austin music

Steel Gemini: “Sound and the Fury”

Today we feature duality. Duality in name, sound, and time. Austin’s Joy Baldwin has been releasing music under the name Steel Gemini for the past several years, an electropop project that grabs your ear with punchy, tinny drumbeats shimmery synths, and pulls you in with Baldwin’s powerful, yet unexpected, jazz-meets-country vocals.

On her upcoming debut album Legendery, Baldwin offers a reimagining of seminal 80’s Austin band The Reivers’s 1985 debut album Translate Slowly, transforming their original 80’s jangle-pop sound into a darker, 2020’s electropop dream with plenty of synth lines and drum beats winking back to the album’s original era. The love and tender affection Baldwin has for this album, which she credits as probably the reason she came to Austin in the first place, pours through the album’s brilliant execution, serving you a great groove now, and a classic Austin sound to dig into later.

“Sound and the Fury” is out now; Legendery comes out this summer.

Jamie Ospina: “The Vessel”

When you’re an Austinite, words like Brownout and Superfónicos paint a very clear, distinct picture. Not only in sound, but in community and philosophy.

A distillation of this comes from Superfónicos co-founder Jamie Ospina’s debut solo album The Vessel, a collection of songs of resilience, community, and storytelling blending sonic influences from Africa and Latin America to illustrate the rich, interwoven histories and common ground between them. Together with an eclectic flock of other Austin musicians, the album is tied together under the dutiful production guide of Grammy-winning Producer and Austin music cornerstone Beto Martinez.

The Vessel’s live recording approach highlights the organic symbiosis among the musicians speaking truth to The Vessel’s thesis, laid out in the title track. Here, Ospina joins forces with Kalu James and the members of HER MANA to celebrate the endurance of African culture as the rest of the album explores all of the sounds that can be traced back to Africa as their genesis.

The Vessel is out tomorrow with a release show at the Continental Club.

Did We Give Hip-Hip Away?

On this episode we discuss if the culture of Hip-Hop was too easily given away to streaming services without a fight. We also discuss the pros and cons of using A.I. in hip-hop. Hip-Hop facts this week include Aaliyah, Whitney Houston and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Unpopular Opinion is about about having too much access to celebrities.

Britny Lobas: “You Can Have It” [PREMIERE]

Austin’s Britny Lobas is a pop rock powerhouse. Originally a member of the pop rock group Corbella, Lobas broke out on her own. But her volume of output is the opposite of her volume of talent and vocal power, preserving her song coins like the Four of Pentacles and methodically doling out one banger after another, leaving fans in a regular stasis of antici…pation.

The Cleveland, Ohio native releases her new single “You Can Have It” this Friday. While this song leans more on the soul side of her sensibilities, her edge is not dulled, giving Amy Winehouse energy on a track about not throwing down with green-eyed monsters, but dropping them instead. They’re no good!

Lobas celebrates the release of “You Can Have It” this Saturday at Empire Control Room with Glass Mansions and Raycheal Winters

Felt Out: “Fruit Cart”

Austin duo Felt Out (FKA “Emme” for you fellow 2010’s Austin music scenesters) mesmerize and catch audiences off-guard with their signature blend of kitchen-sink alt-pop — no sound or notion is off-the-table, one song can be metallic and the next quite earthy, with maybe a guitar as a shared element. But the infinitely-instrumentalist duo are adept at using whatever element they reach for, tying them all together into a melodic bow, or at least a purposely semi-melodic bow with an alluring groove.

The latest single from Felt Out is “Fruit Cart,” inspired by singer Sowyma Somanath’s recent trip to India. Sung almost entirely in the South Asian language of Tamil, “Fruit Cart’s” electronic disposition creates a provocative dichotomy to a song about digging for the roots of desire.

Felt Out plays an AAPI Heritage Month show at Antone’s on May 22nd co-produced by Eastern Soul Productions.

ACL 2025?!

On this week’s episode we discuss the 2025 ACL line up and why Austin needs a great R&B nightclub/venue. Hip-hop facts about Jay-Z and Jermaine Dupri, Sisqo and more. Unpopular opinion from Fresh takes aim at DJs in Austin possibly doing more.

e. artifact: “Rightly Timed”

Songwriter and instrumentalist David Alvarez walks among the echelon of Austin musicians whose personal musical and production diversity has afforded them space in nearly every corner of the city’s music scene. Blackchyl, Sun June, and Dorio make up some of their repertoire, but now Alvarez has turned to focus on their own project, e. artifact.

e. artifact is a perfect brand of Alvarez’s style, a type of 90’s style IDM music refreshed for the old school lovers and newly presented for those yet uninitiated. While downtempo, the intricate layers play with your ear. You instantly know you like it, but it takes a few listens to pinpoint and articulate why.

