Kalijah, the 4 piece post-indie, sensuous rock band in Austin, Texas released their debut EP Mouth of the Cave complete with mouth watering melodies and lyrics that punch you awake. The namesake song of the album whisks your consciousness from where you last left it and you’re hearing words like:
“mouth of a cave was open up wide,

we climbed over teeth and we crawled deep inside,

crystal formations the size of a man,

a shining blue light on the red coral sand.”

The gruff vocals quickly endear you and the band’s full sound immerses you in the song, and then you’re the one in the mouth of the cave. Another notable song from the EP, “Man of Wealth” picks up the cave narrative and spurlunks deeper, reflecting on the complex nature of the human psyche. They sing, “I’m going to own myself. I’m a man of wealth,” in the face of a dark, daunting cave of subconsciousness; Plato would be impressed. What an empowering mantra of self-ownership and self-worth. Kalijah’s poetics amplify their already strong and cohesive sound.

Their spotify account reaches active listeners from, of course, good ole Texas all the way to our South American brothers and sisters in Brazil and Uruguay. Music so beautifully and indiscriminately brings people together from all backgrounds, and there’s no better time than now for music to build community and heal the world, right? Kalijah, thank you for bringing ears and hearts together through your sheer humanity and psychedelica-tinged resonance.

-Melissa Green 

  

 

Hippo Campus opened the show for The Head and the Heart at ACL Live on Wednesday night. Their charisma and emotive performance stirred the crowd into dance, readying them for the headlining act. The penultimate song of their set, South, is inspired by Texas, they said. A great set, great presence; visiting from St.Paul, Minnesota, the band brought electric energy for the Austin crowd.

The Head and the Heart have toured through Austin numerous times earning them a warm reception. They opened the show with “All We Ever Knew,” and immediately hooked the room with the hit song from their 2016 album, Signs of Light. The band played a balanced mix of tunes from their old and new albums; their newest album, Living Mirage, released earlier this year. The all-ages crowd indiscriminately bopped to the acoustic chords from their earlier music and the synthy sounds from on the newest record.

Admittedly, the most cheesy moment of the performance was when the lead singer, Josiah Johnson, paused in the middle of the beloved “Let’s Be Still,” with a call for flashlights: “Everyone, take out your phone flashlights and let’s fill this room with fireflies.” Somehow it seems less romantic when the musician makes this request, compared to the days past of music loving audiences spontaneously breaking out their lighters.

Although their sound is evolving, they’ve maintained a deep sense of lyricism. The album’s single, “Honeybee,” sings of a relationship sticking it out through hard times, and is not at all about bees: “Such a fool, I took your love and I bent all the rules…stuck around to let me know, built a family of our own.” Frontwoman and violinist, Charity Thielen explains that “‘Honeybee’ really captures the idea of realizing you may have been living a life complacent with the familiar. Maybe even taking the person closest to you for granted and regretting not expressing your love towards them until it’s too late.”

They closed the evening with the song everyone was waiting for, Rivers and Roads, reminding us of why we fell in love with them in the first place. Released in 2011, the song’s sentiments grow more relatable each year contributing to it being a timeless favorite in the neo-folk canon. They sing, “a year from now we’ll all be gone, all our friends will move away.” Imagine now all the change you’ve experienced in the last 8 years. Do you relate? Does this song resonate? Do Charity’s haunting vocals still move you like the first time you heard it?

 

-Melissa Green

 

Mike Deni, who plays music under the moniker, Geographer, is back on tour for his latest album, New Jersey. The 36 year-old musician has been making music for over 12 years now and stands on a wide catalogue of music, spanning 7 releases, that have crossed a spectrum of genres and influences as Deni has progressed in his career. We sat down with Deni before his show at the Parish, to hear him dish about his onstage personas, his love of touring, and his favorite spots to hang while in Austin.  

 

 

Let’s catch up on the tour. You’re getting towards the latter end of your dates. How has everything been so far on the New Jersey Garden State Tour?

Really good. It’s been even more exciting than I anticipated. A lot of people are coming up to me and saying they’re seeing me for the first time, like they used to listen to me in high school but they could never get into the shows so I’m seeing a lot of 21 year-olds who are seeing me for the first time which is pretty cool. I didn’t know that was a thing so that’s cool.

