Sunday, November 24, 2024
The Cosmic Clash

Author: Case Cockrell

Walkabouts
AlbumCase CockrellReview

Album review: Walkabouts shows chops with honed songwriting on debut, Bloomin’ Ocotillo

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After assembling a lineup of seasoned local musicians who called the Midwest home like the band’s founder—bassist Kyle Douglas, lead guitarist Ryan Girard, and drummer Drew Dederer—Bandleader, Sam Shaffer has built his full band, Walkabouts. Since getting their bearings, the rising Austin act has been chipping away at the musical block to craft energetic live shows that drift between personable songwriting and dynamic rock-and-roll energy. For Walkabouts’ debut full-length, Bloomin’ Ocotillo, the Midwest-turned Austin musicians take a new stride that provokes thoughtful lyricism and massive instrumental triumph.

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Levitation Ismael Quintanilla
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: The best of LEVITATION Festival 2023

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For 2023, Levitation, founded by Austin psych-rock wizards The Black Angels and festival organizer Rob Fitzpatrick, brought the goods for this year’s installment. From garage rock overlord Ty Segall to EDM titan Flying Lotus to the neo psych-rock of Black Angels, Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre,  Levitation brought a vast array of elements that makes festival’s Austin takeover something special for fans and performing artists alike

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UtopiaFest 2023
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: Eclipse Utopiafest brought eclectic music and community to Central Texas this month

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Utopia Festival organizers Travis Sutherland and Wayne Dalchau have spent over the past decade working tirelessly to craft a small cap music festival that stresses the importance of expanding any music fan’s horizons while cultivating a community that keeps fans of the festival coming back year after year. For this Fall’s edition of the festival, the Utopia team celebrated the solar eclipse with an eclectic lineup that brought an array of diverse musicians that take the Utopia Festival mission to heart. 

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Kendrick Lamar
Case CockrellLiveReview

Live music review: Kendrick Lamar shocks ACL Festival with 65-minute delay, abbreviated 31-minute set 

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Compton’s Kendrick Lamar is billed as the headliner for each Friday of the 2023 Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL Festival), a big draw for most attendees at Zilker Park on Friday night. Upon approaching the stage, fans were told on the American Express Stage’s screens that Lamar’s set would be delayed due to “Plane Issues.”

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AlbumCase CockrellReview

Album review: Lauren Lakis sculpts ethereal brand of shoegaze with songwriter chops on new album A Fiesta And A Hell

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For musicians like Lauren Lakis, the guitar-obsessive lifestyle of indie-gaze isn’t just about the noise but the high-stakes lyricism refined on a track-to-track basis. On upcoming new album, A Fiesta and a Hell, the Los Angeles-Austin musician offers potent song structures and celestial soundscapes that pitch her discernment with modern greed and corrupt world leadership. 

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Eclipse utopia banner
Case CockrellLive MusicPreview

Live music preview: Six artists to see at final Eclipse Utopia Festival in October

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Utopia Festival has planned a profusion of eclectic music acts for this Fall’s edition of the festival. What’s more, no set overlaps, attendance is limited and camping is free with your ticket. This festival was made for a quality experience for music fans.  Here are six artists to see if you’re smart enough to snag a ticket to the Four Sisters Ranch for the festivities on October 12-14.

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Night Beats at Hotel Vegas
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: Night Beats and Daiistar gave Austin a modern psychedelic rock treat Saturday

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When a band in Austin gets to make a record after playing their material for local audiences for months, sometimes years on end, it’s worthy of multiple rounds of applause. For Austin shoegaze/noise-pop act Daiistar, it’s been a long time coming. To celebrate the release of Daiistar’s new album Good Time, the rising Austin act enlisted the help of Seattle-born, now Texas-based band Night Beats, who are on a new album cycle of their own.

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Frankie and the Witch Fingers
Case CockrellLiveReview

Live music review: Frankie and the Witch Fingers unleashed psych and roll on an ecstatic Austin audience

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For Los Angeles act, Frankie and the Witch Fingers, every record has been a step further to indie psych-rock royalty. Formed by frontman Dylan Sizemore as a solo project in Indiana before relocating to Los Angeles recently, Sizemore has assembled his group of rock and roll avengers, sculpting record after record of “psych and roll” material built to blow audiences away. Sizemore and his band did just that for a Thursday night Austin crowd at The Parish in the city’s famed East Side.

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Swans Paramount
Case CockrellReview

Live music review: Swans evades fire code shutdown at Paramount, delivers two hour onslaught

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Michael Gira’s multi-genre outfit Swans showed an Austin crowd that age is just a number on Sunday night at the historic Paramount Theatre down the street from the Capitol. For those unfamiliar, Swans is a New York band that has gone through various phases, line-ups, genres, and forms through the leadership of multi-instrumentalist, Gira since 1982.

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