Arts What’s the conflict?
When it comes to diamonds, it’s hard to know friend from foe “Good morning, this ain’t Vietnam still / People lose hands, legs, arms for real / Little was known of Sierra Leone and how it connect to the diamonds we own” In “Diamonds from Sierra Leone,” Kanye West berates fellow rappers for being obsessed…
Music CD Spotlight
Exile in blandville In 2003, Liz Phair decided to celebrate the 10th anniversary of her critically lauded debut, Exile in Guyville, by turning out the most critically reviled work of her career, the eponymous Liz Phair. Apparently, being rock’s hottest MILF wasn’t enough for the indie queen; her (at the time) 36-year-old mid-life crisis had…
Arts Beginner mind
Margaritas and monkey bars A not-so-Zen former New Yorker’s guide to the alamo city In my previous life as a childless New Yorker, I spent a lot of time in bars. I hung with my friends in bars, did business in bars, and even wrote about them for a local publication. When I became pregnant,…
Music Current Choice
Jalisco royalty When a Rio Grande Valley hip-hop station recently switched to a Spanish-language Recuerdos format, they christened their new incarnation with a song by Vicente Fernandez. Considering that the station’s target demographic extends from ages 25 to 54, Fernandez made for an appropriate choice. The reigning king of the rancheras, the Jalisco-born Fernandez cuts…
Arts Die another day
Along with the usual gaggle of ghosts and ghouls, Día de los Muertos events can be found across the city this week. Here’s a wrap-up of some of the most enjoyable: Cahualoy Zempasuchil Inyollocopa (Release Marigolds from the Heart) at Centro Cultural Aztlan, 803 Castroville, the first organization to re-introduce the centuries-old tradition to the…
Music Sound and the fury
A week on the scene Donnie’s grooves Since returning from New York in August with an impressive 3rd-place finish at the annual US DMC competition, DJ Donnie D has maintained his tireless performance pace, but he’s also expanded his creative reach into the realm of radio. Donnie recently joined Rob G as a co-host of…
Arts Word on the street
News and notes from the San Antonio literary scene It’s time for the monthly installment of Word on the Street, but like a Communications major who finds an irresistible slate of courses in the Fine Arts department, we’re going to approach this round-up as an interdisciplinary major, beginning with that most lyrical of non-literary art…
Screens In cool consideration
Director Bennett Miller was cautious about committing to Capote, but the result is captivating Bennett Miller was stymied. After his 1999 documentary The Cruise garnered him a shelf full of awards and enough buzz to assure him the opportunity to transition to feature filmmaking, the lifelong New Yorker had spent four years actively searching for…
Arts A steal at any price
Relics of a San Antonio renaissance go on sale next week at O’Neil Ford’s estate “It’s like Never Land … ” public-relations pro Nancy Scott Jones says as we walk across the spiraling brick courtyard at Willow Way, the former home of Texas’ most revered architect, O’Neil Ford. Estate-sale director Tomme Lu Riklin completes the…
Screens Everything is adapted
In the film version of Jonathan Safran Foer’s hit novel, characters are weirder and the spectacle is greater In his first film as a director, acclaimed actor Liev Schreiber discards half of the best-selling novel he is adapting, Everything Is Illuminated. Gone is the magical-realist account of a few decades in the life of a…
Screens Indie indecision
As the South Texas film scene develops beyond Austin, the phrase “independent” becomes more elastic A battle for the soul of independent film is being waged right here in San Antonio. Well, San Antonio and surrounding areas, including, possibly, Austin. And really the soul isn’t involved … nor is there violence of any kind going…
Screens Armchair Cinephile
Nightmare cinema, take two As promised, here’s another batch of new horror releases to slake fans’ Halloween bloodlust. By November 1, we’re intent on having you ready for romantic comedies and historical epics again. The biggest news from a film-history perspective is The Val Lewton Horror Collection (Warner). Touted by big thinkers from James Agee…
Screens Special screenings
Movies at the Instituto La Escondida Dir. Roberto Gavaldón (1955) A courtesan uses her charm to climb the social ladder, but her love for a rebel leader leads to her downfall. The screening begins at 4 p.m. Sunday, October 30, at the Instituto de México, 600 Hemisfair Park. $2. Rocky Horror Show bonus Camp Daze…