 

Your live performances definitely have a rawer quality. Have you gotten that feedback in the past before?

Yeah, that’s always something I hear. I feel like certain bands are always trying to capture the energy of the live performance on record and it’s just not really possible. The Grateful Dead is a band that’s known for live performances. If you listen to their studio albums they’re pretty, sort of, staid and sterile. Or Bruce Springsteen who’s known for his live performances, his albums sound great. But it’s kind of a completely different experience.

And I think my music might be like that too. Where the goals that I have in the studio are completely different than the goals that I have on stage. Onstage I’m a very different person than I am generally.

I certainly am garrulous and outgoing but not as much as I am onstage. And in the studio I’m extremely introspective and almost somber. So, yeah, maybe that has something to do with it. Just the two different Mikes that are making the music.

 

Is it therapeutic when you become that extroverted person onstage?

Well it’s pretty fun if it’s natural to do. If you have to sort of contrive it, it can feel really horrible. I don’t want to say horrible, but it just feels extremely disingenuous if you’re having a really off day but these people deserve as good a show as the last place when you were feeling fantastic. It’s like you kind of still have to pull it out of yourself. And generally, like, halfway through the show or a couple songs in it just happens organically as a result of making the music which is exciting to me. It’s exciting to strap on a guitar and sing through some speakers. But sometimes it takes a little while for me to get going. But yeah when, but to be able to do that and sort of exaggerate that side of myself is a very pleasing experience.

 

So with the new album ,New Jersey, the lyrics are a little Springsteen-esque. There’s a little blue collar streak isn’t there?

Oh really, interesting. I’m not a blue collar man.

Well not 100% blue collar. But maybe just a little bit of the worn-down romanticism?

Yeah I mean, I think that’s what it’s about. It’s about, like I was just, I don’t know. I was just trying to make songs that were nostalgic without being contrived. So it was like a depth to the, and really I was really just drawing from my personal experiences in a way that I don’t always do. I do a lot, there’s always personal aspects to all the songs. But a lot of them are concepts that then I apply to myself.

But these, particularly “Summer of my Discontentment” and “Love is Wasted in the Dark” were just straight up about my life and I was just in that mood just sitting in my new apartment in L.A. and just thinking about how I used to feel. Because I’ve always felt like a different person at every stage in my life. It doesn’t, it doesn’t feel like there was a through line. I was a child and that’s a different guy and then I went to college and he’s a totally different guy. And then I’ve sort of been the same person for a decade or more now. But the truth is, is that I am the same person. So it’s like, where does that disconnect occur? Where is the rift between phases? And I was just trying to connect those dots.

 

Are you comfortable on the road? 

Yes, in many ways it’s my best self because I get pretty depressed when I’m not doing something all the time.

And the charge of songwriting is very challenging because it’s like, when you write a song and it’s a good one, it’s a great high and nothing feels better. But sometimes you wake up the next day and nothing comes or there’s long weeks of frustration and recording is really intense too. But on tour life is so simple, it’s just be nice to the people around you and play good shows, try to get a lot of sleep and eat well and exercise. And it’s just like, I can do that. 

The goals are very small and I’m good at them all. So it’s really relaxing and I’m around people all the time which I think is good for my mental health which I’m not, when I’m at home. I spend so much time alone. Sometimes I don’t even leave the house for a few days. Which is not healthy. So it, all the challenges that come with tour, which they’re real and I feel them and I get grumpy but then at the end of the day I’m just like, well I’m happy.

I’m around my friends and I get to do my favorite thing every night and meet a lot of excited people and it’s pretty great.

 

You have history in Austin, I mean, you’ve been coming here for a long time.

Yeah, it’s the home away from home for sure. Because we had a friend here too who we used to stay with all throughout SXSW.

When we would come here we wouldn’t just spend time in a hotel. So it was pretty great, got to know the city really well and yeah, Austin is one of those highlights of every tour. I think is a result of playing it so many times, it’s like, your hometown crowd is always going to be your best. And that’s San Francisco but then there’s other places that I’ve played so many times that it’s almost a hometown crowd vibe and I think Austin is chief among those. It’s kind of like the second city to really pop off after San Francisco.

I remember I played the Mohawk and sold it out on my first headline tour and it was such a shock.

