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FIRST WORDS

• Send your thoughts, comments, kudos or tips to letters@sacurrent.com

Lt. Gov. Patrick Unleashes AntiTransgender Bill: “Our state education system is a mess... and this is what they prioritize... not surprised.” – Marcial Nanez Sound City: 20 SA Bands You Should Pay Attention to in 2017: “Thanks for sharing. But never use the words ‘doom-folk’ again.” – Marc Montoya Could an Anti-Cyberbullying Bill Do More Harm Than Good For Texas Kids?: “I just cringe at the Alamo heights residents that are all out for this. When the majority of those residents voted for Donald Trump. A bully, a cyber bully. \_( )_/¯.” – Marie Castro Sheriff Says Hill Country Woman “Mutilated,” Stabbed 5-Year-Old Daughter to Death: “People with serious mental issues should not have kids, because this can always happen as it did in this case.” – Rick A. Cruz

ON THE

COVER The last time Texas lawmakers went to Austin, they slashed therapy services for poor and disabled kids, implemented billions in tax giveaways, put guns in public college and university classrooms, and (of course) argued over and further restricted women’s reproductive rights. In this week’s issue, we preview some of the dominant, weird, and remarkably awful issues we’ve got our eyes on as lawmakers head back into session for the 2017 Texas Legislature. Art direction by Sarah Flood-Baumann 8

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

IN THIS

ISSUE

Issue 17_02 /// January 11-17

NEWS

Drug Dealers Texas sues feds for seizing state’s illegally imported execution drugs Ethically Challenged Texas congressman who got sued for sexual harassment was behind attack on ethics committee Murder City 2016 was San Antonio’s deadliest year in decades “Brutal” Assault Couple blames dogs, are instead arrested for sexual assault, stabbing of infant girl

ARTS + CULTURE

Fostering Emerging Talent Guadalupe’s Artist Lab yields promising results Writers Resist Local literati join the movement to re-inaugurate shared values

NIGHTLIFE

Booze News Bar parties, anniversaries and openings this month

FEATURE

Surviving the Session What to brace for as Texas embarks on another season of legislative lunacy

SCREENS

Settling the Score Composers Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross on writing the meditative score for Patriots Day

MUSIC

Sacred Solitude The dark, electric sadness of Saakred’s 2Ø25 “Psych Del Rio” San Antonio gets a psych festival Music Calendar What to see and hear this week

CALENDAR

Our top picks for the week

FOOD

Portmanteau Plates Uni’Ko Japanese House’s interesting translation Food Court The Fairview closes, El Mirador reopens and more

ETC.

Savage Love Jonesin’ Crossword Freewill Astrology

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017• CURRENT 9

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

NEWS

TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE

MICHAEL BARAJAS | @MICHAELSBARAJAS

Texas sues feds for seizing state’s illegally-imported execution drugs

DRUG DEALERS ≥

Texas wants its death drugs back. So for his latest lawsuit against the federal government, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has decided to go after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which a year and a half ago seized a shipment of lethal injection drugs that it argues the state tried to illegally import from India. This particular state-federal standoff centers on the drug sodium thiopental, an anesthetic Texas once used in its three-drug lethal injection cocktail. Prison officials started to move away from the longstanding three-drug protocol in 2011 after sodium thiopental became almost impossible to get (its sole FDA-approved manufacturer eventually stopped making the drug to keep it out of the hands of death penalty states). While Texas switched to using a single drug, pentobarbital, to kill its death row prisoners, even that soon became difficult to obtain. Since facing the occasional death-drug shortage over the past couple of years, Texas prison officials have said they’re “exploring all options” when it comes to carrying out scheduled executions. Apparently one of those options was seeking the services of a “pharmacist”

MICHAEL BARAJAS | @MICHAELSBARAJAS

in India who has no pharmaceutical background (see Buzzfeed’s remarkable investigation into “pharmacist” for more details). A year and a half ago, when the FDA seized a shipment of about 1,000 vials of sodium thiopental from India at a Houston airport, the feds insisted Texas didn’t have approval to import a drug that is no longer even used in the United States and has no FDA-approved manufacturer. But in his lawsuit filed last week, Paxton argues that importing the drugs without federal approval was allowed because the state was only using them for “law enforcement” purposes. He cites an FDA exemption for drugs that would otherwise be illegal to import, so long as they’re used for research or “law enforcement.” “In this case, the drugs at issue fall within the [law enforcement] exemption,” the lawsuit states. In some ways, the execution drug crunch is at the center of the legal debate over capital punishment in the United States. As the drugs became harder to get, Texas, like many other states, has turned to compounding pharmacies, which aren’t regulated by the FDA, as a supplier (well,

and evidently some dude in India). When it became clear those small, unregulated pharmacies would only sell to the state in secret, Texas lawmakers passed a law shielding the identity of the state’s execution-drug suppliers. Lawyers who represent death row inmates now say the state can’t (or won’t) produce basic information on the drugs it’s using to kill people — which, they argue, in the era of botched lethal injections could constitute an unreasonable risk of cruel and unusual punishment. And as if to demonstrate its commitment to the practice, Texas officials have even been caught selling lethal injection drugs of unknown origin to other death penalty states so they can keep up with their scheduled executions. In the lawsuit filed last week, Paxton claimed the FDA has dragged its feet in making a final determination on the drugs Texas tried to import from India. In a statement, Paxton blamed the “unreasonable delay” on either “gross incompetence or willful obstruction” by the outgoing administration. He’s asked that the courts force the FDA to make a final decision on whether Texas gets to keep its death drugs.

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 11

NEWS

MURDER CITY

“ BRUTAL” ASSAULT Couple blames dogs, are instead arrested for sexual assault, stabbing of infant girl MICHAEL BARAJAS | @MICHAELSBARAJAS

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

COURESTY OF @FARENTHOLD

elect Donald Trump’s tweet power), the group came awfully close to slashing the entire oversight committee in what seems like a revenge-fueled crusade. If passed, the OCE’s power would have been handed over to a House Committee, allowing all ethics complaints against lawmakers to be sealed from the public. Farenthold was specifically sued in 2014 for telling his former communications staffer about his “wet dreams” and joking that she had a semen stain on her clothing in the office. The case was settled out of court — but, according to a report from Politico, Farenthold wasn’t happy with how the OCE handled his drawn-out case. This is also the same guy who, while defending Donald Trump’s “locker room banter” on MSNBC, said he wouldn't rule out supporing a candidate who “likes raping women.”

≥

Two people were arrested last week after sheriff’s deputies discovered a one-year-old girl who appears to have suffered multiple stab wounds and a “brutal” sexual assault, according to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. Officials last Tuesday arrested Isaac Andrew Cardenas, 23, on charges of super aggravated sexual assault and a second suspect, Crystal Herrera, 22, on the charge of injury to a child by omission. According to the sheriff’s office, deputies and emergency responders were sent out to their south Bexar County home

the morning of New Year’s Eve after Herrera called 911 to report the infant had been attacked by dogs after she wandered outside the night before. That didn’t seem right to first responders. The child had what the sheriff’s office calls “extremely serious and life-threatening wounds consistent with a brutal sexual assault and multiple stab wounds.” After the girl was taken to University Hospital, medical staff determined her injuries were consistent with sexual assault and that she’d sustained “numerous ‘non-accidental’ stab wounds to the intimate areas of her body,” according

to a statement from sheriff’s office on the case. When Animal Control Services workers came to seize the dogs at the residence, none showed any signs of aggression. Authorities arrested Cardenas after interrogating him about the crime; he’s being held with bail set at $300,000. Officials say Herrera was arrested after investigators discovered she was feeding them false information. While their relationship to the infant victim is unclear, officials have said Herrera is related to the child. The girl is reportedly now in stable condition at University Hospital.

When Texas Congressman Blake Farenthold, a Corpus Christi Republican, was accused of sexually harassing his former staffer in 2014, he “did not like” how the Office of Congressional Ethics handled the case. That may explain why Rep. Farenthold pushed House Republicans to gut the nonpartisan ethics office last week — and replace it with members of Congress. Farenthold was one of a few lawmakers who led last week’s effort to kick off the new session of Congress by undermining the OCE, joining a handful of other Republican representatives who had also come under fire by the ethics office in recent years. Their claim? That the OCE had been too aggressive in investigating ethical problems within Congress. While their efforts were ultimately scrapped (thanks, in part, to President-

San Antonio saw a 61 percent increase in homicides over the past year — 151 murders total — making 2016 the city’s deadliest in 21 years. San Antonio also had the highest homicide rate increase from 2015 out of the country’s twenty largest police departments. The data, however, doesn’t exactly come as a surprise. In fact, by August, San Antonio’s homicide count had already surpassed the city’s total for 2015. That was right around the time the FBI released startling new data on the city’s crime rate – that at 5.9 crimes committed per 1,000 people, the city had far surpassed the country’s average of 2.8. San Antonio police still appear as stumped as ever by the uptick. In an interview with the Express-News, SAPD Chief William McManus blamed “a lot of spontaneous murders” and concluded that “it’s really difficult to put a reason on it.” That’s about the same answer he gave back in August, when he insisted “there are no fact-based reasons why this is happening.” Still, in November, SAPD spokesman Sgt. Jesse Salame told us the higher homicide count might be due to a large number of “family violence murders” or “relationship-type murders” last year, but the department hasn’t exactly elaborated on that. Meanwhile, criminologists say the rise in violent crime may be partly linked to San Antonio’s significant population growth over the past few years, or possibly even due to certain “social characteristics” – like San Antonio being the most economically segregated city in the country. “We don’t know what’s behind [the rise in murders]. I don’t know if anybody does,” Salame told the Current in November. “There are very smart people all around the country that are trying to figure this out.”

≥

ALEX ZIELINSKI | @ALEX_ZEE

Texas congressman who got sued for sexual harassment was behind attack on ethics committee

ALEX ZIELINSKI | @ALEX_ZEE

2016 was San Antonio’s deadliest year in decades

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FEATURE

Surviving the Session What to brace for as Texas embarks on another season of legislative lunacy MICHAEL BARAJAS + ALEX ZIELINSKI

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

★ Texas is so ‘meh’ about governing that state

lawmakers here only meet for 140 days of breakneckspeed legislatin’ — every other year. Which means that when the 181 voting members of the Texas Legislature gather this week, things could get real weird real fast. Like on the very first day of the 2015 session, when die-hard Second Amendment buffs spilled into one Democrat lawmaker’s office, argued with him over his resistance to “constitutional carry” (the open carrying of firearms in public without even obtaining a license, an issue lawmakers are trying to revive this session), and refused to leave, triggering a new panic-button policy for lawmakers’ capitol offices. Regardless of whether lawmakers kick things off with a similar bang this year, in some ways the 2017 legislature already looks like it could be a repeat of last session, when lawmakers cut millions from therapy services for poor and disabled kids, passed even more abortion restrictions, implemented billions in tax cuts, and put guns in public college and university classrooms. That’s because, even though the state has less money to work with this time around (thanks to a decline in oil and gas markets, about $4 billion short of what experts say the state needs to maintain current services and keep up with the state's population growth), the power dynamics under the pink-hued dome of the state capitol building haven’t really changed much since 2015. On the eve of this year’s session, Gov. Greg Abbott (still, relatively speaking, a legislative newbie) has played the part of quiet-but-determined right-wing ideologue – one who seems most concerned with his long-shot idea (and, just so happens, his corresponding book) calling for a constitutional convention so states can seize power from a federal government “run amok.” And while the Texas Senate was traditionally the

more deliberative of state’s two legislative bodies, that changed last session once Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick seized the reins and suspended chamber’s longstanding rule that two-thirds of senators have to approve a bill for floor debate — a rule that had for years kept a bunch of right-wing crazy from bubbling to the surface. Ahead of this year’s session, Patrick has already announced a series of legislative priorities that call for, among other things, cracking down on “sanctuary cities,” nullifying local equal rights ordinances and passing even more abortion restrictions. Meanwhile, San Antonio Republican Joe Straus seems to be sitting pretty for yet another round in the House Speaker’s chair, where he’ll likely continue to face more opposition from the hardliners within his own party than from lawmakers across the aisle, almost like a Tea Party gatekeeper. Straus’ priorities for the session? Who can say. During a Texas Tribune symposium previewing the legislative session late last year, Straus was asked which state-funded services might face cuts, where he stood on the growing debate over so-called “sanctuary cities,” and whether he’d try to block Patrick’s antitrans bill from moving through the House. His answers ranged from the super-assuring “we’ll see” to some awkward joke about House members birthing bills that die on the House floor being the reason the chamber got new carpet last year (ew). As for lawmakers’ decision to slash millions in funding for in-home therapy for poor, disabled children last year, Straus at least conceded that “maybe” that was a mistake. Whether they embark upon more “maybe” mistakes in a more tightfisted session is something budget hawks, progressives and advocacy groups will be earnestly watching. And so to kick off the session this week, we’ve rounded up some of the dominant, weird, and remarkably awful issues we’ve got our eye on at the start of this year’s legislative shitshow. — Michael Barajas

