austin music

Walker Lukens: “The One Who Loves You”

If you weren’t already well aware, we here at KUTX love Walker Lukens; we shined our Artist of the Month spotlight on this perfectionist performer back in January 2015, right when Walker Lukens and (his backing band) The Side Arms released their Jim Eno-produced single “Every Night”, a tune that now totes more than two million streams on Spotify. Since then Walker’s sort of mimicked the mysterious monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey, touching down to intrigue the masses and revolutionize listener experiences, but only when the moment is just right.

That’s not to say that Walker hasn’t kept busy since 2019’s ADULT, his final pre-pandemic piece of output. On top of dropping two more full-lengths and an EP, Lukens has been helping to interpolate flirty little secrets as one of the two masterminds behind The Song Confessional podcast. Walker’s also been graciously offering up his production prowess and fine-tuned formulas as a noble service for his fellow Texas creatives.

But as seductive as Walker’s sonic sorcery is in-studio, if you’ve seen him play live, you know how whetting it is to witness the carefully-crafted studio magic replicated almost identically onstage, expertly-cut a capella loops and all. So imagine our excitement this morning when Lukens announced his fourth studio full-length Accessible Beauty for release in August alongside plans for a promotional tour.

That welcome news arrived alongside Accessible Beauty‘s lead single, “The One Who Loves You”, a re-introduction to Walker’s retro-pop tastes. Between invigorating reverse guitar, sexy synth squelches, and processed vocals that soar through a torrid chorus, “The One Who Loves You” boasts an enormous sense of space that easily towers over most of Tame Impala’s less-intense installations. Wish you could express your feelings as fiery as Walker does? Just forward this one to whomever you carry a torch for and get ready for romance.

Solid Lines: “Solid Lines”

When first branding a new band, a little repetition can go a long way. And throughout the past half century there’s plenty proof of now-iconic acts who made the most out of a name by extending it to both album and song titles; think about Bad Company, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, or more recently, Run the Jewels and Wilco. Well, last weekend the world was treated to yet another artist-album-song triple threat, this one coming straight out of Austin. After a three-year recording break filled with professional and familial obligations, Oh No Oh My frontman Greg Barkley recently rediscovered solace from those stresses through songwriting. Following several hushed solo home studio sessions, and a full decade since Oh No Oh My performed their last live show essentially at the height of international fame, Barkley re-enlisted ONOM drummer Joel Calvin and keyboardist Tim Regan plus Shivery Shakes bassist Wil Glosup to turn these stripped-down tunes into a reality. As a result, we’ve just been introduced to Solid Lines. The indie elements that earned Oh No Oh My so much acclaim still shines throughout Solid Lines, albeit underneath a coat of passionate electro-pop paint. Solid Lines’ eponymous debut induces nostalgia for care-free youth alongside reflections over the choices Barkley’s made that’ve led him to a life full of love. In line with Barkley’s “full steam ahead” approach to this new batch, the nine tracks on Solid Lines are best enjoyed front to back, but if you want to jump straight to one of Solid Lines‘ midpoints and find out what the group is all about, set aside five minutes and settle into the vocal unity and six-string-and-synth-driven serenity of “Solid Lines”.

Chrissy Symone: “March 14”

These days, participating in a youth choir – in school, at church, or wherever – is like a gateway drug for future singing sensations. Based on the abundance of success stories in recent history, it’s pretty clear that placing some discipline on your pipes at an early age gives you a huge leg up later on.

See: Chrissy Symone. Born in Georgia and now based in Austin, Chrissy was first bit by the songwriting bug back in her school’s choir about a dozen years ago. Since settling into the pandemic mentality, Symone’s been padding out an impressive SoundCloud presence with original acoustic tunes that arrange piano, guitar, and vocals into consistently pleasant jazz-and-blues-adjacent soft indie pop. But of course, Symone’s voice is the prime attraction. Her delicate delivery, poignant lyricism, and effortless ability to navigate intervals and registers make Chrissy one of the most slept on artists in the Live Music Capital.

Well, today Chrissy Symone gave the world a much-welcomed wake up call. Despite its initial appearance on SoundCloud nearly a year ago, Symone just released her flagship Spotify single “March 14”. Huge kudos to Chrissy for including an instrumental rendition as well – one that truly illustrates the weight and impact her vocals can bring to a track like this. Chrissy Symone has a don’t-miss SoFar Sounds session coming up on May 7th, and while you’ve got calendar dates in mind, take a tranquil trip back exactly one month with “March 14”.

