Live Music Review: Built to Spill Carries the Zero in East Austin
Doug Martsch has been the only constant in Built to Spill since 1992. That’s long enough for the Boise band to help write the 90s indie rock playbook and watch bands half his age keep borrowing from it. On Friday, September 25, Martsch brought the current trio, with Melanie Radford on bass and Teresa Esguerra on drums, to Central Machine Works. The venue built a new stage last year for bigger acts as an investment into Austin music, and the calendar has been filling up ever since. The show sold out. The room was split between people who bought Perfect From Now On on release day and people who weren’t born yet. Ten albums deep, Martsch gave both camps 90 minutes and didn’t play favorites.
Central Machine Works is a sprawling East Austin brewery with a backyard that holds about 1,000 people. It brews its own beer, runs its own kitchen, and is built for staying all day. The calendar splits between free and ticketed shows, and with Resound Presents doing the booking, it has become one of the busier rooms in town. Built to Spill filled it.
Martsch still sounds great. His voice is intact, and his guitar leads the band with studio-grade precision. Radford and Esguerra stay locked in behind him and carry the stage presence while he works the mic and the solos. The one knock goes to the venue. It’s a brewery where people come to talk and sip microbrews, and the chatter carried across the yard all night. The stage volume could have gone up a notch to drown it out. It’s a rock show. Turn it up.
The setlist pulled from across the catalog. “Distopian Dream Girl,” “Randy Described Eternity,” and “Car” all made the cut, along with “Carry the Zero,” a song that belongs in any indie rock hall of fame. Each one landed hard with the fans who knew every word, and those fans outnumbered the people who came out for just another Friday show.
Austin gets more shows than anyone can keep up with, especially once fall and ACL season hit. Nights like this are why the crowds still show up. Even after a stellar performance at Levitation 2025, BtS fans remain hungry and filled up an Austin independent venue for yet another local appearance.
Built to Spill continues to tour throughout 2026. Tickets can be found via the band’s website.
All photos by Troy Gonzales
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