Live music preview: Cosmic Birthday with Poly Action,Kay Odyssey, Lowin, Bitter Birds at Hard Luck Lounge

This Saturday, December 16 The Cosmic Clash is hosting a super great lineup of local bands. Poly Action, Kay Odyssey, Bitter Birds and Lowin are all set to perform at Hard Luck Lounge on their giant back patio. The evening is also a celebration of TCC founder, Mike Cosmic's birthday. It's also free of charge. Yes, you read that right. Show up early, buy Mike a shot of Maker's and get ready for an night of great music and pay no cover charge. 

In honor of the blog turning five and Mike getting another year older, booker Genesis Vasquez put together an impressive roster of bands for a late December show when most promoters are looking to South by Southwest and points beyond. 

Mike Cosmic

I caught Poly Action recently at Hotel Vegas and they're legit. Ray Garza and company delivered a completely entertaining rock n roll set that was equal parts prog, pop, garage and punk which makes me think their name is a perfect vehicle for the band. After taking another listen to their Bandcamp page I'm hyped to see them again.



Kay Odyssey's psych rock weirdness might be a little too authentic for Austin. By that I mean front-woman Kristina Boswell projects the awkward/hip vibe you'd expect from an uber-cool rocker. I've always been smitten with her style and the excellent music follows suit with a tight all-female band. Kay Odyssey just dropped the weirdest (there's that word again) and quite suggestive music video for the dreamy psych-rocker, Mountains in My Step from this year's "What's A Woman To Do." Watch below:




Bitter Birds' pedal organ-driven music fits right into the unorthodox theme. A duo, the band has been compared to early Cure, but a dark, bleaker version by none other than KUTX's Laurie Gallardo. Can't say she's wrong. Laurie knows her stuff.

Show opener Lowin might be one of the more underrated bands in town. Lead singer, guitarist and founder, Sara Houser has been performing for years in Austin, first with San Marcos-based outfit, The Couch and later with her own band. The good conversations I've had with her about creative risks are evident in her work which continues to evolve from hard-charging rock to something different as heard on Lowin's lastest single, Sloop which has more of an alt-indie feel. Either way, I like the music and I think you will too so you get here early enough to catch this set.

There will be be several vendors on hand; FutureMoon (Handcrafted Crystal Jewelry), AnnaMarie Liberati (Handmade Copper Jewelry), PureRomance by Chelsea-Erin, Showpiece Boutique, Meowmod Vintage, Vivelavida (handmade jewelery), EVRYNG Apparel, Cindy Elizabeth Media (PRINTS BY 5TH SEASON) and Lindops (Handmade Treasures) for your holiday shopping pleasure.

RSVP on Facebook. 

Set times: 

LOWIN 745-815P

BITTER BIRDS 830-9P

KAY ODYSSEY 915-945P

POLY ACTION 10-1030P

Live Music Review: A Giant Dog brought their new 'Toy' to Hotel Vegas

By now, most Austin music fans have heard of A Giant Dog (AGD) or sister act Sweet Spirit. What many folks may not know is how underrated A Giant Dog is due to the local popularity of their larger, more irreverent, glam rock act. After all, Mayor Adler proclaimed them his favorite band earlier this year.  If A Giant Dog's standout pervious Merge Records release, “Pile” didn’t convince you the five-piece garage punks aren’t headed for stardom (or at least a cult following), the more commercially accessible, “Toy” (released September 25) will.

 As good as those two recordings are, their live show has the kind of raw, visceral energy that would stop even the most prolific of the guitar "rock is dead" naysayers to rescind their claims and admit rock n roll never died. In fact, we would argue hard-charging guitar rock is on the upswing. Just look at the list of acts similar to AGD on Spotify. They’re all guitar-dominated bands at their core.

Friday evening’s album release at Hotel Vegas was moved up a day to mitigate possible weather issues from Hurricane Harvey’s approach early Saturday morning. With the wind whipping up and storm clouds approaching, A Giant Dog turned in a superlative 20-song set in front of an enthusiastic, sold-out back patio crowd following a rare opening garage-rock set from the previously on-hiatus Austin trio, HARLEM.