Screens That’s a wrap
The low-down on this week’s premieres It’s partly cloudy, er, a 20 percent chance of, er … As unpredictable as the weather he monitors each day, the life of Dave Spritz (Nicolas Cage) is like a snowstorm in July in The Weather Man. Faced with the decision whether or not to audition for a meteorology…
News Second chances
Drug court receives million-dollar grant to help reunite families Julie Covington is not a local TV reporter, but she could be. Well-spoken and photogenic, she might easily fulfill such a role in front of a news camera. She demonstrated her public-speaking skills last week as she stood at a podium and faced a phalanx of…
Food & Drink Ideal iddly
Madras Pavilion’s exotic southern Indian dishes overcome a sterile setting The creators of Madras Pavilion would do well to rent Monsoon Wedding and screen it several times; they would be reminded of the visual heritage they should have inherited along with the culinary. I say this because the dominant decorative element at San Antonio’s newly…
News Party lines
NFL in SA? Stop the foolishness It’s a trip down memory lane. Back in the late 1980s, Bubba wanted to build a football stadium. He wanted to build it on the taxpayers’ backs, and the hapless voters actually approved a 1/2-cent sales tax to construct the $180 million albatross on a contaminated plot of land…
Food & Drink The great pumpkin
Stew your caldo inside a pumpkin and watch both disappear Autumn’s annual debut in South Texas has crept up on us, finally sweeping those 100-degree sweltering days into the history books. Now is the time to ponder carving pumpkins and simmering pots of caldo on the stovetop. Jack-o-lanterns lie tumbled in local grocery aisles. They…
News Briefs
Progress continues on the Aztec Theater The Aztec Theater was a sight when it opened in 1926. The theater’s interior featured a tribute to the ancient cultures of Mexico and their cultural icons, from a visage of Aztec warrior Cuautemoc above the entryway to a fire screen on the stage that depicts the meeting of…
Food & Drink From Mexico with lard
In the ’70s, Fonda San Miguel took the Tex out of Mex When Tom Gilliland and chef Miguel Ravago opened Fonda San Miguel in 1975, they had a hard time selling regional Mexican dishes to Austin diners. Texans, it seemed, were not ready to give up their chalupas, puffy tacos, and enchiladas, combo-plate comfort food.…
News Speed reads
NEISD receives rating change The Texas Education Agency recently granted North East ISD’s rating appeals for four of the district’s schools. The ratings for MacArthur High School, Churchill, Roosevelt, and Montgomery Elementary have been changed from Academically Unacceptable to Acceptable. Ratings are primarily determined by student academic performance on the TAKS test and the State…
Food & Drink All you can eat
Current Online news politics culture News and notes from the San Antonio food scene Hoo-hoo for Huhot Huhot Mongolian Grill, 12710 I-10 W, where diners create their own Mongolian feast, opened in early August. A variety of meat, seafood, and noodle options — as well as 20 vegetables and 24 sauces — are offered assembly-line…
Feature The divining rod
In less than a year, SAWS’ CEO David Chardavoyne has retooled the utility’s mission: find and sell water — lots of it CEO David Chardavoyne works in a building where oil once reigned, but is now occupied by water. The San Antonio Water System recently relocated its headquarters from East Market Street to the former…
Music Straight shooter
Shooter Jennings is not just Waylon’s son; he has come into his own With the father of country outlaw Waylon Jennings as his daddy and Johnny Cash as his godfather, it’s easy to imagine where Shooter Jennings inherited his rebellious streak. This summer, he released his country-rock debut, Put the ‘O’ Back in Country; next…
Arts Straight from Milan to SA
Fashion legend Roberto Cavalli unpacks his trunk at the Municipal Auditorium Arguably one of the biggest names in haute couture, Roberto Cavalli has built a career that includes more than three decades of dressing royalty — the Hollywood variety as well as the truly titled. Culture historians credit him with first printing on leather, and…
Music Notes from the underground
Digable Planets – Medicine music from the underground thing “The underground is straight from the street, you and your fans are right there,” exclaims cosmic emcee Craig Irving, aka Cee Knowledge. “With the underground, you get most of your love from doing these shows. With major labels, it’s more about marketing strategies, what’s going on…
