Austin Psych Fest – The Cosmic Clash

Blackwater Holylight Radio East Troy Gonzales

Live music review: Blackwater Holylight drew diehards in droves to Radio East Tuesday

February 20, 2026 Case Cockrell 486 Views Austin Psych Fest, black metal, Blackwater Holylight, doom metal, Far Out Lounge, Glassing, Levitation, live music, psych-rock, Radio East, Review, rock n roll, shoegaze, Suicide Squeeze, The Well

The industrial area of southeast Austin carries a unique vibe. With no gentrification within yelling distance (or amplified music distance) in our case, there’s not much worry about noise complaints and the fuzz coming with the decibel reader to dock the venue for “Rock and roll mischief.” For Los Angeles-based via Portland shoegaze outfit Blackwater Holylight, an early-week bill on Tuesday evening at Radio East drew Austin diehards in droves to experience the Austin Psych Fest alums alongside local favorites, Glassing and The Well. With new LP Not Here Not Gone showcasing their multi-layered brand of luscious psych-infused soundscapes, the Blackwater quintet accounts for all the sounds that make up their dreamy biome.

Case Cockrell Live Music Preview

Live music preview: Austin Psych Fest returns to Far Out May 8 with stacked lineup

February 5, 2026 Case Cockrell 655 Views Adrian Quesada, Al-Qasar, Annabelle Charles, APF, Austin Psych Fest, Boogarins, DIIV, Dumbo Gets Mad, Flaming Lips, Glaze, Grocery Bag, La Lom, Latin psych, Levitation, live music, Momma, Money Chicha, New Candys, Night Beats, preview, psych-rock, rock n roll, The Black Angels, Thee Sacred Souls, Trish Toledo

Austin Psych Fest returns this Spring on May 8 – May 10 to the Far Out Lounge & Stage, bringing yet another Spring festival edition to South Austin and a stacked three-day lineup. The 3-day festival will feature APF legacy acts and underground picks that showcase yet another year of reverberation appreciation from the Austin homegrown festival. The lineup features acts from all over the world to commemorate its fourth Spring edition since the return to an annual Springtime, one-location, two-stages, no-overlap festival experience. This one is a music fan’s dream format. All tickets can be purchased on the Levitation website.

Brian Hillsman Live Music Review

Live music review: Kim Gordon Nailed It at Austin Psych Fest at Far Out Lounge

May 9, 2025 Brian Hillsman 4461 Views art rock, Austin Psych Fest, experimental music, Far Out Lounge, Kim Gordon, Levitation, live music, rock n roll, Sonic Youth

On Saturday, April 26, a spry Kim Gordon (age 71) stepped on stage at South Austin’s Far Out Lounge and Stage in boy-shorts bikini bottoms and a white, long-sleeved t-shirt by brand Old Baby with “Gulf Of Mexico” in red, bold font on the front, and the still quiet crowd erupted. We would be negligent not to proclaim Kim Gordon nailed it at Austin Psych Fest 2025.

Austin Psych Fest Experience by Renee Dominguez for APF25--5

Case Cockrell Live Music Review

Live music review: Austin Psych Fest brought eclectic talent from across the psych spectrum

April 30, 2025 Case Cockrell 4037 Views Alex Maas, Austin Psych Fest, Black Mountain, Blackwater Holylight, Cumbia, Dinosaur Jr, electro psych, Explosions in the Sky, Far Out Lounge, Federale, Garrett T Capps, Geordie Greep, Godspeed You Black Emperor, indie rock, Kadavar, Kim Gordon, Levitation, live music, Los Mirlos, neo-jazz, neo-psych, pop rock, post rock, psych-rock, Review, rock n roll, STARFKR, stoner rock, The Mystery Lights, The Octopus Project

The Spring installment of Austin Psych Fest returned last weekend to The Far Out Lounge & Stage for a three-day, two-stage, no-overlap experience that brought over 30 acts to Austin for an eclectic weekend of music from all across the trippy psychedelic spectrum. For 2025, the billed talent stretched its boundaries by bringing a diverse array of artists that catered to fans of Psych Fest past and present. Here’s what stood out to us over the weekend-long stand in South Austin.

April Dawne Live Music Review

Live music review: Friday at Austin Psych Fest with Explosions in the Sky, Octopus Project and Godspeed You Black Emperor

April 29, 2025 April Dawne 4283 Views Austin Psych Fest, EITS, Explosions in the Sky, Far Out Lounge, Federale, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Jesse Sykes, Levitation, live music, music festival, post rock, psych-rock, Review, rock n roll, The Octopus Project

Austin has no shortage of music festivals and while most of them are amazing in some way, my favorite is Austin Psych Fest. This year, I caught Texas act, Explosions in the Sky, Austin’s The Octopus Project and Godspeed You! Black Emperor as well as some other worthwhile bands. This gem of a festival melted into Levitation (close second fave) and then split back into two different but equal festivals in 2023. APF is held at The Far Out Lounge, one of my favorite venues in Austin since the apocalypse.