Lead vocalist Sabrina Ellis appeared on stage in a trademark leotard with fishnets pulled up over the bottom half, a hood and red, lace-up Doc Martens. The band led off the performance with new track, “Photograph”. It is fitting this song is the first track on the new album as it exemplifies the group’s transition from garage-punks to allowing their glam rock side out amid Andrew Cashen and Andy Bauer’s typically loud guitars and in-your-face lyrics delivered by Ellis.  As much credit Ellis gives Cashen for creating an endless supply of riffs the band turns into songs, the lyrics she puts to the music packs a punch. Photograph’s refrain is unforgettable:

      I wanna stare at you like a photograph 

      I wanna make you come if you can make me laugh 

     Wanna spin you upside down like a rodeo between the sheets 

      I wanna stare at you with my eyes all wide 

      I wanna make you cry I wanna make you cry 

      Like an eagle to the sky, bolt of lightning every time we meet 

AGD reached back to 2013’s “Bone” with the next two songs before dipping back into “Toy” with “Lucky Ponderosa” and “Toy Gun.” The latter has a hook that catches the listener’s attention right away along with Sabrina doing a count-off vocally like the Violent Femmes’ classic, “Add It Up.” The song has the kind of hit potential as Pile's "Sex & Drugs" which the band saved for later in the performance.

The surprise of the evening came when A Giant Dog rolled out a cover of INXS’ “Don’t Change.” The group gave the song an AGD “treatment” turning the dance hit into a guitar-heavy rocker softened by Ellis' vocals. Check a clip from the song recorded live at Hotel Vegas above. A Giant Dog wrapped up the crowd-surfing party with a five-song encore that began with “Sex & Drugs” followed by “& Rock & Roll.” See what they did there? “Creep” (not a Radiohead cover), “Angst in my Pants” (Sparks cover) and “Too Much Makeup” rounded out the set list as exuberant fans heaved a sigh of contentment. Cashen told us the new cover will be in the tour set list "until we get tired of playing it."

View the complete set list here.

A Giant Dog are currently on tour nationally in support of “Toy.” Catch them at a venue near you by clicking through to this list of tour dates. The band lands back in Austin early November for Sound on Sound Festival.

UPDATED for 2016 - 5 Ways to Find the Best SXSW Parties and RSVP

South by Southwest (SXSW) Music, Film and Interactive Festival is only 4 weeks away. The festival takes place March 11-20 in Austin. Each year there a hundreds of sponsored, free parties with live music, complimentary food, drink and swag for party-goers.

With the growth of SXSW Interactive, there are top tier music events to attend during interactive as well as the music week. All you need to do is RSVP and arrive early enough to enter the venue before it reaches capacity. Keep in mind, badge holders will have priority at official showcases. The amount of listings, can be daunting, so we compiled a short list of resources to... Continue reading

Live music review: Sweet Spirit and Walker Lukens led off year for Black Fret

Sweet Spirit and Walker Lukens at Black Fret 2016 opening

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Even if you are an Austin music fan that is 'in the loop" you may not be familiar with the non-profit organization Black Fret which donates $100,000 to 10 local bands each year. The funds come from annual dues collected from the group's members. The "Patrons of Local Music" charity was launched by Matt Ott and Colin Kendrick in 2013 as a way for Austin residents to support emerging musical acts. The majority of past recipients have used their $10K grant from Black Fret towards production costs to record new material.

Last week the group convened at The Parish in downtown Austin to introduce members to their first three grant candidates of the year; Sweet Spirit, Walker Lukens and Harvest Thieves. All three are... continue reading

Why You Should Care About Austin Venue Closings: Real Issues Facing the Local Music Scene

Photo: Tyson Zoltan Heder

This post originated on Facebook September 28, 2015. As the year comes to a close I thought it appropriate to share again via this blog in hopes that Austin residents gain a clearer picture of the challenges facing the local music industry and the City of Austin as we head into 2016. Will this be the year Austin residents, local government and local business owners align their vision for the "Live Music Capital" or will we continue to claim that title despite the current disconnect? I certainly hope it is the former. The people who work tirelessly to make the music industry in Austin function as well as it does deserve it. Go see a local show. 

Yesterday was the last day for music venue, Holy Mountain and tireless partner/general manager James Taylor there are a few thoughts I would like to share regarding the closing and what it means to the Austin music scene:

1. Venues come and go (they have since I arrived here over 15 years ago). The real loss this week is an Austin small venue operator, music industry proponent and musician who helped grow the Red River scene, supported young acts and worked behind the scenes to further the cause of all small venue operators. The fact that we're losing James to Minneapolis hurts a lot more than losing the venue he made successful. It will be difficult to replace him.

2. The significance of Holy Mountain, Red 7 and now possibly Hole in the Wall closing is not that venues closing is intrinsically bad for the live music ecosystem in Austin, rather it is the message it sends to prospective small venue owners that investing in such ventures may be too risky to consider (with fast-rising real estate values), the fact that a long-term lease is unlikely because of those rising values and costly obstacles to overcome (like a complicated city permitting system).