FEATURE

“Texas Transgender Oppression Act” ★ Last week, Lieutenant Gov. Patrick began his press conference introducing a bill that would segregate transgender people from the general public by quoting Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent on things that matter.” Neither Patrick nor GOP state Sen. Louis Kolkhorst, who’s decided to carry Patrick’s legislative priority through the Texas Senate, mentioned upfront the community that would be targeted by their bill: transgender people. Rather, they’ve decided to market Senate Bill 6 as the “Privacy Protection Act.” State media have settled on the equally obnoxious “Bathroom Bill,” while equal rights activists and trans bloggers, like Houston’s Monica Roberts, have bluntly called it the “Texas Transgender Oppression Act.” That’s because the legislation would ban transgender people from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity in public buildings (libraries, schools, city offices, etc.). Private businesses could decide on their own whether to refuse bathroom access to a trans customer because of their gender identity. That’s not all. It appears SB 6 would also nullify trans protections in local equal rights ordinances that cities, like San Antonio, have enacted to protect the community from discrimination. While Patrick and Kolkhorst say the bill is about “privacy,” both said the inspiration and model for SB 6 came from the successful local repeal of the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) last year, when religious-right conservatives drummed up unfounded fears over bathroom privacy in order to sway voters. In fact, upon announcing the bill, Patrick echoed the anti-HERO rallying cry (“No Men in Women’s Restrooms”) when he said, “This bill stops local cities from passing policies that allow men in ladies’ rooms.” Chuck Smith, CEO of Equality Texas, called the filing of SB 6 “simply unacceptable,” saying, “As folks get to know transgender Texans, you’ll find that they care about privacy and safety just like everyone else, and simply want to be able to go to school, work, out to dinner, and provide for their families.” The bill’s many opponents include trans advocates, civil rights lawyers and business owners who fear the bill could scare business away from the state. One

Texas business advocacy group estimates the state could lose out on $8 billion a year if the bill passes. San Antonio business owners are particularly worried about the NCAA pulling the 2018 Men's Final Four out of San Antonio should Patrick’s bill pass — something the NCAA did to North Carolina after the state passed a similar anti-trans bill last year. Studies have estimated that North Carolina has already lost nearly $400 million in business revenue and 1,000 jobs since the law went into place. Patrick’s response? All of those concerns and questions over SB 6, what restrictions it would place on the state’s transgender community, and how it could impact the Texas economy? It’s actually just “fake news.” — Alex Zielinski

Clickbait ★ Ahead of the session, a pair of

San Antonio politicians vowed to crack down on the universally agreedupon menace of cyberbullying with a new state law. But with a major focus on incarceration, and the potential to violate free speech rights, some children’s advocacy groups say the bill could do kids more harm than good. “David’s Law,” filed by local Democratic lawmakers and Rep. Ina Minjarez, is named after David Molak, a 16-year-old San Antonian who took his own life last year after months of relentless cyberbullying. It’s not just that the law would make it illegal to “electronically harass or bully” anyone under the age 18 — but in order to find the culprits, the law would direct school districts to collaborate with law enforcement to investigate off-campus cyberbullying, giving police the subpoena power to unveil anonymous social media bullies. Menendez told us that currently, law enforcement doesn’t have the tools to do anything about cyberbullying — and schools are hesitant to interfere. “I don’t feel it’s right for school districts to wash their hands of this problem just because it didn’t happen on school grounds,” Menendez said. “They should help parents and law enforcement get to the bottom of these incidents.” That may include hiring a staff member whose specific job is monitoring (and understanding)

social media platforms. Menendez says he also wants districts to install a hotline for students or parents to anonymously report bullying. Law enforcement would then investigate further. But Will Francis, the government relations director for Texas’ National Association of Social Workers, doesn’t necessarily think schools should be working so closely with the police. Instead, he said, the bill should focus on improving mental health resources in schools to address bullying before it becomes criminal. “My concern is that we’ll just be sticking more kids with felonies,” said Francis, who says he’s been advising Menendez on the bill’s focus. “I worry we’ll see more schools in poorer, non-white areas using hard and fast punitive criminal justice as a solution.” Which is already a problem. There’s currently about one campus police officer for every 250 public school students in Texas — but one school counselor for every 470 students. Francis said that expanding the number of school counselors and other mental health staffers on campus could help victims of bullying, and their bullies, without having to get law enforcement involved. Meanwhile David Greene, a senior attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, says law enforcement would be violating students’ First Amendment rights if they arrest kids for what they write about online. “We believe — and most courts agree — that schools are very limited when it comes to punishing off-campus student speech,” Greene said. Schools are free to investigate online bullying to determine how or if it bleeds onto campus, he added, but prosecuting or disciplining a kid for bullying speech online is a whole different matter. — AZ

The Family That Stays Together… ★ Texas State Rep. Matt Krause says he isn’t trying to deter divorce. He’s only filing bills to make divorce more expensive, more time-consuming, and much more complicated to get in Texas. The Fort Worth Republican has already filed two

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 15

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

FEATURE

divorce-related bills for the session: One that more than doubles the amount of time a couple must wait to finalize a divorce, and another to repeal a person’s right to divorce for non-criminal reasons. Krause said he filed these bills in hopes of giving children a better future — and preserving the sanctity of marriage. Apparently lost on Krause, and what domestic violence prevention workers fear, is that taking away Texans’ freedom to divorce without cause could actually worsen a child’s wellbeing, lock abused spouses into violent relationships, and essentially make divorce a privilege of the wealthy. This all stems from Krause’s dislike for “no fault” divorces — ones that are simply rooted in a couple’s unresolvable differences. Such “no fault” divorces have only been legal in Texas since 1970; up until then, a person had to prove in court that their spouse was “at fault,” meaning they were either cruel, adulterous, a felon, had intentionally abandoned them, moved away, or lived in a mental hospital. After such laws swept the country in the 70s, social scientists found that states who allowed “no fault” divorce laws saw a 8-16 percent decline in female suicide, a 30 percent decline in domestic violence for both men and women, and a 10 percent decline in women murdered by their partners. As marriage rates declined in America, so did the rates domestic abuse. Krause’s bills could unravel this work, and endanger the children he’s hoping to protect. “Living in an abusive home, even if it’s just two or three years, can do irreparable damage to a child,” said Patricia Castillo, director of the local nonprofit PEACE Initiative, a domestic violence awareness organization. “So many of those kids end up in our state’s foster care system, juvenile justice system, or homeless.” And few victims of domestic violence actually report their abuser to law enforcement — or even a close friend — out of denial or fear of retaliation. According to Marta Pelaez, president of San Antonio’s Family Violence Prevention Services, an abuse victim’s risk of harm is actually greatest when the victim decides to leave or get a divorce. Plus, Pelaez told the Current, if a spouse is being abused by their partner, it’s likely that their child is being abused, too. Krause said he doesn’t

want to endanger victims, but he’s “not sure” what he can do to protect them. Another unknown is what Krause’s bills might do to low-income people seeking a divorce. In most cases, no fault divorces are far less expensive than fault divorces. Again, Krause told the Current he hasn’t put much thought into resolving this inequity. If Krause gets his way this year (bills like his have failed in previous sessions), Texas would be the first state to repeal no fault divorce. —AZ

No Sanctuary ★ The supposed threat posed by so-called

“sanctuary cities” is one of those zombie issues that seems to come back from the dead each time politicians head back to Austin for their biennial Lege Fest. This year’s iteration is once again filed by state Sen. Charles Perry, a Republican from Lubbock, and premised on the confused notion that, in the state’s leftleaning urban areas, law enforcement officials are openly thumbing their nose at federal immigration law. Sure, police in major metros across the state, including San Antonio, have implemented what have in the past been called “sanctuary cities” policies by people like Perry. But that's because the term, as it’s been thrown around by politicians like Gov. Greg Abbott, has

been wiggly and ill-defined. While Abbott told Fox News late last year that he’s “used my powers as governor of Texas to withhold funds to cities or counties that are declaring themselves to be sanctuary cities,” Abbott’s office later clarified that it hasn’t actually blocked any state funds over the issue. (Wait, so does that mean there are no “sanctuary cities” then?) Indeed, Abbott seems to have a new red-line distinction for what makes you a sanctuary city – that is, if you don’t honor U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement requests to keep people in custody, even when charges have been dismissed. Funny thing is: pretty much every jail in Texas currently honors these so-called ICE detainers. According to this definition, San Antonio is decidedly not a sanctuary city, because if you’re booked in jail here, cops will still run your fingerprints through a federal database that will alert ICE if you’ve got a dubious immigration status. After that, it’s ICE’s call whether or not to pick you up. When ICE flags someone, some counties will hold them for a couple days – even if the person has made bail, their term of incarceration is over, or charges have been dismissed. Some county jails will hold you for weeks. Bexar County has been accused of holding people for months who wouldn’t be in jail if not for ICE’s request. And yet still, rallying against “sanctuary cities” became a sort of cause célèbre among right-leaning politicians even before the session even started this year – perhaps the result of anti-immigrant rhetoric blaring out of the Donald Trump campaign. The real problem is that the anti-sanctuary cities legislation Perry has filed goes way beyond ICE detainers and would seem to conflict with the kind of policies supported by many police chiefs – the kind that explicitly tell local cops that federal immigration enforcement is not their job. While the San Antonio Police Department and Bexar County Sheriff’s Office don’t consider themselves “sanctuary” departments, both have similar guidelines prohibiting officers from asking about immigration status in routine police encounters. Perry’s bill could render those policies unenforceable, because it would punish any agency that “prohibits or discourages” any cop, corrections officer or booking clerk from assisting in immigration enforcement. And beyond “sanctuary cities,” Abbott has even gone after what he now calls “sanctuary campuses,” saying he’ll cut funding to any college or university that “establishes sanctuary status.” Of course, we don’t exactly know what Abbott means by “sanctuary

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 17

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

FEATURE

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MAKE 2017 YOUR YEAR! campus” (go figure his office hasn’t clarified or defined the term), but if that means state conservatives now want to add Perry-style legislation to public schools and university campuses, the “sanctuary” issue just got a whole lot bigger this session. — MB

Getting Schooled ★ Cutting kids out of special

education. Financing charter schools. Changing the state’s grading system. There are sweeping, large-scale education issues expected to take center stage this session — enough to overwhelm any state legislator. That’s why state Rep. Diego Bernal, a Democrat from San Antonio, decided to spend 2016 taking a more granular look at the education system within the manageable boundaries of his own San Antonio district. After visiting each of the 55 public schools in his largelynorthside district — home to San Antonio ISD, North East ISD and Northside ISD — Bernal kept running into a few unique issues. They’ve inspired a bill to make it easier for hungry kids to access leftover cafeteria food, one that would allow school districts the option of using leftover textbook funds on new tutor hires, and another that would stop forcing special education students to retake standardized tests after failing the first time. While these are obviously minor fixes eclipsed by the state’s looming public school woes, Bernal says

the point is that he’s confident each of his education bills will attract bipartisan support — which is key to passing anything in the majorityconservative chamber. “The only way Democrats can pass anything in the House is to convince 26 Representatives to join them,” he said. “The great thing about education is that it’s about kids. Everyone wants to fight for kids.” Which doesn’t mean Bernal doesn’t have a pie-in-the-sky progressive bill. Bernal’s House Bill 353 would guarantee behavioral health counseling to any school where 50 percent or more of its students are “socially or economic disadvantaged, in the foster care system, or homeless.” While Bernal’s doubtful his conservative counterparts will want to use the state budget on new counselors, he knows it’s financially possible. “The money is there,” he said. “The budget is just a list of priorities. And this isn’t a priority for many Republicans.” As for the bigger education issues on the docket, Bernal said he’s waiting until legislators can realistically get involved. The state battle over school funding has done little to address the gaping financial inequities between schools located in wealthy and lower-income areas. Lawmakers had been waiting to see if the Texas Supreme Court might force reforms; instead, the justices punted, admitting the state’s public school finance system desperately needs “top-to-bottom reforms” but is nonetheless constitutional. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Gov. Patrick has made clear his intention to move public school dollars to semi-private charter schools this coming session — “school choice,” as advocates call it, that

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

FEATURE

Patrick says will give poorer kids the opportunity to attend higherperforming private schools. Bernal says he’s planning on helping other lawmakers push certain bills that have broad public support – like making sure the state education agency, as recently discovered by a searing Houston Chronicle investigation, can never again arbitrarily kick tens of thousands of disabled kids out of state public school special ed programs. Otherwise, he says he’s intent on pushing small-scale, local issues where teachers’ opinions take precedent. “I want to focus on what our educators are saying, what they’re concerned about,” he said. “Not what political parties are saying.” — AZ

Social Distortion ★

It seems two landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions made since Texas’ last session — on marriage equality and women’s reproductive rights — only inflamed some of Texas’ social conservative culture warriors ahead of the 2017 session. Yes, this year some state GOP leaders intend on rolling back local nondiscrimination ordinances, allowing health providers to turn away transgender patients, and further punishing doctors who perform abortions. Expect state Sen. Donna Campbell, a New Braunfels Republican, to be in the middle of the fight. Campbell, has never hid her far-right wing perspective on state social issues since she joined the legislature in 2013. In fact, Campbell, an ER doctor, was the local cheerleader for House Bill 2, a law that shuttered dozens of the state’s abortion clinics with burdensome, medicallyunnecessary regulations that the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional in June.

