Home to historical psychedelic luminaries the 13th Floor Elevators and Shiva's Headband among others, the New Year's weekend will see Austin playing host to an entirely different axis of psych and progressive music. German percussionist, improviser, and theatrical force Mani Neumeier - late of the seminal Krautrock ensemble Guru Guru - will be performing the kickoff show for the 2012 Church of the Friendly Ghost concert season. Neumeier will be featured in the duo Guru Mania with guitarist Jürgen Engler (Die Krupps), as well as directing a large ensemble improvisation and sitting in with local lysergic warhorses ST37. Multi-instrumentalist and composer Jacob Green (Gary Wilson, New Music Coop) will also be performing with members of Pataphysics and Brekekekex koax koax. more ›

TTonight, Acrassicauda, the ultra-dedicated Iraqi heavy metal band, slams into Red Seven. They braved a harrowing journey prior to settling in the United States and recording their impressive EP, Only the Dead See the End of the War (2010). Very few, if any, bands have lived for music like Acrassicauda. They played shows amidst the firefights and missile strikes (one of which destroyed their practice space in Baghdad), during the worst years of the US led war in Iraq, and fled to Syria and Turkey prior to being granted refugee status by the United States. Their early years in Iraq and Syria are documented in the outstanding film, Heavy Metal in Baghdad. There’s a lot to do tonight; if early Metallica, Slayer and Black Flag float your boat, this show is definitely for you. more ›

Before you head on out to their heavily anticipated reunion tours later this week, bust out your flannels and tattered jeans to wax nostalgic with two of indie rock’s most celebrated bands of the 1990’s -- legendary Matador alums Guided By Voices and Pavement. Alamo Drafthouse has teamed up with End Of An Ear and Matador for a very special Music Monday featuring a double header of Watch Me Jumpstart and Slow Century. more ›

Super Secret Records (shhh) have a new exciting release - the debut "7 from local band Ichi Ni San Shi, entitled "Everything." The group, which includes scene veterans Jonathan Horne (guitar) and Amanda Jones (casio), have found a delicious balance between the experimental and the unabashedly poppy. more ›

The demise of Sound Team (following the release of Movie Monster) was, for the most part, considered to be a sad turn of events for the talented crew in the band. However, most of them reorganized fairly promptly and successfully -- Bill Baird’s various projects (sometimes boasting former Sound Team band mates) are already a staple of the Austin music scene. TV Torso contains Sound Team alums Matthew Oliver and Jordan Johns, along with A. Leonard Jones, and the trio has been performing intermittently around town over the last few months (initially as The Minotaurs). Now, with two 7" vinyls available for purchase on their website and a recently completed East Coast jaunt, not to mention a Le Diamant Brut feature, TV Torso is primed for take off. This Thursday, check them out at The Mohawk when they headline a quite sumptuous local bill also featuring Pink Nasty and The Authors. more ›

Promotional still from Alamo website Music Mondays: My Name Is Albert AylerMonday, November 19Alamo Drafthouse Downtown (320 E 6th Street)(9:45pm, $2)[info] | [tickets]Though not as well known as Ornette Coleman or John Coltrane, Albert Ayler is seen by many as one of the most important figures of the free jazz movement. Over the course of 16 studio albums and countless live releases, Ayler's passionate, aggressive saxophone playing pushed jazz back toward its improvisational heyday--an idea... more ›

Welcome to the latest edition of Band Slam!, wherein I navigate the murky waters of Austin's club listings for the best and worst band names playing this week. The only rule: I can't know anything about the actual band, thus limiting my critique strictly to the band's chosen moniker. Let's git 'er done! Death Is Not A Joyride - Beerland, Thurs 09/06 Isn’t it though? A long, hot, smoky, barreling-through-the-inferno-in-a-stolen-car-with-a-gun-in-each-hand kinda thing? I guess... more ›

Ushering in this season's South By Southwest reveleries is a party celebrating the launch of Marshall Escamilla and Emily Summerfield's label, Stem and Leaf Records. In a short letter to Austinist, Summerfield described her label as seeking a musical partnership in which "the songwriting is earnest, and that is consistently true, whether the songs are about girls, zombies, historical figures or whatever." The production of each album will reflect aesthetic values from the vinyl era,... more ›

Remember when Austin had more independently owned music stores than Chipotles? Yeah, we do too. This is why we were happy to hear that a new record shop, End Of An Ear, will be opening up right around the vacant space left by the late, great Escapist Bookstore. Even though they aren't completely set up, End Of An Ear is expected to have a soft opening this weekend. This might mean cash-only purchases until... more ›