Archives for April 2019

Magna Carda: “Angels”

When lyricist Megz Kelli met producer-keyboardist Dougie Do at St. Edward’s University back in 2012, they knew they needed to set their sights on music but they had no idea how far it would take them. Now in year seven as in-studio-duo-turned-live-band Magna Carda, they’ve become one of Austin’s most recognizable hip hop/R&B acts and have played alongside the likes of The Pharcyde and Oddisee.

There’ve been recent murmurs of another upcoming album from Magna Carda and just today they released a brand new single that doubles as a heartfelt tribute. Catch Magna Carda at Stubb’s Thursday May 9th and start your weekend off right with the new stuff, “Angels”!

Legacy

Looking back, we tend to associate our legacy with accomplishments in our career and we rarely think about the value of our work in the moment. Yet a personal sense legacy can be derived from a number of meaningful things outside the workplace, even if we’re not considering them right now.

On this episode of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke discuss legacy.

Drag the Moon

Everyone needs a great opening line. Wil Cope has his.

“I wanna fall outta love/so I can fall again,” muses the gatekeeper of that decrepit, rusted-over Tropicana Motel of the mind at the very start of his latest release, Denial River. Your Austin Music Minute maven has followed the tales of this Austin-based dystopian folk balladeer through his most haunted ramshackle corners since the days of Sunset Craves (2010) and Drunk Are the Stars (2012). Those revealing dark recesses and tragic comedies are what make Cope’s ruminations so damned evocative. There’s no turning away. Where the hell are these memories oozing in from? And forget the ride-off-into-the-sunset happy endings. ‘Cause after all, “if it ain’t tragic/how can it be true?”

It’s a big night for Cope. There’s no denying that this is his best work to date. Don’t miss his album release show tonight at the Hard Luck Lounge, 3526 E. 7th St. Rounding out the bill to perfection are Rattlesnake Milk and Altamesa. This one comes very recommended.

-Photography by Jacqueline Badeaux.

-Featured track on today’s AMM, “Drag the Moon,” by Wil Cope from Denial River.

Texas Standard: April 18, 2019

Russian election interference and ties to the Trump campaign. We’re tracking the release of the Mueller report. We’ll have the latest. Other stories we’re following: what may be a preview of the upcoming Texas senate race unfolding at the Texas capitol…results of the census are in. Though it’s probably not the one you’re thinking about, it could nonetheless have a big impact on the Lone Star State. Also, we’ll explain the car of the future will be self driving they tell us. What’s taking so long? Plus, this weekend’s Trip Tip and more today on the Texas Standard:

Little People: “Tonight”

When it comes to Anglo-Swiss producer Little People, hip hop is top priority. Raised by the golden age of rap and further influenced by the ever-burgeoning UK electronic scene, Little People brings a hodge podge of sounds to the table that makes it hard to keep your toe from tapping.

Back in January Little People put out his first album in five years and he continues the Landloper tour this Saturday at the Mohawk! Lock it in with Little People right now with “Tonight”!

In the Hub

It’s not fair to even attempt to describe something like Fusebox in a neatly-packaged summary. This is something that encompasses a gloriously overwhelming amount of intriguing, breathtaking, mind-blowing audio and visual stimuli too vast to encapsulate with a few mere words. It truly is art as a live experience.

The annual five-day performing arts festival highlights the talents of outstanding local, national and international interdisciplinary artists in oftentimes jaw-dropping live performance. It’s Fusebox’s 15th year of electrifying imaginations, and tonight, it convenes at the Hub.

The first night of the Fusebox Festival Hub, starting at 9 p.m., includes a swirling, mesmerizing DJ set with live accompaniment by Golden Dawn Arkestra. Immerse yourself in all the magic at the Hub, 1300 E. 5th St. You won’t need a Fusebox ticket for admission. Go for it. So recommended.

-Photo courtesy of the artist and Fusebox.

