After nearly eighteen months of pandemic imposed shutdowns, the return of local concerts has come roaring back to life. On Friday September 17, 2021 Dayton, Ohio’s sludge metal doom-bringers Close the Hatch will descend upon Columbus, Ohio for an unforgettable performance at Ruby Tuesday Live.
Presented by Epitome of Stupidity Podcast and Ebony Jeanette PR, the evening will feature Close the Hatch alongside special guests Insidiant (rock/metal) NovaGrave (doom), and Waste of White (alt-metal). Tickets are $8. Doors open at 6p.m.
“This show has been in the works for well over a year and through a pandemic. Happy to finally get it on the books and play some loudness with everyone! There’ll be something for basically everyone, doom, sludge, rock metal the whole nine yards! The virus still blows but come enjoy some good tunes with us!” – Clint Stockham of Epitome of Stupidity Podcast.
Cassidy Mann released ‘Election Night,’ her first single with the label. Photo: google
Award-winning songwriter and recording artist Donovan Woods and his long-time manager Michelle Szeto have just announced the launch of their brand new label, End X Music (End Times Music), distributed via The Orchard, and the border-straddling Toronto and Nashville-based imprint is wasting no time loading their roster with inspiring new talent. End X Music’s first signed artist is Cassidy Mann, who just released “Election Night”—her first single with the label. Written by tweaking melodies with co-producer Roman Clarke (Taylor Janzen, Olivia Lunny), “Election Night” captures the intense awakening and transformation that many people experienced over the four years of the prior U.S. presidency. Please visit this link to watch Mann’s “Election Night” visualizer or click here to stream or purchase “Election Night” today. (End X Music, 2021)
Szeto recalls the moment End X Music’s first signing fell into place: “Since Donovan and I started working together over 5 years ago, the idea of sharing what we’ve learned and the relationships we’ve built with another artist has always thrilled us,” she says. “We never questioned the hard work that would come with it, but rather, we didn’t think we would ever agree on an artist. When we independently came across Cassidy and sent her music to one another, it was a coincidence we couldn’t ignore. Cassidy’s songwriting and production skills are beyond her years, and we’ve been endlessly impressed with her creative instincts.”
Entwining her acoustic roots with gentle electronic textures, Cassidy Mann often reshapes a small moment into a powerful and poetic song that feels both personal and relatable. “My favorite thing is to write about tiny things that make the bigger picture more important somehow.” Mann says. The lyrics of “Election Night” focus on a couple that moved beyond just friends that night but ultimately ended as strangers. “Trump’s Presidency was hell for a lot of people and you hear about that a lot, especially from a political standpoint,” says Mann. “I think it’s a really important conversation, but throughout all of it, I was also craving the more intimate stories. I wanted to explore the idea of how the whole overarching narrative of that time affected people’s personal relationships.
Growing up in the Prairies of Winnipeg, Mann has been singing since she could talk. Her parents bought her a guitar as a birthday present when she was 9. By 14, she started taking songwriting more seriously and her emerging talent led to a nomination for Aboriginal Recording of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards.
More about End X Music: The core of End Times’ mission is transparency and adaptability. In the world of streaming, the data is available. Artists should understand their expenses and their earnings as well as anyone they work with. It allows us to interpret and react to how, why, and where songs are being discovered. There are many pathways to success, and success looks different to everyone. Every artist and every project is unique and artists should be confident that the team built around them is being created thoughtfully and purposefully in service of their individuality. We will focus on songwriters, regardless of genre, and work together to make their music valuable by getting it to people who will use it and love it.
Twin Liquors will host September virtual events for tequila and bourbon lovers. Photo: Twin Liquors, used with permission.
