The Resonator

I wanted to show you all something really neat that I saw at SXSW's guitar showcase that I had never seen before: the resonator guitar.


These guitars are really unique as they provide a different sound because of their metal resonator soundboard. Typically they are acoustic but can be electric, and are known to have interesting designs that add a mystery to the genres they are used for most: blues and bluegrass.

Most of what I know about them has come from Wikipedia, so if you are interested I would suggest checking out their page on it here.

For being so interesting looking, it's pretty hard to find them in Austin, but there is one place that has them called Quincy's Guitars. It's located on Congress Ave, and he calls them Reso-Phonic guitars.

I also found that Quincy's sells a reso-phonic mandolin - my favorite instrument of all time. I just had to show you a picture of it:


I found a video all about Resonators - the history and how to go about finding one or even making one. Here it is:



Now to listen to how one sounds. I think you will agree that this guitar has a very distinct sound, and I have to say that I like it! Happy listening!

Cupcakes, How I Adore You

Everyone loves cupcakes: they are the perfect size of cake for one person, and come in a variety of different flavors, sizes and decorations. I recently did a podcast on cupcakes and my favorite places in Austin. Here's what I came up with.

Starting with a shop right of Rio Grande and 28 1/2 St. called Polka Dots, this little bakery offers a lot for the taste buds.


With flavors ranging from traditional like chocolate and vanilla to smores (shown above), dirt and peanut butter and jelly, it really is one of the more creative bakeries in Austin. It was named "most creative" by UT's Daily Texan in 2008 and has been cited by the Austin Chronicle as an up-and-coming Austin bakery.

Next was a bakery at a store a little more well known: Whole Foods.


Apparently local Whole Food fanatics have been raving about the bakery's cupcakes, and I can see why. With mini cupcakes just starting at 49 cents, it's no wonder people love them - they're a steal! They also have normal-sized cupcakes at 99 cents, as well as what they call "fancy" cupcakes that range from two to four dollars.

Finally, I chose Hey Cupcake! an Austin sweet treat roadside stop just off of Congress.


With more traditional flavors with a flair, this bakery offers giant cupcakes for a reasonable price. To me it's all about the experience. For example, getting a Michael Jackson cupcake with a whipper snapper ... or a chocolate cupcake with vanilla icing and a shot of whipped cream on the inside ... while walking down Congress. They recently opened a bonafide shop on Burnet Rd.,

Here's a video of the whole story of Hey Cupcake! that I found. Check it out:



I hope you all enjoy this and hey - try to go out and satisfy your sweet tooth with a treat that's short and sweet!

Ventilo Interview as Promised

Hey all. A while back I told you I would post the interview I did with Meredith Crandell and here it is! It's somewhat long, but very informative, and Mer was really a neat person to talk to. Enjoy!

Crandell Interview

SXSW Revisited

I know I've been slacking on blogging lately, but SXSW and school has taken over my life! Anyway, I've caught a break, so I wanted to revisit the events of South-by.

It turned out to be another successful year for the musicians, filmmakers, artists and audiences of SXSW.

I didn't go to too many concerts, but I did end up attending Flatstock (as I mentioned in my last post), as well as attending the Music Trade Show, also at the Convetion Center, and a few films.

It was amazing how many people were out and about in Austin, as well as the coverage the festival got nationwide.

The New York Times said, "While CD sales topple, and major and indie labels struggle, at this year’s 23rd annual SXSW people have been turned away from packed clubs where they are clamoring to see bands that are far from household names: Grizzly Bear, Peter Bjorn and John, St. Vincent. Full houses chanted along to indie hip-hop and pondered broken hearts and God to the picking of Americana bands. Those musicians draw their audiences from people who chase down music in the news media, in blogs and on noncommercial radio stations — or maybe from a friend’s recommendation or a giveaway on a music downloading site." Read more...

Minneapolis' Star Tribune had an article about Twin Cities bands just having fun at the festival. As Minneapolis rapper Omaur Bliss said, "This is like the Disney World of music ... you gotta come to have fun, or forget it." Read full article here.

It seems that like the Star Tribune, most papers were interested in local or near-local bands who had traveled here to play. The Seattle Times writer Jonathan Zwickel wrote, "Funny thing about flying 1,500 miles to Austin, Texas, last week for the South by Southwest music festival: I ended up seeing a lot of faces from around here." Read more from his SXSW article.

All in all I think it was a great year, and I'm sure I'm not the only one looking forward to next year.

Flatstock Recap

My most anticipated SXSW event, as you all know, was Flatstock Poster Show at the Austin Convention Center. It was amazing, and overwhelming.

Artists from around the world gathered to display and sell their work to artist and art fans alike. Due to me being overwhelmed I only bought one poster (I know, lame), but it was great! It was a String Cheese Incident poster by Furturtle prints:

I think it's awesome.

Anyway I wanted to give you a glimpse of what it was like, and I found this video that shows the convention as well as some great posters.



I also found a video from the Daily Record, a Scottish paper visiting the festival. Crazy!



I really recommend any of you out there who are art fans, or even want some really cool, quality posters to visit Flatstock next year, or if you really want to they have multiple Flatstocks throughout the year, usually in Seattle and one other venue. Visit the American Poster Institute to get updates on that.

Recap: Tinted Windows at SXSW

I couldn't make it to the concert, but since I've written about their greatness, I thought I would post a video or two of Tinted Windows at South-by. Here's the band playing on Wednesday:



Voted recently as one of Rolling Stones' "Artists to Watch," SPIN interviewed the "supergroup" at the festival.



Watch out for their self-titled album to debut in May.

TMT Presents Mary Ellen Mark

Today at work, I was able to attend a Texas Monthly Talks taping in the studio, introducing the amazing photographer Mary Ellen Mark. Not only was she here to talk with Evan Smith, editor of Texas Monthly magazine, but she was also doing a talk tonight at 7 p.m. for the Austin Center of Photography. Although she is not an Austin photographer - she's originally from Philadelphia - I could not pass up a chance to show you some of her work.

She's been taking pictures professionally for over four decades, working on film sets, magazine assignments and personal projects, as well as teaching and giving talks along the way.

She recently got back from teaching photography in Mexico, before that working on Tim Burton's new movie Alice in Wonderland.

Here is some of her previous work:

Part of her Rodeo collection for Texas Monthly in 1992


Duke Ellington


A piece from her Mexico Circus collection


Johnny Depp

Had to put in that last one of Johnny, whom she said was a beautiful person - I agree, Mary Ellen.

Her latest personal project was going to 12 high schools across the nation to document today's average American prom. One of the high schools was West Lake High School here in Austin. She said she was trying to capture a true "Texas prom."

It was really great listen to their interview - check the TMT Web site for when the show will be showing if you're interested in watching it, also look out for Mary Ellen's book compilations, including:

Seen Behind the Scenes: 40 Years of Photographing on Set.