austin music

Natalie Price: “Butterfly”

At the top ofLove Austin Music Month we re-introduced you toAustin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program and their new compilation ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person. ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person features a dozen original songs from six Austin artists, including indie-pop/Americana-folk aficionado Natalie Price. This guitarist, vocalist, and kalimba-enthusiast began to seriously forge her songwriting path with 2019’s Through the Fog and has clearly matured even more in the short time since then. That sense of progressive metamorphosis is hopefully a longstanding trend for the burgeoning singer and her blossoming career, so enjoy some new Natalie Price at no cost (while you still can) with “Butterfly”!

Sun June: “Reminded” (Live in Studio 1A)

COVID-19’s omicron variant quickly curbed some of the Live Music Capital’s winter highlights – high profile New Year’s Eve shows, an overflow of talent throughout Free Week, and the long anticipated return of music to KUTX’s beloved Studio 1A. But especially with the recent foggy mornings and freezing temperatures on the horizon, we’re just thankful to share some sultry summer heat from Austin’s Sun June.

Sun June stopped by Studio 1A in early December, right aroundthe same time that the quintet released the deluxe expanded edition of their LP Somewhere. They’re starting off 2022 strong with a multi-month three-leg national tour with support from Daphne Tunes (fronted by featured guitarist Santiago Dietche), a co-headline tour with Katy Kirby, and supporting Shakey Graves, including an appearance on Sunday, February 6th at Empire Control Room alongside Little Mazarn. With uplifting chord structures and earthy arrangements (including Somewhere (Expanded) exclusive “Reminded”) Sun June’s Studio 1A set is absolutely phenomenal.

Could affordable housing save Austin’s music scene?

In the latest episode, you’ll learn how Austin non-profit Foundation Communities helped musician James Shelton find affordable housing the central Austin. And you’ll get a crash course in how affordable housing works from Foundation Communities Executive Director, Walter Moreau.

Walter Moreau of Foundation Communities is pictured on Jan. 12, 2022, outside of Bluebonnet Studios. Michael Minasi/KUTX

Read “The Artist Loft: Affordable Housing (for White People)” from the Atlantic

Read “The Rise of White–Segregated
Subsidized Housing” from The Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity at the Minnesota School of Law.

The Whitmore Sisters: “Superficial World of Love”

At just past the halfway mark forLove Austin Music Month we should recognize that not every Austinite stayed in town for their latest releases. Case in point: Austin’s Bonnie Whitmore, who after a string of successful solo albums, joined her older sibling Eleanor in Los Angeles to realize their folk project The Whitmore Sisters. And after years apart, their shared sororal energy and equal-but-opposite worldly experiences have swirled together beautifully for the pair’s debut LP Ghost Stories. Ghost Stories is out this Friday and The Whitmore Sisters hit the road for a supporting international tour at the end of the month, though they’ve already globe-trotted plenty in the emotional landscape from the sounds of “Superficial World of Love”!

Anastasia Hera & The Heroes: “Like I Am”

Anyone who’s heard Anastasia Hera can tell that she’s a big proponent of Black activism, making her a prime candidate for the spotlight on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This native Austinitecemented her charismatic sense of verbal cadence early on by memorizing King’s iconic “I Have A Dream” speech at a young age, andin 2015 Hera founded CAKE, a non-profit that empowers girls and women interested in musical performance. Anastasia Hera & The Heroes shared two new singles as part ofAustin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program and their 2022 compilation ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person including a luminous piece of R&B-funk perfect forLove Austin Music Month,”Like I Am”.

Dena Hope: “Miss U”

Since 2019 Austin’s Dena Hope has been expanding on an eponymous solo synth-pop endeavor, which got its first leg up in 2020 with her debut EP In Transit. And while many synth-poppers out there tend to dabble with retro-’80s formulas, Dena Hope prefers to keep it more contemporary sounding and in line with her alluring vocal melodies. KUTX Presents Dena Hope alongsideHalf Dream and our 2022 Artist of the Month San Gabriel next Sunday at Far Out Lounge and even if you can’t make it out in person, you don’t want to miss out on Hope’s latest driving single, “Miss U”!

TV Temple: “June 3030”

Right around this same time last year, guitarist Ben Root and drummer Emma Berrigan had finally put their “beach-alt” sound as TV Temple on streaming platforms, making their eponymous place of worship easily accessible no matter the static. But instead of just feeding the figurative idiot box, this Austin duo’s chosen quality over quantity with a mere three studio singles to their name as of now. However that limited output’s made TV Temple a prime candidate forAustin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program and wouldn’t you know it – they’ve now got two new contributions toATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person. TV Temple’s first offering, “June 3030” will instantly transport you out of these chilly January days and right into a summer mindset with sunny strumming, tantalizing harmonies, countermelodies, and augmented alt-rock rhythms that’ll keep you on your toes – even ankle deep in sand

Kydd Jones: “TV On”

