Tuesday night proved to be a strike back against the critics who question the very coolness of Austin's music scene, as ACL Live showcased Emmylou Harris and Michael Fracasso and Waterloo Records provided Ruthie Foster. more ›

Photos from KGSR's Blues on the Green at Waterloo Park, Austin Texas, Jume 3, 2009 with Ruthie Foster. All photos courtesy Steve Hopson. more ›

So Day One of SXSW was, for me, more shitty than not. I ventured out to catch some daytime music. There were a couple of bright spots, like watching my kid play on a big stage. But, as I detailed over at my blog, this being a town of minus six degrees of separation on a regular day, SXSW unfortunately boosts the typical glut of negative opportunities to run into known assholes better avoided. Couple these run-ins with my crowd-induced anxiety and you’ll understand why I was home, locked in the house with the dogs by five, vowing not to venture out to hear anymore music this week. Why bother when I can see great shows the other fifty-one weeks of the year and not have a panic attack in the process? more ›

For The Truth, Ruthie Foster switched from Austin’s Malcolm “Papa Mali” Welbourne, producer of 2007’s tremendous Phenomenal Ruthie Foster, to Chris Goldsmith, who just won yet another Grammy with Blind Boys of Alabama. The results are clean, rich, pristinely recorded session takes. Where Welbourne dressed the music up with swooning genre flourishes, Goldsmith stays out of the way. By removing the neo-soul vignetting, he puts more responsibility on Foster’s shoulders to hold the set together. more ›

The palm trees on 6th and Lamar couldn't provide enough shade out in the parking lot of Waterloo Records on Sunday, but with breezes consistently blowing 60 degree winds and plenty of beer and music on hand, Austinites helped celebrate the twenty-fifth birthday of everyone's favorite record shop. Six hours of a Texas-packed lineup included Ruthie Foster, Grupo Fantasma, Brothers & Sister, and Eisley (pictured above); the party was headlined by Austin-based blues veterans... more ›

THURSDAY [15] benefit •St. Valentine's Day-After Massacre, A Spay/Neuter Fundraiser at Mother Egan's (5:30pm-7pm) art •Public Tour: Michener and Modernism at Blanton Museum (7:00 - 8:00 PM) art •Public Tour: By the River by Radcliffe Bailey at Blanton Museum (12:30 - 1:00 PM) ballet •Ballet Austin presents Director's Choice at The Paramount Theatre (8pm) film •Flicker Film Festival at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film •Love Bites: The 80s Power Ballad Singalong at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown... more ›

FRIDAY [15] ballet • Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker at Bass Concert Hall (Check website for details) music • Baby Robots, Horse + Donkey, Foot Foot, DJ Blip at Emo's Lounge music • Moonlight Towers, The Fall Collection, Buttercup at Emo's music • Mice & Rifles CD Release, Texas Sapphires, Adam White (The Personals) at Stubb's music • Crawling with Kings, Ian Moore, Lossy Coils, Future Clouds in Radar at The Parish Room music • Papa... more ›

THURSDAY [14] art • Ethan Azarian's Art Show 2006: Alien Abduction series, Fruit in the City, Eight Foot Cows (First Night 05), and more at In House Gallery (2514 East 17th Street, 5-10pm) music • Shapes & Sizes, Weird Weeds, Lovely Sparrows, Benko at Emo's music • OHN, Lila's Medicine at Flamingo Cantina music • Ruthie Foster at Cactus Café music • Balmorhea, Low Line Caller, Sthil at The Mohawk music • White Ghost... more ›

MONDAY [5] [film] Anime Monday at Ventana del Sol (7:30pm, Free) (link) [film] Be Here to Love Me at Rounders Pizzeria (8pm, Free) (link) [film] Memento at Austin Java (8pm, Free) (link) [film] Strangers on a Train at Paramount Theater (7pm) (link) [film] North by Northwest at Paramount Theater (9:10pm) (link) [film] The Puffy Chair at Alamo Downtown (Though 8th, 7pm, except Tuesday, 9:45pm) (link) [film] The Fall: The World of Mark E. Smith at... more ›

SXSW.com released an updated lineup for this year's SXSW Music Festival earlier today, and it's one hell of a list. The SXSW committee hastens to note that "This is a partial list of performers confirmed to appear at the 2006 SXSW Music Festival. This list is current as of 1/13/06. All of this information is subject to change." International acts include: Masahiro Nitta, DMBQ, Ellegarden, Tsu Shi Ma Mi Re, PE'Z, The Emeralds (Japan)... more ›

T U E S D A Y [27] film · Scion presents their weekly screening + Q&A at the Drafthouse South Lamar. This week: Adam Bhala Lough's "Bomb the System", with music provided by DJ Mel. (RSVP, 6:30pm)music · Zookeeper, Goldrush and Hopewell at Stubb's music · The Black Angels, The Black and Lalaland at Emo's books/pop-culture · UT Professor S. Craig Watkins discusses his latest book, Hip Hop Matters: Politics, Popular Culture, and the... more ›