This Weekend : So Much to Do!

(photo: Trey Ratcliff)

You have no excuse not to get out and do something this Fourth of July weekend. Go buy some fireworks from some stand off I-35 and then go hit up one of these great shows.

Saturday, July 4th

- Explosions in the Sky, Octopus Project, and Wooden Birds @ Stubb's

- Henry Rollins and others @ Emo's (Van's Warped Tour Party)

Sunday, July 5th

- Bill Callahan and Follow That Bird @ The Parish

Any of those shows would be worth your time and money to go see. Explosions in the Sky are celebrating their 10-year anniversary as a band and are doing it in style, right here in their sort-of-hometown at Stubb's, to the people who love them the most (fact). The show is sold-out, but there are always those few people on Craigslist with a ticket or two to sell you, if you don't mind paying a premium. Henry Rollins will be in town for a Van's Warped Tour party and will presumably be talking about a few things at Emo's this Saturday. If you find yourself angry at the country on this Fourth of July, just go see him talk and I'm sure you will be surrounded by like-minded people. After that hangover is, well, over, go see Bill Callahan return to Austin at The Parish after a tour of the states. I'm sure he has some stories to tell and of course, some songs to sing.

Tonight : The Poppets @ Club 1808

The Poppets, a garage/pop-punk/lo-fi Swedish duo will be making their live show US debut tonight, right here in our fair city at Club 1808 with Love Collector. The club is kind of sketchy to be honest with you, but it should be fun, so if you're looking for something to do, put this one at the top of your list. However, if you miss them this time around, the band will also wind up their first US tour right where is started. On July 25th the band will be back in town at Beerland, so if you are otherwise engaged tonight, you can catch them later in the month!

Tonight : Patrick Wolf @ Antone's, Nylon Summer Music Tour

Ring in the new month with Patrick Wolf in all of his post-retirement #1 eccentricities at Antone's this evening. Wolf will be in Austin as part of Nylon's Summer Music Tour along with Living Things, Plasticines, and Jaguar Love. Doors open at 6 PM and things will kick off around 7, so it'll be an early night!

New Dirty Projectors Video : 'Stillness is the Move'

Dirty Projectors will be coming around our parts later this month and we are more than happy to have them come. Until then, we can watch Dave Longstreth and crew hang out in the mountains. He's leading a llama through the trails and spinning around on a lazy-susan whilst playing guitar, and there is a dance scene with lots of harem pants? Yeah, its pretty good.

Dirty Projectors will be playing at Red 7 on July 15th as an after-show for the Tortoise show earlier that night.

Fun Fun Fun Fest Announcements!

We've been missing Fun Fun Fun Fest ever since the gates at Waterloo Park closed on Sunday of 2008's incarnation of the festival and while it is still a few months away, we're finally getting some news on the artist front. The first announcement through the gates was Jesus Lizard, and that was a big one, but we've got a couple of new bands to look forward to. Thus far, we know that Atlas Sound, Broadcast, and The King Khan & BBQ Show will be playing the festival this year. Hopefully, the next announcement will be even better (they haven't let us down with the line-up yet), and as always, we will let you know just as soon as the announcement comes!

New Wavves Video : 'No Hope Kids'

Here's a new Wavves video for the song "No Hope Kids", one of Nathan Williams's better songs. The dude had a slight meltdown a little while ago at a Barcelona show, and according to an interview with Pitchfork, he's doing better now and even plotting something with Zach Hill, drummer extraordinaire. We will be interested to see how that pans out and we already have some preconceived notions, but only time will tell!

Buy Elliott Smith's 1999 Passat for $4,000, Help Austin's SIMS Foundation

(photo: Len Irish)

According to Pitchfork, this Craigslist ad for a 1999 VW Passat used to belong to Elliott Smith (RIP) and can be yours for the meager sum of $4,000. It is plausible that the car is his, since his grandparents live in the Dallas area, so if you're a huge fan or just in need of a good car, it wouldn't hurt to go have a look at it. The author of the post, Smith's brother relative (if this was in fact Smith's car), states, "It was my brother's, who was a musician himself. He's no longer with us and I think he'd be happy to know that the sale of his car will help other musicians in need." He The author goes on to say, "This car means the world to me and has a very interesting story to tell. Music buffs might get a kick out of knowing who used to own their 'new' car." The car does have some minor flaws and would "need a little bit of work to pass inspection," but the price seems fairly reasonable and would go to an excellent, local cause.

