| LIVE MUSIC I'VE SEEN | |||||
| 2025 | |||||
| Artist | Date | Location | Comment | ||
My Nextdoor Neighbor
|
04/19/25 | ABGB | "Everyone's Dumb" Album Release Party | ||
Green Acres Hop Fest
|
04/19/25 | Jester King Brewery | Mostly Dead, Stash, Spud Boy All Stars, Jimmie Dreams | ||
| Gator Gar | 04/15/25 | Continental Club Gallery | |||
The Gourds
|
04/13/25 | Sam's Town Point | |||
Eminence Ensemble
|
04/12/25 | Rancho Moonrise | Cosmic Dip Full Moon Party | ||
DakhaBrakha
|
04/11/25 | Hogg Auditorium | |||
Sturgill Simpson
|
04/07/25 | Stubb's BBQ | |||
Antibalas
with DJ Chorizo Funk
|
04/06/25 | Sahara Lounge | |||
DeadEye
|
03/29/25 | Antone's | |||
| Seth James and Jimmie Dreams & Friends | 03/27/25 | Sam's Town Point | |||
Bill Murray & His Blood Brothers
|
03/25/25 | Paramount Theatre | |||
| Jo Alice and Josh Perdue | 03/22 | Continental Club Gallery | |||
Jonathan Richman with Tommy Larkins
|
03/22/25 | Continental Club | |||
Trombone Shorty
with Tank & the Bangas
|
03/20/25 | ACL Live | |||
 |
|||||
Annual Yard Dog Party
|
03/14/25 | ABGB | Waco Brothers, Wild Seeds, Jon Langford & The Far Forlorn, Steve Wynn, Tommy Stinson, and English Teeth | ||
SoCo Stomp 2025
|
03/14/25 | C-Boys Heart & Soul | |||
Luck Reunion
|
03/13/25 | Spicewood, TX | Willie Nelson and Family, Lukas Nelson, Particle Kid, Taj Mahal, Charley Crockett, Waxahatchee, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Julien Baker & Torres, Chaparelle, Hayes Carll, Briscoe, Charlie Sexton, The Deslondes, Margo Price, Esther Rose & Katie James, Grace Bowers, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Wonder Women of Country, Aly & AJ, and more | ||
SoCo Stomp 2025
with
|
03/12/25 | C-Boys Heart & Soul | |||
Ray Benson Birthday Bash
with Asleep at the Wheel, Steve Earle, Jimmie Vaughan, Hayes and the Heathens, and Rochelle and the Sidewinders
|
03/11/25 | GSD&M Courtyard | |||
VooDudes ATX
|
03/11/25 | McCrimmon Law Firm Office | |||
South by South Grass
with Fennario Flats, Sylvan River Band, and Eddie Collins and CTBA Old Timers
|
03/08/25 | Hotel Vegas | |||
Hotel Vegas 14th Anniversary Party
with Die Spitz, Urban Heat, Annabelle Chairlegs, Haha Laughing, Gus Baldwin & The Sketch, and Andrew Cashen & The Disciples of Creation
|
03/06/25 | Hotel Vegas | |||
Mardi Gras Allstars
with D-Madness & Grooveline Horns
|
03/04/25 | C-Boys Heart & Soul | |||
Brownout
with The Point
|
03/01/25 | Radio/East | |||
Kathleen Edwards
with Ken Yates
|
02/27/25 | 04 Center | |||
Flyjack
|
02/26/25 | C-Boys |
A great show by Flyjack, an Austin-based funk, rock, and soul band, at C-Boys Heart & Soul. Flyjack has been one of my favorite funk bands in Austin for many years, and they've been playing a Wednesday residency at C-Boys for a while. Unfortunately, I haven't attended many of these shows, and when I heard that this might be the last installment of their residency for a while, I had to be there. Flyjack is led by Buck McKinney, who plays excellent lead guitar and also supplies most of the lead vocals. Long-time band member Brad Bradburn plays heavy-duty bass, and he sings harmony and lead vocals on a number of songs. The band always features a strong four-piece horn section, a fine keyboard player, and solid players on drums and congas. Thy also had a cool guest hip-hop vocalist on several songs. The band was on fire this night and they played mostly original energetic funk and soul songs that had the dance floor hopping throughout the evening.
Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Shovels & Rope
with James Felice
|
02/23/25 | Antone's |
I was fortunate to be able to see this fantastic performance by Shovels & Rope at Antone's. Several months ago, Antone's announced a Saturday show, and because of the band's popularity, it sold out almost instantly. I am a big fan of the band, and was quite disappointed. But then, just a week ago, they added this Sunday show. I was able to quickly grab a ticket, and I am glad that I did.
Shovels & Rope is a husband and wife duo from Charleston, South Carolina. The band's two members, Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst, each sing, and play guitar, keyboards, drums, and percussion, switching back and forth between instruments throughout their shows. During most songs, one plays guitar, while the other plays drums, percussion and keyboards. They both share in lead and harmony vocals, and their voices mesh together beautifully. Their songs are a blend of folk, rock, and country, and many are sung and played with a fiery energy that at times almost enters punk rock territory. At this show, they played all original tunes, including fan favorites "Love Song From A Dog", "Boxcar", "O' Be Joyful", "C'mon Utah!", and "Birmingham". Throughout the evening, their tight bond as a couple shone through, which enabled them to really connect with the audience. It was an outstanding show that I will not soon forget. The opener was James Felice, a singer and songwriter from New York who plays piano and accordion. He sang some personal original songs, and was pretty humorous in between songs. He also joined Shovels & Rope to play piano on their encore, "St. Anne's Parade". Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||
Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country
|
02/21/25 | Scoot Inn |
A fantastic performance by Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country at the Historic Scoot Inn. Daniel Donato is a guitarist, singer, and songwriter from Nashville. He and his Cosmic Country band play an improvisational mix of country, rock, and psychedelic music. The band is made up of Donato (lead guitar, vocals), Nathan "Sugarleg" Aronowitz (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Will "Mustang" McGee (bass, vocals), and Will "Bronco" Clark (drums, vocals). I have seen this band a few times previously, and they seem to keep getting better. This show included two full sets of music, and I was thoroughly impressed.
The band began the show with some twangy, country covers, including "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin" (Ernest Tubb), "Sittin' On Top Of World" (traditional, best known by Howlin' Wolf and Cream), "The Gold Rush" (Tony Rice), and "Big Ball in Cowtown" (traditional, best known by Bob Wills). From that point on the bulk of the show as made up of the band's original songs, and the music became more cosmic and psychedelic as the show progressed. The second set was just amazing, with a series of very spacey, jammy songs with just a hint of country, including one that sounded closer to EDM (electronic dance music) than country. Donato has a cool guitar style, and Aronowitz provided some nice solos on keyboards, and he also played some mean lead guitar on a couple of songs. Although Donato is the primary vocalist, each of the other band members sang lead on at least one song, and they all provided backing vocals throughout the performance. The band closed with an encore of a somewhat obscure Willie Nelson song, "Devil in a Sleepin' Bag" from Willie's 1973 album, Shotgun Willie. This was the best Cosmic Country show that I've seen, and I look forward to seeing Donato and his fine band again soon. Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||
Leo Nocentelli's Mardi Gras Mambo
with Willie Green Project
|
02/15/25 | Antone's |
A great evening of New Orleans funk headlined by Leo Nocentelli at Antone's. Nocentelli is best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the legendary funk band, the Meters. His band at this show included his brother Angello Nocenteilli (bass), Keiko Komaki (keyboards), Jamal Batiste (drums), and a conga player whose name I didn't catch. Nocentelli is an outstanding guitar player, and he did his usual killer job on Meters' standards including "Fire on the Bayou", "Cissy Strut", "People Say", and "Hey Pocky A-Way". To keep things interesting, he told the crowd that he would play "Cissy Strut" first in its usual 8/8 time signature, and then in 10/8 and 11/8, which was quite impressive. He also slowed things down in the middle of the concert and played a couple of acoustic singer/songwriter ballads that he had written for an unreleased album called "Another Side" in the early 1970's. The band finished with an encore of another Meter's tune, "You've Got to Change (You've Got to Reform)". I've been a huge fan of The Meters since the 1980's, so it's always a treat to see Nocentelli perform, and this show was no exception.
