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Music

Amy Cook

Opening for master craftsman James McMurtry, Austin’s sultry chanteuse hasn’t lost her Summer Skin.

Continental Club, 1315 S. Congress

The Mountain Goats

You’d never call the Mountain Goats unambitious.

The SoCal-born trio’s songwriter and established indie rock demigod John Darnielle has released an LP’s worth of songs each of the last five years. He’s only getting more confident.

“I think I get better at writing songs every year,” he opines from his home in North Carolina, where the band’s now based. “And I think that will continue for the next 45 years. Then I’ll die.

“That’s my plan.”

The Goats’ new Transcendental Youth doesn’t necessarily move in mysterious ways, besides a new streak of gorgeous brass, but its mythologies are right in the pocket of Darnielle’s canon.

“Making ‘the album’ is pretty weird when you think of it as a day job,” says Darnielle. “Imagine if you had to go into a day job for 12 days every year, and you had to really kick ass because how you do in the next year depends on how well you do in those 12 days?”

Darnielle’s written Biblical songs about Jesus and Satan, and though he’s not traditionally religious, he can rattle off obscure, New Testament fables as well as an encyclopedia’s worth of death metal.

“It’s all coming from the same place. Satanism is in reference to the Bible, it has to be,” explains the revered Decibel columnist. “I think any kid who’s ever been into the devil has to know about both; it takes a broader frame of reference.

“It’s a silly idea, but it’s a fun silly idea.”

Plenty of people are willing to tell Darnielle he’s legend. Fans are legion and passionate, more than willing to make him divine. How do you stay grounded when so many people are lifting you up?

“If you’re a songwriter, you have a big ego to a certain extent. It’s an arrogant job by nature. But if people say my stuff means a lot to them, that’s profoundly humbling. I’m a music listener. I know what it means when you allow a song to move you.”

– Luke Winkie

Emo's, 2015 Riverside

 

Film

Experimental Response Cinema: Spectres of the Spectrum

7:30PM, Spider House Ballroom, 2906 Fruth

Arts

Community

• Blue Genie Art Bazaar

  Need something Austin-y (art, jewelry, prints, clothing, etc., whatnot, and then some) for a loved one this year? More than 125 artists and artisans will help you with your gifting conundrums. Special events occur throughout the month of December, so shop early and often. Through Dec. 24, 10am-10pm, everyday. Free.

  The Marchesa Hall & Theatre, 6406 N I-35, 454-2000

  www.bluegenieartbazaar.com

  MORE COMMUNITY EVENTS »

• Gingerbread Workshop

  Kids and parents are invited to create their own sugary abodes made from locally baked gingerbread. Through Dec. 23: Wednesdays, 10am; Thursdays, 10am, 3:30pm; Fridays & Saturdays, 10am, 12:30, & 3:30pm; Sundays, 12:30 & 3:30pm. $35 ($30, members).

  Austin Children's Museum, 201 Colorado, 472-2499 x201

  www.austinkids.org/Programs/Seasonal/Gingerbread-House-Workshops.aspx

  MORE KIDS LISTINGS »

• Niepoort Douro Wine & Port Dinner

  Enjoy five courses of classic Mexican cuisine paired with the wines and ports of one of Portugal's oldest family-run wineries. Reserve by phone. 6:30pm. $85.

  Fonda San Miguel, 2330 W. North Loop, 512/459-4121

  www.fondasanmiguel.com

  MORE MEAL TIMES LISTINGS »

• The Rules of Basketball

  Features an exhibition by artist Paul Pfeiffer and a display of James Naismith's 1891 document the Original Rules of Basketball. You won't want to miss this in-depth and historical look into the sport of basketball. Runs through Jan. 13, 2013.

  The Blanton Museum of Art, 200 E. Martin Luther King Jr., 512/471-7324

  www.blantonmuseum.org

  MORE SPORTS LISTINGS »

• Christmas Apocalypto

  Guess who's coming to WTF? Rebecca and Stanley Roy must be quaking in their figgy pudding knowing that Silky Shoemaker, Little Stolen Moments, Mitzy Myers, and Russell Reed are headed back to town for this magical baconator weekend of holiday hullaballoo. Thu.-Sat., Dec. 13-15, 8:30pm. $12.

  ND Austin, 501 N. I-35, 512/485-3001

  www.ndvenue.com

• Queer Ride

  Search Team ProHomo on Facebook for up-to-date details on meeting spots and stops of this weekly ride. This week ends up at Barton Springs for Free Swim. Wednesdays, 7pm. Free.

  Texas State Capitol, 1100 Congress, 512/305-8400

  www.facebook.com/AustinTPH

  MORE GAY PLACE LISTINGS »