Song of the Day

Song of the Day > All Episodes

October 16, 2024

DAIISTAR: “Velvet Reality” (KUTX Pop-Up at ACL Fest)

By: Jack Anderson

It’s always super cool to see our KUTX Artists of the Month get some additional hometown love out at ACL Fest. Off the top of our head, this year we saw Kalu & The Electric Joint, promqueen, Chief Cleopatra, and West 22nd added to the lineup. On top of those, we were stoked to see our October 2023 Artist of the Month DAIISTAR get some well-deserved recognition in the stacked ACL schedule as well.

Considering the quartet only hit streaming last February, DAIISTAR is decidedly still in a dawning phase. But with the release of their debut full-length Good Time last September, the four-piece made their mellotron-tinged brand of noise-pop felt far across Austin and beyond. Between a pair of recent remixes, a standalone original that dropped right around SXSW, and a handful of appearances on the West Coast over the next couple of months, 2024’s been a busy year for DAIISTAR.

And that includes the Good Time they had opening up the Miller Lite Stage this past toasty Sunday at ACL. After which DAIISTAR took shelter from the sun, shades still donned, in the KUTX multi-media tent for an unconventional twist on their Good Time closer “Velvet Reality”. Alongside the Sonic Boom remix that came out in April, this low-volume rendition of “Velvet Reality” is a testament to the versatility of DAIISTAR’s songwriting and the absence of limits in the nuanced world of noise.


Episodes

April 10, 2025

Night Beats: “Behind the Green Door”

Danny Lee Blackwell has been performing under the moniker Night Beats since 2009, but there’s an argument that he could just as well be called “The Distiller.” Night Beats has a reputation for concocting. Blackwell can make a country song sound like a trip through the desert with Hunter S. Thompson. He can turn a […]

Listen

April 9, 2025

Mobley: “Yesterday’s Another Day” [PREMIERE]

Mobley’s career has been a fun, transformative one over the last decade. You heard that right, we’ve been talking about and championing Mobley for almost ten years. What started as writing smart R&B pop bops has grown into full concept albums revolving around racism, technology, and our future, composing cautionary tales warning of a regressing society […]

Listen

April 7, 2025

Ley Line: “Flores” [PREMIERE]

Austin’s Ley Line has been celebrated for their beautiful songs that encapsulate the Earth and its connection to the musical traditions of blues and folk as well as Brazil, West Africa, and Latin America. Songs that celebrate older, more traditional genres with a delicate soul that always feels grounded in nature. Whether it’s the song’s […]

Listen

April 4, 2025

Half Dream: “Fly” [PREMIERE]

Austin’s Paige Renee Berry has had music at the center of their life since before they could talk. The Knoxville, Tennessee native began writing their own music in college, and when they moved to Austin in 2015, Berry co-founded the folk duo The Rosaries. In 2018 Berry started taking their own solo music head-on but […]

Listen

April 3, 2025

Chaparelle: “Playing Diamonds, Cashing Checks”

Texas band Chaparelle harkens back to a golden era of country with modern lyrics. What started as a mind-meld between Zella Day and Jesse Woods in 2023 not only evolved into a match on its way towards matrimony, but also into a trio, originally working with Beau Bedford in a producer role before he became […]

Listen

April 2, 2025

CDSM: “Not Another Bleeder”

They say the SXSW trifecta is free food and drinks, seeing one of your favorite bands (current or past) and discovering your next beloved band. I hit that trifecta this year, and it is my absolute pleasure to bring you my new obsession. Atlanta’s CDSM (short for Celebrity Death Slot Machine) are a rag tag […]

Listen

April 1, 2025

Gus Baldwin & The Sketch: “Itch” (Live in Studio 1A)

We’re already in April. Q1 is gone but not forgotten. And as a final sendoff to the first part of the year, we’re throwing down with our March Artist of the Month, Gus Baldwin & The Sketch, one more time. The quartet had an affirming SXSW, playing big shows at 29th Street Ballroom with Christian […]

Listen

March 31, 2025

Tiny Specks: “Danger Oso”

Fun’s not just for Friday anymore. Mondays need need fun too. Maybe even more than Friday…or Wednesday. And your dose of Monday dopamine comes from Austin’s Tiny Specks. Members Vanessa Gonzalez, Nikki Preciado, and Brian Cox have been members of many bands of many sounds over the years, but when the three came together, a […]

Listen