Texas Overture

Fellow Texan Sam Cummins of Nymphet Alumni fame joins us for our Valentines's Day special. Together we explore the life of a notorious Texas jeweler of legend. James Avery is known for his tinkling silver charm bracelets, sleazy love life, and vigorous Episcopalianism. We discuss the TX archetype of The James Avery Girl, sleep away camps, talismanic charms throughout the ages, charm bracelets as autobiography/protection/handcuffs, Milagros, Queen Victoria The Influencer, Texas-Euro-kitsch, what it takes to be a true romantic, and more... Thanks for listening to Texas Overture :)

Extra reading:

https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/gods-jeweler/

https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1040106/

Wrangling tumbleweeds, we explore the deception and promise of the West Texas desert, Baudrillard, the mythology of Marfa, Donald Judd's unique criticism and minimalism, the viability of artist enclaves, the precarity of small towns, 10,000 year old clocks, the rise of 'instagrammable spots', survival, surveillance, etc.

We're back -- and we're developing a Spiritual Map of Texas. Born from a dream Faith had, we each select a special TX location and unravel its many layers on historical, emotional, geological and geomagnetic levels...

We are joined by friends from Campo de Estrellas, a conservation burial cemetery in Bastrop County. We discuss contemporary burial practices in Texas, climate concerns, the allure of lingering in cemeteries, being a good ancestor, memory in land, death in industrialization, and more.

Companion reading:

Campo de Estrellas website

https://campodeestrellas.co

At Rest in the Fields by Sarah Wambold

https://www.texasobserver.org/celebrating-childhoods-end-at-eloise-woods/

We discuss legendary Texas artist Jerry Hunt, a pioneering presence in the development of electronic composition and experimental new music. Influenced by everyone from John Cage to John Dee, Hunt was a virtuosic pianist by trade who made his name through his experimental, interactive, and technical way of making music. He is noted for incorporating celestial alphabets and occult themes in the composition and programming of his oblique and complicated work. Through challenging conventions Hunt gained world renown in New Music circles. He was also funny and strange and lived a beautiful life in East Texas for most of his life with his partner, Stephen Housewright.

Books:

Partners by Stephen Housewright

Transmissions from the Pleroma by Blank Forms

Our playlist:

T/EXperimental Mix

Links:

Jerry Hunt website with interviews, reviews, links to books, etc.

Irida Records on Bandcamp

Blank Forms

Episode Sounds:

John Cage and Jerry Hunt

Joined by friend of the pod Zoyd Wheeler (@shakenjack) we discuss the universe and lore behind the early work of Texas director of legend, Tobe Hooper.

Watch:

Eggshells (1969) : https://youtu.be/-6LeL2iXktI

Texas Chainsaw Massacre I (1974)

Eaten Alive (1976)

We discuss the legacy of Don Pedro, the famous South Texan curandero, healer, and folk saint. We are joined by Ixa, a Texas woman whose great-grandmother actually studied under the man in question, for a broader discussion contextualizing modern spirituality, her family's experiences with 'the healer of Los Olmos Creek,' herbalism, prayer, and more.