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Archives for January 2021

Texas Standard: January 25, 2021

And so it begins: the Attorney General of Texas files a lawsuit against the Biden administration over immigration enforcement changes. The story today on the Texas Standard.

Coming up- new findings on pregnancy and COVID-19. We’ll talk with a Texas-based maternal-fetal medicine specialist.

Also, should funding for Texas public schools be based on attendance, or enrollment? A democratic lawmaker calls for a shift from the former to the latter.

And, though the push for racial justice has brought down statues across the U.S., a new one is going up in College Station. We’ll hear from the student leading the push to honor a founding figure at Texas A&M.

Croy at Bud’s

Tip o’ the hat to Corey Baum of Croy and the Boys for doing it no other way than keeping it real. Quite simply, he’s living the reality. An album like Howdy High Rise (released via Spaceflight Records) so accurately pinpoints how the very culture of Austin is being dissolved by exploitative, bourgeois elitism that no explanation is required. Baum ain’t shy about telling it like it is.

This week, the badass buds at Bud’s Live and Direct present Croy – a solo set by Baum, beginning at 6 p..m. (Central) this Friday, Jan. 29, on Bud’s YouTube channel.

Sunroom Sounds: “The Drive”

After a long, cloudy weekend, we could all stand to photosynthesize. And who better to help us soak up those rays than Austin multi-instrumentalist Ryan Black and his six-piece Sunroom Sounds?

Between Black’s lyrics that analyze the way people interact with one another and the group’s atmospheric instrumentation, Sunroom Sounds is set to be a luminous staple on the horizon. Keep an ear out for Sunroom Sounds’ first full-length, and let yourself drift in neutral before locking into gear for the work week with the band’s debut single (and music video), “The Drive”!

Tyrone McKinley Freeman (Ep. 8, 2021)

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Dr. Tyrone McKinley Freeman, Assistant Professor of Philanthropic Studies at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, whose book, Madam C.J. Walker’s Gospel of Giving: Black Women’s Philanthropy During Jim Crow examines African American women’s history of charitable giving and activism.

Into the Night

Airport Blvd. mainstay Kickbutt Coffee does it again with another killer livestream show this weekend, featuring Austin band Jay Satellite. The AMM recommends revisiting their prolific discography on their Bandcamp page, a massive catalogue mixing lo-fi power pop, post-punk, and shoegaze badassery. (Today’s AMM features “Into the Night” from their 2017 LP Who We Are.)

Then get ready for a full band and solo sets by Jay Satellite, starting at 9 p.m. (Central) tonight, Saturday Jan. 23, on Kickbutt Coffee’s YouTube channel and Facebook Live.

KUT Weekend – January 22, 2021

The latest on Austin’s coronavirus vaccine rollout. Plus, Governor Abbott targets Austin’s move to relax rules where homeless people can camp. And Texas Parks and Wildlife eradicates a zebra mussel infestation for the first time. Those stories and more in this edition of KUT Weekend!

Subscribe at https://weekend.kut.org

Loyalty and Dissent

Loyalty is an interesting and elusive concept. As much as we may profess our loyalty to a certain organization, institution, person, belief system, etc. if that bond–as Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about in this episode of Two Guys on Your Head, –is only as strong as your last dissenting act, it may be time to rethink that relationship.

Saturday Afternoon Tunes

San Gabriel, the awesome solo project of songwriter/musician James Bookert (Whiskey Shivers, Wild Child) dreamily sounds more like a full band than the one-man operation it actually is. Bookert does all the writing, recording and production – mostly during any spare moments he can catch during his day job out at J&J Spirits in East Austin. Gotta do whatcha gotta do, man. And Bookert is making the magic happen.

Following the release of the sparkling synth-hook pop piece “Another One” in September, San Gabriel has a new track coming out this weekend. Catch the premiere with a performance by San Gabriel, streaming at 1 p.m. (Central) this Saturday, Jan. 23, on San Gabriel’s YouTube. Your AMM host is hooked.

Madame Vice President. Finally.

For the first time in United States history, a woman occupies the second highest position in government. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Indoor Creature: “American Dream” [PREMIERE]

Almost a full year after COVID-19 shut us all into quarantine, we’ve all become somewhat of adjusted to a largely-interior lifestyle. But if there’s one Austin group that’s sure to stave off cabin fever (even in the name alone), it’s Indoor Creature. What started off as a duo in 2015 has evolved into a slick six-piece, whose jazz-inspired indie-pop sound has continued to expand with each passing season.

Indoor Creature is set to share their third full-length, Living in Darkness, in May, and after a long first month of hefty politics, the band’s re-aligning their prospects for 2021 with the album’s infectiously chill lead single, “American Dream”!

Live from Dizzy’s: Jerron Paxton

He’s a modern-day bluesman heralded as the living embodiment of true blues in the 21st century, in addition to being an extremely talented multi-instrumentalist. Los Angeles native Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton has an instinctive approach to blues music that reaches far beyond his years. And it doesn’t stop at the blues; ragtime, hokum, French reels, Appalachian mountain music, many old-time traditions and more are all a part of his vast range.

