Jack Anderson

Scott H. Biram: “No Man’s Land”

Once you hit your third or fourth full-length, you’re established. By album seven or eight you’re a heavyweight. But when your discography reaches its teens, the list of contemporaries to compare to starts running thin…and that’s the position Scott H. Biram is about to enter.

With a catalogue reaching back to the turn of the millennium, this Austin singer-guitarist has officially been in the game for a quarter century, and two decades removed from a pivotal brush with death. Biram’s is the type of music that could really only stem from Texas, with a gratuitous amount of southern grit ingrained in his exploration of blues, punk rock, and beyond. And his streaming numbers are certainly nothing to scoff at.

Recently, rockin’ the Fu Manchu mustache, gold tooth, and all, Scott’s gotten caught up in recapturing the lo-fi charm of his earlier installations, a wager he’ll make good on with his thirteenth full-length The One & Only Scott H. Biram, out March 29th. Based on the record’s first three singles (including this morning’s “No Man’s Land“) we definitely feel greeted back to that grizzled territory like a musty junkyard mutt crawling back inside a rusty jalopy frame. The shitkickers will love it, but that doesn’t neglect the uncouth sophistication of these new, idiosyncratic compositions. Rock on, Scott. Rock on.

Act II: Album of the Year? / Rappers in Politics

Will Beyoncé’s upcoming Act II score the Queen her first “Album of the Year” Grammy? What role should rappers play in political discussions? And does Houston need to share more of its legacy with the rest of Texas’ hip-hop hubs? Find out what Confucius and Fresh have to say in this latest episode.

Sweet Limb: “Meditate” (feat. Norman BA$E)

No matter how talented an individual vocalist is, the addition of live instrumentation can really elevate a performance to the upper tier. Like can you imagine if Rage Against the Machine was just De La Rocha spitting over pre-recorded tracks with a DJ instead of their legendary full-band energy? Us neither.

So we’re not really going out on a limb when we say that Austin four-piece Sweet Limb has a pretty swell thing going for them. The project started off over a decade back as a solo outlet for singer/rapper Chris Robinson but really took off post-COVID when Sweet Limb branched out to include bass, drums, and keys. Thanks to Robinson’s seasoned Frank Ocean-esque verbal skills, killer grooves that fuse multiple styles, plus the intentionality of their arrangements and proven understanding of dynamics in live settings that’s gotta pull plenty of new listeners, Sweet Limb’s been getting some admirable streaming traction just from releases over the past couple months alone.

Well, just in time for a few unofficial SXSW appearances over the next week (this Sunday afternoon at LuxeArt Agency, next Monday at Coconut Club, and next Thursday at Full Circle Bar) Sweet Limb released their first full-length Thank You For Not Snitching last Friday. Clocking in at a hair under half an hour, Thank You For Not Snitching packs ten tracks of black talent you’ll wanna tell everyone about, made in collaboration with local scenesters like KUTX favorites Ben Buck, Breadcouch, and Norman BA$E, who lends his production chops to the LOW KEY EP holdover “Meditate”. Like an alternate Persona 5 composition recut to capture a jazzy, placid Austin aesthetic, “Meditate” is a great way to clear the mind going into another work week on the verge of South By.

Scott Ballew: “Mutiny”

Austin may be a metropolis, but it’s still smack dab in the middle of Texas, football fanaticism, Western legends, vast landscapes, and all. There are a lot of artists who embody that Lone Star aesthetic, but today we’re tippin’ our hat to Scott Ballew.

After his initial acts as football star and filmmaker, this central Texas troubadour is now living middle age to the fullest as a songwriter. Scott’s quick to point to his documentary work with Terry Allen as a pivotal moment in his career, and sure, you can see similarities in just comparing album covers , like the cresting scenery of their respective debuts Juarez vs. Talking to Mountains or the minimalist interiors of Lubbock (On Everything) vs. Middle Age Crazy. But that said, there’s something especially cinematic-minded about his cosmic Americana compositions that he couldn’t have simply copped from Allen’s outlaw country repertoire.

