American Pie Emo Night

Thursday 29, the Parish

It’s all Kevin’s fault, really. If he hadn’t convinced the guys to enter into a sex pact in the first movie, then we never would have got the nine films (and counting) of the American Pie franchise. Join Thomas Nicholas, the actor who unleashed all that horny humor, for a special 25th anniversary screening and Q&A celebrating the original in all its dessert-penetrating glory. Plus, Nicholas was clearly at band camp, because the night will also feature a performance from his band, with support from NYC’s finest Blink-182 cover band, Dude Ranch.   – Richard Whittaker


JPEGMafia Lay Down My Life Tour

Friday 30, Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater

One of Brooklyn’s most fascinating purveyors of hip-hop makes his way to Austin to scare the hoes and cause a scene. Barrington DeVaughn Hendricks, aka JPEGMafia, found the sweet spot between lyricism, comedy, shocking and jarring imagery, and good-old-fashioned flow. His work is something you’re gonna talk about to everyone the next day. It’s fitting for the genre-shattering lyricist to tour in support of the behemoth ILDMLFY, released at the top of August. More than just obvious promotion, the tour itself is apropos to who JPEGMafia is: an artist who lays his life down for every performance. You won’t want to miss a single sweaty, subversive moment.   – Cy White


Credit: Courtesy of Mohawk

POSTPONED: Big Freedia

Friday 30, Mohawk

Bounce queen and burgeoning hotelier Big Freedia is taking a break out of her busy schedule for an Austin show. Freedia has had recent fame for her collaboration with Beyoncé, but her shows have spoken for themselves for years: It’s chaotic good personified, a smorgasbord of sound and dance pulsating to hypnotic bounce directed by the queen diva. Freedia isn’t currently on tour, so the Austin show is a rare chance to catch her outside of New Orleans pitching herself as a mogul onstage and off.   – Abby Johnston
Update 8/29/24: Show has been postponed; date is not yet known.


Apparent Incoherence Album Release Party

Friday 30, Hole in the Wall

Not since Cakes da Killa (and probably more notably Tyler, the Creator) has an MC emerged from the sorely underrepresented queer and trans communities who can do damage on a beat. Trans lesbian rapper and producer Locuust (aka YoursTruuly) debuts what she calls a “coming-of-age project” – Apparent Incoherence. Locuust employs a flow that has shades of Kendrick, echoes of Queen Latifah, and a production style that shares oxygen with the likes of J Dilla and 9th Wonder to craft a thoughtful and honest exploration of gender dysphoria, finding love as a trans woman of color, and self-love. She’s joined by most of the album’s collaborators: Chucky Blk, CENSORED dialogue, Kardinal Bloo, and Khxnid.   – Cy White


Credit: Courtesy of Antone's

BLK ODYSSY

Saturday 31, Antone’s Nightclub

Certified funkmaster – and now, thanks to July genre pivot 1-800-FANTASY, pop-rockstar – Juwan Elcock has a world tour on his hands. The Austin-based rapper, producer, and multi-instrumentalist is set to play in New York, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, and even Cape Town, South Africa, in support of his latest LP. Before jetting off, however, Elcock brings BLK ODYSSY’s experiments in emo rap, melodic alternative, and Billboard-ready pop to Antone’s. Precocious Californian multihyphenate Asha Imuno opens with equally slick, soul-tinged hip-hop.   – Carys Anderson


Credit: Courtesy of Sexxy Redd

Sexyy Red: Sexyy Red 4 President Tour

Sunday 1, H-E-B Center

From the first shouts of 2023 smash “SkeeYee,” ruby-haired rapper Sexyy Red captured the hearts of boisterous baddies worldwide. Drawing from the call-and-response playbook of Southern rap greats like Gucci Mane and Three 6 Mafia, the St. Louis native specializes in booming basslines and sound bites chock-full of sexual wordplay. Her presidential tour might be our last shot at national peace – check the chorus on recent SZA/Drake collab “Rich Baby Daddy” for proof (“Bend that ass over/ let that coochie breathe”). Can’t we all get behind that?   – Genevieve Wood


Credit: Courtesy of Skye Dahl

Skye Dahl: Night of Rock & Blues

Sunday 1, Come and Take It Live

With a voice full of gravel and heart bursting with a flaming-hot passion that only a life of heartache could produce, Skye Dahlstrom leads her merry band of blues-rockin’ miscreants of nearly the same name (Skye Dahl). This showcase spotlighting the rock and blues spectrum is a master class of raw vocals, rowdy stage stompin’, and soul-shredding musicianship that fans of down-home blues-rock, sweaty post-punk, and Southern soul will gravitate toward. Supporting Skye Dahl are Thunderosa, Dreamstereo, and Ryan Lawless.   – Cy White


Austin DSA Labor Day Show ft. Big Bill, Batty Jr., Slomo Drags

Monday 2, Sagebrush

Despite modern perceptions of Labor Day as an end-of-summer free for all, the holiday, in fact, celebrates the work of activists who fought for the rights of the working class. It’s only right, then, that we take the day to help out the local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America to the sounds of Austin’s finest weirdo rock. On the lineup: Slomo Drags, who skewer Elon Musk fanboys with glistening synth pop (“Rich Pervert”); Batty Jr., who deliver quirky anti-folk with a Southern twang (“Cocoons”); and Big Bill, whose new LP Strawberry Seed blends punk politics (“Poverty of Wires”) with polished new genre excursions.   – Carys Anderson