And while she’s kept relatively quiet about the state’s fetal burial rule — a law forcing abortion clinics to cremate and bury fetal remains, which is now facing a lawsuit — Campbell has filed a bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks fertilization based on a non-medical belief that fetuses can feel pain by that point. Other legislation on her list would force people applying for unemployment benefits to take a drug test, allow people to bring a handgun to church or an amusement park, and block doctors who work at abortion facilities from teaching sex education courses. She’s also resurrecting a 2013 bill to ban the use of foreign laws in Texas courts, yet another thinlyveiled anti-Sharia law. The author of her bill’s House counterpart, Republican Dan Flynn of Canton, has made clear the legislation is meant to protect Christian Texans, telling his supporters it will stop the liberal crusade to turn the country into “an amorphous multicultural society.” These bills join several other GOP efforts to blur the line between church and state. Another Senate bill would block the state from doing business with any company or group that's pledged to divest from and boycott Israeli companies over the government's treatment of Palestinians — because, according to the bill's author, the country helped create Christianity. Campbell has also used “religious freedom” as an excuse to support Lieutenant Gov. Patrick’s “privacy bill” that would block trans people from using the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity. To Campbell, it’s all about “keep[ing] men out of safe spaces for girls.” She doesn’t care that many in the local tourism industry are terrified by the North Carolina-style bill, which could ultimately cost San Antonio the 2018 NCAA Final Four. “I’d like to see Texas values not be hijacked for the sake of football or basketball,” she told the Texas Tribune in December. “I’m not worried about that.” — AZ

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

ART

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◀ This timely, 1979 feature film by director Haile Gerima, which was part of the L.A. Rebellion movement of political and experimental black cinema during the 1970s, explores the harsh realities of urban poverty and the systemic imprisonment of African American men, which continues today in record numbers. Recently, Selma director Ava DuVernay’s critically acclaimed Netflix documentary 13th made some major waves surrounding

America’s racist history and pointed out why the U.S. prison system should be considered the new form of slavery. In Bush Mama, Gerima, who is currently a film professor at Howard University, tells the story in narrative form by following Dorothy (Barbara O. Jones), a welfare recipient living in ’70s-era Watts, California, who is fighting to survive with a young daughter and an unborn child while her veteran husband T.C. (Johnny Weathers) is

wrongly incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit. The film is presented by the NOOMO Speaker’s Bureau and CULTUREworks Enterprises as part of DreamWeek. On January 19, Gerima will join audiences at the Carver Community Cultural Center for a screening of his 1993 film Sankofa on the Atlantic slave trade. $10, 7pm, Alamo Drafthouse Park North, 618 NW Loop 410, (210) 6778500, dreamweek.org. — Kiko Martinez

◀ Much like the popular competition show America’s Got Talent, where magician Ben Blaque got his first big break, The Illusionists is a family-friendly, Las Vegas-style extravaganza that has been breaking box office records since it first hit the road in 2015. Bringing together seven of the world’s most popular illusionists, the show is a nod to great magicians of the past and breathes new life into some tried-and-tested tricks. Of course there are disappearing MAGIC acts, a mind-reading session and some well-known card tricks, but a full-view water torture escape by acclaimed escapologist Andrew Basso might leave you breathless. Or perhaps the clever mix of comedy and magic by Jeff Hobson, aka “The Trickster,” will be more to your liking. With such a wide range of acts in this show, expect plenty of audience participation. $30-$90, 7:30pm Wed-Thu, 8pm Fri, 2pm & 8pm Sat, 2pm & 7:30pm Sun, The Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston St., (210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — Marco Aquino WED-SUN

11-15

The Illusionists

◀ Co-founded by Walson Botelho and Ninho Reis and billed as Brazil’s first and only professional folk dance company, Balé Folclórico Da Bahia interprets age-old traditions in festive performances fusing live music, theatrical costuming, acrobatics and choreography inspired by samba and capoeira. Since its launch in 1998, the award-winning troupe has mastered a time-

traveling repertoire that spans from colonial-era slave dances to a joyous finale inspired by Rio’s Carnival. Touring the United States since 1995, the 38-member company brings its Sacred Heritage tour to the Lila Cockrell courtesy of ARTS San Antonio. $29-$99, 7:30pm, Lila Cockrell Theatre, 610 E. Market St., (210) 226-2891, artssa.org. — Bryan Rindfuss

CALENDAR

Una Flor en el Cruce

ARTE Y PASIÓN

THU-SAT

12-14 DANCE

FRI

JEN FROST SMITH

‘Good Vibes’

◀ Premiered last November at Luminaria, Arte y Pasión’s original production Una Flor en el Cruce (A Flower in the Crossroads) returns with a trio of performances hosted by three distinct venues. Artistic director Tamara Adira leads an ever-evolving cast of dancers and musicians in a multidisciplinary performance juxtaposing flamenco with classical and modern dance. Since the company’s 2010 debut in San Antonio, Adira has brought in exquisite talent from across the globe, including late flamenco masters Teo Morca and Timo Lozano to perform alongside its members. For this performance, Adira

Creative Creatures

ART

◀ If you, like so many others, are looking for a bit of simple joy, laughter and color in a new year fraught with new tensions and new fears, you’ll want to spend some time with this latest exhibit from artist Jen Frost Smith. As if being whimsically (and optimistically) titled “Good Vibes” wasn’t enough of a clue that this is a feel-good show, the artist explains in her statement that these works are intended to give people “a moment to escape the harsh reality of the world and recharge [their] energy meter.” This new exhibition will feature colorful paintings, funny drawings, assemblages, and installations, all collected in the name of removing “the bad juju of the last few months.” With some extra surprises also promised, “Good Vibes” looks like, perhaps more than the typical art show, a chance to let your guard down and embrace silliness — a natural antidote to stress. Free, 7-10pm, Clamp Light Studios, 1704 Blanco Road, Suite 104, (512) 569-8134, clamplightsa.com. — James Courtney

welcomes guest artist Bianca Rodriguez from Oakland, California. Una Flor en el Cruce draws inspiration from the complex root system of flowers, a metaphor for Adira’s own persevering spirit. “There are obstacles vast and impossible to push through,” Adira said. “But the persistent root system of a flower is stronger. When we find that root system within ourselves, we can push through anything.” $12-$50, 8pm Thu, Brick, 108 Blue Star; $15, 8pm & 10pm Fri, Carmens de la Calle, 320 N. Flores St.; $10, 8pm Sat, España Bar de Tapas, 5638 W Hausman Road, arte-y-pasion.com. — Marco Aquino

◀ If you have never had the chance to experience a Creative Creatures event, it is safe to say that FRI this Friday you have the ideal opportunity. It’s true: Creative Creatures, a quarterly event that showcases local and regional musical/artistic talent ART in all mediums/genres, will celebrate its three year anniversary with Friday’s special experience. Billed as “Creative Creatures vs. The Universe,” the event will feature, true to form, a diverse array of artists and performers, including tattoo artists, dancers, bands, and a smorgasbord of rad artists and artisans with work to show/sell. In terms of music, this edition will feature jazzrock outfit Osringer, indie rock crew St. Dukes, and progressive ska band Young Costello, as well as house sounds by Typicalzach Dexigns. While there are too many excellent visual artists to even begin to mention, you’ll especially want to look out for Regina Morales (Hello Reg), Nik Soupé and Zane Thomas (Black Moon Print). Other highlights of the evening include, but are certainly not limited to, a photobooth and tasty eats provided by Renegade Foodie food truck. $5, 7pm-midnight, Brick, 108 Blue Star, (210) 262-8653, facebook.com/creativecreaturessatx. — JC

CONTINUED ON PAGE 27

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 23

SATURDAY JAN. 14TH WITTE MUSEUM (MAYS FAMILY CENTER)

TA ST E T HE DR EAM GALA PRESENTED BY UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM SAGE’s “Taste the Dream” Gala celebrates diversity through food You're invited to join SAGE to celebrate San Antonio's culinary diversity at the 3rd Annual "Taste the Dream" gala presented by University Health System at the WITTE Museum. Experience traditional cuisines and flavors from the Mediterranean, Asia, Latin America, Africa, Cuba, and Europe, along with Cajun/Creole, BBQ, comfort food and vegetarian options.

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To purchase tickets or for sponsorship information contact:

Daniel E. Riley, (210) 248-9178 or driley@sagesanantonio.org

DreamWeek 2017 will be January 6-21 and will feature celebrations and events aimed to advance the voices of Tolerance, Equality, and Diversity.

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 25

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

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◀ One of Sam Shepard’s many masterworks of American theatre, Fool for Love promises a night of scandal and brutal can’t-live-with-’em, can’t-live-without’em love. The 1983 Obie award-winning play follows Eddie and May, ex-lovers who seem hopelessly doomed to repeat their destructive past. Though May had begun a life on her own and even had a new date on the night in question, Eddie unexpectedly shows up to get her back. The date is left to watch, bewildered, as Eddie and May tear at each other and commentary from the “Old Man” reveals that there may actually be some incest going on here (!). Featuring Shepard’s typical

FRI-SUN

13-15

Fool for Love

THEATER

ACIDWINZIP

SAT

◀ Run by artist/ art historian Stephanie Torres, Provenance Gallery really knocked it out of the park in 2016, with exhibition after exhibition that showcased some truly exciting artists from San Antonio and beyond. The gallery’s first show of the year, a solo exhibit of striking digital works from artist ACIDWINZIP, seems to indicate a 2017 that will be just as good or better. ACIDWINZIP, the project of artist Ursula Zavala, creates works that are “inspired by nostalgia, internet culture, religion and art history, and are

ART

ACIDWINZIP

comprised of computergenerated images and other elements, cut and pasted onto a digital canvas.” Remarkable for its psychedelic fusion of the familiar trappings of the internet age with stylistic elements and motifs culled from art’s more formal past, ACIDWINZIP’s work is a commentary and a call to conversation. It also, we might add without being the least bit hyperbolic, is an ideal example of a new kind of art for a brand new world. Free, 7-10pm, Provenance Gallery, 1906 S. Flores St., (210) 2168362, artandprovenance. blogspot.com. — JC

JOSH HUSKIN

▶ Defiantly trickling up from the curled lips of Donald Trump, the term “Nasty Woman” has evolved from a lowdown jab aimed at Hillary Clinton into a full-blown feminist movement. Beyond the viral hallmarks (red hats emblazoned with “Make American Nasty Again,” Janet Jackson/Hillary Clinton “Nasty” record covers, “Nasty Woman” coffee mugs and T-shirts, memes galore), it’s a call to action exemplified by the Women’s March on Washington taking place the day after Trump’s inauguration. As the Observer reported last month, artist Roxanne Jackson reacted to the election by placing a call for entries on Facebook: “Hello female artists/curators! Let’s organize a NASTY WOMEN group show!!! Who’s interested???” Opening in Queens on January 12, the resulting exhibition gathers 1,000 works created by nearly 700 female-identified artists. Presented as the effort’s “San Antonio sister,” Yes, Ma’am zine’s “Nasty Women Art Exhibition” serves to “demonstrate solidarity among artists who identify with being a Nasty Woman in the face of threats to roll back women’s rights, individual rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and immigrant rights.” Hosted at AP Art Lab in partnership with DreamWeek, the “completely inclusive” show mirrors the format of its New York sister by pricing works between $10 and $100 and benefiting Planned Parenthood. Free, 7-10pm, AP Art Lab, 1906 S. Flores St., (210) 705-2332, facebook.com/apartlab. — BR

themes of a drunken, disconnected father and dying cowboy culture in the desolate West, the emotional tumult takes place in a motel room in the Mojave Desert, where the walls shake and creak as Eddie and May scream, slam doors and struggle with crises of genealogy and identity. Fool for Love marks the Cellar Theatre directorial debut of the Playhouse’s CEO and Artistic Director, George Green, who’ll surely bring his own touch to this raw, daring and timeless play. $12-$42, 8pm Fri & Sat, 3pm Sun, The Playhouse Cellar Theatre, 800 W Ashby Pl., (210)733-7258, theplayhousesa.org. — Rachel Cooley

ART

SAT

‘Nasty Women Art Exhibition’ TUE

Spurs vs. Timberwolves

SPORTS

▼ With back-to-back Rookie of the Year recipients on their roster in Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, the Minnesota Timberwolves were a sleeper pick by NBA pundits at the start of the regular season to crack the playoffs in a rugged Western Conference. Consistency during crunch time has been a recurring issue for the young Timberwolves, who currently find themselves outside of the post-season picture. After tipping off 2017 with an overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks at home, the Spurs continue to tweak their rotations while resting key players. San Antonio’s annual showdown between Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan has ceded to a dynamic matchup on the wing featuring Wiggins and Kawhi Leonard. Danny Green versus two-time Slam Dunk Contest champ Zach LaVine is a bonus. $10-$265, 7:30pm, AT&T Center, One AT&T Center Pkwy., (210) 4445000, attcenter.com. — M. Solis

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

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ART Art opening: “Adults” Fusing classical and

modern sensibilities, painter Ana HdzBurwell depicts millennials in the midst of contemporary situations. Free, 7-11pm Saturday; Dorćol Distilling Company, 1902 S. Flores St., (210) 229-0607.

