Austin Sound

This Wednesday, Austin Powell and I will be hosting the official release party for The Austin Chronicle Music Anthology, being held at Antone’s with all proceeds benefiting HAAM. The lineup spans over three decades of Austin music, with reunions, special guests, and one-time-only collaborations (see below). Yeah, this is gonna be one helluva night.

So what is this book, you say? Well first off, it’s a thing with pages that you can actually hold in your hands and flip through, kind of like an iPad or Kindle except heavier, and only holds a single volume’s worth of content. I know, weird. But it’s also the product of over 3 years of work on the part of Powell and myself, digging through every issue and piece of music writing in the Austin Chronicle archives. Online, the Chronicle currently only extends back to the late Nineties, one of the reasons Powell and I were interested in surfacing some of the amazing history contained in the paper’s pages as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.

We really don’t thrown around words like absurd casually - really only when the situation truly calls for it, or with Charlie Sheen. So when we say that the lineup for the Austin Music People launch party and first annual benefit is absurd, you know it’s good. Here’s the deal: Back when the non-profit was announced in October, we thought this would be the kind of group that could actually get stuff done for music in Austin. But we just figured that was politics and money stuff - you know, boring. We didn’t anticipate that it would putting on amazing events like this. So to help raise money for AMP, there will be a huge show on Thursday March 31, at the new ACL Live at the Moody Theater (naturally) to help drive membership. Tickets are on sale as of 10am this morning for two prices (including a cheap $20 one!): There’s the $20 Community Membership including ticket to the floor and balcony and membership that includes invites to exclusive AMP events, special discounts and giveaways, or the special $250 Professional Membership, which is a ticket to mezzanine seating as well as a pre-show VIP Happy Hour reception with AMP’s Board and professional members. Plus, AMP membership includes regular professional networking gatherings, project opportunities, key updates, invites to AMP events, and special discounts and giveaways. So yeah yeah yeah, all that i is good stuff, but why are you REALLY going? Because of this lineup below:

All the Austin hipsters these days got you down? Well, here’s a night just for you and your curmudgeonly old Nineties rocker ass, a celebration of the time when Williamsburg still referred to a colonial tourist trap and not a haven of bad clothing and life decisions. (Bring back the tri-cornered hat!) This one should be fun. The Blue Flamingo used to be the raucous punk venue celebrating the gutters of Red River before it went the way of all clubs. Now the space is occupied by Plush. HA! This Thursday night, though, we’re going to Hot Tub Time Machine it and call the punks home as Red River returns to its roots for the Blue Flamingo Tribute. Because you’re going need a day to recover between parties, the two night celebration will go down Thursday and Saturday, and there’s a pretty unbeatable lineup of some “classic” acts, and some that are actually still kicking (and fucking shit up!). Cover for the Thursday night gig at Plush is $5, and for Saturday night at Emo’s it’s $8. But the money goes to benefit the SIMS foundation, so that’s cool. Check out the full lineups below, but we also highly recommend you head over to Twistworthy’s awesome (and hilariously charmingly named) blog, Texas Punk Treasure Chest, where’s he’s been posting stuff for download from the bands playing for the past few weeks. You can spend all day digging through the gold he’s got up over there. For more info, you can go to the Blue Flamingo Facebook page (which, yes, we think is a little conceptually funny).

What the hell is exactly going on around here? First Will Sexton has stroke at 39, and now Nick Curran, who is in his early 30s is being treated for cancer. The 30s are clearly when your 20s come back to fuck you. Thankfully, Curran is expected to make a full recovery (as is Sexton), but for the love of God, can we get some universal health care around here? Oh right, this is Texas - so even if something (anything, please!?) manages to pass through Congress, this state will probably secede before it helps out the uninsured. But this isn’t about soapboxing, it’s about benefiting. And when punks get together for a benefit, it’s the best kind of benefit, if for no other reason than for one person’s hospital bills that your helping alleviate, there’s the chance the mosh pit will send three more to the ER. It’s an exponential thing. Thursday night at Emo’s, though, the punk and rockabilly scene will rally to help Curran, who actually has a new CD, Reform School Girl, out now. (Download the track “Kill My Baby” here!). On tap for the benefit are Lower Class Brats, Krum Bums, The Chumps, and Flash Boys, with a minimum donation of $6 at the door.

If you haven’t yet given in some small way to help out with the relief efforts in Haiti, Sunday might be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for as an all star lineup assembles at Austin Music Hall for a benefit. We might go, but we’ve already donated so much money to that nice Haitian prince that reached out to us for support via email. Still, tough to pass up this bill, which features quick 20 minute shots from the likes of Asleep at the Wheel, Billy Joe Shaver, the Flatlanders, Kelly Willis, Band of Heathens, etc. You get the picture. The show kicks off at 2:00, and you can check out the full lineup over at the Statesman’s site. Tickets are $28 in advance, and $33 at the door, with the proceeds going to OXFAM and the Clinton-Bush Fund. (We always thought the Clinton Bush fund was something entirely different, but this money seems to be going to Haiti). For more info, and tickets, check out www.helpaustinhelphaiti.org.

