Hump day dilemna...

It is the middle of the work week, but even on a Wednesday there are so many options of cool thing to do in the A-T-X!!!

First off, check out the Nomad bar!  Definitely one of my favorite neighborhood bars...even though I'm not really in the neighborhood!?  Tonight Becca and the gang are doing the "Nice Astronaut" thang at 8pm...

Fastball will headline the free Solar Powered Concert at Republic Park with the Black & White Years!! Did I mention it was free!!!???

Giant Noise is doing a cool event at 7pm at the Kirk Gallery for the US launch of the Mexican Design collective Pirwi!  Check out www.kirkgallery.com fo mo info.

The Austin Film Festival will have a special screening of the Coen brothers "Blood Simple" which was shot in Austin 25 years ago!!  Check out the Bob Bullock Museum... the Texas Spirit Theater at 7:30pm for that!

If you are like me and you came to the A-T-X from El Chucs (aka El Paso, TX) then you might wanna stop by El Sol y La Luna for the El Paso Social--early at 6:30pm!  I already know you El Paso types will show up at 8 then, so I will tell you it's at 5pm!!?  j/k...

Beyond that, this Wednesday night has lotsa cool bands playing around town, like Atash at Red Fez; Ramblin' Jack Elliott at the Cactus Cafe; Jon Dee Graham and James McMurtry at the Continental Club; Clues at the new Independent at 501 Studios; Shelley King at Artz Rib House; Austin Collins at the Mean Eyed Cat; Pepper Lane at the Mohawk; Beth Black at the One2One Bar; This Year's Fashion at Red7;  Monte Montgomery at the Saxon Pub; Tish Hinojosa is at Waterloo Records at 5pm...and from LA... you gotta go see The Aggrolites are at Emos!

"You know how I know your gay... 'cuz you like Coldplay!"  so you are probably headed to San Antonio to go see them at the ATT Center...Drive safe!!

 

Where to Begin?

So much To Do in the A-Tx this weekend...

So I will put together a little list for you to peruse.

Friday 6/5/2009:

Emo's - New York Dolls w/ Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears; Antones - Alejandro Escovedo;

The Parish - Mother's Anthem, Beaux Loy, Dark Summer Dawn; Flamingo Cantina - Radio La Chusma; Threadgill's South - White Ghost Shivers; Momo's - Suzana Choffel; Stubb's - Animdal Collective w/ Black Dice; The Continental Club - The Jungle Rockers, Nick Curran, more; Cactus Cafe - Gurf Morlix; Elysium - Vast; Broken Spoke - Dale Watson; One2One Bar- Eric Tessmer; 

One World Theater - Craig Chaquico; Plus...my buddy Billly is rocking out at Headhunter's w/ Butcherwhite, so don't be scared!!    

Saturday 6/6/2009:

Antones - Bob Schneider, Billy Harvey;  Emo's - Girl in a Coma, The Boxing Lesson; Momo's - Freddie Steady 5; Continental Club - Michael Ramos' Cumbia Lounge early at 3pm, then the Cornell Hurd Band at 10pm, Mike Flanigan's B-3 Trio upstaris in the Gallery;  Lambert's - Afrofreque; The Paramount Theater - Roy Lozano's Ballet Folklorico de Texas; Saxon Pub - Greezy Wheels; Red Eye Fly - Brink of Disaster; Threadgill's South - Carolyn Wonderland; Broken Spoke - Bruce Robison; and if ya like the squeezebox, check out the 20th annual Accordion Kings & Queens Festival at the Miller Outdoor Theater...

Sunday 6/7/2009:

Continental Club - Jon Dee Graham & Heybale; Momo's - Battle of the Bands; Saxon Pub - The Resentments; The Belmont - Jane Bond; Lambert's - Ephraim Owens, Brannen Temple; The Mohawk - Anarchy Championship Wrestling and... Check out the Second Sunday Sock Hop at the Shangri La!

Monday 6/8/2009:

Stubb's has Gomez, but they also do an in-store performance at Waterloo Records at 5pm, so catch that if ya can!  C3's new venue "The Independent" opens their doors with Little Joy so that is pretty f-in cool!  and.... the best kept secret in town on a Monday night is my new fave... TC's Lounge has the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band!!  They are the real deal... 'Fo 'Sho!!!

Austin Does it again!

Here's a cool link to yet another poll which Austin tops!!