The show was opened by the Willie Green III band, a young modern jazz quartet from New Orleans. They are skilled musicians who played some nice original improvisational jazz, but I found them to be a bit mellow as an opener for the funky show that followed. Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||
HeartByrne
|
02/14/25 | Regal Rooms |
An awesome Valentine's Day performance by HeartByrne at the Regal Rooms. I am a huge HeartByrne fan, but due to various conflicts, I had missed their last few shows, so I was really looking forward to this one. As always, they did a great job performing the music of Talking Heads and David Byrne. They played all of their biggest hits, and a few songs that are not as well known. Darin Murphy and Erin Thunderheart Stein did a fine job on vocals, while Josh Pearson and Dustin Bozarth jammed on lead guitar and keyboards. The rhythm section of Evan Bozarth on bass, Grego Loboz on percussion, and Casey Byars on drums kept the groove going with solid beats. What impresses me most about HeartByrne is their ability to interpret the music with long extended jams that explore the music in new ways, and this night was no exception. The night was billed as a Pajama Party, and about half of the enthusiastic crowd dressed up for the occasion. It was my first time to see a show like this at the Regal Rooms, and I was pleased with the venue. There was plenty of room to dance, the lighting and sound were good, and the video screen behind the band added some magical visuals throughout the show. It was a great night of music, and I can't wait to see the band again soon.
Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Grooveline Horns with Marcus King
with D Madness
|
02/11/25 | C-Boys Heart & Soul |
I was fortunate enough to be able to see a fantastic performance by Grooveline Horns with special guest Marcus King at C-Boys Heart & Soul. Grooveline Horns are an Austin-based horn trio who have backed major artists including Jason Mraz, Kelly Clarkson and Zac Brown Band. Marcus King is a young blues and southern rock guitarist and vocalist from South Carolina. He is an emerging star who can fill up large venues, so being able to see him perform in a small club like C-Boys was a rare treat.
The core members of Grooveline Horns are Carlos Sosa (saxophone), Fernando "Fernie" Castillo (trumpet), and Raul "Ralo" Vallejo (trombone). They play a mix of funk, R&B, soul, and hip-hop, and on this night their band included Matt Muehling (guitar), Justin Hights(drums), John Deas (keyboards), Mike Gonzales (drums), Nick Lewis (bass), Curtis Lee (vocals), and Traygod Tha MC (hip-hop MC). Marcus King spent a good amount of the evening standing at the back playing guitar accompaniments while the horns and vocalists took the lead. However, he did come up front to sing and play some impressive lead guitar on a number of occasions throughout the evening. A highlight for me was when he played a traditional slow blues song, "Rock Me All Night Long". Some other highlights of the evening were a high energy version of Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4", and James Brown's "Get Up, I Feel Like Being A Sex Machine". It was awesome being able to see Marcus King play with this band, but Grooveline Horns were outstanding on their own, and I highly recommend that people go see them when they have the chance. Percussionist, keyboardist, and guitar player D-Madness and his band opened the evening with some funk, soul, and hip-hop of their own, which was a nice start to the evening. Here are my photos from the show. |
||
| Josh Perdue | 02/08 & 15/25 | Continental Club Gallery | |||
Dogs in a Pile
|
02/08/25 | Scoot Inn |
An amazing performance by Dogs in a Pile, a young 5-piece jam band from Asbury Park, NJ., at The Historic Scoot Inn. The band is made up of Brian Murray (vocals, guitar), Jimmy Law (vocals, guitar), Jeremy Kaplan (vocals, keyboards), Sam Lucid (vocals, bass), and Joey Babick (drums).