Join Twin Liquors for two virtual tasting events this month. On September 16, in honor of Bourbon Heritage Month, Woodford Reserve Master Distiller Chris Morris, in partnership with Twin Liquors, will host a fun and informative evening, complete with a brief history on the brand and a virtual tasting and Q&A. Must be 21+. Twin Liquors will also have a Heritage Bourbon Sale throughout the month of September to include discounted prices on delicious Bourbon, like Four Roses, Maker’s Mark, Angel’s Envy, Woodford Reserve, Brother’s Bond, and dozens more. (Twin Liquors, 2021)
Additionally, on September 23, Twin Liquors invites guests to join Tequila Herradura’s Global Brand Ambassador, Ruben Aceves & NFL Hall of Famer, #22 Emmitt Smith for a virtual Tequila experience. Guests 21+ will experience conversations around Tequila Herradura, The Casa Herradura story and the founding of Tequila. Smith and Aceves will also walk viewers through a virtual tasting of the Tequila Herradura Silver, Reposado, Añejo, and Ultra Cristalino Añejo.
• September 16: Woodford Reserve with Master Distiller, Chris Morris at 6p.m. • September 23: Herradura Tequila Virtual Experience with Ruben & Emmitt Smith at 6p.m.
• To register for the Woodford Reserve with Master Distiller, Chris Morris follow the link here. • To register for the Virtual Experience with Ruben & Emmitt Smith follow the link here.
Born and raised in downtown Austin, Texas, Twin Liquors began as one small store and has developed into a successful “home-grown” Texas family-owned company. Twin Liquors now has a unique and well reputation throughout the United States for having impeccable team members, outstanding customer service, conveniently located stores, extensive selections of fine wines and premium spirits from around the world, and substantial community involvement. Twin Liquors currently operates 100+ neighborhood stores from Austin to San Antonio, the Hill Country to Houston, and the DFW area with their Sigel’s branded stores.
‘Babe in the Woods’ by Yvonne Wakefield will be released October 26, 2021. Photo: amazon
Yvonne Wakefield, also known as Yvonne Pepin-Wakefield, is an internationally exhibited artist and published author who lives and works from a home and studio on an Oregon-side shore of the Columbia River. Both of her books, “Suitcase Filled with Nails: Lesson Learned from Teaching Art in Kuwait,” and “Babe in the Woods: Building a Life One Log at a Time,” are available in print, digital and audio formats and have been the focus of film, television, and radio interviews across the country, including Rick Steves’ NPR program. They have also been reviewed in print and electronic media, and incorporated into college curricula. In 2018, Yours in Sisterhood, a documentary, premiering at the Berlineal, included an interview with Yvonne at her log cabin with filmmaker Irene Lusztig. “Babe in the Woods: Self Portrait” is the second book in her three-book series that chronicles her over four-decade-long relationship with her wilderness log cabin. “Babe in the Woods: Self Portrait” is releasing October 26, 2021. (Yvonne Wakefield, 2021)
The first book, “Babe in the Woods: Building a Life One Log at a Time” was recently re-released. The first edition received acclaim and outstanding reviews. In it, Wakefield strikes out on her own as an 18-year-old orphan, with a chainsaw and an axe, to build a log cabin in the Oregon woods. The second book in the series, “Babe in the Woods: Self Portrait,” follows Wakefield as an artist as she continues to learn to live with the uncertainties of the wilderness – such as experiences with bears – while independently building her second log structure and exercising her artistic skills. Over forty years later, both the cabin walls and the author show signs of weathering, but both remain rooted in a place of peace, quiet, beauty and repose.
Of her series, Yvonne says, “Whether it is one book or the entire series, it is for anyone who wants to read a story that is simply told about surviving the wilderness within and outside of oneself. I wrote the series because one book could not contain my over a four-decade-long relationship with this wilderness, and the cabin.”
Beyond her time in the woods, Yvonne delves into her younger years and life as an orphan. For most of her childhood, Yvonne floated about in a Catholic Middle-Class system. Detailing her ongoing sexual, physical, psychological and financial manipulation and abuse, she explores the important differences between caring and grooming that she was unable to differentiate as a child. Once Yvonne was able to build the cabin and reflect with her art, this distinction came to light. Follow Yvonne Wakefield in her triumph over adversity, and her experiences in the rawness of nature.
