austin music

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.

Sarita: “Never Give Up”

Austin’s Sara Maria may only have a couple singles to her musical moniker as of now, but just those two tracks alone are plenty enough to impress us with the potential of Sarita. Sarita’s been blending a variety of genre nooks and crannies for her upcoming debut album, be it from folk, pop, R&B, or soul, and rounds out these eclectic sonics with a powerful feminine voice that falls somewhere between Janis Joplin, Norah Jones, and Sade.

So keep an ear out for Sarita’s record in the near future, and keep the tranquil Thanksgiving-weekend vibes alive with a calming cornucopia of horns, guitar, and vocals on “Never Give Up”!

Clarence James: “Freedom Comes”

Following all the cranberry sauce, stuffing, and more, the post-Thanksgiving digestion period can be plenty liberating. But even with the knowledge that everyone’s still full and high on family time (be it for better or worse), Austin singer-guitarist Clarence James has just come out of the kitchen with a double dish of socially-conscious soul, courtesy of his new two-track EP.

But despite James’ jazz-adjacent vocals and tender guitar work, this pair of self-produced originals is far from just comfort food; they instead recreate experiences of racial profiling and “driving while Black” in the opening track and champion for nourishment through unity in the George Floyd protest-inspired closer “Freedom Comes”.

Akina Adderley: “Home Before Dark”

The term “songstress” is a relatively outdated one, but if there’s anyone here in Austin that fits the description, it’s absolutely Akina Adderley. In addition to her work providing vocals for the world-jazz group NORI and as one third of retro-girl-pop project Charlie Faye & The Fayettes, Adderley’s long maintained a reputation as a must-hear powerhouse performer, be it on her own or with her eponymous trio.

Akina Adderley plays with NORI on December 11th at Central Market North Lamar and with The Akina Adderley Trio on December 29th at Geraldine’s, but the big news comes in the form of a standalone single. Touting a gospel-blues-adjacent waltz of a groove and lyrics that look at our collective path as a nation, “Home Before Dark” will keep you in bright spirits even in these wintry early nights.

Buffalo Nichols: “Lost & Lonesome” (Studio 1A Version)

For the past few weeks you’ve heard plenty from our November 2021 Artist of the Month Buffalo Nichols, the Houston-born/Milwaukee-raised singer-guitarist who just released his self-titled debut. Carl Nichols’ worldly travels and keen sense of observation have both leant themselves to the lyrical praises for Buffalo Nichols and just last week he dropped by Studio 1A to both break up the kenopsia and entertain a socially-distanced, masked-up crowd. So add Buffalo Nichols to your streaming player and check out the Studio 1A session below, one that kicks off with the heady but coherent piece of jazz-folk poetry, “Lost & Lonesome”.

Why Taméca Jones, Austin’s Queen of Soul, is leaving for LA

Austin singer and songwriter Taméca Jones is leaving Austin for LA at the end of the year. In the latest episode, you’ll hear the reasons why the Austin Music scene isn’t working for her. Plus you’ll learn more about our music ecosystem.

You’ll also hear from and Peter Schwarz about the reality of music businesses in Austin’s music ecosystem. And Nikki Rowling explains how so many businesses operating independently can lead to burnout.

Take our Season 3 Survey

Stellar: “Enemy”

Though they’ve already proven their outspokenness as an anti-racist organist/activist, Stellar‘s passion is about shine in a separate-but-adjacent setting – folk music. The Austin-based singer’s style falls somewhere between Sinead O’Connor, Indigo Girls, and Joni Mitchell, framing candid societal commentary over enthralling instrumental arrangements. Stellar releases their debut LP RAINBOW SHADOWS this Friday and shares it digitally via livestream that same day, and you can get a grasp on this record’s full spectrum of worldly reflections with a quick listen to the album’s societally-charged lead single, “Enemy”!

Ladyfang: “Narcissist”

Previously under the name A Case for Brooklyn, the quartet Ladyfang has become a fabulous force of glitter, glam, and the like within Austin’s rock scene. Between their eye-catching outfits, less-than-reverent lyrics, and unpredictable nuances within their genre’s framework, Ladyfang’s kept us plenty entertained for the past half decade. Ladyfang performs tonight at Empire Control Room and tomorrow evening at Indian Roller in celebration of their latest single, whose lush vocal harmonies and satisfying production techniques will keep you grinning to yourself in the mirror before you hit the town, “Narcissist”!

Futon Blonde: “Sisyphus Strut”

With an initial frame assembled from the demos of Janson Sommer in 2014, Futon Blonde has since reclined and extended for maximum listener comfort. Since finalizing the lineup heard on the 2016 EP Solid State, this Austin quartet’s proven time and time again that blondes do indeed have more fun, thanks to eclectic grooves that stand out against the otherwise predictable realm of indie rock sonics. Futon Blonde’s trickled out a couple singles since their 2019 LP Uppercut, but they all pack a similar punch in their own right. Case in point: “Sisyphus Strut”, which taps into ’90s-era hip-hop production techniques to roll a boulder of indie-adjacent funk psychedelia, guaranteed to help you break out of any workplace monotony and push through to the weekend.