I had seen Dogs in a Pile for times in the last couple of years, and have always thought they were really good, but this show brought things to an even higher level. What made the show so special for me was the band's ability to play songs in a wide range of genres, and sounding fantastic in each. Their original songs on this night included rock, country, funk, and psychedelic tunes. The band seamlessly transitioned from one style to another, and Murray and Law on guitar and Kaplan on keyboards played impressive instrumental solos throughout the show. The fact that they have three talented and distinctive lead vocalists helps to bring variety to their sound as well. In addition to their interesting originals, the band performed well done covers of "Mr. Charlie" (Grateful Dead), "Dancing in the Street" (Martha Reeves and the Vandellas), and "Dixie Chicken" (Little Feat). After having seen this great show, I rank Dogs in a Pile near the top of my list of favorite jam bands, and I can't wait to see them again soon. The show was opened by a young Austin band whom I had not heard before called Nether Hour. They played original country-influenced rock, and their songs reminded me at times of the Allman Brothers, the Black Crowes, and the Doobie Brothers. I enjoyed their set, and I'll be looking forward to seeing how they develop in the future. Here are the setlist and stream/download and my photos from the show. |
||
Spud Boy Allstars
|
02/07/25 | ABGB |
Another great night of Jerry Garcia Band music by Spud Boy Allstars at ABGB. The band had their usual line-up of Joe Faulhaber (guitar/vocals), Trevor Nealon (keyboards/vocals), Jenna Watters and Erin Thunder Heart Stein (vocals), Bobby Perkins (bass) and Keith Laudieri (drums). They played a number of Garcia favorites like "They Love Each Other", "Run for the Roses", Mission in the Rain", and "Cats Under the Stars", and some less frequently played covers including Los Lobos' "Evangeline", Alan Toussaint's "Get Out My Life Woman", and Norton Buffalo's "Ain't No Bread in the Breadbox". As usual, many jamily members were there, and we all had a real good time.
Here are my photos from the show. |
||
| Barfield, the Tyrant and Da'Homies | 02/06/25 | Continental Club and Continental Club Gallery |
After Yonder Mountain last Thursday, I caught portions of two after-shows with friends, one by Barfield, the Tyrant, at the Continental Club, and the other by Da' Homies at the Continental Club Gallery. Mike Barfield, aka "Barfield, the Tyrant" is a dynamic front man whose band plays high Texas energy funk that he describes as "James Brown meets Johnny Cash fronting a very Texan version of the Clash". His band featured two outstanding guitarists, Johnny Moeller and Willie Pipkin, and their music always has the dance floor hopping. Da' Homies play a blend of funk, hip-hop, jazz, and soul, and they are another band that is fun to dance to. I often wish I had more time to see local bands, and these two are prime examples of bands that I'd like to see more often.
Here are my photos from the shows. |
||
Yonder Mountain String Band
|
02/06/25 | Paramount Theatre |
An outstanding performance by Yonder Mountain String Band at the Paramount Theatre. Yonder Mountain is a progressive bluegrass (aka jamgrass) band from Colorado who play a blend of bluegrass, rock, alternative, psychedelic, and improvisational music. The band is made up of Ben Kaufmann (bass, vocals), Dave Johnston (banjo, vocals), Adam Aijala (guitar, vocals), Nick Piccininni (mandolin, fiddle,vocals), and Coleman Smith (fiddle).
At this show, they played a number of tunes from their most recent album, Get Yourself Outside, and some older material. A highlight for me was a cool cover of the Grateful Dead's "Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo". As always, the band played interesting, extended jams that ranged from traditional bluegrass to heavily psychedelic. They are all excellent instrumentalists, and there were a number of impressive solos on fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and acoustic guitar. My only slight disappointment with the evening was that just about everyone at the Paramount remained seated throughout most of the performance (I prefer standing up and moving around during this kind of music), and the fact that they played for less than an hour and a half (I would have loved to have seen a longer show). The band finished the show by coming to the front of the stage and inviting the audience to move closer for a couple of completely unplugged songs. The audience complied well, and the band sounded great in the quiet theater. They closed with a version of the traditional tune, "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down", first recorded by Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers in 1925. It was a nice conclusion to a fun evening of music. Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Terry Allen & the Panhandle Mystery Band
|
02/01/25 | Paramount Theatre |
A tremendous performance by Terry Allen & The Panhandle Mystery Band at the Paramount Theatre. Terry Allen, the acclaimed West Texas composer/keyboardist/singer, hosts this event every year at the Paramount, and this year's show was entitled, "Greatest Missed Hits II". This meant that the show included a number of Terry's lesser known songs, so it was a bit different than in previous years. What was not different was his all-star band, which is made up of Charlie Sexton (electric guitar), Lloyd Maines (acoustic/slide guitar), Richard Bowden (fiddle/mandolin), Brian Standerfer (cello), Glen Fukunaga (bass), drummer Davis McLarty (drums), and his sons Bukka (accordion/keyboards) and Bale (percussion).
