• Is this a workers’ comp injury? Dude badly cut himself while allegedly breaking into “Big Bang Custom Paint and Body” in Killeen. He was arrested after he got out of the hospital!
• This reads more like an action-movie plot than a headline: “Vehicle crashes into home, hits baby. Baby expected to be OK.”
• Dallas-area church really wanted 18 cohabiting couples to get hitched…so they footed the bill for a big wedding! The wedding was part of a lecture series called, "The Real Flava of Love."

Satch died in my arms yesterday. Today is the seventy-ninth anniversary of my father’s birth. And while I have already written beyond extensively about my father’s life—namely our horrible relationship—and my oldest dog’s life (and waiting for his death), I’m not quite finished with all that yet. Living with Satch was, at times, like living with my father. There were vast differences, of course—for one, Satch was slavishly dedicated to me, eager for my time and attention, at the ready with a wag far more often than not. And yet, like my father, Satch was difficult, randomly aggressive, tenacious to a fault, not interested in putting things down, and extremely bossy with the rest of the pack. He snapped unpredictably, and in the end that snapping extended to me—twice in the past few weeks he came close to biting me. more ›

Photo by Daniel Perlaky The Black and White Years Wednesday, November 28Emos (603 Red River St)$5, 10 pm[info] Locals The Black and White Years have had their genre-blurring, squiggly synth rock compared to The Talking Heads so many times it should come as no surprise that Jerry Harrison of that band (not to mention a one-time member of The Modern Lovers) produced their self-titled debut album. As a producer, Harrison’s work can be seen all... more ›

Flyer from BGirl City Championships Home Slice Pizza celebrates its second anniversary (happy birthday, guys!) with a giant Pizza Carnival—expect pizza tossing acrobats, pizza eating contests, "Great Calzoni the Slice Reader," and more, with proceeds going to benefit Young Texans Against Cancer The 6th annual East Austin Studio Tour returns, featuring more than 200 artists at over 100 studios—ride your bikes this year! VICE Magazine, Gomikitti, and Scion throw a killer free party at Antone's... more ›

Roky Erickson of the 13th Floor Elevators. If you missed your chance at tickets to his ACL taping, you can catch him, along with bassist Benny Thurman, drummer John Ike Walton, and producer Walt Andrus at BookPeople this Saturday. Image from Southern Records Paul Drummond and Roky Erickson present Eye MindSaturday, November 10th BookPeople (603 N. Lamar)Free, at 7pm[info] There are plenty of routes to fame in the world of music, and talent certainly plays... more ›

Image from Ringo Deathstarr’s MySpace It’s no secret that Austin is home to one of the most prolific artistic scenes in the country, Live Music Capital of the World or not. Any weekend in the city promises a number of day time occurences and a plethora of evening events. A quick browse through this weekend’s notifications leads one to fun activities for the kids at The Flying Theater Machine’s Wang Dang Doodle Hour or a... more ›

Seattlest watches as a S.L.U.T. is born and Seattle Flickr users go nuts over a local art installation. A restaurant critic demands a Diner's Bill of Rights over a gnat next to her drink, and, in lieu of a Portlandist, Seattlest debates with itself over the identity of the Northwest's crown jewel. Seattlest also joins the guys from Fantagraphics for an ill-fated gun party in the woods. Bostonist got a crash course in what not... more ›

Another Friday means another round of fresh outta the box movies. With summer's end possibly mere weeks away, these are our last days to indulge in the pastime of escaping Austin's scorching good vibes to sit in distracted air-conditioned comfort. And in some parts of the country it's already fall, which means there's a bumper crop of new movies out! The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford: On one hand, this period... more ›

Andrew Bird (5:30pm): After this set, one Austinist staffer remarked: "This guy just beamed in from planet music." And with a stage full of spinning gramophones, violins, finger cymbals, and glockenspiels, it was hard to dispute that quip. Bird took the stage slightly late due to a tardy finish by Blue October, which had the crowd snarling over their shoulders at the lengthy drum and guitar codas coming off the main stage. But when... more ›

