The GZA @ Emos – 9/3

We don’t often do a lot to cover our hip-hop brethren, but I figured that I would take this moment to pay homage to one of the only rappers that I ever really paid attention to when I was  younger. For me, hip-hop was Wu Tang, and the GZA was the glue.  This Wednesday night at Emo’s he’s going to play his classic Liquid Swords in its entirety.  Those into hip-hop won’t want to miss this night.

You can pick up your own set of tickets over at Ticketweb.

The Melvins In Austin (8/22)

Two Melvins events going down on Friday we’d like to tell you about. First, the longtime rockers will be signing whatever your little heart desires at Waterloo Records around 5pm. The Waterloo website says no live music, only a signing. Shortly after the signing wraps up, The Melvins will break out the guitars and amps for the people at Emo’s Austin. Doors for the event are set for 9pm with opening act Big Business kicking the music off at 10pm. Tickets for the show are only $13 and can be had here.

The Cool Kids @ Emo’s (8/20)

The latest craze in the indie hip-hop world, The Cool Kids, will be bringing their brand of jams to the outside stage of Emo’s Austin on Wednesday evening. Tickets for the event are a mere $12 with doors at 9pm and music kicked off at 10 with a DJ set by local legend DJ Mel. You can get your tickets in advance from ticketweb. Preview the show below with a song that is sure to drop into your dance party mixes “A Little Bit Cooler”.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/cool-kids-a-little-bit-cooler.mp3]

Download: The Cool Kids – A Little Bit Cooler [MP3]

Death Vessel – Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us

Rating: ★★★★☆

Sub Pop records claimed that most journalists would find it quite difficult to place Death Vessel, as the band is virtually indescribable.  However, I like a good challenge, and since I like this record, I have vowed to do it justice.

Joel Thibodeau is the man behind the music, and perhaps the reason people find it so difficult to classify his music is his voice.  His voice is what you might call androgynous, standing a thin line between being thrown in one direction or another.  Regardless, it is very soothing whilst matching the music that it carries along.

Musically, it isn’t as difficult to put into place, if you were one to do such things.  I suppose I am one for such things, and in my decision to this I have come to three various pieces of Joel’s musical recipe: Iron and Wine, Deerhoof and Stephin Merritt (solo).

Death Vessel has previously toured with Iron and Wine, and the touches of folk leanings are immediately noticeable, though not necessarily ripped off.  The production has the intimacy of early Sam Beem works, while maintaing its own personality altogether.  It’s not as gentle as Iron and Wine, which is where I think the strength lies in this album.

As far as referencing Deerhoof, that lies in the ability for the songs to operate on various tangents, pulling back together uniquely, and never making you feel as if you really strayed very far from the core of the song.  The first few songs alone go from folk, to a hint of rockabilly and on to vaudeville.  It makes for an interesting listen, yet maintains its own uniqueness.

Now Stephin Merritt references I don’t throw around lightly, but if you’ve ever run across his solo works, and looked at the instrumentation he uses, you will find that Mr. Thibodeau is not far off in his own endeavors.  He calls upon many many friends to gather and flesh out his songs, much as Merritt has always done.  The best thing about this effort is that while several songs contain multiple instruments outside from the usual fashion, they all seem to find enough room in these songs.

My only draw back with this album is my own inability to connect to the lyrics.  They are indeed outside the typical writing style, but at times they resemble Lewis Carroll. Despite my inability to connect, they are still displayed in such a polite manner as to make a listener draw in closely, going deeper into the music as they do so.

When its all said and done, this is a genuinely unique album worthy of multiple l suggest picking it up immediately.  And, if you fall in love with it, as I did, you can check out the band on September 12th at Emos Lounge.  Tickets are available at TicketWeb or you can click this link.

A Place To Bury Strangers @ Emos – 8/17

The darkness of A Place to Bury Strangers will soon descend upon the city lights of Austin, or at least the lights of Emos Alternative Lounge.  These sonic destroyers visit our town Sunday evening, taking a step away from their tour with Nine Inch Nails.  Expect to be wowed, and expect to lose your hearing.  Also of note…Austin’s Boxing Lesson will be one of the opening acts.  So make your way to Emos this Sunday night!

Click here to pick yourself up a set of tickets.

New Tune from The New Year

Check out the new tune “The Company I Can Get” from The New Year’s upcoming self-titled album due out September 9th with Touch and Go Records. The New Year is also slated to play Emo’s Lounge later that month on September 20th. Don’t worry, we’ll remind you once it gets closer.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/thecompanyicanget.mp3]

Download: The New Year – The Company I Can Get [MP3]

JC & Co 7″ Release @ Emos–7/31

Tonight, Jason Chronis from Voxtrot will be playing with his band, releasing his first 7″.  Apparently, the band is his project, with a lot of help from other Austin artists, including members of Bel Aire.  The show starts tonight at Emos at 10 PM, and you can be one of the first to get your hands on the JC & CO 7″.  Seems like a solid choice to me. 

You can hear some of Jason’s music over at his Myspace Page

1 23 24 25 26 27
Social Media Auto Publish Powered By : XYZScripts.com