Built to Spill’s Doug Martsch speaks on evil record companies, Phil Collins, the ugly faces of politicians, shitty guitar solos, future collaboration with Modest Mouse, and old reggae guys getting high. Alright, so Built to Spill is one of the greatest, most influential, and most acclaimed bands of the past fifteen years. There's really no way around it. And for those of you who are a little late to the love-in, here's a very small sample of some of the things that have been said about them:         "A band whose talent and proficiency at times seem[s] boundless." --Pitchfork Media         "Flawless." --Trigger Magazine         "In short, he's a talent more people ought to know about." --Rolling Stone, on Doug Martsch         "Better than getting laid, finding God and winning the lotto combined." --San Francisco Weekly, just last week when discussing their live performance...

A sad week for LAist as they lose their trusted and amazing editor Tony Pierce to the LA Times, but what a blast his last week was. He shared his 25 Favorite CDs of 2007 and wrote a great review of just a good movie, No Country For Old Men. At UCLA, thousands of students celebrated the end of their quarter by running around campus in their undies (lots of photos in a two-part......

Image from MySpace Love as Laughter at Emo’s (inside)Monday, November 19Emos (603 Red River St)Doors at 8:00, Show at 10:00[info] Today, Emo’s inside stage will be graced by Sam Jayne and his band Love as Laughter, his artistic outlet for a little under ten years after his former, very influential group Lync disbanded. Payne is best known for his work within the K Records, Olympia, WA scene, where he staked his claim for strange indie......

There are quite a few mentionables this week, including Dappled Cities' Granddance, produced by Jim Fairchild (of Grandaddy) and Peter Walker, and mixed by Jaquire King (Modest Mouse). Dappled Cities are an Australian indie rock band that we've grown rather fond of as of late, mostly because of "Fire, Fire Fire". Also of note this week is the latest from Ladybug Transistor and the latest Eccentric Soul compilation, The Prix Label. As usual, do......

So it’s Wednesday and you have no plans for your hump day. Modest Mouse isn’t worth the drive to you while Kings of Leon is sold out. How about a combo of quality local events on Red River instead? Join the lovely lasses of Team Fabrication after work at the Mohawk for an installment of Guest Bartender Night, sponsored by The Onion. The ladies mix the beats proficiently and there’s no reason to believe they......

WEDNESDAY [9] books • Amy Guth presents Three Fallen Women at BookWoman (7:00pm) comedy • Jimmie Roulette at Cap City Comedy Club film • Texas Doc Tour: "Ten Under Ten 2007" at Alamo Downtown film • "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" with Golden Ticket Giveaway at Alamo Downtown film • Weird Wednesdays: "Cop Killers" at Alamo Downtown food • Angel Valley Organic Farm Farmstand at Asian American Cultural Center, 11713 Jollyville Road (10am-2pm) food......

MONDAY [7] books • Caro Soles and Anthony Bidulka read from their latest works at BookWoman (7:00pm) comedy • Funniest Person in Austin Contest, hosted by 1986 Winner Kerry Awn at Cap City Comedy Club film • "Strangers on a Train" with Farley Granger live at Alamo Downtown film • Music Mondays: "We Were Never Here" at Alamo Downtown food • Central Market Cooking Class: Picnic Food with Amuse Bouche at Central Market Cooking......

We love animals. In fact, we're secretly training to be EAMTs (Emergency Animal Medical Technicians) so that we can save kittens and turtles and gerbils. We aren't alone in this love, however, as is evident by the longstanding trend of animal-centric band names: The Eagles, The Unicorns, Tortoise, Grizzly Bear, The Animals, Super Furry Animals, Band of Horses, Cat Power, Le Tigre, Modest Mouse, Gorillaz, Doves, Eels, Sparklehorse, and now -- The Ponys. Ok,......

Back during SXSW, we booked an opening DJ for Local Music is Sexy III on a total whim, encouraged by the recommendation of our fashion editor. We were so impressed with DJ Markus ("with a K") that we asked him back to spin at our day party, which he managed with aplomb. We dug it. Former Denton/DFW residents might recognize Markus from his gigs with popular DJ trio The Flashlight Party, which enjoyed residencies at......

Modest Mouse – We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank From the opening moments of WWDBTSES—god, even the acronym’s a mouthful—it's apparent that Modest Mouse frontman Isaac Brock has become a capital-R Rock Star, perhaps the oddest one since David Byrne: track one, “March Into The Sea,” finds the newly-svelte songwriter frothing and howling from word one. The man hasn't lost his knack for colorful illustrations of human nature, tossing off wry observations like......

Andrew Bird Armchair Apocrypha (Fat Possum) In a strange small way, Bird's violin and trademark whistle takes a backseat (driver) position on Armchair Apocrypha, allowing more emphatic drumming and leading guitars to rise to the occasion. The album is undoubtedly Bird, showcasing songs about mountains of handkerchiefs and Scythian empires, violin picking and soaring harmonies supporting his soothing croon as expected. "Imitosis" finds his songwriting taking a slight turn in a darker direction, while......

Seattle's Aqueduct have been doggedly honing an indie/laptop pop sound for several years. Essentially a one-man studio band, David Terry channels influences ranging from a suburban Oklahoma upbringing to fandom of Guns 'N' Roses and The Princess Bride into his catchy, lo-fi home studio creations. Live, the band is a very different animal: at SXSW two years ago, they simply demolished the crowd with a blend of original tunes, rap covers, an Aqueduct theme......