And that Western aesthetic really comes to a head on Scott Ballew’s third LP, Rio Bravo, out March 29th. Down to its already iconic title (Cat Ballou would’ve been too on the nose, right?) Rio Bravo is shaping up to be a ten-scene saga of survival, less in the realm of gunfighter ballads and more so contemporary confessions, like if Ennio Morricone brought his timeless Spaghetti Western magic to a newly-unearthed Townes Van Zandt album. Ballew started saddling up for Rio Bravo last month with “Suicide Squeeze” and galloped further today with “Mutiny”. Safe to say we’ll spend this next month patiently awaiting the rest of the stragglers, whose full posse of songs could’ve only been made in Texas, plain and simple.

Anna Tivel: “Disposable Camera”

It’s a total no-brainer. 2020 and quarantine conditions left countless with a bizarre bevy of time to reflect and be inspired, no matter how dire the world felt. And with a lot of those early-COVID-era compositions, the final products reached masses within the first year or two. But some of those existential episodes must’ve made others question what the rush even is, since some of those songs still won’t land in fan’s laps until they’re just right.

It makes sense that Portland’s Anna Tivel falls in the latter category, since she’d already established herself as a modern folk force between a handful of studio albums and a few million streams by the time lockdown came around. And yet COVID didn’t seem to slow down her output. That summer, Tivel tailed 2019’s The Question with a full LP all-acoustic re-imagining, Blue World in 2021, Outsiders in 2022, and Outsiders‘ own acoustic revisit last August. In contrast to Tivel’s pensive, unhurried musical character, it’s honestly crazy to think about how quickly Tivel was cranking ’em out without sacrificing quality.

But apparently, not even all that could fully capture what Anna Tivel penned in the pandemic. Just this past Tuesday Tivel announced her sixth full-length Living Thing, set for release the final day of May. Marking a decade milestone since her debut Before Machines and nearly a half decade since the initial lockdown days, Tivel really upped the ante on Living Thing by collaborating with Bon Iver/Field Report producer Shane Leonard to meticulously maximize each track over an intensive two-month session. The record’s lead single, “Disposable Camera”? Far from a throwaway. Its minimalist music video definitely deserves a few more eyes, and the accessibility of the lyrics make “Disposable Camera” feel like flipping through all-too-familiar snapshots of the recent past. In other words…it’ll click with you.

The Peterson Brothers: “Family”

We here at KUTX have kept a pulse on the local scene long and close enough to realize that we’re essentially tracking the progression of individual talents in real time. And though we’re admittedly quick to stick up for twenty-somethings who’ve bottled lightning for their debut releases, frankly there are very few youngsters that genuinely make us think “oh, they’re only gonna get better and better from here on out” each time we see them play live.

Think about The Peterson Brothers, who initially entertained us almost a full decade back when they made their first Studio 1A appearance as mere teens. Just as they did back then, Glenn, Jr. and Alex both continue to slay it on vocals, but their deft instrumentation on guitar and bass, respectively, always steals the show. Which totally tracks, considering up until 2020’s The Intro, The Peterson Brothers were primarily a live staple. So just when we began to fear that their mature emulsifications of blues, funk, soul, and jazz might’ve hit a limit, The Peterson Brothers have bested themselves yet again with their full-length Experience, out April 12th.

And since The Peterson Brothers have already shared a stage with The Roots, who better to help translate their live energy to the studio than Grammy-nominated Roots/Lauryn Hill/Mark Ronson producer Ray Angry? Mixed for ATMOS and mastered at Abbey Road Studios, the resulting Experience is exactly what it claims to be, an eight-track sonic excursion best enjoyed in surround sound. So while mid-January’s “Too Soon” teased that hyper-polished production value with echoes of The Brothers Johnson, yesterday’s “Family” sounds more like The Whispers rejuvenated their signature synth sound with organic sonics and some playful brass. It’s an embrace of everyone who’s supported them along the way, blood relations be damned, and holy moly does it make us feel like Experience will be TPB’s alma mater…at least until the next one.

Autumn Cymone: “Slippery” (feat. James Barmore)

Over the past 40 years R&B’s only gotten more electronic, more reliant on post-production “studio magic”. And for the more recent half of that period, R&B’s also become so intertwined with hip-hop that the two genres are now almost inseparable. Thankfully, just like the recent retro-soul renaissance, there are still purveyors of real “rhythm & blues” who ascend past contemporary commercial trends and instead blend the best of classic and modern.

