Last Week’s Jams (2.20 – 2.24)

Even after taking off Monday, we managed to get tons of coverage out there. I was stoked to hear that new Cindy song that I had been promised late last year. RayRay started pushing some of our SXSW introductions out with Pendant and Orions Belte. A handful of Austin acts tossed out new tunes, so check in on Hallo, Space Tan and Transy Warhol…a few who will be playing our just announced ATH vs SOTO SXSW Party. Plus, I got a bonus add by getting an excuse to post a little Braid to this site, on top of including my favorite releases of the week for streaming purposes. Get at it below.

Braid + Polyvinyl Announce 25th Anniversary Reissue of Frame and Canvas

Honestly, I’m generally not one to post about reissues, unless they’re from unearthed records that never really had a chance. But, when it comes to Braid, I absolutely have no reason not to post this Frame and Canvas news, particularly because this record was such a huge part of my life in the late 90s; I even have friendships built solely on our mutual love of this record. I was fortunate enough to catch the band in various stages, and even maybe being on the road with their spinoff Hey Mercedes. Plus, it gives me an excuse to play this ripper again. The new edition, remastered version of the LP comes out on April 7th via Polyvinyl, with a later Summer tour included (with an ATX date)!

Brand New EP from Scooterbabe

scooterEarlier this summer I brought you a discovery, Scooterbabe, who I hit upon by way of looking into Athens Intensified.  The band often get classified as a noisy indiepop act, and that’s definitely present in their sound, though I also hear other elements like Braid or Promise Ring in their newest EP.  If you know me, you know that all those elements are certainly things I’m interested in, so I’m excited to share a tune with you.  I have a sneaking suspicion that there are others who love this sound as much as I do, so head over to the group’s page now and pick up their new EP, along with a great digital booklet.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/scooterbabe-scooterbabe2@gmail.com-03-Last-Year-Was-Alright.mp3]

Download: Scooterbabe – Last Year Was Alright [MP3]

FFF 2012: Saturday In Pictures

Ahhh. Home, sweet home. Back on the pit to bring you nine kinds of performance shots.

Saturday’s shots include Residual Kid, The Young, Gold Fields, Brendan Benson, Daughn Gibson, The Helio Sequence, Braid, The Spits, Surfer Blood, Tanlines, Paul Banks, Real Estate, Wavves and PiL. More from around the fest, of course. Fun was had by all, just bummed that I missed shooting Refused from the pit. It was “too busy”.

Click through to feed your eyes…

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Fun Fest Recap: RayRay Edition

We’ve always had one hell of a time at Fun Fest every year, and we always have some fun after the festival discussing our take on each day’s events.  This year, we’re letting each one of our writers provide their own take on the weekend with a personal recap of the goings ons so as to not compromise or impose on any one writer’s opinions.  I’ll be starting things off today with some random thoughts and favorite bands from the best festival in town.  Follow the jump for more from me.

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Fun Fun Fun Fest Lineup Is Here!

Sorry for the major delay on getting this information out to you guys as I’m sure you’ve seen this information elsewhere by now.  For those of you that haven’t already heard, the Fun Fun Fun Fest lineup was leaked last night via Bingo tournament.  As you can see via the poster to my left, the lineup once again blows most festivals completely out of the water.  Somehow the festival goers manage to get great reunion bands like Run DMC, The Promise Ring, Braid, Refused, etc. along with up and comers like Real Estate, Surfer Blood, Dum Dum Girls, etc.

Without a doubt, this will be an awesome festival just like it is every year.  You can scope the full lineup on the poster or check it out over on the official website.

Don’t forget that the special PIP passes are still on sale!

Anyone care to offer their sentiments on the lineup?

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/24-Braid-Killing-A-Camera.mp3]

Download: Braid – Killing A Camera [MP3]

Free Polyvinyl 15 Year Sampler

Polyvinyl Records has been home to some of my favorite bands over the years and probably deserves a lot of credit for me discovering real indie music in high school.  What with bands like Aloha, Rainer Maria, American Football, etc. the label was one of the hottest and biggest in the emo/post-emo world.  It’s hard to believe the label is already 15 years old in 2011 and they continue to put out great albums year after year.  To celebrate their 15 years in existence, Polyvinyl has put together an incredible sampler featuring a whopping 30 songs from their finest acts over the years.  Old school songs like “Killing a Camera” from Braid are enough to make this a must download for me.  Hell, I’ll even entice you with a free download of that old school jam below.  Check out this sampler now and enjoy.

[audio: https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/24-Braid-Killing-A-Camera.mp3]

Download: Braid – Killing A Camera [MP3]

New Music from Braid

I was fortunate enough to tour alongside Bob Nanna and his posse during the Hey Mercedes days, and while I look back at that, the one thing I remember about those guys were how incredibly down to earth and real they were, despite the fact that they were 3/4 of Braid, which was one of my favorites.  So, I’m happy to see that Braid’s original lineup has reformed, or rather, reconvened, in order to give us some new tunes.  Polyvinyl will do us the honor of releasing the new EP, titled Closer to Closed, but says there are no plans for a full-length, as of yet.  This first listen is a lot less discordant and angular, but the maturity demonstrates that they still have the passion, and obviously the songwriting chops to keep on trucking. I hope you love this track as much as I do.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Braid-The_Right_Time.mp3]

Download: Braid – The Right Time [MP3]

FTC: Braid

Vinyl reissues are always a great reason to go and revist the classics, or at least those albums you regard as classics.  Luckily, Polyvinyl Records agrees, as they are re-releasing four of the albums by emo band Braid.  They’re one of my favorites for the genre, mostly because they brought on just a little bit more punk and experimentation than some of the other groups.  Their tunes always had that bounce that got me into the scene as a teenager, yet they also had more agression than a lot of the other groups around at that time.  Singer Bob Nanna’s voice has always been one of those I really enjoyed, especially in the live setting.  Unfortunately, the band didn’t last forever, eventually parting ways, though 3/4 of the band went on to form Hey Mercedes.  HM always seemed a bit softer to me, but I still got into it.  Go back and revisit Braid, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor. The track we bring you is from Movie Music Vol. 2.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Braid-Grand_Theft_Autumn.mp3]

Download: Braid – Grand Theft Autumn [MP3]

FT5: Second Wave Emo Records

Looking back at my sad excuse for a life, I realize that my obsession with music had to begin at some point. I flirted with metal, as I alluded to last week, but mostly I found my love in classic California pop music and punk rock. Along the way, I meandered a bit off the path, as most did during the late nineties. Where did I land?  I landed in the wonderful world of emo. Sure, you’re thinking that I shopped at Hot Topic and couldn’t get Fall Out Boy out of my head, but I’m talking about the predecessors to the entire scene; well, the predecessors of the predecessors. I’ve devoted this week’s Top 5 to my one true love, emo. We’ll call it my Pop 5 Emo Records, and the countdown is after the jump.

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