Dancing About Architecture
"What? Again!?" I'm willing to bet that that'll be the most common reaction to
the surprise news that La Zona Rosa is opening once again. And no, I don't just
mean that the property at that address will be housing a new business, even
though several local club folks have been chatting up the idea of opening
nightspots there (including one former club manager who had visions of creating
a combination punk/alternative club and late-night pho restaurant). No, I'm
telling you that La Zona Rosa itself is rising from the ashes yet again
(though not quite as literally as Pearl's Oyster Bar, whose formerly burned-out
hulk reopens next Thursday). The owners of Fat Tuesdays have snapped up both
the building and the name and will be re-opening the doors of the club on
September 13, with an official grand opening to follow in October. Fat
Tuesdays' Frank Alterman says that the hope is to "keep the spirit
alive" that fueled the original Zona, but that the new owners "hope to run it
better and keep it alive a lot longer." After two well-publicized closings on
the part of the previous ownership, that would seem to be an admirable goal.
Also back will be some of the residencies once nurtured by the old Zona, though
Sarah Elizabeth Campbell's popular Bummer Night will be sticking with
its current home. Oh, gosh, I forgot to ask what the food specialty of the new
Zona will be - ah, well, it doesn't matter, as the kitchen won't be opening for
at least four months. Say, isn't that longer than the whole operation stayed
open the last time?
Young Guns in Texas
Celebrity spottings are coming in from all over the city these days. Emilio
Estevez, the brat packer who still gets work, has reportedly been seen
around town looking for a location for a movie shoot. Among the spots scouted
so far are the Continental Club, Black Cat, and the Broken Spoke. Brad
Pitt has also been seen cruising around in a black Jag, with a more
domestic purpose in mind; he's looking into buying a house in the Lake Travis
area. A second source tells me that Pitt waited unrecognized - and
un-helped - at one real estate office for 45 minutes before walking out
and trying elsewhere. I can't run through the young leading man category
without getting Johnny Depp in there, now can I? Well, the release of
the P album has been delayed until mid-October, but you may be seeing
Johnny D. around town sooner, what with that video needing to get done (and
hey, there is a Bill Carter gig coming up soon). I'm not sure
where the release party gig is going to be, but I'd probably put a small wager
on a big affair at the Austin Music Hall and a "secret" show at the Continental
Club. Oh, and had you noticed that local band cling contains a member of
the Twin Peaks cast?
America "Vaughan-Line"
This Sunday marks the fifth anniversary of the helicopter crash that took the
life of Stevie Ray Vaughan, and in that half-decade, the blues haven't
left us, and time hasn't stopped marching on. As such, America Online's
Blues Chat will be presenting a forum this Sunday at 9pm CST for SRV
fans to chat with his bandmates Tommy Shannon, Chris Layton, and
Reese Wynans, as well as writers/friends of Stevie Margaret Moser
and Dan Forte via the miracle of the internet. AOL subscribers can post
questions in advance of the show by going to Keyword: MMC, clicking on
Jazz/Blues, selecting Blues and scrolling down to the "Remembering Stevie Ray"
folder.
Terminal Mind Just Left...
Next Thursday, not quite a year after the Raul's reunion show at Liberty
Lunch, that club will be host to the official CD release of the oft-delayed
Live at Raul's reissue album. On hand for the occasion will be the
Larry Seaman Three (featuring most of the Standing Waves), Ty
Gavin of the Next, Jesse Sublett of the Skunks,
all of the Explosives, and maybe - just maybe - Mr.
Roky Erickson will take the stage with Fred Krc and company for a
short set. Even though this gig lacks some of last year's show-stoppers like
The Judy's or the faux Re*Cords, don't forget how
peeved you were when you blew off the reunion and then heard the next day what
a blast it was.
Wait'll We Get Our
Haynes on You
I'm told that Andy Haynes, like his brother Gibby, is no slouch
at attracting celebrities and alcohol. The younger Haynes recently did a little
detective work and tracked down Ozzy Osbourne at Mezzaluna, I hear.