Art opening: Construction Sights” With

his latest body of work, local artist Mark Hogensen draws with ink to explore “our awareness of rigidity and perception of objects in space.” Free, 5:30-7:30pm Wednesday; Parchman Stremmel Gallery, 7726 Broadway, (210) 824-8990.

Art opening: “Entropy” San Antonio

College Art Guild students tap into visionary consciousness through works in an array of media. Free, 7-10pm Saturday; R Space, 110 E. Lachapelle, (210) 793-8899.

Art opening: “IMAGE/IN/KNITS” Newly

established Mantle Art Space kicks off the year with an immersive, multimedia installation by artist Lisa Urban. Free, 7-10pm Saturday; Mantle Art Space, 714 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 971-4740.

Art opening: “Interventions of Light”

Dock Space hosts a solo exhibition for local artist Rodolfo Choperena, who creates abstract photographs by maneuvering camera placement, aperture and exposure settings in relation to color fields, landscapes, light sources and precipitation. Free, 7-10pm Saturday; Dock Space Gallery, 107 Lone Star Blvd., (210) 723-3048.

Art opening: “Portraits by Kasumu” Olaju

Art Group takes over S.M.A.R.T. Art Project Space with a retrospective for BritishNigerian photographer Juliana Kasumu. Free, 5-10pm Saturday; S.M.A.R.T. Art Project Space, 1906 S. Flores St., (210) 227-5718.

Art opening: “The Big Painting Exhibition” San Antonio artists AJ

Rodriguez, Ana Hdz-Burwell, Jesus Toro Martinez, Lauren Faske, Louis Vega Treviño and Sean FitzGibbons come together for a

Second Saturday showcase of monumental paintings. Free, 7-10pm Saturday; Lone Star Studios, 107 Lone Star Blvd., (210) 723-3048.

Art opening: “Wall Rumble” More than a

dozen local artists (Albert Alvarez, Angela Fox and Regina Morales, to name a few) draw creative inspiration from “old-school wrestling” in anticipation of WWE’s 30th annual Royal Rumble. Free, 6-11pm Friday; Studio One Zero Three, 721 S. Presa St., (210) 573-8947.

Art Party: Art on the Rocks SAMA and

KRTU’s Art Party series continues with an evening of gallery tours, specialty cocktails crafted by Blue Box (cash bar), art-making activities and live music by Austin-based “funkstrumental groove trio” Canned Beets. $5-$10, 6-8pm Friday; San Antonio Museum of Art, 200 W. Jones Ave., (210) 978-8100.

“MLK March Photographic Retrospective” The Carver Gallery unveils a limited-run show documenting the history of San Antonio’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day March. Free, 8am-4pm Tuesday; Carver Community Cultural Center, 226 N. Hackberry St., (210) 207-7211.

Serious Work Inspired by her Blue Star Berlin

residency, local artist Julia Barbosa Landois’ Serious Work satirizes “the performance of the performance artist persona, the work of art, and the workaday.” Free (RSVP required at bluestarart.org), 112 Blue Star, (210) 227-6960.

FILM Eastpoint/Promise Zone Video Documentary: A Tale of Two Communities In partnership with

DreamWeek, St. Philip’s College hosts the premiere of a feature-length documentary about about the positive transformation of San Antonio’s Eastside, the only community in the nation to have received all four White House Neighborhood Revitalization Initiatives. Free, 6-9pm Friday; St. Philip’s College, Watson Fine Arts Center, 1801 Martin Luther King Drive, (210) 486-2000.

Short Term 12 Cinema on the Rocks returns

to Edwards Ridge for a screening of Destin Daniel Cretton’s 2013 drama surrounding the residents and counselors of a group home for troubled teenagers. Free, 7:30-10pm Wednesday; Edwards Ridge Distillery, 16104 University Oak, (210) 802-7864.

White People In conjunction with

DreamWeek, Uhuru Solidarity Movement hosts a discussion and screening of Jose Antonio Vargas’ 2015 MTV documentary examining white privilege. $5 suggested donation, 5-8pm Monday; Alamo Drafthouse Park North, NW Loop 410, (210) 677-8500.

THEATER Senior Moments Described as “fun, touching,

and spot on,” Linda Kaufman’s Senior Moments is a series of musical vignettes that deal with growing older and having aging parents. $18-$20, 7:30pm Saturday, 1pm & 5pm Sunday; Carol B. Conway Theater, 11210 Disco St., (210) 495-2787.

Watch Your Step: The Men of Eastwood

The Renaissance Guild presents the second chapter of a three-part series of musical revues celebrating the artists, music and venues along the Chitlin’ Circuit. $25, 8pm Friday-Saturday, 4pm Sunday; Little Carver Civic Center, 226 N. Hackberry St., (210) 207-7211.

WORDS The DreamWeek Slam PuroSlam poets share

words and visions that capture the spirit of DreamWeek, as well as rhymes and rhythms that celebrate the creativity and diversity of humankind. $1, 9:30pm Tuesday; The Korova, 107 E. Martin St., (210) 226-5070.

COMEDY Bobby Lee A cast member of Mad TV from

2001 to 2008 with memorable roles in Pineapple Express and Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Bobby Lee is still a massive disappointment to his parents. Lee’s onstage imitations of his father are almost always variations on a single theme: that Lee is an unfunny loser. The caricature, hilarious as it is, is completely wrong. While impressions of immigrant parents are probably the most welltread trope amongst Asian-American comics, San Diego native Lee’s hyperactive act, which focuses at least as much on his relationship problems and his life as a recovering addict as it does his Korean-born father, is personal, relatable, and — sorry dad — damn funny. $20, 8pm & 10:15pm Friday-Saturday, 7pm Sunday; Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club, 618 NW Loop 410, (210) 541-8805.

SPECIAL EVENTS Martin Luther King Jr. March Organized

and presented by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission and the City of San Antonio, this annual march begins at the MLK Jr. Academy, continues three miles through the historic Eastside and culminates with a commemorative program in PittmanSullivan Park. This year’s program features a keynote address by award-winning artist, activist and speaker David Banner, a performance by rising R&B artist Jidenna and the presentation of the Martin Luther King Jr Distinguished Service Award, the Baha’i Unity of Humanity Award and the Rev. R.A. Callies Courage Award. Free, 10am (march), noon-1:30pm (program) Monday;

begins at MLK Jr. Academy (3501 Martin Luther King Dr.), ends at Pittman-Sullivan Park (1101 Iowa St.).

Museums of San Antonio Market The

DoSeum, the Buckhorn Saloon and Museum, the McNay, the Texas Ranger Museum, San Antonio Museum of Art, the Briscoe and the Witte team up for an annual sale of discounted prints, original artwork, trinkets and treasures. Free, 11am-5pm Friday; The DoSeum, 2800 Broadway, (210) 212-4453.

TALKS PLUS The Equality Project A public education

and civic engagement program, the Equality Project trains participants to establish relationships with their state representatives and senators, and to advocate for policy changes with their elected officials. Free (donations accepted), 6-8pm Wednesday; Westfall Branch Library, 6111 Rosedale Court, (210) 207-9220.

"Listas Para La Lucha (Ready for the Struggle)" Keeping the immigrant and

refugee community at the forefront, this conference packed with workshops and informational sessions aims to build capacity and have the marginalized immigrant and refugee voices not only heard but transformed into action. Free, 8:30am-5pm Saturday; San Antonio Mennonite Church, 1433 S. St. Mary’s St., (210) 533-0642.

MLK Jr. Commemorative Lecture Trinity

welcomes African American studies professor Dr. Marc Lamont Hill for a lecture titled “From Segregation to Social Justice: What Would Martin Say?” Free, 7:30pm Thursday; Trinity University, Laurie Auditorium, One Trinity Pl., (210) 999-8117.

"Pass the Mic: The History of HipHop" Hosted by Cafe College and San

Antonio Education Partnership, this free DreamWeek event presents hip-hop as a “celebration of diversity” that’s created a culture incorporating ethnicity, art, politics, fashion, technology and urban life. Free, 2-4pm Saturday; Cafe College, 131 El Paso St., (210) 207-4528.

Reproductive Health Action Forum

Planned Parenthood Texas Votes sheds light on the legislative session and how it will affect women’s reproductive health. Free, 6-8pm Thursday; Movement Gallery, 1412 E. Commerce St., (210) 299-2666.

White People for Reparations to All African People Uhuru Solidarity Movement leads a discussion on ways to remedy the effects of slavery and institutional racism endured by African Americans for more than 400 years. Free, 7-9pm Friday; La Botánica, 2911 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 716-0702.

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 31

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

ARTS + CULTURE

SARAH FOX

MARCO AQUINO

FOSTERING EMERGING TALENT Guadalupe’s Artist Lab yields promising results

≥

Funded in part by the New York-based Surdna Foundation, the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center’s Artist Lab fellowship provides selected artists with both creative and business development opportunities and culminates with a yearend showcase. The latest edition gathers works by 2016 participants Lisette Chavez, Raul Gonzalez, Sarah Fox, Jose Villalobos, Andrei Renteria and Kristel Orta-Puente. On view through February 3, the group exhibition is a chance to get familiar with some of San Antonio’s most talented emerging artists, several whom are recent graduates from the MFA program at the University of Texas at San Antonio. While there’s no unifying concept here, as each artist works individually, several overarching themes emerge. Orta-Puente and Fox both explore gender identity, with Puente presenting a series of photographs based on the Mexican American chola and

Fox tapping into maternal instincts with her mixed-media sculptures. Chavez and Villalobos explore subject matter commonly shunned by societal norms. Gonzalez and Renteria’s work sheds light on socio-economic structures. Standing out among the highlights are Renteria’s En La Boca Del Diablo and Fox’s Lick and Nuzzle, two works that transport the viewer to unbeknownst worlds. Inspired by the mountain ranges on either side of the Rio Grande in West Texas, Renteria’s En La Boca Del Diablo consists of two large mounds on opposite ends of the room with pieces of shattered ceramic balls — a collision of sorts — spread throughout the center of the room. According to Renteria, the piece is meant to question the historical practices of colonialism and exploitation along the U.S.-Mexico border. “Political bosses, cartels and transnational companies are left to do as they please, creating cemeteries and killing fields out

of the landscape,” Renteria writes in his artist statement. While Renteria’s work openly embraces chaos, on the opposite end of this scale is Fox’s Lick and Nuzzle, a seemingly peaceful portrayal of two deer-like hybrid creatures showing affection to one another. Inspired by the inner turmoil of a mother’s failed pregnancy, the work is visually striking. “The gesture of a parent putting her or his nose to the top of her baby’s head is a universal, mammalian, act of bonding,” reads Fox’s statement. A collaborative effort with the artist’s own mother, the piece is a testament to the bond between mother and child. Since its inception nearly three years ago, the Artist Lab fellowship has fulfilled a high order and its selected artists do not disappoint. Here’s hoping for continued success among San Antonio's most ambitious young artists.