Feeling Small: “One-Eyed Paradise”

The first time I met Chase Weinacht was back in high school. Let’s call it 2008. He and fellow Marmalakes co-founder/frontman Josh Halpern dropped by band practice. Despite their infinitely superior songwriting and performance skills (and assumedly awareness of such), I’ll never forget how humble and supportive they both were. And still are. Fast forward to 2019. Chase, Casie Luong, and I were Artist Instructors for Mother Falcon Music Lab. As Casie and I essentially lectured on how to create a podcast, Chase just sat back there behind the campers and soaked it in. Like the biggest, most curious kid in the classroom, for another charming moment of humility. And if you’ve ever seen Chase perform, you know that he’s not only one of Austin’s most talented songwriters, but also one of the most graciously unassertive. Which is why you might not have heard about his new project, Feeling Small. Based on the band’s debut single, Feeling Small seems to be a reflection on our overall insignificance in the grand scheme of things, a blissful sense of nihilism. Even though Weinacht could tackle such subject matter in a solo setting, he’s surrounded himself with some of his best friends, who also happen to be a few of Austin’s most prolific: Why Bonnie’s Sam Houdek on bass, The Stacks/Good Looks frontman Jake Ames on lead electric, Frozen Orange/Lomelda/Daphne Tunes contributor Andrew Stevens on bari guitar and percussion, and Estuary expert ear John Michael Landon handling sampler, synth, and production duties. That first tune, “One-Eyed Paradise”, is a series of little snapshots, like smash cuts that exemplify the beauty of moments that may seem minuscule at first. A soft shaker crescendo starts off this short-and-sweet stoner confessional (complete with lyrics about breakfast edibles and expensive pens) that ends up sounding like Mac DeMarco took a chill pill on top of his natural lackadaisical character. Huge bonus points for that one-of-a-kind Estuary sense of acoustic space, tight instrumental interplay, and a shift of focus away from the weight of life’s abundant anxieties.

Sol Chase: “Moonwalker”

It’s fascinating how many wholesome qualities folk and bluegrass fulfill: the importance of a tight-knit family, a primal connection to nature, and earning keep strictly through musical means. And to be completely honest, if those genres weren’t so overwhelmingly positive, they’d almost seem more like an antiquated cult. But instead of indoctrination and manipulative reprogramming of the meek-minded, some of the best bluegrass and folk hedonists were simply bred right into that bucolic lifestyle.

Just look at the upbringing behind mandolinist Sol Chase, who was raised by a hippie tribe that practiced their craft in European forests and festivals alike. Trips to civilization were often reserved for street side busking, a habit Chase continued after retreating to the campfires and cordillera of rural Colorado. Sol Chase essentially only appeared “on the grid” once he relocated down to Austin close to a decade back. In that time Chase recorded with Third Eye Blind, opened for the likes of Shinyribs, and basically immersed himself in Texas’ sprawling jamgrass scene as a must-hear master mandolinist.

Now, Sol Chase did decide to split town last year in favor of more wanderlust with his sweetheart Evergreen, but not before recording his solo debut with some of Austin’s finest players. The Eclectic Life of an Only Child was engineered by Yeah Yeah Yeahs/Sublime contributor Charles Godfrey, who helped instill a heightened sense of clarity for this four-song collection of personal memories, semi-fabricated fables, and emotionally-piercing parables. The Eclectic Life of an Only Child drops this Friday ahead of a 7:30PM release show at The Cactus Cafe and a late night set 1AM next Thursday at Old Settler’s Music Festival.

But Sol Chase isn’t exactly constrained by time and place, so why should you be? Like a bark-built acoustic rocket sparking up, clearing a tree line, and ascending into orbit, the Eclectic Life‘s latest single, “Moonwalker” builds up from a droning long tone into a zero-gravity instrumental gallop. “Moonwalker” wows with moody motifs, Appalachian-inspired intervals, and extensive solo sections that feature fiddle, flute, and of course, mandolin. So if you’re not ready to soak up the summer rays shining today, let Sol Chase help you flip the celestial switch into a lively lunar stroll.

