Famous not only for his likeability but booking skills, Syed and co. have put together a formidable bill for this Saturday’s Annual Holiday Party at United States Art Authority. In this intimate venue will perform featured post-rockers Windsor for the Derby will post-rock out alongside local legends … And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, so come out and your ears could be ringing joyfully like sleigh bells come Sunday morning. Also slated are retro folk-rock darlings The Black, Voxtrot’s Jason Chronis leading his pop project JC and Co, International Waters, and Kingdom of Suicide Lovers. Yep, feels like Christmas. more ›

It was quite the change from years past. The dusty fields replaced by a lush green meadow and now, the insistent rain to ensure that heat exhaustion was no longer an issue. A wet day two at the 2009 Austin City Limits Music Festival was never going to dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd, already enjoying Flogging Molly at the AMD Stage despite the relentless downpour during the late afternoon hours. En route to the Xbox 360 Stage for …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead’s set at 5 p.m., we couldn’t help but admire the assorted rain gear, casting color below the grey sky. …Trail of Dead has been around for over a decade, starting out with just Conrad Keely and Jason Reece in the mid-90’s and plying their trade as a six-piece of late. Their catalogue encompasses a few different genres but the underlying aspect is that these guys just plain rock out. Be it ethereal soundscapes, punk thrashers, epic prog-rock, or the occasional tender ballad, …Trail of Dead deliver an amazing live show, two drummers and all. The locals kicked off with “Will You Smile Again?” and what followed was a 50 minute blitzkrieg consisting of choice tracks from the band’s extensive discography. Reece and Keely swapped vocal duties at times, each showcasing his distinct style via “Days Of Being Wild” and “How Near, How Far” respectively. While Keely seemed content swaying side to side, Reece pranced all over the stage like a man possessed, pounding his drums, picking up the guitar when needed, jumping down to the photo pit to sing to his audience, and even playing cheerleader occasionally. The highlight had to be the raucous “A Perfect Teenhood” although we were pleased that fellow Madonna selection “Clair De Lune” was included. All in all the band was in fine form and it is heartening to see them get some love from their hometown. They deserve it. more ›

…And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead is back in business. The Austin band had been somewhat dormant since 2006’s So Divided but returned in full force last October with the Festival Thyme EP (and a performance at Fun Fest 2008 in November). Today, the band drops its 6th full-length The Century of Self complete with an in-store performance at Waterloo Records. Both the EP and the LP are on the band’s own Richter Scale Records label (in conjunction with Justice Records). To celebrate the new release, Justice Records threw a cozy little Listening Party (and Open House) at its location in South Austin last Friday where media and fans were treated to a sneak peak of The Century of Self along with posters depicting the album cover (designed by Conrad Keely) and some swanky …Trail of Dead bandanas. You can stream the new record via Spinner.com. more ›

Every year, come December, we face a barrage of office holiday parties and family get-togethers, and then there’s this. Local photographer Aasim Syed has turned an evening at Red 7 into a veritable festival with this Saturday’s appropriately named “Aasim Holiday Party.” The outside stage will feature sets by ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, the legendary (to us) Glorium (performing Close Your Eyes to mark the ten year anniversary of the album’s release), and Those Peabodys, while the spacious inside area will be entertained by Ume, The Black, and Diagonals. DJ sets by Fuckin’ A and Ramesh Srivastava (Voxtrot) to keep everyone warm and busy during the set changes are also a part of this stellar line-up. more ›

If you missed ...Trail of Dead at Fun Fun Fun Fest, you can get your fix over at RCRD LBL today, where they're sharing an exclusive download of the new album's first single, "Bells of Creation." more ›

Jason Reece and Conrad Keely formed …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead as a duo in the mid-‘90s after moving to Austin from Olympia, Washington. Kevin Allen and Neil Busch joined soon after, but the band has undergone a few line-up tweaks since those early days. …Trail of Dead’s self-titled debut and Madonna were landmarks in the Austin music scene towards the end of the century; their rousing live shows were apocalyptic and exhilarating where no instrument or organism was spared if it interfered with the belligerent performance. The band has churned out one inventive record after another, sifting through noisy dream-rock, thunderous post-punk, and intricate chamber-pop during an illustrious even if sometimes underrated career. But there is little doubt in our mind that …Trail of Dead is one of the most influential and relevant bands to come out of our city despite often taking a backseat to the likes of Spoon, Ghostland Observatory, and more recently, White Denim. Although their live performances are not as intense as they used to be, there is no denying their talent and their penchant to deliver melodious rock ‘n’ roll mayhem at the drop of a dime. We caught up with Reece recently to quiz him on the state of the band and the city of Austin. more ›

