Daily - The Austin Chronicle (2024)

Gays + Bikes = Blue Oyster Bar?

Oh boy! It is that time of year that I look forward to every year, the unique clash of the Pride Texas Weekend and the Republic of Texas Biker Rally. Where else but in Austin would you find a collection of people from such seemingly different cultures landing in one place for a weekend of fun, family, and leather?This weekend you'll find the Chrontourage downtown in an exhaustive attempt to be find the mutual fun at the heart of both of these events.Friday night we'll be cruising around downtown checking out the bikes and grabbing some brews finally ending up at Club De Ville where we will watch 3 of Austin's best DJ's battle in the DJ Melee - Round 3.Saturday from noon to 7pm we will be set-up at the Pride Texas Festival at Auditorium Shores to celebrate the gay family-style. After that we'll have our very own "Pink" as the centerpiece for our Pride Parade entry. We'll be throwing out Chronicle goodies and swag along the way. Once the parade ends you'll find us cruising 6th Street on our trusty hogs (or my yellow trek mountain bike in my case) and mingling with Texas' best bikers and babes. I'll be the one wearing the "If you can read this, the bitch fell off t-shirt".

'Inning by Inning' Debuts Sunday on ESPN2

Richard Linklater's loving doc of UT baseball coach Augie Garrido, Inning by Inning: A Portrait of a Coach, will make its nationally televised debut Sunday night, June 15, on ESPN2 at 9pm. Austinites were treated to its regional premiere and a Q&A with Linklater and Garrido at the Paramount Theatre Tuesday, June 3. Garrido sports the most wins of any NCAA baseball coach ever and has won five championships over four decades at two schools (Cal State Fullerton and UT). Our own Ashley Moreno interviewed Richard Linklater about his doc and her piece “Zen and the Art of Winning Championships” (Screens, May 30) can be found here. Not to be missed are Augie's locker-room “talks” with his players following disappointing (in his opinion, regardless of the numbers on the scoreboard) outings. I recommend programming your DVRs now before you forget.

World Cup Qualifying Around the Corner

I didn't catch the U.S. Men's 0-0 draw against world No. 1 Argentina, but by all reports it was a solid performance, with especially high marks going to Freddie Adu, said to be finally living up to the hype. (Well, he did just turn 19 last week.) Still, a third straight game without scoring a goal can't be all that positive a result, with World Cup qualifying starting this Sunday. Not to worry, though; opponent Barbados tuned up for the game by losing twice to 139th-ranked Bermuda, by a combined 5-1. June 15, 4pm, live on ESPN2.

A Learning Experience: Aztex Fall Just Short in U.S. Open Cup

Wow! Great game Tuesday night up in Round Rock, as the Austin Aztex U-23 amateurs held their own against the pros of the United Soccer Leagues First Division Atlanta Silverbacks before succumbing in a penalty-kick shootout, thereby exiting the U.S. Open Cup in the first round. The Aztex twice had the lead, on beautiful goals by Jamie Watson in regulation, and Willy Guadarrama in overtime, before giving up equalizers with just minutes to go in regulation (1-1), and again in overtime, which ended 2-2.Yes, the Aztex acquitted their young selves well – not a single player looked out of place in a high-level pro game – but my, what a difference in the level of play. The Silverbacks' speed and strength clearly had the Aztex out of their comfort level, especially at the start. They were used to being the aggressors, and to having a little more time, and a little more margin for error than what Atlanta gave them, and the Silverbacks punished every soft pass or loose first touch. But that's how you get better, right? And a lot of these Austin players plan to be around next year as well, when the Aztex field their own First Division pro team, and start playing the Silverbacks on their own level. No doubt, this was a great experience for the players and the organization, and a bonus treat for the record crowd of 1,731 fans.Back to the Premier Development League… Over the weekend, the Aztex solidified their hold on the PDL Mid South division lead, beating El Paso 2-0 at home on Friday, and Dallas 4-0 on the road Sunday, to run their league record to 6-1-1 at the halfway point of the season. They're on the road in Houston this Saturday, June 15, before a rather strange two-week layoff; the next home games aren't until June 27 (El Paso) and June 28 (Baton Rouge).