Mobley: “lord”

When we last brought up our April 2018 Artist of the Month, we relented that the AOTM feature might’ve been a hair premature. Because on this side of the 2020 turnstile, the beast that is Mobley has spread his tendrils into even more disciplines. Seemingly no longer challenged by the traditional songwriters’ plight of recording, producing, and touring cohesive material, Mobley’s moved on to crafting album-long concepts, directing and editing visual counterparts, and more recently…coding? That may sound odd at first, but of course, as with all things Mobley, there’s a big creative payoff.

In this case, it boils down to isolating singular instrumental tracks – more commonly known as “stems” – from a fleshed-out song. Any producer worth their salt will relate the joy of pinpointing a specific sound in a vast arrangement – “soloing” it – before bringing the full mix back in. Instantly unlocking the way remixes work, stems can lend themselves to some fascinating tonal pairings, almost like conducting a chamber quartet with the click of a button. Now, releasing stems for free use is no new affair, but that’s not exactly what Mobley’s been working on.

Instead Mobley’s picked up where Zaireeka and the Stem Player left off. Where the implementation of those notable predecessors was restrictive, either due to technical limitations (honestly who has time to sync up four stereos?) or simply a matter of supply and demand, Mobley’s coded an interactive multimedia experience that’s accessible to anyone with internet access. In doing so he’s peeled Cry Havoc!‘s centerpiece apart into four solo feeds – each of which can be toggled on or off at any time in the song’s two-minute duration – but here’s the kicker: those selections affect the visuals as well. That’s right; as you discover all these sonic combinations (maybe even a John Cage-esque take with all four instruments muted just for the heck of it), each respective member of the Cry Havoc! band – TV Man, Jacob Creedmoor and all – vanishes and re-appears accordingly.

On top of all that, two-different camera options, plus an absurdist Gilliam-style AI lip-synced Queen Elizabeth II providing the third, “lord” doesn’t just add a ton of re-play value to an already addictive track. It also puts a brilliant twist on the solo-artist-as-each-player music video concept that reemerges now and then. The only question now is what channel Mobley will transport us to next.

Britny Lobas: “Marina”

When a key contributor breaks out of an early musical vehicle to focus on solo momentum, it can be really empowering. Whether it’s Brian Eno’s ascendance into experimentalism after leaving Roxy Music, Danny Elfman’s evolution into a Hollywood soundtrack darling following Oingo Boingo, One Direction’s Harry Styles dominating mainstream attention in the late 2010s, or Gwen Stefani’s post-No Doubt success, going solo can lead to great things.

With 20/20 hindsight in mind, one look at Austin pop-rock quartet Corbella’s eponymous EP artwork was all we needed to figure out that frontwoman Britny Lobas was the bella that ball. Now, a few years before Corbella’s 2019 heyday, Lobas did drop a collaboration under her own name but it wasn’t until the turn of the decade that she re-emerged as the beast we revere today. Atop fashion statements that give PJ Harvey a run for her money, Britny Lobas continues to flock towards the radio-proven formulas of Celine Dion or Shania Twain and belt her way into the pop-rock pantheon, leaving thirst and admiration in her wake after each enthralling live performance.

Maintaining Lobas’ quality-over-quantity pace of one studio single per year, her latest auspicious offering precedes a single release blowout this Saturday at The Pershing along with The Reverent Few. Mooring buoyant guitar licks (both acoustic and electric), a call-and-response chorus that’s beggin’ for audience engagement, and a vocal dyad-dominated bridge, “Marina” harbors a Summer boat-party-ready pop-rock powerhouse, whether or not it refer to a woman’s name instead of a yacht dock.

Ragabash: “Daydream”