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 33

CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

ARTS + CULTURE

Is everyone you love covered? WRITERS RESIST Local literati join the movement to re-inaugurate shared values JAMES COURTNEY

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On January 15, just fi ve days even before joining up with the larger before the inauguration of movement, when, after the election, President-Elect Donald Trump, literary she found herself, like so many others, arts center Gemini Ink will join local “devastated, deeply depressed, and publisher Wings Press, the citywide frightened.” At some point, Barker’s summit DreamWeek and a host of devastation gave way to “a sudden San Antonio writers and activists burst of anger and energy” and, as to present Writers Resist: SATX, a she assured her graduate students daylong poetry reading and forum for that “[their] voices are more important free expression. now than ever before,” she realized The event, which is affiliated with a that many artists and writers were coordinated, national (and international) wrestling with the feeling that “we’ve effort spearheaded by the nonprofit got to do something.” PEN America, is something of a protest For Barker, who sees the role of the to be sure, but, more importantly, it aims writer/artist as “helping society look to “provide a creative, inclusive at itself without the blinders space in which we may on,” this event represents come together as an a proud proclamation artistic community that “all of our voices to celebrate the and contributions values we most matter.” She hopes treasure.” While that Writers there is a long Resist: SATX list of scheduled can function as a performers — “reaffirmation of including Texas who we want to be Poet Laureate as a nation.” • Wendy Laurie Ann Guerrero, Browne, for her Barker Dr. Carmen Tafolla, part, was pleased poet and Wings Press with how “parallel publisher Bryce Milligan, Dr. conversations” and concerns Octavio Quintanilla, Andrea “Vocab” led this event to coalesce organically, Sanderson and Anel Flores — the event a loose and resounding response is open for all to attend and participate to “feeling our values threatened.” in as they see fit. Writers, in particular, are important The Current spoke with celebrated right now, Browne explained, because poet and UTSA professor Wendy writers are the ones most attuned to Barker and San Antonio Poet Laureate the fact that “language and how we Jenny Browne, both of whom played speak about one another matters.” She vital roles in conceiving and planning sees this as a crucial time to “resist the event, to find out more about the the normalization of hate speech and spirit of Writers Resist: SATX, which other damaging uses of language.” is being billed as a “re-inauguration of Believing that writing and art are our shared commitment to the spirit “inherently life-giving activities” that of compassion, equality, free speech, help people see from the perspective Free and the fundamental ideals of of others, Browne hopes that 1-8pm Sun, Jan. 15 democracy.” events like Writers Resist: Alamo Beer Brewery Barker explained that the SATX can represent a kind 415 Burnet St. writersresist.org seeds for Writers Resist: of antidote to our “empathySATX began to germinate, deprived time.”

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COURTESY TRENT REZNOR/ATTICUS ROSS

SCREENS

SETTLING THE SCORE Composers Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross on writing the meditative score for Patriots Day KIKO MARTÍNEZ

≥

Nearly five years have passed since Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor and NIN producer and programmer Atticus Ross were each presented with an Academy Award for composing the captivating score for director David Fincher’s tech drama The Social Network. Until then, most critical acclaim for a film’s score went to musicians who benefited from a background in conducting and orchestral composition—John Williams, Alexandre Desplat and Howard Shore, to name a few. There were other rockers-turned-composers, of course, who paved the way, like Frank Zappa, Danny Elfman, Mark Mothersbaugh and Cliff Martinez. But the addition of Reznor and Ross into a somewhat traditional industry transformed the playing field. Still, Reznor and Ross are humble when they talk about the work they did on The Social Network—work that has propelled them into the upper echelons of their film composing profession. “We just tried to instinctually serve the picture the best way we could and not come in thinking about how others would do it,” Reznor, 51, told the Current during a phone interview last month. “I think the concept of what is appropriate for real film music has expanded to incorporate things that aren’t just an orchestra. It never entered our minds the concept of being rewarded or recognized for it.” Since The Social Network, Reznor and Ross continued to work exclusively with Fincher on his next two projects, the American remake of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Gone Girl, the latter of which garnered them another Oscar nomination for Best Score in 2014. In their latest collaboration

on a feature narrative, the duo switched gears and decided to try their hand with a new filmmaker, Peter Berg (Deepwater Horizon). In Patriots Day, which opens in San Antonio this Friday, Berg tells the story of the Boston Marathon bombing that took place on April 15, 2013 and the four-day manhunt that followed. After “doing separate things for the last couple of years,” as Reznor explained, he and Ross made a commitment to take on a variety of projects together over the next few years that would feel distinctly different and challenge them as musicians. It started with Patriots Day and a meeting with Berg to discuss the one concern they had in working on a film about a real-life event. “We wanted to make sure it was going to be respectful and wasn’t a pro-American, kill-em’-all, Donald Trump [type of movie],” Reznor said. “Being familiar with [Peter’s] other work, I knew he would be capable of this style of experiential filmmaking, which was different for us. He gave us a blank canvas to do whatever we wanted and we were off to the races.” Reznor described the early stages of writing the score as “a lot of beard scratching and sitting around thinking about the nature of the film.” Ross explained that although they weren’t quite sure what kind of score they wanted to write, they agreed on what they didn’t want it to become. “All we knew was that we didn’t want a generic action [score] one might associate with this kind of film,” Ross, 48, said. “Often when we’re working in broad strokes, the early experimentation might include a set of instruments or a set of processes

that may inform the sound. Sometimes we hit a bullseye on a target and sometimes we find something by chance.” In the case of Patriots Day, Reznor and Ross admit they sort of stumbled into the recording technique they ultimately used for the film’s score. To create it, they built a machine in their studio that recorded on a series of looping cassette tapes. As different instruments and sounds were added into the mix, the tapes would start to distort and degrade in unusual ways. From the layers of sounds, complex pieces would form and Reznor and Ross would then extract portions and record over them. “It started to take on the traits of all the various components that we had recorded on piano and strings and glued everything together, which would’ve been very hard to do through traditional methods or modern studio techniques,” Reznor said. “We created some really long, meditative pieces and started to arrange the score around that.” For Reznor and Ross, the final score strengthens the overarching themes that come with a film like Patriots Day. Not only did they want to convey redemption and a sense of community in a city like Boston through their score, they wanted to express the idea of a fond memory being shattered by a tragic event, but without a sense of discomfort. “We wanted a sound of melancholy, nostalgia and longing, but with a sweetness involved in it,” Reznor said. “I think we developed that in a way that feels tasteful and interesting, but also experimental and adventurous.”

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 37

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FOOD

Uni’Ko Japanese House | 17803 La Cantera Terrace, Suite 1101, 78256 | (210) 239-6610

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Uni’Ko Japanese House’s interesting translation RON BECHTOL

Best Bets: sushi & sashimi, Octo salad, ceviche The Skinny: Uni’Ko is a modern Japanese restaurant betraying Mexican influences and featuring elaborate rolls Hours: 11am-10pm Mon-Thu, 11am-11pm Fri, noon-11pm Sat, noon-9pm Sun. Price: $6-$32

A couple of Japanese-themed restaurants opened recently within a yen’s toss of one another on I-10W. Both displayed some degree of Mexican influence. With elaborate rolls taking front and center, neither seemed to be emphasizing sushi in its traditional form. How to decide which to try first? Count the cream cheese. The cream cheese count may prove to be the wrong criterion in the long run — and yes, cream cheese and fish do go together seamlessly in the case of bagels and lox with a schmear. Call it snobbism or call it cultural bias, but it’s what tilted the balance in favor of Uni’Ko, an intimate enclave tucked away under the patio that fronts George’s Keep at Eilan. There were only three instances of the rogue ingredient on the relatively compact menu — assuming I counted correctly. We didn’t order any one of them. We did start with another supposed hybrid, however, the Uni’Ko ceviche touting “mixed seafood, assorted sashimi, scallions, cilantro and citrus sauce.” By whatever name, the seafood/ sashimi component was fresh and abundant. Equally generous was an unmentioned cohort of sliced serrano chiles that would have pushed the limits even at a coastal Mexican dive. There might have been some ponzu, Japan’s citrusy soy sauce. But my advice here is to forget NippoMexican mashups and think of this as a straight, if picante, ceviche — albeit one priced at $19. You can spend the same on the truly audacious Aji tuna tower, a stacked creation also consisting of rice, cucumber, crab mix and flying fish roe. Neither Japanese nor Mexican, but seeming more in the Cali-fusion vein, is the Octo, a salad composed of mixed greens and grated carrot in a spunky dressing, all topped by octopus sashimi. What you see here is totally what you get. And I’d call it a success, especially considering that octopus can be texturally challenging, even when thinly sliced. So far, though, it was hard to tell what direction all this was heading in. So we sucked it up and ordered a roll; there are 24 of them vying for your attention in prices ranging from $15-$32 — each more Instagramworthy than the next. (This will likely be the only

EXP E R I ENCE

P EARL

time I will ever call your attention to Yelp, but the number of photos, most of them rolls sporting varying degrees of Vegas showgirl regalia, flames included, is impressive — clearly there’s an audience.) But I wanted less flash (and rice), and more seeming substance, so selected the relatively modest Samba roll ($22) for its rice paper wrapper and straightforward-sounding filling. Maybe should have gone for flash. The roll’s wrapper made this creation look something like a translucent summer roll that had been sliced and set adrift in an angrylooking puddle, one that turned out to be a mixture composed of togarishi seasoning (think chili flakes and more) and Sriracha, all held in breathless suspension by ponzu. The shoe you may be expecting to drop now will: the fiery liquid all but obliterated the delicate wrapper and its contents — (genuine, if bland) crab mix, hamachi, tuna, shrimp, avocado, daikon sprouts …Next time, Dragon Fly despite all its ferocious wings and things and saucy swirls. The small sushi bar that greets you upon entry doesn’t look as though it would hold much variety, but it was inevitable that we should try the nigiri just to see if the chef, formerly associated with Sushi Zushi according to our cheery waitress, could deliver on the basics. Short answer: yes. We did have to ask for wasabi and ginger, and I might have preferred the rice to be a little more compact, but the tuna, yellowfin and scallop slices draped over each lozenge of rice were impeccably fresh, and that’s what counts most. Try them first without any dipping. The restaurant’s name, a play on the Spanish word for unique, is reconstructed from sea urchin roe (uni) and a Japanese suffix sometimes meaning small or girl. So here’s an idea: start first with the sushi chef’s recommendation of the freshest nigiri or sashimi; if the uni is impeccable, by all means get that. Seafood salads are usually safe. Then order a mild but pleasant Lucky Buddha “enlightened” beer (the bottle is worth the price alone), and watch the rolls parade by. (Cocktails are said to be coming, but I’d go to George’s Keep for those.) If you just can’t resist, then fine. But please: no cheese.

local flavor since 1883 sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 39

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FOOD

FOOD COURT

Taco news, Trinity Market Closes and more

> Personal circumstance has forced the closing of one of SA’s favorite coffee shops. The Fairview, which opened in August of 2015, has closed its doors as of December 30. The shop became popular for its Chingon drink with house-made horchata, waffles and toasts. The decision by husband-and-wife owners John and Whitney Collins was made public via Facebook that day. “We have made the incredibly difficult decision to close the Fairview following a family health emergency which requires us to move home to Houston. The Fairview has always been a Mom & Pop operation at its heart and we have poured our blood, sweat and tears into this little shop for the past two years, striving to serve our community through creating something we hope was as special to you as it was to us.” 3428 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 731-8009.

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Farewell, Fairview

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The Chuck Ramirez room at El Mirador

El Mirador’s Makeover

The Mid-Week Market Is Back

> In December, Shaun Lee founder of the Truckin’ Tomato stressed how the Mid-Week Market will hopefully reignite the Tomato’s market efforts so chefs and home cooks alike can

COURTESY OF MID-WEEK MARKET

> Holiday deadlines and PTO kept me from sharing the news of El Mirador’s reopening on Thursday, December 29. Now owned by Chris Hill, who also owns The Esquire Tavern and its river-level counterpart Downstairs bar, El Mirador is decidedly back in business. Whether the menu (kept relatively intact) checks out will require a few more visits, but for now I can tell you the space is definitely worth visiting for its well-curated art and lighting. The six-month facelift brought a brighter look throughout the interior with what I’m referring to as woodland murals, a backdrop of the San Antonio River, complete with white crane and tall banana leaves along the entry dining area by Garrett Mormando. The local art continues in the bar area with mural vignettes and font treatment by Cruz Ortiz, who also helped design the cocktail menu for Downstairs along with Spursthemed pizza boxes for Papa John’s and eateries in Austin. The adjacent party room is dubbed the Chuck Ramirez room, as it’s filled with work by the late local artist. And though the interiors are looking sharp, the patio might be the pièce de résistance with its new furniture, twinkly globe lights and awe-inspiring near-perfect view of the Tower of the Americas. El Mirador’s new hours are 7 to 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. 722 S. St. Marys St., (210) 225-9444.

get their pick of fresh produce and locally made products. After a successful December pilot, the Mid-Week Market is back every Wednesday from 3 to 6 p.m. at 503 Chestnut. Expect to find sweet potatoes, collards, winter squash, milk, eggs, beef, lamb, bison, honey, coffee and syrups from Pulp Coffee, Deliish Goods, Deep River Specialty Foods, Madge’s Foods, Southern Grit Barbecue, Texas Black Gold Garlic, Cocina Heritage, Local Sprout, Kubena Farms, Johnson Backyard Farms, J & B Farms, Francis & Thatcher Farms, the San Antonio Food Bank, Braune Farms, Vogel Orchards, CNS Groves and Kitchen Pride. 503 Chestnut St.