“Babe in the Woods: Self Portrait” by Yvonne Wakefield is available for pre-order on Amazon. ISBN: 978-1737459118 Price: $16.95 Publisher: Pepin Enterprises
‘The Bone Code’ is the new Temperance Brennan novel by Kathy Reichs. Photo: amazon
Kathy Reichs’s first novel “Déjà Dead,” published in 1997, won the Ellis Award for Best First Novel and was an international bestseller. Kathy was a producer of Fox Television’s longest running scripted drama, Bones, which is based on her work and her novels. One of very few forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology, Kathy divides her time between Charlotte, North Carolina, and Montreal, Québec. Her new novel “The Bone Code” is Kathy’s twentieth entry in her series featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. This time around, Temperance’s examinations, fifteen years apart, of unidentified bodies ignite a terrifying series of events. (amazon, 2021)
“The Bone Code” – On the way to the hurricane-ravaged Isle of Palms, a barrier island off the South Carolina coast, Tempe receives a call from the Charleston coroner. The storm has tossed ashore a medical waste container. Inside are two decomposed bodies wrapped in plastic sheeting and bound with electrical wire. Tempe recognizes many of the details as identical to those of an unsolved case she handled in Quebec years earlier. With a growing sense of foreboding, she travels to Montreal to gather evidence. Meanwhile, health authorities in South Carolina become increasingly alarmed as a human flesh-eating contagion spreads. So focused is Tempe on identifying the container victims that, initially, she does not register how their murders and the pestilence may be related. But she does recognize one unsettling fact. Someone is protecting a dark secret—and willing to do anything to keep it hidden. An absorbing look at the sinister uses to which genetics can be put, and featuring a cascade of ever-more-shocking revelations, “The Bone Code” is Temperance Brennan’s most astonishing case yet—one that gives new meaning to today’s headlines.
Project Pollo will celebrate one year at Roadmap Brewing Co. with free Chikn Sandwiches, pints, games, giveaways, and more. Photo: Project Pollo, used with permission.
Project Pollo is celebrating their first anniversary at Roadmap Brewing Co. This is the original site where Project Pollo first started as a wildly popular plant-based food truck slinging delicious chikn’ based delights before spreading its wings and expanding with brick and mortars across the state. The fun happens Saturday, September 18 from 12p.m. to 3p.m. where patrons can enjoy FREE Chikn’ sandwiches made with house breaded crispy Chikn’ strips topped with house-made aioli and dill pickles. Since all roads lead to beer at Roadmap Brewing Co, the pet-friendly craft brewery will be offering $1 off pints of brew to wash down your meal while you enjoy tunes by DJ Danny, outdoor games like Flickin’ Chicken and awesome door prizes. (Project Pollo, 2021)
There will be plenty of specials at all locations statewide. September 18 is also National Cheeseburger Day, and all locations will be offering an anniversary special of two plant-based Double Cheez Burgers served on a brioche bun with birdy sauce, double Impossible meat patties, dill pickle, cheddar cheez, and a grilled onion for $9.18. From birdy to burger, there is something for everyone.
Based in San Antonio, Project Pollo has been named as one of the top 15 vegan fast-food chains in the US by VegNews. It is the brainchild of entrepreneur, Lucas Bradbury, who recently made the list of 28 Young Restaurant Leaders to Watch by QSR Magazine for the first-of-its-kind concept. For the past year, this plant-based fast-food chicken concept has been ruffling industry feathers with its unprecedented growth of 12 locations in just over 12 months. The rebellious recipe for success lies in challenging industry norms with a combination of plant-based affordability, convenience, sustainability, and deliciousness that attracts the adamant vegan and makes converts out of curious carnivores. More than just a restaurant, Project Pollo is a company that gives a cluck. With a motto of people over profits, the stores have given away more than 9,000 vegan sandwiches, burgers, and hot dogs and saved as many as 239,782 chickens.
