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ACL Fest 2015 Friday Record Review

Amid the recent influx of young British songwriters, George Ezra strikes a unique chord. Improbably deep vocals set the Bristol-based 22-year-old’s croon apart from contemporaries, even if his lyrical restlessness and wit still have room to mature. Ezra’s debut collects older EP material, but displays an impeccable sense of melody on opening strummer “Blame It…

by Doug Freeman

ACL Fest 2015 Local List

Asleep at the Wheel (Fri., 12:15pm, Honda stage) Ray Benson’s charismatic Western swingers have kept “House of Blue Lights” lit for 44 years. Calliope Musicals (Fri., 11:15am, Austin Ventures stage) Technicolor folkies concoct eclectic dance-rock jubilee for the barefoot crowd. Gary Clark Jr. (Fri., 7pm, HomeAway stage) Guitar slinger finds his artistic voice via hip…

by Kevin Curtin

Soccer Watch

The UT Longhorns held their own throughout a challenging non-conference schedule, but they ran into a buzzsaw in their Big 12 opener Friday in Morgantown, W. Va., losing 2-0 to the third-ranked WVU Mountaineers, and being outshot by an eye-popping 31-5. The Horns are on the road again this weekend, at Kansas Friday evening, and…

by Nick Barbaro

Mr. Smarty Pants Knows

At 8 feet 11 inches, Robert Wadlow (1918-1940) was the world’s tallest man. He was 3 feet tall as a toddler and could carry his father at age 9. Swimming with a monofin is a recent fun and fitness craze. There are mermaid schools in California, New York, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Ohio, Montreal, the Philippines,…

by Mr. Smarty Pants

Oops!

The Chronicle (“Headlines” Sept. 25) previously reported Google’s self-driving prototypes have been on the road for two months when, in fact, it was the Lexus RX450h SUVs that were on the road. Google recently unveiled eight separate prototypes last month.

by Chronicle Staff

ACL Fest 2015 Saturday Record Review

For six years, Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun have accomplished something unthinkable: vaguely Christian, quasi-emo, singer-songwriter pop-rap that works. On fourth LP Blurryface, the Ohioans maintain the miraculous mixture while grappling with pop viability. “Honest, there’s a few songs on this record that feel common/ I’m in constant confrontation with what I want and what…

by Kevin Curtin

ACL Fest 2015 Sunday Record Review

Katie Crutchfield’s infamous melancholy and aggressive angst find fullest expression on the Alabama native’s third album. Brutally extracted lo-fi dirge, opener “Breathless” belies the heavily scarred electric guitars that follow with “Under a Rock” and “Poison,” as well as the pop tinge of “La Loose” and “Stale by Noon,” yet sets an anxious, searching tone.…

by Doug Freeman

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Interview

“Writing songs from a personal point of view is kind of like tearing off part of yourself and throwing it out there,” admits Kevin Parker. Since pouring his soul into song, the timid Tame Impala frontman finds he’s slowly emerging from his shell. “It’s rewarding – therapeutic, even. I used to be quite shy with…

by Neph Basedow

ACL Fest 2015 Saturday Record Review

Blowing up his profile among NPR programmers with mod falsetto soul on 2013’s “So Good at Being in Trouble,” New Zealander-turned-Oregonian Ruban Nielson doubles down on this vein to distraction. Top-loaded with mildly engaging songs drawn out past the point of intrigue, Multi-Love sorely misses the psychedelic fancy that informed its predecessors. “Can’t Keep Checking…

by Greg Beets

ACL Fest 2015 Sunday Record Review

If a pair of 2010 EPs approximated an untamed jungle and 2012’s debut LP Lonesome Dreams a tree house amongst it, Lord Huron’s sophomore full-length Strange Trails is Ben Schneider’s completed bungalow, his little plot of land in lush wilds. And from the sounds of “Until the Night Turns” and “Meet Me in the Woods,”…

by Abby Johnston

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Interview

“Wow, he’s exceedingly nice,” you think after the interview, which isn’t to say other needle-moving superstars lack sincerity. However, with 21-year-old Howard Lawrence, younger sibling of prodigious UK production and DJ duo Disclosure, there’s a tangible earnestness that comes off true, unforced, and without a lick of self-importance. To this end, they’ve eschewed the “kitchen…

by Kahron Spearman

ACL Fest 2015 Saturday Record Review

Alabama Shakes Sound & Color (ATO) Thunderbitch Alabama Shakes rolled into SXSW 2012 and an attendant ACL TV taping riding a tsunami of Janis Joplin comparisons for singer Brittany Howard, without the benefit of a full-length LP. The Athens, Ga., quartet cut a nostalgia-tinged mix of blues, soul, and swamp rock, and the easy move…