New Ice Cream Shop

> Hong Kong waffles have officially made it in our fair city with the opening of Kuma late last week. Brought to you by partners Cong Li, Billy Ip and Kevin Chu (behind Nama Ramen), Kuma offers Hong Kong waffles topped with choice of ice cream, fixings and syrups. At $7.50 a pop, the dessert isn’t entirely cheap, but it’s huge and shareable. I went with green tea ice cream, with green tea and chocolate Pocky and sweetened condensed milk, all enveloped in the crisp cone, which bubbles up right before your eyes on one of several waffle makers. The menu is small for now with just the gai daan jai (HK waffles) available, but Chu hinted at additional items in the near future. For now the tiny shop — it can’t be more than 700 square feet — is focusing on nailing said waffle cones. Kuma is open 6 to 11 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, 6 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Thursday through Saturday and closed Sunday. 6565 Babcock Road, Suite 17, (210) 641-2888. Send food- and nightlife-related events and news to flavor@sacurrent.com.

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 41

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

NIGHTLIFE

JESSICA ELIZARRARAS

JESSICA ELIZARRARAS | @JESSELIZARRARAS

BOOZE NEWS Bar parties, anniversaries and openings this month

A Very Zach-y Hour | After four years Freetail Brewpub is saying goodbye to brewer Zach Wolfe with a happy hour celebrating his tenure. If you’re a fan of Freetail’s diverse and ever-changing lineup of brews, you may want to thank Wolfe in person for helping shape one of San Antonio’s first breweries. Prices vary, Thursday, 4-7pm, Freetail Brewing Co., 4035 N. Loop 1604 W., Suite 105, (210) 625-6000, freetailbrewing.com.

Southern Hospitality | Crawfish season is upon us and Lowcountry is kicking things off with their first backyard boil as partnered with Rhum J.M. and Damoiseau made in the West Indies. Prices vary, Friday, 8-11pm, Lowcountry, 318 Martinez St., facebook.com/lowcountrysa.

Barbacoa, Big Red, Booze: The trinity when it comes to a San Antonio remedy to a nasty hangover will be available starting Saturday at The Bang Bang Bar. Vegetarian friends, the kitchen’s making jackfruit Tiki Thursday Takeover | With the San Antonio Cocktail Conference in barbacoa to fill your bellies. Prices vary, Saturday, 11am-3pm, 119 El Mio full swing this week, lovers of all things booze can taste new spirits even Drive, (210) 320-1187, facebook.com/TheBangbangbar210. if they didn’t get the hottest ticket in town. Park Social will partner with Treaty Oak and Suerte Tequila for a tiki bash complete with pig roast by Whiskey Tree Sets Opening Date | The owners behind 151 Saloon are Folc and surf tunes by King Pelican. Prices vary, Thursday, 8pm-midnight, adding a new bar to their lineup with the opening of Whiskey Tree Bar & Grill 224 E. Olmos Drive, (210) 822-0100, park-social.com. on Thursday, January 26 at 3 p.m. The new spot, which features a sprawling patio, 19 drafts on tap, more than 20 HD TVs and a stage for live music will Pop-Up Party | You can taste more Suerte Tequila with a pop-up at kick things off with happy hour from 3 to 8 p.m. ($2 domestics and wells) Stay Golden Social House along with Mezcal El Silencio and good ol’ and $2.50 select pints until closing time. 7905 Bandera Road, Suite 3. Jägermeister. Prices vary, Friday, 10pm-2am, 401 Pearl Pkwy., (210) 444-0707, facebook.com/staygoldensocialhouse. Branchline Anniversary | Is there a better way to turn four than with a party and new release? Probably not. The staff at Branchline Brewing Co. Wu-Tang Over Everythang | More SACC spillover means more booze will feature a spicy winter warmer with English malts, star anise, orange for you and yours. Glenfiddich, Campari, William Grant & Sons will take peel, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and clove for an all-around wintry brew. over Blue Box with guest bartenders, Leo Oliver (Austin), Rich Heider The release will be available on draft in 750-milliliter bottles, growlers and (Phoenix) and Stephan Mendez (San Antonio), and a rundown of Wucrowlers. Not into this special brew? There will be more than 20 beers Tang’s greatest hits (read: all of the catalog). Prices vary, Saturday, available to sample and take home. Prices vary, January 28, 2-9pm, 10pm-2am, Blue Box, 312 Pearl Pkwy., (210) 227-5853. Branchline Brewing Co.,, (210) 545-3536, branchlinebrewing.com.

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MUSIC

COURTESY OF SHUTTERSTOCK

The dark, electric sadness of Saakred’s 2Ø25 CHRIS CONDE

≥

Despite the friendliness of our gigantic small town, San Antonio can sometimes have harsh and unforgiving soil for artists and musicians trying to dig their roots deep. The community is small, everyone knows each other and when anyone, anywhere does anything within the 410 Loop, a version of such thing, (regardless of how many fragments of truth remain), get back to anyone willing to listen over a shot of Fireball and Lone Star Tallboy It’s that dynamic that seems to have weighed most on Saakred as they chart new territory with their music and art. While Saakred still plays shows in San Antonio, (like their own album release performance earlier this year and at Lonely Horse’s Thanksgiving tour kickoff) Saakred appears to favor a healthy distance from the Alamo City...for the time being, at least. Living in Austin now after some time in Europe, Saakred wrote and produced an album that seems to reflect, with captivating audible fragments, the space between themselves and San Antonio. Their album 2Ø25 spans several genres yet remains cohesive, despite an abundance of experimental sounds and elements. Saakred’s vocals appear almost ghost-like, haunting the album with sporadic and ethereal melodies, whispers and chants. It’s almost like a dance album, just with many twisting textures. And while incorporating the experimental is nothing new for Saakred, this new collection of music goes full on into punching 4/4 kicks, looping hi hats and synths. “I definitely think this album is Europe... The influence of Europe. The influence of contemporary art, the galleries I was surrounded by... The drug of my choice, which is romance,” they tell me. “When I was in Ireland, I spent half my time there trying to pick up and mend this really

COURTESY OF SAAKRED

SACRED SOLITUDE intense brokenness inside me — my relationship to San Antonio, my relationship to the women in my life…” Saakred spent some time at The Burren College of Art in Ireland toward the end of 2015, then Portugal and Spain for another few months in early 2016. They spoke to me about the hurt and frustration they experienced in the San Antonio scene as they were processing their non-binary gender identity, and although Saakred says this album doesn’t necessarily reflect or embody that pain, they feel that it helped push them toward ultimately going abroad — and then eventually moving to Austin. I think artists, even when we’re trying not to, can’t help but let our life experience and emotions trickle into our work, even just a little bit. When I first listened to 2Ø25, before I even spoke to Saakred about it, there were moments throughout the album where I felt a certain solitariness communicated in between echoing drums and whispers. Dark, subtle tinges of sadness hang in some tracks, like “House of Unspeakability,” a sevenminute sprawling trip-hop movement that eventually crescendos into a punching house track. Saakred later talked to me about spending a lot of time alone in Ireland, but then also going to the discos and underground clubs around Europe — experiences an attentive listener can hear in the 11-track record. Unsure about whether or not they’ll tour for this collection of music, and already working on new material for the next (rumor has it they plan on incorporating some hip-hop elements), Saakred continues to remain unsubscribed to doing what is safe or expected with their art. A triumph reserved only for those willing to push through the status-quo to communicate something raw and authentic.

“PSYCH DEL RIO”

San Antonio finally gets a psych festival RYAN SMITH

≥

Gem and Glenn Hotvet, the co-owner couple behind San Antonio’s scrappy, beloved art space K23, will venture to Arneson River Theater next fall for a new psychedelic music festival they’re calling “Pysch Del Rio.” The fest is not only a welcome addition to SA’s burgeoning music landscape, but also a major development for one of the city’s grooviest art and music hubs. Founded in June 2014, K23 began as an art gallery focused on showing and curating selections from local visual artists. At first, concerts were sporadic. But it seems Gem and Glenn eventually developed a talent for booking high quality national touring bands to play alongside local talent, while also crafting a unique performance space with special lighting, art, and projections for each show. All of which is to say that a downtown music festival put on by K23’s proprietors is just the kind of weird, outside-the-box event this city could use more of. While the organizers haven’t yet teased their lineup, consider the broad spectrum of genres hosted by the Hotvets, from Golden Dawn Arkestra’s exotic amalgamation of cosmic jazz-fusion to the ferocious fuzz of Destruction Unit and the chill, tropical psych sounds of Boogarins. K23’s calendar is a spectrum of strange, outside-the-mainstream art and sound, a reflection of the DIY drive and community-oriented ethos behind the space. K23 starts its inaugural psych fest at the perfect time, too. This past year, severe weather put a stop to Austin’s Levitation festival (formerly known as Austin Psych Fest), canceling widely-anticipated performances by Brian Wilson, Animal Collective and Melody’s Echo Chamber. Levitation organizers have already announced that they’re taking a hiatus in 2017 as they regroup and plan for a comeback the following year. It had appeared Texas would go not one but two years without a major psychedelic music festival – that is, until now. That’s part of what makes the prospect of Psych Del Rio so intriguing. Beyond filling a void in San Antonio, the festival has the potential to make an even bigger splash.

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 45

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CURRENT • January 11-17, 2017 • sacurrent.com

MUSIC

This show at Vapure Lounge, which is shaping up to be yet another promising and active DIY venue for the San Antonio music scene, features two of our favorite young bands in town. For starters, Baby Bangs is a rough and tumble bubble-grunge two-piece, led by gifted singer-songwriter Elena Lopez. If you like your lo-fi rock with plenty of pop smarts and raw energy, and maybe a dash of emotional catharsis, then you’ll love Baby Bangs. The Freebiez, on the other hand, are more of a noholds-barred noise rock/experimental act. Still, for those who don’t consider themselves noise aficionados, there’s plenty of diversity to the Freebiez sonic palette, which also incorporates elements of pop, punk, and even folk music. The band’s live shows are particularly engrossing and punishing. Rounding out the bill will be Opaque Ghost, Mouton, and Prahnas. $5.00, 8:00pm, Vapure Lounge, 5431 Grissom Rd, (210) 4558568, vapuresa.com. — James Courtney THU

MUSIC PICKS

BALDEMAR ESQUIVEL

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A brand new project from ace jazz trumpeter Tony Romero, MADD WOLF is a loose, improvisational, jazz fusion collective. As a matter of fact, Romero, who, among other things, helms longtime SA favorite the Spiders Jazz Quintet (sometimes more, sometimes less), is set to debut this new project this Thursday at Ventura. MADD WOLF, which also features drummer Kory Cook (of Mockingbird Express and a million other things), guitarist Nick Long (of Lonely Horse) and bassist John Lewis Tyler, takes its jazz fusion inspiration from the likes of Sun Ra and Pharoah Sanders. Romero promises that Thursday’s performance will feature two, largely improvised, 45-minute sets of music “that reflect the chaos of our modern world.” This special show is a must for local jazz fans, as well as fans of psychedelic music of all types, and the generally musically adventurous. $3.00$5.00, 10:00pm, Ventura, 1011 Avenue B, (210) 802-6940. — JC

COURTESY OF TONY ROMERO

THU

COURTESY OF RIVER BARONS

MADD WOLF

One of the best things about Ventura, like The Ten Eleven before it, is the sheer number and diversity of shows the venue hosts. If you frequent the place, you’re likely to get an earful of a band or two that really surprises you, an unexpected gem that you can’t believe you haven’t caught (or maybe even heard of) before. We submit that SA’s River Barons might be just such a band. As evidenced on their rad and recent EP Things That Happened, the four-piece makes a lush and not-at-all stale brand of southern rock, with flares of heavy alt-country. But River Barons are far from a typical southern rock band. Aside from incorporating elements of jazz (dig that brass) and alternative rock, the group’s music is blessed by uncommonly thoughtful lyrics that earnestly lay out relatable insights into daily life. You can check out River Barons' music at riverbarons. bandcamp.com. $5.00-$8.00, 8:00pm, Ventura, 1011 Avenue B, (210) 802-6940. — JC SAT

RIVER BARONS

OSCAR MORENO

TRUE INDIGO It’s easy to see that True Indigo has a power color: the San Antonio quintet plunges headfirst into a psychedelic pool of purple haze, spinning endless webs of noise in acid rock jams like “I Saw Purple.” They warmed the stage for Lonely Horse back in December, giving the popular duo a serious run THU

for their money with improvisational works of free-form psychedelia. Now with a full length album on the violet horizon, the band is melding minds with the trippy heroines of Sailor Poon. Thick with smoky layers of feedback and distortion, it looks like indigo is back in style this year. 8pm, $7, K23, 702 Fredericksburg Rd — Abby Mangel