There, he engaged the Oz in friendly conversation and even managed to get a
free drink out of him. As far as Osbourne's show at the Austin Music Hall, kick
yourself if you blew it off 'cuz you thought you couldn't get in. While the
show was a quick sell-out, the scalper crowd apparently overestimated their
market and last-minute tix were going for bargain prices outside the show. For
further Oz talk, check the "Live Shots" this issue.
Hot Don!
ABC Prime Time has taken a shine to Don Walser and will be
following him around throughout the next week in preparation for a 6-8 minute
feature on him for inclusion in their September 13 airing. You'll likely find
them at his usual Babes (Monday) and Jovita's (Tuesday) gigs, as well as at the
Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival this Sunday at the Travis County Farmers'
Market, where he and Los Pinkys will be providing the music.
Mixed Notes
The upcoming tribute album to Willie Nelson has got some mighty heavy
hitters on it, like L7, Dinosaur Jr., and Screaming Trees (What?
No Supersuckers?) Oh, yeah. One more thing: Also appearing on the album
will be a "jam band" including members of Alice in Chains, Soundgarden,
and Nirvana, fronted by Johnny Cash... Roland Swenson,
SXSW kingpin, got his name on the cover of the latest Texas Monthly as
one of the state's 20 "most impressive, intriguing and influential Texans of
1995." This despite the fact that article author Joe Nick Patoski admits
Swenson is "a guy who can't play a lick of guitar, has no rhythm and wears the
squarest clothes ever to grace a backstage dressing room." Hey, in Austin,
that's what makes you different enough to be noticed... Next Tuesday is the
date for Furry Things' release party at Emo's... Citizen Lane
have gone one better than you folks who call every gig a "release party" for
six months after your album comes out. Starting this weekend they're declaring
"Citizen Lane Awareness Month." Take one of 'em to lunch, won't you?...
Dah-Veed continues to pack them in - "them" being A&R reps. He's
expecting to see faces from Sony, Capitol, and Elektra in the crowd at his
Liberty Lunch show this Saturday. He saw those as well as some from Island and
Arista at his recent gigs in California... Mitch Watkins and Claude
McCann III are working with Laurie Freelove on her new album. She'll
be discussing this in greater detail on KVRX this Friday between 7-9pm...
Plowman's got a new drummer in former Stick People person
Thor. Their new seven-song CD on Pinche Gringo Records is out now. What
else have I got in the box this week? How about Cactus Smack
Conspiracy's Patriot album and Patty David's Let Me Be the
One... Some release parties: Dale Watson at Tower Records this
Friday at 3pm; Toni Price at Waterloo Records the same day at 5pm.
Joe Ely will be signing - but not singing - at Waterloo next
Wednesday... Yep, the David Bowie/Nine Inch Nails tour is coming to
Austin on October 14, going head-to-head with OU weekend and the first night of
Phish... Soulhat has not been officially replaced in the
H.O.R.D.E tour, but the Rembrandts will be joining the roster for the
Austin show at least... Honestly! The Wannabes and a to-be-reunited
Doctors Mob backed out of the upcoming Bob Stinson tribute album
on Doolittle records, both still reeling from too many years of being compared
to the Replacements. Members of each do appear in other bands on the
compilation, however. More on this as the October release date approaches...
Did I still not mention there's a new Hand of Glory lineup out there?
Tim Swingle's not in it, but then again, his hairstyle stopped being
interesting years ago... Say goodbye to Crown Roast. Their last show is
Saturday at the Blue Flamingo with the Fuck Emos, before one-third of
the band relocates to jolly old England... Rumor has it that after Clarence
"Gatemouth" Brown leaves the Erwin Center next Wednesday, he'll be headed
for an after-show party at the Victory Grill... The Clarksville Jazz Fest,
reeling from disastrously low attendance last July, is holding an all-star jazz
jam benefit this Sunday at the Elephant Room to help pay some bills. No truth
to the rumor that French Smith is trying to put together a Beatles
reunion for that day... n