日本語を話すか? Parlez-Vous Francais? No? Well, unless you are highly skilled in the art of deciphering body language and deducing plot lines from contextual clues, you should definitely be prepared to do some heavy reading this week as the Paramount brings you classics from the foreign lands of France and Japan. Unsentimental love stories, vengeful Samurai and punk kids make you want to spar, pout and spar some more! more ›

Why does a production company in general, or a director in particular, choose a difficult script? Is it the challenge? The thrill of potentially succeeding where others have failed? Certainly an easy script can be dull to work with, especially if it's something that's been done to death, such as many of the straightforward, heartwarming, popular theatre pieces that make up so much of community theatre fare. We mulled over this question while we recently... more ›

The Spicewood bar where an Austin Police commander and her husband, also an officer, were drinking before dying in a motorcycle crash was shut down by the TABC Today was the 41st anniversary of the UT Tower shootings Six cases of human West Nile Virus have been reported in Texas this year After the scandal earlier this year where UT's financial aid chief Lawrence Burt had improper dealings with a student loan company, the... more ›

These days, when it ain't raining, it's blazing hot--definite shorts weather. So put on your short-shorts and head over to Salvage Vanguard Theatre next Wednesday for an assortment of offbeat short movies, all of which will quench your thirst for knowledge just like a Shiner quenches actual thirst. From car crashes to dead dogs to hustlas from Galveston, these films have it all: The Aftermath on Meadowlark Lane (David and Nathan Zellner) A car crash... more ›

According to the 2007 Allstate America’s Best Drivers Report™, Austinites get into more crashes than drivers in any of the 20 other Texas cities on the list. Austin ranked 179 out of 197 cities nationwide and Austin drivers are 31% more likely to get into a crash than the average American driver. Motor vehicle traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for Americans aged 4 to 34. more ›

FRIDAY [25] party • The Onion's "Summer Fun Blast Blowout Extravaganza!" Party with Clap!Clap!, Crash Gallery, Devil in the Choir, DJ Rubix, Prince Klassen, and a chance to win a scooter from Scooter Revolution at Beauty Bar ($2, 9:30pm) theatre • Rubber Repertory presents A Thought in Three Parts at The Vortex (8pm) music • Emissions From the Monolith Fest at Emo's music • Voxtrot, Au Revoir Simone, The Black, Zykos at Emo's music... more ›

Battles Mirrored (Warp) Battles combine John Stanier's (Helmet, Tomahawk) frenetic drumming with Ian Williams' (Don Caballero) signature finger-tapping guitar work and layer prog-metal keyboards along with everything from hip-hop and rap to free jazz to cartoonish vocal effects, creating what is probably going to be one of the most quietly influential albums of the year. Though the band has been around for over four years, Mirrored is their first full-length. Previous EPs have indicated... more ›

*The views expressed in The Laurie Show are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -ed. note I have returned, music lover! Yes, my on-air escapades on KUT 90.5 FM have been scattered about, but I'm actually working my regular shift tonight, 11 p.m. to 3 in the morning, when the peeps are still stumbling out of the cantinas. And once again, my inspiration for tonight's chaos comes from... more ›

Talk about getting a bad reputation for no reason! Zinfandel is the quintessential American grape: author Mark Oldman calls it the "great American wine" and describes it as "a varietal with mouth-filling heft and massive alcohol...which offers a lovable, jammy excursion built for immediate gratification." Unfortunately, many casual wine drinkers only associate the word Zinfandel with the horrible pink blush wine that comes out of a Franzia box. To help combat this misguided idea,... more ›

FRIDAY [27] music • While You Were Out, presented by Bueno Music Bureau, with The Unbearables, She Sir, The Scripts, Friday After Dark at Club de Ville ($5) books • Anita Gonzalez, Ph.D., presents Dancing Between Myth and Reality at CAAAS (UT - Jester A232) (3:00pm) comedy • Tig Notaro and Steve Burr at Cap City Comedy Club comedy • Punchline, open mic stand up comedy at ColdTowne Theater (10pm) dance • Fetish and Other... more ›

Clap! Clap! are a hard-working band. Besides playing numerous shows in and around town, they have been in the studio recording their debut full-length (You Love This), chock full of blistering synth pop-rock no doubt. The number of members in the band has peaked at fifteen during some stages of their career, making for some riveting performances but Josh! Clap! verifies the current number of constituents to be eight. He also points out that... more ›

