Tag: SafePlace

Listen Now: Slack Capital 2 Stream and Slugbug World Premiere

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the most exciting bands in Austin. All proceeds go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We’ve been unveiling one song per day until the the release party on April 14, which is today!

Song of the day: SLUGBUG — “When The Words”

If you live in Austin and care about music– and by music I mean good music– and by good music I mean weird music– you haaaaaave to know about SLUGBUG. SLUGBUG is the longtime musical project of synth ber-wizard Paul D. Millar, who truly forges his own path with his songs of prime neurotic pop bliss. Like a more German-influenced Ariel Pink, or Devo on a hallucinatory trip, SLUGBUG is built quite efficiently to groove you– think Robocop on speed at a disco– but also, even though (but kind of especially because) Millar is never not straight-faced, to make you laugh. “Bread bowl/ I don’t want to eat that” is a phrase you hear at the beginning of the song, a robotic coo spoken into the spheres. SLUGBUG takes its energy from the punk sensibility of protest, and in this case, he’s protesting meaning itself. “Words come out of your mouth/ Can I tell that they say one thing and really mean the opposite?” And “Words come out of my mouth/ Can you tell that the words were/ Nothing more than filler text.” He seems to be saying, none of us know what we’re talking about. Which is the wisest it gets, probably. –Eric Braden

Stream Slack Capital 2 in its entirety here, and download it, or come pick one up tonight at Barracuda for the Slack Capital 2 official release party. $5, doors at 9 PM. Come have fun and help us support SafePlace!

Enjoy AMA Premiere on Slack Capital 2

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the greatest bands in Austin. All proceeds from the comp go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We’re unveiling one song per day until the the release party on April 14.

Song of the day: Ama — “Story of Light”

An immediate, delicious, 90’s guitar rock throwback, “Story of Light” is a perfect slice of effortless cool. “If you can see it/ you can feel it,” Blair Robbins sings with insouciant ambivalence, as guitars churn. Later, the beautifully turned-out line “Wake up in the mornin’, and face the day” works both as tiny authentic moment of summoning strength and as a sardonic joke, depending on your mood. The rhythm section of Evan Kaspar on drums and Ray Garza on bass keeps things in the pocket and urgent, and Robbins and Alex Peterson trade in messy-yet-perfectly ornate guitar lines that work as addictive micro-hooks. It’s really just a perfect new gem by one of the top bands in Austin today.–Eric Braden

Order Slack Capital 2 HERE.

See you tomorrow night at Barracuda for the Release Party.

David Israel Does It Again for Slack Capital 2

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the greatest bands in Austin. All proceeds from the comp go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We’re unveiling one song per day until the the release party on April 14.

Song of the day: David Israel — “Conditionationality”

With a voice like Calvin Johnson and the romantic sensibility of Jonathan Richman (and perhaps the comic instincts of both), David Israel is a cherished local songwriter, his songs dripping in wit but as earnest as Kermit the Frog. Last year he contributed the chipper rock song “Coldwar Superchild” to Slack Capital, complete with full band, chorus harmonies, and a saxophone. That song humorously and somewhat absurdly skewered liberal niceties, and just kind of was a good time for all. Here, despite the silly title, David Israel leads with his heart. Even with legitimately funny lyrics like the opening lines “Have you ever/ climbed a mountain/ and looked out/ upon another mountain,” the song’s success stems from that plaintive voice, right on top of the mix, accompanied by a single background voice (courtesy of Annecy Liddell) and a strummed guitar. It’s very deep in the song before any percussion happens at all, and it’s a thrill when it does. The song comes to life, as if relishing in the heart-racing excitement of love. In thrall to the gorgeous pop plateau it has reached, a rock-and-roll guitar drops in to perform a snatch of melody from a George Michael song, and the abruptly ends. Bravo.–Eric Braden

PreOrder Slack Capital 2 HERE.

See you at Barracuda Friday Night for the Release Party!