Texas Standard: April 17, 2019

Just Where do you draw the line? Gerrymandering may be legal in Texas, but now there’s a pushback in the Texas legislature, we’ll have the latest. Also, we’ve been hearing about brick and mortar stores shuttering and big box retailers leaving old spaces, so who’s filling those vacancies? To an increasing extent, it’s immigrant entrepreneurs. We’ll hear more. And did Texas once resemble East Central Africa? New images emerge from the study of bones discovered and locked away some 80 years ago. Plus is there a spending limit set by the Texas constitution? A Politifact check and more today on the Texas Standard:

What Siri Can’t Tell You

The navigation apps so accessible in our cars and on our phones are to me, magical. Siri, Google Maps and the like save us collectively from hundreds of thousands of lost hours each day by saving us from, well, being lost. Siri also may have saved a few relationships by sparing couples from arguing about whether or not to ask for directions. In simpler times, the all-perceptive woman might say, “Just admit it, David, you’re lost – been lost for an hour. Driving faster won’t get you unlost. Stop, please, ask for directions.” Then the man would say, “Just hold on and let me concentrate, Martha. Two more miles up here and I believe I’ll know where we are.”

Yet for all that Siri offers in real time efficiency and guidance, there are things she can’t do for you. She is not infallible. All of us have had the experience of being told “we have arrived” at our restaurant or hotel only to be welcomed by curious cows staring at us from a vast empty pasture.

The other thing we have lost with these apps is the splendid, colorful conversations we used to have with random strangers we’d ask for directions, such as the gas station attendant, the woman walking her chihuahuas down the street, or the slightly drunk guy mowing his lawn. Siri and company are economical communicators, giving you the minimum information you need for maximum clarity. Most of your random direction givers over-communicate. They give you far more information than you need.

For instance, I once asked a Deputy Sheriff, who happened to be giving me a ticket for alleged speeding, how to get to Highway 71 to Austin. He said, “Oh you don’t want to go to 71 from here. Go back two miles and take that FM road west and it’ll take you to Austin eventually. The best thing is it’ll take you by Peggy’s Cafe – just a ramshackle hut at a wide spot in the road – best peach cobbler you ever had in your life. Bucket list cobbler for sure. Take a bit of the sting out of this here ticket.”

See? Siri doesn’t have that kind of empathy, or, passion for cobbler.

Another example is when years ago, I stopped to ask a farmer on some country road near Abilene how to get to Highway 277 to San Angelo. He said, “Oh, just go down to that green house on the corner there and turn left. Go straight 3 miles, you’ll hit it.” I replied, “That house you just pointed to is actually yellow, not green.” He said, “Yeah, well it was green for 30 years. They painted it recently. We ain’t got used to it, yet. Most of us don’t care for the yellow.”

As I was about to thank him, he leaned his arms on my passenger door and said, “That house there is the Miller house. Three generations of the same family lived there and farmed that acreage. Jimbo and Carolyn after 30 years farming sold out last year, moved to Alpine and opened a bed and breakfast out there. Young couple, McGees I think, bought that house and painted it yellow. Bad decisions all around in my opinion. But not my business. Irregardless, I’ll wager right now that ten years from now that’ll still be known as the Miller house. Well, you best get goin’ ‘fore the sun sets on you.”

You see? Siri can’t give you that kind of local, social history with such authentic flare.

Finally, Siri doesn’t offer you the “gone too far” landmarks. She’ll tell you to turn around for sure, but she won’t say, “If you come to a rise in the road and see a Texas Flag gate on your left, you’ve gone too far.” Or, “If you pass over a creek, you’ve gone too far.” Or, “If the pavement turns to dirt, you’ve gone too far, but don’t try to turn around down there – with all the rain we’ve had you’ll just slide off into the bar ditch and you’ll need a wrecker to pull you out. No, just keep going till you get to the frontage road and circle back and try again.”

Siri doesn’t offer those kinds of extra, nuanced details.

This Song: Ian Graham from The Well on “Ocean Size” by Jane’s Addiction

Ian Graham, guitarist, songwriter and singer for the Austin psych metal band The Well, describes how hearing “Ocean Size” by Jane’s Addiction when he was a kid showed him how powerfully music could convey a feeling by transporting him “to somebody else’s movie.” He describes how poetry, songwriting and playing music as a teenager helped him feel less alone in the world and saved his life and explores what he loves about the metal he makes in The Well.

