This Canadian trio have made what might one of the most perfect records of 2008 with Come Into My House, and album inspired equally by Janet Jackson, Sufjan Stevens and Arthur Russell. Utilizing charmingly off-kilter vocal harmonies, thick bass lines and brash instrumentation (not to mention the bassoon solos, esoteric time signatures, and Cher-inspired warble-effect vocals), No Kids have crafted one of the most interesting albums we've heard in a long while. The band earned a grant from the Canadian government to work on the record, and brought in an additional 9 musicians to bring the cinematic landscapes they hear in their minds to life. Although tracks like "The Beaches are Closed" smack of '90s R&B (think Usher reminiscing about a girl who dressed sexy at a party, forcing him to sing to a rain-soaked window to his own reflection later that night), it doesn't at all stink of irony. Gorgeous strings layered over the crackling drum machine and the sweet harmonies sing praises to a genre often deemed joke-worthy, demonstrating the elegance inherent therein. "Bluster in the Air" employs a muted horn section ripped straight from a smoky jazz bar, "I Love the Weekend" is a love letter to Brazilian pop and jazz master Dom Um Romão, and "Neighbor's Party" kind of reminds us of Sufjan, but in the way that Sufjan reminds us of the Cure's unabashed pop musings, such as "Close to Me." There's really not enough time to fully describe what to expect out of this one, you'll have to try it for yourself. more ›

Logo from Edible AustinEdible Austin’s first annual Eat Local Week celebration runs from Saturday December 8th through Saturday December 15th. While you’re nourishing body and soul with locally-grown and handmade foods from an extensive list of participating restaurants and markets, a portion of proceeds will go to Urban Roots, a program which teaches sustainable agriculture fundamentals to East Austin youth. 15-20 participants aged 14-18 will be awarded a paid internship to grow food on an... more ›

In colonial Brazil, quilombos were democratic societies formed by freed and fugitive slaves. They farmed and voted and defended themselves from confounded Portuguese and Dutch armies with expert hide'n'seek warfare tactics. Brazil's most famed quilombo, Palmares, had a population of 30,000 at its peak and fought off European armies for almost a century. more ›

Sampaio's (Brazilian Cuisine) more ›

You have to love ILYBICD's patience. They haven't played a show in "ages," (according to their MySpace), but will come out from hiding Saturday night at the Mohawk to "Hopefully play some new material." In the fall, the band will be heading back to the studio to begin work on their second full-length. Their self-titled 2003 release (produced by Brit Daniel) featured the slow-burning and pop-infused "Your Worst Is Your Best," but the long-awaited... more ›

It's the short-haired waitress at Spider House, or the barista at Flipnotics. It's the winsome Bookpeople guy with glasses, or that guy in all the plays at Salvage Vanguard. It's your local secret crush. It's old news that Austin has evolved from a sleepy college town into a burgeoning city of big-city transplants, international ex-pats, Houston/Dallas refugees and former Californians. With this influx has come the influence of new ideas about urban density, mass... more ›

Belaire'sExploding Impacting is an album that very well captures the essence of summer madness: the spectral emotional range goes from playful romanticism ("You Really Got Me Goin'") to the deeply reflective ("Waiting Patiently" and You're Not A Kid Anymore". ) The band's sound is somewhere between '60s Brazilian Tropicalia (Caetano Velosco, Gilberto Gil, Os Mutantes) and early '80s synth-pop (Gary Numan, Talking Heads, OMD) taken in a new direction. Though twin sisters Cari and Christa... more ›

Jerome “Jerry” Ryan was decked out in the ill-est pointy-toed cowboy boots, made from Cayman crocodile leather, when we met him at Heritage Boot. more ›

What a difference a year makes. Since settling into their stylish digs, the local stores at 2110 South Lamar have turned the former site of an old furniture warehouse into one of Austin's hippest destinations for boutique shopping and getting your hair done, rocker style. Tomorrow, the shops have teamed up to celebrate their first anniversary--ok, so many haven't been around for a full year, but the building itself debuted around this time in... more ›

This Saturday at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, there will be badass doin’s a-transpirin'. We have various Blanton parties. We had the whole Radical NY! at the AMOA (which the writer who posted on it completely ruined by misspelling the names of extremely popular artists, and just appearing to be a twat of an art icon ignoramus in general), and if you attend(ed) these events, you’ve likely felt the energy surrounding the concept:... more ›

