen to get stuck in traffic you might as well cancel any…
Italian, Mexican and then some at Lupita’s Seafood & Mexican Restaurant
San Anto is slowly upping its count of seafood joints. The latest addition is Lupita’s Seafood & Mexican Restaurant on the corner of Carson and Austin streets. This time via Fili Meneses, who’s previously worked under Andrew Weissman at Il Sogno and still hustles in the kitchen under Luca Della Casa of Food Network Star…
Crazy Carl’s Team on Burgers and New Ventures
The guys behind Crazy Carl’s are about to get hella busy. Not only will their “Eat St.” segment air this month, but best friends Andrew Samia and Shane Reed are also working on their next project that will add East Coast-style deli sandwiches and Midwest smoked meats to Houston Street. Before they open the doors…
Plenty of fish, shrimp and then some at Las Islas Marias
Las Islas Marias are three islands clustered off the coast of the Mexican state of Sinaloa. Only one, María Madre, is inhabited—and its denizens are mostly confined to a penal colony. LIM, the restaurant, is far from penal—and, especially on a weekend evening, anything but uninhabited. Don’t be in a hurry. Take in the colorful,…
One Lucky Duck, JoyRide Lunches and Tiki in Southtown
One Lucky Duck Texas (303 Pearl Pkwy, (210) 223-3825) is picking up speed in trying to afford San Antonians more healthy options with Pure Food and Wine dinners (in homage of the brand’s fine dining NYC restaurant) on Fridays and Saturday nights through November 22. Seatings will be available for 6 and 8 p.m. on…
Huge Rate Increase, Err, Water Deal Approved
Can you believe 2014 is almost 2015? Time sure does fly. Pretty soon 2020 will roll around. And by the time another five years passes by, expect your water bill to cost $32.50 more a month than it does today. You can thank San Antonio City Council for the rate increase. Last Thursday, council members…
The Shale Boom’s Hard Sell Begins Pushing Up Against Reality
[Image-1] The U.S. has undergone the kind of dramatic makeover that’s typically reserved for TV reality shows. The mining of unconventional shale gas, light and tight oil–enabled by horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing–has sparked an energy revolution. In 2005, when these unconventional wells were first drilled in the Barnett Shale basin around Dallas-Fort Worth, America…
Mujeres Mercado Brings its ‘Righteous Feminism’ to an Eastside Pop-up
I’ve asked around, and it turns out I’m not the only one who thinks San Antonio has a special kind of magic when it comes to nurturing the kind of comadre spirit that rounds up creative women in thrilling partnerships and collectives. We nurture a unique female energy here. Over coffee at Barrio Barista, I…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Shape-shifting is a common theme in fairy tales, says cultural historian Marina Warner in her book From the Beast to the Blonde. “A rusty lamp turns into an all-powerful talisman,” for example. “A humble pestle and mortar become the winged vehicle of the fairy enchantress,” or a slovenly beggar wearing a…
Everybody Loves Veterans: Brad Garrett on supporting the troops
As a way to honor the military men and women of San Antonio, comedian Brad Garrett (TV’s Everybody Loves Raymond) will serve as the Master of Ceremonies at Comedy Under the Stars, a standup comedy show sponsored by Humor for Heroes on November 9, two days before Veteran’s Day. Along with Garrett, other featured comics…
Ana Gasteyer on ‘SNL,’ ‘Mean Girls’ and Her Show at Woodlawn
Don’t put comedian/actress/singer Ana Gasteyer in a box. She wasn’t put on this earth to entertain audiences in only one specific way. Gasteyer, 47, will show her range as the first of four performers invited to participate in the Broadway @ Woodlawn Theatre Celebrity Series with XM Radio personality/host and pianist Seth Rudetsky over the next…