And that includes Austin acts like Autumn Cymone, who draws just as much from Prince and Erykah Badu as she does Betty Davis and Astrud Gilberto. But seemingly impervious to a bad hair day and ever equipped with her trusty six-string, a quick listen to this “Queen of the vibe”‘s catalogue tells you that she’s much more than just another Janelle Monáe wannabe. And in the half decade since the straightforward rock arrangement paired with R&B drums of Cymone’s debut single “Silence”, we’ve heard a really impressive progression into the nuanced songwriting and authentic acoustics she’s blessed us with this side of the pandemic.

This Thursday Autumn Cymone shares her EP …all my surprises, followed by a show 10PM Friday night at Busy Signal and what may very well be her final unofficial SXSW performance 5PM next Saturday at New Bloom. So as Autumn Cymone slides towards superstardom, try not to get hot and bothered by the new album’s latest lip-biter, “Slippery”. Between a voracious back-and-forth lyrical structure with James Barmore that catalyzes sexual chemistry and the infectious complexities of its overall arrangement, “Slippery” feels like a modernized Motown duet overflowing with hormones and rock overtones.

Tigers Eye: “Goodbye Again”

It’s a new week and nearly a new month so might as well break into some new music, right? Today we have the privilege of premiering the first-ever studio single from a fresh outfit – Tigers Eye. Like their namesake quartz, this quartet has a more exotic appeal than many of Austin’s other musical marbles, thanks to their mining of indie, surf, and psych.

Tigers Eye’s spent the past year earning their stripes with a series of live performance videos, including several covers that tip us off to some of the band’s inspirations like Arc De Soleil, Velvet Underground, Jimi Hendrix, Allah-Las, and Khruangbin. And speaking of live performances, Tigers Eye plays their maiden single release show 8PM next Tuesday at Mohawk alongside Trace of Lime and Buzzard Company. So while we don’t have a concrete timeframe for when the group drops their debut full-length, we did just get our paws on the record’s first offering, “Goodbye Again”.

Clocking in at just under four minutes, “Goodbye Again” makes us ready to great spring and summer with a grin, thanks to an upbeat arrangement, driving rhythms, and super catchy melodies – all of which demand we keep a close eye on these cool cats moving forward.

Officially the Best Radio Show

After so many consecutive nominations, Confucius and Fresh reflect on their first ever ‘Best Radio Show’ Austin Music Award before discussing why longtime Austinites are jaded to good opportunities. And in between Hip-Hop Facts and Confucius Reads the News, Fresh dishes a particularly Unpopular Opinion on why the music industry actually doesn’t need to change.

Silver Skylarks: “Power Moves” (feat. Adrian Quesada & US!)

We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again: we’ve been loving the recent ride of this retro soul-funk renaissance, especially with so much dynamite coming right out of the central state area. And today a new name emerges within that ongoing saga of nostalgia: Silver Skylarks.

Fly like the birds, and slick like the cars, Silver Skylarks is the DFW duo comprised of songwriter Danny Balis and producer Jeff “Skin” Wade, born from early pandemic demos. Taking cues from the ’70s vinyl rarities that crate diggers crave, Balis and Wade have been steadily elevating those ten demos into Silver Skylarks’ debut LP The Number One Set and Sound – out May 3rd.

But the pair didn’t go it alone. Instead they called up some of the best session players they’ve met, plus a few superstars to really spice things up. On top of the mix that includes Large Professor, Robert Ellis, and The D.O.C., Silver Skylarks also tapped into some outstanding Austin talent; Uncle Roy & Spice, the Austin vocalists better known as US!, lends their pipes to the record’s Side A closer “Power Moves”, while Adrian Quesada commandeers the six-string. The result is a progressive groove that’d quickly catch Roy Ayers’ ear, complete with horn swells, Coffy-esque vocals, and an intoxicating breakbeat-indulging bridge, that all just scream to be played over some sassy vigilante’s intro credits.

Wrongbird: “Sons of the Desert”

Once you get locked into a flock, life without group benefits sounds like a nightmare. And if you want to break away to steer your own migrations, you might just sacrifice a chunk of your following in the process. Not only that, there’s always the risk of ending up far from where you wanted.

