New congressional report opens Kelly toxic triangle up to new questions
Greg M. Schwartz gschwartz@sacurrent.com Those who have doubted government conclusions about the health problems surrounding the former Kelly Air Force Base received fresh ammunition for their suspicions last week when a new report from the U.S. House of Representatives concluded that officials from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry “deny, delay, minimize, trivialize…
Luminaria rocks with Ashlee Rose Band, Krayolas, Young Generation and Mojoe
Greg M. Schwartz gschwartz@sacurrent.com Hats off to the Luminaria organizers for coming through with a musical lineup that matched the rest of the arts fare going on downtown on Saturday night. There was quite a variety of high quality, homegrown musical entertainment on display, and at some scenic stage locales as well. Some of the…
Yes! MORE (last minute) Luminaria
CATCH THE FEVER! Pretty soon I’m going to move on to another topic–this week, in fact, it shall be the unmissable “Phantom Sightings” show at the Alameda, but do y’all know what today is…? FREAKING LUMINARIA FINALLY! And you peeps better not be scared off by a little breezy precipitation. GET OUT THERE, ART FANS!…
Luminaria Streetscape Artists
(Google map image of area, sent by Thomas Cummins) Streetscape Luminaria artists: a Quick Run-Down Firstly, though, a note about weather readiness and changes by Libby Tilley, Luminaria spokesperson: “Everything is a go for Luminaria! We are weather-proofing Luminaria and will be ready to welcome the San Antonio community to downtown San Antonio rain or…
Dictatorial fashion rebounding in Latin America?
Bryan Thompson bthompsoe@gmail.com Let’s face it, the last time El Salvador crossed your mind, you were probably driving around in your ’77 Chevelle blasting Springsteen on your 8-track. Back then, the country was ruled by a brutal military junta and the impoverished peasantry was rising up in an insurgency known as the Frente Farabundo Marti…
CPS Energy fighting carbon caps as climate prognosis worsens
Science suggests Australia’s present drought and wildfires may be tracking to Texas. And guess who’s fidding? Greg Harman gharman@sacurrent.com The word from Copenhagen 2009 isn’t encouraging. As the world’s governments scramble to replace an expiring Kyoto Agreement, a gathering of international scientists released the message that the world is warming faster than the International Panel…
Live & Local preview: Pygmæus
Tonight, we’re headed to White Rabbit to check out the grapheme-happy Pygmæus, who we can only hope will be performing in kick-ass light-up top hats. If not there’s going to be hell to pay come review time, mark my words. The dudes in Pygmæus will be joined by locals Slain Monarch, the Dick Brown Experience,…
Social networking on the campaign trail
By Gilbert Garcia Barack Obama changed the electoral game in 2008 by embracing the power of the Internet, and mayoral hopeful Julián Castro has obviously studied the Obama blueprint. On Tuesday, March 10, Castro hosted his first-ever “media/blogger summit” at his Broadway campaign headquarters. Seated at a small table with a combination of private bloggers…
Even more pinche LUMINARIA coverage: Before & After
…And this isn’t even the last post! Tomorrow I”ll feature artists on the “streetscape,” letting you know who they are, and where they are. But here’s 2 more Luminaria possibilities. This one happens Friday night, pre-Luminaria: And here’s a poster for a party at the Farm post-Luminaria, i.e., midnight Saturday til dawn Sunday–not an “official”…
SOME CONFUSION ABOUT ED SAAVEDRA.
So, Ed Saavedra called me up, and a good thing, too–seems some peeps are laboring under the misapprehension that the opening for his one-man show at FL!GHT, entitled “All By Myself,” is tonight. IT IS NOT! There is an opening tonight at adjoining ONE9ZERO6 for Missi Smith, about which you can read more here. So,…
Texas Senate advances Voter ID bill after all-night session
Greg M. Schwartz gschwartz@sacurrent.com The Texas Senate’s Committee of the Whole voted through passage of a Voter ID bill along party lines this morning, following an all-night session of debate on the contentious issue. Senate Bill 362, requiring that voters present a photo ID in order to vote, passed 19-12. The result was all but…
Dalai Lama Renaissance at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema
Greg M. Schwartz gschwartz@sacurrent.com Producer/Director Khashyar Darvich says it’s just a coincidental accident that his acclaimed documentary Dalai Lama Renaissance is playing here in San Antonio in the same week as the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan national uprising, but those who believe in the Buddhist concept of karma may be more inclined to call…
LUMINARIA 2009: ¡CAM, Cassie, y Más UTSA!
