FESTIVA: Cheech & Chong, electronica artists, December Drive!

This week, Festiva's taking a look at the Valley's electronica artists, musicians who are pioneering new forms of music on their home computers. Oh, and CHEECH AND CHONG ARE COMING!!!!

>>> TOP STORIES <<<

CHEECH & CHONG HEADED FOR VALLEY The lovable potheads from Up in Smoke will blaze trails at the McAllen Convention Center. Read more

OUTLAWS OF VALLEY ELECTRONICA Meet 11 local musicians on music's cutting edge. One of them is Phil Acevedo. He lives his days unassumingly. He wears buttoned-up plaid shirts and Chuck Taylors. He spends hours on instant messenger. At night, Acevado becomes A Beautiful Lotus. Teens scream at his packed concerts. European music fans order his merchandise online. And women get "ABL" tattoos in intimate places. Acevado joins a burgeoning group of avant-garde musicians in the Valley. Armed with computer programs, keyboards and turn tables, these composers make electronic music. The genre has existed for years, thriving in Europe, large cities and nightclubs. It's gaining traction in the Valley, powered largely by the Internet and McAllen's infant arts district. Read more

Also:
A BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO ELECTRONICA
DJs VS. ELECTRONICA: WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

>>> FESTIVA BUZZ <<<

THE NEVER SAY NEVER FESTIVAL LINEUP Find out which big acts will join Forever the Sickest Kids in McAllen next year. Read more

RHYTHM & BREWS' OPENING DELAYED The grand opening of the new downtown McAllen bar has been pushed. Read more

I SPY T.I. The controversial hip-hop artist will play in a couple of weeks. Read more

LOCAL PUNK BAND REUNITES JonesTown Tragedy isn't over yet. Read more

>>> FREE STUFF <<<

FREE TICKETS: THE DECEMBER DRIVE'S LAST SHOW Catch one of the Valley's biggest bands as the play their final live show. Win the tickets

FREE TICKETS: THE BEATLES TRIBUTE Popular Latin band Jumbo will perform a tribute to The Beatles that's the talk of the town in Monterrey Win them

FREE MP3 DOWNLOAD Festiva's Infinite Playlist is giving you a track off the December Drive's yet-to-be-released CD. Download it now

>>> FILM & TV <<<

HOMETOWN HOLLYWOOD: RICK GARCIA This South Texas composer wrote the music in the new Will Smith film Seven Pounds, which opens this week. Read more

>>> LOCAL MUSIC <<<

LAST RIDE WITH THE DECEMBER DRIVE As the Valley's reigning indie rockers prepare to give up the throne, we salute their blessed and broken road Read more

WHAT ROCK STARS WANT FOR CHRISTMAS The frontmen from the area's biggest bands tell us what they want to find in their stockings Read more

>>> NIGHT LIFE <<<

HOT SPOTS: THE DIVE The bars in McAllen's revitalized downtown have largely aimed upscale. Not The Dive. Bars like Boiler Room, Speakeasy and the Shine Martini Lounge work to attract young professionals, people with careers and titles. The Dive, meanwhile, doesn't care who comes. Any and all patrons are welcome. As long as they leave pretenses, attitude and preconceived notions at home. Read more

HOT SPOTS - FIRST LOOK: SPEAKEASY Wow. Speakeasy opened Dec. 12, and we're impressed. This classy piano bar brings yet another new style of bar to McAllen. It's a jazzy, upscale lounge perfect to relax and hold quiet conversation. Here are our early impressions. Read more

>>> ART <<<

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL Read our review of the performance or watch a video of it. Read more

>>> RANDOM INTERESTING STORIES <<<

BATH JUNKIE Can bubbling bath crystals from Bath Junkie repair a broken marriage? Can a shower gel transport you to another location, thousands of miles away? According to Aleida Mares-Peña, the owner of the franchise in McAllen, it can. Read more

PIECES OF PASSION It's a windy Saturday morning at Memorial High School in McAllen and Rina Roberts is fighting a bad cold. But though she sniffles and coughs, there is a task at hand that's more important than fighting the flu - it's 300 feet long. The mosaic she and her students are making for the city of McAllen is a mighty project indeed. It will take 22 sections to complete the finished picture, a sprawling landscape of Texas terrain, complete with cacti, native plants, silhouettes and a swirling sun. The piece, which will cost about $7,000 or $8,000 to produce, is titled "Starry, Starry Valley," a play on the famous Vincent Van Gogh painting "The Starry Night." Read more