First Anniversary Celebration Roadmap Brewing Co. 723 North Alamo Street San Antonio, TX, 78215
First Anniversary Special available at all Project Pollo locations across the great state of Texas during store hours.
Established in 2020 by vegan entrepreneur Lucas Bradbury, Project Pollo gives a cluck about the planet and the people who inhabit it. The first of its kind plant-based fast-food chicken concept, Project Pollo is built on bold flavors and bolder principles, including fair wages, sustainability, and people over profit. The scratch-made menu offers delicious vegan chicken sandwiches, wraps, and strips, as well as plenty of mouthwatering sides, including crispy Papas, smothered in cashew queso, and Mac N Cheese. Project Pollo is committed to changing the face of the fast-food industry by offering affordable, delicious, convenient access to quality, plant-based options that everyone from the veteran vegan to the curious carnivore will enjoy. With locations across Texas (some drive-thru), Project Pollo hopes to spread its wings to 100 stores by 2024.
Cody Garcia as Willy Wonka and company. Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.’ Photo by Jeremy Daniel, used with permission.
North Park Lexus Broadway in San Antonio is thrilled to announce that tickets to Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ will go on sale today, Friday, September 10, at 10a.m. Tickets start at $45.00 and will be available through all Ticketmaster outlets including the Majestic Box Office, through the Majestic Theatre and Broadway in San Antonio or by calling (866) 870.2717. Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ will play at Majestic Theatre, December 7 through December 12, 2021. Performance times are Tuesday – Thursday 7:30p.m., Friday and Saturday 8p.m. and Sunday 2p.m. and 7:30p.m. Majestic Box Office hours are noon to 5p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10a.m. to 5p.m., Friday. Saturday hours vary weekly, call (210) 226.3333 to verify. Orders for groups of 10 or more may be placed by calling (210) 226-5967. (Broadway in San Antonio, 2021)
Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ tells the story of Willy Wonka, world famous inventor of the Everlasting Gobstopper, who has just made an astonishing announcement. His marvelous— and mysterious—factory is opening its gates…to a lucky few. That includes young Charlie Bucket, whose life definitely needs sweetening. He and four other golden ticket winners will embark on a mesmerizing, life-changing journey through Wonka’s world of pure imagination. Get ready for Oompa-Loompas, incredible inventions, the great glass elevator, and more, more, more at this everlasting showstopper.
Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ features direction by Matt Lenz, based on the national tour’s original direction by three-time Tony Award® winner Jack O’Brien. Original music by Grammy®, Emmy,® and Tony Award® winner Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Grammy® and Tony Award® winners Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, a book by Artistic Director of Edinburgh’s Royal Lyceum Theatre David Greig, based on original choreography by Tony Award® nominee and Emmy Award® winner Joshua Bergasse, and includes additional songs by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley from the 1971 Warner Bros. motion picture. It stars native San Antonian Cody Garcia as Willy Wonka.
Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ features original scenic and costume design by five-time Tony Award® nominee Mark Thompson, which has been recreated by Christine Peters; lighting design by four-time Tony Award® nominee Japhy Weideman, sound design by Andrew Keister, projection design by Jeff Sugg, puppet and illusion design by Obie and Drama Desk Award winner Basil Twist, orchestrations by three-time Tony Award® winner Doug Besterman and music supervision by Nicholas Skilbeck. The hit Broadway musical features songs from the original film, including “Pure Imagination,” “The Candy Man,” and “I’ve Got a Golden Ticket,” alongside a toe-tapping and ear-tickling new score from the songwriters from Hairspray. Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ is produced by NETworks Presentations.
