The Radio-Television News Directors Association's 2008 Regional Edward R. Murrow award-winners were announced yesterday. Texas and Oklahoma share Region 6, and some of our local news broadcasters cleaned up....

Arson may have damaged the studio that housed 91.7’s KOOP Radio, but they, and the Austin community at large, will be damned if they let the station go without a fight. Another benefit is happening this Saturday, presented by Church of the Friendly Ghost and Commercial Suicide, and taking the shape of Rick Reed’s 6th installment of the Toneburst series. Begun about two years ago, Toneburst is billed as “new and unusual experimental music from Austin and beyond...” and this will be its first show in The Salvage Vanguard Theater. ...

Emo’s Free Week has come and gone, but the venue and the city march on with a buffet of mouth-watering shows available for consumption tonight. Eclectic beats from Dan Deacon pace Emo’s inside stage (as a part of the Ultimate Reality Tour) while Steamroller, She Craves, Killer Crocs of Uganda, and The Banner Year rock Emo’s Lounge....

For the third time in two years, community based public radio station KOOP 91.7 fm has suffered a studio fire that has put a halt to programming. ...

Andy Langer is Austin's nearly ubiquitous multimedia music journalist. In the past, he's worked for both The Austin Chronicle and KUT. He now hosts music news segments on News 8 Austin, writes a column for Esquire magazine, and appears on both KSGR and KROX radio on Thursday mornings. Now, after twelve years of (also) hosting 101X's Sunday new music program The Next Big Thing, Langer is migrating to a prime weekday evening spot at KGSR. His show will air Monday-Friday from 6 to 10pm, immediately following Jody Denberg's drive-time broadcast. Though KSGR's format is pretty flexible for AAA, it's a big change for the guy who's been playing lots of loud indie, Britrock, electronica, and lo-fi material at KROX. We spoke with Langer yesterday about the changes to his radio job, and he had a lot to tell us...

When Built By Snow contacted us via MySpace to share their love of The Beatles and Weezer, we were admittedly intrigued by what these local lads are capable of. It’s not everyday we get a message from an act about having the same two favorite bands as us. Noise, Built By Snow’s debut EP, appeared in our mail in due time and we discovered a talented act with catchy tunes that land somewhere between The Rentals and Ozma with a dash of Weezer mixed in....

White Shoes & the Couples Company are rumored to be coming in from Indonesia (via) for SXSW 2008. The band, formed in 2002, is inspired by Indonesian films of the '70s and retro disco beats, as well as classic '30s jazz. They recently signed to Minty Fresh, and we predict 2008 as their break-out year, provided they roll into town with a couple of good shows booked....

SFist saw Christmas Day turn tragic after a Siberian tiger escaped from her pen at the San Francisco Zoo, killing a visitor and mauling two others. Phillyist counted down the top ten items on Philadelphia's New Year's wish list. Gothamist looked at the wooden bikes being offered for NYC's first bike share program on Governors Island. LAist received a Christmas present in the form of a drunk Santa Claus in a g-string. Bostonist launched......

As Christmas approaches, good shows tend to get sporadic and good friends tend to leave town, but the promise of Emo’s Free Week will carry us into the empty canvas that is 2008. Still, we have ten days or so to find that one last good moment of 2007....

The state fish of Texas, the Guadalupe Bass, is close to extinction according to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department. The species was endangered when it was made the official state fish in 1989. Re-stocking efforts in two Central Texas streams led to inter-species mating with small-mouth bass. ...

Image via Big Hassle PR The Straylight Run w/ The Color FredMonday, December 3The Parish Room (214 East Sixth Street)$15, Doors at 7pm[info] | [tickets]Formed from the ashes of Taking Back Sunday, the Long Island group Straylight Run plays a blend of indie rock and chamber pop. Formed in 2003 by ex-TBS members Shaun Cooper and John Nolan, the duo left behind most of their emo influences when switching groups and recruited both Will Noon......

