Song of the Day

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October 1, 2024

Ramiro Pinheiro & Rodrigo Balduino: “Moon River”

By: Jack Anderson

No matter how much of an “instant classic” it may have been when it first dropped, after a half century of air play, most people feel like they’ve heard certain songs ad nauseam. That is until you hear a fresh take on it. And we’re not just talking about slapping some drums or a new verse on it and calling it a remix. No, we’re talking about someone from a different cultural background who, without ever having been bogged down by it the way we were, is able to breathe new life into tunes that’ve been around for more than half a century.

Enter Ramiro Pinheiro, a singer-guitarist-composer hailing out of São Paulo. Pinheiro calls Barcelona home these days, but as chamas of Brazilian tradition – be it jazz, bossa, or samba – still burn through his fingers and onto pretty much anything he touches, no matter the music’s origin. Case in point: his second collaborative single of the year “Moon River”.

Recorded alongside fellow Paulistano Rodrigo Balduino, this version of “Moon River” isn’t just a ripple off that mid-’60s flood of Western pop renditions in a bossa nova style. No, there’s intimate honesty to the raw recording of this Breakfast at Tiffany’s triumph that channels the delicate acoustic passion of Jobim or Gilberto, string squeaks, breaths, close quarters instrumentation, and all. And even without translating Johnny Mercer’s lyrics into Portuguese, Pinheiro’s accent alone enchants with an exotic charm, gracing this Henry Mancini mainstay with a new set of legs that’ll last another fifty years, at least.


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March 24, 2025

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March 21, 2025

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March 20, 2025

Los Eclipses: “Elodie” (Live At Scholz Garten)

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March 19, 2025

Edgar Alejandro: “Contigo Quiero Todo” (Live At Scholz Garten)

It’s Wednesday, baby, and we are halfway through our week of celebrating some of our favorite performances from last week’s KUTX Live at Scholz Garten, where over 2,000 music fans local and visiting came and celebrated with us. “Contigo Quiero Todo” or “I Want Everything With You,” is one of Edgar Alejandro’s many captivating love […]

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March 18, 2025

King Cruff: “Easy” (Live At Scholz Garten)

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March 17, 2025

Cardinals: “Unreal” (Live At Scholz Garten)

Last week, the SXSW storm rolled in, and KUTX was part of the rolling thunder over part of downtown. 16 artists took the Scholz Garten stage across four days, and one of the standouts was Cork, Ireland’s Cardinals. While the band tends to dance around calling themselves post-punk, they do set themselves apart from their […]

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March 13, 2025

Elijah Delgado: “Hide + Seek”

Austin native Elijah Delgado has been releasing his self-proclaimed indie rock lullabies since 2021. Since then, he’s performed with national acts like Sister Hazel and Dayglow and performed at Old Settler’s Music Fest and Utopiafest. Since the release of his debut EP in 2021, Delgado has been sprinkling his audience with a few singles, now […]

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March 12, 2025

Real Sickies: “Should’ve Seen It Coming”

Raucous, infectious, and powerhouse are all words used to describe Real Sickies. Not much of a surprise coming from the band Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong has deemed his “favorite Canadian punk band.” The Edmonton-based band has been known for years for their relentless touring schedules and sublimely noisy sound comparable to everyone from Buzzcocks […]

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