IN FLIGHT: The Airport Lounge, brainchild of Michelle Hotchkiss and Susan Chase, opened its doors two months ago, and has since been the talk and the toast of the downtown Saturday crowd. It provides a badly needed, inexpensive, live alternative to the dour dance club and bar scene. The actual location of the lounge has been a matter of some speculation for the uninitiated, but to clear things up once and for all, it's not at the airport. It's downstairs and to the right inside the Plaza Pub at 20 E. Pennington St. The Lounge, currently open from 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. only two nights a week, features--for no cover!--a DJ on Fridays, lately the DJ from Beyond. And for only 99 cents, you can hear live music on Saturdays. Last week it was Bell, and recently local luminaries Al Perry, Calexico, Al Foul & the Shakes, and the lesser-known but no less notable Pretty Polly, Johnny Good, Good Good Times and the Shit, and the must-see Meat "Puppet" Show. The space itself has no pomp or frills--it's a smallish room with 20-odd Formica tables that could as easily service an American Legion function. It offers a vacation from the doldrums of the pre-determined theme night, catering to a cocktail/cabaret counter-culture that's been growing within the more mature Tucson music scene for some time, as evidenced in part by the success of Chick Cashman and his Countrypolitans, and the inclusion of "lounge nights" at clubs across town. When asked about the impetus for creating the Airport Lounge, Hotchkiss laughs and claims there was no big vision, simply what she saw as her "own private party" and a means of keeping herself and Chase employed after a shake-up at the Shelter that left them both sans jobs. Grand scheme or no, this team has certainly hit upon something big, if the standing-room-only crowds every Saturday night are any indication. Musically, the orientation has been toward traditional lounge music and away from what Hotchkiss calls "loud bands," but that's not to say John Spencer and his like wouldn't be welcomed with open arms. What's in store for the Lounge? Some of the ideas in the kitty include a game room or open-mike night on Thursdays, or an after-hours buffet. Definitely not to be missed, however, is the modern, demonic ambiance of Brasil 666, scheduled for this Saturday, October 5. Even if you're just passing through, stop in at the Airport Lounge and kick back with some cocktails and complimentary peanuts; but get there early, or risk getting caught in a holding pattern with nowhere to land. HOT TICKET: Friday, October 4, promises a fabulous evening with a Big Bill of local favorites: the Sand Rubies, the Drakes, and Pet the Fish downtown at Club Congress. The show gets on the road around 10 p.m., and $6 gets you in. For those with time to kill on Saturday now that the Edgar Winter show has been postponed until October 24, rub your classic rock knob to readiness with R.E.O. Speedwagon and very special guest Eddie Money out at the Libby Army Airfield in Fort Huachuca. The show starts at 6:30 p.m., advance tickets cost $10 and a mere $13 day of show. LAST NOTES: If pricey Jurassic anachronisms don't appeal, then head in the opposite direction on I-10 and check out the even more pricey ($30 seating, $9.80 lawn) U-Fest on Saturday, October 5, at Desert Sky Pavilion. The nine-band lineup includes the Deftones, Tonic and Hunger, with headliners Type-O Negative playing the fest on Saturday, and here in town at The Paragon, 144 W. Lester St., on Sunday, October 6. Tickets are a comparatively paltry $13. SOUTHWEST FEST: Submissions are now being accepted for next year's SXSW festival, March 12 to 16 in Austin, Texas. Interested bands must send a package containing a completed showcase application form, CD or cassette of original material (at least three songs), photo, bio and press kit, and $10 processing fee for submissions postmarked by October 18. (The processing fee is $20 for submissions postmarked after October 19.) Deadline is November 15. It doesn't matter how good you look, do not send videos. Submissions will be acknowledged by mail, with acts notified no later than February 13, 1997. Submitted materials become the property of SXSW, Inc. and cannot be returned. Showcasing bands will receive either $175 or a registration package. Showcasing singer/songwriters, duos and spoken-word performers will receive either $45 or a registration package. If you're not in a band and just want to attend SXSW, you'll find the lowest rates if you register by October 16. Due to the growth in festival attendance, music wristbands will no longer be sold in advance by phone. A limited number of wristbands will be sold in Austin to fans and registrants (limit one per badge) while they last, so SXSW registration is still the only way to ensure in advance that you'll have a festival pass. For registration materials, call (512) 467-7979, or fax (512) 451-0754; e-mail sxsw@sxsw.com; or write SXSW Headquarters, P.O. Box 4999, Austin, TX 78765. --Jennifer Murphy

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