Monday, August 3, 2026
The Cosmic Clash

opinion

Live MusicMike CosmicOpinion

Founder’s Corner: Mike Cosmic tells readers why they need to hear Prom Threat

Mike Cosmic Cota 293 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Been itching to tell you about a little three piece band called Prom Threat that I know well. The three-piece formed in Austin fires like a V8 engine. They’re part Riot Grrl, part shy girl, all kick-ass post-punk act. Prom Threat is the brain child of punk rocker Anna Sawyer. Her off-stage demeanor transforms when her band hits the stage. The transformation embodies flawless punk rock energy that has been pent up deep inside her petite frame. Each breath, every note, all the feelings drawn onto a dynamic sonic canvas with aural symmetry. Prom Threat is like a VW Bug that turns into a semi-truck, splattering buckets of sound into art.  It goes without saying, Prom Threat is one of my favorite bands.

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Glen Hansard by Andy Witchger Palace Theatre St Paul via Wikimedia commons
Music NewsOpinionRobert Dean

Music News: Rest in Peace to the Irish Troubadour Glen Hansard

Robert Dean 429 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

The world lost a real, dyed-in-the-wool character of the streets with the unfortunate loss of Glen Hansard. Hansard died in a motorcycle crash outside Dublin on July 29, 2026, at just 56 years old.

Hansard made music for the lost, the broken-hearted, but also the hopeful. Getting his start as a busker playing around Dublin, Hansard gained the kind of wisdom only allowed for those willing to give themselves over to the songs, and through his trials and tribulations, the world got something beautiful in return.

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By Frank Schwichtenberg - Own work  This file was uploaded with Commonist., CC BY-SA 4.0,
OpinionRobert Dean

Thank you Lou Koller and Sick of It All

Robert Dean 703 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Unfortunately, that September, it was back. He kept going anyway, through what would have been the band’s 40th year together, the band he’d started with his brother in Queens back in 1986. He died on July 24, 2026, at 59, the disease finally outrunning him after two years of him refusing to let it define the band or the music. His bandmates put it simply: his fight was over, and he could finally rest.

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Frank and Margie's landscape
CultureOpinionRobert Dean

Restaurant review: Frank and Margie’s hit target with new Round Rock spot by Michelin starred chef

Robert Dean 3080 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

You’ve gotta give it up to the chef duo of Phillip Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee. When it comes to empire building, they can’t be beat. Their flagship Sushi By Scratch has a Michelin star and the man has been on Top Chef among other cooking shows. He and his wife are rockstars of the restaurant industry without a doubt. If you’ve not had the decadence of  their East Austin spot, NADC’s double Waygu cheeseburgers, you’re missing out. There’s nothing that these folks don’t do well. 

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Frontera Fest actors Brett Brookshire
CultureOpinionRobert Dean

Essay: I would rather swim through raw sewage than go to the theater

Robert Dean 2360 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Theater is my hell. Musical theater? I would rather swim through raw sewage, hitting sawed-off corpse dicks to the face. Honorable mentions include karaoke and improv. Back to the theater… it’s not fun for me. I enjoy reading plays by the greats; August Wilson, Tennessee Williams, and Arthur Miller. But when it comes to sitting in an audience, it just ain’t for me. There was the time I was taken to see Monty Python’s “Spam-a-Lot,” and while I wanted to see it, once I saw it, I hated it.

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Dave Mustaine meme
Music NewsOpinionRobert Dean

Opinion: Why Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine cannot stop talking about Metallica

Robert Dean 3429 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Every time Dave Mustaine has something to say about Metallica, it’s like Al Bundy talking about his big game for Polk High. Not because he brings it up once in a while, but because he never stops. How does someone who hasn’t been in a band for forty years keep talking about a band he hasn’t been in for forty years?

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Bob Weir Memorial courtesy of Bob Weir
OpinionRobert Dean

Opinion: Bob Weir is irreplaceable so why not ask Sturgill Simpson to step in?

Robert Dean 26639 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Just for clarification, as I write this, my girlfriend, who is a massive Deadhead, is appalled.
With the announcement of the passing of Bob Weir on January 10, the future of The Grateful Dead Empire is now in question. Whereas most bands stop when one of the OG’s pass on, the Dead are a different animal. It’s part of their credo to celebrate the music, to cherish the culture created not only by the band and the fans but also with people in general. The Dead became an integral part of our musical culture a long time ago. There’s nothing like it, an ongoing celebration in different forms that’s been going since Jerry Garcia passed back in 1995.

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Hispter prognosticator
CultureOpinionRobert Dean

Opinion: Eight predictions for Austin music and culture in 2026

Robert Dean 3800 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Because it’s the beginning of the year, I wanted to try something new. I’m going to make some predictions about things I think will happen over the next twelve months. I’m not a swami. This is just my best shot as someone who’s stood next to enough sweaty, drunk guys with bad opinions at countless shows for over thirty years. I can’t do worse than them. Jesus. I feel old just typing that

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Dick Chalmers Delaney Gibson Moon
Music NewsOpinionRobert Dean

Eulogy to those we lost: It was a rough year for the Austin music scene

Robert Dean 3362 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

It was a rough year for the service industry and the Austin music scene. We lost plenty of global legends, but also some of the folks who make this city special — the ones who make Austin… Austin. On the bigger stage, we lost Joe Ely and Garth Hudson, Roberta Flack, Sly Stone, and the eternally cool Ozzy Osbourne. We also lost Kiss member, Ace Frehley and Brian Wilson. The Mavericks singer Raul Malo passed on to the next plane, which hit hard. 

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Live MusicReviewRobert Dean

Essay: Is Hip Hop dead or just resetting?

Robert Dean 13757 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

For the first time in a crazy long time, there were no hip-hop tracks in the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of October 25, 2025. The last time that happened was in February 1990 — Nirvana was still an indie band, and Run-DMC were already a nostalgia act. So what’s going on? Is hip hop dead or just resetting?

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Aerials by Rylan McCoy for ACL Fest 2025-12
Live MusicOpinionRobert Dean

Opinion: Hear me out, Austin City Limits Music Festival at COTA

Robert Dean 3191 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

I know you are going to hate this. But since ACL I’ve been thinking about something: the fest itself and how Austin handles it. First, I gotta get through the fine print: I’ve been to the Austin City Limits Music Festival exactly one time – for an hour. I went to see Duran Duran and left. I also got into a car accident trying to get there on time. I am someone who’s still holding hope that we’re going to get a Fugazi reunion one of these days, so me waiting in the throngs of people to hear Chappell Roan sing “Pink Pony Club” I am not. But after seeing the photos of Sabrina Carpenter’s crowd last week, you have to wonder if the scale of the artists who play at the festival—is the park even big enough to hold the people anymore? I can’t say where I’ve heard the rumor from, but someone told me ACL should be moved to Circuit of the Americas (COTA), and I think the conversation’s at least worth having.

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