Category: Entertainment News

Television adaptation: ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ by Celeste Ng

The television adaptation of ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ is now available on Hulu. Photo: amazon

Celeste Ng graduated from Harvard University and earned an MFA from the University of Michigan. Her debut novel, “Everything I Never Told You” was a New York Times bestseller and winner of the Massachusetts Book Award, the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, and the ALA’s Alex Award. “Little Fires Everywhere,” Ng’s second novel, was a New York Times bestseller, winner of the Ohioana Book Award, and named a best book of the year by over twenty-five publications. Her books have been translated into more than thirty languages and she was the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “Little Fires Everywhere” was adapted into a television series and consists of eight episodes. It is available now on Hulu and features Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington. (amazon, 2021)

“Little Fires Everywhere” – a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives. In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is planned; from the layout of the winding roads, to the colors of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.

Enter Mia Warren—an enigmatic artist and single parent—who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the mother-daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.

When old family friends of the Richardsons attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town—and puts Mia and Elena on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Elena is determined to uncover the secrets in Mia’s past. But her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs.

Nathan Evans Fox announces new album Wasted Love

Nathan Evans Fox’s new album Wasted Love will be out October 8, 2021. Photo: google

An accomplished songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Nathan Evans Fox began playing violin at age four and has since picked up the guitar, piano, and a bit of other instruments. Growing up on family land in Glen Alpine, NC, he was surrounded by hymn books, country, bluegrass, folk, and family. Originally trained as a hospital chaplain, Fox is no stranger to grief. His music makes something out of what remains, both wrestling with country’s messy legacy and embracing its effective power to ignite a rush of joy, nostalgia, or solidarity. His songs are full of the people, things, and moments he loves, from the old Mercedes Benz down the street and slow dancing in dive bars to memories of his grandmother and his enduring love of good trucks. Listeners can feel the humidity of a hot summer night, the low-key longing for home coming through the twang of the slide guitar and the understated gang vocals. Nathan Evans Fox debuts cosmopolitan country sound with his new album Wasted Love, due out Friday October 8, 2021. (Nathan Evans Fox, 2021)

“You start with your accent, you start with your twang, but your accent is also the place where you start to appreciate the rest of the world,” says Western North Carolina-raised songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Nathan Evans Fox. “Country music is my accent but it’s also the way that I communicate my love for the world.” On October 8, Fox is releasing his fourth full-length album, Wasted Love, a collection of tunes that decidedly marks his shift from writing folk songs to his own, “chaotic hillbilly” brand of country music—or in Fox’s words, “from plunk to spunk.” Nimbly shifting affective gears from simmering anger and contemplative reflection to wry wit and unexpected sass, Fox’s songs are simultaneously playful and insightful. Fox’s lyrics evoke the post-storm sizzle of an Appalachian landscape and the Biblical imagery that saturated his childhood. Much of his music is a kind of reckoning with his cultural and religious inheritance: “Don’t know where I’m going / just know where I’m from,” Fox sings in “Carolina Boy,” which was recently released via Mother Church Pew as the first single from Wasted Love. “This song spells out the complicated relationship I have to my hometown,” he says about the lusciously recorded, vice and hardship-filled “Carolina Boy.” “No matter how much I love the hills of North Carolina, leaving my hometown meant making better decisions instead of falling into well-worn pitfalls.” Fans can hear “Carolina Boy” now at this link and pre-order or pre-save Wasted Love ahead of its October release right here.

Below the surface, a thread winds throughout Wasted Love, capturing the specific ways love gets spent without expectation of return—as an unconditional overflow, as uncounted minutes with the one you love, or, watching his mother care for his grandmother near the end of her life, as “the generosity of caretaking love and the ways it refuses to keep score.” Just a few months after moving to Nashville, Fox was grieving the loss of his grandmother when he and his wife’s home got hit by a tornado, and shortly after he had to cancel shows and collaborations as the pandemic spread. Writing the album amid all this loss and uncertainty, he wanted to write songs that would provide respite. In this sense, Fox’s music is all about work: blue-collar work, care work, reflective work. “We need music to do work for us that we’re too tired to do ourselves. Our feelings are spent and our ability to do work is exhausted and we just need somebody to put some good feeling back in our body.”

