(NUNAL) (EYEBALL)

My friend Charlie Lockwood has a fusion band called Atlas Maior which has just today released a new album . It was all recorded live, world music, jazz fusion kind of stuff, excellent, in a word. If you're in Austin tonight you can go to the cd release party, but if not you should go ahead and download this album . Now. By day Charlie is Operations & Development Director for Texas Folklife . In Atlas Maior he plays oud. Which is an understatement, given his skill on it. Here is how they describe the recording of the album: "During a two-month recording process at Bell Tree Recording Studio in Austin, TX during Summer 2013, Atlas Maior experimented with a variety of instrumental and sonic arrangements, exploring different methods of improvisation and cosmologies of sound. Many of these exercises explored themes of symmetries in sound through different instrumental arrangements. The result of these sessions is Palindrome, Atlas Maior's 2014 two-disc album comprise

I'm working on a project listening to some archival recordings of great Texas fiddlers and up comes great Texas fiddler Louis Franklin. I felt like it would be good to have some of him up here, in this old footage. Franklin was from Windom, Texas, and his uncle Major Franklin was also a well known fiddler. Bio here . (And Louis' son Larry Franklin is a massively accomplished Nashville fiddler nowadays). Louis Franklin-Fiddle. Bill Butler-Guitar. Zipp Durrett-Guitar

Jack Goldsmith (along with Matthew Waxman) continues his sharp analysis of Obama's expansive use of the war power Obama, Not Bush, Is the Master of Unilateral War

This is via El Enemigo Común It’s Raining Rage in Ayotzinapa "The pain, horror and rage over the crimes committed against Ayotzinapa students last September 26, in Iguala, Guerrero, have fostered national and international condemnation of criminal governments that plan to close all teacher-training schools — and do away with anybody they see as an obstacle to their plans. On October 8, thousands of demonstrators took up the demands of the family and friends of the students killed and disappeared. In the streets of dozens of cities in Mexico and the world, the same chants could be heard: “You took them off alive, we want them back alive.” and “We want justice and we want it now.” In Chiapas, Zapatistas marched in silence the same day and called for international protests. In Mexico City, at least 20,000 people, maybe more, marched from the Angel of Independence to the Zocalo with banners and signs that read, “It’s Raining Rage in Ayotzinapa,” “Present the students alive,” “Aguirre

For my students in Sound and Noise in American History asking about it, here is the link to the Free Music Archive .  It is definitely worth spending some time listening there.

some listening to counter Geithner's testimony ----Ry Cooder's perfect "No Banker Left Behind." It sounds like an Uncle Dave song, I think. I first heard it when he played it at the Arhoolie 40th anniversary concert a few years ago. On this one the music is a bit rough, but the spirit is all there. "On the brink of bankruptcy/my life is pitiful, you'll agree"

Democracy comes to Virginia's Third district, Nunal's very own, the map of the district having been declared unconstitutional because of blatant racial gerrymandering. Take a look at the map of District 3. The whiteness of the non-District 3 areas is no mistake!

And back in Norfolk, there is a new app for the iphone to gauge seawater rise in the city . Perhaps a better bet would be an app to get the hell out of town!

The Festival of Texas Fiddling poster is out, and it looks great. I hope some of you can make it!

Some of what I was doing during my time in Texas last week, playing with the legendary Lorenzo Martinez and also with amazingly prolific and talented Lupe Acuña . These were filmed by Lupe, who singlehandedly documents virtually everything going on in conjunto music from the insignificant (me) to the most important events each week. All of his 1000+ videos are worth watching . (if you click on the titles you will be taken to youtube, better viewing there)