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by Thom White
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Tuesday, March 16, 2010
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Austin Collins and The Rainbirds
Wrong Control (2010)
 Austin Collins and The Rainbirds are back with a new record of lyrical rock, plain and simple. Wrong Control may be the “rockin’est” record yet from singer-songwriter Austin Collins (based now appropriately in Austin, Texas!), and yet a certain theme of somber resignation and regret dominates in his words.
Because of an ever-so-slight Texas twang in Austin Collins’s singing voice, the music on his 2005 debut, Something Better, was generally classified as “Americana.” His 2008 release, Roses Are Black, took a heavier turn, especially with the debut of his new band The Rainbirds (guitarist Dylan McDougall and drummer Craig Bagby) and the powerful “rock foundation” they provide for Collins’s coy words and melodies to flow over.
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by Kevin Schooley
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Tuesday, June 02, 2009
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Mastodon, Pasadena Napalm Division, Supersuckers, and Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears keep the sound fresh and the energy alive.
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears
Tell ‘Em What Your Name Is!
(Los Highway/UMG, 2009)
 Ain’t nothing like an old soul. Even with the kids today and their “ Screamo” bands and “Hot Topic” fashions, there remains a truly refreshing flashback to how it should be done, and it comes howling out of the Cap City in the form of Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears. After years of steady gigging, this group is clearly ready to throw down and make asses shake and rafters rattle. This is especially clear on their full-length debut on Lost Highway Records, Tell ‘Em What Your Name Is!, a record featuring the expertise of Spoon’s Jim Eno behind the boards. These youngbloods are primed, and the full-bodied sound of this rock, blues, & boogie big band hits like a triple shot of bourbon on an empty stomach.
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by Scott Unzicker
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Friday, May 22, 2009
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Are new noise ordinances shutting down outdoor live music?
 Navigating the intricacies of Austin’s archaic zoning and permitting ordinances is not for the faint of heart, nor soft of brain. It is a convoluted topic. It is a dry topic. It is a bureaucratic entanglement of heroic proportions. However, in order to arm oneself in the fight to maintain Austin’s tenuous claim to the title, “Live Music Capital of the World,” one must have a fundamental understanding of the ordinances governing the venues that host outdoor music.
All the clerical rigmarole regarding zoning has been dragged into the limelight of late following the decision of Fred Nelson, owner of Freddie’s Place on South First, to cancel his restaurant’s entire live music calendar this year because of a noise ordinance violation warning by the Austin Police Department on Friday, April 10. The restaurant simply couldn’t afford the $500 fine if the cops came back a second time, and they sure didn’t want one of their employees carted away after a third call. The first casualty in a conflict frequently becomes a rallying cry for those on the losing side, and the death of music at Freddie’s was no different.
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by Kevin Schooley
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Saturday, May 02, 2009
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The Service Industry, Moonlight Towers, and Rockland Eagles show Austinites how to rock locally.
Rockland Eagles
Osaka Cocka Rocka
(Almost There, 2008)
 To paraphrase Eddie Spaghetti, lead singer and bassist of the Supersuckers, “You gotta do your part on behalf of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Record.” This insistence is not lost on the warriors in Austin’s rock brigade. With the vinyl platters of the Ramones, Kinks, Cheap Trick, oozing from their collections, locals Rockland Eagles crackle on Osaka Cocka Rocka in a celebration of all that is Big Rock. Lead singer and guitarist Mark Hutchins spouts off about the great rock pastimes of “hanging with your freak friends,” and being “big in Japan” (who isn’t?) in a gleefully cheeky manner on songs like the title track.
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by Kevin Schooley
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Friday, February 20, 2009
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 South By Southwest is like an irresistible girlfriend who gives you a few good weeks a year but mostly cheats on you -- it’s fun for a while, but leaves a bitter taste in your mouth.
I’ll admit my love/hate relationship with SXSW: it’s rarely made my rent any cheaper, but it does pump a substantial amount money into our little berg for a couple of weeks, which you could say is good for the bigger annual fiscal picture. The schwag you pick up as a registered attendee is just fine too, as you can significantly add to your t-shirt and sticker collections in no time. And free food and booze? ‘Nuff said.
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