Owned by notable relationship and sex therapist Dr. Natasha, South Austin's 365 Days 365 Ways carries a full selection of adult toys marital aides, bachelorette gifts, books, videos and lingerie. Every so often, they offer a variety of classes for those seeking to spice up their sexy times. Tonight, the boutique is hosting a free "Sex Ed U" class, during which attendees will be given a crash course on the store's wares while indulging... more ›

"What the Stones were; what the Dandy Warhols should have been."* Strong words, even in today's desensitized rock-critisphere, but Lions In The Street have already opened for Kings Of Leon, been shopped-and-dropped by major labels, and recorded their debut EP in a dingy basement with an 8-track and broken mics because they could hardly afford beer. What are you gonna tell them, be less rock and roll please? This is the kind of band SXSW exists for. (Said EP, Cat Got Your Tongue, is available as a free download on their website, so you downloaders aren't getting away with anything.) Besides that, it's obvious that frontman Chris Kinnon has plenty of love for the ATX: more ›

Here, as we collectively tremble at the gaping maw of 2007, Emo's, in its infinite magnanimity, has provided us with an entire week of free shows. Stopping in over the past few nights we've seen many strange and wonderful things: screaming female hardcore vocalists, punk as pure as black baby powder, hirsute hipsters, and faces on the floor, having been viciously rocked off. Tonight will be no different in that there is sure to... more ›

Whether you think of it as a test run for SXSW, a belated Christmas present to local music fans, or an excuse to drink for seven days straight, Emo's Free Week kicks off today with a schedule of acts that reads like a who's-who of local punk, indie, and rock. As the showcases are all without cover, we'd recommend getting there early. Emo's Free Week January 2-8 603 Red River Tuesday, January 2 Inside:... more ›

The first-ever Fun Fun Fun Fest is this Friday, December 1st, at Waterloo Park. Over two dozen great acts are on the bill, including Spoon, Peaches, The Black Angels, Prefuse 73, and DJ Mel. Tickets are $20, and can be purchased online. Gamblers perform on the punk stage at 6:55. --The Editors How's Volcom treating you? Any Riverboat Gamblers skate decks in your future? Volcom has been great! They give us lots of socks,... more ›

Considered the “great film” of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, an early indicator of its Oscar potential, Babel is a film which shares notable characteristics with recent successful indies capable of garnering the full attention of Hollywood. Looking like Syriana in its scope, feeling like an international version of Crash, Babel is the interweaving of stories about people in crisis – their crises arising from misunderstandings and failed communication – culminating in a... more ›

THURSDAY [9] music • Ice Age Cobra, Maaster Gaiden at The Mohawk music • Crash Gallery, The Last Gasp, Future Clouds and Radar, Red Leaves at Emo's music • 2nd Annual Miracles on 8th Street at Stubb's ($70, 7pm) music • 2006 Hotel Cafe Tour with Cary Brothers, Rachel Yamagata, Tristan Prettyman, Joshua Radin, Jonah Matranga, Jim Bianco, Sara Bareilles at The Parish Room music • Joshua Radin at Waterloo Records music • CREEPOUT... more ›

You've grown tired of the standard Austin buzz bands (Brothers and Sisters, Tacks the Boy Disaster, What Made Milwaukee Famous, etc.). They're great and all, but you've seen them already and its Thursday night goddammit, you want a cold beer and some fresh sounds. Never fear, intrepid music fan, Emo's is hosting a sprawling, awesome show where you can hear some of your local comrades demonstrate their ability to rock your silly face off.... more ›

THURSDAY [26] music • The Beauty Shop, The Shells, The Drawing Board, Just Guns at Emo's music • Broken Social Scene with Do Make Say Think at Stubb's music • Reunion Show for Clifford Antone's Birthday at Antone's music • Jamie Lidell w. Back Ted N Ted (late show) at The Parish Room music • Juana Molina w. Adem (early show) at The Parish Room music • Pete Yorn, Minibar at La Zona Rosa... more ›