It didn’t break for Beto, but something like a blue wave nonetheless reached the shores of Texas Tuesday. We’ll look at what it means for the future of the Lone Star State. Analysis of races big and small as Republicans prevail in statewide races but as Democrats take control of the U.S. House they also make inroads in the Texas congressional delegation. We’ll hear what this means for Texas making its mark on capitol hill. Plus reaction from listeners statewide and a look to what this might add up to for 2020 on the day after midterms. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Archives for November 2018
Daisybones: “Choke”
If you’re not actively ready to dance at any given moment, the young and hungry Boston quartet Daisybones is on a mission to change that. Three of the four met in the midst of their individual high school projects, and the as-of-yet unnamed band was finalized at the beginning of college. Just last February the group (now formalized as Daisybones) had released their first single and quickly followed it up with their appropriately-titled debut full-length, gusto.
Hell bent on bonding with their fans and putting on the best live show imaginable, Daisybones recently brought their energy back to the studio for their sophomore album Gold. It’s ten tracks of frenetic tempo changes and addictive dance grooves, and you can hear the whole thing on Friday. To help you throttle the work week, here’s the lead single from Gold, “Choke”!
Texas Standard: November 6, 2016
We’re checking in with polling places from one end of the Lone Star State to the other as Texans cast their ballots on decision day 2018. How are the lines looking at the polls? If you’re not in line, you’re about to find out as we touch base reporters statewide for the latest. Also, who actually counts all those ballots and without a paper trail, what then? We’ll explore how the sausage gets made on election night. And in other news, the famous Texan who’s remixing black feminism. You’ve heard of Beyoncé? You’ll wanna hear this. Plus the rare bird returning to the Texas gulf coast. All of that and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Wrongbird: “The Plot”
Happy Election Day! We hope you’ve voted for your state and local offices…and if you haven’t, get out there! Speaking of local, perhaps you’re familiar with the Austin-based alternative rock outfit Wrongbird. For the uninitiated, Wrongbird began as the solo project of Chicago-born singer-songwriter Eric Baker and has since blossomed into a high-energy piano-heavy quartet.
And while we don’t yet know the answer to, “who will win this election?”, on Friday we’ll have a definitive response to, “who is Wrongbird?” in the form of their upcoming EP of the same name. This sophomore album, Who Is Wrongbird?, pays tribute to the band’s current home base and it’s eclectic live music scene, and you can catch the group’s release show this Saturday at Stubb’s. For now, here’s a bluesy and brassy introduction to Wrongbird, “The Plot”!
Deon L. Hogan (Ep. 48, 2018)
In Black America producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Deon L. Hogan,cancer survivor, former Michigan high school track record holder, college All-American, and author of Sometimes Rain Will Show You The Light: A Parable By A Cancer Survivor.
Texas Standard: November 5, 2018
In 2016, Hillary Clinton took the majority of votes in Texas’ 7th Congressional District. Now: what could be a test case for Republican control in Texas. John Culberson is the nine term Republican incumbent in a district that’s trending Democratic. We’ll take a closer look at the dynamics of the district and what it might tell us about the future of Texas politics more broadly. Also, slippery stuff: oil falls to new boomtime lows. And hats off to Roy Hargrove: the Waco born trumpeter once considered jazz music’s brightest promise passes at age 49. All those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Charles Bradley: “I Feel a Change”
Late last year we lost an all-time KUTX favorite and sensational soul singer, the one and only Charles Bradley. The “Screaming Eagle of Soul” made a couple trips into Studio 1A the last few years of his phenomenal career before sadly succumbing to stomach cancer at 68.
Today would’ve been Charles Bradley’s 70th birthday, and his loving Daptone label is set to release ten previously unheard recordings with the LP Black Velvet. Taking its name from his time as a James Brown impersonator in the mid-90s, Black Velvet serves as a companion to his three canon albums and breathes life into Bradley’s overall progression as an artist. Black Velvet comes out this Friday and to commemorate Mr. Bradley’s would-be 70th, here’s an all-too-relevant tune from Black Velvet, “I Feel a Change”!
Higher Ed: Taking Skills Learned In The Classroom To The Voting Booth
One reason often cited by non-voters for their lack of participation goes something like this: “my vote doesn’t really count” or “how can my one vote make any difference?” Voter turnout among college-aged students is traditionally low in midterm election years. But this year is shaping up to be different. In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton discuss how to sustain that interest even when national politics are not so charged.
Ed believes that getting voting-aged students to the polls is half the battle. The other half? Making sure they are informed voters.
