Credit: Photo by Shelley Hiam

Cowboy & Indian

Zilker Park, Sept. 17

Austin’s newest upstart roots-rock outfit, comprising former T-Bird & the Breaks vocalist Jazz Mills, Daniel James of Leopold & His Fiction, and Jesse Plemons, who played Landry on the beloved TV series Friday Night Lights, started out mellow – too mellow – early on Saturday afternoon. The set included tracks long in circulation on the Internet but not yet released on a proper full-length: “One for Me To Find,” “Troubled Tracks,” and the upbeat “Ledbellies (Hurt My Pride).” By the time the septet got to rootsy stomper “Hand Me Down,” they finally reached the energy level they should have established and sustained from the beginning. Juvenile antics involving torn and stained pants lent the set an amateurish feel more appropriate for a high school battle of the bands. Pity, since Cowboy & Indian, collectively, are incredibly solid musicians sorely in need of working on their stage presence.

This article appears in September 23 • 2011.

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