After spending the long weekend with Aunt Pearl and her magical inflatable cat, you're probably aching to get back into the overwhelming world of hipsterdom. Here's what's new this week (not much): Mark Kozelek Little Drummer Live (Caldoverde) Our favorite Red House Painter is offering a 2 disc collection of songs mostly recorded directly to CDR during his European and North American tour this year. Kozelek's varied influences, favorites and fetishes all come into......

Remember conventional wisdom? Once upon a time, it declared that releasing two records in the space of a single year was inadvisable. It might have also suggesed that lyrics with a historical or literary bent have no place in popular music, or that a group of highly-educated nerds from Chicago will never make it in a rock band. Fortunately for us, popular music, rock bands, and specifically Bound Stems seem to have little interest......

No film festival is complete without a contribution to the teenage misfit subgenre, and the Austin Film Festival is certainly no exception. Shot in the damp urban wastes of Seattle, Urban Scarecrow benefits from impressively gritty digital photography and a plethora of endearingly ugly locations. Wesley Downs has problems; when not weathering abuse from skateboarding bullies or enduring pitiful stand-up comedy from his downwardly-mobile father, he finds solace doing Whip-Its with his best friend or......

If you haven't heard of Mark "Melancholy" Kozelek, there's not necessarily something wrong with you; we're not trying to make anyone feel silly here. What you deserve is friendly pity, a lengthy bear hug, some chamomile tea, and a toasty copy of any album he's ever made. Preferably, his band Red House Painters' first effort, after which you can begin feverishly seeking out the rest of his catalog like a Philly crackhead. Kozelek and......

Whether you go down to the local record store or shop through the Tubes, today is new release Tuesday. Birdmonster No Midnight (SpinART) Despite the rock n roll media's underwhelmed response, No Midnight is going to be the biggest indie seller this week, quite easily. Considering the fact that they gained their audience primarily through the web, and were unsigned at the start of the year, it's a pleasant surprise to see such a......

Elsewhere in the Ist-averse [08.05 in Special] Out the Other's ACL Previews: Son Volt, Willie Nelson, The Long Winters and More [08.05 in ACL] Keep Keith Away From The Trees: Stones Confirm Zilker Details [08.04 in Music] Political Tidbits & Outlawing Cleavage [08.04 in Politics] It's Not What You Think! [08.04 in News] Walker, Hungarian Ranger [08.04 in News] Extremely Rare: Free Concert Worth Attending [08.04 in Music] Project Runway #1 In Our Hearts......

Okay, so the headline isn't entirely true, but forget about World War III for a second and listen to some really good news: yesterday Rollingstone.com broke the story, and today pitchfork reported to people under 35 that legendary Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr has been added to Modest Mouse's permanent lineup. Our minds are reeling with the possibiities: imagine the man who wrote the riffs to The Headmaster Ritual and This Charming Man working for......

Like the wandering ghosts of some long-lost pirate ship, San Diego’s Black Heart Procession will invade The Parish tonight with their moaning, clanking brand of spooky country. Though the BHP lineup is constantly shifting (and has included members of RFTC, Hot Snakes and Blonde Redhead) the current band includes Pall Jenkins and Tobias Nathaniel (both of Three Mile Pilot), Joe Plummer (Modest Mouse, Magic Magicians), Jimmy LaValle (The Album Leaf), Scot Mercado (Manuok/Via Satellite)......

Danish indie rock band Figurines have garnered quite a bit of press in the past few months since their second full-length, Skeleton, came out. Often compared to the likes of Modest Mouse and Built to Spill — lead singer Christian Hjelm could pass for Coco Rosie's brother, if you ask us — the foursome are currently touring North America with Tapes 'n Tapes (whom we interviewed yesterday) . Check out their video for "I......

In case you've missed it, there's a comedy revolution brewing in New York right now. Comics like Todd Barry, Demitri Martin, and Aziz Ansari have been drawing huge audiences of hipsters and regular folk alike with satire that owes far more to the silliness and irony of Steve Martin and Eddie Izzard than to the lowbrow Comedy Central/Def Comedy Jam nonsense that's infested comedy clubs for a decade. Among the brightest lights of the......

Ty Chandler is a man with a mission, and this mission is to get his favorite bands (many of them Austin bands) listened to and appreciated. Because it seems like every other person in Austin is in a band (or writing a screenplay, but that's another story) and because the booking in town is so competitive (largely due to the questionable amibtion of one powerful booking agent), his mission has been a difficult one.......

Wake up. Go to work. Go to bar. Go to rock show. Go to sleep. Repeat. If this is beginning to sound like your life, too, we encourage you to break the mold this weekend. Skip Bright Eyes on Saturday and head to Emo’s instead for a night of comedy and music with Eugene Mirman, Andy Blitz and Langhorne Slim. We have been fans of Mirman (who has opened for The Shins and toured......

It's the night before Austinist embarks on our Spring Road Trip to the Coachella Music Festival in the California desert, and we've all but finalized our itinerary and list of distractions to keep our eyes off the road. Here's what we're taking along for the ride out and back: All those recent copies of New Yorker, The Nation, The Believer, Harper's, Saveur, Paste, and maybe even the piles of SXSW schwag that have been......