Image from Electric Six’s MySpace, by Alicia Gbur Electric Six, The Willowz, & We Are The FuryThursday, November 29Emos (603 Red River St)$10 | Doors 9 p.m.[info] | [tickets] | [Electric Six MySpace] | [The Willowz MySpace] | [We Are The Fury MySpace]After moseying around in the Motor City in the late 90’s as The Wildbunch, Detroit’s dance-rock outfit Electric Six released their breakthrough single “Danger! High Voltage” in 2001 under their current moniker. The......

Image from www.kut.orgBefore you get too bogged down with finals, papers, end-of-the-semester projects, etc., you might consider this for next semester: KUT is currently taking applications for their Spring Break/SxSW Intern Program. Interns in this program will undergo an intensive week-long audio journalism training program under guidance from KUT and NPR staff. KUT is looking for two student journalists to cover Film and three to cover Music during the SxSW Festival. You must be at......

Photo by StuSeeger on flickr#13 Texas (9-2) vs. Texas A&M (6-5) Time: 2:30 pm, Friday, Nov. 23 Location: College Station, Texas; Kyle Field TV: ABC Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) Maybe it is true that good things come to those who wait. After back-to-back losses to open conference play, the Texas Longhorns have waited -- through nail-biting finishes and devastating injuries -- and now stand on the verge of what is most definitely a......

Paris Is Burning DVD Cover Scion Independent Film Series Presents Paris Is BurningWednesday, November 28thAlamo Drafthouse South Lamar (1120 S. Lamar)Free, 9:30PM, RSVP Required[info]The musical stylings of "strike a pose, there's nothing to it", "you better work" and "I'm too sexy" entered our lexicon at a time when we were still sporting a perm and a retainer, so understanding that these pop radio songs were simply a corporatization of an entire underground subculture was far......

Image by The Young Adorable, Daetron Vargas DJ Mel Guests In For Radio On, TonightThursday, November 15PLUSH (617 Red River St.)10pm-2am, 21+ only, Free[info] Sure, Mel’s best known for his longstanding hip hop gig at Nasty’s every Monday, and then there are his quarterly Rock Tha Casbah parties which we here at the Ist like to get whiskey bent and sweat buckets. But he’s got more tricks up his sleeves than that. And tonight he’ll......

Photo by MotherPie on flickr Attorney General Greg Abbott says the rate of foreclosures in Texas is at crisis level; foreclosures in Travis County have gone down since last year, though. Hit-and-run on Airport Blvd. Sunday morning leads to the deaths of a motorcyclist and his passenger. Fredericksburg wants you to be quiet when you visit. State red-light fines that should be going towards medical trauma centers aren't. Del Rio high school student suspended for......

Original menu image courtesy the Frisco Shop With the Brentwood Tavern and the Travis County Farmer's Market both closing last month, the Allandale culinary scene is certainly undergoing some transition. The Austin Business Journal and the Statesman's Dale Rice report that the Frisco Shop (North Central Austin's haven of pie and artery-clogging comfort food) has found a new home and will not close its doors after learning last year that its location would soon house......

Photo by Ken Mau on flickr#15 Texas (8-2) vs. Texas Tech (7-3) Time: 2:30 pm, Saturday, Nov. 10 Location: Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium TV: ABC Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) Critics complained early in the season that the Texas Longhorns had no "identity". Were they a passing team that threw it all over the field? A run-first team that ground you into the dirt? A blitzing, hard-hitting defense? Over the last two games,......

Pump Up the Volume was so much more than a proto-Jock Jams house anthem by M/A/R/R/S. It was the youthful, telegenic angst of 1990, distilled and splashed against an awesome soundtrack. It was a young and (remember?) hot Christian Slater playing a high-school pirate radio DJ named Happy Harry Hard-On. It was Samantha Mathis playing a way ballsier and like, more articulate precursor to Angela Chase. And, like any teen dramedy worth its salt, it......