The Well is KUTX’s Artis of the month!

The Well’s new album Death and Consolation out next week!

See The Well live at their release show next week at Barracuda

Check out more of The Well’s Tour Dates

Listen to Songs from this episode of This Song

Wilder Woods: “Someday Soon”

There’s not much known about Wilder Woods, but that doesn’t mean there’s not a lot to talk about. We may not have a birth name or a hometown but we do have two singles that flex the unbridled forestry of this soul singer.

While we eagerly await for more information on this secretive crooner, let the music speak for itself and dive right into “Someday Soon”!

Texas Standard: April 16, 2019

The images captured the world: Notre Dame on fire. Yellow smoke billowing, the spire falling. We’ll have the view from Texas. Also, could a voting error land you in jail? The Texas Senate just passed a bill to increase the penalties of so-called voter fraud. We’ll explore. And more states are allowing certain teachers and staff to carry guns in schools, but there’s no federal standard to govern the trend. Plus, off the coast of Texas: old oil rigs actually contributing to the environment, and what’s causing ship wreckage that’s been around for more than a century to disappear now. All those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Natalie Price: “These Days”

It’s been a long time coming for Natalie Price, who’s sang her whole life and written songs since her hands first met six strings. This Fort Worth native moved to Austin some years back and after a particularly well-received open mic performance, Price put some more stock into her music.

Fast forward to last week, when Natalie Price shared her debut EP, Through the Fog, a robust addition into the annals of indie-Americana with a five-song infusion of folk, country and pop. Through the Fog is available everywhere and in case you missed the release show, enjoy the EP opener, “These Days”!

Le Tour, Part Deux

Austin-based rock-pop outfit King Warbler is headed back on the road to resume a busy spring tour schedule, but of course, this calls for a grand send-off. Don’t miss their tour kickoff show tonight at Barracuda, 611 E. 7th St., with one hell of a must-see bill of Austin Music Minute faves – the heart-fluttery badass magic and whimsy of Batty Jr.; the magnificent Benjamin Violet‘s renegade country brigade Pelvis Wrestley; and the exquisite vocal stylings of Van Mary.

Doors open at 8 p.m. Excellent all around. Recommended.

-Photo courtesy of the artist.

Texas Standard: April 15, 2019

Texas is now flaring off enough natural gas to power all of households in the Lone Star State. Can anything be done to harness the energy? We’ll take a look. Also, the Texas legislature is stuck: once again stalled on some key issues. Time to prepare for a special session, Ross Ramsey doesn’t seem too worried. We’ll ask with the co-founder of the Texas Tribune why not. And after several decades, the University of North Texas solves the case of the missing Hobbit… first edition, that is. Plus the battle of San Jacinto that wasn’t, at least not this year. That and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Abram Shook: “Can’t Get Away”

Before settling in Austin over a decade back, California’s Abram Shook studied jazz and in between surfing sessions he soaked up the rays of Brazilian and West African music. And while the “surfer” persona might fit Shook on first glance, his synth-heavy songwriting is so much more than the influences he draws from. Lighthearted instrumentation often contradicts Shook’s sarcastic-yet-personal lyrics and his fourth full-length kicks it up with a crust of dance-inducing tunes over a core of sinister themes.

You can expect more details about the upcoming album soon but for now let Abram shake up your work week with its foreboding lead single, “Can’t Get Away“!

Funkified Madness

Your Monday doesn’t have to be lame, music lover. Make it considerably better when you swing by Stay Gold, 1910 E. Cescar Chavez, for a huge dose of grooves tonight by the D-Madness Project.

The band’s led by one-man fusion powerhouse D-Madness, a.k.a. Dwayne Jackson, who works a live loop of drums, bass, keys and harmonies with a whole lot of funk. Essential listening for the funkamentalist.

The music kicks off this evening at 9:30 p.m. All the grooves for your moves. Check ’em out.

-Image courtesy of the artist.