There’s a ton of iconic music adjacent to the 1977 punk explosion, intuitively categorized as “proto-punk” and “post-punk”. And while you could argue discrepancies outweigh similarities between The Stooges’ Raw Power, Television’s Marquee Moon, Gang of Four’s Entertainment!, and XTC’s Black Sea, one word seems to encapsulate the shared aesthetic among protos and posties: “angular”. Of course, since the start of the ’80s, that crusty concrete-encased counterculture has helped inform new wave, grunge, and eventually the trebly indie rock riffs that turned acts like The Strokes into household names. It’s intriguing because nowadays some refer to The Stooges’ style as “garage rock”, and yet – despite punk’s many offspring (hardcore, riot grrrl, anti-folk, etc.) – the term “post-punk” is alive, well, and readily-applicable. Austin has its fair share of contemporary post-punk purveyors, including a quartet who got together in 2019 – a full four decades after Gang of Four’s daring debut – Ragabash. Ragabash released their first-ever studio single, “Heartache” earlier this spring, showcasing a stabbing and distorted offkilter style. For their debut album (due out this Fall), the group’s entrusted production duties with Grammy-winner Stuart Sikes (Loretta Lynn, The White Stripes, Modest Mouse, etc.), which’ll likely lend an extra sense of accessibility to Ragabash’s crowd-pleasing organized chaos and all-hands-on-deck approach to vocal harmonies. Ragabash’s sophomore installment arrives with a single release show 11pm tomorrow night at The 13th Floor alongside openers Sweet Slacks, Mr. Kat, and DJ Dead Flowers. So before you ascend to the 13th Floor, immerse yourself in Ragabash’s appreciation for that short sweet space after staccato sequences, with “Daydream”. Its trumpet solo, bold dynamics, and instrumental interplay are sure to keep you lucid well past hump day and right into the weekend.

Artist Interview: Matthew Logan Vasquez – “Untouchable”

Matthew Logan Vasquez creates a song about a rich boy in west Texas who seems to get away with everything…including homicide. In Part 1, you heard the confession and the song. In this episode, Walker chats with Matthew about his work, the confession, and how it inspired his song “Untouchable”.

Got a story you want to confess and maybe have it turned into a song? Join the Song Confessional mailing list to stay up to date on all of our latest episode, news, and the whereabouts of our confessional booth: https://songconfessional.com/connect.

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Mamahawk: “Walk in the Fire”

About halfway through KUTX’s now-ten-year tenure, we made a real airwave heavyweight out of our August 2018 Artist of the Month Mamahawk. Back in that fledgling phase, the then-three-piece only had a talon-full of tunes to their name, most notably the title track and lead single of their 2019 sophomore LP Brain Invaderz!. However, with all that’s happened between the beginning of the pandemic and now, and with the lack of studio releases post-Brain Invaderz!, some folks honestly may have forgotten all about Mamahawk.

Which is unfair, because if you’ve observed the group’s steady progression from the duo that pre-dated their 2015 eponymous debut to what’s now a four-man V formation, Mamahawk clearly isn’t one to make haste. And unlike fellow local maternal raptors Mother Falcon, Mamahawk is on the wing once again and out of the studio with a whole new set of feathers.

Mamahawk just announced their upcoming as-of-yet-untitled third full-length, with the quartet flocking fans old and new to a single release show this Thursday at Hotel Vegas. Doors open at 9PM, Half Dream starts things off at 10PM, Mamahawk takes the stage at 11PM, and Lady Dan wraps things up at midnight. And as with “Brain Invaderz!”, this lead single channels the cerebral psych-prog-pop-yacht sensuality of the late ’70s with butt-wigglin’ pitch-wheel squiggles, an eclectic synth selection (including both brilliantly high pads and crunchy low swells), vocals that ethereally evolve from unison to harmony over verse and chorus, and a dramatic half-time breakdown in the bridge, complete with a retro-style sax solo. Between all that – and the bookending hawk screeches from lead vocalist James Reed – “Walk in the Fire” will have you saying “here we go again” every time you restart this soulful scorcher.

Glasshealer: “Ever Love, Ever Have”

As a genre modifier, the term “experimental” can be pretty controversial. For purists, unless an artist is redefining sound by employing production, recording, and performance techniques typically unfit for “traditional” music, they’re not gonna consider it “experimental”. But when you take a more lenient approach and avoid strict gatekeeping, you’re bound to discover acts that’ll undoubtedly challenge your tastes and pre-conceptions. For an example right here in Central Texas we can point straight to Austin four-piece Glasshealer. Once deemed “Best Experimental Artist” by The Austin Chronicle, this unconventional quartet combines the most out-there elements of punk, electronica, and rock into a beautifully bizarre blend. The Austin Chronicle also gave Glasshealer the recognition they deserved for both their 2020 debut Cranberry Stream and 2021’s But the Weight of Comfort Pulled Me Back Down, merits that’ve helped pack venues once Glasshealer name appears on the marquee. But as with any groundbreaking experiment, you can’t rush the scientific process, which is why we haven’t had any studio releases from Glasshealer since But the Weight… Coming hot off a 2022 East Coast tour, Glasshealer returned to the lab to elevate their sound further by penning some impressively eclectic tunes. So while we patiently wait for a third EP from Glasshealer, the band’s blessed us with a six-and-a-half-minute psychotropic delight. Alongside the mind-melting visuals of its music video “Ever Love, Ever Have” is structured like a cinematic DMT trip, complete with uncanny nuances, expansive dynamic shifts, and revelation-ready hard left turns.

