Japanese outfit Boris derives its name from the opening track on the 1991 Melvins record Bullhead and much of its down-tempo drone-rock shares a musical border with the legendary Washington area act. Boris has released a number of stellar records since forming in the 90’s; their full-length studio album count per our math currently stands at 14. Their debut, Absolutego, originally consisted of one 60 minute title-track, but the U. S. release by Southern Lord Records a few years later featured an even longer version of Absolutego and included a bonus song. Highly experimental, extremely sludgy, sometimes psychedelic, and full of scorching riffs, the band has walked the fine line between different genres over the course of its career and employed an array of noise generating devices over time, resulting in a sometimes deranged, often convoluted sound that could be the soundtrack to many a scary movie or just your everyday angst. We are licking are chops already in anticipation of a belligerent performance this Saturday at The Mohawk. Torche and Clouds open with their respective brands of raucous rock. (Buy your tickets here.)...

Sure, there’s a dance party almost every weekend at Beauty Bar, but this Saturday’s line-up is something special. A trio of Texas based turntablists -- DJ Jester The Filipino Fist, Ernest Gonzales, and Bad Knives Dead Art (formerly known as Ceeplus Bad Knives and a.k.a Eric Castillo) should keep you on the dance floor all night long. We witnessed DJ Jester in all his glory a couple of months ago at The Mohawk and we can attest that a wide variety of genres and grooves can be expected. (Read our recent interview with DJ Jester here -- the Boca Burger Mobile story never gets old!) Gonzales has been lighting up San Antonio’s night life with his invigorating remixes and has also put out various releases, some under the Theory of Everything moniker although 2007’s While on Saturn’s Rings record was released under his given name, and demonstrated his versatility as a musician and producer. As for Castillo, he has been putting on cutting edge dance events in Houston, and has supplied the beats at past Austinist events to boot. Per the Bad Knives MySpace page, “Currently Cee's sought after, open minded dj sets involve creatively mixing, live editing, re-mixing, scratching and blending the diverse sounds of underground disco not disco, electro, indie rock, pop, fun hiphop, punk-post punk, no wave, rare groove funk/soul, and more.” Phew! Time to Get Busy then....

Though DJ Mel is primarily known for his legendary Rock the Casbah parties at the Parish, he's been bringing a little debauchery to the Beauty Bar with his SWOLL parties. SWOLL sets are focused on the higher end of the BPM range, mixing Miami Bass, Baltimore club and "anything fast". Last weekend's event including DJ Klever, Cosmo Baker looks like it was a really good time. ...

After celebrating its four year anniversary in January, the regular dance party in town known as Learning Secrets presents its latest edition this weekend. Originally started by DJ and promoter Ian Orth during his stint at the Rutgers’ college radio station 88.7 FM WRSU (where he booked acts such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Rapture for events on campus), Learning Secrets has evolved from a weekly shindig at the Whisky Bar on 5th St. into a conglomeration of sorts. Orth is working to expand the party into an entity -- “The biggest change and step forward has been turning Learning Secrets into a boutique PR firm with my best friend Jeramy Neugent who recently moved back to Austin from L.A. where he was the tour publicist for everybody from Animal Collective to Marissa Nadler to Federico Aubele to Fela Kuti. Our platform is to work with the music we love and firmly believe can make some sort of positive cultural impact on our society, and get those bands the exposure they deserve.”...

SXSW Music kicks off on Wednesday the 12th, as always with the Annual Austin Music Awards at Austin Music Hall, but it has become clear over the last few years that the music really starts the night before. Just thinking back to last year, we remember walking up and down Red River, watching bands like Golden Bear, White Denim and Broken Teeth at venues such as Beauty Bar, Emo’s and Red 7, and congratulating ourselves for getting started early....

Photos courtesy Nash Cook If you can't view the Flash slideshow above, an alternate version appears after the jump.......

Emo’s, as always, powers our evenings with a good amount of solid shows this weekend. Zookeeper and Zykos bring heartfelt indie-rock to the outside stage on Friday while Ume and Haunting Oboe Music take on the inside crowd with belligerent, experimental rock n’ roll....

The Invincible Czars have long had a knack for blending rock with various genres to create entertaining concoctions and unexpected inventions. From ska to metal, from jazz to country, a Czars live show twists and turns through a variety of rhythms and tempos, all while demonstrating their astute musicianship....