Wasted Love Track list:
1. One Of These Days
2. Mercedes Benz
3. Lordhamercy
4. Carolina Boy
5. Good Trucks
6. When They Take The House
7. These Four Walls
8. Damn Hard
9. Some Things Are Coming Back Again
10. What’s Intended
11. Put Money Down
12. Wasted Love

Catch Nathan Evans Fox On Tour:
October 8 – Nashville, TN – The 5 Spot
October 23 – Ingram, TX – Fritzers Saloon
October 24 – Dripping Springs, TX – Dreamland
October 29 – Harlingen, TX – Melodia Cafe

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Oktoberfest celebrations at Krause’s Café & Biergarten

Oktoberfest celebrations include live music, beer and pretzel specials, a Halloween costume, and more. Photo: Krause’s Café & Biergarten, used with permission.

Krause’s Cafe & Biergarten is excited to announce various performances and events happening this fall. This coming season, Krause’s will host a Halloween costume contest, provide beer and pretzel specials, and various Oktoberfest celebrations every Wednesday that include a yodeling contest, Bavarian hat dances, keg tappings, and more. Krause’s is also having multiple live bands perform each week in a variety of genres. Check online for a full list of upcoming events. (Krause’s Café & Biergarten, 2021)

Oktoberfest Celebrations: Every Wednesday – October 6, 13, 20, and 27
Every Wednesday at Krause’s, bring out your best German/Bavarian attire for a full night of celebrating. Activities you can expect on Wednesdays include keg tappings, Yodel contests, Bavarian hat dances, Lederhosen & Dirndl costume contests, Bratwurst eating contests, selfie scavenger hunts, Schuhplatter contests, and more.

Monday Madness: October 4, October 18, and October 25
Enjoy music from Dance & Joy Oktoberfest DJ on October 25 and Soul Rebel Oktoberfest DJ on October 18. Try your chances at Beer Bingo on October 4.

Columbus Day, Monday, October 11
Spend your holiday chilling to live music with Geoff Hill & Tony Taylor from 1:30p.m. – 4:30p.m. and Max & The Waysiders from 6p.m. – 9p.m.

Reggae Nights: Once a month, October 24
Get your dancing shoes on, because Reggae nights will be once a month. The next reggae night will be October 24 and the band’s events will be updated directly on Krause’s website.

Walk A Mile In Her Shoes: October 3
Krause’s is hosting the Comal County Crisis Center fundraiser to raise awareness of domestic violence and help fund the counseling programs. The event will be held from 12p.m. to 7p.m., with all proceeds going towards the Crisis Center.

Half Price Tuesdays: All Day Every Tuesday
Guests are invited to enjoy half priced liters of German beer and half priced pretzels every Tuesday.

Halloween Costume Party: October 31
Celebrate Halloween for free at Krause’s for a chance to win the costume contest. There will be live music by the Alli Mattice Band, spooky drink specials, and a costume contest for both you and your canine companion. You can enter the contest with the Hostess upon arrival and the contest will begin promptly at 7:15p.m.

Live Music: 6+ Days A Week
Enjoy complimentary shows throughout the week at Krause’s. The lineup is subject to change and the select shows are ticketed, so check out Krause’s Café to stay up to date on all shows. Performances this coming week include:

Waller Creek Vipers (September 30) – playing from 6:30p.m. – 9:30p.m., their music is energetic and geared for dancers with a 20s-50s jazz style.
Chris Cuevas Project (October 1) – playing from 7p.m. – 10p.m., they are an original music band, blending blues, funk, soul, Latin, and jazz genres.
Tex Porter Band (October 2) – playing from 2p.m. – 5p.m., their music style ranges from Country, Honky-Tonk, Red Dirt, Classic Rock, and deep and rich originals.

Krause’s Café & Biergarten is a New Braunfels historic restaurant opened in 1938 and successfully ran until 1995. Today, Krause’s Café honors the previous traditions of the restaurant with the addition of a ‘Biergarten,’ live music, and more. The menu reflects New Braunfels’ German heritage as well as South Texas flavors. Over 100 beers are available on tap with local, regional, and international options. The restaurant also features cocktails and wines on tap.