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Now in its thirtieth year, Carnaval Brasilero returns to Austin this Saturday. Over 6,000 Austinites are expected to attend the flamboyant Brazilian-style celebration of Samba-fuelled half-nakedness, funky costumes, friendliness and hedonism. This year will once again feature NYC samba band Grupo Saveiro and performers from local samba school Acadêmicos da Opera. The Carnaval web site notes that Grupo Saveiro was “twice voted ‘the best Brazilian group in the United States’ by the Brazilian International Press... more ›

The 27th Student Conference on Latin America, organized by the Institute of Latin American Studies Student Association (ILASSA) at The University of Texas at Austin starts tomorrow, Feb. 1 with Anderson Sá, the Brazilian social activist who is the protagonist of the film Favela Rising. Sá will be speaking at 6:30 p.m. in the Thompson Conference Center, Room 1.110. Events will continue through Feb. 3 with student presentations throughout the day on Friday and Saturday... more ›

Welcome back kiddos, the year is kicking off with a shotgun bang. Head over to Waterloo or End of an Ear and ask for these albums: as far as we can tell, it's hard to go wrong this week. The Shins Wincing the Night Away (Sub Pop) Well, they're definitely stretching, and they're definitely getting more and more familiar with the studio, as "Phantom Limb" demonstrates: James Mercer is still having trouble falling asleep,... more ›

The 30th annual Carnaval Brasileiro takes place on Saturday, February 3rd, giving you just over one month to find your perfectly outrageous masks and costumes. Over 6,000 Austinites are expected to attend the flamboyant Brazilian-style Mardi Gras celebration, which will once again feature NYC samba band Grupo Saveiro and performers from local samba school Acadêmicos da Opera. As a sneak peek of the revelry to come, Ruta Maya tonight hosts "La Ruta Brasileiro," a happy... more ›

FRIDAY [5] film • Sinus Show: Die Hard at Alamo Downtown (7pm & 10pm, $12.50) music • Amplified Heat, Lions, Full Stride, The Flood at Emo's (Inside) music • Grand Champeen, Quien Es Boom, The Fall Collection, The Alice Rose at Emo's (Lounge) music • Lemurs, The Lord Henry, Clap!Clap!, Lomita at Emo's (Outside) music • The Black & White Years, AUX, The Paper South, Aster Years at Stubb's music • Summer of Blood,... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

An eastside institution that once played host to blues legends like Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, W. C. Handy and B. B. King, the Victory Grill was recently named an official historic landmark by the City of Austin. It's already listed among the National Registry of Historic Places, among other recognitions. more ›

Seu Jacinto, a band that plays traditional Northeastern Brazilian folk music, will be playing tonight at Victory Grill as part of a fundraiser for a new student organization. The Brazilian Folk Culture Collective (BRAFCCO) is a UT student organization committed to researching and sharing Brazilian culture through the study of artistic and musical expressions rooted in the Afro-Indigenous traditions of Brazil. BRAFCCO hopes to extend popular understanding of Brazilian culture beyond the ubiquitous Bossa... more ›

Some people choose to spend their Halloween hopped up on the ol' boozendrugs, running dementedly through the warehouse district dressed up like Papa Smurf. Some like to go traditional, choosing to dress up and trick-or-treat with the kids. Others prefer to spend Halloween attempting to rekindle their youth my scaring the shit out of themselves with a horror movie. Tonight and tomorrow offer a bevy of some classics and one or two lesser-known gems guaranteed... more ›

• ABDUCTION: The Megumi Yokota Story

  Documentary Feature Competition
  Screening Info: 7:00 PM October 25th at IMAX
  Regional Premiere. Japan, 1977 - A dark, lonely road leads to the windswept shores. This is the remarkable story of a 13-year-old Japanese girl abducted on her way home from school by North Korean spies. Her parents had no idea what had happened to her or if she was even alive for 20 years. Then one day the whole world learned the shocking truth. This is an extraordinary tale of mystery, intrigue, and most of all love. The film is told through the eyes of the girl's mother and father, who have been searching for their daughter for nearly 30 years. The film begins with the day Megumi vanishes and traces the astonishing course of this personal tragedy, as it becomes a battle between two nations rising to a shocking climax. [ info]

