The only way to begin this properly is by thanking the three women who gave me the outlet to write about music here for the past year.
First, I have to thank Sarah-Grace Sweeney, who hired me...
The team behind Austin Psych Fest, an annual music festival that celebrates all forms of psychedelic rock, doesn’t know the meaning of taking things easy. The sixth installment of Austin Psych Fest...
When musician Robert Hampson finally made the decision to reunite his former psychedelic rock band after 22 years, it was because he had run out of reasons to say “no.” People had been hassling...
Professional wrestling can serve as a medium for writers to compose elaborate stories, much like books or films. Even though it is presented to audiences as if they are watching a live sport, the setting...
This week marks the third year of Austin’s Moontower Comedy Festival, and, while serious comedy fans will recognize most of the names on the lineup, the average person might be puzzled as to who...
Local psych band Pure X is an enigma. The band has almost no involvement in the Austin music scene, but has managed to find
success nationwide.
Pure X recently signed to Fat Possum Records and...
Austin has more than 200 venues that put on multiple shows a week. For young bands trying to book their first shows, figuring out how and where to start can be overwhelming. Venue calendars are often full...
The members of Feral Future want their music to make listeners feel uncomfortable. The feminist/queer punk band based in Austin released its album, Haematic, in February on local label Western Medical...
The music portion of South By Southwest is the most unpredictable aspect of the festival. Unlike traditional music festivals such as Austin City Limits or Fun Fun Fun Fest, where schedules are solidified...
The Daily Texan compiled a list of the best music events at SXSW that do not require a badge to get in.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12
Pitchfork Day Party
When: 12 p.m.
Where: French Legation Museum
Who:...
There was no shortage of young bands invoking the sounds of the ’90s in 2013, from blistering pop-punk to skuzzy indie-rock, but few arrived with the personality and talent of Potty Mouth. The four-piece...
Until The Ribbon Breaks is the name for the musical project of British singer/producer Pete Lawrie Winfield. Combining elements of R&B and hip-hop, Winfield released his debut EP, A Taste of Silver,...
Heavenly Beat is the musical project of John Pena, one of the founding members of Beach Fossils. Pena released Prominence, his second album as Heavenly Beat, last fall and is already close to completing...
Producer James Hinton has been making mid-tempo electronic music as The Range and playing shows since 2008, but last year his life changed completely. His newest album, Nonfiction, was released last fall...
Samuel Herring, the lead singer of Future Islands, is eager to get back on the road. The talkative lead singer of the indie rock group explained that after five and half years of constant touring, the...
The average hip-hop show has anywhere from two to three opening acts, likely composed of rappers with experience, selected to open because of their skills or popularity. Recently in Austin, though, a surge...
Love’s Crushing Diamond — Jordan Lee’s breakthrough album under the name Mutual Benefit — was only supposed to be a limited-run, physical release of 250 copies. But plans changed...
For die-hard fans of indie rock and punk, there aren’t many opportunities to belt out alternative classics by bands such as Minor Threat or Belle & Sebastian at karaoke nights around town. For...
Most first birthday parties involve a party at Chuck E. Cheese’s, but KUTX is celebrating a different way. Its anniversary benefit concert will take place Saturday night at Bass Concert Hall and...
With close to 10 record stores, Austin has many opportunities for music collectors to find rare albums and discover new music. One of these stores that has become a local institution over the years is...
On the evening of Dec. 12, most students were preparing for finals, completely unaware that the world of pop music would be changed before midnight.
Around 11 p.m., Beyonce Knowles released her...
“Houston Rap” by Peter Beste, Waterloo
Records, $49.99
Over the past few decades, Houston has developed one of the most vibrant hip-hop cultures in the country with artists such as...
From Beyonce’s Super Bowl extravaganza in January to last week’s debut of the “Bound 2” video, The Daily Texan Life & Arts staff fondly recounts some of the best pop culture...
While many people stand in the audiences at the more than 250 music venues in Austin, few know the ins and outs that make Austin’s famous live music happen. The Daily Texan spoke with Red 7 club...
In the crowded musical genre of hip-hop, every artist needs something to set him or her apart. For R. Kelly, it is his sense of humor, best evidenced by “Trapped in the Closet,” a 33-part “hip...
There is a surprising lack of hype surrounding Black Flag’s first studio album in 28 years, considering the band effectively established hardcore punk as a genre and became an icon for millions.
As...
With nude photos, arrests for drug possession and reports of inconsistent live performances, indie pop sensation Sky Ferreira has built quite a name for herself in 2013. Now a near-perfect pop album can...
When Kanye West and Jay-Z teamed up for Watch the Throne, or when M.Ward and Zooey Deschanel came together for She & Him, it felt natural. On paper, the pairing of Norah Jones and Green Day’s...
Even if you’ve never heard of singer/producer Dev Hynes — the man behind Blood Orange — you’ve probably heard some of his work. Hynes caught a break last year when he co-wrote and...