Steel Gemini: “Twin Flames”

For wannabe solo acts, the endlessness of electronic music and accessibility of home studios offers an appealing amount of autonomy; rather than recruit a rag-tag rhythm section or accompanist and tease out tunes take after take, you can hunker down, sequence all sorts of sounds out, quantize if needed, and call it a day. And like Toro Y Moi’s Chaz Bundick with his dance alter ego Les Sins, Austin producer-singer Joy Baldwin’s been intermittently stepping away from the guitar-pop court of King Air to reign over retro synth tones, samples, and loops as Steel Gemini.

Steel Gemini pairs Baldwin’s penchant for sassy and accessible pop formulas with ’80s-style drum programming, alternative-inspired chord progressions, and a ton of LFO love. Contrastingly titled, “End of It All”, Steel Gemini’s debut single dropped midway through last December. Just before SXSW, Steel Gemini’s second installation “What Would Your Girlfriend Say” cemented Baldwin’ as ‘s coquettish creativity within the electro-pop crowd. There haven’t been any overt suggestions of a full Steel Gemini record release quite yet, but we’ll buddy up and throw elbows the second there are.

Today Steel Gemini torched us with brilliantly bombastic 808s, Timbaland-derived MIDI choices, club-ready snaps, hazy harmonies, and untethered melodies with the hot to the touch “Twin Flames”. Only way to get burned by “Twin Flames”? By not cranking it all the way up and letting the bass rattle you right out of the work week.

Lew Apollo: “NEED YOUR LOVIN”

At the top of March, we praised Walker Lukens for his willingness to help up-and-comers in need of a keen production ear early on in their career. So you can imagine our excitement when we began to see credits from our August 2021 Artist of the Month BLK ODYSSY pop up in the wild. BLK ODYSSY’s latest collaborator? Austin-via-Minnesota singer-guitarist Lewis “Lew” Apollo.

Sadly, Lew Apollo’s recent alley-oop from boozy live blues-rock performances to BLK ODYSSY’s slick in-studio wheelhouse hasn’t been all that pleasant of a trajectory. It actually coincided with the loss of both his father and a friend to suicide last Fall, an unimaginable trauma that’s become a bittersweet impetus, a tragic catalyst for a creative pivot. In tribute, Lew Apollo’s since dedicated his songwriting to normalizing some of life’s most troubling obstacles – isolation, entrapment, anxiety, temptation, and depression – in hopes of making listeners feel less alone with their own struggles.

As part of that transition, Lew Apollo’s allowed BLK ODYSSY to come on board as producer and co-writer for Lew’s deeply personal debut EP JUNGLE. The machete-sharp cuts on JUNGLE take a leap into rock-R&B concoctions and neo-soul seductions, which remind us that some of the harshest environments can be our immediate internal and external surroundings, not perched at the top of a dense canopy or stalking the bottom of a rainforest floor. And in tandem with Apollo’s passion for providing a sense of belonging to those who may be in crisis, JUNGLE drops in the midst of Mental Health Awareness Month on Friday, May 12th. The release show is 8PM that same evening at The Pershing and JUNGLE‘s third single comes out on Friday, but we just gotta give it up to a track that came out in early March. Featuring KUTX favorite Grace Sorensen and unapologetically emotional, “NEED YOUR LOVIN” steers away from the distorted guitar of its Black Angels-esque predecessor “TROUBLE ON MY MIND” for an alluring, atmospheric, and reverb-drenched, harmony-heavy falsetto foray. Bonus points for blunt brevity, unbridled bass riffs, and an effervescent vibraslap at its tail that lends a seals some finality to this near-three-minute masquerade.

