Empire Control Room & Garage
courtesy of Cooly Girls’ Juana Marshall Esperanza / Design by Zeke Barbaro
Volume 43, Number 3
Issue Supplement
2023 HAAM Day Guide
ON THE COVER:
news
Consultants Given Lucrative City Contracts Without Council Approval
City paid friends of City Hall top brass $300,000 through subcontracting scheme
BY AUSTIN SANDERS
Headlines / Quote of the Week
California Considers Criminal Charges for San Marcos Airline That Flew Migrants for DeSantis
Involuntary transport on behalf of the Florida governor
BY JORDAN BUCKLEY
Can Federal Funds Clear Up Local Water Problems?
Water quality is worst in marginalized communities
BY LINA FISHER
City Employees Blast Civil Rights Office Reorganization
Labor and justice advocates worry equity is being deprioritized
BY LINA FISHER
ERCOT Paid Bitcoin Miner $31 Million to Conserve While Texans Sweat
Bitcoin operations paid by ERCOT to conserve
BY LINA FISHER
Central Health Budget Suggests Waning Trust in Ascension
The budget adds money for direct services
BY LINA FISHER
food
33rd Annual Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival Contest Winners
The people and critics have chosen the best of the fest
Is Sea Moss Austin’s Next Superfood?
The edible algae is riding a wave of popularity across town
BY HANNAH UEBELE
Fil ’n Viet Is Closing, the Armadillo Den Celebrates with Sazon In a Delicious Latin Style, Holiday Bar Forwards Frozen Treats, We Haven’t Yet Said a Single Goddam Thing About Pumpkin Spice, and – OOPS
All the news that’s fit to get your taste buds quivering
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Austin's Best Food and Drink Events This Week
Dinner parties, farmer's markets, beer, wine, and more for the week of September 14, 2023
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
music
Austin's Hip-Hop Pioneers, in Their Own Words
The Austin History Center-archived rappers and industry innovators share stories
BY RACHEL RASCOE, KEVIN CURTIN, GENEVIEVE WOOD, KAHRON SPEARMAN AND DEREK UDENSI
Crucial Concerts for the Coming Week
HAAM Day, Ron Carter, and Pecan Street Festival lead our recommended shows
BY KEVIN CURTIN, DOUG FREEMAN, JULIAN TOWERS, MICHAEL TOLAND, RAOUL HERNANDEZ, KRISS CONKLIN AND DEREK UDENSI
Charlie Robison, Charismatic Texas Country Singer-Songwriter, Has Died at 59
Following 2018 retirement, Robison had returned to the stage this year
BY DOUG FREEMAN
Residential Address: Jenny Parrott's Cozy Nest of Songs and Stories at Hole in the Wall
The Austin folk experimentalist offers a free-entry Friday time portal
BY GARY LINDSEY
Live Music in Austin
BY DEREK UDENSI
Screens
Film Reviews
Cassandro
Biopic celebrates the life of queer luchador Saúl Armendáriz
Elevator Game
Goofy horror-comedy transitions to ghoulish chiller at the flick of a switch
Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time
The end of the rebuilt epic anime digs deep
A Haunting in Venice
The man and the mustache return in Kenneth Branagh’s third Hercule Poirot mystery
The Inventor
The life of Leonardo da Vinci recounted in charming stop motion
The Nun II
The Conjuring Universe expands with this supernatural horror sequel
Satanic Hispanics
Latino horror anthology hangs wild and loose in its pan-American chills
arts & culture
Review: Deaf Austin Theatre’s The Laramie Project
Enhanced American Sign Language adds depth, dimension to "testimony's ambitious sister"
BY BOB ABELMAN
Review: Alchemy Theatre’s Pipeline
Weak choices undermine the hard-hitting angst that drives this play
BY BOB ABELMAN
Arts Events
Art galleries, theatre, comedy, dance, and more
BY WAYNE ALAN BRENNER
Community Events
Local events, volunteer opportunities, kids' activities, and more
BY KATHERINE MCNEVINS
columns
Opinion: Minimum Lot Size Reform Is Gaining Traction in Texas Cities. That’s a Good Thing.
Austin should follow Houston's lead and embrace this solution to address our housing affordability problem
BY DR. JAKE WEGMANN
Day Trips: Our Lady of Loreto Chapel, Goliad
The little Loreto Chapel stands tall in history
BY GERALD E. MCLEOD
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
BY MR. SMARTY PANTS
The Austin Chronic – Which Is Better: Marijuana or Fentanyl?
According to the government, cannabis is scarier than the drug killing over 150 people a day
BY KEVIN CURTIN
Qmmunity: Carnival of Queers
A carnival of queer cavorting will delight your senses this weekend
BY JAMES SCOTT
The Luv Doc: His Allowance
Petulance is a choice, it's not a natural state of being
BY THE LUV DOC
Free Will Astrology
Your weekly horoscope, September 15-21
BY ROB BREZSNY
Feedback
Letters to the editor, published daily
comics