As our hip-hop specialty program The Breaks celebrates five years on the air, we can’t help but give extra kudos to one of the shows’ main staples, Austin renaissance man Kydd Jones. On top of his never-ending drive in the hip-hop R&B realm, be it producing, writing, singing, or rapping, Jones has been dipping his feet into fashion and comedy (with a show at Antone’s next Thursday). Mayor Steve Adler even named Jones a Creative Ambassador in 2019 but it’s safe to say the distinction hasn’t gone to his head or slowed down his production flow. Kydd Jones just celebrated the release of his latest LP, Onyx D’or (No More Waiting), a towering sixteen-song collection that shifts from unapologetic club bangers to headier serenades like “TV On” with the drop of a hat. And when you’ve heard the record in full, catch Kydd Jones at the tail end ofLove Austin Music Month on Saturday January 29th with UGK legend Bun B at Antone’s.

Anastasia Hera & The Heroes: “Illusion”

We’re already one week intoLove Austin Music Month but’ve only scraped the surface of ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person – the new compilation fromAustin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program. One of the more well-known contributors is native Austinite Anastasia Hera, whose early inspirations of ATCQ, Jay-Z, and MLK Jr. helped shape her verbal abilities and penchant for progressivism. Fast forward to the top of the last decade, when Hera released her mononymous debut Pretty Color Bad News and again to 2015 when she launched her female-empowering non-profit CAKE, showing off her polymath talents as an effortless R&B/Hip-Hop performer and as an organizer, respectively. These days Anastasia Hera’s got the support of her backing band The Heroes, who elevate her already-soaring vocals to an even higher plane and toss a little bit live funk flavor into the mix. Anastasia Hera & The Heroes find themselves in good company onATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person, which releases on vinyl later this year and features two incredible originals from Hera, including the synth-funk-soaked and harmony-heavy “Illusion”!

Deer Fellow: “For My Sake”

Going back to their 2016 debut single “Where I’ll Be”, guitarist-vocalist Matt Salois and violinist-pianist-vocalist Alyssa Kelly have been making listeners feel all warm and fuzzy inside with their project Deer Fellow. True to their name, this Austin duo’s shown a real camaraderie with the calming powers of nature thanks to an indie-folk-pop sound slathered in delicate harmonies, purposeful chord progressions, and sentimental subject matter. With the exception of last year’s Words Unsaid EP, Deer Fellow’s also proven a real mastery over standalone singles. And on a cold day like this in Austin we could all go for some of that warm and fuzziness. Thankfully Deer Fellow’s just issued “For My Sake”, recorded, mixed, and mastered by Erik Wofford and guaranteed to heat and heal you through a chilly weekend.

Pleasure Venom: “Severed Ties”

As the nation marks one year since a high-profile socio-political event,Love Austin Music Month continues with theAustin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program and one of our city’s most politically outspoken punk bands Pleasure Venom. Fronted by fierce vocalist and unapologetic lyricist Audrey Campbell, Pleasure Venom’s been seeping its way into all the sub-genres of punk rock since their 2016 debut EP Hunt, and landed the group a supporting spot on tour with ’90s rock icons Garbage.

Unfortunately Pleasure Venom’s had to pull their free week shows due to COVID-19, but with an abundance of societal fodder at her disposal, Campbell sure as hell hasn’t stopped writing. ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person features two new singles from Pleasure Venom(including the pace-shifting”Severed Ties”) that’ll assure you of their dynamic durability and take-no-guff discourse more than a half decade since their start.

Quentin And The Past Lives: “Friends”

As Love Austin Music Month marches on, we continue our coverage of Austin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program‘s new compilation, ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person, with Quentin And The Past Lives. Quentin’s eponymous quintet may be a relatively recent endeavor but their high-octane brand of funk-infused pop-rock (polished with plenty of harmonies, dynamic virtuoso vocals, and daring arrangements) has already scored the group sold out shows beginning in Spring of last year.

Quentin And The Past Lives performs tomorrow night at Hotel Vegas as part of free week and you can get amicable with this ATX Gen Next collaborator early with the first of their two new studio singles, “Friends”!

Natalie Price: “Tell Me”

Austin Music Foundation’s Artist Development Program has just entered their fifth year and in honor of Love Austin Music Month they’re releasing their third record, ATX Gen Next: Adventures in Person – recorded at The Bubble and produced by Chris “Frenchie” Smith and Einar Pedersen. The album officially drops mid-January and the vinyl edition is out this Summer, but we’ll be featuring the compilation in full over the next few weeks, starting today with Natalie Price. Raised in a pious, almost-anti-music Dallas household, this self-taught singer-songwriter’s done a pretty bang up job of fulfilling her indie-folk-Americana dreams, having released her debut EP Through The Fog in 2019. Price’s bare arrangements of kalimba and vocals have always made for a gorgeous blend, but for her two tracks on ATX Gen Next, she’s got a full band to pack an even bigger punch, as heard on “Tell Me”!