It was just like, what? Yeah, that was the best feeling in the world, to expect if 50 people showed up at the show I would’ve been so excited and then 900 came. It was pretty wild. Yeah they had us in the small room and then they bumped us to the bigger room. It was like rock and roll dreams coming true. So I’ll always associate Austin with that experience. Of being young and really stupid and just so excited.

 

Do you have the Austin routine, you got to hit the tacos or BBQ or what do you get into here?

Well I had an Austin routine where we would go to Freedmen’s. But it closed?

Oh yeah, it shut down.

Yeah, and the reason I went there was because it was pretty much just as good as all the other barbecue places because once you reach a certain level of barbecue it’s like, it’s hard to tell when you’re having the absolute best and when you’re having like, 98%-

And maybe Freedmen’s was 98% but that’s just fine for a guy who lives in California where the barbecue is terrible. But so, we would go there because there were never lines but I guess then that meant that the business wasn’t booming.

So, what was good for Geographer was not good for Freedmen’s. So we need a new Austin routine honestly. I love the tacos here, they are amazing. But so far I feel like our routine is go to Koriente for lunch because it’s really healthy and really cheap and maybe go to Easy Tiger for like a tea or something. And then we got to find our new barbecue joint.

 

 When you’re putting together this tour, you’ve got over a decade body of work, how do you pick your setlist?

Well okay so I try to balance what I think the fans will want to hear with what I want to play. I never want to be one or the other artist.

Where I’m just “Screw you, I do what I want” that’s just not my personality. I definitely want people to be pleased. But I also, I do admire artists when they do just do something for themselves and I think everybody does. So I have, I’ve thrown in one song that’s really just for me. I’m playing every single song from the new EP just because it’s what I’m most excited about.

But it’s short too, so it’s not too much of an imposition. And then I try to just play all the quote-on-quote hits. And, I’ll never play a tour without playing “Kites”, obviously. For the rest of my life which is a blessing. Yeah, and then I try to throw in one deep cut. Like that I’ve never played before on tour.

So it’s like, maybe one person in the crowd will be crazy excited but I just remember how I felt watching Radiohead for the first time. Just begging a god that I don’t believe in that they would play “Let Down” or something that they, just one of the songs that is not a big song for them.

And I think they did play one of the ones I wanted to hear and I was just so unbelievably excited and it’s like, for people who that’s not their favorite song, they’re not going to hate it. And it’s over soon, and I just think it’s a nice flow. Because I’ve done tours before where I’m just like, all the hits, nothing but the hits, and it’s not that much fun.

There’s not a lot of meat inside that sandwich, you know what I mean? So it’s, I feel like this set is one of the best I’ve crafted. It’s very thought out, the progression of the show. And there are moments where I let the energy wane on purpose and then just slam it with a big one so I’ve been really pleased with it.

 

Is it a blessing or curse, when you feel obligated to play a song for the rest of your career?

Well I think, I feel very, aside from the just feeling lucky to have a song that people like, I feel lucky because the song on mine that everybody likes is one that means so much to me.

It’s actually really deeply personal and it was the first song that I wrote, like I almost lost my mind when I recorded, like I recorded it mostly at home, like the demo. And I was just like, what did you just do? I was like, this is a volcano.

So it reminds me of that moment. And then it reminds me of making something of myself? You know, like, achieving my dreams, so I have all these positive associations with the song. It’s so fun to sing, I get to just hit like, my highest note over and over again.

And just the fact that people want to hear it so much, it’s so cool. I mean I could see it getting, okay so, last night for instance I was, Houston is a really rowdy crowd which is really fun because they just live out loud. 

And I was sort of like, obviously I’m going to play “Kites.” Just let me play these other songs for you too. But then I was reflecting on it and I was like, but dude you wouldn’t know that you wanted it, like the fact that they want to hear it so bad that they’re screaming it at you is so cool and then you wouldn’t know that they wanted to hear it if they weren’t screaming it. So I’m just like, yeah. I’m just trying to be grateful.

Yeah, I guess I just, it’s a funny mentality of like, well okay, when I saw Bruce Springsteen it was like, I know he’s going to play “Dancing in the Dark.” I know he’s going to play “Born to Run.”

Right? He’s never not going to play, he’d be an idiot not to play those. But it’s like, there’s a lot of other songs that are just as good that he might not play. So you might want to scream them at him.

So it’s like, yeah. The people, just so you know, I’m always going to play “Kites” forever.