Krause’s Café & Biergarten
148 S. Castell Ave.
New Braunfels, TX 78130
(830) 625-2807

New movie release: Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman

Photo: Dark Star Pictures/Voltage Pictures, used with permission.

Companion piece and ‘Monster’ prequel, Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman focuses on serial killer Aileen Wuornos. It is directed by Daniel Farrands and stars Peyton List in the title role, Lydia Hearst, Nick Vallelonga, Swen Temmel, Meadow Williams, and Andrew Biernat. Based on Aileen Wuornos’ early life in 1976, the film follows America’s most notorious female serial killer in Florida when she marries an older wealthy Yacht Club president only to inflict mayhem within her new family and Florida’s high society. (Dark Star Pictures, 2021)

Aileen Wournos: American Boogeywoman will have its US Video on Demand release on October 8 and will also be released on DVD on October 15, 2021. Video on Demand platforms include iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, Xbox/Microsoft, Comcast/Xfinity, Spectrum, Cox, Verizon Fios, Dish Network, Direct TV and through local cable providers.

Dark Star Pictures is a new-age North American distribution company, focused on bringing unique and targeted content to audiences across the country. We are committed to releasing auteur-driven, original cinema in the theatrical, digital and home video space. Our goal is to create original marketing campaigns directly catered to audiences who will embrace our brand of thought-provoking cinema. Recent releases include Tribeca Midnight Selection Honeydew, Sundance favorite Koko-di Koko-Da, Cannes Official Selection Enfant Terrible and the newly announced SXSW psychological drama Freeland. 

New clip from Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman

World premiere of Our American Family documentary

The documentary Our American Family will premiere at the Woodstock Film Festival 2021. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Our American Family is a radically honest, unfiltered portrait of a close-knit Philadelphia family fighting its greatest nemesis: generational addiction. Beginning with a pivotal, “nothing to lose” moment, then captured over the course of the following year, five family members tired of life plagued by addiction on center stage, each struggle to transcend their crippling histories: a mother who learned from childhood to enable her own mother’s addiction, a daughter who doesn’t know who she is without a substance, a son who learned everything about “Heroin 101” from his sister, a younger son who feels alone but acts content to ease the family’s burden, and a stepfather who wonders if addiction is really a disease or simply a by-product of laziness. What will it take to shift this entrenched, wrenching pattern in their lives? How will they each free themselves from their interlocking fates? Will they be able to make significant changes to help their next generation? The members of Our American Family invite us into their lives to find hope and to explore what is possible. No experts. No drug use. No melodrama. (Our American Family, 2021)

WORLD PREMIERE–Feature Length Documentary (USA)
RT 87 mins
Directed and produced by Hallee Adelman and Sean King O’Grady

Tickets are available for the Woodstock Film Festival 2021 Screenings
World Premiere: Saturday October 2 at 3:45p.m.
Bearsville Theater
291 Tinker St
Woodstock, NY 12498

Sunday October 3 at 2p.m.
Orpheum Theatre Saugerties
156 Main St
Saugerties, NY 12477

Courtesy photo, used with permission

Solo artist Zych to release debut album via Metal Assault Records

Zych’s will release debut album Dante’s Inferno Part I via Metal Assault Records on October 22, 2021. Photo: google

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Justin Zych, better known as Zych, has joined the Metal Assault Records roster as the label’s first ever solo artist signing. He has toured internationally and worked with bands such as Zephaniah (Indiana), Viking (Los Angeles), Munroe’s Thunder (US / UK), Them (NY / Germany) and many more. (Justin Zych, 2021)

Dante’s Inferno Part I, slated for release October 22 on Metal Assault Records, will initiate a series of solo albums dedicated to the poetry of Dante Alighieri by Zych. Unlike other albums based on Dante’s Inferno, this album goes in-depth into each canto. The album is nearly 70 minutes long with eight intense songs (No fillers). This progressive metal heavyweight of an album evaporates the boundaries between all genres. Every track takes on its own direction with an all-star musical cast of internationally well-known musicians. Each song is also accompanied by outstanding artwork from a well-established visual artist. This is THE heavy metal soundscape to lend your ear to as you read the first eight cantos of The Inferno.