Ben Buck & BoomBaptist: “Gene Wilder”

No one can deny how taxing 2021 was, and though we can’t make any guarantees for 2022, we’d be remiss if we didn’t recognize some gems that made the Winter season a little less bleak. Case in point: two of Austin’s most outspoken hip-hop creators, Ben Buck (who’s had a fruitful solo career as a rapper-beatboxer-producer on top of endeavors with Aux Cutter and Big Wy’s Brass Band) and BoomBaptist (a sample-based producer who’s taken Bandcamp by storm with his Rick James and NBA Jam themed beat tapes in addition to his work as one half of The Vapor Caves).

Both masters of their craft in their own right, these equal-and-opposite personalities collided once again for last year’s The Marquee, a seven-song balance of bops, braggadocio, overall a cavalier conquest of their preferred musical styles. The Marquee is short and sweet, but still packs plenty of firepower from these two B.B.s, enough to get you out of your 2021 stumble and somersault straight into the new year just like “Gene Wilder”!

Patricia Vonne: “Cumbia Navidad”

Like it or not, Christmastime is officially upon us. And with no apologies to the Scrooges, Song of the Day‘s final week of 2021 is dedicated strictly to the seasonal stuff. First up is Austin’s Patricia Vonne, an actress who’s not only had a fruitful relationship with Robert Rodriguez, but is also an award-winning filmmaker, animator, and singer.

Patricia Vonne recently released her LP My Favorite Holiday, featuring ten original tunes and one cover, all recorded with an impressive cast of collaborators and produced by fellow Austinite Rick Del Castillo. It’s a genuinely enthusiastic take on what’s historically been a polarizing genre, and Vonne’s vocal fervor is infectious throughout, especially on the Latin-leaning, Spanish-language “Cumbia Navidad”!

Jac with No K: “Caroline”

Pittsburgh-born poet Jac Carson was inspired early on by ’90s alt-rock soundtracks (Van Wilder and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater to name a couple) before getting his chops up onstage in Philadelphia and eventually moving down to Austin. And it’s here that Carson’s project Jac with No K has really flourished – blurring the lines between alternative blues and Americana into a style that the three-piece has deemed “New Texas Groove”. If you want to check out Jac with No K live, you’ve got a couple good opportunities this weekend; this Saturday Carson plays solo 3-6pm at Lone Star Court and the full band performs that same evening 9pm to midnight that same evening at The Drafting Room. Either way, let Carson’s crystalline vocals help you crest over the rest of the work week with his charmingly-calm composition “Caroline”!

How Austin’s housing market helped build the music scene, and how it could destroy it

In the latest episode of Pause/Play, we’re looking at how the housing market helped build Austin’s music scene, and how it could be the thing that destroys it. You’ll hear from Austin artists about how the housing market has changed for them over the years and why some of them have decided to leave. You’ll also learn about the connection between cheap housing and thriving music scenes, musician incomes, and Austin’s housing market from experts Nicky Rowling, Michael Seman, and Audrey McGlinchy.

In this episode you’ll hear from:

Ray Benson of Asleep at the Wheel
Robert A. Kraft
Laura Mendoza from Cosmic Chaos
Gina Chavez
Chinasa Broxton

Listen to the documentary “Back Home to the Armadillo”

Laura Mendoza of Cosmic Chaos is pictured on Dec. 3, 2021, at her home north of Austin. Michael Minasi/KUTX

A. Sinclair: “Secrets”

One of the most auspicious arbiters of rock here in Austin is undoubtedly A. Sinclair. Since 2014’s Pretty Girls, Aaron Sinclair’s consistently curated an intricate indie rock sound bolstered by cavalier-but-calculated vocals and gorgeous guitar work, a legacy that’s continued with this year’s Sunshine Ghost LP. This two-time Studio 1A veteran joins a roster of fellow Mr. Pink Records artists this Sunday at Hole in the Wall for the release of A. Sinclair’s latest single, “Secrets”. Over a mere three minutes, “Secrets” escalates from a stripped-down pairing of dry vocals and acoustic guitar into an enormous, reverb-drenched indie rock masterpiece that’ll have you sharing it with your own network of music nerds in no time.

Bonus! Music Scenes as Economic Clusters

Here’s another way to think about music scenes — they’re legitimate economic clusters! Don’t know what we mean by that? Well, you can listen to this bonus episode and learn a little economic theory courtesy of Michael Seman, assistant professor in the LEAP Institute for the Arts’ arts management program at Colorado State University.

Strand of Oaks: “Easter” [KUTX Pop-Up]

Singer-guitarist Timothy Showalter took the trauma of his early twenties and transformed it into his solo project Strand of Oaks while he was still in Pennsylvania but it’s open been since he moved down to Austin that his style has fully flourished. Following the release of his eighth album In Heaven back at the beginning of October, Showalter’s been touring America alongside Jason Isbell and embarks on an international tour beginning next February. But the latest from this three-time Studio 1A veteran is a pop-up session which Strand of Oaks graciously allowed our multimedia team to capture in Showalter’s own home, and even though we just got done with Thanksgiving, we’re confident that the set-opener “Easter” is perfect for a playlist of any season.