Friday, March 6, 2026
The Cosmic Clash

synth rock

Clown Core Halloween Freakend Troy Gonzales
April DawneLive MusicReview

Live music review: Everyday Isn’t Halloween, But it Was Levitation’s Freakend

April Dawne 1084 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

I love The Far Out Lounge (FOL), I love the people who book the shows, bartend, run the door, and clean up after all of us. This spot opened up safely, from a distance, during the lockdown to give live-music hungry people a safe place to see a show. We were like Footloose and unable to dance, and we had to remain socially distant, but we could feel a sense of normalcy that was sorely missed. All this to say, I love that The Far Out Lounge gets to host Levitation events like Halloween Freakend. Two, easy-to-get-to stages, with zero band overlap, in a large gravel yard in far South Austin with food trucks, bars, merch area, poster museum, and more to keep you entertained between sets.

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InterviewsMike Cosmic

Interview: Darkwave artist Jonathan Horstmann of Urban Heat

Mike Cosmic Cota 3478 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

On Saturday, January 11, Jonathan Horstmann and I met at Talisman Coffee Co. in Austin to discuss Urban Heat’s recent tour and their latest release, The Tower. The interview focused on the band’s recent, successful European tour with Molchat Doma, the new album and what’s next for Urban Heat. 

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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 2639 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.

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Nation of Language
Greg AckermanLive MusicReview

Live music review: Nation of Language treated Scoot Inn crowd to sublime synth rock vibes

Greg Ackerman 2901 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Brooklyn’s Nation of Language treated the Scoot Inn crowd last Thursday to an 80s synth rock influenced masterpiece of of a show. The upstart trio who got a huge boost in the midst of the Pandemic with 2021’s A Way Forward which garnered streaming fans far and wide. The record’s success also got the band slots at ACL Festival last year where The Cosmic Clash witnessed an early afternoon set at a minor stage that impressed despite the less than ideal setting in the heat of the Texas afternoon

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GUM
Greg AckermanLive MusicReview

Live music review: GUM impressed fans at Parish October 12

Greg Ackerman 2467 Views ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  , 

Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, singer and producer, Jay Watson brought his solo project GUM to Parish Thursday evening to a mostly full venue. The artist is better known for his contributions to Australian psych-rock act, Tame Impala and the group he co-founded, Pond.

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