Magia Negra Pop Up on Slack Capital 2

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the greatest bands in Austin. All proceeds from the comp go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We’re unveiling one song per day until the the release party on April 14.

Song of the day: Magia Negra — “Human”

Inhabiting a slightly more romantic version of the warped slow-pop of Mac DeMarco, Magia Negra is led by Lolita Carroll, who has a distinctively emotional voice, calm but pleading. “Please forgive me/ I’m not worthy” goes the opening couplet, in which Carroll inhabits a place of sincere regret, of earnest feeling. “Human,” though it moves slowly, has a certain groove to it, and even a little playfulness, thanks to a wobbly guitar and heartbeat drums on the chorus. Music is full of songs about outrage and retribution, but it is perhaps more brave to write a song about admitting one’s failures, and facing them head-on. Carroll says simply she is just “a kind of simple human being”–with all the complexities that that phrase ironically implies– and that admission is something that all of us can aspire to. –Eric Braden

Pre-Order Slack Capital 2 HERE.

Join us Friday at Barracuda for the Release Party!

Thor & Friends Helps Slack Capital 2 and SafePlace

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the greatest bands in Austin. All proceeds from the comp go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We’re unveiling one song per day until the the release party on April 14.

Song of the day: Thor & Friends — “Bees”

“Bees” is a work unbetrothed to time– an instrumental hymn, something beyond the language of humans. Like a chamber orchestra you stumble across in the jungle while hallucinating on a deserted island, Thor Harris (of Swans) and his band of collaborators, chiefly Peggy Ghorbani and Sarah Gautier (aka Sarah La Puerta, who appears on this very compilation), make a kind of secular devotional music. For fans of Johnny Greenwood’s film score work for Paul Thomas Anderson– otherworldly, creepy, somehow both minimalistic and epic– the music of Thor & Friends will be something you’ll want to put on repeat. A looping xylophone pattern sort of travels down an eerie back road of sounds, until stabbing strings add a Hitchcock vibe. Even with its playful touch, “Bees” evokes both the frenzied life of the titular insect and the terror of an industrialized, de-natured world.

PreOrder Slack Capital 2 HERE.

Join us at Barracuda on Friday, April 14th for the Release Party.

Hear Kay Odyssey’s Slack Capital 2 Contribution

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the coolest bands in Austin. All proceeds go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. To make sure every one of these bands gets the attention they deserve, we’re unveiling one song per day.

Song of the day: Kay Odyssey – “Slipstream”

For a band with “odyssey” in their name, it’s fitting that “Slipstream” feels like a journey. The guitar-heavy track is psychedelic and mysterious, with swirling sounds that evoke a heavy trip, across a desert or in one’s own head. Band leader Kristina Boswell sings in a Roy Orbison-meets-Corin Tucker wail, gliding upward as the song reaches epic guitar god heights. That’s where they shine the most, when, as cymbals crash ecstatically, the dense and fearful atmosphere succumbs to the will of one who has found their voice.

Pre-order Slack Capital 2 right HERE.

Hear Oozer’s Track from Slack Capital 2

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Slack Capital 2 is a compilation of music by 27 of the coolest young bands in Austin. All proceeds go to SafePlace, which provides support for victims of domestic and sexual violence. To make sure every one of these bands gets the attention they deserve, we’re unveiling one song per day.

Song of the day: Oozer – “Clickity Clacker”

Oozer is possibly the best-named band in town. Their songs are sludgy, gross things, full of weird noises and punctuated by super-dry snare hits that feel like kicks to the gut. In other words, they are a visceral band, and they evoke the often shitty experience of having a body. What makes them special is their penchant for melody and songwriting, for sneaking real heavy emotion into places you least expect. They’re a band for misfits, by misfits, which means they’re smart. When James Roo screeches “See you/ When I see you” over and over, it kinda makes you laugh, but it also kinda makes you think.

Pre-Order Slack Capital 2 HERE.

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