During the first set, each song was preceded by a reading by Terry and his wife Jo Harvey Allen. Each story told of a humorous or interesting incident from their family's history, and each one related in some way to the song that was about to be played. Songs they played in set one included "The Lubbuck Tornado (I Don't Know)" and "The Wolfman of Del Rio", and they closed the set with one of Terry's best known songs, "Amarillo Highway". The second set began with Bukka Allen at center stage on keyboards, with Terry, Jo Harvey, and Bale Allen behind them with microphones. The family sang several nice songs from an upcoming family album. They were then joined by two of their grandchildren, Calder and Sled Allen, and singer-songwriter Dan Milewski for a few more tunes. Then they (finally) brought out vocalist Shannon McNally, whom Terry introduces as their "resident songbird". She added some lovely vocals to the remainder of the second set, which included "Death of the Last Stripper", "What of Alicia", and "New Delhi Freight Train". Everyone joined them on stage for their encores,"Sailin' On Through" and "Give Me Flowers (While I'm Living)". As suggested by the theme, there were a number of songs during the evening that I didn't recognize, but it really didn't matter, because with Terry Allen and his stellar band, every song is worth listening to. Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. | ||
Too Many Zooz & Moon Hooch
with Honeycomb
|
01/30/25 | Mohawk |
A dynamic show by two horn-based bands, Moon Hooch and Too Many Zooz, at Mohawk. Both bands began their careers busking in New York City subways and other locations around the city, and both bands play with unique styles that push the boundaries of traditional brass band music.
The evening started with a set by DJ and electronic artist, Honeycomb. (originally Gable Johnson III). He played some interesting electronic loops, and later supplemented his sound with some electric guitar and unusual vocalizations. Then came Moon Hooch, which consists of saxophonists Wenzl McGowen and Michael Wilbur, and drummer Cyzon Griffin. I really enjoyed their high-energy horn music, which they call "Nu Jazz". They played bass-heavy, synthesized rhythms behind their sax and percussion, which gave their music an EDM vibe. McGowen on tenor sax and Wilbur on baritone sax occasionally played some odd riffs that had the feel of avant-garde jazz. Also, Michael Wilbur's deep tones on the baritone and bass sax reminded me of the band Morphine's sound. Their heavy beats and infectious, almost punkish music energized the crowd, which approached becoming a mosh pit near the front of the stage at times. Up next was Too Many Zooz, which is made up of Leo Pellegrino (baritone saxophone), Matt "Doe" Muirhead (trumpet), and David "King of Sludge" Parks (drums). Their music had a somewhat jazzier style that they call "brass house", which mixes jazz and funk with some world music elements, They played some fun and danceable tunes, which reminded me at times of New Orleans brass band and klezmer music. However, they had a tough act to follow after Moon Hooch, and even though they were really good, they didn't quite live up to the previous act's raucous energy. The evening ended with Moon Hooch joining Too Many Zooz on stage, for what they have been calling Moon Zooz on this tour. With all four horns and two drummers on stage, the energy picked back up to the previous set's level, and they jammed together on several tunes to close out a really fun night. The lighting on stage for this show was quite dim, so it was difficult to take well focused photos. So I decided to do a bit of post-processing with a crystallizing filter to try to cover up the noise in the original photos. You can see them here. |
||
Hail to the Queen: A Toni Price Tribute
|
01/28/25 | Continental Club |
An awesome tribute to the recently departed and dearly missed Toni Price, the Queen of Hippie Hour, at her Tuesday night home for many years, the Continental Club. A large number of Toni's musical friends gathered to celebrate her memory and her music. The gathering featured many stories honoring her life, and the performance of many of her most well-known songs. Artists who played with Toni at Hippie Hour over the years who participated included Scrappy Jud Newcomb, Rich Brotherton, Warren Hood, Marshall Hood, Willie Pipkin, and Matt Giles. Special guests included Gwil Owen, Shelley King, Carolyn Wonderland, David Grissom, Bill Carter, Kathy Murray, Bill Jones, Steve Doerr, and Robb Kidd. The evening began with an acoustic set, and after a break, the musicians came back with a rocking electric set.