#14 Texas (7-2) vs. Oklahoma State (5-3) Time: 2:30 pm, Saturday, Nov. 3 Location: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma TV: ABC Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) With three games remaining in the regular season, the Texas Longhorns are as much as a mystery as they were before the season started. Currently ranked No. 14 in the country with games remaining against unranked teams (Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M), the Longhorns seem......

The SMART car, one of Europe's most eye-catching two-seaters, is finally coming to the states next year. If you can't wait to get behind the wheel of this fuel-sipping sub-$12k urban commuter, head over to Bookpeople post-haste. As part of its pre-US-launch promotional push, SMART is taking the European version of its "fortwo" vehicle on a 50-city road show. Austin is the final leg in its Central Tour, which started in Minneapolis back in June.......

#17 Texas (6-2) vs. Nebraska (4-4) Time: 2:30 pm, Saturday, Oct. 27 Location: Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium TV: ABC Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) The Texas-Nebraska game on Saturday highlights the clash of history and reality. Historically, both are among the premier programs in college football, and the numbers prove it. The schools have combined for more than 1,600 victories, nine national championships, 90 bowl appearances, and five Heisman Trophy winners. But in......

Brooklyn singer-songwriter Mike Doughty's name may not instantly register with you, but you have undoubtedly heard him before. In the early 90's, he founded the alt.radio staple Soul Coughing, who had hits with "Super Bon Bon" and "Circles" before disbanding in 2000. Far from the throwaway status of the Marcy Playgrounds and Harvey Dangers of the day, Soul Coughing used samples, drum loops, jazz references, and experimental producers like Mitchell Froom on their recordings. This......

Austin writer, journalist and musician Lance Hahn died Sunday afternoon. He had been in a coma since collapsing during dialysis treatment on Friday, October 12th. Lance was 40. His contributions to the punk scene both in Austin and internationally are too many to list. He was the creative force behind Cringer and the prolific, self-described "anarcho-situationist pop-punk" band, J-Church. His chops on the guitar eventually landed him the job as Beck's guitarist in 1994. He......

But really, The Castanets can't be a country band, can they? What with the quirky little indie and freak folk tendencies creeping up from the edges, those occasional dashes of electronics, and all that distortion squall they toss at their listeners...that can't really be considered country, right? Well, I hate to break it to you, but The Castanets' waterlogged new album, In the Vines, has just a hint too much pedal steel to get away......

#19 Texas (5-2) vs. Baylor (3-4) Time: 11:30 am, Saturday, Oct. 20 Location: Floyd Casey Stadium, Waco TV: Versus Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) Baylor head coach Guy Morriss has had better weeks. First, one of his assistant coaches was caught pissing on the bar at a Waco saloon. Then Texas Monthly's Paul Burka began spreading the rumor that Morriss was on his way out. To top it off, Baylor takes on Texas......

Hard-Fi - Once Upon A Time In The West (Atlantic): Not all rock music has to be serious. Our first thought was that this album was slickly overproduced to the point where it was impossible to be objective. But this was followed by the notion that it would sound great in the car. Trying again there, we found an album that jumps out of the speakers with beats pilfered from 90's Manchester bands, guitars straight......

#23 Texas (4-2) vs. Iowa State (1-5) Time: 11:30 am, Saturday, Oct. 13 Location: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, Iowa TV: Fox Sports Southwest Radio: KVET (98.1 FM, 1300 AM) Last week's loss to Oklahoma left the Texas Longhorns in a historic hole, looking up from the bottom of the conference standings with an 0-2 league record for the first time in 50 years. Midway through the season, the Longhorns are out of the national......

Hey, thanks Austin! We're thrilled that you chose us as your 2007 Best of Austin pick for Local "Fun" Web Site. Needless to say, it's a tremendous honor to be recognized two years in a row (last year, we tied with the Chronicle itself for Best Local Entertainment Web Site). We solemnly swear that we'll continue to entertain and, on those lucky occasions, enlighten you with the best in Austin culture and news. And, to......