All About Our Listeners

This episode is all about our listeners. We asked what they thought we should do to support the Austin Music Scene, and they answered! Plus, you’ll learn about one listener who started a business to employ Austin musicians — the Handyband Collective.

Small Engine Fire: “Ruin Everything”

Between the 30th anniversary of the Waco siege and the tragedy that just occurred on the border, the word “fire” might understandably turn some Texans off right about now. But for those who continue to rock out through the pain of the world’s ongoing, encircling dumpster fire…this one is for you.

It comes courtesy of sanguine sweetheart Ray Garza, whose effortless guitar and calculated vocals have become a staple of Austin outfits like Lola Tried, Space Tan, and his previous passion project, Poly Action. But just as Poly Action was picking up traction at the turn of the decade, the pandemic put an instant damper on PA’s momentum. Like countless others, the isolation and uncertainty of the subsequent lockdown left Garza feeling stuck in a rut. Historically an unapologetic upbeat pop-punk-rock lover, Garza surprised himself when he shed his typical humor-hinged defenses in favor of slower tempos and more fragile subject matters.

Fortunately for us, those tunes haven’t sizzled out into an ash pile. Instead, Garza’s internally-torching originals have rung the bell on his latest endeavor, Small Engine Fire. With Small Engine Fire (which features alum from Space Tan and Bogbody) Garza finds a safe haven to unspool those anxieties and insecurities with quirkily-human indie rock. And following their first-ever live show shortly after Free Week, Small Engine Fire has recently signaled the drop of a debut album sometime this year.

The quartet just lit the wick on that record with a solemn scorcher of a lead single, “Ruin Everything”, a slow-burning indie rock inferno stoked by infectious embers of instrumental interplay and subtle dynamic shifts. So if you’re planning out your weekend, consider showing some support for Small Engine Fire’s single release show 10PM this Sunday at Hotel Vegas followed by A. Sinclair and Rusty Dusty. If not, just toss on some headphones, throw “Ruin Everything” on repeat, and keep watching the world burn, baby.

Confession & Song: Matthew Logan Vasquez – “Untouchable”

Matthew Logan Vasquez creates a song about a rich boy in west Texas who seems to get away with everything…including homicide. In Part 1, you’ll hear the confession and the song. Tune in for Part 2 to hear an interview with Matthew.

Help us out! Rate the show and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify.

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Andy Aylward: “No Surrender”

Whether its a stubborn molecule of toxic masculinity, a frank reflection on the fragility of life, or just a brash rock ‘n’ roll stereotype, “getting soft with age” is an oft-repeated adage, especially in the world of music. In the decade-long natural maturation of tastes between one’s preteens and post-grad explorations, there can be an almost parodic adrenaline-and-amp-addicted attitude that prefers to “die young” instead of “grow up”. And while claiming a traditional genre like folk is “hard” in contrast to say…punk rock sounds a bit silly, of course it’s all in the ear of the beholder. For London-born, Washington, D.C.-raised, and Austin-based songwriter Andy Aylward? A steady progression into soft-folk-rock hasn’t curbed any of the observational petulance of his adolescent punk days nor the nihilism of his post-college psychedelic experiences. Now whisked in the relative wisdom of his thirties, Aylward does make a conscious effort to eschew overt pessimism from his originals. But as heard on Andy Aylward’s 2019 solo debut Sometimes Rain, neither interjections of hope nor gallows humor mask the beautifully bleak honesty of his folksy poetry. Riding off a historically wayward relationship with cheap wine, bygone breakups, and the cross-country moves that eventually brought Aylward to Texas, Remember Me Like Birds On The Wind doesn’t relent an inch away from Andy’s intrinsic earnestness. These eight introspective, sparse arrangements were mixed by Fruit Bats/Kevin Morby producer D. James Goodwin for a minimalist affair that features The Cairo Gang’s Emmett Kelly, Stephen “Sweet Baboo” Black, and Captain Beefheart’s J.T. Thomas. Last Friday, ahead of Remember Me‘s April 25th release date, Aylward unleashed the album’s lead single that syncs up J.T. Thomas with trumpet-for-hire Paul Brandenburg for a jaunty jangler that just doesn’t give up, “No Surrender”.

