"All those wasted miles/ All those aimless drives through green aisles/ Our careless lifestyle/ It was not so unwise.” On “Green Aisles”, the second track from Real Estate’s second album, lead singer Martin Courtney pretty much delivers the thesis statement of his band’s existence. more ›

After what seemed like a long wait, Annie Clark, a.k.a. St. Vincent, a.k.a. the object of every NPR-listening, vinyl-collecting indie boy’s desire, a.k.a. the recent creator of a record warmly wrapped in a choir of critical hosannas, finally walked out onto the dimly-lit Moody Theater stage. more ›

An early stop on her worldwide tour in support of Strange Mercy will bring St. Vincent to the Moody Theater tonight for what's sure to be a memorable performance. Clark's formidable talents and showmanship ought to do justice to the ACL Live setting, and, at last check, some tickets are still available. Welsh pop chanteuse Cate Le Bon will open. more ›

This preview contributed by new writer Michelle Nail. As if seeing St. Vincent weren’t awesome enough, the added bonus of deep-voiced, Welsh darling Cate Le Bon as opener is enough to move this event from amazing to double plus amazing. Le Bon’s childhood on her parent’s farm in Penboyr, West Wales was spent listening to her Dad’s vinyl collection and burying an apparently startling number of family pets. This mix of the musical and the macabre helped create the stew of fuzzy guitar riffs, psychedelic sounds, haunting voice, and equally haunting lyrics that have been creating quite a stir since the release of her first album Me Oh My in 2009. Le Bon caught the attention of that other famous Welsh band, Super Furry Animals, and in addition to singing with them she worked on front man Gruff Rhys’ other project Neon Neon where, she lent her talents to their debut single “I Lust You.” Fans and critics alike are anticipating further awesomeness with her upcoming album CYRK, set to drop in early 2012. more ›

Most musicians fall into one of a few standard career arcs (the slow build, the flameout, the sophomore slump, etc.), but rare is the artist who starts off strong, and then somehow, against all odds, successfully manages to raise the game which each successive album. One of these rare artists is the indomitable St. Vincent, the nom de plume of Texas' own Annie Clark. This year she released her third LP, Strange Mercy, and it's by all measures her most ambitious, dynamic, and rewarding work yet, and there's no hint that she'll slow down anytime soon. In advance of her highly anticipated performance at ACL Live at Moody Theater this coming Monday, we rang up Annie for a delightful chat on everything from old school video games to her Texas upbringing. more ›

Did Austin music beget Austin City Limits, or vice-versa? Either way, the reputation of our city as the live music capitol would be woefully less true were it not for the thirty-plus years of ACL programming. As much as it is a staple of our music scene, the program itself is also squirrel-y and neatly secretive. It's sequestered away in the Communications building on UT's campus, and students of photojournalism intro class J316 could easily walk the building, overexposing their film and taking blurry photos without realizing history was being made below their feet. more ›

Oh, St. Vincent, how much more talented you seem to be with every passing month. As if your debut album, Marry Me, weren't enough to elicit the swooning of every pasty-faced hipster boy this great nation has to offer, you had to bust loose and break it down with Actor, an album that is harder, more damaged, more demanding, and just plain more rocking than what we'd ever expect. So here's our chance to show our appreciation: tonight, when you'll be ripping your guitar to pieces and embodying a slew of made-up characters all public-style at the Mohawk, where the crowd is sure to be attentive and engaged, and where you'll surely continue building your case as one of music's true up-and-coming dynamos, we can display our gratitude. We mean, what better way to end this American tour, right in Texas where you grew up? There, we can even wish you good luck for your next gig: your NETWORK TELEVISION DEBUT on Letterman this coming Wednesday. more ›

Starting at 5 pm, we'll begin playing tunes and enjoying drink specials, like $1 Pabsts until they run out. Also, we'll be giving away tickets to the upcoming St. Vincent and Camera Obscura shows coming to Austin. To summarize: that's three hours of drinks and good tunes. Beats sitting in I-35 traffic for sure. more ›

Throughout its thirty-nine minutes, Actor demonstrates a continued development of depth and breadth for Annie Clark, as these songs are meaty in comparison to previous work. Also, the apparent disconnect between the sweetness of her purposely-exposed face (plastering it on the cover of an album is a good way for people to know what you look like, jsyk) and the often dark and foreboding subject matter is more present than ever—rarely does a song go by without something at least mildly disturbing to pull from the lyrics. Add on top of that a full-band willingness to rock out, with even occasional hints of Kraut to boot, and songs like the brutal “Marrow” and the propulsive “Actor Out of Work” are for the first time possible. But the big thing here is that asking a half dozen people which song on the album is their favorite may very well result in a half dozen different answers. more ›

St. Vincent, Annuals, The Black Angels, Golden Arm Trio, Colourmusic, The Spinto Band, Pepi Ginsberg, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, and Grampall Jookabox are just a few of the many acts already confirmed by SXSW for this year’s edition of the annual festival. more ›

The excitement surrounding Texan Annie Clark's solo project St. Vincent began long before the release of her debut Marry Me, thanks to the strength of a few early tracks, much blog love, and of course, a stellar live show. Clark is bringing the St. Vincent experience to Fun Fun Fun Fest this year after generally touring all over with acts including John Vanderslice and Pattern is Movement. Clark talked to us via email about her likes (tea, Phil Collins), dislikes (certain Alaskan politicians) and kept mum about the future. more ›

But really, The Castanets can't be a country band, can they? What with the quirky little indie and freak folk tendencies creeping up from the edges, those occasional dashes of electronics, and all that distortion squall they toss at their listeners...that can't really be considered country, right? Well, I hate to break it to you, but The Castanets' waterlogged new album, In the Vines, has just a hint too much pedal steel to get away... more ›

