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http://www.citysearch.com/aus/antone
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"Bartender, there's a Prince Albert in my Stoli." Austin'spremier nightspot for deviants of all stripes is a 1,200-plus capacity cave that plays host to the "if it's fleshy, pierce it" crowd. Industrial, fetish, punk rawk, and adenoidal histrionics seven nights a week. Best drink? Beer, with the cap still on, if only because you know there's not going to be any stray flecks of gore in it. Motto: "If it's too loud, fuck you."
http://www.atomic-cafe.com
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One of the newest kids on the block, Austin Blues offers primarily blues, mixing a handful of touring shows with a solid slate of local acts. Sun-Wed look for early shows (8pm-midnight), with the weekend gigs stretching to the wee hours. Other attractions include a live blues lunch (M-F), a budding Stevie Ray Vaughan shrine, and a down 'n' dirty jukebox that runs from Mance Lipscomb to Muddy Waters and back. Capacity 250.
21+
Babe's has survived nearly 10 years with a simple formula: live music seven nights a week and great hamburgers. Better yet, it's actually two clubs in one. Babe's proper features a handful of long-running residencies (Alvin Crow, Dale Watson, Jake Andrews) and late-night grub. The larger Stageside, once an Eighties metal nightmare, recently cleaned up its act with a facelift and more aggressive booking policy -- bringing in Chris Wall for Wednesdays and at least a handful of roadshows a month.
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Austin's undisputed home of heavy metal since time immemorial, the Back Room has stemmed its tide of local and touring bands over the past two years, reducing the flow of live music there to a mere trickle of its former self. Book any metal act into the East Riverside mainstay, however -- from Bang Tango to Monster Magnet -- and watch the place roar to life.
http://www.backrm.com
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http://www.utexas.edu/student/txunion/cactus
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Relive your childhood at this beer and setup joint, suave and sweet and complete with a giant pink elephant, a barback carousel, and some circus murals worthy of the Big Top. Retro, relaxed, recently hip, the ever-cool Carousel boasts a big-band jukebox and a live music menu that runs from the sardonic (Charlie Burton) to the swanky (Merchants of Venus). Breakin' hearts since 1963. Live music Tuesdays and Thu-Sat. Capacity 200.
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Sitting on the upper northeast end of Austin's entertainment Mecca, the Caucus Club offers a way to be around what's happening without being smothered by it. Specializing in swing and jazz, the cozy, three-year-old club (capacity 350) caters to the slightly upscale (upscale for Austin, that is).
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From jazz to American pop standards to tango, Cedar Street features a wide variety of unobtrusive live music choices. With both an indoor bar and outdoor patio, which is absolutely splendid in the spring, up to 600 patrons can sip martinis or anything they want from a wide selection of top-shelf liquors. It's not mandatory, but wear that little black cocktail dress with the spaghetti straps, and you'll fit right in.
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For this southeast Austin roadhouse, the opening of its new, across-the-highway neighbor -- Bergstrom International Airport -- will usher in a clientele of aerophobes calming their pre-flight jitters. In the meanwhile, regulars John McVey & the Stumble, Bruce Pyle & the Pyle Drivers, Rusty Wier, and the Tejano and blues acts that play seven nights a week won't have to compete with flightpath noise. Bet their pub grub is better than in-flight honey-roasted peanuts, too.
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As far as venues go, if you want to impress that special amor in your life, this is the place to go. Completely remodeled a couple of years ago to get rid of the disco look, the interior now depicts Aztec temple imagery, murals of pyramids, and large reliefs of Zapata with his army, all created by California artist James Sanchez. A classy place, Carnival has a dress code that is strictly enforced. Big acts from Mexico and Texas draw an international crowd with big bucks to spend; cover charge on Sunday night was $15 a person before 9pm and $20 after that. The friendly staff, fancy interior, good music, and large dance floor make it worth it.
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Strictly conjunto, que mas? For a long time this location was an abandoned building, then somebody started selling taquitos out of it. Over the years, the place has been remodeled, added to, and then changed into a nice neighborhood cantinita. This place is so cool and laid back even the local viejitos come here to enjoy the early evening gigs of straight-up conjunto. What a way to retire.