The San Antonio engagement of Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ is presented by arrangement with North Park Lexus Broadway in San Antonio and is a subscription offering of the 2021-2022 Series. Ticket buyers are reminded that Ticketmaster and the Majestic Box Office are the only official retail ticket outlets for all performances at the Majestic Theatre. Ticket buyers who purchase tickets from a ticket broker or any third party should be aware that the Majestic Theatre is unable to reprint or replace lost or stolen tickets and is unable to contact patrons with information regarding time changes or other pertinent updates regarding the performance.
This Oktoberfest Wine & Dine dinner will raise funds for San Antonio Food & Wine Alliance. Photo: google
On Sunday, September 19, Cured will be hosting an Oktoberfest Wine & Dine dinner to celebrate San Antonio’s unique German heritage. Multi-James Beard Award-nominee Chef Steve McHugh has created an extraordinary five-course dinner in collaboration with Chef Todd Pulsinelli, the acclaimed chef of chic New Orleans hotel The Chloe. (San Antonio Food & Wine Alliance, 2021)
The intimate dinner is on track to sell out as a key fundraiser for the San Antonio Food & Alliance’s (SAFWA) Culinary Grant Program in South Texas. Tickets include a five-course dinner paired with Lone Star Beer and German and Austrian wines selected by acclaimed sommelier and board member Paula Rester-Salinas. Additionally, Rester-Salinas has crafted a refreshing welcome cocktail with Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Nikolaihof Elderflower Syrup, muddled blackberries, freshly-squeezed lemon juice, and Mountain Valley Sparkling Water.
The culinary powerhouse team of McHugh and Pulsinelli will present a fresh take on German classics while sharing their inspiration and culinary philosophy with guests.
The menu includes: ● First Course of Presskopf of Local Pork with Gribiche Vinaigrette and Arugula Paired with Lone Star Das Bier Y’all ● Second Course of Blackened and Pickled Beet Salad with Smoked Trout Croutons and Horseradish Cream Paired with Selbach Incline Dry Riesling (Germany) ● Third Course of Quail Schnitzel with Fennel Choucroute, Sweet Potato Mustard, and Blackberry Jam Paired with Berger Grüner Veltliner (Austria) ● Fourth Course of Slow-Cooked Wild Boar Sauerbraten with Schupfnudeln ● Red Cabbage and Jus Natural Paired with Schloss Gobelsburg Zweigelt (Austria) ● Dessert Course of German Bee Sting Cake with Bavarian Cream Filling and Honey Almond Topping Provided with Coffee Service
The Oktoberfest dinner at Cured launches the Wine & Dine series in San Antonio. In the unique dinner format, attendees get an up-close-and-personal opportunity to understand each chef’s inspiration and culinary philosophy with specially designed menus expertly paired with top-tier wines and spirits. Previous Wine & Dine dinners have featured culinary legends Jacques Pépin, Lidia Bastianich, Emeril Lagasse, and more.
The exclusive dinner kicks off with a cocktail hour at 5:30p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30p.m. A limited number of tickets are available now via the SAFWA website for $225.
In addition to hosting the Oktoberfest Wine & Dine dinner, the Alliance will greet guests at the Pearl Farmers Market from 9a.m. – 1p.m. on Saturday, September 18. Guests who stop by the booth can register to win an artisan gift basket overflowing with local goodies from Alamo Gristmill & Spice, Byccombe Natural Solutions, Gourmet Texas Pasta, Pearl Goods, Swift River Pecans, Tio Pelon’s Salsita, Wildflower Caramels, and more.
All funds raised will benefit the host city’s culinary communities through SAFWA’s programming, including the Culinary Arts Career Conference for high school students and a unique grant program supporting culinary innovation and community giveback. As a continuation of its dynamic decade of success in supporting and cultivating Austin’s culinary businesses and nonprofits, the Austin Food & Wine Alliance (AFWA) expanded statewide in September 2020 to replicate its mission in Texas’ major cities, a move that will support pandemic recovery over the next several years. The newly formed Texas Food & Wine Alliance is the umbrella organization overseeing the AFWA, SAFWA, the Dallas Food & Wine Alliance, and the Houston Food & Wine Alliance.