• Solo Dios Sabe

  
  International Showcase: Mexico
  
  Screening Info: 7:00 PM October 25th at
  Paramount
  
  Solo Dios Sabe (Only God Knows), a film by Carlos Bolado starring Diego Luna and Alicia Braga, is the dramatic story of a young Brazilian woman who discovers her destiny within a mysterious spiritual tradition. As she travels across Mexico and returns to her native Brazil, she falls in love with a young Mexican journalist and struggles with more wrenching choices.
  [info]

• A Lobster Tale

  
  Narrative Feature Competition
  
  Screening Info: 7:15 PM October 25th at
  Arbor
  
  World Premiere. In a small Maine fishing town, struggling lobster fisherman Cody Brewer discovers a mysterious sea moss in one of his traps. Tension in the already-fragile Brewer family erupts when the supernatural quality of the moss is revealed. The moss seems like the answer to the Brewer family’s problems, but only after it’s affected everyone in town. Despite its magical elements, the film’s strong story remains grounded in its infinitely believable representation of a town of simple fisherman presented with an amazing discovery. [info]

As part of its Independent Film Series, Scion returns to Austin tomorrow night for a special screening of Favela Rising, last year's much-acclaimed documentary about the rise of Afro-Reggae in the Brazilian slums. Synopsis: FAVELA RISING documents a man and a movement, a city divided and a favela (Brazilian squatter settlement) united. Haunted by the murders of his family and many of his friends, Anderson Sa is a former drug-trafficker who turns revolutionary in... more ›

We have discovered yet another wonderful entry in the “if you’re too tired or broke or claustrophobic or agoraphobic to make it to ACL” music alternatives. La club and radio DJ Paul V. will be airing his Smash Mix of ACL indie bands on Indie 103.1FM tonight at 7:30pm. Mix and Tracklisting: Flaming Lips vs. Massive Attack - Unfinished YeahYeahpathy (DJ Paul V. mashup) Deadboy & The Elephantmen - Stop, I’m Already Dead Muse -... more ›

Well, I posted the last of my guest previews last night, and I want to once again thank John, JD, Jeff, Chris and Becky for helping me out this year. Together they wrote 28 previews for me, and I wouldn't have been able to finish the site without their help. Well... it's not actually finished left, I have six previews left to write. While I work on those, here's an additional set of previews... more ›

It appears that city council members are choosing to pursue a bike safety study rather than moving forward with an law requiring cyclists to wear a helmet. The five redrawn congressional districts are now open and ready for political mayhem with multiple candidates running for office in each district. Democratic goobernatorial candidate Chris Bell thinks that Rick Perry is catering to "polluters who write big campaign checks." In other completely unrelated news, a campaign... more ›

There have been a few changes to the ACL schedule since last week - as Tom noted yesterday, both Ghostland Observatory and The Dears have been added to the lineup, replacing Feist and Kasey Chambers. And there's another dropout - Fields are off the schedule, so Brett Dennen has been added to the Austin Ventures Stage lineup on Sunday, shifting a few of the artists to later slots that day. You can check out... more ›

When you call your play Sodomy and Pedicures: A Pinko Feminazi Confesses, you’re bound to catch our attention. But not only does the title rock, Jessica Hedrick’s brazen one-woman show is directed by Rude Mech Sarah Richardson and assisted by Carlos Trevino (of Physical Plant fame). Our interest piqued, and with the show opening this Friday at the play! Theatre (reserve tickets now, dude) we decided to track down this Jessica Hedrick woman, and get the skinny on what these Confessions are all about. more ›

Admit it, you’ve always wanted to film that little story about the kid you knew back in elementary school who used to strip for quarters and once ate dried and chalky cat poop for a dollar. You’d set it up like a “and look how they turned out now” piece where he owns fifteen Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets, married his semi-retarded cousin-in-law, sees more butt-play from Brazilian Swimwear Models than you’ve had hot meals, and still eats feline feces (but with antique silverware). more ›

*This post comes from Austinist Special World Cup Correspondent Ben Gardner, Co-Host of KOOP’s SoccerMad, who is in Germany for this year’s Cup.* Three weeks in to the tournament and there are many storylines. The favorites are succeeding, while the Asian and African countries were sent packing, not to mention North America, which saw three of its four representatives finish bottom of their groups. From these three continents, only Mexico and Ghana made the cut,... more ›

*This post comes from Austinist Special World Cup Correspondent Ben Gardner, Co-Host of KOOP’s SoccerMad, who will be traveling to Germany for this year’s Cup.* more ›