Metal Assault Records will release Dante’s Inferno Part I on October 22, 2021 on deluxe digipack CD and digital platforms. The album’s cover is a scan of a canvas piece created by Tricia Cavender. Pre-orders for the digital album, deluxe digipack CD (with a full 16-page booklet included), and special merch bundles featuring the “Canto VII” t-shirt design, 12” x 12” giclee prints of the album cover art, stickers, and guitar picks, are available now via the Zych Bandcamp page.

The album’s lead single and opening track, “Canto I – Overture” premiered on August 6 along with a stunning music video in all its 4K glory.

Dante’s Inferno Part I track listing:
1. Canto I – Overture (8:56)
2. Canto II – Gates Of Sorrow (5:23)
3. Canto III – All Hope Abandon (8:27)
4. Canto IV – Limbo (10:04)
5. Canto V – Lust (6:37)
6. Canto VI – The Gluttonous (8:24)
7. Canto VII – The Avaricious & The Wrathful (9:08)
8. Canto VIII – Into the Depths of Hell (11:21)
Total Runtime: 1:08:20

Full list of participating musicians:
Justin Zych (Zephaniah, Viking) – Guitars, Synths, Bass, Vocals
Albert Rybka (Acracy, Kategory V) – Vocals
Ronny Munroe (Ex-Metal Church, Between Worlds) – Vocals
Ty Christian (Lords of The Trident) – Vocals
Troy Norr (THEM, Coldsteel) – Vocals
Patick Parris (Project Roenwolfe) – Vocals
Zebah Latifi (Zephaniah) – Vocals
Angel Cotte (Demolition Hammer, THEM) – Drums
Ed Stephens (Ringworm, Vindicator) – Bass
Ian Bender (Zephaniah) – Bass
Paul Kendall (Valhalla) – Piano, synth, guest soloist
Shaun Cothron (Zephaniah) – Guest Soloist
Brian Koenig (Lords of the Trident) – Guest soloist
Kyle Smith (Death On Fire) – Percussion
Kenny Woods – All Saxophones
Paul Rowan – All trumpets
David Cooke – All trombones
Ilona Orban – All violins
Derek Reeves – All violas
Bennett Spickelmier – All Cellos

Zych (Justin Zych) is a musician specializing in guitar, bass, and piano. He earned his bachelor’s degree in music performance from IPFW and currently teaches music online. He is an experienced international touring musician and guitar technician, who has worked with world renowned bands such as Zephaniah (IN), Viking (CA), THEM (NY/GER), Munroe’s Thunder (USA/UK) and many others.

As a composer, Zych has created several compositions for musical groups, commercials, and scores for online videos. His technical prowess and heartfelt melodies define his style and inspire young and old musicians. He has played guitar for over 20 years and continues to excel at his craft by introducing new techniques and musical concepts to his playing.

Zych has created over four hundred arrangements/transcriptions for clients over the last three years and continues to on a regular basis. Some are as simple and short as a thirty second piano piece and some are as complex and intense as a ten minute orchestral piece. His compositions reflect a mixture of romantic period composition mixed with the complex structures of 20th century composition and jazz. Add a heavy metal element to that and you get a new, diverse and extremely full sound.

Justin Zych. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
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Brandy Zdan announces sonically and soulfully inspiring new album Falcon

Brandy Zdan’s new album Falcon will be released October 29. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Brandy Zdan is a Canadian musician, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer based in Nashville, TN. After spending several years in Texas-supergroup, The Trishas, Zdan released her self-titled debut album in 2015. In 2018, Zdan’s second album, Secretear, was released on Tallest Man Records. Around that time, Rolling Stone dubbed Zdan “a guitar hero of the highest order,” only further cementing a truth which tour mates like Buddy Guy, Will Hoge, and Aaron Lee Tasjan knew all along. Her third album, the entirely self-produced and engineered Falcon, will be released on October 29, 2021. (Brandy Zdan, 2021)