Brian Hillsman Live Music Review

Live music review: Geordie Greep delivered memorable set at Austin Psych Fest

April 28, 2025 Brian Hillsman 4448 Views APF, art rock, Austin Psych Fest, avant garde, Far Out Lounge, Geordie Greep, latin jazz, Levitation, live music, Music Festivals, new music, psych-rock, Resound

Accompanied with an ensemble band of instrumentalists, London’s Geordie Greep delivered a memorable set orbiting his solo LP debut The New Sound —released in October 2024— at South Austin’s Far Out Lounge on April 26 as part of Levitation and Resound’s Austin Psych Fest 2025.

Case Cockrell Live Music Preview

Live music preview: Six bands to watch at Austin Psych Fest 2025

April 17, 2025 Case Cockrell 4262 Views Alex Maas, Austin Psych Fest, Black Mountain, Christian Bland, Etran de L'Air, experimental rock, Far Out Lounge, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Gordie Greep, Kadavar, Levitation, Levitation Room, live music, Maya Ongaku, post rock, preview, Primitive Ring, psych-rock, Queen Serene, Ringo Deathstarr, rock n roll, stoner rock, Suuns, The Octopus Project

Levitation’s Austin Psych Fest will return to Far Out Lounge and Stage in 2025, coming with a stacked lineup that features acts from all over the world to commemorate its third Spring edition since the return to an annual Springtime, one-location, two-stages, no-overlap festival experience. The three-day festival will feature legacy acts and underground picks that showcase yet another year of reverberation appreciation from the homegrown Austin festival. To help audiences prepare for the event, the team at The Cosmic Clash has curated six bands to watch for the festival during the last weekend of April (25-27), including the kickoff and late-night shows after each day of music

Case Cockrell Live Music Preview

Live music preview: Austin Psych Fest announced masterfully curated lineup today

January 23, 2025 Case Cockrell 3226 Views Alex Maas, APF, Austin Psych Fest, Black Mountain, Darkside, Dinosaur Jr, Explosions in the Sky, Far Out Lounge, Garrett T Capps, Geordie Green, hard rock, Kim Gordon, Levitation, lineup announcement, live music, post rock, preview, psych-rock, punk rock, rock n roll, STRFKR

Levitation’s Austin Psych Fest will return to The Far Out Lounge & Stage in South Austin on April 25 – April 27 for yet another year of a masterfully curated lineup by famed booker Rob Fitzpatrick and Resound Presents. Since returning to a Spring edition on top of the regular Levitation Fall Edition, Austin Psych Fest has both stayed in touch with the current world of independent music at large and the roots of what made the festival the coveted phenomenon it is in the present day.

Case Cockrell Live Music Review

Live music preview: Six bands to see at LEVITATION 2024

October 14, 2024 Case Cockrell 2478 Views A Place to Bury Strangers, Austin Psych Fest, Boris, doom rock, Levitation, live music, Mdou Moctar, music festival, Pissed Jeans, progressive rock, psych-rock, Review, stoner rock, Swift, The Black Angels

World-renowned psychedelic Austin musician Roky Erickson once said, “At one time, I had it notarised that I was from another planet. By a lawyer.” Regardless of whether that makes sense or not, Erickson’s legacy still holds true in the city of Austin, Texas. We’re decades removed from the 60s, but folks like Austin’s The Black Angels and their proxies have kept his legacy alive by delivering endless programming of neo-psych rock utopia. Festival founders Rob Fitzpatrick and The Black Angels’ Levitation is back this Halloween weekend for yet another multi-venue installment, and the booked talent continues to deliver a factor of “Wow.” The Cosmic Clash team will join the festivities yet again and is here to prescribe another list of bands you need to see for the end-of-October festivities. All set times can be found on the Levitation website.

April Riggs Live Music Review

Live music review: Mikaela Davis was angelic at Austin Psych Fest at Far Out Lounge

May 7, 2024 April Dawne 2959 Views Austin Psych Fest, experimental, Far Out Lounge, harp, jam rock, Levitation, live music, Mikaela Davis, psych country, psych-rock, Review

My first time seeing Mikaela Davis was on the BMI stage at the Austin City Limits Festival in 2015, and I expected her sound to be folkie, singer-songwriter music that I’m not typically into. When she took the stage with her harp, I heard an angelic, neo-psychedelic country sound that pleased my ears and I have followed her career via social media since.

Fast forward nine years to Day Three at Austin Psych Fest (2024), when festival-goers almost lost a mellow day of music due to the weather. The rain moved on and Van Mary eased us into a swampy day at the Janice Stage with a super-chill set. The afternoon continued to heat up as Mikaela Davis & Southern Star took to the Willie Stage for the final day of APF.

Case Cockrell Live Music Review

Live music review: Eclectic Austin Psych Fest returned to Far Out Lounge last weekend

May 3, 2024 Case Cockrell 2951 Views Alex Maas, Alvvays, Austin Psych Fest, Brainstory, Chicano Batman, Courtney Barnett, Frankie and the Witch Fingers, indie rock, J Mascis, King Tuff, Kurt Vile, Levitation, live music, Metz, Minami Deutsch, prog rock, psych-rock, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Review, rock n roll, The Black Angels, WITCH

The Spring installment of Austin Psych Fest returned last weekend to the Far Out Lounge & Stage for a three-day, two-stage, no-overlap experience that brought over 30 acts to Texas for an eclectic weekend of music from all across the trippy psychedelic spectrum. Event organizers, Levitation was, in part founded by local psych rock revivalists, The Black Angels, but the local organization has become much more over the years.

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