Evergreen: “Step”

Since our late great radio icon John Aielli passed away, KUTX’s airwaves have largely veered away from classical music. But some of the best things about classical music are its timeless universality, its enduring ability to be adapted, and its ripe potential for renewed relevance post-re-interpolation. That’s also is a big part of what drives Austin multi-instrumentalist/instructor Evergreen, whose traditional cello upbringing and intrinsic understanding of the classical “language” had earned her spots onstage alongside Father John Misty and The Eagles by her mid-twenties.

As with the third stream movement of the 1950s, Evergreen especially seems to enjoy taking a revisionist approach to classic compositions, ditching strict tempo instructions in favor of moment-to-moment nuance, and letting centuries-old leitmotifs bask in new contexts. For her upcoming debut, Delicious Vignettes of Recent American Kind, Evergreen dissembles Antonin Dvořák’s “American String Quartet No. 12” and splits its bits across five infectious neo-classical sketches. That, on top of an ample cast of collaborators, an indie folk original, and a Joni Mitchell cover closing out the album, Delicious Vignettes is pretty much the exact level of classical-inspired eclecticism that Aielli so adored.

Today, before Delicious Vignettes drops on Friday, we took a “Step” closer to the LP with a stripped-down duet between nylon guitarist Chris Melas and percussionist Charles Godfrey. A delightful dance of flamenco rhythms and Latin jazz, “Step” feels like a great way to start Spring.

Geto Gala: “Sumn’ to Say” (Live at Scholz Garten)

After years of supporting Deezie Brown and Jake Lloyd individually, it’s beautiful watching them both earn exponential exposure with this hip-hop/R&B phenomenon that is Geto Gala. The latest phase of a fruitful friendship, Brown and Lloyd had already shared a fair amount of stages together pre-pandemic before capitalizing on their bar-trading chemistry with their eponymous February 2021 studio debut. Alongside its delightfully-southern Chopped and Slowed counterpart, The Geto Gala EP probably played a part in Brown and Lloyd separately scoring their first official ACL Fest sets last October, where informal versions of the full Geto Gala band ended up backing each solo performer.

Between then and now, the Geto Gala gang’s apparently upped their game for a whole gauntlet of live gigs, at least based off the applause they garnered last Thursday morning when they transfigured our Scholz SXSW space into the Geto Garten. With a set that’d make Big Pokey proud, and a crowd that was happy to “fifth wheel” alongside the band, Geto Gala sure as hell had “Sumn’ to Say” at SXSW. We’re just hoping our invitation’s still good for the next Gala.

The Bright Light Social Hour: “Not New”

Typically around the tail end of SXSW music week, there’s a lot of local magic. It could be Bill Murray hopping behind a dive bar and serving up whatever he wants, or a relatively undiscovered up-and-comer getting an unexpected big break. But today we’re talking about the Austin representation, something that can get easily eclipsed by all the international faces at SX.

Now, we here at KUTX have gushed again and again over The Bright Light Social Hour, which makes sense since they’ve been with us even before the start of our call letters. So rather than recap what makes ’em so great (like their continuously progressing sound and willingness to team up with fellow Austinites), let’s just jump right into what Bright Light’s got in their limelight.

This morning The Bright Light Social Hour announced their fifth full-length Emergency Leisure. Down to its Slow Rush-reminiscent title, it seems like TBLSH is taking a sweet-yet-sinister Tame Impala daytime disco/indie-psych approach. But true to the Bright Light’s nature, Emergency Leisure isn’t just a full-band vehicle for one singer-songwriter (looking at you, Kevin Parker); instead its a seamlessly collaborative exchange perfected over nearly two decades of playing together that translates in-studio just as well as it does onstage.

For a taste of the ladder, check out The Bright Light Social Hour 8PM this evening at Parlor & Yard, 1AM late tonight at Parish for the Mint Talent Group official showcase, or 5PM Sunday at Rustic Tap. As of now, Rustic Tap looks like Bright Light’s last local gig until after Emergency Leisure comes out August 2nd, when the group hits the road on a three-plus-month tour. And while all that may sound like short notice, you gotta remember who we’re dealing with here; The Bright Light Social Hour always comes in cool and calculated, even when they drop Emergency Leisure‘s lead single like some high-powered blotter paper as they did this morning. Alongside its music video, “Not New” will knock you back with its driving-but-subdued sonics that are almost too cool to party to. Almost.