For anyone who has ever said something along the lines of “You can’t do everything”—they have obviously never met Brandy Zdan. Amongst the most tumultuous season of her life to date, Canadian-turned-Nashvillian Zdan set out to make her new album Falcon on her own—writing, playing, producing, and engineering it by herself—leaving not the slightest clue that most of the recording was done in her laundry room during her baby’s nap times. The deeply personal recording process mirrors Falcon’s deeply personal songwriting. “Falcon is my story of the last two years. A story of miscarriage, loss, grief, pregnancy, motherhood, trauma, isolation, depression, hope, and love,” says Zdan. “I wanted to express all of those tangled feelings, and I hope that it encourages other women to express their grief and loneliness in whatever ways they choose.” But it is not the hardship that Falcon blossomed from that sticks with you after listening to the album, rather the unique liberation of disclosure it provides. “Everyone talks about being vulnerable, but there’s something different about this. This is the type of shit women aren’t supposed to be vocal about,” says Zdan. “It’s a stigma that needs to end, and now that I’ve broken that barrier in my own life I want to help others experience what a freeing place it can be.” Falcon is the hyper-personal and the universal wrapped into one record, and Zdan’s songwriting prowess—the razor-sharp detailing of the detangling of her life—is what makes these songs a salve for anyone else experiencing loss, or grief, or heartache.

Recently Zdan shared a music video for “Protector,” the first single from Falcon. Leaning into a J.J. Cale-esque, vintage drum machine feel, “Protector” starts off on a jovial foot with Zdan singing the first line: “I wanna get drunk, smoke a thousand cigarettes, chew a pack of Nicorette, and play dumb.” Before the end of the feel-good groove, however, the metaphor opens itself up, revealing an inner battle between Zdan and her tendency to guard her heart from the worst of it all. “This is my plead to call off the protector side of myself so I could really get down to it and deal with some grief and pain,” says Zdan. Like a lot of the songs from Falcon, “Protector” is a masterclass in how to share a bad feeling with a good song, greasy guitar solo and all. Fans can watch the “Protector” music video at this link and pre-order or pre-save Falcon ahead of its October 29 release right here.

After flirting with the idea of calling this new album life/death/life, a reference to the cyclical nature of her experiences, Zdan instead took note of the symbolism surrounding her. While grappling with her miscarriage, she experienced a vision of a spirit floating up to the sky on a falcon’s wing. Shortly afterward, she started to see a falcon fly throughout her neighborhood. Then, the week before her daughter was born, that falcon returned to perch on her property. The bird felt like an obvious icon for what her album stood for; strength despite size, gentle tenacity, and an ability to soar through the roughest weather. Listening to Falcon, those themes of perseverance and understated courage not only come through but are so effective that it feels like being in the room next to Zdan while she plays the album, recognizing those very traits within oneself and becoming part of a community that refuses to stay silent. “This album is a victory to overcoming almost every obstacle that can be thrown at a woman, mother, and musician,” she says, “and coming out on the other side intact and better for it.”

Falcon Track list:
Dying Inside
The Worst Thing
Falcon’s Wing
I Am Wild
Protector
Everyone Wants
Canceleer
Can You Be Alone
Mama

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Television adaptation: ‘Y: The last Man’ by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra

The television adaptation of ‘Y: The Last Man’ is available on FX on Hulu. Photo: amazon

Brian K. Vaughan is the Eisner and Harvey Award-Winning co-creator of many critically acclaimed comic books, including “Y: The Last Man,” Ex Machina, Runaways, and The Pride of Baghdad. A professional comics writer since his days as an undergraduate film student at New York University, Brian has written every major DC and Marvel character from Batman to X-Men. He has also written several screenplays, stage plays, and short stories. Pia Guerra has worked on various independent titles including the Bruiser, Sinnamon, Slip, Weird Business, Asylum, and a series of gaming manuals for White Wolf’s Masquerade, Changeling and Werewolf lines. In early 2001 Pia began working on Y: The Last Man written by Brian K. Vaughan. Since its release in July of 2002 response to the book has been overwhelmingly positive. Pia won the Shuster Award for Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Artist of 2006 for her work on Y: The Last Man. “Y: The Last Man” was adapted into a post-apocalyptic drama television series and premiered September 13 on FX on Hulu. It stars Diane Lane, Ashely Romans, Ben Schnetzer, Olivia Thirlby, and Amber Tamblyn. (amazon, 2021)