“You just don’t want to have voters going in there and taking out a die and rolling it and then whatever it lands on that’s how you feel on the issue or who you decide to vote for,” says Ed. He hopes that voters will not make their voting decisions only influenced by “sound bites or 160 characters or generic Facebook posts where we don’t even know exactly where they’re actually emanating from.”
Ed believes that student can and should take the “best practices” of learning they have acquired in classrooms over the years and apply that to the act of voting.
“Articulate what are the issues that matter to you, that are important to you,” says Ed. “And then for each one of them, try to explain why. Is it an emotional response? Is it a logical response? Am I responding because I don’t like the other side, or because I like this side?”
Ed believes that student can making voting a practice – part of the way they live their lives – by getting interested and engaged early.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about using skills honed in the classroom to make decisions in the voting booth. The puzzler is taking a break for a little while to make way for some lighter riddles. These first two are pretty easy; see if you can get them right away.
This episode was recorded on Oct. 30, 2018.
KUT Weekend — November 2, 2018
This week, we run through the ballot ahead of Election Day.
Solidarity (Ep. 35)
The Secret Ingredient is “Solidarity.” Listen back as Raj Patel, Tom Philpott and Rebeca McInroy talk with organizers Hodaliz Borrayes, Diana Sierra, and Andrea Schmid from The Pioneer Vally Workers Center, about their profound backgrounds and how they come together to educate, inform, and support immigrant workers.
Greed (Rebroadcast)
Is greed good? Is greed a human instinct? Why are some people inclined to hoard?
For some individuals, greed and selfishness are much more commonly displayed than generosity. So, it might be fair to say greed feels more natural for some. On the other hand, most might say they favor unselfishness.
In this installment of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke discuss whether greed is instinctual or not.
Texas Standard: November 2, 2018
More jobs than workers to fill them? That’s the message today in the new employment numbers. What does it all add up to for Texas? And where’s the party? The tea party, that is. As democrats appear to be turning out in record numbers on this last day of early voting, what happened to the activist movement on the other side of the political ledger? Plus, a year after Sutherland Springs, survivors are in an uphill legal battle against the Air Force. Also, the week in Texas politics with the Texas Tribune and a whole lot more. It’s the Friday edition of the Texas Standard.
The Leaf Blowers
Some trees in Texas never really lose their leaves — but others are shedding dramatically right now. The inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem came from what some neighbors may do with those leaves.
Dan Mangan: “Troubled Mind”
There’s a good chance you’re familiar with the name Dan Mangan, but the Juno-winning songwriter you know has changed quite a bit in the past few years. In 2012 the Dan Mangan who’d started his career talking his way onto stages at noisy bars was now six years into non-stop touring when he married his then-girlfriend and took time off for their newborn child. And though that was only supposed to be a single year off the road, it slowly became what has been the past six.
In light of adulthood, parenthood, domestic obligations and changing political landscapes, Mangan realized he had become a much different person than he was at twenty – all of which is reflected on his fifth full-length More or Less, out today! More or Less is an introspective experience for longtime and recent Mangan fans alike and features inspiration from Nick Drake and Van Morrison (oh and Sir Paul McCartney even stopped in the studio to check things out – you can imagine how that made Beatlemaniac Dan feel!). Before scoping the full album, you can grab a free download of More or Less‘s midpoint, “Troubled Mind”!
Texas Standard: November 1, 2018
Along a major bridge in south Texas, welders putting barriers in place. We’ll get a first hand look at steps being taken in an apparent effort to shut down the border. We’ll be talking with a reporter from the McAllen monitor about unprecedented work on a bridge spanning the Rio Grande and what it could mean in practical terms. Also, the FDA green lights what could be a life saving new flu drug even though the researcher behind it says it could have happened long ago. Why the wait? Think: money. And a deal by IBM turns the nation’s attention to Texas farms, and not the kind that grow crops either. All that and then some today on the Texas Standard:
PAINT: “Daily Gazette”
Even if you’re a self-declared mega-fan of L.A. psych rockers Allah-Las, there’s really no predicting the music of their lead guitarist, Pedrum Siadatian AKA PAINT.
This solo endeavor began in 2016 after the release of Allah-Las’ third album, and although it holds onto that familiar lo-fi sound, PAINT slathers up a much different palette of authentic analog psychedelia. PAINT’s self-titled debut comes out tomorrow, featuring a dozen original tunes with strokes of Syd Barrett and marked with charming imperfections. Prime yourself for PAINT with the album’s lead single, “Daily Gazette”!