 

Photo by Austin Hansen

Interview by Lee Ackerley

 

 A sold out show: Jamila Woods and her amazing band brought authentic Chicago strength and soul to Barracuda playing her new album LEGACY! LEGACY! The instruments were dressed with bright colored scarves and a black obelisk donning Wood’s lyrics stood tall behind them on stage. 

Sipping warm tea between songs, Woods radiated humility and gratitude. With impeccable composure and insight, she introduced her songs sharing the inspiration and process behind them.

 

Woods dropped some facts about Frida Kahlo’s life and allowed her lyrics to explain the rest in FRIDA, a songstory about a difficult relationship seeking harmony through boundaries; “I like you better when you see me less…We could do it like Frida, we could build a bridge then I could come see ya.” Her thought-provoking lyrics and her melodic vocals cajole the listener to feel between the lines and awe at her command of figurative language.

 

Her positively-charged-proton presence fills the room. Her poetry amplifies the positivity as her lyrics serve to empower herself and the audience. Do not misunderstand this positivism to mean blind idealism or marxism, the positivity instead represents renewed optimism born from adversity. Her song, EARTHA, addresses the battle some may wage with self worth and self love. Before singing this one she asked us, “Has anyone ever been in a relationship that fucked you up?” Imagine how many people confirmed her question with hoots and hollers.

 

This song, EARTHA, became one of the anthems of the evening as Woods paused, demonstrating how to cast a self-love spell and inviting the audience to participate by joining her  to sing the chorus: “Who gonna share my love for me with me?” Everyone’s relationship with Self is unique to their own, but if you were waiting for permission to love yourSelf, here it is from Jamila Woods. Repeat this chorus as many times as necessary. Follow up with HOLY from her HEAVN album. The audience needed no invitation to sing along to this one, the penultimate song of the evening. The hypnotic hymn provides another powerful mantra and declaration: “Woke up this morning with my mind set on loving me.”

The album’s content and scope reaches deeper and farther than just positivity, but it is by this means that she delivers an end (not the end). OCTAVIA is a song of poetic justice and so, so meta. Woods sings, “it used to be a crime to write a line, our great great greats risked their lives to learn by fireside,” as a reverential nod to her ancestral past. She continues, “We are a precious creation, our black has no imitation.” Her lines can resonate with anyone of any background, but her love for her blood is healing and beautiful.

 

Woods’ words are incredible, but her articulation and delivery is what gives them life. ZORA, named after the author Zora Neale Hurston, catches the ear with how she dissects and “discomobs [our] mold” of understanding. With a touch of zen buddhism, the chorus repeats “you will never know everything, everything. I will never know everything, everything;” and with a sprinkle of peaceful protest the second verse is an embedded poem within the song: “My weaponry/ is my energy/ I tenderly/ fill my enemies/ with white light.”

 

Woods brought more than just good energy to the show on Tuesday night, she brought lasting ruminations, free affirmations, and peaceful incantations. The Chicago spirit of the band blessed this Austin crowd.

 

 

 

-Melissa Green

 

  

While dance/electronica music usually isn’t at the top of my list when I’m browsing my next show, Barracuda is always an intimate space where you can have a good time. Across the street was Austin Terror Fest at Empire Control Room where a curious juxtaposition of sound blended when you were outside.

 

[Michael] Parallax went on first. In case you were wondering, Parallax is a scientific term about the displacement of lines. The show had lots of light work, like a miniature rave. On a surface level, Parallax’s performance was fun, yet not musically something I’d sit at home and listen to. Several people there looked like they had wandered off 6th street and just wanted a spot to drink, the music being secondary. Many couples were huddled together on a date night. Michael told the audience to do a slow motion mosh pit, and that was amusing to watch. Some parts he unnaturally told the crowd to do things like pull out their phone lights and swing them around, or all do a certain dance. 

 

In contrast, Kae Astra made music that should accompany a night time dream or a guided meditation.The instrumental was similar to Beach House, and the high pitched, ethereal singing reminds me of Grimes. The backdrop changed as the musical atmosphere evolved, that aspect made the show more immersive. Her giant curly hair bobbed as she played her one woman show. Dream pop is a broad term but I would call her dream pop because of the light, airy atmosphere the music created. Overall, it was fun to close my eyes and listen to the music, but it didn’t draw the crowd in for a substantial amount of time. The eager “let’s get this over so I can see who I came for” energy was in the air. People going out to smoke, or having a conversation by the bar.