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This legendary north Austin dance hall dates back to 1876, and in the last 120 years its various stages have seen the likes of Glenn Miller, Hank Williams, and an upstart named Elvis Presley. Those glory days had come and gone when the Persinger brothers bought the hall in 1997, scrapping the chandeliers, velvet wallpaper, and bring-your-own ethic in favor of neon beer signs, a mirror ball, and dollar kamikaze shots. They held onto that big honkin' dance floor, however, and fill it up most nights with a lineup that runs from blues to rock to country, with a heavy accent on local talent. Capacity 1,500
http://www.dessauhall.com
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From the outside it's a choo-choo. A train. Sitting right there on the pavement. Cool. Step inside, though, and you enter a different era -- a time and place long gone. Maybe it's the clientele, who tend to be much older, or possibly it's the music -- ragtime, big band, piano cabaret. A well-stocked bar? Free popcorn from an arcade machine? Whatever it is, Donn's Depot spins a seriously romantic spell on its patrons. Somewhere in Time, anyone? Take a sweetie and find out.
http://www.citysearch.com/aus/donns
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Folks what really got the blues can't always afford thecover at Antone's, and anyway, the real home of the local blues is at the Eastside Lounge, heard every night Thursday through Monday. Regular acts include Hosea Hargrove, Matthew Robinson, and Clarence Hicks. The Eastside is solocal they don't bother with a sign -- look for a little wooden building with a covered patio set back from the street.
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Situated where South Congress encroaches on downtown, this red-lit piano bar is dark and smoky, dripping seedy swank from the padded bar to the tight pool room. If Bobby Doyle ain't plinkin' the piano, then you might catch honky-tonker Dale Watson or Doak Short onstage for just a few bucks. There's good reason Ego's has been around for 20 years -- the room is intimate and the drinks are strong, and the 21-and-over policy means a seat and some elbow room for the show.
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http://www.io.com/~emostx/
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Once upon a time, Liberty Lunch was the Bob Marley of local reggae venues, and while said venue still hosts the occasional big rasta show, Flamingo Cantina has become home to the best in local herbalisms as well as world-class roadshows such as Boukmans Eksperyans, Kreyol Syndikat, Eek-A-Mouse, and even Lee "Scratch" Perry. Better still, the Sixth Street outpost of live, local, original music also nutures Austin's punk bands, hosting multi-act bills as good as any in town. An ear-shattering sound system, plenty of seats, and a good vibe, Flamingo Cantina is one of the best live music venues in Austin.
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The Iron Cactus is, among other things, huge. Three floors, including a rooftop deck, offer plenty of seating, and the kitchen serves fajitas until 11pm on weekends. There are stages on the main level and roof, and bands of the KGSR variety (Guy Forsyth, Trish Murphy, Malford Milligan) occupy both on weekends when the weather cooperates. While not a big hang for the college crowd, the Iron Cactus does offer a Sixth Street getaway for those caught somewhere between Steamboat and the Bitter End.
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Despite the name, Joe's is actually full of some pretty colorful characters. Blues music to boot.
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After spending years flip-flopping owners and food/music philosophies, La Zona Rosa's small inside room and newly enclosed midsize venue have finally come into their own. By booking in association with the Backyard and Austin Music Hall, the talent is consistently top-rate and eclectic. And sure, the sound can still be a bit funky, but here's a hint: Stand behind the soundboard, and trust us, you'll appreciate the show more.
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http://www.texasmusicnet.com
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With a name like theirs, Lucy's either turns your tide because you're afraid of the water or beckons like the beach. Either way, you'd be wrong, because this west-end-of-Sixth Street venue is big and roomy, decorated like your favorite tropical travel agency, and subject to occasionally strong local musical fare. They could use more surf bands, though.
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For two decades, Maggie Mae's has been the home of the college senior and the weekend warrior. What do they expect from Maggie? Casual atmosphere, dancing, and songs they recognize -- hence Maggie Mae's role as the best employer of cover bands and highly derivative original bands (i.e., SRV clones) in town. Even if you don't stop in, walking by the window stage and hearing "Crossfire," "The Way," or "Pepper" is always good for a double take.