THE GRASSHOPPER LIES HEAVY An amp-worshiping staple in the Alamo City, The Grasshopper Lies Heavy might just be the most relevant band heading into 2017. The subversive group borrows its name from a fictional novel within Philip K. Dick’s The Man in the High Castle, a book that reimagines life if the Axis Powers had won World War II. Presumably of Biblical origins (“The grasshopper shall be a burden” reads Ecclesiastes), the hardcore outfit’s namesake whispers resistance under totalitarian rule. Now that we live in an upside-down world where the alt-right is a real thing, the postmodern landscape of The Grasshopper Lies Heavy takes on firsthand significance. The Forgotten Empire Records band experiments with cathartic explosions of percussion and guitar drones in the style of Fugazi and Quicksand. Intelligent and irate, they’re ready to dismantle the bullshit of the sinister master class with a crushing wall of sound. 8pm, $5, Imagine Books and Records, 8373 Culebra Rd — AM SAT

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 47

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! As a part of both Dream Week and MLK weekend, we’ll be treated to a special show at the Tobin Center. The show will feature, in a booking choice that was made by someone who really knows what they’re doing, Jackie Venson, a neo-soul/indie blues singer-songwriter whose star has risen quickly. The 27 year-old Venson, who already comes off as a seasoned vet in terms of performance and songwriting, makes music that SUN

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JACKIE VENSON

THIRD ROOT

crackles with the peculiar strength that arises from facing turmoil, and chasing peace, through art. Her live performances, in which listeners can truly begin to grasp what a vocal and guitar talent she really is, Venson is capable of rolling through a variety of styles and emotions with an organic ease and warm nonchalance seldom seen. For a fine primer on Venson, check out her Bandcamp page (jackievenson.bandcamp.com), and be sure to listen to her stellar live album Live at Strange Brew. Venson will be joined in this performance by spoken word artist Christopher Michael. $22.50, 7:30pm, Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, (210) 223-8624, tobincenter.org. — JC

PRESENTS DJ CHICKEN GEORGE AND FRIENDS

FEMINA-X 16

BERNARD BUR

Femina-X returns home after embarking on an international walkabout that climaxed in Podvyazye, Russia. The ambient-leaning group follows the otherworldliness of experimental icons like Björk (seriously, stop whatever you’re doing and listen their cover of “Hyperballad” on YouTube), but mutates tribal drums and Delphic vocals into psychotropic, dancey concoction. Now a world away from the frozen plains of Russia, Femina-X continues to push boundaries at the band’s first local show of the year. This intimate performance is definitely one to remember. 9pm, $5, Limelight, 2718 N. Saint Mary’s — AM MON

COURTESY OF FEMINA-X

As has become something of a preMLK Day tradition in San Antonio, Third Root, a socially conscious and politically charged local hip-hop group that everyone should be listening to already, presents the fourth annual DJ Chicken George and Friends event, a night of excellent DJs, revelry, and the kind of togetherness-vibes that only a sweaty dance floor can engender. Aside from an alwayson-point performance from Third Root, and of course Chicken George, who is the group’s DJ/producer, the show will feature sets from JJ Lopez, Leonard Trujillo, Chorizo Funk, Donnie Dee, and Gibby Diaz. So, if you were hoping for a way to meet some new friends and limber up for the MLK march, Third Root has got you covered. $10.00, 8:00pm, Paper Tiger, 2410 N St Mary’s St, papertigersa.com. — JC SUN

STILL CORNERS Still Corners are a dazzling electronic outfit that’s redolent of their hazy London home. Not unlike their Sub Pop label mates – Fleet Foxes, Foals, Beach House, ect. – they sound like the perfect score to a retro 80’s flick about skipping prom night for some teenage hijinks. Drenched with gentle waves of synth, the group captures a sort of suburban purity in listless tracks such as their latest single “Lost Boys” on Dead Blue. The eclectic number loosely orbits the simple vocals of songstress Tessa Murray, entrancing and enchanting listeners through its subdued minimalism. Reminiscent of dreamy oddballs like M83 and Lower Dens, the entire album unfolds like a cinematic slow dance that drifts into rolling credits. It’s a celestial treat for space cadets and cool kids alike. 8pm, $15, Paper Tiger, 2410 N. Saint Mary’s — AM TUE

COURTESY OF DON HENLY

As a solo artist and (especially) as a founding member of The Eagles, Don Henley was making dad-rock since way before dad-rock was even a thing. The heavilydecorated singer, songwriter, and drummer co-wrote many of The Eagles' most enduring songs (see “Witchy Woman,” “Desperado,” and “Hotel California”) before embarking on a solo career in the early 1980s. Since then—aside from rejoining The Eagles starting in the early 1990s for an indefinite victory lap and the group’s surprisingly solid 2007 release Long Road Out of Eden—Henley has released five solo albums of solid country-rock tunes, with the most recent being 2015’s wellreceived effort Cass County. Straight up: your chance to see Henley live, in the intimate confines of The Majestic no less, is a chance to experience one of the true legends of American music, whose voice still sounds as gently soulful and deeply warm as ever. $79.50-$199.00, 7:30pm, The Majestic, 224 E Houston St, (210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — JC TUE

DON HENLEY

sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 49

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MUSIC CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11 Bru’s Tunes Live Acoustic Music by Bru’s Tunes. Free. La Hacienda De Los Barrios, 6-9pm Jimmie Vaughan at Jazz, TX Renowned musician and Texas legend Jimmie Vaughan performs at the Pearl’s newest upscale music venue. $35. Jazz, TX, 8:30-11:30pm Ray Bonneville Blues musician Ray Bonneville plays Sam’s. $10-$40. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8pm

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12 Disorder Goth, New Wave & Industrial music videos hosted by Ely Bat. Free. The Amp Room, 11pm Los #3 Dinners SA’s garage rock band Los #3 Dinners play at Sam’s. $10-$40. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8:30pm PM Jazz Vocal jazz and R&B band PM Jazz play Luna. $5. Luna, 9:30pm VJ Vision VJ Vision at the Mix every Thursday. Free. The Mix, 10pm Who’s Bad: The Ultimate Michael Jackson Tribute “Who’s Bad” is a Michael Jackson tribute show at the Aztec. $13. Aztec Theatre, 8pm

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13 Anonymous Henchmen Metal band Anonymous Henchmen play Zombies with Shields and Wounded Souls. $5. Zombies, 9:30pm The Birthday Parde Local DJs Catwalk, Chacho, Colorblog, and more help celebrate Paper Tiger’s first anniversary. Free-$5. Paper Tiger, 8pm Bustin’ Loose Bustin’ Loose at the Mix. Free. The Mix, 11pm Chris Duarte Group Rock blues act Chris Duarte Group play Sam’s. $10-$45. Sam’s Burger Joint, 9pm Creative Creatures vs. The Universe (The 3 Year Anniversary Show) Featuring 40+ artists & vendors of all genres, with live music by: Young Costello, St. Dukes and Orsigner. Dance Performances by: Wayne E. Holtz & Cruzita Bonez. Plus, Friday the 13th tattoos, DJ, photo booth backdrop, and more. $5. Brick, 7pm-midnight Decimate Erupts Rock bands For a Reason, What I Despise, Ammo for my Arsenal and

more play with Decimate at Bond’s. $5-$8. Bond’s 007 Rock Bar, 8pm Friday the 13th Horror-film themed night with dark drum n bass playing all night. Limelight Ghandi’s Gun Ghandi’s Gun play with local acts The Heroine and Silent Minority. $5. The Amp Room, 9pm-2am Josh Field Band The Josh Field Band play rock Americana at Phoenix Saloon. Free. The Phoenix Saloon, 9pm Lukas Graham Danish pop-soul band Lukas Graham come to the Aztec for this all ages show. $27-$136. Aztec Theatre, 8pm Mozart & Mendelssohn Guest conductor and violinist Kolja Blacher continues the San Antonio Symphony’s Mozart Festival with two Mozart symphonies: Number 36, the “Linz” Symphony, and Number 38, the “Prague.” Blacher performs the melodious violin concerto by Mendelssohn between the two symphonies. $15-$85. Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 8pm Mozart’s Operas Hear the solo voices of the San Antonio Chamber Choir perform the best from Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro, and The Magic Flute. $10-$20. Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 6:30pm Reckless Kelly Country band Reckless Kelly is joined by Sunny Sweeney. $20-$25. John T Floore’s Country Store, 9pm Rock Bottom Reunion Local rockers Slick Dickens play Korova with Winter’s Touch, Tha Skams, Cretin Bop and more. $5-$7. The Korova, 7pm The Soul Supporters Rhythm and blues band the Soul Supporters play Luna. $10. Luna, 9:30pm Watch Your Step: The Men of Eastwood The Renaissance Guild, San Antonio’s Black Theatre Company, presents a musical memory of the Eastwood Country Club, Keyhole Club and Carver Library Auditorium presenting such male artists as Fats Domino, Lou Rawls, The Temptations, Billy Eckstein and many more. $25. Little Carver Civic Center, 8pm

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SATURDAY, JANUARY 14 1313 A goth, post punk, and deathrock show with Ely Bat, Detra and more Free. The Amp Room, 9pm Billy Kiesel Band Billy Kiesel Band play bluesy Americana at Phoenix Saloon. Free. The Phoenix Saloon, 9pm Caskey: No Apologies Tour Rapper Caskey plays in support of his No Apologies mixtape. $12-$20. Fitzgerald’s Bar & Live Music, 8pm

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MUSIC

Eclipse Eclipse is a Journey tribute band playing Sam’s. $7-$40. Sam’s Burger Joint, 9pm

Americana singer-songwriter. $18-$75. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8pm

James & Black Soul R&B band James & Black play Luna. $10. Luna, 9:30pm

MLK Jazz Classic Jonathan Butler performs live jazz. $74-$162. Lila Cockrell Theatre, 7:30pm

Maneaters of Tsavo Heavy rock band Maneaters of Tsavo play the Mix. Free. The Mix, 9 p.m.

Sunday Evening Picker Circle w/ Bill Lewis Unplugged acoustic session with Bill Lewis. Free. Luckenbach Dance Hall, 5pm

Mozart & Mendelssohn $15-$85. Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 8pm

Watch Your Step: The Men of Eastwood The Renaissance Guild, San Antonio’s Black Theatre Company, presents a musical memory of the Eastwood Country Club, Keyhole Club and Carver Library Auditorium presenting such male artists as Fats Domino, Lou Rawls, The Temptations, Billy Eckstein and many more. $25. Little Carver Civic Center, 4pm

Mozart’s Operas $10-$20. Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 6:30pm The Reed Brothers Americana blues/rock band The Reed Brothers play Floore’s, joined by Roadside Libby. $8-$10. John T Floore’s Country Store, 9pm SA vs Austin Metal Showdown Featuring SA metal bands Cauterized, Metalriser, and Austin bands Last Judgment, Shadow Spectrum, and more. $5-$8. Bond’s 007 Rock Bar, 8pm The Texases The Texases play country classics all night. Free. Paper Tiger, 8pm Third Eye TOOL & APC tribute: 10 Year Anniversary Celebrating the music of TOOL and A Perfect Circle since 2007, Third Eye is one of San Antonio’s most acclaimed and loved tribute acts. The event will feature the return of original guitarist Gerry Martinez. Special guest DJ Fern will spin jams between sets. $8. Tonic, 9pm Tribute Night Deadly Omens is a King Diamond/Mercyful Fate tribute band, and Headhunter pays tribute to Krokus. $5. Zombies, 9:30pm Watch Your Step: The Men of Eastwood The Renaissance Guild, San Antonio’s Black Theatre Company, presents a musical memory of the Eastwood Country Club, Keyhole Club and Carver Library Auditorium presenting such male artists as Fats Domino, Lou Rawls, The Temptations, Billy Eckstein and many more. $25. Little Carver Civic Center, 8pm

SUNDAY, JANUARY 15 Drugstore Cowboys Family night and free dance with Drugstore Cowboys at Floore’s. Free. John T Floore’s Country Store, 6pm Jackie Venson Live: MLK Weekend In support of DreamWeek and MLK Weekend, the Q Live One “Up Close and Personal” concert series continues with Jackie Venson and special guest Neo-Soul poet Christopher Michael. $22.50. Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 7:30pm Jim Lauderdale Multi-Grammy award winning artist Jim Lauderdale is an an

MONDAY, JANUARY 16 Meat and Metal Mondays Zombies Bar hosts a metal night while serving meat and drink specials. Free. Zombies, 5pm Old Skool 90s hip hop/R&B vids with VJ Wooly Bully Free. The Amp Room, 9pm Swing Nite with Lindsay Beaver & the Hot Damns Lindsay Beaver is a Canadian singer-drummer playing with her band the Hot Damns. $10. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8:30pm

TUESDAY, JANUARY 17 Claude Butch Morgan Open unplugged acoustic session with Claude Butch Morgan. Free. Luckenbach Dance Hall, 5pm Comal Country Music Show Country music artists Conrad Gonzalez, Bob Appel, and Priscilla Speed perform with all proceeds going to charity. $5. Knights of Columbus Hall, 7:30-10pm Don Henley Americana band JD & The Straight Shot play the Majestic with Don Henley. $79.50-$199. The Majestic Theatre, 7:30pm Falling in Reverse Rockers Falling in Reverse play with Motionless in White, Issues, Dangerkids, and Dead Girls Academy. $28. Alamo City Music Hall & Club, 5:30pm