Brownout! kick off their tour this week but not before supplying the Beauty Bar with diverse concoctions comprised of Latin funk, Afro-beats, soul and R&B. Following their Tuesday night gig in Austin, the eight-piece plays one more show in the Lone Star State, at Zeppelin’s Pub in El Paso before leaving for California....

The Beauty Bar hosts the fascinating Gil Mantera’s Party Dream this Saturday. Hailing from Ohio originally, the duo consists of Gil Mantera and Ultimate Donny, two brothers who combine thumping dance beats and traditional rock music to create an electric smorgasbord of synth-pop that will keep you on the dance floor all night long. The hodgepodge of beats and sounds is as exhilarating as it is intriguing; always entertaining, sometimes cheesy. The duo’s live show seems to be quite a spectacle and a DVD (Live Video Archive [Vol. 01]) showcasing all the glory is also available. Gil Mantera’s Party Dream self-released two records before 2005’s bloodsongs on Audio Eagle Records. ...

*The views expressed in Truesday are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole. Thank heavens.* -The Editors I don’t want to say that there’s a right way and a wrong way to celebrate The Holidays. That would be foolhardy and dickish. Especially in a city as diversified as this one (we celebrate Christmas AND Thanksgiving!). But something this chick was crying about on NPR this morning got me thinking......

Image provided by Soundcheck MagazineWhile attending the University of Texas at Austin, one faces a constant barrage of “the weekend starts on Thursday” type advertisements. Although largely for exposure of Thursday night drink specials at bars on 6th Street, the intrinsic appeal of that statement bleeds through on days like these. Kick off your weekend early (and gently) with Swedish singer-songwriter José González at The Parish or dance away at the Electric Six show at......

Image from Scion's websiteSo you’re all set for an afternoon with the family and/or friends, tons of food on the horizon, be it Turkey or Tofurkey. Still, you need to scratch that live music itch before heading home. Well, fear not oh lovely residents of Austin, the city has a solid night of gigs on the 21st in store for the common layperson. If you’re not already planning on hitting up the Benko and The......

Image from Team Fabrication’s MySpace Emo’s is just one of the places you could be this Friday evening. Local experimental act, The Octopus Project released their latest full-length, Hello, Avalance on Peek-A-Boo Records last month and will be providing nuggets of electronic mayhem from the new album and past releases, no doubt. Cue and Horse+Donkey round off this bill of unique Austin acts on the outside stage. Inside at Emo’s, Those Peabodys will be on......

Image courtesy of The Pinker Tones’ MySpace The Pinker TonesTuesday, November 13Beauty Bar (7th St. at Red River)$5, 11 p.m.[info] The Pinker Tones had to cancel their show at the Mohawk in July but the Barcelona based duo of Mister Furia (Salvador Ray) and Professor Manso (Alex Llovet) return to Austin this Tuesday, fresh on the heels of a new remix record titled More Colours!. The Pinker Tones have two prior full-lengths, and compositions for......

Image from Ringo Deathstarr’s MySpace It’s no secret that Austin is home to one of the most prolific artistic scenes in the country, Live Music Capital of the World or not. Any weekend in the city promises a number of day time occurences and a plethora of evening events. A quick browse through this weekend’s notifications leads one to fun activities for the kids at The Flying Theater Machine’s Wang Dang Doodle Hour or a......

FRIDAY: Mohawk: Cracker / Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit Club Deville: Robbers on High Street, Great Northern - FREE! Sponsored by The Onion/Sweet Leaf Tea Beauty Bar: DJ Tim Sweeney (DFA records), Learning Secrets, Farah SATURDAY: Red 7: The Paper Chase, Stinking Lizaveta, Death Is Not A Joyride Club Deville: Mates of State, Small Sins, Immaculate Machine Mohawk: Murder City Devils, Those Peabodys Beauty Bar: Bus Driver, Daedelus, Antimc (DJs Mel and Klassen)......

The Beauty Bar presents a quality bill of local pop-rock this Thursday night. Til We’re Blue Or Destroy, comprised of a number of multi-talented musicians, have recently wrapped up work on their debut record, This Train -- due later this year. The band’s delightful ditties fluctuate between catchy dance-pop and melodic guitar-rock, and that’s just fine with us! She, Sir support with an array of guitar laced soundscapes complemented perfectly by soft, distant vocals. Russell......