“Rightly Timed” is the debut single from e. artifact, an apropos name for a song with shifting time signatures. The song has touches from other familiar Austin musicians, such as BLK ODYSSY flutist Paulo Santos and Dorio’s Chad Doriocourt. e. artifact celebrates the debut release tomorrow at Empire Control Room’s Razzfest with J. Soulja, Kassa Overall, Blackchyl, and more.

Cactus Lee: “Rabbit”

Austin’s Cactus Lee could be described as merely a country artist, but to be truly accurate, it’s Texas country. Frontman Kevin Dehan, a lifelong fanatic and student of the Lone Star State’s tenured history of folk and country, has dedicated his music career to being a concrete contributor.

In late March, Cactus Lee released their self-titled album, the project’s sixth—an album delving into all of the classic themes the genre exhibits. The album’s opener “Rabbit” is a bright shuffle, jauntily dotted with accordion flares. A road tune detailing the journey of a traveling musician, Dehan sets the stage for the album’s upbeat, midtempo good time.

Cactus Lee plays a couple of shows this month to dare you to keep from clapping along. They play Community Garden on Cedar Avenue on Thursday, May 22^nd and Buddy’s Place on Burnet on Saturday, May 24^th.

Cactus Lee is out now.

Daily Worker: “Delmar Overload”

Despite only releasing music since 2019, Austin indie rock outfit Daily Worker seems to be taking a page from the Robert Pollard and King Gizzard book of prodigious releases. The group, helmed by Cotton Mather guitarist Harold Whit Williams, has released over a dozen album in just six years. Not surprising when you’re not only a musician, but a prolific poet and author.

By my count, their latest album marks the 15^th installment in Daily Worker’s discography. Field Holler is a trove of lo-fi, jangly indie pop gems. And speaking of Robert Pollard, “Delmar Overload” is a Guided By Voices-inspired tune with packed with a buzzy-string laced hook a great, driving guitar solo, and plenty of 90’s indie nostalgia.

Daily Worker plays a free show this evening at six o’clock at Antone’s Record Shop on the Drag at 29^th.

Pendulum Hearts: “Cocaine Cowboy”

Austin duo Pendulum Hearts take over stages with their blend of Western Swing and rockabilly, filled-out by a rotating cast of characters to round out the rhythm section and sprinkle in soloists. The beat of Pendulum Hearts comes from guitarist and vocalist Chase Risinger and fiddle player Tony Perez.

They’re sweat-inducing, boot-scooting live shows are a large part of the group’s trademark, and one they’ll be bringing to several stages this month behind the release of their new song “Cocaine Cowboy,” an imprudent romp about the fast times of a chosen lifestyle.

Pendulum Hearts plays Infamous Brewing off 620 this Saturday and Fareground Austin on 1^st and Congress next Saturday, May 17^th.

Day Party On 6th Street! Maybe?

On this week’s episode we discuss the many changes coming to the historical 6th Street in downtown Austin. We also discuss if gatekeeping is helping or hurting the music scene. Hip-hop facts about R&B singer Keri Hilson and the first black woman singer to upload to Youtube.

Penny & Sparrow: “Ketamine” (ft. Tobe Nwigwe)

UT Austin alums Andy Baxter and Andy Jahnke have been releasing music together as Penny & Sparrow for a decade. Revered for their poetic lyricism and ability to pull off acoustic gems and electronic meditations masterfully on the same album, Penny & Sparrow continue that tradition on their current album Lefty. An ambitious, twenty-song release weaving their most art-for-arts-sake sonic tapestry to date.

“Ketamine” is one of the group’s electronic outputs, featuring Grammy-nominated Houston rapper Tobe Nwigwe lending his baritone talk-rap skills over Penny & Sparrow’s laid back, slow-tempo groove.

Penny & Sparrow plays the Paramount tonight.

Are We Sinners?

In this episode we discuss the blockbuster movie, “Sinners” , and we also talk about UT’s impact on the local music scene. Brand new hip-hop facts and the controversial Unpopular Opinion with Fresh himself.

Queen Serene: “In A Rut (I’m Stuck)”

Austin psych-rock group Queen Serene was conceived during COVID when former Naked Tungs guitarist Sarah Ronen began writing her own music following the band’s dissolution, but soon realized she preferred creating in a group. Now the group is filled out with Charlie Cassells, Dave Pohly, and co-songwriter Galceran.

Queen Serene’s sophomore album 2 feels out the space rather than filling it like their straight-ahead psych rock debut album did. Leaning into thick-curtained, shoegazey layers, “In A Rut (I’m Stuck)” is a departure from the group’s collaborative songwriting, being one fully written by Galceran during his own COVID rut. But it’s the more cutting edge of shoegaze, providing a trippy, dissonant deluge to get you in the Psych Fest mood.