The Euro Championships: What We Know So Far …

The first days of the 2008 European Championships in Switzerland and Austria have been a treat; below are some notes on each group, and the remaining schedule.Group A: Portugal has beaten the other two group favorites by two goals each; maybe Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player in the world. Sunday's Turk-Czech match will decide the other spot, with co-host Swiss already eliminated after two losses.Group B: Broadcast quote of the week: "In footballing terms, Germany has historically dominated Poland." Croatia will probably advance, but looked mediocre against the weakest team in the field.Group C: Italy is looking like roadkill in the Group of Death; are the Dutch really that good, or are the world champs that bad? The French desperately need a playmaker.Group D: Spain and Sweden are the clear class of this group; their Saturday morning showdown could be the best game of the first round, with the prize being avoiding Holland in the quarterfinals.See below for results and schedule …

How Much is that Doggy in the Window?

Believe it or not, the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter just called a halt to its new adoption promotion: black dogs and cats for $25.County spokeswoman Connie Watson said she got a call from a local reporter, saying the NAACP had a problem with the promotion. Did she have a comment? Poof. The promotion was gone. In a hastily written press release, Watson said the decision was due to "unanticipated controversy" and that the promotion was over before it began.Yes, reduced prices for black cats and dogs offended people."We apologize if our promotion to reduce fees on black dogs and cats offended anyone," said shelter director Cheryl Schneider. "The shelter has many black dogs and cats right now that need to find good homes. We did not anticipate this response. Spring and early summer always are a busy time for us."

'And Then the Feeling Fades Away/ But You Sort of Wish It Would Have Stayed'

The New York Times' Books blog, Paper Cuts, has a recurring thread called "Living With Music," in which authors write about their perfect playlists. I was thinking about this as I set down to blog about The Black Cab Sessions, the site where musicians like St. Vincent, Spoon, and Daniel Johnston can be seen singing a single song in a taxi cab as it roams the streets of London.I'd wandered onto the site because, after months of not listening to Bon Iver at all, I suddenly had to watch everything the Internet had to offer of him (Bon Iver is the recording name of singer/songwriter Justin Vernon; Darcie Stevens wrote about him in relation to licensing here).I hadn't stopped listening to Bon Iver on purpose – I'd just sort of forgot. Moved onto newer loves. You know what it's like – when you get crazy-obsessed with a song (like "Skinny Love"), and you just wanna curl up in the sound and stay there forever. And then a week passes, or a month, and you sort of forget. You caught a bug for a while, and then you got better – or worse, depending on your point of view. I don't think I'm alone in that I feel best, my most ragged and alive, when caught in the clutches of something or someone else.

No Cameras, Possible Molotov co*cktail at Guv's Mansion

A source close to the investigation that wished to remain unidentified has told the Chronicle that apparently the security cameras at the front of the Governor's Mansion, where restoration work was being done, were not functional at the time that the historic residence caught fire Sunday morning. The source believes that something was thrown at the front of the mansion, possibly a Molotov co*cktail or something "like balloons" filled with accelerant.UPDATE: The Houston Chronicle is now reporting that video apparently captured someone throwing such an object at the mansion.

The Texas-L.A. Connection

Tremoloco doesn’t mean anything. It’s just a play on the word tremolo that bandleader Tony Zamora and fellow vintage guitar buff Stephen Bruton came up with. Bruton is just one of the many Texas connections that can be found on the Los Angeles-based band’s self-released full-length debut, Dulcinea. It also features appearances by Redd Volkaert, Cindy Cashdollar, Max Baca, Joel Guzman, and Ian McLagan.Dulcinea follows closely in the steps of the Texas Tornados and Los Super Seven, mixing Mexican heritage and American roots rock into a Southwestern stew that’s festive and savory. Zamora claims it’s a combination of his Tex-Mex roots - his mother is from El Paso and his father is Mexican - with youthful influences from growing up in East L.A.“When we first started in 2002, Los Super Seven and Los Lobos were a huge influence,” the 48-year-old explains. “We were covering some of that stuff at shows because I hadn’t written the songs for this album yet, the Cesar Rosas and Freddie Fender stuff. So when it came time to record, this seemed like a natural progression.”The disc was recorded with the production assistance of Los Lobos percussionist Cougar Estrada, who brought more of the Texas influence to the proceedings from his work with artists like Guzman and Sisters Morales.