“Y: The Last Man,” is the winner of three Eisner Awards and one of the most critically acclaimed, best-selling comic books series of the last decade. It is at once humorous, socially relevant and endlessly surprising. Written by Brian K. Vaughan and with art by Pia Guerra, this is the saga of Yorick Brown—the only human survivor of a planet-wide plague that instantly kills every mammal possessing a Y chromosome. Accompanied by a mysterious government agent, a brilliant young geneticist, and his pet monkey, Ampersand, Yorick travels the world in search of his lost love and the answer to why he is the last man on earth.

Hopscotch new programming includes Salsa Sundays and El Remedio Food Truck

Starting this Sunday, Hopscotch guests can enjoy Salsa Sundays. Photo: Hopscotch, used with permission.

San Antonio’s popular immersive art gallery and lounge, Hopscotch, is bringing back Salsa Sundays just in time for fall. Every Sunday starting September 26, guests can visit Hopscotch to hear various live music acts. Latin Jazz artist Jose Amador will play at Hopscotch every other Sunday with his band NATIAO starting this weekend from 2p.m. to 5p.m. On alternating Sundays, guests will be able to hear live music from other groups and DJs. To stay up-to-date on the performance schedule, visitors can visit Hopscotch’s Instagram or new events page on their website. No cover or tickets needed. (Hopscotch, 2021)

El Remedio food truck will set up shop at Hopscotch – Starting in October, the popular local food truck El Remedio will be parked at Hopscotch’s patio from Thursdays through Sundays during Hopscotch’s regular hours. Guests can stop by the lounge and patio to grab a cocktail from the bar and try out some of El Remedio’s Instagram-worthy grub, like their Birria Tacos, Birria Ramen, Ceviche, and more. The truck, which has more than 55,000 Instagram followers, has quickly become a staple in the San Antonio food truck scene.

Southtown Vinyl Saturdays – DJ Freeverse / Southtown Vinyl will have a residency at Hopscotch and will spin every Saturday night in the lounge from 7p.m. to 10p.m. DJ Freeverse will also host a pop up shop each week with a small selection of unique vinyl for sale during his sets. There is no cover to attend.

Travis Park Plaza
711 Navarro, Suite 100
San Antonio, TX 78205

Salsa Sundays start this Sunday, September 26 and continue every week indefinitely from 2p.m. to 5p.m.
El Remedio to start service at Hopscotch sometime in October and be open until sell out during

Hopscotch’s operating hours, which are as follows:
Thursday, Friday & Sunday: Noon – 10p.m.
Saturday: 11a.m. – 11p.m.

Southtown Vinyl Saturdays start this Saturday, September 25 and continue indefinitely from 7p.m. to 10p.m.

PARKING:
Three-hour validated parking is discounted to $4 for all Hopscotch guests who park in the Travis Park Plaza Garage, which is adjacent to Hopscotch.

Hopscotch is an immersive and experiential brand that brings together artists in collaborative environments to create distinctive shared experiences. Co-founded by entrepreneurs Nicole Jensen and Hunter Inman, Hopscotch provides distinct experiences through the curation of local-centric, immersive, and experiential art. Hopscotch creates platforms for local, national and international artists to experiment with a wide spectrum of mediums and technology. Hopscotch’s aim is to elicit a sense of joy and wonder in the curated spaces, where guests may explore beyond their day to day reality. Hopscotch strongly believes in cultivating lasting relationships and cooperation with artists and their local communities. #LetsHopscotch

Asleep at the Wheel to release new studio album ‘Half A Hundred Years’