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SAVAGE LOVE by Dan Savage

> My partner and I have been playing with male chastity devices. We’ve been considering going to a strip club while his cock is caged up and getting him lap dances. Is there some etiquette for this with the dancers? Do we let the dancer know before she is on his lap? Or do we not mention it? Is it rude to get a dancer involved at all? I’ve not yet found an etiquette guide for this situation. Letting Our Cage Kink Show “I think I speak for most dancers when I say I don’t care what’s going on underneath a customer’s pants,” said Bobbi Hill, a lap dancer based in Portland, Oregon, strip club capital of the United States. “Grazing over a stiff object in the crotch region is not an uncommon experience when giving a lap dance, and depending on the texture of the device, I might not even give it a second thought.” While your concern for lap dancers is commendable, LOCKS, the person most at risk of injury is your partner. Nothing is more fun than inducing an erection in someone who’s locked in a male chastity device — a necessarily painful and punishing erection — but the devices are unyielding (ideally) and the cock flesh is weak (even when hard). A dancer who grinds down on your partner’s crotch is likelier to hurt him. That said, lap dancers don’t like surprises. If a dancer grinds down on your partner’s crotch and feels something hard, clunky, and un-cock-like in his pants, “she might go into air-dance mode,” said Hill, “which is essentially a lap dance where you make as little contact with the customer’s crotch as possible. Of course, you can never go wrong investing in a stripper’s patience and well-being — try handing her a Benjamin as you explain your situation.” Just in case you’re not interested in dancers who are hers, LOCKS, I ran your question by a male stripper. “I don’t think most dancers would mind if a customer was wearing a male chastity device as long as it caused no physical harm or discomfort,” said Aaron, a dancer at Stag PDX, Portland’s new male strip club. “If all parts of the

device are safely tucked away between your legs while you receive the lap dance, there should be little to worry about. But if the device has parts that protrude — and could possibly harm an overzealous dancer while they grind up on you — you may want to be more cautious. It also never hurts to ask the dancers what they’re comfortable with.” Strippers! They’re just like us! You can ask them questions! They will answer them! They respond positively when you take their comfort into account! They also appreciate large tips! And good personal hygiene! And clients who aren’t completely shitfaced! > I recently stopped reading your advice column due to its current focus on homosexuality. Just letting you know the heterosexuals are still alive and doing well. Bored Reading Endlessly Experimental Deviants Exploring Rectums Over the last year, BREEDER, I published 140 questions from readers who identified themselves as gay, lesbian, bi, trans, or straight. Twenty-six of those questions were from gay men (18 percent), 16 were from bisexuals (12 percent), 6 were from trans people (4 percent), 2 were from lesbians (1 percent), and 90 were from straight people (65 percent). Almost all of the bisexuals whose letters I responded to were in opposite-sex, aka “straight,” relationships, and the same goes for half the letters from trans people. (Lots of trans people are straight identified and in opposite-sex, aka “straight,” relationships.) So nearly 80 percent of the questions I answered last year focused on straight people and/or straight sex. If a sex-advice column that’s about straight people and/or straight sex 65 to 80 percent of the time is too gay for you, BREEDER, then my “current focus” isn’t the problem — your homophobia is. I would say that I’m sorry to lose you as a reader, BREEDER, but I’m not. Listen to the Savage Lovecast every week at savagelovecast.com.

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JONESIN’ CROSSWORD by Matt Jones

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1 Hairless on top 5 Had in mind 10 Backstage access 14 Lyft competitor 15 Tree with chocolateyielding seeds 16 “At Last” singer ___ James 17 Red gemstone 18 Singer whose “Blonde” was Esquire’s #1 album of 2016 20 Late Jeopardy! contestant Cindy with an inspiring sixday streak (despite treatment for Stage 4 cancer and running a fever during taping) 22 Cries of exasperation 23 Clubber Lang portrayer in “Rocky III” 24 Shrewd 25 2016 animated movie with a 98% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes 27 El ___ (Peruvian volcano) 29 Furniture wood 30 Puts on, as clothes 31 One way to find out 32 Founder of analytical psychology 34 “Spy vs. Spy” magazine 36 With 38-Across, 2016 headline that ended a 108year streak 38 See 36-Across 42 LBJ’s VP 43 Self-defense system with throws 44 “Westworld” airer 45 Beverage brand whose logo is two lizards 48 Dandified dude

49 Copier paper orders 51 Newfound planet similar in mass to Earth (from National Geographic’s “6 Science Discoveries Worth Celebrating in 2016”) 54 “S” on the dinner table 55 “Inside ___ Schumer” 56 “Blueberries for ___” (Robert McCloskey kids’ book) 57 Donald Glover dramedy called “the best show of the year” by the New York Times 60 What Bertrand Piccard flew around the world using clean technology (one of BBC’s “Four good things that happened in 2016”) 63 Mascara ruiner, maybe 64 “A horse is a horse” horse 65 “SNL” producer Michaels 66 Former Montreal ballplayer 67 Cong. gathering 68 Key near the quote marks 69 Goulash, e.g.

DOWN

1 They may get stuck to hikers’ socks 2 Lie adjacent to 3 Movie millionaire sought by a same-last-named “Dude” 4 Deadpan style of humor 5 “Back to the Future” hero Marty 6 “My Name Is ___” (Jason Lee sitcom) 7 Obamacare acronym 8 “___ of the North” (1922 silent documentary)

9 2020 Summer Olympics city 10 Chest muscle, slangily 11 “Resume speed,” to a musician 12 Be the headliner of 13 Seasonal mall figures 19 East, to Ernst 21 Actor Wood of “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency” 25 Follow a jagged path 26 Bookie’s calculations 27 Cheese’s partner 28 “Kinda” suffi x 29 Yoko who loved John Lennon 33 “I’m not touching that!” 34 Pretend pie ingredient 35 Opposite the mouth, in biology 37 Party mix cereal 38 Coffee holder 39 “And then ...?” 40 Watson’s creator 41 Head-shaking replies 43 “You had one ___ ...” 45 Hiccups, e.g. 46 At least 47 Actor Peter and singer Susan, for two 48 Jokey Jimmy 50 Cheers up 52 Jerusalem’s home: abbr. 53 Syrup flavor 54 Take the wheel 57 A BrontÎ sister 58 Record, in a way 59 Get your ducks in ___ 61 Freemium game interrupters, perhaps 62 Curator’s canvases

ETC.

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob Brezsny ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is a huge holy tree that links all of the nine worlds to each other. Perched on its uppermost branch is an eagle with a hawk sitting on its head. Far below, living near the roots, is a dragon. The hawk and eagle stay in touch with the dragon via Ratatoskr, a talkative squirrel that runs back and forth between the heights and the depths. Alas, Ratatoskr traffics solely in insults. That’s the only kind of message the birds and the dragon ever have for each other. In accordance with the astrological omens, Aries, I suggest you act like a far more benevolent version of Ratatoskr in the coming weeks. Be a feisty communicator who roams far and wide to spread uplifting gossip and energizing news. TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): You have a divine mandate to love bigger and stronger and truer than ever before. It’s high time to freely give the gifts you sometimes hold back from those you care for. It’s high time to take full ownership of neglected treasures so you can share them with your worthy allies. It’s high time to madly cultivate the generosity of spirit that will enable you to more easily receive the blessings that can and should be yours. Be a brave, softhearted warrior of love! GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): I love and

respect Tinker Bell, Kermit the Frog, Shrek, Wonder Woman, SpongeBob SquarePants, Snow White, Road Runner, and Calvin and Hobbes. They have provided me with much knowledge and inspiration. Given the current astrological omens, I suspect that you, too, can benefit from cultivating your relationships with characters like them. It’s also a favorable time for you to commune with the spirits of Harriet Tubman, Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, or any other historical figures who inspire you. I suggest you have dreamlike conversations with your most interesting ancestors, as well. Are you still in touch with your imaginary friends from childhood? If not, renew acquaintances.

CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): “I never wish to be easily defined,” wrote Cancerian author Franz Kafka. “I’d rather float over other people’s minds as something fluid and non-perceivable; more like a transparent, paradoxically iridescent creature rather than an actual person.” Do you ever have that experience? I do. I’m a Crab like you, and I think it’s common among members of our tribe. For me, it feels liberating. It’s a way to escape people’s expectations of me and enjoy the independence of living in my fantasies. But I plan to do it a lot less in 2017, and I advise you to do the same. We should work hard at coming all the way down to earth. We will thrive by floating less and

being better grounded; by being less fuzzy and more solid; by not being so inscrutable, but rather more knowable.

another vantage point; if the past is a core of who we are, then our movement in time always brings us into a new relation to that core.”

LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): Here’s my

SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21): The

declaration: “I hereby forgive, completely and permanently, all motorists who have ever irked me with their rude and bad driving. I also forgive, totally and forever, all tech support people who have insulted me, stonewalled me, or given me wrong information as I sought help from them on the phone. I furthermore forgive, utterly and finally, all family members and dear friends who have hurt my feelings.” Now would be a fantastic time for you to do what I just did, Leo: Drop grudges, let go of unimportant outrage, and issue a blanket amnesty. Start with the easier stuff — the complaints against strangers and acquaintances — and work your way up to the allies you cherish.

VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): There

are some authors who both annoy me and intrigue me. Even though I feel allergic to the uncomfortable ideas they espouse, I’m also fascinated by their unique provocations. As I read their words, I’m half-irritated at their grating declarations, and yet greedy for more. I disagree with much of what they say, but feel grudgingly grateful for the novel perspectives they prod me to discover. (Nobel Prize-winner Elias Canetti is one such author.) In accordance with the current astrological rhythms, Virgo, I invite you to seek out similar influences — for your own good!

Tao Te Ching is a poetically philosophical text written by a Chinese sage more than two millennia ago. Numerous authors have translated it into modern languages. I’ve borrowed from their work to craft a horoscope that is precisely suitable for you in the coming weeks. Here’s your high-class fortune cookie oracle: Smooth your edges, untangle your knots, sweeten your openings, balance your extremes, relax your mysteries, soften your glare, forgive your doubts, love your breathing, harmonize your longings, and marvel at the sunny dust.

CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19):

I recently discovered Tree of Jesse, a painting by renowned 20th-century artist Marc Chagall. I wanted to get a copy to hang on my wall. But as I scoured the Internet, I couldn’t find a single business that sells prints of it. Thankfully, I did locate an artist in Vietnam who said he could paint an exact replica. I ordered it, and was pleased with my new objet d’art. It was virtually identical to Chagall’s original. I suggest you meditate on taking a metaphorically similar approach,

Capricorn. Now is a time when substitutes may work as well as what they replace.

AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): “It is often safer to be in chains than to be free,” wrote Franz Kafka. That fact is worthy of your consideration in the coming weeks, Aquarius. You can avoid all risks by remaining trapped inside the comfort that is protecting you. Or you can take a gamble on escaping, and hope that the new opportunities you attract will compensate you for the sacrifice it entails. I’m not here to tell you what to do. I simply want you to know what the stakes are. PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): “All

pleasures are in the last analysis imaginary, and whoever has the best imagination enjoys the most pleasure.” So said 19th-century German novelist Theodor Fontane, and now I’m passing his observation on to you. Why? Because by my astrological estimates, you Pisceans will have exceptional imaginations in 2017 — more fertile, fervent, and freedomloving than ever before. Therefore, your capacity to drum up pleasure will also be at an all-time high. There is a catch, however. Your imagination, like everyone else’s, is sometimes prone to churning out superstitious fears. To take maximum advantage of its bliss-inducing potential, you will have to be firm about steering it in positive directions.

THIS MODERN WORLD by Tom Tomorrow

LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): Now would

be an excellent time to add new beauty to your home. Are there works of art or buoyant plants or curious symbols that would lift your mood? Would you consider hiring a feng shui consultant to rearrange the furniture and accessories so as to enhance the energetic flow? Can you entice visits from compelling souls whose wisdom and wit would light up the place? Tweak your imagination so it reveals tricks about how to boost your levels of domestic bliss.

SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): In 2017,

you will have unprecedented opportunities to re-imagine, revise, and reinvent the story of your life. You’ll be able to forge new understandings about your co-stars and reinterpret the meanings of crucial plot twists that happened once upon a time. Now check out these insights from author Mark Doty: “The past is not static, or ever truly complete; as we age we see from new positions, shifting angles. A therapist friend of mine likes to use the metaphor of the kind of spiral stair that winds up inside a lighthouse. As one moves up that stair, the core at the center doesn’t change, but one continually sees it from sacurrent.com • January 11-17, 2017 • CURRENT 57

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