Song of the Day

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February 19, 2024

Golden Hornet: “Army Ants”

By: Jack Anderson

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.


Episodes

April 29, 2024

Trip Cigs: “Comeback Kid”

When a seasoned musician wades out of their genre comfort zone, you love to hear it. Because the technical expertise, jam stamina, and songwriting skills are already in place, but opening the gate to different inspirations and influences is always a welcome breath of fresh air. So let’s talk Rod Gator, who – as you […]

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April 24, 2024

Viben: “Pablo Picasso”

Lyrics are a fickle field. You can be wordy as hell, hoping that at least one line sticks in listener’s minds. Or, you could just loop the hell out of some barebones sentences – guaranteed to have a lot more hypnotic staying power through sheer repetition, especially in the realm of dance music. Now let’s […]

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April 24, 2024

Rett Smith: “Sunsets”

In terms of musical association, at least outside the world of film soundtracks, U.S. southwestern scenery often gets associated with country. But there’s a certain psychedelic quality to our regional deserts that we just love to see artists embrace. Folks like Rett Smith, based here in Austin, but bred out of West Texas, so you […]

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April 23, 2024

Ruel Thomas: “I Am Today”

Any profession requires quotas…whether that’s how many tickets you write or how many kids pass your class. And when music is your source of income, the obvious metric to measure by is quantity of shows played. But as with any creative endeavor, there’s an opportunity to move the needle in many directions, which makes “success” […]

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April 22, 2024

Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors: “Suffering”

The very nature of Americana is rooted in traditional music. But it also lies at the crossroads between folk, country, and rock. So if an Americana act decides to veer into new lanes, the choices are limited and somewhat predictable. And yet it’s still such a joy to hear an artist explore new sonic territory, […]

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April 19, 2024

Melotheory: “Breathe”

When you have roommates, at least good ones you get along with, group activities naturally arise around the house. For most folks, it’s watching TV, recreational smoking and drinking, or maybe the occasional board game. For musicians, however, having a practice space within eyeshot of your bedroom door is too good of a scenario to […]

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April 17, 2024

Rhythm&Truth and Sakari: “Bring It All Back”

We won’t say that successful collaborations should mandate a solo artist’s trajectory. But if something built together leaves people wanting more, it’s not a bad idea to get back together and sate those desires, right? Because what’s unachievable on the individual level often just needs to get catalyzed by some good collabo chemistry. So let’s […]

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April 17, 2024

Myia Thornton: “Never Good 4 Me”

Unlike the legendary machines of Stax and Motown who relied on a ton of well oiled cogs to make any R&B singer into a star, these days the new blood has to do everything themselves, talent agent or not. And while not everyone can be Prince or D’Angelo in terms of multi-instrumental discipline, bringing something […]

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