A highlight for me was the participation of Gwil Owen, who wrote the majority of Toni's best loved songs. He lives in Nashville, so most of us had never seen him in person. He sang a number of his songs that Toni had performed, and told some great stories, including how his songwriting partnership with Toni began. He said that he first saw Toni in a small club in Nashville, and she was singing only cover songs. He introduced himself to her after the show, and said that he was a songwriter and asked if she would like to look at his songs. She said yes, and a day later after looking at them, told them that she had picked ten songs, and that she was going to form a band with him to play his music. And the rest, as they say, is history. The Continental's owner Steve Wertheimer said some nice words at several points during the evening. At the set break, he introduced members of Toni's family including her two daughters, and her granddaughter. The granddaughter read the cutest ever speech about her relationship with Toni. All of the performers did a great job in recreating Toni's songs. It was a memorable and meaningful night for the performers, staff, family, and audience members who attended. Diane and I feel a special connection with Toni, because she and her band, which included Champ Hood, Scrappy Jud Newcomb, and Casper Rawls, played at our wedding at Laguna Gloria in Austin in 1995. So it was extra special for me to see this amazing tribute. Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Carrie Rodriguez
|
01/25/25 | McCullough Theater |
An incredible sold-out world-premier multi-media stage production at the UT McCollough Theater. The show, entitled "Postcards From the Border", told the story of how Oscar Casares, a novelist and UT creative writing professor from the Rio Grande Valley, wanted to share his experience growing up on the border with his 10-year-old daughter. To enable this to happen, Casares and photographer Joel Salcido traveled the length of the Rio Grande, from El Paso to Brownsville, to reveal his roots, and to capture stories of the people that they met along the way. The story is told through postcards to his daughter read by Casares, based on images taken by Salcido. The show also featured videos taken during the journey, which included interviews with some of the subjects of the photographs and of members of Casares' family whom they encountered during their trip.
Each of the postcard readings was followed by a bilingual song, written specifically for this production by Austin-born singer-songwriter-violinist Carrie Rodriguez. The songs were performed by Rodriguez and an all-star band, which included David Pulkingham (Patty Griffin, Alejandro Escovedo) on guitar, David Jimenez (The Last Jiminez) on guitar, Alex Marrero (Brownout and Groupo Fantasma) on drums, Greg Gonzales (Grupo Fantasma) on bass, and Sergio Mendoza (Orkestra Mendoza) on keyboards. The songs complemented the stories and photos beautifully, with wonderful guitar playing by Pulkingham and Jiminez, and lovely singing and violin playing by Rodriguez, with backing vocals by the other band members. The stories revealed that the border is much more diverse and complex than is normally portrayed. The overall production was beautifully done and emotionally moving, and it seemed especially poignant given the current political situation. I left with the feeling that I had some new perspectives on the border, and I hope that this show can be seen by many more people. There is a plan to take the stage production to Texas border cities and then, hopefully, nationwide. The songs from the show are expected to be released as an album in early 2025, so at least people should be able to hear the outstanding music in the not too distant future. Because this was a theatrical performance, I only took one photo, before the shsow began, which you can see here. |
||
Lee Fields and Monophonics
with Benny Trokan
|
01/24/25 | Mohawk |
An outstanding evening of R&B and soul, featuring Monophonics and Lee Fields & the Expressions. Both bands featured charismatic front men with strong voices and tons of stage presence. They each were back by tight bands which included keyboards, guitar, bass, drums, and horns.