Credit: Photo by John Anderson

Deezie Brown

Tuesday 3, Antone’s Records

Back in 2022, when Deezie Brown rolled out his second LP 5th Wheel Fairytale, he told the Chronicle the album was the first of a five-chapter soundtrack to a book that he also aimed to turn into a movie – an ambitious but not surprising claim, given the rapper’s already-established work as a visual artist. Those ventures are still coming (though vinyl copies of his next LP, Look Mom, I Made Varsity, are for sale via Try Hard Coffee Roasters’ vinyl label now), but with intergalactic synths, cheery horns, and a full-on Austin choir (featuring Malik Baptiste, Jackie Venson, and more), 5th Wheel Fairytale captivates just fine in the meantime.   – Carys Anderson


Credit: Courtesy of Monks Jazz

Damian Garcia Trio

Tuesday 3, Monks Jazz

For years it’s seemed like Damian Garcia is the house pianist for Monks – he was the perennial sideman for performances by local heavyweights and Monks regulars Andre Hayward, Mike Sailors, Tommy Howard, Alex Coke, Paul Deemer, Ryan Hagler, Diego Rivera, and more. No wonder, as his melodic touch, imaginative improvisation, and exquisite taste make him first call to anyone who fits into his schedule. All those gigs, plus shows with national touring acts in locations as far away as Japan, haven’t given the University of North Texas grad much time for his own leader showcases, which makes this trio date a must-see.   – Michael Toland


The Nothing Song Presents: Snoozer, BS & Proun

Wednesday 4, Hotel Vegas

Something in the Philadelphia water seems to produce top-tier indie rock, with gritty duo Snoozer serving as an excellent case study. Consisting of brothers Mike and Tom Kelly (the latter of whom travels as fellow Philly talent Alex G’s touring drummer), the siblings stride into Austin in anticipation of LP Mid-Earth. Lead single “Love’s Permission” deftly balances tense distortion with heartfelt lyricism, while the head-bang self-loathing of “Behave” hits home. Local alt-rock favorites Proun and BS join.   – Genevieve Wood


Jim Ward

Wednesday 4, Mohawk

In the pantheon of El Paso music, Jim Ward stands as the blue-collar working man that helped build and expand the hardcore sound of the city. From founding member of the essential At the Drive-In in the 1990s to fronting power trio Sparta in the 2000s and alt.country-tuned Sleepercar, Ward’s unassuming presence belied the crashing and creative catharsis of his sound. 2021’s solo effort Daggers recruited a rhythm section of Incubus’ Ben Kenney and Thursday’s Tucker Rule to deliver a pandemic gem riffing deep on Ward’s influences. His solo show will sweep across Ward’s entire storied career.   – Doug Freeman


Credit: Photo by Nathan Roach

Midge Ure

Thursday 5, 3ten ACL Live

Not only did “Do They Know It’s Christmas” raise millions of pounds for hunger in Africa and world awareness to boot, the Midge Ure/Bob Geldof charitable composition dominoed into “We Are the World” and then Live Aid, Live 8, and more. As the No. 1 hit in 13 countries (though not this one) turns 40 these holidays, the Scottish OBE on the marquee here rides a larger legacy than George Michael, Boy George, and Bono singing his Christmas standard. First call singer and guitarist for Sex Pistols (Steve Jones) and Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy), the now 70-year-old journeyman also led seminal New Wave synth-pop pioneers Ultravox.   – Raoul Hernandez


Twenty One Pilots Credit: Photo by Ashley Osborn


Music Notes

by Derek Udensi

Stars at Night Fest

Friday 30 – Saturday 31, Kick Butt Coffee

This event’s fourth edition features the final performance for longtime pop-punkers the Butts. The Butts’ lead vocalist, Kurt Koegler, moved to Chicago earlier this month after fronting the band for 15 years here in Austin. Other acts set to perform include Dropped Out – whose guitarist Dave Cavallo will back the Butts for their last performance – Houston-based act Popperz, and SNATCHWITCH.

Scootenanny

Saturday 31, the Scoot Inn

The original Scootenanny in 2014 featured Austin-based electropop and dance acts billed with a mission statement of providing something unavailable outside of our state: A Uniquely Texas Experience. The event returns this summer with a similar goal of highlighting artists with local ties, but different genres are in focus. Chaparelle’s Jesse Woods headlines, with support coming from Paige Plaisance, Redbud, the Point, and more.

Twenty One Pilots

Tuesday 3, Moody Center

Known for hits such as “Stressed Out,” “Ride,” and “Heathens,” the Ohio-bred alternative rock duo tours in support of new album Clancy. The Fueled by Ramen signees’ seventh full-length concludes a four-album concept series dating back to 2015 release Blurryface. New Zealand duo Balu Brigada supports.

Want to see all of our listings broken down by day? Go to austinchronicle.com/calendar and see what’s happening now or in the coming week.

This article appears in August 30 • 2024.

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.

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Carys Anderson moved from Nowhere, DFW to Austin in 2017 to study journalism at the University of Texas. She began writing for The Austin Chronicle in 2021 and joined its full-time staff in 2023, where she covers music and culture.

As the Chronicle's Club Listings Editor, Derek compiles a weekly list of music events occurring across town. The University of Texas alum also writes about hip-hop as a contributor to the Music section.

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.

Doug Freeman has been writing for the Austin Chronicle since 2007, covering the arts and music scene in the city. He is originally from Virginia and earned his Masters Degree from the University of Texas. He is also co-editor of The Austin Chronicle Music Anthology, published by UT Press.

Michael Toland started writing about music in 1988 on the Gulf Coast, moved to Austin in early 1991, and has inflicted bylines upon the corporeal and digital pages of Pop Culture Press, The Big Takeover, Blurt, Amplifier, Austin.citysearch, the Austin American Statesman, Goldmine, Sleazegrinder, Rock & Roll Globe, High Bias, FHT Music Notes, and, since 2011, The Austin Chronicle.

The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.