Queen Serene plays an Austin Psych Fest late night show tonight at 13th Floor opening for SUUNS.

Roaring Sun: “View So Blue”

Austin’s Larry Llodra has fronted a couple of Austin groups including noise rock band UVH. Llodra’s new project Roaring Sun is a hard turn from the hard, fuzzy songs of UVH, opting for a bristly, folk rock sound. The debut album Turn and Wave is melancholic and tender, raw and unflinching. The project was born after Llodra left the corporate 9-5 grind after a health scare for a cross-continental journey to get a hard reset on life and a renewed sense of direction.

“View So Blue” details Llodra’s first brush with lightness and optimism after seeking a fresh start, sitting on a flight heading towards the first leg of his journey, reveling in that first feeling of hope after bucking the burnout.

Turn and Wave is out today, and Roaring Sun’s FREE album release show is THIS SATURDAY, APRIL 26TH AT THE CACTUS CAFE with Jeff Gallagher.

David Ramirez: “I Got People” [Live In Studio 1A]

After over fifteen years of making and releasing music, Austin’s David Ramirez considered hanging up his music career, but he rescinded that notion following the outcry from his fans and a prolonged tenure of soul searching. After all, when raw emotion and critical self-reflection are consistent tenants of your music, sometimes that process can feel like it’s working against the goal of healing.

Four years after his album Backslider, Ramirez released All the Not So Gentle Reminders last month. The album reflects the time following the dissolution of his long-term relationship, whirring through several sounds and moods, sometimes crooney and emotive, sometimes raucous and freewheeling. You’re there on the journey with him.

Ramirez recently took off for a tour across the US and Europe, but before departing, he stopped by Studio 1A with the full band to perform songs from All the Not So Gentle Things. One of those tunes was “I Got People,” a piano ballad lamenting the inability to enjoy or appreciate the great people and opportunities surrounding you because the only person who isn’t around is the only one you want.

Taylor Rae: “Cologne”

Austin singer-songwriter Taylor Rae released her debut album Mad Twenties in 2021, a release that led to a 30-week stint on the Americana radio charts and opportunities to hit the road opening for bands like the Head and the Heart and Band of Heathens.

After a stretch of playing an average of 200 gigs a year, Rae went back in the studio and last week released The Void, an album that turns inward towards reflection rather than external commentary of forces around her. She teamed up with Grammy-winning producer Eric Krasno, who’s worked with groups like Lettuce and Tedeschi Trucks Band, to fully realize her sophomore album that plays with a lot of different genres, reflecting the growth and changes Rae bears throughout the record.

“Cologne” takes a blusier route as a song that began with simply a riff and a line. It’s about yearning in love and missing your partner, throwing on something that smells like them, and watching the clock tick until they can finally pick up the phone.

Playing the 04 Center this Wednesday, here’s Austin’s Taylor Rae with “Cologne.”

Do We Glorify Drug Culture Too Much?

This episode we discuss hip-hop’s effect on drug culture and if we play into too much ourselves. We also discuss hip-hop artists going back to one producer per album, like in the golden eras.

Kirk Smith: “Julian” [New Moon Remix]

Earlier this year, Austin’s Kirk Smith released “Julian,” a song about a perpetual miscreant making every bad decision and burning every bridge he crosses. While that version sported a bossa nova shuffle perfect for a dark lounge, he’s now paired with local producer Lars Goransson to remix “Julian” for a new crowd.

The remix takes a synth-driven direction, leaving but a trace of the bossa nova soul of the original and replacing it with chill club beat akin to the sounds of the late 80s and 90s. It’ll feel right at home on your dance playlist next to Ultravox and Robyn.

Kirk Smith celebrates the release of the new remix with a free show tonight at Celis Brewery joined by yesterday’s Song of the Day artist, TV Wonder.

Jeremiah Jackson: “I Believe In You” [PREMIERE]

Austin’s Jeremiah Jackson has been shaking-up the traditional sounds of the Austin music scene for the last several years with his self-signed “Glam Daddy Blues.” Donned in one of his signature capes of many lengths and many textiles typically matched with street clothes underneath, before the band strikes a chord, you already know you’re in for a ride.

The latest single from Jeremiah Jackson finds him once again joining forces with drummer Mikey Uptmore and bassist/producer Dylan Fischer. If you appreciate the glam of Bowie, the kinetic on-stage presence of Jimi Hendrix, and the songwriting passion of Led Zeppelin, you’re in the right place. “I Believe In You” is an anthem driven by power-pop chords and Tenacious D attitude, hearkening back to a simpler time of rock n roll.

Jeremiah Jackson celebrates the release of the new single this Sunday at Hotel Vegas with Paper Sister and Powdered Wig Machine.