Took a few days off to go canoeing on the Buffalo River in Arkansas — always a fine way to clear the mind and ease the soul — and came home to wonderful news: The Harvard Institute of Politics released its 23rd “Survey of Young Americans’ Attitude Toward Politics and…
Photo courtesy of Peter BesteWelcome to Ask Willie D, where the Geto Boys MC answers reader questions about matters, in his own words, “funny, serious or unpredictable.” Something on your mind? Ask Willie D! BOYFRIEND WITH BAD MANNERS Dear Willie D: My boyfriend behaves like he grew up in the…
Your ungratefulness sickens me RT @joeybadass_: If I’m under Trinidad James I’m not doing the Under The Influence Tour. Straight— Rodney Mac (@RappersRActors) April 22, 2013 Joey Bada$$ is under the influence of blog hype. Monday, the New York rap wunderkind, caused quite a stir when he reacted publicly to…
We’ve looked in on Brooke Humphries before, and we’ll probably do it again, but we wanted to check in with her from an angle of local support this time. Humphries, in addition to owning stakes in both Barcadia locations, Beauty Bar, It’ll Do Dance Club and new coffee joint Mudsmith,…
Every week Gavin will be presenting a guide to basic notions of common sense he feels are sometimes lacking from various aspects of the world of music. Also, he’s British, and they’re polite, right? Besides one or more musicians making a sound, what is the most important aspect of live…
Dear Mexican: I have always liked ranchera music. As of late, I have wanted to get deeper into it as far as the history, the culture and especially the songs and lyrics. I was wondering if you know a good book or two or website that I can check out…
Jill Abramson, executive editor of my favorite daily newspaper, The New York Times, will speak in town a week from tomorrow, 10 days later than originally planned. Her announced topic will be the same thing that delayed her: “The Boston Marathon Tragedy: ‘Quality Journalism’s Role in the Hyper Speed News…
Welcome to Alice Column, in which Alice Laussade writes stories about things on (roughly) the same day of (roughly) every week, making it (roughly) a column. Got an idea for a column? Start your own blog and write it up, you lazy shit. Dearest Lady Mosquito: Apparently your mosquito pools…
Just so people won’t get caught unaware, I want to point out that the town of West has until a week from tomorrow to grieve. That will be two weeks from the time of the industrial accident that blew up their town, took the lives of loved ones and left…
Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Ask Fan Landers! Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls’ Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to…
So who exactly wants innocent people sent to prison for life? C’mon. You know this one. We all know the answer. It’s the same people who think we should toss out the Constitution and put American citizens on trial in military courts. They’re the arm-in-arm allies of terrorists everywhere, the…
I thought it would be a private relationship between me and my record player. Music collections, no matter what they are made of, can be so intimate they border on embarrassing. Not sure what to buy, I clicked on review after review, talking myself into and out of nearly every…
Every week Gavin will be presenting a guide to basic notions of common sense he feels are sometimes lacking from various aspects of the world of music. Also, he’s British, and they’re polite, right? Social media. It’s pretty great for bands. They can list their gigs, share updates, and connect…
Dear Mexican: What do we need to do to make the güeros understand we come in peace? As Mexicans, we are from this great American continent as well, but in the average close-minded English-speaking folks’ definition of “American,” it’s amusing to see they don’t understand what it really means, being…
Let’s be real, for a change, about the debate over building an eight-lane highway along the river at the western border of downtown. Sometimes we say it’s a question of traffic needs or flood control or parks. It’s not. This is about the one thing everything is about sooner or…
Around Deep Ellum, Alan Keys is best known as “Alan from Reno’s”…the guy who threw a hell of a party for many years at Reno’s Chop Shop, bringing a pretty raucous and heathy-sized rock crowd in. Keys networked hard to get a lot of national touring acts to stop by…
Welcome to Alice Column, in which Alice Laussade writes stories about things on (roughly) the same day of (roughly) every week, making it (roughly) a column. Got an idea for a column? Start your own blog and write it up, you lazy shit. Dearest Bic For Her … I heard…
Lindsey BestAndrew Youssef [Editor’s Note: Longtime concert photographer Andrew Youssef found out almost two years ago that he had Stage IV Colon Cancer. In that time, he has continued to shoot tons of music events for our sister paper OC Weekly on top of other freelance work and working a…
Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Ask Fan Landers! Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls’ Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to…
Welcome to Alice Column, in which Alice Laussade writes stories about things on (roughly) the same day of (roughly) every week, making it (roughly) a column. Got an idea for a column? Start your own blog and write it up, you lazy shit. Your friends are throwing a baby shower…
What does it mean that Republicans and independents joined Democrats yesterday to shut down Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s anti-gun reform filibuster? It means Cruz lost a lot more than his filibuster. At a certain point — Cruz’s point — the gun reform debate ceases to be about guns and becomes…
Lindsey BestAndrew Youssef [Editor’s Note: Longtime concert photographer Andrew Youssef found out almost two years ago that he had Stage IV Colon Cancer. In that time, he has continued to shoot tons of music events for our sister paper OC Weekly on top of other freelance work and working a…