Learning Secrets, the eclectic electro-family responsible for Thursday nights at Whisky Bar, will be tearing up the Beauty Bar tonight with Philly's dave p and Brooklyn's JDH, along with Austin's own Ian Orth. Indie remixes, 75 degree October nights, and open-minded dancefloor antics for only $3 at the door? That only happens in Austin, people. For real. [Learning Secrets Myspace] [JDH Myspace] [dave p Myspace] Death to Disco...This is Disco! Saturday, October 6th Beauty Bar......

Remember back in those halcyon summer days, when kids with spike-swoop haircuts would sulk over to your house on their skateboards, kick-flipping the whole way, bangs covering everyone’s pot-reddened eyes, just to bask in your glory as Thrasher’s newly claimed “heir to the Hosoi throne”? Man, those were the days. The chicks, the sponsorships, the Jimmy Z woody, all the righteous goodness. Remember that? No? Of course not. That's probably because like the rest of......

*The views expressed in The Laurie Show are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -ed. note Photos of Mice & Rifles, and Ringo Deathstarr. With the exception of unmerciful allergy issues (sniff), I've been having a great time rounding up ideas to inspire this evening's escapades on The Laurie Show on KUT 90.5. Just give me several boxes of tissue - with aloe, please - and I'll be......

You know how Texas has those new Film Incentives dollars to throw around now? Well, they're not limited to movies and Friday Night Lights only. The gaming industry gets a piece of that, too. And since there are over 50 gaming studios already in Austin (not to mention the availability of increasingly slick development/programming courses) it's a given that gaming will continue to blow up here in the Capitol City. But all that's a major......

ACL Previews Interview: Ghostland Observatory Previews: The Broken West, Big Sam’s Funky Nation & Rose Hill Drive Previews: Billy Joe Shaver and Fionn Regan Previews: Brandon Rhyder and Ocote Soul Sounds Interview: The Broken West Previews: Sylvia St. James, Jeffrey Steele, and Amy Cook Interview: Bloc Party ACL Fest Updates: Google Mashup, Contests, Eco-Chic Previews: Augustana, Amos Lee Interview: Peter, Bjorn, and John ACL Band Clash, Round 3: Wilco Vs My Morning Jacket Travis......

*The views expressed in The Laurie Show are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -ed. note It's often said that radio people don't really get a vacation. It's true, peeps. While I'm wrapping up as much as I can in the hopes of actually enjoying some the extended Labor Day weekend, the music doesn't stop on The Laurie Show on KUT. No sir, no ma'm. There are many......

In 2005, Bloc Party released their debut album Silent Alarm, a glorious highlight of the postpunk revival that the New York Times described as "angsty and urgent, with jagged guitars and sexy dance-punk drums." Unlike many of their British rock contemporaries, the band have aggressively toured America in the interim, stopping in Austin for both SXSW and ACL Fest in 2005 and 2007 and at Stubb's in 2006. This approach may help explain why......

Photos from last Thursday's MisShapes event at Beauty Bar. Photos courtesy of Annie Ray. If you can't view the Flash slideshow above, an alternate version appears after the jump.......

*The views expressed in The Laurie Show are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -ed. note Once again, I am plagued with the thought of: "Why is everything happening this weekend?! WHY, I ask you?!" Literally, it's packed with such a wide variety of live musical entertainment that your brain will explode. It can be a good dilemma to have, though. I'll try to summarize as best I......

Chances are pretty good that you’ve heard of The MisShapes – New York's party-throwing trio and current It-kids. Last fall, the New York Times wrote about “the phenomenon known as the MisShapes” and their 15 minutes of fame. They've been in countless pop culture magazines, most of which reference the one time that Madonna dropped in on their weekly residency at Don Hill’s in SoHo. They've been on ads for those Eastport backpacks that kids......

The Funniest Filmmaker in Austin contest returns to Cap City Comedy Club, with semifinals emceed by Bryan Gutmann, winner of the 2007 Funniest Person in Austin contest NYC's uber-scenesters The Misshapes hold court at Beauty Bar with Riot in Belgium and KidIndie Zilker Park hosts the very last installment of KGSR's Blues on the Green, featuring Marcia Ball & Band DJ Mel spins the killer 80s jams at the quarterly Rock the Casbah dance......

Heavy Metal -- the phrase has been used in various connotations since Black Sabbath (arguably) generated the first metal ‘sound’ back in the late 60’s. Ever since, the genre has fluctuated between differing standards and floated through a number of decades. Be it radio friendly acts such as Godsmack, the thinking man’s Tool, the stoner riffs of Fu Manchu, or local flavor in the form of The Sword, the current state of metal crosses many......