Dan Boeckner (formerly of Wolf Parade) and Alexei Perry have been hard at work, touring feverishly in support of their newest release and their third album, Sound Kapital. Tonight the sexy Canadian indie-pop husband/wife duo known as Handsome Furs return to Austin. With guitar and electronics, the duo's sound is driven by Perry's drum machine manipulations and Boeckner's edgy, urgent vocals--a winning combination that gives their sound an equal measure of punk-punch and dance-ability. While their content often reflects current cultural themes that drift to dystopian depictions in songs like "Confused" and "What About Us", their aggressive energy consistently shifts to positive reaffirmations for an overall powerful and infectious live experience that we highly recommend. more ›

Austinist staff photographer Trent Lesikar was on hand as Wolf Parade took the stage at La Zona Rosaa on Monday. more ›

It’s 10:30 a.m., Dan Boeckner sleepily answers his phone and asks me to wait a minute while he grabs his cigarettes. His voice is a groggy growl. The Canadian rocker is the lead guitarist of Wolf Parade, and he has reason to be tired. He’s been been hard at work -- touring with the Handsome Furs (a side project with his wife, Alexei Perry), writing their next album, and preparing to tour with Wolf Parade in support of Expo 86, which dropped earlier this year. more ›

There's something surely intriguing when the star-crossed "supergroup" label becomes affixed to three guys who just a decade ago would have found it nearly impossible to develop a following in the first place, let alone such independent fan bases that when they get together to screw off in the studio it elicits all sorts of anticipatory glee-shouts. Yet in these internet times, musicians such as Spencer Krug, Carey Mercer, and Dan Bejar do have a niche in which to survivably produce some of the most intricate and conceptually demanding albums of the last few years, and even afford themselves the spare time to work on the Swan Lake project, a project best described as what happens when three mad scientists meet at a mad scientist convention and decide to be mad scientists together. more ›

Carey Mercer's Blackout Beach project gives him the opportunity to go, without checks and balances, absolutely apeshit. And that’s exactly what he does with Skin of Evil, a deliciously murky concept album built around Donna, the notion of the perfect woman, and her past and present lovers, most of them woefully scorned, yet loving her nonetheless—on a scaffolding of chiming but stark guitar and otherwise complementary instrumentation and backup vocals, rarely is an album elevated so greatly via a close inspection of the lyric sheet. Listen after listen, it’s astounding that a man could make such a romantic album seem so utterly startling. more ›

With so many disgustingly cute husband/wife duos popping up on the minimalist indie pop market, it might feel hard to compete. But Handsome Furs are slowly grazing into the popularity realm of those like Mates of State and Matt & Kim. Besides rugged good looks and rockstar couple appeal, Handsome Furs tote folkloric songs with a bit of electricity. more ›

For a time there, we weren't sure if this show would ever happen. Montreal's Wolf Parade took a lengthy break after touring for debut Apologies To The Queen Mary, which led frontmen Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner to pursue multiple side projects. The resulting success (on album and in person) of their time with Sunset Rubdown, Swan Lake, and Handsome Furs caused some band discussion about whether to re-activate as Wolf Parade at all. Thankfully, Krug and Boeckner saw the benefit of continuing to work together, and the result was this summer's At Mount Zoomer, which is named after the band's recording space. more ›

It's been a big year for local acts. Big name bands like Spoon, Iron & Wine and Okkervil River made a huge impact on the independent music scene world-wide, while up and coming acts like White Denim and Moth!Fight! captured our attention at the indie rock water cooler all year long. As rising hopes and swelling egos swept the town alongside buzz and bravado, we parted ways with bands like SOUND Team and Clap!Clap!. more ›

Tonight, Canada will officially move south, as Spencer Krug's beautiful brainchild Sunset Rubdown will grace this Texas town with crazy keyboards, arcane guitars, and a variety of other weapons of musicanery. Their just-released Random Spirit Lover, appreciated by critics all the continent-wide, is certain not to disappoint...unless, of course, you hate eerily strange pop music wrapped danger-tight with eccentricity. Follow the jump for more information on this event and the chance to win a... more ›

It’s not too often that a modern-day musician says “here, take this, it’s my whole freaking brain, synapses and gooey parts and all,” but Spencer Krug, the madman extraordinaire behind Sunset Rubdown (as well as the widely adored Wolf Parade), has done just that. With Random Spirit Lover, he throws his cerebrum straight off the parking garage, giving the audience a meandering but purposeful masterwork of clatter whose intricacy is belied only by its complication.... more ›

Tacks, the Boy Disaster's Daytrotter Session features four free songs, one of which is slated to appear on their forthcoming album. "Dying to Know" is one of the band's oldest songs, but one that needed some help before it became clear how to deal with that pesky bridge. Although the charm of the Daytrotter Session songs is their live and impromptu nature (complete with borrowed instruments and auxiliary musicians), we're anxious to hear this... more ›

By and large, Canada has never been seen, in the eyes of the world, as quite the bastion of excess that the United States is. But until relatively recently, the world had not seen the spectacle of the Canadian indie scene. A tradition of ridiculous extravagance, borderline nepotistic chumminess, and overlapping personnel in the style of European royalty or American boards of directors is proudly continued in Beast Moans, the outstanding debut from Swan... more ›

If you survived the Deliverance-esque Ikea parking lot this weekend, and didn't get shot trying to get yourself a PS3, you deserve to spend even more of your hard-earned cash on records. Here's what you can find on the shelves at fine local establishments like End of an Ear or Waterloo today. Sufjan Stevens Songs for Christmas (Asthmatic Kitty) Featuring five discs worth of holiday music spanning the course of five years, tinsel used... more ›

