Action Bronson is a giant white dude from Queens who raps mainly about food. Seriously, “an hour later eat a burger with my drug dealer /and add the butter to the fudge to make the fudge realer.” His breakout mixtape is full of the same lighthearted, soul-sampled, New York shit-talk that the Northeast has been missing lately. There’s no grim gun-talk, or arrests, or social justice - just retro-rap with a sense of humor. His breakout mixtape Dr. Lecter is a product of a bunch of no-name producers and features, but it remains one of the brightest moment’s of last year’s mixtape glut. more ›

Kiyanna means "to tell" in Sinhalese and the goal of Austin's Kiyanna project is to capture the story of musicians, one song at a time. Filmed in various Austin locations as diverse as a tire shop, Florence's Comfort House, the historic O. Henry House Museum and even the streets, there are no set stages here. In just one long shot (camera take), musicians are invited to share any kind of story and then play a song of their choosing. more ›

It might set off a few red flags to see a “Survival Tips” page on a music festival’s website, but the folks behind the Punx Picnic are nothing if not pragmatic. They’re putting on their Texas-sized punk bash on the Eastest-most side of the East Side: just south of Walter E. Long Lake, where MLK turns into Farm-To-Market Road 969. You can camp out on the Picnic’s bucolic Music Ranch estate and catch over one hundred bands all weekend long. more ›

On Wednesday night, Austin was treated to show #2 of Har Mar Superstar's February residency at Mohawk. Our photographer Pooneh Ghana was there to capture the fun. more ›

Today we received word that everyone's favorite thrash band that knows how to work through their feelings have created their own music festival. Entitled the Orion Music + More, the event will take place on June 23rd and 24th of this year in Atlantic City, New Jersey. more ›

Since 2000, King Khan has been spreading his love like peanut butter with the Shrines, a variously seven-, eight- and nine-member psychedelic soul band, with all the trappings (baritone sax, bad haircuts) to go with it. more ›

This one will sell out fast, folks. If you and your honey love beautiful places, incredible food and wine, and romantic music as the backdrop to your evening, you're in luck: Hotel Saint Cecilia is planning a very special Valentine's Day event, and you're invited. more ›

After kicking around the local scene for a couple of years, Literature finally released a full-length last month, dropping it via bandcamp in the creative Chernobyl that extends roughly from December 26th to the middle of January. It's there now to download in any format at whatever price the buyer cares to pay, which is never not a good deal. more ›

Zola Jesus played the Parish on Friday with openers Talk Normal and Technicolor Hearts. Here's our interview with Nika Danilova from the end of last year. more ›

The last year has registered a veritable explosion of female electronic-focused musicians, including Lykke Li, Oh Land, Austra, Glasser, jj, tUnE-yArDs, Little Boots and more. Zola Jesus, led by Nika Roza Danilova - a Russian American via Wisconsin - leans towards the darker atmospheric side of the genre. Releasing three albums in just as many years, Danilova has evolved her sound throughout this short time by using her inner world images and musical curiosity as fodder. In a recent NYTimes magazine interview, Danilova discussed the music making process: "I like to work with sounds that are indistinguishable, when many different instruments or sounds can blend together to make one solid drone that can move and carry the song. I think my music and my style are connected in a way where they’re both trying to express the same things, or make sense of something greater." more ›

The three piece outfit has perfected a warped, shambolic sound that sounds simple on first listen, but unpacking all the dark nuances is half the fun. Their debut full-length, Should I Try Once More?, "tells the story of someone falling in love, with each song acting as a scene in the story." Garage-rock concept album, anyone? Sundae Records will release it on April 10 via digital, vinyl, and CD versions. more ›

Texas electro garage psych lights up the ND tonight when Indian Jewelry tears into the first road show of their pre-SXSW tour. Often, "psychedelic" is used to describe music sticking to a blotchy formula that’s less interesting than the sweat stains on grandma’s Jefferson Airplane tee shirt. Lately, the genre’s been expanded by some who think that music with any measure of phased, fuzzy, reverb guitar is psych rock. But Indian Jewelry has carved out a rather unique niche, which has garnered them a booking for Austin Psych Fest 2012. Their music ranges from psych pop delight to electro noise rock. Wherever in that spectrum their music might warble, it’s likely to make you wonder who dosed your Lone Star. more ›