 

Ever since the show I have had Night Drive’s song “Anyone’s Ghost” stuck in my head. “Anyone’s Ghost” is the song that aired on KUTX and with 4.7k views putting it at their most popular song. If you’re a fan of strobe lights this is the show for you. Tastefully around the mic stand, drums, and synth stand were colored strobes that would periodically flash with the peak of the songs would go faster and faster. The band’s sound was similar to 80s new wave synth pop bands like Eurythmics, A Flock of Seagulls, New Order, or even Depeche Mode. It was the musical and emotional darkness of the songs that drew me to 80s new wave synth pop. So the familiar sound with a futuristic twist kept me and the audience engaged. The band draws inspiration from sci-fi cinematic landscapes and brings the visual of those landscapes into an audio sound. The audience gyrated like one giant mass wrapping around the singer as he stepped onto the ground to sing, immersed in the audience.

 

-Hillary Harris

 

Toronto is under the national spotlight with Drake and his beloved Raptors in the NBA finals and consequently all over our television screens – yet some of Toronto’s chosen children slipped into Austin, under the radar, with a show at Barracuda on Saturday. Dilly Dally has a signature serrated grunge sound with idiosyncratic vocal affectations that coalesce into a table saw of vicious melodies and chord progression bliss. 

 

 Lead singer, Katie Monks, has all the attitude and humility that you can handle from a Canadian rocker, and then some, but while the crowd wasn’t the largest i’ve seen them play for – they still went about eviscerating mediocrity with wanton abandon. Hits from their debut album, Sore, are still as magnetizing as they were when they arrived in the national consciousness four years ago. “Desire” and “Candy Mountain”  are anthemic in a way that makes pop and rock  music writers green with envy.

 

The Canadian quartet would cover Drake’s “Know Yourself” in calamitous and thundering fashion, while also making their way through hits from their 2018 album, Heaven.  A gem that fell out of the pocket of 90’s grunge band influences and rolled into the late 2010’s with unrelenting ferocity, Dilly Dally is showing that the fire that burned in rock audiences twenty years ago is roaring back to life with uncompromising sound and authentic attitude.

 

A lazy summer heat beat down on the Line Hotel’s outdoor pool as mass of laissez-faire humanity lounged around the oasis like bespectacled sun lizards. Local musicians, instagram-obsessed 20-somethings, and tattooed Californian bros all assembled to absorb the easygoing aesthetic, as well as the brilliantly curated music of music legend, Peanut Butter Wolf.

 

Kicking off a music-focused Summer pool party series, The Line Hotel pulled off a coup in getting Chris Manak aka Peanut Butter Wolf to appear in such a casual and understated setting. PBW is producer/ DJ and founder of Stones Throw Records, one of the most successful and influential indie labels of all time. Yet there he stood, pulling vinyl out of crates behind a poolside DJ setup, largely ignored by the oblivious bathing suit-clad day drinkers. A gaggle of hip-hop heads and inspired bikini girls floated around the DJ booth as PBW dropped audio jewels on his decks.

 

Time evaporated as the sunset of the evening’s pool party began to avail itself.  Peanut Butter Wolf continued to paint the ambience with deep hip-hop cuts and danceable rhythms. A quintessential Austin afternoon that ebbed away beautifully and helped frame what a casual Sunday pool party should look like.

 If you live in Austin, you’ve likely seen Indoor Creature stickers around town. Their show provides more than just a sound, but also a warm camaraderie to associate with the band. The show at Cheer Up Charlies on Saturday highlighted their EP release, Both Sides. The venue was packed with their friends and supporters. There was a total of 5 bands playing that evening, and between sets all the band members were socializing and smiling. Cheer Ups felt more like a hometown house party where everybody knows everybody, and everybody is relieved it’s finally summertime in Austin. The band chose a great weekend for their release; due to UT’s graduation everyone and their mom was out to celebrate.

Spotify categorizes this Austin-born band as ‘pop,’ but I’d describe their sound as refined chillwave with creamy vocals and sophisticated melodies featuring an array of instruments. You can lose yourself in the groove. And the bongos.