Half A Hundred Years is the new studio release from Asleep at the Wheel. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Founded in 1970, Asleep at the Wheel has been part of the American roots music landscape for more than fifty years. Although the band got its start on a farm in Paw Paw, West Virginia, Asleep at the Wheel became a cornerstone of the Austin, Texas, scene upon its arrival in 1973. Inspired by Western swing and honky-tonk country, the band has accrued ten Grammy Awards. In the fall, a career retrospective recorded with the current lineup and a few special guests will carry the band back onto the road, where they have remained a staple for five decades. (Asleep at the Wheel, 2021)

With a sneaky half-time groove and a slinky fiddle and guitar trade-off, America’s favorite Western Swing masters Asleep At The Wheel—and their special guest, the beloved Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Lyle Lovett—ease right into their new single, “There You Go Again.” Written just before the recording sessions for The Wheel’s new album Half A Hundred Years, “There You Go Again” is a feel-good, light-hearted jab at pretentiousness and all the silly ways it shows up in the writers’ lives, brought together with flourishes of fiddle and steel before crescendoing into a full-on New Orleans second line, walking back out the door as quickly as it came in. “I suppose it’s a song about pretentious people!” says The Wheel’s fearless ringleader Ray Benson of their new song. “My pal Lyle Lovett, one of the most unpretentious people I know, joined in and made it a very special track.” Fans can listen to “There You Go Again feat. Lyle Lovett” right now at this link and pre-order or pre-save Half A Hundred Years ahead of its October 1 release right here.

On October 15, Asleep At The Wheel will take the stage at Austin, Texas’ brand new Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park for a special guest-laden concert covering the band’s fruitful 50-year-long career. Asleep at the Wheel alumni returning for the event are singer Chris O’Connell, steel guitarist Cindy Cashdollar, bassist Tony Garnier, multi-instrumentalist Danny Levin, pianists Floyd Domino and John Michael Whitby, fiddler Jason Roberts, and drummer David Sanger. Additionally, The Wheel is expecting a special guest or two who are not to be missed. Check out a preview of the concert at Austin 360 and purchase tickets for the October 15 show here.

Half A Hundred Years is a nineteen-track celebration of Asleep At The Wheel’s half-century-long career, filled out by several world-class friends of the band; a guest-list testament to Asleep at the Wheel’s reputation as a cornerstone of American music for the last 50 years. Greats like Willie Nelson, George Strait, Emmylou Harris, Lee Ann Womack, and Lovett appear throughout Half A Hundred Years on a host of classic and destined-to-be-classic Western Swing and Country tunes. Additionally, three original members of Asleep at the Wheel—Chris O’Connell, Leroy Preston, and Lucky Oceans—returned after forty years to lend their voices and musicianship to several tracks on Half A Hundred Years. Ahead of the album release, CMT shared The Wheel’s take on the Bob Wills classic, “Take Me Back To Tulsa,” which features two more Texas icons, George Strait and Willie Nelson, and Rolling Stone premiered the album’s title track, saying, “Elevated by buoyant horns and singer Ray Benson’s drawling baritone, [“Half A Hundred Years”] is the ultimate road song.”

Half A Hundred Years Track list:
Half A Hundred Years
It’s The Same Old South feat. Chris O’Connell
I Do What I Must feat. Leroy Preston
There You Go Again feat. Lyle Lovett
My Little Baby feat. Chris O’Connell
Paycheck To Paycheck feat. Leroy Preston
Word To The Wise feat. Bill Kirchen
That’s How I Remember It feat. Chris O’Connell
The Photo feat. Leroy Preston
I Love You Most Of All (When You’re Not Here) feat. Lucky Oceans
The Wheel Boogie
Take Me Back To Tulsa feat. George Strait and Willie Nelson
The Letter That Johnny Walker Read feat. Lee Ann Womack
Bump Bounce Boogie Feat. Chris O’Connell, Elizabeth McQueen, & Katie Shore
Miles And Miles Of Texas
Get Your Kicks On Route 66 Feat. Leroy Preston, Johnny Nicholas, & Ray Benson
Marie Feat. Willie Nelson
Spanish Two Step Feat. Johnny Gimble And Jesse Ashlock
The Road Will Hold Me Tonight Feat. Emmylou Harris And Willie Nelson