St. Vincent is Annie Clark, who has recorded with the Polyphonic Spree and been part of Sufjan Stevens's touring act. In July, the 24-year-old struck out on her own with an album, Marry Me, of slightly spooky pop songs full of oddball instrumental layers. Don't let the deer-in-headlights photo on her album cover fool you — Clark is engaged and thoroughly charming. She's the sort of person who, mid-interview, starts asking about you —... more ›

Hot Freaks! is a loose affiliation--a cabal, if you will--of international music and culture bloggers, including Dallas' Gorilla Vs. Bear, New York's brooklynvegan, and Toronto's Chromewaves, who have banded together Voltron-style to wreak cross-promotional havoc on the Western blogosphere. Masterminded by Austin promoter John Mascarenhas, Hot Freaks! has put together a lovely set of after-parties for those of us who won't be snarled in post-ACL parking-lot quagmires until midnight. Both events are looking really tempting,... more ›

UPDATE: NME is also reporting that Muse will play at Stubb's on Sunday night, we'll have details as they emerge. A lot of this might be old news for ticket holders who have been scurrying around trying to figure out how they're going to be compensated for their White Stripes @ Stubb's tickets, but it's true: Muse's performance has been moved up, and they will now occupy the White Stripes' slot, while the rest... more ›

As Austin emerges from the thorough soaking we've received over the past few weeks, it becomes time to dry off in the warm breeze of some talented female singer-songwriters. Saturday night at The Parish, you can do just that. St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) headlines, supporting her first proper LP Marry Me, an album that will mercilessly wallop your preexisting notions of not just female artists, but any artist writing compelling music out there.... more ›

It must be the week of a major holiday, because there won't be a lot of new beautiful stuff on the walls at Waterloo or End of an Ear this week. If you're anxious for Kelly Rowlands' latest (Ms. Kelly), you're breathing a big sigh of relief right now, but H-town is about as close to home as it gets July 3 (please correct us if we're wrong). The new Madlib effort, Yesterday's New... more ›

You haven't missed your chance to be in the limelight. No, you didn't get to sing your song when Devendra called that other, weirder kid on stage. And that time you were so going to crowd surf-then-jump up on stage to wail and beat drums with Arcade Fire but never got the guts to just jump--that is all in the past, my friends. Today, er Sunday, is a new day. John Vanderslice, the prolific... more ›

FRIDAY [4] party/bikes • Yellow Bike Project's Second Annual Bike Art Show with music by DJ Orion, DJ Katherine at Gallery 1906 (Free, 7pm-Midnight) art • Opening Reception: memoria/memoir: Carol Flax at Volitant Gallery, 320 Congress Ave., Ste 100 (6-9pm) art • B Scene at the Blanton Museum of Art 1st Anniversary Celebration at Blanton Museum of Art, MLK at Congress ($5 members, $10 non-members, 6-11pm) art • Opening Reception: Tunnel Vision: Parading Down the... more ›

THURSDAY [3] film • Austin Film Festival screens "The Ballad of A.J Weberman" at Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek (7:30pm Free/$4 Members/General) art • West End Gallery Night at Participating Galleries (Until 8pm) art • Blanton Museum of Art Public Tour: An Introduction to Prints at Blanton Museum of Art, MLK at Congress (7-8pm) books • Book Release Party: Collecting the Imagination: The First Fifty Years of the Ransom Center at The Harry Ransom Center (7:00pm)... more ›

MONDAY [30] food • Central Market Cooking School with Chef Aimee Olson: Spectacular Sponge Cakes at Central Market Cooking School, 4001 N Lamar ($45, 6:30-9pm) books • Dirty Found: Live! with Found Magazine Creative Directors Jason Bitner and Arthur Jones at Alamo Downtown (7:00pm) film • "Dirty Found" at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film • Music Mondays: "The Smiths: These Things Take Time" at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown music • Music Industry Boot Camp, presented by... more ›

Ed Note: Please note that the Mobile Art Place opening party mentioned yesterday is not actually free, but is open to those attending Night at the Galleries. Sorry for the inconvenience. FRIDAY [23] music • Maneja Beto, The Interest Kills, The Laughing, White Denim at The Compound ($5, 18+, 9pm, 1300 East 4th Street) comedy • The Frank Mills perform their new sketch show, "One Classy-Ass Show," at Blue Theatre (DEETS) books • Abriendo Brecha... more ›

THURSDAY [22] art • Opening Reception: Owen McAuley at d berman Gallery (6-8pm) comedy • The Frank Mills perform their new sketch show, "One Classy-Ass Show," at Blue Theatre (DEETS) party • Misprint Magazine's Beard & Moustache Competition with performances by Sharp Dressed Men (ZZTop Tribute Band), hosted by Matt Bearden, DJ sets by Stay Gold at Club de Ville (9pm) art • Artistic License: Blanton artist Fabian Marcaccio discusses his work, which is... more ›

MONDAY [19] books • Terry McAuliffe presents What A Party at BookPeople (7:00pm) film • Eddie Murphy: RAW at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film • Liquid Vinyl at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown music • JT Van Zandt and Friends at Scoot Inn... more ›

We'd heard rumors of a big blogger bonanza taking place during SXSW Music, and today finally got a glimpse of their awesome setup: two days, three stages, and 32 bands divided between Club Deville and The Mohawk. But then again, what else would you expect from music bloggers like Chromewaves, Gorilla vs Bear, Largehearted Boy, My Old Kentucky Blog, rock insider, and You Ain't No Picasso? Friday Catfish Haven, Thunderbirds Are Now!, Apostle of... more ›