 

A saxophone also appears during the set that really ties the funkiness together. Listen to “Paradox” at 2:00 to hear the sensuous brass.

 

I lost consciousness during their second song of the show, Ode to Boone. It might have been the day drinking, the oversugary watermelon vodka, or the bassline penetrating my soul, but regardless I passed out for 6-8 seconds. I’m glad I didn’t miss too much of this playful, truly fantastic story of a song. The chorus goes: He’s not a puppy anymore, he’s a middle-aged dog, he’s a grown-ass man, now.

 

Indoor Creature is comprised of 4 talented musicians who aren’t afraid to experiment with sound, image, and ideas evidenced by their poetic lyrics. They’re bridging genres and co-creating a new vibe for those coming of age in Austin. Get a taste of their dynamic in their music video for “Dreams or Whatever,” an EP they released in 2018, OR catch them at their next show at Electric Church on June 1st.

 

-Melissa Green

  Barracuda has a rugged dive bar charm that emanates an air of volatility that spills into the surrounding streets. The bars in close proximity are still holding their rugged charm and the graffiti on the Barracuda’s bathroom walls and wood paneled walls is a far cry from modern. The lineup for Tuesday night’s Barracuda show would be a hard rocking triumvirate of Sailor Poon, Saint Pe, and Dead Meadow.

Before Sailor Poon went on as the first opener, someone asked me “Do you ever headbang during a sound check?”. This is the perfect statement to summarize the kind of show Sailor Poon put on. Cheraya the drummer has a pink fuzzy drum set, and when Billie the vocalist and Saxophone player brought out her Sax there was red lipstick stained on the reed. Sailor Poon used a variety of vocal sounds during their set. Screams, maniacal laughs, hysteric laughs, wailing. Spooky, bone collecting, scream queens. Sailor Poon even asked for the lights the be dimmed to a spooky red to raise the spook factor. The performance was theatrical with the vocalists dancing, and facial expressions. A totally engaging show. Billie switching from saxophone to vocals effortlessly. A mix of heavy metal sludge sounds where the music makes you slowly start head banging faster and faster then transitioning to the fast thrashy punk that makes you want to smash around. I think the audience from the Leftover Crack show would of done very well at a Sailor Poon show. Lots of moshing. The reverb of the vocals give an ethereal sound at times too.

Following Sailor Poon was Saint Pe. Ian Saint Pe, a singer from the Black Lips, started Saint Pe. Although the Black Lips are a very established band I felt that Saint Pe was trying to still find their sound as a band. There was ambivalence from the crowd. Some people stayed for a song or two then went to smoke and nobody was up front and center at the stage. Most hung in the back at a cautious distance. Vocals were difficult to hear, and it proved difficult to get into the band’s vibe.

 

When it was time for Dead Meadows set, there was a total influx of people into the crowd. The venue shifted from a spacious atmosphere to being packed with sporadic clouds of smoke occasionally arising from the newly formed crowd. Before the show I reached out the a member from The Black Angels and asked what he thought about Dead Meadow. “They’re consistently a badass band” is what he said, and the crowds response supported that. Naturally of course, there was the guy with dreads and a dirty shirt dancing around in circles in the back. Dead Meadow gives people who weren’t alive for the birth of psychedelic rock, a band to jam to. Incorporating the extended guitar solos, “wahs “wahs”, and feedback that are staple elements to psychedelic rock. Between songs the crowd would hoot and holler “Dead Meadow!” “Hell yeah!”. People were swaying and singing along, heavy crowd engagement.

 

  

Carrie Fussell performed a solo set at the Volstead this past weekend, and as an active songwriter in the Austin music scene, she is a fantastic example of an authentic Austin artist. Carrie plays solo sets and you can also hear her performing with her other band, Calliope Musicals. A love of creativity and music radiates from her in an effusive manner. Her songs are honest and her presence is as genuine as it gets. Her album, Songs By A Bear, on Spotify, is the juiciest album I’ve listened to all year even though she put it out in 2017.

 

She appeared as a pixie in a black leotard with green bangs and smiling eyes, with a voice and vulnerability destined to ground listeners to the present. Her songs are playful, inspirational and are sung just as  gracefully as they are unraveled sensationally. Her sound is so pleasantly arresting that passerbys are frozen in their tracks after having heard her sirenic prose.