The opener was Benny Trokan, who has been the bass player for Spoon since 2019. He is also an independent soul and pop artist for Daptone Records. During his set, he played 12-string guitar and sang his original songs. He was backed by bass and guitar players who provided Beatle-esque harmony vocals on many of his tunes. Trokan's soft, vulnerable voice and twangy twelve-string guitar-playing reminded me of the sound of Roger McGuinn and The Byrds. Next up was Monophonics. a band from the San Francisco Bay area, who are fronted by keyboardist and vocalist Kelly Finnigan. He has a rich raspy voice, and he intermixed his fiery vocals with solid organ playing, while encouraging the audience to get involved throughout the show. The band's music was heavily soul-based, with elements of funk and psych rock. The other band members delivered some killer horn and guitar solos, and it was a fun, high-energy performance. Then came Lee Fields, a veteran soul singer who has been called "Little JB" for his vocal and physical resemblance to James Brown. He began his career in 1969, and his songs have been featured in TV shows, movies, video games, and commercials. Fields is a dynamic performer with a strong, soulful voice and flashy dance moves, who constantly engages with his audience. His music was horn-driven classic soul and R&B, and he had the crowd dancing and participating in call-and-response singing throughout the set. For a finale, Kelly Finnigan and the horn players and guitarist from Monophonic joined Fields and the Expressions to perform the Bobby Hebb soul classic, "Sunny". With Fields and Finnigan trading off on lead vocals, and all four horn players blasting away, it was a great conclusion to the evening. Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Spafford
|
01/23/25 | Antone's |
A cool show by jam band Spafford at Antone's. Spafford is originally from Arizona, and is made up of Brian Moss (guitar/vocals), Jordan Fairless (bass/vocals), Cory Schechtman (keys/vocals), and Nick Tkachyk (drums/vocals). Spafford plays long sets that consist of largely instrumental, improvisational tunes that flow from one song to the next without interruption. They are all good musicians, but to be honest, I found their first set on this night to be a bit too noodley for my taste. However, the second set rocked, and I particularly liked their version of Stealers Wheel's "Stuck in the Middle With You", which segued into one of their psychedelic originals, before flowing back into a "Stuck in the Middle" reprise. They encored with a fun version of Scissor Sisters' "Take Your Mama", which the crowd really loved, and was a fun ending to the evening.
Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||
Trainwreck Express
|
01/17/25 | Continental Club |
Andrew Trube and Anthony Farrell of the Greyhounds sat in with JJ Grey and Mofro at their show at ACL Live on Friday night. After their appearance, JJ mentioned that the Greyhounds would be playing at the Continental Club later that night. I would have loved to see the Greyhounds perform a set of their own that night, but when I checked the Continental's listings, it said that the band playing at midnight was Trainwreck Express. I had never heard of that band, but with some encouragement from a number of friends, I decided to head over to the Continental to see what was happening. My hope was that the Greyhounds would play, and that maybe JJ, Andy Frasco, or members of either of their bands might sit in. When I got to the club around midnight, I saw a band setting up, and it included several familiar faces: Andrew Trube, guitarist Scrappy Jud Newcomb, and keyboard player Matt Hubbard. They were joined by Greyhounds drummer Russell Lee, and Uncle Lucius bassist Drew Scherger. When the show began, they introduced themselves as Trainwreck Express. The music soon got rolling, and they they tore it with an eclectic blend of swamp rock, garage rock, and R&B. Trube and Scrappy traded off on lead guitar, and Matt played some killer keyboards, along with a bit of trombone. Samuel Grey Horse, a well-known Austin horseman and musician (who recently lost his home to a fire: https://gofund.me/b3b33d44 ), came out and sang a couple of songs. Towards the end of the night, a sax player whose name I didn't catch joined the band on some high-energy closing tunes. As it turned out, no one from JJ's or Andy's bands came out to play. For that matter neither did Anthony Farrell, although Andy and some of his bandmates and Anthony were spotted in the back room during the show. In any case, it turned out to be a super fun after-show, and I hope that this was not a one-off event, and that the Trainwreck Express performs again in the not too distant future.
Here are my photos from the show. |
||
JJ Grey and Mofro
with Andy Frasco Duo
|
01/17/25 | ACL Live |
A fantastic performance by JJ Grey and Mofro at ACL Live. JJ Grey is a guitarist, singer, and songwriter from Jacksonville, Fl. With his band Mofro, he plays a mix of swamp rock and southern soul music. I've been following him since his band began touring in the early 2000's and I've always enjoyed his shows. He currently tours with a large band that includes guitar, keyboards, bass, three horn players, two female backing vocalists, and two percussionists. During this show, JJ spent the majority of time on vocals and harmonica, and he play some guitar later in the show. The band played a mix of old and new Mofro tunes, including some of my favorites, "Country Ghetto", "Orange Blossoms", "Lochloosa", and "The Sun Is Shining Down".
