In a recent column, I made fun of the fact that over 150 Austin bands had submitted entries to NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert contest and none of them won. Capriciously, I offered to shoot a “low-rent version” of the series in my home office. Dozens of submissions from local artists poured in.
I sifted through the turds and found an undigested kernel in Big Bill. The local New Wave absurdists write songs that demonstrate an impressive abandonment of reality and invoke the punk rock spirits with raucous live performances.
Last week, they ventured into my garage with 15 friends, eight pizzas, and a fifth of whiskey, playing a short set while I sat at my desk and tried to write.
Thanks goes out to director Erik Daniel and crew Derek Van Wagner, Nathan Daughdrill, and Beau French. Big Bill is Eric Braden (vocals), Cody Braden (guitar), Jennifer Monsees (bass), and Alan Lauer (drums). Buy Big Bill’s new album, The Second Bill, here.
This article appears in March 6 • 2015.