This time...as one of America's Best Bargain Cities!

http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/107080/Americas-Best-Bargain-Cities?mod=realestate-buy

and it also explains how the "Keep Austin Weird" phrase came to be!!

Ch-ch-check it out!!

Pachanga time is getting close!!

TICKETS FOR THE 2009 PACHANGA LATINO MUSIC FESTIVAL ON SALE NOW!

 

Popular conjunto star Michael Salgado is one of the many artists scheduled to perform at the second annual Pachanga Latino Music Festival at Fiesta Gardens in Austin, Texas on Saturday, May 30, 2009. The festival will host over 20 acts and DJs from Texas, California, NYC and Mexico, and will also showcase cuisine from Austin's greatest Latin American restaurants and an array of craft vendors. 

 

The one-day festival will once again close out Austin's Latino Music Month and showcase the region's vibrant blend of Latino-created music and art. Confirmed artists this year include Norteño superstar Michael Salgado, Mexican Institute of Sound (fresh off their Coachella run), Brownout, Ocote Soul Sounds, Davíd Garza, Los Bad Apples, The Pachanga Allstars (featuring Vallejo) and more.

 

PLUS!!! The first 500 tickets sold online will also receive a FREE copy of the critically acclaimed new release Soy Sauce by Mexican Institute of Sound. Tickets are $20.00 in advance, and children under twelve are free when accompanied by a ticketed adult.

 

TICKETS ON SALE NOW AT ALL FRONT GATE LOCATIONS AND ONLINE!!!

http://www.pachangafest.com/

P.S.

Keep it tuned for more details on specials....hmmmm...

Friday already??

Spring is in the air in the A-TX!  Lotsa choices on things to do this weekend!  Happy Easter or eatser if yer hungry and remember..."We're not made of sugar!" so don't be scared of the rain...it'll pass!

Today Friday 4/10... Free noon show at City Hall w/ Sahara Smith;

Vivian Girls at Mohawk, James McMurtry at Threadgill's, Split Lip Rayfield at Antones, Patricia Vonne and Charanga Cakewalk at the Continental Club, Grand Champeen at Creekside, Band of Heathens at Gruene Hall, Carolyn Wonderland at Nutty Brown, Ray Primm & Lisa Tingle at One2One, Broken Teeth at Room 710, and Soncache at El Sol y La Luna!

Saturday 4/11...I always like catching Redd Volkaert free at 3pm at the Continental Club, check it out and you will understand why!!  Also during the day...check out the funky chicken coop tour! (www.fccooptour.blogspot.com )  Later on...Kinks Hoot Night at Ruta Maya, Billy Harvey at the Amsterdam, Eric Tessmer at BD Riley's, Ray Benson at the Elephant Room!!? is he doing a new Texas swing jazz thing I don't know about?, Mau Mau Chaplains at Flamingo, Blue October at Stubbs for another sold out show, The Brew, The Eggmen at Jovitas, Seth Walker at Momo's, Pat Green at Nutty Brown, Afrofreque at Lambert's, Grady, Honky, Dixie Witch at Room 710 and of course...What a Saturday night...'cuz it's a Del Castillo CD release party at Antones, so look out, you have been warned!!

Sunday 4/12...Happy Easter!

Heads up...all the cool brunch spots will be packed!! Of course in the daytime I like Dale Watson at Ginny's, but you already know that by now, right??  There is a cool benefit for the Diabetes Association at the Continental Club so check out the "Hey, Loretta! Pie Social" with Rosie Flores, Brennan Leigh, Mike Barfield, Ted Roddy and many more, Mitch Watkins is at the Elephant Room, Mariachi Relamago at Nuevo Leon, The Durdens at Stubb's, DJ Kurupt at Red Fez, The Resentments at the Saxon Pub, Jane Bond at Roadhouse Rags and....

Morrissey will hit the stage at the Bass Concert Hall to help ya endure the cloudy, rainy weekend.       

Beyond the live music...be warned the Alamo Drafthouse might slip another World Premiere past you like they did with Star Trek last Monday!! 

Get ready...next week is the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival, so get ready from Thursday the 16th thru Sunday the 19th!

Fo' Mo' info :  http://www.texaswineandfood.org/

  

What's so Cool about Austin?

People always ask me why I am always raving about living in Austin, Texas and I always try to describe all the options of cool, fun things to do!  This weekend is a spectacular case of "fun in the sun" because Spring has definitely arrived in the ATX! 