Yet it sure seems like singer-songwriter Eric Baker (formerly of Tomar & the FCs and currently behind keys for Shinyribs) has found the right fit with Wrongbird, which he founded as a solo project more than half a decade back. Since Baker’s early 2018 debut Epitome of the Opposite, Wrongbird’s wings have spread into a core duo with producer-guitarist Michael Blake and eventually the quartet we know today. Wrongbird’s made all the right choices when it comes to what they weave into the nest: strings, horns, backup singers, and anything worth foraging from the ’60s-’70s golden age of art pop. But following their late 2018 EP Who Is Wrongbird?, the band went awfully quiet…up until their big return in 2023 with April’s “Mr. April” and November’s “Western Hero”, the latter of which has already become their most streamed single on Spotify.

Clearly Wrongbird’s not interested in letting their still-limited discography dry up, and as such, they’re leading us to an oasis of a new record at some point in 2024. And while there’s no official release date for that sophomore album as of yet, Wrongbird does have a single release show 6:30PM next Wednesday at Vinyl Beauty Bar with Allisen & Wy plus Lady Chops & the Goddamn Jam. And that latest lead single from LP feels like finally reaching a distant mirage, that instead of evaporating upon arrival, gleefully transforms into a full-blown Bourbon Street affair. Because by barreling together Three Stooges dialogue samples, speakeasy-approved horns, tipsy stride piano, trippy guitar, tumbling drums, and swaggering vocals, “Sons of the Desert” effortlessly encapsulates a prohibition-era sense of mischievousness. Just don’t get yourselves into too much trouble with this one, boys…

Paige Hill: “Go West”

Last May we took a gander at a real Good Woman, Austin-born-and-raised and now Dallas-based singer-songwriter Paige Hill, who shared her debut EP of the same name last year. Pious yet uninhibited, motherly without hovering, and faithful to her state but enticed by adventure, Hill embodies those personal complications often overlooked in the Americana-country-folk-rock realm.

She’s the type of artist who soaks up inspiration wherever she goes and from whoever she meets, so it’s no huge surprise that she’s settled on People & Places as the title for her upcoming first full-length. Chronicling ten tender years over the course of nearly as many tunes, People & Places is set to showcase a seasoned sense of wisdom that can only come from a modern Texas woman.

So as we move towards People & Places – out later this Spring – we join Paige Hill on the journey she took from her native Austin out to the California coast way back when. Aptly “Go West”, this lead single makes us want to get up and move, plain and simple. While its instrumental arrangement is pretty tight, Paige’s soulful, reverberating vocals round out the song’s sense of space like a cross-country snow globe. And with an expert sense of dynamics that tracks Hill’s heeding of westward advice, “Go West” will encourage you to take the leap and make the changes you’ve been meaning to do from its first full-band downbeat through its final, optimistic chord.

Grackles: “San Antone” (feat. Charlie Musselwhite and Lauren Harris)

Once we got used to their abrasive calls, Hitchockian congregations at HEB Hancock, and overall recklessness, we’ve actually enjoyed being in good graces with grackles. Sure, they’re a bit more obnoxious than, say, the blind salamander, but squawking, flash-flocking and all, grackles instantly evoke a Central Texas aesthetic.

And we can say much of the same about musical up-and-comers Grackles; being loud is in their nature, they flock as octet in concert, and the Americana-country feathers they shed bear distinct characteristics of the Lone Star State. If you didn’t know, this formation is led by drummer extraordinaire Jimmy Paxson, Ben Harper guitarist Jason Mozersky, Austin’s own Noah Lit, and Edie Brickell/Paul Simon Producer Kyle Crusham, and for the past few months we’ve been monitoring Grackles’ migration towards their eponymous debut album, which finally releases this Friday.

That star power extends all throughout Grackles‘ ten tracks, but especially on its guest features, including two with Texas icon Kat Edmonson and two with Lauren Harris, who appears with guitarist David Grissom and real-life Elwood Charlie Musselwhite, respectively. So as we approach the Grackles release show 8PM this Saturday at Pershing Hall alongside Passiflora, let Musselwhite’s mouth harp and Harris’ vocals treat you to some extra twang with the Grackles’ road trip-ready alternate history anthem that is the LP’s first single, “San Antone”.