by Thomas Fawcett

Residents’ Advocacy Project: A Voice for Tenants

A raccoon plopped down on a dining table from the ceiling. A dishwasher filled with sewage. An apartment floor soaked with sewer water. These and other unsettling complaints from Austin tenants found an attentive ear at District 4 Council Member Greg Casar’s office, which recently became a sort of hotline for distressed apartment dwellers navigating…

by Mary Tuma

ACL Fest 2015 Sunday Record Review

Never mind its title or the first single’s cracker-barrel chorus. Kurt Vile’s sixth LP ups the Philadelphian’s creative ante, speckling finger-plucked finesse and Farfisa whimsy into his laid-back blues/folk crunch. Lyrically, the former War on Drugs guitarist stays on topic: out on tour, back on couch. Witty and self-aware, the father-of-two’s goofy drawl belies true…

by Neph Basedow

ACL Fest 2015 Saturday Record Review

After fronting indie poppers Junip, Sweden’s José González returns to his natural métier with third LP Vestiges & Claws. Centering melodies on his soft voice and nylon-string guitar virtuosity, the album, recorded in the singer’s kitchen, stretches his sound as he did on 2007’s In Our Nature. González folds in bass, flute, percussion, whistles, synth,…

by Michael Toland

Headlines

City Council meets today (Oct. 1) with a middling-sized agenda of 68 Items, including the apparent conclusion of the Marriott fee waiver saga, and perhaps a few contentious matters: proposed revisions to rules governing neighborhood contact teams, several annexations, and maybe some PUD chewing. See “Council: Marriott Pays, City Annexes.” Whole Foods announced this week…

by Chronicle Staff

ACL Fest 2015 Sunday Record Review

A debut EP spawned the lead-off hit here, “Take Me to Church,” a dramatic declaration of damnation (“I worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies”), followed by 25-year-old Irish sensation Andrew Hozier-Byrne inflaming the same houses of the holy on his eponymous full-length. Blessed with a vocal command equal to Father John…

by Raoul Hernandez

Foraging Near Zilker

1) Chuy’s With hubcaps, colored lights, and a velvet Elvis, this is Aus­tin-style Tex-Mex at its tacky, funky best. It’s almost always busy, but the chips and creamy queso are worth the wait. 1728 Barton Springs Rd. 2) THE PICNIC A curated selection of some of Austin’s best food trucks – including Turf N Surf…

by Chronicle Staff

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Record Review

Forged in the English steel town of Scunthorpe, brothers Henry and Rupert Stansall (showbiz surname amalgamated from their first names) infuse modernity into the more dramatic elements of post-Holly/pre-Beatles pop. Nothing packs the urgency of 2013’s “Blood Runs Wild” on this four-song stopgap, but superproducer Rick Rubin’s Western boom adds a rich atmospheric undertone. Henry’s…

by Greg Beets

Barton Springs Pool Info

Give your ears a break and your body a much-needed bath by dropping by nearby Barton Springs Pool, which is fed by underground springs. A recent grounds-improvement project added an ADA walkway and more bike racks, making our town treasure even more accessible to the masses. So, jump in. At a chill 70 degrees, the…

by Chronicle Staff

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Record Review

Third-time charm, Medicine fulfills the promise of Nashville’s Drew Holcomb. Pigeonholed somewhere between the passion of the Avett Brothers and the lyrical intensity of Jason Isbell, Holcomb proclaims “music is medicine” and proceeds to cure all. Two sides of this 33 songster are best epitomized by lofty anthem “Shine Like Lightning” and the cute, whistle-along…

by Jim Caligiuri

Public Notice: Loving the Pope

Everyone loves Pope Francis – from Stephen Colbert to John Boehner to Fidel Castro to Ken­tucky County Clerk Kim Davis. (Well, not U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar [R-Ariz.], who led a one-person walkout from the Congres­sional joint session, in protest of the Pope’s stand against “environmental deterioration caused by human activity” – because, apparently, environmental deterioration…

by Nick Barbaro

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Record Review

Goodbye jam band, hello Cleveland! Between the arena pop of Maroon 5 and ooh/ahh/stomp of the Lumineers, the third effort from Moon Taxi touches on prog with heavily processed guitar and ska beats on “All Day All Night” and the soaring “Domino.” Still, the Nashville quintet’s lyrical reach never matches its musicianship with coming-of-age cliches…

by Jim Caligiuri

Quote of the Week

“The outrageous accusations leveled against Planned Parenthood, based on heavily doctored videos, are offensive and categorically untrue.” – Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards, testifying before the U.S. House Oversight Committee this week

by Chronicle Staff

ACL Fest 2015 Friday Record Review

By delivering New Wave back to arenas in the 21st century, Brandon Flowers defies the typical narrative of bandleader-turned-failed solo artist. Lovingly produced by Ariel Reichtshaid, the sophomore effort by the Killers’ frontman abandons some of the alt-rock of his 2010 solo debut Flamingo and toys with heavy bass drum and guitars on standouts “Untangled…

by Chronicle Staff

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