For the past few months, Death Grips, the controversial Californian noise rap group, have begun to wear out their welcome. The group was already notorious for violating its record contract by leaking its...
It’s difficult to discuss the soundtrack to “Inside Llewyn Davis” without having actually seen the film. So many important aspects of the songs, sequencing and content are often tied...
Matangi, the latest album from pop artist M.I.A., took a strange and prolonged journey before its release last week. The album’s first single, the powerful pop anthem “Bad Girls,” came...
White Lung has recently emerged as a talented and powerful punk act. Led by vocalist Mish Way, the band brings a sharp edge to its mesmerizing and forceful songs. The band plays at Fun Fun Fun Fest this...
Nineties feminist punk band Bikini Kill helped shape the “riot grrrl” movement. Bassist Kathi Wilcox has reunited with Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna to form The Julie Ruin, a new punk act...
People love to discuss music in extremes, deeming records or artists either brilliant or trash, without leaving much middle ground. The latest Eminem album is not as bad as the consensus claims, but it...
Cut Copy’s newest album, Free Your Mind, is a tremendous dance record that perfectly recreates the feeling of euphoria that accompanies the last energetic dance before the club closes.
Cut...
Over the course of the last seven years, the British act Los Campesinos! has established itself as one of the most consistent indie-pop bands around. The band made a name for itself with a brightly upbeat...
For a while, Arcade Fire was touted to be the new saviors of rock ’n’ roll by the kind of people who claim that rock ’n’ roll is dead. But even the most ardent Arcade Fire fan can...
Sleigh Bells has been one of the most innovative bands of the past four years. At shows, their noisy pop music is emphasized with a high-energy set drawing on their entire discography. The band returns...
For those who couldn’t care less about the new Katy Perry album released Tuesday, last week, two women put together two wildly different yet intriguing releases that show what pop music actually...
In the past three years, Bethany Cosentino, the beloved singer/songwriter/guitarist behind Best Coast, has become a style icon for a generation of millennials and slackers still obsessed with ’90s...
The term “electronic music” often calls to mind DJs playing giant EDM festivals. There is a whole world of artists who operate on the fringe of electronic music, though, working with house,...
Savages, a post-punk quartet from London, is known for its live shows and has been making waves and racking up award nominations for its mesmerizing debut Silence Yourself. The Daily Texan talked with...
Cults, led by Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion, was at the center of a lot of buzz when it released its enjoyable self-titled debut two years ago. The band made waves by appropriating the classic sound...
It’s wild to think that, after more than a decade in the industry, Pusha T is releasing his first official debut album. The ultra-talented rapper first partnered with Malice in the group Clipse,...
French superstars Phoenix are in the midst of a world tour behind their chart-topping new album Bankrupt. The Daily Texan talked with founding members Laurent “Branco” Brancowitz and Deck D’arcy,...
Widowspeak, the great dreamy, hazy, indie rock group from Brooklyn, N.Y., just released Almanac earlier this year and have another EP titled The Swamps due out on Captured Tracks by the end of the month....
Parquet Courts a four piece punk group from Brooklyn — three members are originally from Texas — have been building a steady following as a result of several great album releases.
The...
Wild Nothing, a Brooklyn band, began as the musical project of Jack Tatum while he was in college at Virginia Tech. He’s since put out two albums and two EPs of dream pop greatness, including Empty...
When Sleigh Bells debuted in 2010 with the wildly entertaining and innovative Treats, many predicted their rise to stardom. No one expected the band to be as ubiquitous as it is now. If you’ve seen...
In about two years, Danny Brown — the Detroit rapper known for his crazy hair, skinny jeans and the wide gap between his front teeth — went from a relative unknown to one of the most exciting...
FRIDAY
Underrated band: Savages
Stage: Honda
Time: 1 p.m.
This young all-female post-punk quartet from London might be the most talented and electrifying act of the weekend.
Local...
Between South By Southwest, Chaos in Tejas, Fun Fun Fun Fest and weekly shows at clubs such as Red 7 or Mohawk, punk shows are as common in Austin as 5 p.m. traffic on Lamar
Boulevard.
And while...
If you don’t know much about the band HAIM (pronounced like “time”, not “tame”), you are likely to hear a ton about them in the upcoming months. Compared to Fleetwood Mac...
It was a welcome surprise when Justin Timberlake returned to music after seven years of inactivity with the delightfully retro The 20/20 Experience. The former Disney child star’s album was all grown-up,...
You’d be excused for not knowing much about Mazzy Star.
Seasons of Your Day is the Californian duo’s first album since 1996. The duo was never that famous, cracking the Billboard Hot...
Love him or hate him, it can’t be denied that Drake has changed the rap game.
In the past few years, he has become one of the biggest rappers, not by claiming to be a gangster or bragging...