LUMINARIA 2009 UNO: CAM Among Luminaria wonders and spectaculars this Saturday: it’s the virgin outing of the newly re-organized Contemporary Arts Month (CAM). After a “velvet revolution”/handover to a new batch of organizers, CAM will put on a March’09 Luminaria show, then will also do something this July (which is the final July CAM), then…
Cheech & Chong: Light Up America
Release Date: 2009-03-11 Legendary comedy duo Cheech and Chong blaze their way through San Antonio for the first time in at least 25 years. With countless comedy albums and films to their name, there might not be a bigger comedy show all year. Expect material to revisit their ’70s-era counter-cultural humor. Cheech Marin is also…
Phantom Sightings: Art After the Chicano Movement
Release Date: 2009-03-11 On loan from LACMA, this exhibition is a vast undertaking, seeking to make sense of what came next after the polemical Chicano art movement of the 1960s and ’70s. The focus here is on the experimental tendencies in contemporary Chicano art across a variety of disciplines. Look for work by San Antonians…
Joe Jack Talcum & Lederhosen Lucil
Release Date: 2009-03-11 There has yet to be a bad concert held on the Artpace rooftop, and this Luminaria kick-off promises to be the most intriguing yet. Joe Jack Talcum of ’80s alternative rock band The Dead Milkmen headlines. Having written a song called “Taco Land” he is sure to get a warm welcome. Krista…
Tokyo Police Club, Ra Ra Riot, & Ruby Coast
Release Date: 2009-03-11 San Antonio indie-rock fans, rejoice! Critical darlings Tokyo Police Club and Ra Ra Riot hit the White Rabbit on March 13. Both bands released much-buzzed-about records in 2008 and are on a quick ascent to the top of the indie pile. Toronto’s Tokyo Police Club got an early start when Rolling Stone…
Miasma
Release Date: 2009-03-11 Well, you already missed the First Friday opening reception for Beili Liu’s one-woman, site-specific installation, “Miasma,” at Three Walls Gallery in the Blue Star complex. But the good news is, you can ring up gallerist/artist Michele Monseau and make your own event of seeing it — either with a pal, or all…
The Big Spill ’09
Release Date: 2009-03-11 If you can’t make it to Austin for the South by Southwest music festival (or don’t like that $695 price tag), that’s just too bad. You can’t expect to sit on your ass and wait for all these acts to come to you; that’s not how life works, especially not in San…
Country kitchen
Sophisticated cuisine is comfy at Leon Springs Grill
Good times with Big Tyme
Release Date: 2009-03-11 A few Saturdays in a row the Bar Tab crew headed down to check out Mustang Sally’s — a sprawling roadhouse of a bar at the intersection of Roosevelt and S.W. Military. The opportunity to make comparisons to the movie Roadhouse were an added bonus, and of course inherently ridiculous, but it…
Parisian pedagogy
The Class (Entre les murs) Director: Laurent Cantet Screenwriter: Laurent Cantet Cast: François Bégaudeau, Wei Huang, Esméralda Ouertani, Franck Keïta Release Date: 2009-03-11 Rated: PG-13 Genre: Film A certain kind of popular movie translates the frontier violence of Shane into strife within an urban classroom. A charismatic outsider arrives on the scene and vanquishes the…
Wonder Woman
Critic’s Pick Wonder Woman Director: Lauren Montgomery Screenwriter: Lauren Montgomery Cast: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Rosario Dawson, Alfred Molina, Virginia Madsen Release Date: 2009-03-11 Studio: Warner Bros. Rated: PG-13 Genre: Film A note to all you Jeremy Martin obsessives out there: When you cut out this review and paste it next to my previous review…
Luminaria: Arts Night in San Antonio
Release Date: 2009-03-11 The second annual Luminaria has arrived. Last year’s ambitious debut pulled in a rumored 100,000 people, so it’s difficult to find anyone in town unaware of this large-scale event, yet, just in case: Luminaria is a full day and night of artistic celebration. With more than 1,000 artists showcasing a range of…
Borders and Walls
Release Date: 2009-03-11 This interactive play is an original work about metaphysical and physical border relations in Texas. We’re not exactly sure how it’s going to work out, but from what we’re told there will be a challenging audience-participation element as the true stories that inspired the play are re-imagined with more promising endings. We’re…
Megafaun and Slaraffenland
Release Date: 2009-03-11 Consider this a pre-SXSW showcase for these two visiting bands from the Hometapes label. Their two sounds couldn’t be more different — Denmark’s Slaraffenland offers Brian Eno inspired guitar and electronic soundscapes while North Carolina’s Megafaun seems to be Sonic Youth-laced hillbilly music. Exciting new work by artist Ed Saavedra as well.…
Octopus Project w/Hyperbubble and Foot Patrol
Release Date: 2009-03-11 Josephine Theater typically produces musicals and family-friendly entertainment, but this is about to change with what promises to be an outstanding concert. Austin’s popular indie-rock band Octopus Project headlines this show, bringing a unique mix of strong rhythms and pop melodies with various experimentations, most notably a Theremin. Their last SA show…
