Lest this come off as a negative review, let’s get a few things straight up front about Capital T Theatre’s production of Killer Joe, currently playing at Hyde Park Theatre. The acting is across the board spot-on. The set, co-designed by Mark Pickell and Tommy Grubbs, is nothing short of spectacular in its authentic, exquisite disgustingness. And Pickell, who also directs, is clearly a man who understands timing, suspense, and recognizes that kid gloves have no place in the staging of this piece. That said, a warning to the faint of heart, past victims of violent crimes, and sufferers of PTSD: you might be better off going to see a matinee screening of UP. Because Killer Joe is, even in its lightest moments, about as light as a pile of bricks buried under a slurry mound of wet cement. And then, as the plot thickens, so, too, does the concrete, until you feel your innards tighten and your organs harden at the spectacle before your eyes. It’s like somebody took MacBeth, All in the Family, and Sylvia Plath, tossed them in a blender, and splattered them inside a beat to fuck trailer out in Dallas County. more ›

In honor of Mayor Will Wynn's last day in office, Austinist compiled these top five lighter moments from his eight-year-long tenure. As News 8 reports, Wynn plans to stick around Austin and will be working for a Dallas-based energy firm, so, you know, you'll totes be able to hang out with him at Key Bar. more ›

Who wouldn’t want to follow Burt (John Krasinski) down the path that is Away We Go, as he and his pregnant girlfriend Verona (Maya Rudolph) take planes, trains and automobiles to visit friends and family searching for a place to raise their baby, and figuring out what life and love are all about, laughing and crying all along the way. more ›

Texas and Arizona State play again tonight to determine who will advance to the final round of the College World Series in Omaha. Texas is undefeated in the double-elimination tournament, so the Sun Devils must defeat the Longhorns twice this weekend to move on. A win by Texas either tonight or Sunday puts the Longhorns in the final matchup against either Arkansas or LSU. more ›

Anyone who's ever seen Sunset Rubdown live knows that Spencer Krug (Wolf Parade, Swan Lake, every other band you've ever heard of) and crew's mythological, circuitous, and, hell, even byzantine, song structures and brain-busting neuroses play in concert pretty damn well. The last time the Canadian crew did the Mohawk was at an ACL aftershow, and the stoic professionalism and understatement of the band's between-songs approach made all the more stirring the precision execution of their songs, which, in any form, classify as nearly literary in their depth...pretty much, these people are a hair on the smart side, but you wouldn't know it when watching the intensity they pump into their performance. Toss in the fact that they are supporting the newly-released Dragon Slayer, a raw and complex (though less complex than its predecessor, the brutally excellent Random Spirit Lover) peak into one of music's most stunning minds, and Saturday's set at the Mohawk looks to be a standout in what has been an excellent week for concert-goers. more ›

Tuesday night at the KLRU studios saw the Austin City Limits debuts of Esperanza Spalding and Madeleine Peyroux. These two strong and distinct female voices both pulled off gorgeous and evocative performances worthy of the show. However, one outshined the other. more ›

Hit up the Alamo Drafthouse this Sunday for a Father's Day Feast while watching Wes Anderson's dysfunctional family masterpiece, The Royal Tenenbaums. Sure, Royal might be a shitty dad. Okay, maybe he's an asshole and has disappeared for several years. And, true, he fakes his death to force his family closer together. But whatever, it'll just bring you and your dear ol' dad closer together as you can say, relatively, "You are such a great dad, Dad!" more ›

Oh, St. Vincent, how much more talented you seem to be with every passing month. As if your debut album, Marry Me, weren't enough to elicit the swooning of every pasty-faced hipster boy this great nation has to offer, you had to bust loose and break it down with Actor, an album that is harder, more damaged, more demanding, and just plain more rocking than what we'd ever expect. So here's our chance to show our appreciation: tonight, when you'll be ripping your guitar to pieces and embodying a slew of made-up characters all public-style at the Mohawk, where the crowd is sure to be attentive and engaged, and where you'll surely continue building your case as one of music's true up-and-coming dynamos, we can display our gratitude. We mean, what better way to end this American tour, right in Texas where you grew up? There, we can even wish you good luck for your next gig: your NETWORK TELEVISION DEBUT on Letterman this coming Wednesday. more ›

• California, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia all report record unemployment numbers for May.
• Iran's top leader warns of protest crackdown.
• No city music department for Austin, just yet.

