New York songstress Nina Nastasia stops by the Mohawk tonight at the near-beginning of what will become a sprawling world-wide tour, meeting up with Denton's well-liked Tre Orsi and the local Silver Pines in the process. Nastasia has garnered herself quite the underground momentum, moving from humble roots as an untethered musician wandering her way through the dimly-lit club scene, to an artist with international demand and the respect of idolized names such as producer Steve Albini and Dirty Three drummer Jim White. Her debut album, Dogs, is impossible to find and is futilely sought in a way not unfamiliar to Belle & Sebastian's debut cut, Tigermilk. But she's not just a machine for hype---she plays some pretty fine music, too, using her acoustic guitar and a knack for captivating storytelling to cut through the muck of singer-songwriter-dom to create a niche all her own. And that niche has her and her band being called everything from "remarkable" to "enrapturing" to "inspired" by critics....

Covers are inherently ballsy, and Lord knows Chan Marshall is no coward. She's already released one full length's worth of odes to her varied inspiration, 2000's Covers Record. In general, the songs Marshall covers are tiny glimpses into what we gather is her inner life, and they're almost always hit or miss, just like the lady herself. Her version of Pavement's "We Dance" was withered, but her rendition of Lou Reed's "I Found a Reason" was emotionally devastating. "I Can't Get No (Satisfaction)" was inspiring and combined her natural strut with a legend's perfectly, but here we find her opening number, "New York New York" an uncomfortable, shallow mess. ...

This week is perhaps best summed up by the words of the English poet William Blake, who remarked: "The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom." As much as we'd like to claim that we've actually read Blake, we stole that from 24-Hour Party People. Did we forget anything? Let us know. M O N D A Y film · The Austin Film Society presents the Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund screening of "The......

Here are our picks for the week... Annie – Anniemal “Kylie Minogue for hipsters.” The Aquabats – Charge!! The first release in nearly six years finds the Aquabats recharged with more of their quality playful pop-punk. Coldplay – X&Y Old fans should continue to love their sound, but don’t expect any variations from that typical Colplday format. Kraftwerk – Minimum-Maximum A 2-disc recording of their 2004 European tour live show that sounds just as......