The SIMS Foundation helps local musicians by providing low-cost mental health and addiction recovery services to Austin musicians and their families. The author of the post claims that all of the proceeds from the sale will go to the foundation and also says that you can take the check there yourself or that they will show you the receipt for the donation.

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Update: According to Pitchfork, a Kill Rock Stars representative confirmed that his sister is selling the car and that it in fact was his. Sorry for my inaccurate reporting earlier and if you are his sister and left me a comment in this post, sorry!

Former Ghosts to Tour in October

Former Ghosts, a project featuring Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu, Freddy Ruppert of This Song Is A Mess But So Am I, and Nika Rosa of Zola Jesus, is set to tour this October, minus one band member. Jamie Stewart and Freddy Rupert will be hitting the road this fall on a tour of the states and Canada in order to support their album, which will be coming out sometime in the near future. We couldn't be more excited and we will be the first to let you know if an Austin date will be included in the tour plans.

St. Vincent @ The ACL Studios

Now in its 35th season, the Austin City Limits program has inspired a lot of people around the country and the world (including yours truly) to give live music another look. We are so pleased to live in a city that caters to live music and the Austin City Limits tapings are one of the best ways to experience something truly unique to this town. Pretty soon, the tapings will be moving from the small, intimate studio located on the UT campus to a much larger-capacity (not massive, though) swanky studio located downtown somewhere, so shows like this past Saturday's taping of St. Vincent are a dying breed. I will hate to see the studio move, but the city is changing and it really hasn't come as a surprise. At least more people can get in now...

Anyway, the experience of attending an ACL taping is something one should have checked off their list of things to do in Austin sooner than later, and with the 35th season's tapings in full-effect, this fall will be a promising one with tapings from bands like Sonic Youth and Beastie Boys. With the studio moving soon, this may be the last chance to catch bands that big in a studio that small. The St. Vincent taping was an interesting one to observe because she does not have the same level of "fame" as many of the other artists who have been taped (not that it matters) but folks were lined up well in advance of the 5 PM start time to pass out the space-available tickets. Some in the line were there because they were excited to see St. Vincent and others were there solely for the experience of the taping. The taping was a treat for all in attendance, although I was personally hoping for more. Yes, I know she is riding the wave of a recently released album, but I am more partial to the dark wit of her first album's songs. The new music has much more depth to it, which is certainly better for a national television audience, but the "old" songs are something else. She did play a couple of oldies, starting the set off with "Marry Me" (which she played twice, once in the encore) and slipping a revamped version of "Your Lips Are Red" in towards the end. With her backing band, the new material from Actor had a full-bodied sound and was better than any of the other backing-band set-ups we've seen her perform with. All in all, the ACL taping experience was highly enjoyable and one not to be missed (St. Vincent was good too...).

This Weekend : Lots of Music!

(photo: Kevin Vandivier)

This weekend has a few good offerings as far as live music goes in our fair city (which you know we tend to enjoy) and we are here to help you narrow down your choices. Here's what we suggest:

Friday:

- St. Vincent @ Waterloo Records, 3PM
- Screeching Weasel and others @ Emo's (outside)
- Telepathe, Lemonade, and Motel Aviv @ Emo's (inside)
- St. Vincent and Pattern is Movement @ Mohawk

Saturday:
- Sunset Rubdown, Elfin Saddle, and Witchies @ Mohawk
- St Vincent @ KLRU's ACL Studios (Official ACL Taping)

-Tickets for the show are already all given away, to my knowledge, but you may be able to find some at the taping itself.

Suggested plan of attack: Check out St. Vincent @ Waterloo this afternoon and skip her show later this evening because she comes to town often. Head over to Emo's inside for Telepathe and then on Saturday, head over to Mohawk for Sunset Rubdown if you aren't already committed to St. Vincent's ACL Taping. Any way you choose to go about it, you should have a good weekend if your time involves any of these suggestions. Have at it!