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In the past two years, the Mercury has fixed itself firmly in the upper echelon of small clubs in Austin by taking chances -- like bringing straight-ahead jazz to Sixth Street in the face of the frat-bar explosion, or going after "out-of-league" acts like Jimmy Smith and having them pay off big-time. Home to acid jazz, world beat, funk, hip-hop, neo-hippie, and every combination of these, this 170-person shotgun-style bar (with the separated Galaxie Lounge in the back) has become home for a whole new generation of Austin music fans.
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Though new and not yet stable in the Austin music scene, the Purgatory Lounge could be one of the most important clubs in the city. With the closing of punk proving grounds like the Blue Flame and the Bates Motel, this revamped downtown facility is one of the only spaces left for new and unknown punk rock bands to play in publicbefore they move up to their older neighbor Emo's stage.
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Over the past couple of years, the Red Room has managed to sidestep the curse that has overshadowed their location (100 yards due southwest of Cop Central, 30 feet short of homeless 'n' crackville) to become the single most important DJ club in Austin. This is due in large part to promoter Joseph Ruiz's unflagging ability to attract international heavy hitters such as Grooverider, Soul Slinger, and Supa-Stah DJ Keoki while at the same time allowing local luminaries (Herb, Rollers Redefined) a chance to build up fanbases through weekly residencies. Having just begun devoting Saturday night to hip-hop, the Red Room proves funky is as funky does.
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"Dis here's one swanky joint," the official advertising slogan for the Ritz's upstairs music venue, is intentionally ironic, because while it's far classier and more intimate than the poolhall downstairs, it's not nearly as swanky as its "lounge" competitors across Congress. In fact, while the Ritz hosts its share of lounge, jazz, and tango, it's also just as willing to feature a DJ or an experimental hip-hop outfit like Big Game Hunter. Best of all, its box seat, stadium-style setup ensures there's nary a bad seat in the house.
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http://www.citysearch.com/aus/saxonpub
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Only a few years back, the Speakeasy's attempt to replicate a 1920s Prohibition-era atmosphere (i.e., cigars and martinis) made it the hottest and trendiest club in town. It's cooled off a bit over the last year or so, but the smaller and less pretentious crowds only make the Speakeasy's four nights of blues, jazz, and swing easier to swallow. In fact, between the swing lessons and a calendar that typically includes 47 Indians, the Lucky Strikes, Mr. Fabulous, and W.C. Clark, it's become one of the more consistently entertaining venues west of Congress.
http://www.citysearch.com/aus/speakeasy
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The Spot is the newest, uh, spot in the Fourth Street district. Opened in the fall of 1998, the venue is still searching for an identity in that it features everything from soul and R&B cover bands to acoustic guitar wizards to a Beatles tribute band.
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Retrophiles familiar with the nuevo-lounge and swing jazz of Rocket 69, Mr. Fabulous, Merchants of Venus, Lucky Strikes, Jive Bombers, and 81*2 Souvenirs might appreciate the ritzy North Austin setting of the newly reopened Tangerines and the older, moneyed crowd the location entails. Being the neighbor of the Arboretum's Renaissance Hotel, it's as close as you'll get to the Fifties Las Vegas hotel-club swank. The club hosts live music and dancing Thursday nights at 7pm, and Fridays and Saturdays at 9:30pm.
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Despite its low profile, the 311 Club has offered a strong 'n' steady lineup of R&B acts and blues jams seven nights a week for nearly a decade.
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For 10 years, Top of the Marc has been providing an outlet for the middle-aged set to expose the funky side their kids never knew they had. Nightly R&B, oldies, and funk acts bring out the soul in Katz's better half where "Go on, girl!" and "Play it!" are the informal mantras. Shows start at 8pm, and it's wise to arrive early because the seats, as well as the dance floor, fill up quickly. Capacity 300.
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The glass brick, blue tile, and stucco exterior belie the smoky, big-screen, pool-table-and-a-longneck atmosphere that is Trophy's. Home to local legend Steve Fromholz three nights a week, it also claims to serve the best burgers in Austin.
http://www.citysearch.com/aus/trophys