How does Texas - or at least Austin - stack up in 33 1/3 representation? Not so hot, it turns out. So what with 33 1/3's open-minded and expansive appreciation for pitches of various sorts, we entreaty you - readers and writers and friends of readers and writers - to give our State some recognition already. more ›

Theophilus London performed as part of the grand opening of the Beauty Ballroom on Riverside, sister venue to downtown’s Beauty Bar, part of the cultural shift that’s moving the city’s soul so that people who like to eat generic haute cuisine on the ground floor of anonymous high rises have more choices. The Ballroom is a wonderfully huge and homey space with vaulted ceilings and walls decorated with concentric glitter squares that convey “urban Etsy” warmth. It’s the same crowd as the cookie box downtown venue, so take that as a warning or an enticement. The future schedule, however, looks to be a far more diverse proposition, with some noteworthy hip hop shows thrown in the mix. more ›

There was some consternation last summer when longtime east side blues joint TC's Lounge shuttered its doors after thirty three years of dive bar camaraderie and boozy, sweat-soaked dance marathons. But. BUT. New ownership soon took over the space, renaming it The Sahara Lounge. There's the same comfortable vibe and uniquely themed music nights: Saturday is African Night, at which two of the owners play, and Wednesday is Psychedelic Night. All is well. more ›

KUT is creating an "Austin Music Map" with funding from the Association of Independents in Radio, Inc. (A.I.R.). The self-described "innovative journalism project" comes courtesy of "Localore," a program created by AIR meant to target "underrepresented musical subcultures." Austin is one of only ten cities that has been awarded the chance to document said subcultures, and KUT's work will be undertaken by producer-in-residence Delaney Hall. more ›

This interview was contributed by Ruth Griffin. It’s pretty easy to resent a band that puts out an EP before ever performing live together. However, Twin Sister has proven themselves to be worthy of nothing but adoration. Buzz from their first release Vampires with Dreaming Kids, and their following EP Color Your Life has brought them to the forefront of the underground music world, stunning us with their debut LP In Heaven. Employing styles from disco to dream-pop, these guys seemingly transcend genre specification, dazing audiences with their eccentric live performances and the charmingly serene voice of lead singer/keyboardist Andrea Estella. Embarking on their ambitious North American tour, the band plans on making a stop at one of Austin’s finest music venues, Mohawk, this Sunday. In spite of their jam-packed schedule, the Austinist was able to grab a few minutes with the lovely Andrea herself. Get ready to discover the secrets behind her eclectic style and lyrics as well as her ventures into the world of sculpture and paper maché! more ›

Last night's news that the APD has identified the prime suspect in the New Year's Eve attacks - and, apparently, several earlier assaults - provides a bit of emotional respite in anticipation of perhaps the biggest benefit show yet staged for Esme Barrera. The Statesman reports James Loren Brown, 25, was found dead in his North Campus home on January 12th. He has subsequently been linked by DNA evidence to a string of attacks last summer and is the prime suspect in the New Year's attacks, including the murder of Barrera. The police describe him as a "serial predator." more ›

Though it might not be expected given the general climate of Austin music - which is to say jazz and improvisation gets less notice - one of the city's busiest players is a Norwegian-born contrabassist. Ingebrigt Håker Flaten (b. 1971, Oppdal) moved to Austin in 2010 and has consistently made his mark on the local scene, even assembling a Texas-centric sextet called The Young Mothers (with Flaten, trumpeter/spoken word artist Jawwaad Taylor, percussionist Stefan González, guitarist Jonathan Horne, saxophonist Jason Jackson and Chicago percussionist Frank Rosaly). more ›

For a band celebrating a decade of existence, The Kills take a no-frills approach. Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince have recorded four albums together over the last ten years, evolving their minimalist lo-fi rock sound and evading the norm throughout. From their first show at Bar 12 in London in February of 2002 to their current tour kick off last Friday in Chicago, Mosshart and Hince have impressed audiences with their intensity. more ›

