You go to a stadium show knowing that what you're losing in acoustic clarity you may gain in spectacle. And with a band/person as salty and road-worn as Sade, it was a good bet that their show at the Erwin Center on Wednesday evening was going to unwind with no small amount of professionalism and confidence. What we didn't expect, however, was the warmth and the pleasure both the artist and the audience seemed to take from this long-delayed return to Austin. more ›

The Erwin Center is a fine place for spectacle, be it a sweaty basketball game, bawdy pop show, or some sort of Muppeted adventure. But on Wednesday night the Center is hosting an act maybe more associated with night time reverie and dusky jazz clubs than not. The smoothest operator of all, Sade, is coming to town with John Legend. more ›

For months now the blue-haired visage of a cartoon Katy Perry peered at I-35 from the Erwin Center's toehold in central Austin, and on Saturday the cheesecake priestess of pop finally made good on her promise with a senses-taxing display of light and sound. The bawdy stage show was equal parts good/bad girl tropes, color and movement smorgasbord, all paired with some of the best radio pop by committee out in the past three years. more ›

Over the years of their career, Kings of Leon have gone from humble, highly original garage rock band to a fairly formulaic, MTV-acceptable group. We might not go so far as to say they’ve completely “sold out,” but let’s face it: their music has been trickling along a downward stream toward Shit Creek over the past few years. But when we think about it, who wouldn’t sell out for a lot of fame and money if given the opportunity? And how many amazing records can a group really make? Ignore The Beatles, Radiohead or anything like that. If a band that started out stellar gets far up the fame latter, they probably deserve it. Remember that KOL weren’t always just some rock run of the mill pop-rock group. They played authentic music to an ever-growing and loyal fan base. And perhaps that loyal fan base is what helped carry them to the top. Without the continued, trusted support from early fans, they wouldn’t have had the means and record sales necessary to get so high up. more ›

he Top Ten from this summer's season of So You Think You Can Dance will be making a stop in Austin this fall. The judges on the show insist that this fifth season's dancers are the best they've had on the show, and come October 27, you can be the judge as to how well they perform live. more ›

Kevin Durant will be returning to the hardwood of the Frank Erwin Center this October, this time as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The former Longhorn All-American and Naismith Player of the Year will lead the Thunder against Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs in an NBA preseason game. more ›

On The Killers' debut album Hot Fuss, the group became hugely popular by striving to be the next Duran Duran. Their second album, Sam's Town, found them grasping for a fusion of Bruce Springsteen and Queen, but coming up mostly empty save for two great singles ("When You Were Young" and "Read My Mind," both of which need no defense). Over Thanksgiving weekend, the band released Day and Age, which finally dropped them off at a musically appropriate spot: mid-'80s, pop star Bowie. The album literally begins by sounding like "Young Americans," and it makes a lot of sense: The Killers are more serious than the average pop group, but are too pretty and radio-friendly for indie rock. And despite some questionable grammar, there's no doubt that recent single "Human" will sound as great in a basketball stadium as it does in your car. To that end, the band arrives on a high after being announced as a Coachella 2009 headliner late last week - to put that in perspective, the other two are The Cure and Paul McCartney. more ›

Fresh from his stealth, low-profile appearances at President Obama's "We Are One" concert and this weekend's Super Bowl 43, New Jersey's favorite son Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band return to Austin for a show at the Erwin Center on Sunday, April 5th. more ›

On Thursday, October 16, Weezer/Workforce ticket sale! Starting at 10:15 a.m., tickets are on sale for Weezer's upcoming show at the Erwin Center on Oct. 20. Special price: $10.15 (convenience charges may apply) at Texas Box Office or by calling (512)-477-6060. This is a one day sale and subject to availability. more ›

After Van Halen, Bruce Springsteen, Radiohead, and Jay-Z all elected to skip Austin on their spring US tours, it's not unreasonable to feel that our music-loving town seems to be off the radar of the arena pop and rock circuit. This despite a perfectly functional (if rather dated) basketball arena smack in the center in town. Thankfully, the Louis Vuitton Don Kanye West agrees with you, and has elected to show Austin some big-production love with a date here at The Frank Erwin Center in late April. more ›

Well, while we were all was guessing The LBJ Library, Hogg Auditorium or The Frank Erwin Center, UT has announced that the February 21 Democratic Debate will officially be held at The Recreation Sports Center. more ›

Hillary Clinton says we really matter! Texan self-esteem at an all-time high (and that's saying something). GM wants to buy out every single one of its United States hourly workers. Texas beats No. 3 Kansas in basketball, 72-69, in front of a sold-out Erwin Center. By 2050, one in five Americans will be foreign-born, survey saith. more ›

Dame Edna had to cancel her entire North American tour due to complications from appendix surgery. Said the Dame in a letter to her loyal Austin fans, "Texas is no country for sick Megastars, so I will see you in November 7-9, 2008 [at the Paramount], possums." more ›

Photo by @n@bou on flickrThe Longhorn volleyball team carries a 20-match win streak into the opening round of NCAA tournament play tonight against Texas State at 6:30 pm at Gregory Gym. Texas (24-3) is ranked third in the country and is the top seed in their region of the tournament. The Longhorns are led by five first-team all-conference players -- Juliann Faucette, Ashley Engle, Destinee Hooker, Michelle Moriarty and Lauren Paolini -- as well as... more ›

Photo of Divali celebration courtesy of Kokeshi President Bush visits wounded soldiers at Brooke Army Medical Center, demonstrates how to "shoot the bad guys" in Iraq--on a computer game, that is A 160-pound chimp attempts a daring escape from the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, prompting a sweep of the entire 381-acre campus. He was later found; authorities were careful to point out that "Jake" wasn't carrying any diseases, and was merely there for "behavioral science"... more ›