SAFWA enjoys tremendous community support with H-E-B as a presenting sponsor and key supporters of Barton Springs Mill, Mountain Valley Spring Water, Pabst Brewing, Side Street Hospitality, Skurnik Wines, Sysco, Tender Belly, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and Vital Farms.
The San Antonio Food & Wine Alliance is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering awareness, support, and innovation in the South Texas culinary community through grants, educational programming, and events. Guided by an all-volunteer board of directors and committees made up of culinary- and community-minded professionals, the Alliance’s commitment is to support, inspire, and showcase Texas and beyond through the power of our diverse culinary communities.
Ryan Kinder’s Room to Dream LP is available now. Photo: google
In the age of fitting a mold, country music’s newest renaissance man Ryan Kinder has preserved the influences and nuances which set him apart from the crowd on his road warrior ascent to streaming stardom. His debut full-length album Room To Dream unfolds like a masterclass of how to break free from genre-constraints—with distinctive swings from fuzz-laden guitar licks to feel-good drum programming to radio-ready melodies. For years, Kinder’s signature blend—he says “it’s a riff-roaring rock with a sweet side of Southern soul”—has attracted droves of fans through exceptional musicianship and electrifying live shows. He has taken all of the magic straight from the stage into the studio and the result is the eclectic and exciting Room To Dream. Fans can stream or purchase Room To Dream right now at this link. Nashville fans can catch Kinder at the Listening Room Cafe on August 21, no doubt sharing songs from his new album. Ticket information can be found here. (Ryan Kinder, 2021)
Kinder uses his tour dates to bolster his charitable organization, Kinder’s Kids. One image from the Tuscaloosa tornado stuck with him—a child clutching her teddy bear, surrounded by wreckage where their house used to be. Seeing how that toy brought her comfort, he created Kinder’s Kids to personally deliver toys to children in the aftermath of national disasters. In his tour rider, Kinder asks each venue to supply a toy for the foundation.
Beyond his music career, Kinder has immersed himself in training for triathlons and Ironman competitions. He completed his first distance cycling ride on the Natchez Trace in memory of a friend who had recently died of cancer, ultimately riding 444 miles. On that ride, he talked to his late friend’s racing buddy, who introduced him to the IRONMAN®–where an athlete swims 2.4 miles, rides 112 miles, and runs 26.2 miles. Being told that his late friend had always wanted to do one, Kinder took it upon himself to achieve that dream in his honor. In October, he will compete in the IRONMAN® World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.
Room To Dream Track list: Something Hell Is Room To Dream Tangled Up Blame Southbound Want Friends Jane Nothing But Time
Bakery Lorraine’s Honey Macaron. Photo: Bakery Lorraine, used with permission.
September is National Honey Month and to celebrate the fuzzy pollinators that gift us with such lovely treats, San Antonio & Austin based Bakery Lorraine is partnering with the National Honey Board. As part of this partnership, the beloved bakery is debuting a limited time Mesquite Honey Macaron that will be available during National Honey Month and throughout the fall. The special macaron is filled with a mesquite honey buttercream and fresh honey. (Bakery Lorraine, 2021)
The new macaron is not Bakery Lorraine’s first venture into the world of honey. The bakery’s indulgent cinnamon rolls are glazed with honey from Gretchen Bee Ranch and their Canelés are also created using beeswax in the molds to help give the pastry a shiny exterior. Educational materials from the National Honey Board will be available at Bakery Lorraine locations throughout the month. The Mesquite Honey Macaron, Cinnamon Roll and Canelé are available at all Bakery Lorraine locations. During the month of September, at Bakery Lorraine’s Pearl location, the proceeds from the bakery’s Earl Grey Macaron will be donated to the Landa Gardens Conservancy.
SA Examiner 