Song of the Day

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April 2, 2024

The Watters: “Set to Cruise”

By: Jack Anderson

Prayers for rain resonate all throughout the Lone Star State year-round…even in April with a once-in-a-lifetime solar eclipse on the horizon. So without wanting to entice a cosmically inconvenient drench, let’s dip our toes into The Watters.

This Americana soul love affair is teeing up to hit the two-decade mark, but the bond between husband and wife Daniel and Jenna Watters goes all the way back to grade school. After soaking up all that Los Angeles, Denver, and Nashville had to offer, the Sedona, Arizona pair eventually planted themselves here in Austin, where they’ve since gone on to play pretty much every venue within the city limits. And despite a rap sheet that includes opening for Michael McDonald and Devon Gilfillian, landing local grants and national songwriting awards, completing two full-lengths and an EP, and a recent leap into parenthood – The Watters aren’t slowing their flow anytime soon.

No, next Thursday The Watters roll out their third LP Duality, with a release show at Sagebrush 8PM that same evening with Tomar and the FCs and Rent Party. They’ll also be doing their thing out at Utopia 3PM this Saturday if you wanna catch the full band against a gorgeous natural backdrop. Either way, the new tunes off Duality are about to drop like April showers for just in time for a summer-ready, lake-lovin’ playlist. And like the rest of Duality, “Set to Cruise” makes for smooth sailing with channel-deep mixing and ocean-spanning arrangements that favor instrumental virtuosity and group momentum. So cop your captain’s hat, climb aboard, and don’t plan on disembarking anytime soon.


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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