ACL Previews Interview: Patterson Hood Del McCoury Band, Preservation Hall Jazz Band Jon Dee Graham, Kevin Devine, and Ike Reilly Assassination Beau Soleil & Will Hoges Rail Road Earth It's Official: Bob Dylan & His Band Set to Play Stubb's Aftershow So You Wanna See An ACL Taping Trent Summar, Steve Earle, & DeVotchKa Interview: Crowded House It's Official: Bob Dylan & His Band Set to Play Stubb's Aftershow Weekly Features The Accidental Gentrifist:... more ›

Tickets for Former Vice President Al Gore's in-person performance presentation of An Inconvenient Truth will go on sale this Saturday morning at 10 a.m. Prices for normal seats range from $29.50 to $99.50, with half-price discounts available for college students and university faculty/staff. Those wishing to get intimate with the fire and brimstone may opt for super-deluxe $250 VIP tickets, which guarantee you seats within the first two rows at the Theatre at Frank... more ›

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Every fall, Austin looks forward to ACL Fest, and each year, there's always a point where two of your favorite bands are playing on different sides of the park at the exact same time. ACL Band Clash is a weekly series in which Austinist scribes Paige Maguire and Tom Thornton examine the worst ACL scheduling clashes, and try to provide good advice on finding a resolution. Well, good advice might be a stretch, but... more ›

Comedian George Lopez performs at the Erwin Center in Austin, TX on June 2, 2007. Photo courtesy of Romain Nayalkar.... more ›

Photos from this weekend's "Evolution" fashion show at the Frank Erwin Center, featuring designs by graduating seniors in the UT Department of Human Ecology, Division of Textiles and Apparel. Read more about it in this excellent Statesman article. All photos by Romain Nayalkar If you can't view the Flash slideshow above, an alternate version appears after the jump.... more ›

FRIDAY [13] fashion • RARE Magazine Spring Fling Fashion Show at The Belmont Hi-Lo (Moved due to rain) art/music • Take That!, a show of new images by Lance McMahan, plus music by Amanda Jones, Connie Ball, & Teddy and Marge at The Opera House (7-10pm) art • Hot and Cold: The Best of Canadian Contemporary Art at Art on 5th, 1501 W 5th (10am-6pm) art • Opening Reception for abstract paintings and encaustics... more ›

It’s only fair in today’s fast paced world that a share of high profile stadium rockers counters the growing success of indie bands. The Killers play the Frank Erwin Center these days while fellow “take over the world” hopefuls, My Chemical Romance have their sights set on similar success with the last year’s The Black Parade. A grand concept album with a dark storyline (largely about a dying cancer patient’s retrospective of his life),... more ›

In case you haven't gotten enough New Urbanism lately, Congress for the New Urbanism will be holding next year's CNU XVI right here in Austin. more ›

THURSDAY [8] film • Austin Film Festival screens an archival 35mm print of Trading Places, with screenwriter Herschel Weingrod (Trading Places, Twins, Kindergarten Cop, Brewster's Millions, Space Jam) introducing the film, at Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek (7:30pm, $4 General, Free for AFF Members, "Prince and Pauper"-style menu) books • Dalton Gang Poetry Showdown with Ric Williams, Lyman Grant, W. Joe Hoppe and Rob Lewis at Intellectual Property (6:00pm) film • Love Bites, the 80s... more ›

MONDAY [29] opera • Philip Glass' Waiting for the Barbarians at Bass Concert Hall music • Unwed Sailor, Bayta Darell, The Twilight Lieutenants at Emo's Lounge music • Hidden Hand, Kylesa, The Roller, Ironclad at Emo's music • The Fray, Mute Math at Frank Erwin Center music • Hill Country Outdoors' New Member Meeting at Opal Divine's Penn Field film • Darkon: The Movie at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film • Melody at Alamo Drafthouse... more ›

MONDAY [4] film •The Royal Tenenbaums at Austin Java (9pm, Free) film •Fuck: A Documentary at Alamo Downtown (7pm) film •The Conformist at Texas Union (7:30pm) film •Blue at Rounders Pizzeria (8pm, Free) film •The Da Vinci Code at Café Mundi (8pm, Free) film •Sound Unbound 2: Modern American Composers at Alamo Downtown (9:45pm, $2) music •Bound Stems, Rahim, The Shells, Quiet Company, Bello Ragazzo at Emo's music •Moonlight Towers, The Alice Rose at... more ›

WEDNESDAY [8] film • Breathless at Spider House (10pm, Free) music • Daniel Francis Doyle, Health, Oh,Beast!, Nouns Group, Blonde Girls at Emo's music • Matt Nathanson w. Danny Malone, Brett Dennen at The Parish Room music • Guitar Shorty at Waterloo Records music • The Heirs, Rachel Goldstar, The Easies, Emily Sparks, serious daters at Beerland music • Juan Gabriel at Frank Erwin Center food • Angel Valley Organic Farm Farmstand at Asian... more ›

And you thought Mr. Holland’s Opus made you cry…listen to Richard Dreyfuss talk Middle Eastern politics at the Texas Union Ballroom on Nov. 2nd, 7 p.m. Get tickets at Student Events Center Tickets Office (Room 4.300 of The Union). Smoking is BAD. You should quit. Attend the four-session Quitters Stop Smoking Class held every Friday starting Oct. 27 at noon. Sign up at SSB 1.106. Or, if you're not into group work pick up... more ›