The Cactus Blossoms
Thursday 10, Sagebrush
The charm of the Cactus Blossoms arises from the irresistible harmonies of brothers Jack Torrey and Page Burkum, yet over the past 15 years, the Minneapolis duo has evolved into an eclectic quintet that sweeps across country, blues, and vintage rock & roll to expand their sweet, Everly-esque connection. Last year’s fourth LP Every Time I Think About You kicks lightly with sharp melodies and a rambling impulse, soundtracking the call to move on and the need to put the past behind even as it continually pulls at your coattails. Lady Apple Tree opens with her pastoral ballads and pristine vocals. – Doug Freeman
Deep Cross
Thursday 10, Chess Club
Deep Cross is Austin’s gale-force entry into the increasingly crowded contemporary industrial conversation. The fact that there even is a contemporary industrial conversation in 2025 is a welcome development and cause for black celebrations all over. Supporting September single “Strangler Fig” – a last-gasp dirge of woodpecker percussion mirrored by its ominously minimalist B-side “Mareld” – Mike Cockrell and Jason Joachim headline this heavy, screaming evening following sets by locals Recurser, New Yorkers Nerve, and Atlanta blackened death-grinders Malevich. – Joe Gross
10 Year Zilker Brewing Anniversary Party
Thursday 10 – Saturday 12, Zilker Brewing Co.
Has it truly been 10 years since first Austin sipped from the Zilker Brewing Co.’s many-flavored steins? Indeed: The brewery celebrates their graduation to the decade club with three days of party-hardy mayhem. Sign their Class of 2015 yearbook and get your pic in those hallowed pages on Thursday; enjoy Friday’s fancy barbecue fare from la Barbecue – including a buttermilk-brined pork chop slapped on a bun with horseradish mayo, pickles, and onion – as well as tunes by Croy and the Boys and Studio Ink tattoos; and a megawatt Saturday stampede featuring food truck titans Zee’s Wiener System, Spicy Boys, and Patty Palace, plus a music lineup lasting from 10am ’til 9pm, when featured players Geto Gala shut down the place. Cheers to 10 more years – and maybe 10 more beers? In which case, you better take a Waymo home. – James Scott
Nané Day
Friday 11, Parish
The first time the surviving members of Nané performed their pop-rock songs to celebrate the memory of founding vocalist Daniel Sahad – who suddenly passed away in 2022, three days after the city of Austin designated April 7 as Nané Day – was, understandably, an emotional experience. Last year, however, Quentin Arispe, singing in Sahad’s place, told the Chronicle that the joy of revisiting “some of the best Austin music that I’ve ever heard” now outweighs the grief. Hopefully in even better spirits this time around, the band returns for year three, with support from psychedelic cumbia collective Money Chicha. – Carys Anderson
Tiniest Dog Party in Texas: Spring Fling
Friday 11, Hotel Vegas
It’s been a while since Paris Hilton types carried chihuahuas around in designer purses, but if Glen Powell and Brisket, Demi Moore and Pilaf, and Mikey Madison and Jam have taught us anything, it’s that tiny dogs are Back In. How better to celebrate this petite paw renaissance than with a pageant – that means costumes, folks – for pups 25 pounds and under, benefitting Lil’ Paws Maltese Rescue? This free event offers spring-themed dog portraits, a market curated by frequent Vegas vendors Vibe City Markets, and music from DJ Da Beatnik. Of course, this party for the dawgs also offers bites from Zee’s Weiner System. – Carys Anderson
Daniel Higgs
Friday 11, 29th Street Ballroom
Perusing Chronicle archives, mentions of Daniel Higgs’ Lungfish date back nearly two decades – not in first-person coverage, but as reference points in reviews of many-an-inspired local artist. It makes sense for the Baltimore-launched emo icons, whose influence on slow-churning post-hardcore continues long after their 2005 breakup. Largely writing folksier experimental compositions as a solo artist, frontman Higgs – described by longtime label Dischord as an “interdimensional song-seamstress and corpse-dancer of the Mystic Crags” – rolls into town with support from local noisemakers Water Damage. – Carys Anderson
The Sword
Saturday 12, End of an Ear
Austin’s musical melting pot forever blurs genre boundaries, but even so, metal remains a local designation lorded over by a select few. Pulling the Sword from stone in 2003, this homegrown quartet rode shotgun to Metallica right out of the gate before seemingly hitting a wall pre-COVID following 2018’s seventh full-length Used Future. Last October, the ATX-launched Reverberation Appreciation Society issued lean, muscled Live at Levitation, followed by November’s uncanny Jethro Tull cover “Locomotive Breath.” A trio of Texas shows concludes with Record Store Day at End of an Ear celebrating the 15th anniversary remaster of third album Warp Riders prior to half a dozen European summer festivals. – Raoul Hernandez
Rubblebucket
Saturday 12, Mohawk