 

“Kitty of the year” is dedicated to her kitty who died. Her angel voice, the syncopated chorus, and the relatable nature of the song make this an easy favorite. Carrie is a one woman show,  singing all the songs, playing all the music, expertly looping her vocals creating the effect of a choir backing her.

 

-Melissa Green 

  As ritual chants broke over the crowd’s heads, a throng of people were mesmerized by the presence of the incendiary individuals on stage. Le Butcherettes, lead by Teri Gender Bender, start to play and people begin to fidget with anxiety in anticipation of dancing. Careless poetic verses float through the audience as the band exemplifies their true expression through body movements, equally magnetizing as hypnotic. Many fans waved their phones in the air for instagram stories and social media photos while many others stood stupified by their brilliance.

L7 didn’t let up the torrent of force as they purveyed aggressive riffs that demanded movement and headbanging from listeners. People from the Austin music scene blended with white-collar dads in a pseudo-moshpit which served as a testament to the strength of the relatability of L7’s music. Nostalgia and blissful enjoyment spread around the venue like a virus, giving a sense of enjoyment and well-being to everyone present.

 

Antonio Rodriguez

Photo:  Austin Hansen

 Allow me to bring BETTER OBLIVION COMMUNITY CENTER to your attention; the folk rock duo and pals, Conor Oberst and Phoebe Bridgers. You might be familiar with Conor and his instrumental voice from his other projects; Bright Eyes, Mystic Valley River Band, Desaparecidos, Commander Venus to name a few over the years. Phoebe is relatively new on the scene, although after hearing her vulnerability shine through her music, you might think you’ve known her forever.  (A quick taste of the duo in a Billboard interview.)

On their own, both artists tote songs that could be considered “emo,” but together they create a melodic melange of satire and playful angst. If you’ve been following Conor through his musical career, you may glimpse a new side of him in this project. (Isn’t that what we love about evolving artists?) Phoebe’s youth, realness, and humility elicits a child-like joy out of Conor, and he uses every opportunity to be her biggest hype man. You can see the fun they’re having on stage, and you can hear in their lyrics (listen to: Forest Lawn @ 1:03). Both artists are equally regarded for their honest and thoughtful lyricism. Instead of inward reflection and dwelling on heavy emotions, together they’re looking out at their community and its members. Service Road paints an endearing picture of a difficult relationship with a brother figure, and likewise My City feels like it was written for Austin, but could likely be imposed on a number of big cities that feel like small towns. 

 

When BOCC stopped through Austin and Santa Fe, their roster included Lala Lala and Christian Lee Hutson. Both openers have relations with the founding members of BOCC outside of the initial community start-up. Phoebe gave Lillie West, lead singer of Lala Lala, a shout-out during her set: “Lillie told the kids in highschool to stop making fun of me. Give her another hand!” The whole ensemble rocked it. Christian Lee Hutson opened the whole show with an acoustic guitar, and subsequently appeared in all three sets playing keys and electric guitar. He’s composed and talented and humble. He plays an original song, Northsiders, with a sweet voice and provoking story-telling lyrics. The Better Oblivion Community core family co-created a cohesive show of camaraderie, good cheer, and thoughtful tunes with a touch of soft goth.

 

“Play Sleepwalking!,” hollers an audience member.

“We only have one album, so we’re definitely playing all of the songs. Sorry to spoil that for you,” Phoebe sardonically smiles back.

 

They played Sleepwalkin’, and it was great. It features fantastic bass riffs and intoxicating vocals, and asks a question I think could be assigned to my generation: “Is this having fun?”

 

Conor and Phoebe took turns covering each others’ classic songs. Conor sang “Funeral,” but made it punk rock. Seriously, give this song 5 minutes of your undivided attention and feel it deeply. Then, imagine it fast-jump-up-and-down-punk-rock-amaze. When Phoebe sang his “Lua,” at the Austin show the whole crowd echoed her. (I cried…I actually cried thrice from the beginning to the end of the whole show.) The Community these two artist built was tangible and so inclusive in that moment.

 

Being vulnerable can be incredibly challenging. Artists like Phoebe and Conor make it look easy, but when you listen closely to their words and sentiments you can gather that they’ve been through some shit – like everyone else. We’re not alone. There’s a Better Oblivion Community Center that’s open and operating. Call today: +1 (785) 433 5534

 

-Mel Green