Pairing local music with a good local cause seems like a good way to increase support in the community for a project or event. That’s exactly what The Will Evans Project ,a band who are no strangers to blending their music with a good cause, are doing for their CD release party Saturday at The Belmont. This eclectic Austin rock group who blend soul, blues and experimentalism into a sonically potent mix is releasing their debut studio full length, Planténga, with a portion of the evening’s proceeds benefiting Grounded in Music, which is a program bringing music education to kids. Opening the show is native Nigerian folk rocker Kalu James and the pop rock of Love at War. more ›

You already know the great Steve Earle, who just released his tribute to Townes Van Zandt with Townes. Earle is performing at The Paramount this evening, and relative newbie Joe Pug will open. Click through the jump to win tickets! more ›

This Friday at midnight, the Alamo North hosts a free screening of The Bloody Fists aka Deadly Buddhist Raiders or Death Beach (hard to decide which is a better name). more ›

The Meat Puppets, currently comprised of Curt and Cris Kirkwood and Ted Marcus, have been churning out stellar rock albums for almost three decades. Inspired by punk and hardcore, the brothers Kirkwood formed the band in 1980 in Phoenix with Derrick Bostrom on drums and dropped the In A Car EP on World Imitation a year later. Greg Ginn (Black Flag) took a fancy to the band’s sound and signed them to his label, SST Records. The first six Meat Puppets full-lengths and the Out My Way EP were all released on SST; In A Car was re-released by the California based label in 1985. more ›

You know what’s fun? Movies. About food. With painted up dwarves. And young comedians in purple coats. Under the stars. Sounds like a perfect Friday night, right? Well, we’ve got your golden ticket for this Friday, June 19th—the Alamo Drafthouse and Whole Foods present Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory outdoors, on the roof of their flagship store at 6th and Lamar. more ›

Rarely these days is a jazz musician able to puncture the mainstream and even make a dent in contemporary music outside of music schools and dank jazz clubs serving gin and tonics and unfiltered ‘cool’ by the glass. But, there is a small niche of young jazz artists around these days who are keeping the music alive and in some cases taking it places the old guard never did. Christian Scott is a trumpeter from New Orleans who graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2004 and has since released two full-length recordings and a live CD/DVD from his performance at the 2008 Newport Jazz Fest. more ›

Cooper, Robertson presented two proposals today for the future development of the Brackenridge Tract. The most controversial point is that both plans include the elimination of Lions Municipal Golf Course. The main difference between the plans is that one also eliminates the Field Lab, while the other merely shrinks it. Both plans keep the West Austin Youth Association, although one plan moves it slightly southward. more ›

KGSR's Blues on the Green 2009, Week 2 with Cyril Neville and Tribe 13. Photos by Steve Hopson. more ›

The video, above, is a pretty nifty behind-the-scenes look at the AT&T Distribution Center in Ft. Worth, where your future phone was probably packaged for shipment. Ahh, consumerism. more ›

his old band (who performed at Coachella and released a new album last year) and a habit of late which involves appearing onstage with Trent Reznor at nine inch nails shows. more ›

Proving that not everyone is letting the ungodly summer heat slow them down, the Blanton Museum of Art and the Austin Film Festival are teaming up to present the New Directions Film Series, which will feature the intelligent voices of emerging independent filmmakers. The five chosen films will screen at the Blanton on Third Thursdays and a few selected Sundays from now until July 19. Kicking off the indie fun is Gretchen, the story of an awkward 17-year-old trying to survive the indignities of adolescence. more ›

Red Collar has been rocking the pants off concertgoers in North Carolina for a few years now. Tonight, you too can get a taste of the Durham outfit’s frenetic live show. more ›

• Boy who vanished in 1955 may have reappeared.
• Preparing for opposition rally in Iran.
• Another downtown attack targets intoxicated club goers.

While righteous indignation can certainly feel good from time to time, it is not necessarily the most attractive or productive posture to take in all cases, especially when you aren't privy to all of the facts and context that surround a situation. Instead of pulling out our ole' jump-to-conclusions mat, perhaps the better reaction to would be to stop feeling like some injustice is being perpetrated on our community by horrible dictators and just take a deep breath already. In an open letter to the Austin community, Richard Linklater reminds us all to do just that, dispelling some of the recent gossip around what is happening at Austin Studios, and what it all means for Austin's film community. We're sure that any decisions made regarding the future of Austin Studios' tenant pool are carefully considered and if you wish to be more involved in the process, you should attend the open forum to discuss the pending new tenant, Soundcheck Austin, on June 25th at 11am. more ›

Buddy Holly, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Janis Joplin, Townes Van Zandt, Roky Erickson, ZZ Top, Spoon, the list is endless. Texas has nurtured plenty of legendary musicians over the course of the century and it could be argued that Powell St. John merits a mention in the annals of state’s esteemed music history for his songwriting alone. He has penned a number of ditties for the 13th Floor Elevators and many of his songs have been covered by the likes of Joplin, Erickson, Doug Sahm, and Boz Scaggs. A prodigious harmonica player, St. John was inducted into the Texas Music Hall of Fame in 2005 during SXSW; and while he was in town, he recorded Right Track Now, his first solo disc containing new material as well as a few gems he had written in the past. more ›

At 18, Wimberley native Sarah Jarosz is already a veteran of the modern bluegrass and Americana scenes. She’s been riding the festival circuit since the age of 12, and listening to her debut album Song Up In Her Head, you get the sense that Jarosz is well on her way to developing into a serious force as a songwriter and performer. A testament to this is that, while somewhat uncommon for such a young artist, the record is comprised of 11 strong original songs that sit comfortably beside impeccably performed covers of tunes by Tom Waits and Colin Meloy. more ›