It’s a tale as old as time: Romantic partners form a band and, some time and success later, their relationship falls apart. Rubblebucket co-founders and co-frontpeople Kalmia Traver and Alex Toth explore their experience of this all-too-real trope on 2024’s Year of the Banana. The result is less “Silver Springs” (1997) and more … Rubblebucket. Using their art-pop palette of sprightly brass, shimmering strings, and toe-tapping keys, Traver and Toth create a danceable ode to honest resilience and creative friendship. They’re taking that energy on tour – buoyed by their 2010s classics – to bring audiences light-on-its-feet fun seasoned with nostalgia for the Aughts. – Caroline Drew
Southwest Voices: Modern Masterpieces
Saturday 12 – Sunday 13, Cherrywood Center
La-la-la! Think I’ve got a future in the choral arts? Yeah, probably not – especially compared to the incredible 60 seasons put on by our very own Chorus Austin. They conclude the big six-oh season with a selection of contemporary choral tunes, each one accompanied by instrumentals from “adventurous ensemble” Invoke Strings and pianist Carla McElhaney. As per Chorus Austin, “Together with Chorus Austin’s Chamber Ensemble, under the direction of Artistic Director Ryan Heller, these guest artists will bring a fresh and dynamic energy to the concert, highlighting the depth and vibrancy of modern choral music.” It all makes a man want to sing, ya know? – James Scott
Butler School of Music Spring Recitals
Sunday 13, Monks Jazz
A big part of studying music is gaining experience performing it in front of live audiences. Fortunately, Austin’s local jazz clubs happily open their doors to student players, giving the kids important exposure, as well as offering the clubs hints about upcoming talent on the scene. On Sunday afternoon, Monks Jazz turns their stage over to UT’s Butler School of Music, featuring performances by Chris Cermak, Demetreis Thornton, Jakob Hartz, Joshua Berry, and Mati Soto. The music starts at 10am, with the final performance at 4pm. – Michael Toland
Kitty Craft
Monday 14, Empire Control Room
Few albums evoke the shimmery twinge of late Nineties nostalgia as spectacularly as Beats and Breaks From the Flower Patch, the near-perfect debut full-length from Kitty Craft creator Pamela Valfer. On sample-heavy offerings like “Par 5,” the 1998 gem nestles into a Stereolab-inspired sweet spot between warm lo-fi hip-hop and melancholic Sixties pop melodies. Counting current indie tastemaker Clairo as a megafan, Valfer glides into Austin after last year’s break of a two-decade-long touring hiatus. Equally ethereal San Antonio songwriter Temachii supports. – Genevieve Wood
Lunar Vacation
Tuesday 15, Parish
Lunar Vacation’s sunny indie pop fits somewhere between the lackadaisical haze of Mac DeMarco and the spirited rhythms of the Drums. Early hit “Blue Honey” solidified the Georgia quintet’s ability to conjure the best combination of warm synths, honeyed vocals, and breezy guitar to soundtrack a picnic in the park, but 2024 sophomore album Everything Matters, Everything’s Fire – released via local imprint Keeled Scales – expands their usual sonic proclivities. Opener “Sick” aligns with folksier label signees Good Looks and Buck Meek with circular acoustic guitar and bouncy bass as vocalist Gep Repasky ponders bad comedy, luxury apartments, and the destruction of Manhattan. Indie rockers Sour Widows arrive from the Bay to open. – Carys Anderson
Leila Sunier
Thursday 17, Hotel Vegas
Leila Sunier has been told she beats her own drum. But, according to the self-described skeptic optimist, so does every other 21st century creative. The local song crafter’s 2024 debut, Too Big for Right Now, blends alternative folk with strong maiden vocals and nuanced bird’s-eye commentary. Tracks like “The Favorite” combine minimalist beats and ear hook harmonies while poking at planetary decline and doomscrolling. “Heat Lightning” plays like a slow, cathartic sigh. Sharing the stage with fellow genre blenders Small Engine Fire and Ragabash, the poet producer drops her latest single Thursday at Hotel Vegas. – Amber Williams
Music Notes
by Derek Udensi
Anastasia Hera
Friday 11, Radio/East
Hera, a live show staple of the local rap scene for years, released Way Outside last December. Her latest full-length – one of the better Austin rap releases of recent months – veers as far as sampling Panic! at the Disco’s “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” (“Panic”), similarly to Teezo Touchdown (“100 Drums”). The multi-time Austin Hip-Hop Awards winner supports Chief Cleopatra; DJ Bad Apple operates on 1s and 2s for an afterparty.
West 22nd
Friday 11, Scoot Inn
First formed while its members were UT-Austin students residing in West Campus, indie band West 22nd celebrates last week’s drop of their debut studio album Nowhere to Be. Catch them before they graduate from school in May and embark on a nationwide tour this summer. Fellow Austin-area act the 4411 opens this unofficial album release show.
Rita Ora
Thursday 17, Moody Center
Ora gained steam for her catchy 2012 dubstep track “R.I.P.” Some 13 years later, the British singer isn’t the artist she used to be. The Masked Singer judge’s most recent album, 2023’s You & I, features quite a bit of self-reflection (“Look at Me Now”). Kylie Minogue headlines.
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 April 11 • 2025.