(also keep in mind that if you like sports...the Texas Relays are going on at UT!)

 

So, today here are a few options for Friday April 3rd, 2009:

T-Bird and the Breaks at the City Hall Plaza, free at noon;

Alvin Crow at Broken Spoke; Carrie Rodriguez at the Cactus Cafe;

Robyn Hitchcock at Antones; Los Bad Apples at Jovita's; Lil'Cap'n Travis at Continental Club; 

Guy Forsyth at Nutty Brown; Vallejo at Threadgill's; AJ Castillo, Joe Bravo, The Tortila Factory at H&H Ballroom; Blaze at Lamberts; Yonder Mountain String Band at Stubb's...oh and do not forget the Southern Sirens at Aces Lounge!!

Saturday April 4th, 2009:

WAR at the Louisiana Swamp Thing all day at MLK & Congress; 40 Acres Fest at UT; Boyz II Men, Cameo and more at the Urban Music Fest at Auditorium Shores; Gary Clark Jr. at Antones; Redd Volkaert free at three at the Continental Club, then at night go back for the Derailers; Mama Sweet at Momo's; WC Clark at the Saxon Pub; Slightly Stoopid at Stubb's; and for some sports action...Lightweight Lightning Boxing at the Erwin Center!!

Sunday April 5th, 2009:

THE BOSS...aka Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band at the Erwin Center!!!

The Riverboat Gamblers, The Black & White Years and Red Jumpsuit Apparatus at The Grind at MLK & Congress;  Heybale and Jon Dee Graham at the Continental Club; James Speer at the Elephant Room; Jerry Jeff Walker at the Gruene Hall; Ephraim Owens & Brannene Temple at Lambert's; Mariachi Relampago at Nuevo Leon; The Way It Is Fest at RED7; DJ Kurupt at Red Fez; The Resentments at the Saxon Pub; and of course...my favorite Sunday afternoon free show...Chicken Shit Bingo with Dale Watson at Ginny's Little Longhorn Saloon!!

Some of these events are free, and some might have a cover, so please doublecheck before you leave your house!!

Have Fun!!!

-A.D. in the A-TX!! 

Keep Austin Fun!

So many choices on fun things to do in Austin!  Gotta love it!!

I have some out of town friends that have asked me for some suggestions to some "secrets" that a visitor to our great city might not know about.  So over the next few weeks I will continue to add to the list of cool Austin dives,  hole-in-the-walls and other places off the beaten path.

Since people start arriving in Austin this week, for PubCon www.pubcon.com/austin2009.htm and SXSW www.sxsw.com I thought I would list some cool stuff to check out this weekend!

On Friday, get down to 6th street early.  Nakia & His Southern Cousins will put on a helluva show at Aces Lounge  www.acesaustin.com  and then, Austin's version of the "Pussycat Dolls" will blow you away!  They are called the "Southern Sirens" burlesque troupe and I still think they are Austin's best kept secret.  The girls are hot...but tough and cool!  It's only a matter of time before everyone is rushing down there to check 'em out, so beat the crowds and see for yourself! The girls are on stage at 11pm and 1am and I think they do it on Saturday night too!!

On Saturday - IT'S MY PARK DAY! Get in on this day of park appreciation by joining a cleanup project. Go online for a list of cleanup efforts all over this once filthy city. Volunteers receive a T-shirt and complimentary snacks and drinks. Sat., March 7, 9am-1pm. 477-1566. www.austinparks.org 

Then at night there is a cool benefit happening at the Scoot Inn with the Flametrick Subs, Honky and many more... Check out  www.eastinns.com   for more info!

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!!

Get thee to the chicken shittery!!  Sounds weird I know, but every Sunday Ginny's Little Longhorn Saloon has Chicken Shit Bingo going down!  It is a packed party as people buy squares and wait for the magic - of a chicken pooping on your lucky square...Bingo!!

Then if that is not cool enough for you... Dale Watson is knockin' the honky tonk rock outta the park!! His band is amazing and I bet you will find yourself trying to find some space to dance.For more info on him, check out his website: www.dalewatson.com

It is so cool there at Ginny's, that it will get packed, but luckily it is a daytime party.  So get there by 3pm or so to get a good spot! Check out www.ginnyslittlelonghorn.com  for more info!  It is the "honkiest, tonkiest beer joint in town!"