Sure, we know you’re a Grinch, that you’re already sick of the holidays, and that the new Bob Dylan Christmas album has killed the season with a weird mix of sad and horrifying. Still, it’s the holidays and we are all obligated to do one nice deed to atone for our debouched lifestyles the rest of the year. Luckily, the folks from Couch Professor Entertainment are making it easy on all of us by throwing their second annual Saggi Ball benefiting Toys For Tots. How easy? Bring $5 (and a toy!) to the Beauty Bar tonight and they’re going to provide some good tunes, and, ahem, complimentary Dripping Springs Vodka from 8pm - 10. Also, there will be a photo booth, charity black jack table, and a costume contest with prizes for Mister and Misses Ridiculous Santa and the Ugly Sweater Contest. Oh, and the music ain’t bad either. Locals Ripe and the Pons will be in on the action, along with the new Dallas group The Boom Boom Box, and triangulated-Denton act OK Sweatheart. If you haven’t heard OK Sweatheart, it’s the project of Erin Austin and features members from Midlake, Elizabeth and the Catapult, Via Audio, and The Polyphonic Spree (of course what band doesn’t have members of the Polyphonic Spree in it?). OK Sweatheart made it to the finals of this year’s Sound and Jury competition, and they’re pretty damn good. Check out the video for “You Let Me Down,” which won the Lennon Award in 2008. Where not exactly sure what kind of award that is, but we’re sure you can imagine. RSVP for tonight’s Saggi Ball here, and don’t forget your toy for a tot.

Last week while we were out, tragedy hit one of our favorite new local bands when the house shared by Bankrupt and the Borrowers burned down, and guitarist and founding member Jon Pettis died of smoke inhalation. The fire was reportedly caused by an accidental electrical malfunction. We profiled Bankrupt and the Borrowers back in April and noted their vivacious and communal attitude, which comes through full-force on their video for “I Love You Baby.” It’s a horrible loss, compounded by the band’s losing everything as well. While the future of the band, and their scheduled Fun Fun Fun Fest appearance, has yet to be determined, they are hosting a memorial and wake for Pettis this Wednesday at the Hole in the Wall. We expect a lot of Austin’s indie community to come out to show their support as the band was immensely well liked within the scene. You can also donate to help cover Pettis’ funeral expenses on the band’s website.

Just a reminder to get your HAAM on today, as a number of area businesses are chipping in to help the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians. So if you’ve been saving up for a splurge, today’s the day to hit up the following businesses, which will donate 5% of their sales.

It’s easy in this town to get benefit fatigue, perhaps for no one more than the bands that are so generously contributing their skill and time to them. But that is also what makes Austin the vibrant creative community it is - when one of our artists needs help, we step up to the plate. Back in July, photographer Todd V. Wolfson, whose immaculate portraits have been one of the visual hallmark of the Austin music scene for years, took a bad spill on his bike, shattering his arm among numerous other injuries. To get a measure of how seminal Wolfson is to Austin, one only need look at the lineup of friends who will come to his aid tonight at Antone’s for a benefit to help cover his medical costs: Alejandro Escovedo, Ian McLagan and the Bump Band, Jon Dee Graham & Jesse Sublett, Carolyn Wonderland, Will Sexton & Ruby James, Paula Nelson and more. Musicians aren’t the only folks helping out, however, as there will be a silent auction with some amazing things up for bid:

Even if you don’t know the name Todd V. Wolfson, you undoubtedly know his work. The local photographer has been documenting the Austin music scene for decades and is responsible for some of the most indelible images associated with local artists. A couple of weeks ago, however, the shutterbug was sidelined when he took a horrible spill on his bike due to some (surprise!) crappy road conditions. Wolfson was laid out pretty badly: he split his elbow joint in half and had two compound fractures in his right arm. He also needed 11 stitches in his head and suffered numerous internal injuries. Thankfully, Wolfson is expected to make a full recovery, but not without extensive surgery and months of physical therapy that will leave him out of work. Needless to say, the local community is rallying to his aid, and a benefit has been set for September 9 at Antone’s. Given Wolfson’s many friends and generosity to so many artists over the years, you can bet this will be one stellar benefit, but more important is raising enough money to get Wolfson back on his feet and back to work! You can donate directly to help Wolfson out here, and there is a Facebook page also set up for the benefit and his recovery. The organizers are accepting donations for a silent auction as well, and you can contact them through the Facebook page. Here’s to hoping for a speedy recovery for Wolfson!