Preview Okkervil River's new album, The Stand Ins, at their MySpace, where you can listen to "Lost Coastlines." more ›

Friday night's Glorium reunion show marks the final pinnacle of Emo's 15th anniversary celebration. Glorium are one of the vital pages in Austin's long musical history. The band originally formed in San Antonio in 1991 and immediately began to make a name for themselves by using avant-garde aesthetics with lessons learned from the hardcore punk scene. The result was an explosion of emotional and musical creativity; pushing the boundaries of lyrical imagery and human... more ›

The Narrator All That to the Wall (Flameshovel) The Chicago group’s interlocking skeletal structures of stark clean guitars and bouncy, thick elastic rhythms might remind one of Foolish era Superchunk or …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead at their most mild. However, it is the vocal arrangements on the album that are the most interesting. The hooks are like dissonant harmonic cries for help so catchy they urge you to sing... more ›

…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead So Divided Self-indulgence has always been central to the Trail of Dead's MO. Early albums whooshed by in a maelstrom of guitar noise, complex time changes, and punk-derived sneering. Who would bother constructing such intricate cacophony—or naming themselves a ten-word quote from a Mayan war chant— without a definitive musical axe to grind? Co-bandleaders Conrad Keely and Jason Reece, working-class kids with poetic inclinations, wrote... more ›

…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead has been supplying inventive rock music and raucous live performances for over a decade now. What started out as a two man entertainment outfit headed by Conrad Keely and Jason Reece has grown over the years into a five-piece, dual-drums-pronged machine that abides no discernible formula when it comes to expansive rock. In 2003, the band found its mature side, employing the Tosca String... more ›

In less than a year, Austin's Brothers and Sisters have established themselves as true thoroughbreds among the new stable of American indie/country bands. Their show tonight at Emo's marks the kick off of a national tour with fellow Texas luminaries Trail Of Dead and post-hardcore champs The Blood Brothers. Described by some as a "soft, warm family quilt," Bros & Sis' music is a patchwork of musical genres spanning the hard, bluesy psych-rock of... more ›

“This is the closest I’ll ever get to him,” remarked a fan as Frank Black waded his way through a gathering of collected faithful at Waterloo Records this rain hit Austin afternoon. The magic of in-store performances in the capitol has been evoked regularly by the city’s most visible record store, whether it be local icons like ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead or SxSW week imports like Doves. And, arguably, that fan was right, this is the closest the 100+ that crammed Waterloo Records would ever come to the Pixies legend. Starting off with Surfer Rosa classic, “Cactus,” Black treated the audience to a series of acoustic versions of his material, old and new, solo and not. Constantly stirring the crowd with questions and anecdotes, Black is promoting his new Americana tinged double disc, Fastman Raiderman. Soulful renditions of “I Burn Today” and (‘the song about’) “Manitoba” followed before Black truly appeased the crowd with “Where Is My Mind?” The short performance ended with some new tracks, including “Raiderman” and a plug for his evening performance at La Zona Rosa. more ›

After SXSW trashes our fair town, Coachella layers the California desert with dusty beer cans, and Wall of Sound leaves Fort Worth a city ... well, much the same, we're probably heading over to Sasquatch, the annual Pacific Northwest festival at Washingon State's scenic Gorge Amphitheatre. Scheduled to perform during the three-day Memorial Weekend blitz are Austinites Trail of Dead and Iron & Wine, plus a salivatory stew of sweet, sweet bands: FRIDAY, MAY 26... more ›

We're duly impressed by the responses we received for this week's Reader Reviews - keep 'em coming! From Cole Wimpee: Local Bluesman virtuoso, Scott H. (for 'Hiram') Biram, is briefly back in Austin after a supposed stint in Costa Rica and before the launching of a tour across the nation in September and seizing on the opportunity to see him in the interim, I checked out the midnight-monday-morning show at Beerland yesterday... Biram is... more ›

The post-SXSW music lull keeps our list of recommended night time activities a bit sparse, but with a CD release party that's sure to turn into dance mayhem, a local rock showcase of talented men in bear suits, and a show by a band who sings about shipping routes in the 1700's, we think you'll find something to do. As usual, if there's a show you think is notable that we've forgotten, drop it in... more ›