SXSW has announced the schedule of events for this year’s official showcases -- start here! Also, check out Greg Hewgill's site for (unofficial) Torrents featuring the various artists playing SXSW 2008 (as well as past years)....

Rock y Roll Dia’s second annual Dia de los Muertos concert takes place at 7 p.m. this Friday at La Zona Rosa. Hosted by VJ Paul Saucido (Sonido Boombox on ME Television), last year’s bash was marked by an appropriately eerie atmosphere, a sharp dressed Paul, and international and local musical talent. This year the event is a two day extravaganza, with music from Austin acts such as Boombox and Kanko, and out of state......

Whether you're planning on attending or entering the Austin Film Festival this year, deadlines are looming. The festival won't take place until October, but early registration ends tomorrow, late screenplay and teleplay entries are due June 1st (that's Friday!), and early film entries are due June 5th. All entry "due" dates are postmark dates. Confirmed panelists for the festival include Scott Alexander (writer 1408, Ed Wood, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Agent Cody Banks),......

Howdy folks, we trust that you have recovered? We had planned on getting an early start on this week's Missed Connections, but we were shut down thanks to a mystery informant. Turns out that it was the mascot of one of the largest events in town, the damn Capitol 10K armadillo. Just because we tried to get our friends too drunk to make the race he decided to sick "the man" on us. Well,......

The Rapture have toggled several genre tags since the success of “House of Jealous Lovers” in 2002. Call it what you like, we believe their specialty of infectious electro-rock is totally relevant and absolutely imperative in today's music landscape. The band’s tradition of danceable ditties continues with their new album, Pieces Of The People We Love. Ideal for the dance floor, the record grooves, funks, and yes, even punks. High-pitched yowls and howls, set......

The Rapture have made a decent career out of pretending to defy expectations while giving its audience just what they wanted all along. In 2002 they were just another gritty post-punk group laying snarly guitar lines on top of hyperreal dance beats, but the release of 2003’s Echoes, and its attendant club smash "House Of Jealous Lovers", propelled them to the forefront of the scene everyone was expecting to save rock and roll. The scene......

Calendar it, folks: through 2007, over 100 local artists are being showcased at Austin City Hall’s new exhibition, The People’s Gallery. Organized by the Hall’s Cultural Arts Division, it offers a fine sampling of homegrown, creative talent. The talent is nicely varied, too. Examples of the work include a cast bronze bicycle-powered Icarus (he’s right in the lobby), and, upstairs, a sculpture featuring strands of yarn looking as delicious as spaghetti. These pieces, two......

Austin-based online music/film/literature magazine Urban Pollution launched today, and they're already in top form: the sharply-designed indie upstart - a clear contender for the Pitchfork/PopMatters set - unveiled a bevy of nifty content, with reviews ranging from albums (The Mendoza Line, Test Icicles, Cat Power) to films ("Match Point," "Brokeback Mountain," "Shop Girl") to books (Salvador Plascencia's The People of Paper). Of the last section, we were especially pleased to see a review of Michael......

Yep that’s right, Austin. Howard Dean is coming to Stubb’s, because "The People’s Republic of Austin"* is hosting DemocracyFest 2005. Leave it to Austin to make a festival out of politics. It’s bound to be interesting, though. Registration for the forums is sold out, but you can still buy your ticket for the Saturday, June 18th event at Stubb’s for $20. We’ll be at the rest of the festival, keeping you posted! * We’ve......