Metal mayhem rolled into Emo's again on Saturday evening as Swedish metal outfit In Flames torched the stage after an energetic set by Orlando-based Trivium. Photos by Ryan Pollack. more ›

Scarface was over an hour late, more than that if you count the time it took him to set up. It was to the point that people were leaving to move their cars out of the dwindling times on their parking meters. It’s not a good look if you’re a touring musician, especially in the notoriously-solipsistic rap-game. When he did finally emerge into the murky lights of the Mohawk, he made a half-hearted bristle about it being cold outside and slipped off his vest. “I thought it was gonna be an indoor joint” as his ridiculously-extended crew filled their spots around the stage. Scarface was the only one with a microphone, and ostensibly the only one on payroll besides the miniature DJ behind him. The most prominent member of his posse was a giant dude decked in all black - he had iPod earbuds poking out of his shirt and filling the side of his head, adding a deeper wrinkle to the never-ending mystery of what it’s like to be that guy. It didn’t phase anyone - why should it? This was teeth-gritted professional rap music from a guy who’s been in the business long enough to get by on prestige alone. Nothing less, but precious little more. more ›

Buzz bands are practically a thing of the past now that there are so many avenues to find new music (hello Spotify, Pandora, Bandcamp, etc!). However, the Alabama Shakes may just be the closet thing to it at this exact moment. The quartet has played together for years in and around Athens, AL, barely scraping by on cover song sets, but at last October's CMJ New Music Festival in NYC, the group got noticed in a big way. Blowing away the audience and a NY Times reporter at Bowery Ballroom, the career of this group is skyrocketing up on talent alone: lead singer Brittany Howard uses her plaintive, smooth vocals to belt out lyrics on top of a tight blues rock instrumentation. Take a listen to their self-titled streaming EP on Bandcamp for a taste of it. more ›

Thomas Dolby has been busy: his latest album, Map of the Floating City and its accompanying game, FloatingCity.com have inspired a new tour which will kick off at this year's SXSW Festival. On March 16 (no word on venue yet), Dolby will roll into town to perform, but he'll have a unique contraption in tow: his time capsule. Fans at the show will have an opportunity to “make their own fully produced and effected digital 30-second video clip”, a message to the future, which will be uploaded to Dolby's YouTube channel. Prizes will be given for the clips with the most views. The capsule itself is a "chrome- and brass-plated road trailer that seats three. With handcrafted leather and wood fittings, and complex electrical wiring that could have been designed by Nikola Tesla, it resembles a Jules Verne/HG Wells-inspired time-travel machine." Inside, however, it's nothing but modern technology, hosting a "high-tech" video recording suite. The clips will be combined at the end of the tour to create an over-arching montage of messages to the future. Sounds fun, and as Dolby says, "Our species may not be around on this planet much longer, so you might as well leave a welcome message for the next guys!” Read more here. more ›

Who: Finally, we have a release date for the debut LP from BOY FRIEND, a duo composed of Christa Palazzolo and Sarah Brown out of fallout from Sleep Over. Hell, Yes! are releasing the Egyptian Wrinkle LP on February 6th on pink marble vinyl (limited to 1000 copies), as well as digitally and on CD. more ›

The Parish hosts an intimate evening tonight, headlined by classical ensemble Balmorhea. After releasing a steady stream of music from 2009's All is Wild, All is Silent through the following year's Candor/Clamor 7", Balmorhea have only a live album to their name for 2011, which means that tonight's one-off show should feature plenty of new material from the sextet. Though they've often been tagged a "minimalist" ensemble, Live at Sint-Elisabethkerk aptly demonstrates Balmorhea's penchant for shocking dynamism; the band know how to put into music the spiritual yawp of yearning. In the live setting, Balmorhea play with all the restrained beauty you hear on vinyl, with an added dimension of visceral power. more ›

Continuing Thursday night's benefit show from the Scoot Inn, myriad bands have come together to help raise funds for Esme Barrera's family at Club 1808. Friday's showcase includes Quin Galavis, Literature, Les Rav, Crooked Bangs, Schmillion and more. See below for the full lineup and some set times. Two stages will have performances starting at 5pm, and minors are welcome until 6:30pm. Between the bands' performances, guests are welcome to speak and pay tribute to Esme. more ›