Jac with No K Archives - KUT & KUTX Studios

It’s always satisfying to hear artists incorporate local flavors once they relocate to a new musical hub. For Pittsburgh-born, Philly-braised songwriter Jac Carson, a move to Austin meant patting down his cut of blues-alt-rock with spices of cosmic country and neo-soul into a style he’s dubbed “New Texas Groove”. Even in light of the setbacks that came with COVID, Carson and his backing band Jac With No K have enjoyed a bevy of shows in the Live Music Capital since they arrived in 2020, not to mention plenty of national performances on the road. Speaking of which, right now Jac With No K is on a Northwest/Eastern-Midwest tour in promotion of their 5th EP (and first written in Texas), Imaginary Lovers. Far from a mere figment, these four tracks pack a wallop compared to what you’d expect from a handful of “love songs”. Imaginary Lovers dropped last Friday and Jac With No K returns in a couple weeks with several free live shows. Thursday, July 21st at El Mercado South, Saturday, July 23rd at The Lucky Duck, Saturday, July 30th at The Drafting Room, and noon to 2pm every Monday and Thursday at Friends Bar. So celebrate the band’s latest set of travels in person or with a one-way ticket to the Mediterranean courtesy of Imaginary Lovers‘ penultimate crowd-pleaser, “Morocco”.

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”!