One of the highlights for me was when JJ brought out guitarist Andrew Trube and keyboardist Anthony Farrell of Austin's Greyhounds, who were members of Mofro for a while. Trube and Farrell played several songs with the full band and a smaller subset on a few tunes. JJ is an excellent songwriter who songs often deal with his experiences growing up in rural Florida. He is also a soulful vocalist who really connects with his audience. All of his band members are outstanding musicians, and JJ gave them each time to shine at some point during the show. I've seen JJ Grey & Mofro perform quite a few times, and this show was as good as any. The opener for the show was the Andy Frasco duo featuring guitarist Shawn Eckels. Andy Frasco is a keyboard player and vocalist who usually plays with his larger band, The U.N.. On this night, he mainly played as a duo, although he added a bass player on a few songs, and two drummers on his final number. Andy's shows are usually quite raucous and high energy, but on this night, he mostly kept things mellow with some quieter original songs. Along with his original songs, he performed Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places" and a fun medley of Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer" and "Life During Wartime", which made it a fun start to a great evening of music. Here are JJ Grey's stream/download/setlist, Andy Frasco's stream/download/setlist, and my photos from the show. |
||
Ani DiFranco
with Joy Clark
|
01/16/25 | Paramount Theatre |
This was Ani DiFranco's first stop on her "Unprecedented Sh!t" Tour, in support of her 2024 album of the same name. Ani is a folky singer-songwriter and social activist who has been performing since around 1990. It was our first time to see her, and I had heard good thing about her performances, so I had high expectations for the show. Her band included a pedal steel player, drummer, and stand-up bass player, who also played keyboard on a couple of songs. Ani plays acoustic guitar with a fairly unique percussive style. Unfortunately, although the band's music was interesting, the sound was so loud and distorted that it was difficult to understand Ani's vocals on most of her songs. Ani was quirky and funny between songs, and the lyrics that I could make out were interesting, so it was unfortunate that the sound issues made the show a bit of a disappointment.
On the other hand, the evening's opener, Joy Clark was an unexpected revelation. Joy is a young singer-songwriter and guitarist from New Orleans who recently released her debut album "Tell It to the Wind". Joy sang a number of songs from her album that she introduced with highly personal stories. She has a beautiful voice and displayed some excellent acoustic guitar picking. She also came out later for one of Ani's songs to sing harmony and showed that she is a highly capable electric guitar player as well. I was quite impressed by Joy, and I'll be looking out for her in the future. Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||
My Nextdoor Neighbor and Mother Neff
|
01/10/25 | ABGB |
An outstanding show featuring two of my favorite Austin bands who play original jam music. Both feature two excellent guitar players (one for My Next Door Neighbor's also plays keyboards), along with solid bass and drum rhythm sections. The show on Friday was unfortunately lightly attended because of extremely cold weather and the UT playoff football game that night. However, those in attendance were treated to some creative melodic music, interesting jams, and two bands that each offered new and different sounds to their audience. I'd love to see these bands share a bill again in the future, and hopefully next time more of the Austin jam community is able to come out to support them.
Here are my photos from the show. |
||
Cracker
with Johnny Hickman
|
01/04/25 | 3Ten Live |
My first live music show of 2025 was an excellent performance by Cracker at 3Ten Live this past Saturday. Cracker is a rock band formed in 1990 by lead singer David Lowery and guitarist Johnny Hickman, following the breakup of Lowery's previous band, Camper Van Beethoven. I've seen them a number of times in recent years, and have always enjoyed their mix of grungy rock and alt-country. In addition to Lowery and Hickman, the band includes bassist Bryan Howard and drummer CoCo Owens. Hickman is a great lead guitarist, which he again demonstrated on this night, but for this tour, the band brought with then a secret weapon, violin player Anne Harris. She apparently joined the band fairly recently, and she blew me away with some of the best rock violin solos I've heard since Papa John Creach.
During the evening, Cracker played many of their best known songs including "King of Bakersfield", "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)", "Pictures of Matchstick Men", "Euro-Trash Girl", and "Low". They also played several Camper Van Beethoven covers, including "Take the Skinheads Bowling" and "Club Med Sucks", and surprised me with a cover of Jerry Garcia/The Grateful Dead's "Loser" (which I later read had been included on one of Cracker's early albums). Johnny Hickman opened the show with a solo acoustic set, during which he sang a number of his both funny and sad original songs. He was joined on his last few songs by Anne Harris, who played some nice violin along with Johnny's acoustic guitar. The mellower material was a nice warmup for the rocking set that came later in the evening. Here are the setlist and my photos from the show. |
||