live music

Phantogram and Kings of Leon Moody Center Drew Doggett
Drew DoggettLive MusicReview

Live music review: Kings of Leon and Phantogram Prove They Have Plenty of Fire at Moody Center

Drew Doggett 1412 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

I hate the term “guilty pleasure.” Loving music based on the approval of others will drain you. While I’m not saying I’ll grab the aux cord to blare “Sex on Fire” during a road trip, I will die on the hill that Aha Shake Heartbreak was a seminal record for 2000s alternative and indie rock. Maybe it’s the Nashville boy in me, the lover of arena rock, or the nostalgia for how their southern riffs colored my upbringing in Tennessee. Kings of Leon rock. And on August 14 at Austin’s Moody Center, they brought a 28-song, anthemic setlist to prove it.

Read More
Redd Kross Parish Troy Gonazales 8
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: Legendary alt rockers Redd Kross played Parish on Rock and Roll Party tour

Case Cockrell 729 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Since reforming and recording a double, self-titled record, Redd Kross is touring again and bringing what bassist McDonald would call a “Rock and Roll Party” to every city the Kross has placed on their itinerary. For the Austin stop on their tour, the California alt-rockers rolled into East Side hideaway, Parish on August 7, ready to deliver their top-down assault of tunes that made for a career-spanning performance. 

Read More
Urban Heat at Metro Ryan Odom
Greg AckermanLive MusicReview

Live music review: Rising Austin synth act Urban Heat played Metro Music Hall with Gvllow

Greg Ackerman 854 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Rising Austin synth pop, post-punk act Urban Heat played Salt Lake City’s Metro Music Hall on August 7 with intense, darkwave band Gvllow from Southern California.. Led by veteran musician, Jonathan Horstmann whose previous project, BLXPLTN was well regarded in a crowded Austin music scene. With Urban Heat, Horstmann has elevated his game, earning Song of the Year at the Austin Music Awards last March with the single “Have You Ever.” The trio’s superlative performance last Wednesday in SLC showed just how far the young band formed in 2019 has gotten in a relatively short period of time.

Read More
Snooper parish Troy Gonzales 8
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: Nashville punks Snooper played sold out Parish with Blank Hellscape and Water Damage

Case Cockrell 721 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

For Snooper’s Summer Austin appearance on August 3, the band enlisted the help of Blank Hellscape and Water Damage. After their last SXSW appearance of 2024 that featured the former, Snooper was ready to make it all about their Texas musical kindred spirits at ATX East Side alternative music stronghold, Parish. It was a business as usual Saturday night for the Country Music town punks in the best and most incendiary of ways. 

Read More
SIMS Art and Music 13th Fl final poster
Greg AckermanLive MusicPreview

Live music preview: 13th Floor hosting art and music benefit for SIMS Foundation Saturday with Satalights, Semihelix and The Stayres

Greg Ackerman 826 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

This Saturday, 13th Floor on Red River is hosting a SIMS Foundation benefit featuring art and live music by Austin musicians at the venue. Live music by Satalights, Semihelix, The Stayres with tunes by DJ Dead Flowers will begin at 8 p.m. In addition, four musicians; Conrad Keely (And You Will Know Us by the Trail of the Dead), Anna Troxell, Ruben Mendez and Wes Coleman will be presenting their visual art for sale, all to benefit The SIMS Foundation, a music mental health organization that provides mental health and recovery services to Austin area music industry members and their dependent families.

Read More
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: A Hot Summer Nights ramble through the weekend with great local acts

Case Cockrell 896 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Another Hot Summer Nights in Austin has come and gone. Twice a year, the Red River Cultural District holds a cover-charge-free, street-wide event that features mountains of Austin talent and beyond in both a January and July edition at venues such as Mohawk, Chess Club, Empire Garage & Control Room, Swan Dive, The 13th Floor, Elysium, and more. For each festival edition, an eclectic lineup that spans all genres invades Red River for thousands of attendees to get a helping of great, local talent, new and old. During the festival weekend, programming lasts from the early evening to closing time to give local music fans a taste of what makes the Austin music scene one of the best destinations in the country.

Read More
Empire Garage Hot Summer Nights
Brian HillsmanLive MusicReview

Live music review: Hot Summer Nights Thursday lineup with Moody Banks, David Shabani and Daniel Fears at Empire Garage

Brian Hillsman 736 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Empire Garage is one of the many participating venues, and their opening-night Hip Hop, R&B, and Soul showcase Austin Chronicle party on Thursday evening did not disappoint with performances by Moody Banks, Daniel Fears and hip-hop artist, David Shabani.

Read More
Sound Mass at Levitation 2015
AlbumGreg AckermanReview

Album review: Sprawling Post Rock project Sound Mass announced third album and Texas mini tour

Greg Ackerman 1210 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

When our friends with Austin band, My Education and Salt Lake City’s Theta Naught told us a new album was coming ten years after the release of their second collaboration, it was a bit of a surprise it took that long to make the follow-up to Sound Mass II: Spiritual Docking. It was particularly perplexing given that the recording sessions for this release, entitled Ampersand were made in 2019 not long before the worldwide pandemic put a stop to pretty much everything including collaborations between awesome post-rock bands. 

Read More
Cage the Elephant 2 Moody Drew Doggett
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: Cage the Elephant came back from five year hiatus with Young the Giant at Moody Center

Case Cockrell 2264 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

When a band like Cage The Elephant moves out of their place of formation for England, you know they intended to live up to their titular mission statement. Kentucky-born Cage The Elephant is many records removed from super-hit “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked,” becoming one of the mainstream’s most hard-hitting arena rock and roll acts while churning out a discography with inarguable depth that carries the torch for contemporaries such as The White Stripes, Beck, Modest Mouse, and The Black Keys. On Thursday night at Austin’s downtown basketball arena, as Melvins’ Buzz Osborne would call a “Non-venue,” the Kentucky-England band pumped out 80 minutes of virtually banterless cuts that saw the six-piece outfit tearing through their accomplished career of steady but worthwhile material. An eclectic audience made their way to the Moody Center for the Friday eve show.

Read More
Case CockrellLive MusicPreview

Live music preview: Seven bands to see at Hot Summer Nights July 18-20

Case Cockrell 1344 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Hot Summer Nights in the Red River Cultural District in Austin, is yet another RRCD-sponsored event that features countless local artists performing across the downtown area. Each showcase will not charge a cover at the door, meaning dozens of free showcases akin to the annual Free Week, which takes place the first week of each January. Hot Summer Nights will take place July 18 – July 20 and will feature over 140 acts from all over Austin and surrounding areas.

Read More
The Black Angels at Stabile Hall
Case CockrellLive MusicReview

Live music review: The Black Angels rocked the new Stable Hall in San Antonio last week

Case Cockrell 1194 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

The Black Angels headed to San Antonio to give their Central Texas fans a blueprint of what will come in their 20th year. The Black Angels have stayed plugged into the depths and hardliners of the indie scene, and their relevance and expertise in the underground music sphere have been an inspiring force due to their many years in the business. The Black Angels delivered a smoking set at Stabile Hall on Friday, June 28 in San Antonio for their Central Texas fans, which saw Austin and local SATX supporters alike flocking to the new(ish) Stable Hall venue to witness a masterclass in Texas Psychedelia. 

Read More