Farther south by southwest
One is a methodical, middle-aged prankster who infiltrates the mainstream media with rambling letters to the editor. Another is a self-doubting film critic recently moved to New York. The final three are high-school kids hopeful their fresh perspectives will outlive the duration of their short films. And all of them will represent Alamo City’s film…
Luminaria 2009: Utopia now
It’s a Wednesday night, the final in-classroom meeting of UTSA’s Advanced New Media class before spring break, after which the eight students will install their group show in the Convention Center for this Saturday’s public Luminaria extravaganza. Monday’s class was held in a coffee shop, where the students worked out a logistical plan of attack;…
S’Nuff film
The deadline for the Austin Film Festival (austinfilmfestival.com) is fast approaching, but who gives a rat’s ass? Frankly, SA’s Mini Mehas gotten way too much coverage in this week’s issue already, thanks to that fortnight-long industry wank-fest that’s fast approaching. So let’s focus instead on the vastly more Alamo-intensive 15th-annual San Antonio Film Festival (safilm.com),…
ARTIFACTS
Dudes, we know: Cultural functions in law offices could hardly be construed as “artsy.” But as Justitia (the visually impaired Goddess of Justice) is our witness, the evening of March 12 should make for somethin’ mighty different: The law firm of Stumpf Farrimond, P.C. will host an opening reception for “the School of the South,”…
SuperPoke democracy
A few short months into 2009, and we’ve already entered a new age of openness and transparency in government.Yes, the social-networking site Facebook has given its legion of users the power to help craft its new governing policies. They can make suggestions on the content of Facebook’s principles and regulations and will vote on any…
Luminaria highlights
Don’t-miss stars among SA’s thousand points of light. Find ’em all at luminariasa.org Download your map on Luminaria 09
The QueQue
Pen Pals Two weeks ago, when attorney Ted Lee publicly confronted District 8 Councilwoman Diane Cibrian over her role in the City’s zoning process, one of his big assertions was that Cibrian has an overly chummy relationship with lobbyist Bill Kaufman. The Current, which looked into Cibrian’s front-end role in the zoning process last month…
No more fussy pussy
It all started in the front seat of a rusted-out 1964 Chevrolet Impala. “If there were only one image people will always have of Cheech & Chong, it’s of two guys smoking a big joint,” Cheech Marin, 62, told the Current during an interview to promote the reunion stand-up tour, Cheech & Chong: Light Up…
Fighting the dynasty
Colin Strother picks his political battles pretty carefully. Strother, the former campaign manager and chief of staff for Congressman Henry Cuellar, knows that incumbent Councilmembers rarely lose elections in San Antonio (or any other city, for that matter), and tilting at windmills is not among his favorite pastimes. So when Strother cold-called District 1 challenger…
In theater as it is here on Earth
Paul Bonin-Rodriguez told us that if we hadn’t already turned off our cell phones, it really wasn’t necessary. It isn’t that type of show, is what the writer and star of the night’s first performance meant, and he was partially right. Jump-Start is debuting two plays this month in the Electric Performance Lab (EPL), a…
Amuse-BOUCHE
Wine dinners can run up the tab over $100/person with tax and tip, and in this economy that can take a big bite out of the paycheck. Bianco PastaVino, on Blanco just outside Loop 410, offers a nice alternative. The third Monday of the month the restaurant has a five -course, five-wine, seated dinner for…
No blood at Metalfest
The din emerging from the White Rabbit just before 10 p.m. blanketed a chunk of North St. Mary’s; it was easily perceptible from the Mix across the street. We’d stopped in at the local hangout for a quick drink-’n’-shot combo before heading to the White Rabbit Metalfest, where nearly 20 of Texas’s top new metal…
Three wines, three continents
It’s no news that the temperature has already risen to above 90 degrees in San Antonio. And though this doesn’t mean you need to yank the cover off the backyard barbie quite yet (you might want to rid the grate of the remnants of last season’s steak, however), the thermal rude awakening does suggest contemplating…
Serene Dominic Episode 13 with Dear and the Headlights
Serene heads to the Heard Museum to hear Dear and the Headlights sing, talk about their career, who they hope they’ll meet at Coachella, the band they didn’t like opening up for and finally, playing the first five way Lightning Round and Road Booty. Also on this lucky 13 vidcast, Serene counts down his Five…
Unplugged
My husband got his first computer, an Apple II, in sixth grade, around the same time that I was composing Jim Morrison-inspired free verse on my vintage Royal typewriter. When we met in college, I was writing papers longhand on yellow legal pads and then typing them up on my Brother (electric!) typewriter. Lindsay had…
¡Ask a Mexican!
