The dance floor is a river that can count to three. Cowboy hats float counterclockwise, and hearts swim beneath shirts of turquoise, pink and purple as a wily fiddle gives a Southern accent to small talk at the bar. The smoky country voice of John Anderson howls on CD from the omnipresent sound system: If […]
The people in the cars crawling up and down Manchaca Road at just past 6 p.m. on a recent Tuesday had no idea that just 30 yards away, Old Austin was jamming with New Austin inside a packed music venue. To evening commuters, Crockett Center is just a dingy row of storefronts between Ben White […]
The building at 1320 S. Lamar Blvd. had been the site of several clubs previously, but when Joe Ables and Craig Hillis opened the Saxon Pub in June 1990, 20 years ago this month, they created something altogether different than the earlier barfly incarnations such as the Boss’ Office, the Living Room and Madison’s. They […]
Gather ’round, kids. I’m going to tell you about the time I saw a legend, a natural mystic, in the flesh. In the four decades since his passing, Bob Marley has not only become the most internationally popular black musician of all time, but more a symbol of freedom, enlightenment and love than mortal man. […]
April 5,2002 by Michael Corcoran Tuesday night J.J. Cale rocked a sold-out Texas Union Ballroom to its rafters — and you could still hear your foot tapping on the hardwood floors. The 63-year-old Oklahoma native created a beautiful tension by playing groove-oriented songs such as “Louisiana Night” and “Anyway the Wind Blows” in an impossibly […]
By Michael Corcoran It was a little frustrating being a rock music fan growing up in Hawaii because the only concerts we’d usually get in the ’70s were big acts on the way to Japan or Australia. There were maybe five big shows a year and the clubs were overrun with cover bands for the […]
LOS ALAMOS, NM, 2013. The band with the Texas plates pulled up to the street fair stage and found out they were expected to play two 75-minute sets that night. Such a surprise double shift would send most bands into an obscenity-coated tizzy, but to the Warren Hood Band that just meant the three distinctive […]
Poi Dog Pondering- “7” (2008) A tree grows in your backyard for many years and the branches spread and the leaves flesh out, providing more shade with each summer. Flowers blossom, a few at first, giving the tree a smattering of color. And then one day you throw open the curtains and your tree is […]
Here’s where roller derby is today. Originally published in 2007, here’s how the revival started in Austin 12 years ago: There are about 300 female roller derby leagues worldwide, from the Aberdeen Aces in Scotland to the West Texas Roller Dollz, who drew a crowd of 2,000 to their inaugural bout in Lubbock. The racy […]
NEW BRAUNFELS. Certain moments can turn a good concert into a great one and Ryan Bingham‘s sold out show Friday night had a doozy. Near the end of the two-hour set, the former bullrider and his four-piece band of musical ranchhands pulled out “Southside of Heaven” from his 2007 debut “Mescalito” and the sunburned and […]