Golden Hornet: “Army Ants”

Bugs…they’re super weird! They’re everywhere, they’re ancient, their appearance is alien and for every beautiful-looking specimen there’s an equal and opposite that makes us feel icky. And if there’s anyone up to the massive task of adapting…bugs to an aural experience, it’s Golden Hornet, and not just because they have a bug in their name.

No, this Austin-based string-heavy endeavor spearheaded by Artistic Director Graham Reynolds has never really been bound by the rules of conventional composition; instead Golden Hornet stings with unbridled variety and adventurous arrangements, no matter what genres they’re crossbreeding with. And the latest from Golden Hornet finds Reynolds uniting with ex-Kronos Quartet cellist Jeffrey Zeigler and renowned percussionist Susie Ibarra to create INSECTUM, a nine-song collection as eclectic as the specimens they interpret.

INSECTUM is avant-garde down to a microscopic level, and far from the most accessible thing you’ll hear all year. So if you’ve been bit by the bizarre music bug, support our classical-curating colleagues and march on over to the Draylen Mason Music Studio 7PM this Thursday for KMFA’s Offbeat series. We guarantee it’ll be a life changing concert, and not in a nightmarish Kafka-esque way. Just crank up the volume, zone out, and lose your mind to INSECTUM‘s penultimate offering “Army Ants” and you’ll hear exactly what we mean.

The GOAT Rap Album / SXSBreaks 2024

What’s the greatest rap album of all time? Confucius and Fresh weigh options before revealing this year’s SXSBreaks lineup. Also, Fresh’s Unpopular Opinion makes a compelling point about how extensive familiarity with a city’s culture diminishes interest in its scene.

Glas: “Hungry Moon”

We often think of glass as fragile, delicate, a superficial separation from whatever’s on the other side. Yet glass can only come from an intensive process, and can be tempered to withstand extreme duress. And that latter association seems to speak a lot more to Copenhagen pair Lisbet Fritze and Louise Foo, better known as Glas.Both members of this Denmark duo started off in the early-to-mid-2010s pop noir outfit Giana Factory, before Fritze began providing vocals and guitar for electronic sensation Trentemøller while Foo joined forces with her sister to form the avant-garde pop project SØSTR. Now, ten years after Giana Factory’s final single, Foo and Fritze have reunited for the transparent display of alt-pop talent that is Glas.Glas shared their first single “Melting Point” last Fall, and followed it up with “Midnight Fay” in mid-January. And today, just a month away from their debut Trentemøller-produced full-length Kisses Like Feathers, Glas has graced us with “Hungry Moon”. Phasing between the opening guitar chords that sound like a bleaker, modern take on “Pictures of Matchstick Men”, pristinely-polished vocal harmonies that float above brilliantly spacious drums and cave-like keys, plus a climactic dive into distortion that tapers off into static, “Hungry Moon” will instantly sate any alt-pop appetite.

Wilson Marks: “Isolation Town”

When we last spoke of Wilson Marks, it was just before Mother’s Day, and in fact for his newly-released song “Mother’s Day”. And wouldn’t you know it, when Wilson Marks sparks our interests yet again…it’s the day after Valentine’s. So while we won’t beleaguer you with delusional theories on causation versus correlation concerning Wilson’s releases and U.S. holidays, we will give you the rundown on what Wilson’s been working on since we last caught up.Just as planned, Wilson Marks did share another release late last year, but it ended up being the stripped-down EP they previously alluded to, Won’t Fit In a Song, instead of the trio’s next full-length as anticipated. Rest assured though, Wilson et al are still working on that LP and are looking at a drop date some time this spring. In the meantime, Marks has been making the most of a Monday night four-band residency at Sagebrush, continuing on the 19th – 8PM to midnight with opener Aaron Huff alongside closers Alex Riegelman & Friends and Virginia Creeper.Marks is definitely gonna be in good company for the remainder of that in-city, four-performance residency, and yet today he painted a very different picture with the upcoming album’s second single, “Isolation Town”. Between its bluesy trot, (breezy drum brushes and all), a real horse gallop of a woodblock pattern, some cozy chorus effects on the guitar, warm bass, wistful whistling and an oddly daunting second-person lyrical perspective and vocal character that both remind us of Roger Waters, “Isolation Town” channels that brilliantly wonky kind of early Pink Floyd-era psychedelia that almost borders on exotica.