3. Holy Mountain's closing also highlights another issue many of us aren't talking about much: The fact that the majority of Austinites seem to prefer supporting out-of-town bands over their musician neighbors who ostensibly make Austin "The Live Music Capital." Venues like ACL Live regularly sell-out shows like last week's Death Cab for Cutie two-night run at around $50 a ticket. Fans are less likely to see a talented band like Sweet Spirit for $5 at a tiny club. If nothing else, the intimacy of a show like that makes going to a local show a somewhat more appealing than a venue that holds 2800 fans. It's time we start taking OWNERSHIP of the city's unofficial logo and spend a lousy $5 (or $10) to make sure our scene lives up to it's moniker.

4. Change is the constant we can count on both in the music scene and in our everyday lives. Make a change for yourself by deciding TODAY you want to be a part of Austin's music scene by supporting local clubs like the newly opened Sidewinder and whatever they're going to call the new venue at the old Red 7 space. Or just plan to regularly hit your favorite venue and buy locally produced records. Get involved with organizations that support local artists like Austin Music People, Mosaic Sound Collective, Health Alliance for Austin Musicians - HAAM and The SIMS Foundation or simply donate funds to a similar group annually.

5. Understand that talented musicians who chose to make Austin their home will stay if as a community we do what is necessary to give them the opportunity for the same quality of life as their predecessors. It is not a given that folks will stay here struggling to make ends meet if they see little indication of improved work opportunities and/or a healthy music scene. For a long time Austin was attractive to artists because the city was affordable to live in. Now with high rents and increasing property values, the community needs to give artists a reason to stay and pursue their goals (some of those are listed in #4 above).

Live music review: Galactic brought NOLA funk, The Suffers added H-Town soul

Friday evening at Emo's was billed a headliner show for New Orleans-based Galactic but ended up a fantastic double-bill with H-town buzz-act The Suffers opening the show. A large portion of the audience came for Galactic but those in know arrived early to catch the soulful Kam Franklin and the nine piece, self-styled Gulf Coast soul players lay a heavy dose of emotion on fans. The soul didn't stop with The Suffers as Galactic guest vocalist Erica Falls belted out lyrics with ferocity. The feel-good vibes were flowing.

Beyond being New Orleans' best known jam band, Galactic features... Continue reading

Live music review: Heartless Bastards returned to ACL TV for debut at Moody

One aspect of television's Austin City Limits (ACL TV) Texas music fans can appreciate is the show stays true to its roots by showcasing local talent on a regular basis. Considering the venerable live music program has the option to book internationally acclaimed acts Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails and recent Grammy winner Beck, it is reassuring to see producers persist in sharing the best Texas acts with the rest of the world. Monday evening's taping with Austin-based Heartless Bastards (HB) continued the tradition with their second appearance on the show, their debut at ACL Live at the Moody Theater.

The quartet is now a... Continue reading

Live music review: BADBADNOTGOOD packed Yellow Stage to close Fun Fun Fun Fest

If you're a frequent Examiner reader, you may have asked yourself why the hell we included an instrumental jazz band among our top picks at this year's Fun Fun Fun Fest(FFF Fest) last week. We had good reason. Toronto trio BADBADNOTGOOD (BBNG) performed as a quartet Sunday for most of their headlining set with frequent collaborator, saxophonist Leland Whitty. Simply put, their music is sublime. There is no other touring act that sounds like these guys. Where else can fans hear a band that takes classic and contemporary hip-hop tunes and turns them into... Continue reading

Live music preview: 5 must see buzz acts at Fun Fun Fun Fest 2015

With eight short days left on the calendar until Fun Fun Fun Fest (FFF Fest) takes overAuditorium Shores in Austin we're overdue to share our top five picks from the excellent lineup this year. Since most of us are familiar with the headliners: Chvrches, Wu-Tang Clan, NOFX, Odesza and Lauryn Hill we're sticking to buzz acts in our list. After all, Fun Fun Fun Fest curates a lineup that is made for discovering bands.

Speaking of Hill, her addition to the line-up in place of D'Angelo and the Vanguard who first cancelled his ACL TV appearance last week then cancelled his ....Continue reading

Live music review: Sir Elton John played hits at F1 US Grand Prix Sunday

Photo: Suzanne Cordeiro

If you have never seen British pop star Elton John perform, naturally you want to see the gifted songwriter play his many hits. John recognized the F1 US Grand Prix fans at his show last night at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) were largely race fans not necessarily concertgoers. Thus he decided to play a greatest hits setlist. The diminutive piano player ran through 21 songs in two hours while dressed in a glittery black coat emblazoned with Rocket Man across his back. Backed by longtime collaborators, John and his band jammed, played sing-alongs and made fans forget about the soggy, muddy conditions that plagued COTA all weekend.

Performing on the temporary Super Stage between turns 11 and 12, the "Rocket Man" kicked off the show with appropriately titled... Continue reading