Having cleared 2012’s penultimate holiday, Austin braces for another marathon year of abbreviated/not-so-abbreviated music events (SXSW, ACL, FFF). Leading the charge comes KUT, which multiplies on Jan. 2 – KUT 90.5 (talk) vs. KUTX 98.9 (music). Prepping that are local musicos guest hosting the 23 hours preceding Susan Castle’s 5am shift Wednesday.

Beginning New Year’s Day, the one-hour “My KUTX” guest slots ramp up to the bowing noncommercial public radio frequency, which will broadcast around-the-clock music, while mothership KUT dedicates itself to full-time news.

That means I’m about to become a lot less informed on national events and culture, but better that Austin gets another Texcentric soundtrack than more of the same – the country and state’s never ending us-versus-them political debate.

Here’s the 98.9 schedule for Tuesday, Jan. 1 into Wednesday, Jan. 2:

6am: Ray Benson
7am: Amy Cook
8am: Jon Dee Graham
9am: Ian McLagan
10am: Dale Watson
11am: Robert Harrison
12noon: Ruby Jane

1pm: Bruce Robison
2pm: Cindy Cashdollar
3pm: Adrian Quesada
4pm: Ephraim Owens
5pm: Ray Benson
6pm: Amy Cook
7pm: Jon Dee Graham
8pm: Ian McLagan
9pm: Dale Watson
10pm: Robert Harrison
11pm: Ruby Jane
12mid: Bruce Robison

1am: Cindy Cashdollar
2am: Adrian Quesada
3am: Ephraim Owens
4am: Ray Benson

This article appears in December 21 • 2012.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US

San Francisco native Raoul Hernandez crossed the border into Texas on July 2, 1992, and began writing about music for the Chronicle that fall, debuting with an album review of Keith Richards’ Main Offender. By virtue of local show previews – first “Recommendeds,” now calendar picks – his writing’s appeared in almost every issue since 1993.