CELEB WATCH

Billy Bob Thornton headlines intimate breakfast talk at Gruene Hall

Billy Bob Thornton will headline a breakfast in Gruene.

Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images for Paramount+

It's not often that mere mortals can have breakfast with a Hollywood legend, but a special speaker series is giving San Antonians the chance to do just that. Oscar winner Billy Bob Thornton is heading to historic Gruene Hall on September 25 for an intimate talk.

The event is part of the United Way Speaker Series, a series of conversations with top business leaders, authors, and other notable figures. From 9-11 am, guests will be treated to a buffet breakfast by local favorite Gristmill Restaurant, followed by a candid, hour-long conversation with Thornton and his bandmates, The Boxmasters.

The chat will be moderated by Mattson Rainer, general manager of KNBT/KGNB Radio, and promises a peek behind the curtain into the band’s creative process, tour stories, and Thornton’s long-running Hollywood-meets-honky tonk career — including his role in the Paramount+ series Landman.

Thornton first appeared on the international scene for his work on the 1996 indie drama Sling Blade. After being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and winning the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, he became a box office draw in films like Monster's Ball, Intolerable Cruelty, Bad Santa, and Friday Night Lights.

Throughout that time of peak stardom, he never sidelined his musical career, recording albums as a solo artist and with his group. He has been sometimes prickly about combining the two arts, as during an infamous interview with Canadian radio host Jian Ghomeshi.

While the event brings some serious star power, its heart is purely local. The talk benefits United Way of Comal County, and a portion of the proceeds from the September event will directly support families impacted by recent flooding across the Hill Country.

General admission to the breakfast is $125, not including fees. For those looking to go all in, sponsorship packages are available, including reserved tables for ten near the stage and access to a private post-breakfast reception with Thornton and The Boxmasters. It's probably best not to ask what Angelina Jolie did with the vial of his blood.

Later in the day, The Boxmasters will return to Gruene Hall for an evening set. That show sold out quickly after its announcement.

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RADIO WAVES

Alt-rock radio returns to San Antonio airwaves after nearly a decade

Photo by Steve Keros

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It can’t bring back Kurt Cobain, but a revived radio station is reliving the alt-rock glory days on San Antonio’s airwaves. Connoisseur Media says 103.3 The App has returned after nearly a decade off the dial.

The station officially started broadcasting from the Tower of the Americas on December 1, calling itself San Antonio’s only alternative radio destination. A news release promises that listeners can expect to hear bands like Linkin Park, Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Imagine Dragons, The Lumineers, Sublime, and Nirvana, among more contemporary artists.

The App has been off the airwaves since April 2017, and the signal has since had a bit of a personality crisis, flipping between classic hip-hop, contemporary hip-hop, sports, Tejano, and back to sports again.

Along with the new-old format, the station will bring a familiar on-air personality back to her hometown. San Antonio native DJ Mighty Iris has joined the lineup as the afternoon drive-time host from 3–7 pm.

“I’m honestly still in shock and honored that I will soon be able to return to the S.A. airwaves and be part of someone’s drive home,” says Iris in the release. “We all love this station because it’s different. Alternative music has so many sounds and offshoots; it doesn’t fit into one box. You can hear anything from The Strokes to The Clash to R.E.M.”

Connecticut-based Connoisseur Media shares that it is going all in on the format nationwide— introducing it in markets like Dayton, Ohio, and Saginaw, Michigan. Part of that is renewed interest in current left-of-the-dial rock bands like Tame Impala, Sombr, Turnstile, and Royal Otis.

In addition to tuning in on their car stereos, alt fans can now listen to The App on an app. The download is available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. Might we suggest Hole’s ”Violet” for a particularly vigorous house-cleaning session? You can use rags made from your old flannels.

“San Antonio has always been a rock town, but there has been a void in this city for this body of music, concludes operations manager Greg Martin. “103.3 The App was received with great praise when it debuted nearly a decade ago, and the excitement is absolutely here again for this second run.”

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