Experience it for yourself when Paxton performs on the livestream Live From Dizzy’s Club: Blues and Black Folk Music, starting at 6:30 p.m. (Central) tonight, Thursday Jan. 21, at the Jazz at Lincoln Center website. 

Texas Standard: January 21, 2021

The executive transition-from pardons to new executive orders President Joe Biden takes action to undo much of his predecessor’s legacy. The story today on the Texas Standard.

In all some 17 executive acts, orders, and directives in the first 24 hours of the Biden Administration. We’ll explore some of the top line changes, many of which stand to affect Texas and Texans in a big way.

Also, a top Texas expert in political rhetoric decodes the many messages of a Made-for-TV inauguration.

A sense of home: a new book explores the quest for belonging among ethnic Mexicans.

The new millennial millionaires powered by snapchat and much more.

The Watters: “Déjà Vu”

Partners in marriage, parenthood, and music, Daniel and Jenna Watters’ shared energy seems to keep pushing the quality of their songwriting higher and higher. With each new release, The Watters submerge themselves deeper into the soul sound, and you can definitely hear that over the two short years between their 2016 debut LP Great Unknown and their 2018 eponymous full-length. But as we all know, good things come in threes…

After adjusting to their newfound life as parents, The Watters recruited some top notch players including a four-piece horn section for their latest album, recorded back in 2019. Intuition drops this weekend and The Watters perform 8:30pm Saturday night at Far Out Lounge along with Curtis Lee. That prospect of leaving your home to go see live music might bring some memories flooding back, which is actually fairly appropriate given the title of today’s feature (on Jenna’s birthday, no less), “Déjà Vu”!

Texas Standard: January 20, 2021

The beginning of a new chapter and a new era. With change coming to Washington, what are the implications closer to home? On this presidential inauguration day, what are the priorities for the 46th chief executive of the united states and what do they add up to for Texas? Coming up, we’ll hear from Texas experts, scholars and reporters on subjects ranging from what to expect when it comes to changes to environmental policy, immigration and asylum, the economy including the trillion dollar student loan debt crisis, dealing with the ongoing pandemic, and much more on a special edition of the Texas Standard:

Erin Ivey: “Where Have You Been All My Life” [PREMIERE]

Longtime listeners of KUTX aren’t likely to gloss over certain Austin songwriters based on remarkable talent, perhaps most notably six-time Studio 1A veteran Erin Ivey. Whether she’s teamed up with Tosca String Quartet, The Finest Kind, David Ramirez, or just going solo acoustic, Ivey’s made countless jaws drop and eyes water with her luminous vocal presence and impressive range dating back to her 2007 debut.

But with seven years having passed since her last studio album, Whisper of the Moon, Ivey’s fans have been in dire need of an update. And they’re in luck! Next Friday Erin Ivey shares her ten-track full-length Solace in the Wild, leaning on her classic indie folk sound with sprinkles of Americana and psychedelia and other powerful nuances throughout. And though another premiere of sorts may understandably be taking up most of the spotlight today, take your mind off the news and enter Solace in the Wild with its lead single, “Where Have You Been All My Life”!

Texas Standard: January 19, 2021

Sorting through legislative priorities: what legislators will pass but probably shouldn’t and what they won’t pass but probably should. The good the bad and the ugly…the good? It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood but with Mr. Rogers gone, a woman in the Texas Hill Country and her dog are filling those shoes. And speaking of the neighborhood, a new neighbor plans a move to Texas. It’s the National Rifle Association and its Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. Also the ugly evolution of fascism, plus the challenges of COVID-19 continue, but Dallas is looking for a more equitable distribution of vaccines. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Daisy O’Connor: “Evergreen”

For those already familiar with Austin singer Daisy O’Connor, the mere mention of her name alone should be enough to put a smile on your face. And for those not in the know, that first sentence should tip you off that Daisy’s got a real knack for finding the silver lining in life, straying away from the saccharine in favor of prudent optimism.

O’Connor’s comprehensive, genre-sprawling style has captivated listeners for years, and her talents as a songwriter seem to grow with each new release. So you can probably see where this is going…Daisy O’Connor just graced us with a tune that’s old-for-her, new-for-us. Written and recorded at Public Hi-Fi well before the confines of quarantine, the pastoral tempo of “Evergreen” paints an idyllic landscape for O’Connor to reflect on solitude, caution before connection, and a shared experience of loneliness that’s all too relatable nowadays.

Funkmaster Flex Does it Again

In this episode of The Breaks

The Breaks are on every Saturday 10pm-1am on KUTX 98.9.

You can hear the latest full broadcast of The Breaks Saturday night show.

Texas Standard: January 18, 2021

Is there a doctor in the House? At least one COVID-19 case reported among Texas lawmakers and what that may mean for getting back to business at the Texas capitol, we’ll have the latest. Also, President elect Joe Biden says one of the first things he’ll do after inauguration is rejoin the Paris Climate accords but new research from Texas A&M suggests one of the targets for temperature limits is already on track to being exceeded. Game over? Not quite. We’ll hear why and what comes next. And federal officials approve new standards of health care in a crisis for people with disabilities. So what changes in Texas? Also, amid a new reckoning on race, remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. All of those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

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