Weekend Music Selections

Tomorrow night, The Streets take to the stage at La Zona Rosa. Mike Skinner's third album, The Hardest Way to Make An Easy Living, has drawn many favorable reviews ("twice as good as any album about the price of celebrity has a right to be" -- Guardian UK). Be sure to arrive in time to check out opener Lady Sovereign, easily one of the most entertaining acts we caught at SXSW. If you haven't purchased tickets yet and would like to try your luck with a giveaway contest, word is you can text "thestreets" to 50505 on your mobiles and be entered into a drawing. (Friday 6/16, 10pm)

Once a year, the Yuppie Pricks put on an enormous Summer Beach Party at Emo's. 2006 is no different:

After years of preaching the glories of good blow, good jobs and good blow jobs, the end is here. And for you all who wondered why the hell we did it, just two words: Mission Accomplished.

They'd like to invite you to join them in celebrating "all things wet and jiggly" at the Fourth Annual Summer Beach Party, with The Applicators, Rockland Eagles, The Nervous Hospital, Poor Dumb Bastards, The Score, Crapulence and The Midgetmen. Expect the usual wet t-shirt contests. (Friday 6/16, 9pm)

Saturday night's big acts are eighties post-punk messiahs Echo and the Bunnymen at La Zona Rosa. Contrary to popularly held belief, "Echo" does not refer to the drum machine that the lads started off with back in Liverpool, at least according to a quote attributed to Sergeant on wikipedia:

"Yeah, that story is rubbish," Sergeant said. "We used to tell the press we got the name from the drum machine, but that was just to shut people up, you know?" We just wanted a name that was completely different, and Echo was just a word we liked," he said. "Now, Bunnymen, there was an idea behind that, of these weird, spirit, bunny things that, like, existed only in folklore. There's one on the cover of our first single, 'Pictures on My Wall.' "

Tickets are still available. (Saturday 6/17, 9pm)

Afterwards, head over to We Explode!, the weekly soiree at Beauty Bar that Austinist occasionally sponsors, as they're hosting the official Echo & the Bunnymen afterparty. Guitarist Will Sergeant spins from midnight till 2am. Resident DJs megaGates and Chill Collins will be behind the decks earlier in the night. It's also Austinist Food Editor Sam Armstrong's birthday, so stop by and wish him well! (Saturday 6/17, Free before 11pm, $3 afterwards)

Not too far away, local indie rockers The Chapters are hosting a music video premier party at Flamingo Cantina with For Those Who Know and Peel. You might recall that, several months ago, they issued an open casting call for folks to be in a Dia de Los Muertos-themed film shoot. Judging from the flyer, we're guessing this is the result. (Saturday 6/17, 10pm, $5/$7)