Hey, did you hear that Google bought YouTube? No? Well, then go buy some records. Damien Jurado And Now That I'm In Your Shadow (Secretly Canadian) October's releases seem to be in touch with the temperature drop (however small) and shift of mood. Damien Jurado's latest offering is the perfect example: dark, sparing treatments on the decline of romance in the Midwest, a disagreement between friends in the back of a pickup truck, and... more ›

We have discovered yet another wonderful entry in the “if you’re too tired or broke or claustrophobic or agoraphobic to make it to ACL” music alternatives. La club and radio DJ Paul V. will be airing his Smash Mix of ACL indie bands on Indie 103.1FM tonight at 7:30pm. Mix and Tracklisting: Flaming Lips vs. Massive Attack - Unfinished YeahYeahpathy (DJ Paul V. mashup) Deadboy & The Elephantmen - Stop, I’m Already Dead Muse -... more ›

There have been a few changes to the ACL schedule since last week - as Tom noted yesterday, both Ghostland Observatory and The Dears have been added to the lineup, replacing Feist and Kasey Chambers. And there's another dropout - Fields are off the schedule, so Brett Dennen has been added to the Austin Ventures Stage lineup on Sunday, shifting a few of the artists to later slots that day. You can check out... more ›

God, we're so sick of Snakes on a Plane that we want to kill anyone and everyone that makes a "something on a something" joke. But then we realized that there was no way we could ever win this fight, and, hell, if you can't beat them, we might as well join them. And with that, you have the theme of this weeks' Gothamist network post. Austinist makes it easy for us, with Candidate on... more ›

The "cutie with the ruffly shirt" who (according to a separate admirer) "is adorable" talks to us about her new DIY craft addiction, rock climbing and a sentimental love of all things Sufjan. more ›

There is much to report this week surrounding the Zilker Park-sized dust oven that is ACL Fest. The big news is that a ridiculous number of 'official' ACL aftershow concerts has been announced. Many of the fest's acts will take over all of our club venues immediately after the big show ends each night. All tickets go onsale tomorrow at 10am, except for Sufjan Stevens, which is already onsale. This means that either (a)... more ›

[Ed. Note -- Pretty Girls Make Graves are playing tonight, Thursday May 25th, at Emo's with Giant Drag and The Joggers. Tickets are more info here.] A lot has changed for art-punks Pretty Girls Make Graves in the three years since the release of their universally-acclaimed sophomore album The New Romance. They’ve had their gear stolen out of a Seattle parking lot, lost guitar player Nathan Thelen and added keyboardist Leona Marrs. While some... more ›

We just read a leaked report of the ACL Fest Lineup, to be officially announced on Thursday. The report comes from Dallas Observer entertainment guru Robert Wilonsky. As we said, this is just a leaked report and therefore considered a rumor, but this source is about as good as they get. Of course, we hope there are a few more of our favorites coming but won't hold our breath. Have a look for yourself... more ›

After 18 bands in a weekend, Austinist is exhausted. Coachella 2006 was everything we thought it would be, only hotter, and with less alcohol (due to the scorching heat) and more drugs (since nobody could drink near the stages). We went in with no set agenda in terms of seeing particular bands - it seemed smarter to just hit whatever struck us right at the time. This strategy worked pretty well, and here's how... more ›

Formed by two former members of brilliant-but-short lived indie popsters The Unicorns a little over a year ago, Canada's Islands just recently released their debut LP, Return to the Sea, with a haunting cover taken from a mid-1820s painting by German romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich. Back at SXSW, our friends over at See You In the Pit previewed this seven-piece, describing their songs as "strangely beautiful, quirky pop melodies combined with sprawling instrumentation,... more ›

Austin is Taradise! And Lance and Sheryl split Congrats to Adlai McMahon, winner of our giveaway contest for Bloc Party's documentary/concert DVD, God Bless Bloc Party! The SXSW Music Festival roster expanded to over 1,100 this week, including such esteemed acts as Morrissey and The Flaming Lips Austinist photographer Matt Wright captures yet another amazing night shot in Austin, as well as some sexy shots of last week's Box Magazine issue release party. The... more ›

Austin City Limits is pretty nifty, we'll admit. But let's face it: the lineup for Coachella, ACL's glammed-up West Coast sibling in the desiccated wastelands near Joshua Tree, has all but reigned supreme these last few years. And this year, they're at it again; earlier this week they announced the full roster for the two-day festival, to be headlined this year by Depeche Mode (huzzah!) and ... Tool (huh?). The entire lineup: Saturday, April... more ›

While scores of wonderful albums from already well-established indie acts like Broken Social Scene, Of Montreal and The Decemberists were all but predestined for greatness this year, others seemed to appear from nowhere. Case in point: Sup Pop phenoms Wolf Parade, emerging from Montreal with a series of cameos in various compilation albums that left American fans in a rabid frenzy before finally dazzling us with their debut LP, Apologies to the Queen Mary;... 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 ›

The groovy eclectic tunes on local college radio station KVRX have helped us slog through many a tepid workday. When they're not broadcasting on FM 91.7 (the frequency space is shared with Austin community station KOOP), you can always hear them over the internet - or at your leisure now, thanks to their podcasting feature. Where else during the day can you turn to hear songs from Wolf Parade, Sufjan Stevens and !!! back... more ›

We know the past couple of weeks have been slow, but there have been a number of quality releases that we feel you need to know about. The Arcade Fire – The Arcade Fire (EP) A must have for any fan, It was previously only available at their live shows, but now has been reissued by Merge. Adrian Belew – Side Two Belew incorporates electronic sounds into his art rock landscape to provide an... more ›