BOO85: “Heart”

There’s a crass type of middle school comedy that still elicits cackles far past its “prime”. And following the rich Texas tradition of juvenile band handles like Dicks and Butthole Surfers, the name choice behind BOO85 is a breasty testament the infectious fun from five bosom buddies…even though it is pronounced like a mid-decade spectral scare (“boo eighty-five”).

This all-women Austin outfit navigates the cleavage of rock between alternative and pop. And that titillating twist is perfectly pressed against BOO85’s penchant for swaying bass and guitar, well-rounded drums, and lascivious vocals. BOO85 first slipped out onto streaming right around this same time last year, followed by the Exposed EP that summer and their jangly rendition of “Santa Baby” for the holidays. Clearly, they’re not going tits up anytime soon.

And this Valentine’s Day, as the girls gear up for a March 15th show at Knomad Bar, BOO85 presents their strongest recording yet. The opening bars of their new single “Heart” instantly recall Pixies, but soon shape up into some dream pop shimmer on the hooks, a “how was this not made in the ’90s” bridge section, and an intrinsically feminine energy throughout. So while we hope BOO85’s taking the tunes seriously doesn’t cover up the group’s characteristic fun…”Heart” is seriously good.

Free Hamze: “nothing4granted” (prod. Sekko)

Valentine’s Day’s not just for the couples. No, there’s an extensive list of local events offering RSVPs to love fools, lonely hearts and relationship-skippers alike. Among that full house of options? Austin’s very own Free Hamze.

Originally enticed into the genre by the Arabic incorporations of Mos Def and Lupe Fiasco (and the early/mid-2000s sound they helped proliferate), this Lebanese-born rapper’s really been blazing up an electic reputation since releasing his debut record Green Alchemy back in Summer 2022. Aside from his sword-surpassing penmanship and complex flow cadences, Free Hamze’s also somewhat of a bleeding heart, having founded the pro bono endeavor Sahar Studios and begun developing a 40-acre sustainable desert community. And while music is unmistakably Free Hamze’s brightest guiding light, principles of relentless liberation, of (true to his handle) freedom in any form, definitely inform Free’s impressive drive, which continued last winter with FREETAPE 3: Survival of the Realest.

So if you’re already falling in love with the idea of feeling Free Hamze’s heat tomorrow night, make it a date and drop by Electric Lounge 7PM then – followed by Kizzy Zeniba at 8 and Space Goonz at 9. But if you’d rather stay home and feel too cool for this Hallmark holiday, sub out a bottle of prosecco with a fresh production from Sekko that came out last Friday, “nothing4granted“. Hazy guitar chords, sensually subtle drums, and laid back lyrical triplets steal the show on this new sentimental standalone, one that easily elevates Free Hamze over the cookie cutter “mumble rap” slurs of his contemporaries.

Tommy Taylor: “Ghost Town”

Here in Austin, we like to make a big fuss over our Central Texas music icons, erecting statues and renaming streets in their honor. So while the respective likeness and namesake of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Willie Nelson have become local landmarks, in reality, our city limits have several legends just hiding in plain sight.

Like Tommy Taylor, whose deft drumming on Christopher Cross’ ’79 debut undeniably helped make it the timeless classic it is today. But that’s just scratching the surface; on top of a longtime spot in Eric Johnson’s band, Taylor’s played with the likes of SRV, Charlie Sexton, Jerry Jeff Walker, Shawn Colvin, Ray Benson and many more over what must be an incredibly fulfilling career. Turns out though that Tommy Taylor wasn’t too keen on just letting those records speak for themselves, since after several years of encouragement, he recently put his voice front and center of his own tunes.

Created in collaboration with fellow legend and multi-Grammy winner Michael Omartian, Across the Stars came out last September. Between Omartian’s top notch production techniques and Taylor’s well-seasoned sense of songwriting (fleshed out characters and all), Across the Stars is an astronomical entry for this pair of yacht rock royals. So don’t expect any tumbleweeds or crickets when the silence comes at the end of this nine-song journey, because even early pieces like the album opener “Ghost Town” just sound plain great. Since we’re guessing there’s a galaxy’s worth of other material under Taylor’s belt, here’s hoping Across the Stars won’t be a standalone in Tommy’s discography.