Sally Jacques, visionary dynamo behind Blue Lapis Light, is at it again. more ›

Photos courtesy Chad Wadsworth. more ›

City officials will hold a community forum tonight to give an update on the latest developments around the city's web site. The forum begins at 6 p.m. at the George Washington Carver Museum, 1165 Angelina St. more ›

They’ve started a major summer tour, The Album is set to drop in just a few days and they’ve released an engaging and enjoyable DVD of live concert footage and behind the scenes band interaction. Wilco is on a roll, people, and if you’re really excited about that, then you belong at the Lake Creek Alamo on Thursday night. more ›

• Mousavi calls for massive rally in Iran to protest "shameful fraud"
• FDA says some Zicam nasal products can cause permanent loss of smell
• Obama to extend federal employee benefits to same-sex partners

The guy who brought out the APD was none other than the Neighborhood Representative of the City of Austin's Live Music Task Force, a gentleman by the name of Scott Trainer. A TravisCAD listing also confirms that he owns a $650k house that sits on the hill directly above where Shady Grove's music would be projecting—in the recording of the call, the music's loud enough that it can be heard in the background. more ›

Can you write well and would you enjoy sharing your stories with the world? more ›

Tonight and tomorrow night, the Paramount Theater will be screening two classic favorites starring Cary Grant: 1940's The Philadelphia Story and 1937's The Awful Truth. Both films feature Grant as a wealthy divorcee and both are certain to make you laugh. more ›

It looks like Unplugged at the Grove may be saved from the Zombie Noise Ordinance by Mike Martinez's boomstick an emergency amendment. The plan is that the amendment will keep the Zombie Noise Ordinance at bay until Shady Grove can get their Outdoor Music Permit renewed and get rezoned as a cocktail lounge. more ›

Texas survived an ugly first-round game against Southern Mississippi, and their reward is a matchup with one of the top pitchers in the College World Series: Arizona State's Mike Leake. The Longhorns will counter with their own ace, Chance Ruffin, who is coming off a complete-game victory over TCU in the super regional round. Tonight's game will begin at 6 pm and be shown on ESPN2. more ›

All photos courtesy Eric Uhlir. more ›

Sadly, the Dark Horse still hasn't received a proper collection of his work. This album (one of a string of half-hearted EMI releases) includes a handful of songs considered by many to be some of his greatest, but offers them as "2009 digitally remastered" versions that either a) poop on the Spector-produced originals or b) poop on the Harrison-produced versions. more ›

Protests continue in Iran; the Web watches. Breaking: Iran's Guardian Council says it will recount votes. Gay marriage: DC may be next. Obama pitches health care to the AMA. British Airways wants a free ride. Study says swine flu proves we're all connected. Bruce Willis gets remarried, celebrates in interesting ways. more ›

Texas AG Abbott filing against GM bankruptcy. Supreme Court won't take on the border fence case involving Texas counties. Hiring freeze: AISD no longer hiring teachers. Elsa Murano forced to resign as president of A&M? Elgin man arrested after robbing a topless dancer. APD launches web-based crime alerts. more ›

The doe-eyed foursome of Ed Droste, Daniel Rossen, Christopher Bear, and Chris Taylor, better known as Grizzly Bear, have been on nothing less than a carnivorous rampage (haha, get it, BEARS) ever since their sophomore album, 2006's Yellow House, slowly but surely worked its way onto a bevy of best-o'-year lists. And when the band made the ballsy move of debuting an as-yet-unheard "Two Weeks" on Letterman last July, the anticipation for a third album reached absolutely fawning proportions. more ›

World music icon Goran Bregovic is making a stop in Austin this week during his eight-city tour of the United States. We're giving away tickets for Wednesday's show . . . try your luck by filling in the form here. more ›

Seattle's Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band will be stopping by The Mohawk tonight as part of their tour of their summer tour. more ›

Glasgow's Camera Obscura are about as pretty a pop band as one is ever likely to encounter. The "moods" column on AllMusic.com's review of their latest album is comically accurate: "warm, stylish, springlike, sophisticated, soothing, pastoral, lush, and innocent." The band have been honing a sound that mixes a love of Phil Spector production and Belle and Sebastian twee for nearly fourteen years, and have quietly become one of the most reliable indie-pop acts out there in terms of consistency and quality. more ›

Cooper, Robertson will present two conceptual master plans for the Brackenridge Tract to the U. T. System Board of Regents at around 1pm on Thursday, June 18 in Ashbel Smith Hall 9th Floor, 201 West Seventh Street. more ›

Iranian post-election violence, crackdown EU leading international pushback Obama’s diplomatic dilemma in Iran Technology: “Tianamen + Twitter = Tehran” Analysis: Ahmadinejad to emerge with even stronger hand Power of women in Iran’s election Comic relief: Facebook introduces vanity URLs, Heywood Jablome first in line more ›