Higher Ed: Enjoying And Embracing Conflict (And Other Leadership Lessons Learned)

A “Higher Ed” podcast listener recently wrote in with an intriguing question for Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger: as a university president, does Ed “see himself as more of a leader or manager? How does he differentiate the two concepts and does he place more emphasis on one area or another?” In this episode, KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talks with Ed about what it means to lead and manage on and off campus.

Ed has clear points of differentiation between how he sees the duties of a leader and those of a manager.

A leader: “It’s about thinking about the mission, thinking about what the direction of the instution or the project – whatever it is – is, and making sure that within a univese of distraction that we do our best not to be distracted by the noise and the bells and the ringing and the lights trying to take away that which we’re supposed to be doing. In this proposition [education], it’s about changing people’s lives and making them better versions of themselves.”

A manager: “Being a manager is the art … of making sure an organization is running smoothly, fairly, safely, efficiently and within all the budgetary constraints that come along with any organization.”

Given those definitions, Ed believes the role of a university president encompasses both leader and manager.

As per the listener’s question, which one does Ed tend toward?

Ed says he does the work he does “for the innovation and education that we can accomplish.”

So, more on the “leader” side, for sure, though Ed does concede a lot of “imagination and idea energy” is required to manage successfully.

Ed says he often turned to the late political scientist and leadership studies innovator James MacGregor Burns for insight about leading successfully. Burns’ primary pieces of advice:

1). Focus on mission and goals

2). Choose good colleagues and associates

3). Expect, enjoy and embrace conflict

Ed says he understands the first two but still struggles with confronting confict rather than avoiding it. Listen to the full episode for more on leading and managing in and out of the classroom. The solution to last week’s “guest puzzler” submission about digits will also be revealed.

This episode was recorded on April 2, 2019.

14th Annual Fritz Pollard Awards, pt. 1 (Ep. 19, 2019)

On this week’s program, In Black America producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. presents highlights from the 2019 Fritz Pollard Awards, held during Super Bowl Week, honoring award recipient Michael Bidwell, plus a tribute to retiring Fritz Pollard Alliance founder and chairman John Wooten.

It’s Electric

You may have been around when this transformation was taking place. It was when the very meaning of “Austin music” was mutating. The Electric Lounge first made the local music scene in 1993 – the essential venue of artists (music, visual, and all others) boldly and loudly creating the next wave of Austin weird. Forget “wave,” it was more of a tsunami.

Its doors may have closed in ’99, but the legends live on. Now, twenty years later, it’s time for an encore.

The Electric Lounge 20 Year Reunion show will feature performances by some of the movers and shakers that put that venue on the Austin map, including Sixteen Deluxe (featured on today’s AMM), Graham Reynolds, Kevin Russell, Ethan Azarian and Jeff Johnston of Orange Mothers, PONG, Hamell On Trial, Gay Sportscasters and many more. Poets Hilary Thomas, Genevieve Van Cleve, and Phil West will be on hand for readings at this event, and Wammo will serve as your badass irreverent host.

The Electric Lounge 20 Year Reunion show happens today at 3Ten at ACL Live, 310 Willie Nelson Blvd. The music starts at 4 p.m. This is also an event that benefits the SIMS Foundation, Mosaic Sound Collective, and local artist Jason Austin. Recommended.

-Photo of Sixteen Deluxe by Danny Clinch, taken at the Austin Motel in 1997.

Hayes Carll: “Things You Don’t Wanna Know” (Live in Studio 1A)

Hayes Carll is no stranger to the Old Settler’s Music Festival- his earliest appearance was back in 2009 and he is back at it this year. Well known for his humorous lyrics and classic Americana sound, Carll continues to fine-tune his approach to producing music that is as soulful as it is impressive. He released his sixth album, What It Is, this February which has been met with abundant praise. A new album paired with the same charm, his performance at this year’s Old Settler’s is sure to be memorable. You can listen to him today from 6:45-8:00 pm at Original Black’s BBQ Stage.

For now, let’s listen back to the Studio 1A performance of a track off the new album, “Things You Don’t Wanna Know”!

–Simone Puglia, KUTX Intern

Photo: Bryan Winter for KUTX

Full Studio 1A Session