Dear Mexican: Not sure if this has been asked before, but how do you feel about Arizona’s Sheriff Joe Arpaio? I think the guy’s a fucking racist who’s just out to get Mexicans to fulfill his racist agenda. He’s been relevant lately due to the protests in Arizona against Section 287g of some immigration act, which…
Dear Uncle Mat
I will cut to the chase and then fill in a few details. My best friend thinks his boyfriend is cheating on him. He has asked me to snoop around and find out any facts or incriminating evidence. Here is the thing: I don’t have to snoop around. I know his boyfriend is cheating on…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras is known as “the father of numbers.” He taught that mathematics provides the ultimate truth about reality. His otherwise productive career went through a rough patch when one of his students found that the square root of two is an “irrational” number that can’t be expressed as…
SA X SXSW
Girl in a Coma “`Playing SXSW` is definitely fun. This time around, even more so than last time, it’s just about not drinking so much … we want to focus and do a good job this year,” says bassist Jenn Alva of the alt-punk trio’s plan to concentrate more on business than pleasure this time…
THE SOUND & THE FURY
Former Sam’s Burger Joint booker Jerry Clayworth continues to promote local shows, and he’s bringing a retro-futuristic double bill to the Josephine Theatre on Friday, March 13. The show’s headliner will be Austin avant-rock provocateurs Octopus Project, joined by SA’s better-living-through-synthesizers cartoon couple, Hyperbubble. All-ages show, $10 cover. Showtime is 8 p.m. In what’s become…
We the Granada
Watching the members of We the Granada (formerly known as the Marauder’s Ghostship) set up their equipment, it’s impossible to tell what kind of music they’re about to play. Scott Martin, with his frizzy mop and acoustic guitar, might be good for some unplugged gangster rap covers; Ronnie Sutphin, wearing horn-rimmed glasses and carrying an…
“Permanent for a Moment” — Surreal McCoy
In the interest of fairness, we’re going to have to submit this entry into the Mixx Tape Traxx canon with a big fat asterisk, because Surreal McCoy might be a local act, but there’s no way this track was recorded more recently than 1975. Every single note of this gently plucked, mellow-voiced acoustic-y jam screams…
First Friday Report
By Sarah Fisch Howdy! This blog post brought to you courtesy of iced coffee and Paul’s Boutique! I hit the First Friday art show openings on actual-First Friday this month instead of on First Thursday. I hadn’t done First Friday in a long, long timeâ?¦ I mostly avoid it because I have trouble focusing on…
Oh Sheila
By Gilbert Garcia For weeks, Queblog assumed â?? or possibly hoped â?? that Sheila McNeil’s flirtation with a mayoral run was not serious; that it was either a trial balloon to set up McNeil for a county or state race in the near future, or purely an attention-seeking, ego-driven stunt. Well, it remains questionable how…
50th anniversary of Tibetan national uprising
Greg M. Schwartz gschwartz@sacurrent.com From the International Affairs Desk — Today marks the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan national uprising that led to the Dalai Lama’s escape and exile from Tibet in 1959. The Dalai Lama issued an extensive statement today in which he summarized his country’s plight. “These 50 years have brought untold suffering…
