Entertainment Archives - Page 47 of 71

Austin Startup Everfest Becomes Ultimate Festival Authority

December 14, 2015 by Edgar Barguiarena Leave a Comment

In a hyper-connected age when billions of people are coming together online, a small startup based out of Austin is creating a platform to bring people together offline. Everfest is a startup created by two former executives of uShip and the founder of Ticketbud.

Their goal? To catalog and index festivals around the world. How many festivals, you ask? All of them.

Such lofty ambitions come wrapped around an altruistic banner. Within their mission to organize the world’s festivals, the Everfest team is working to create a killer mobile festival app, and they plan on giving it away. To understand how this can be a viable business model, we have to take a step back and define what exactly a festival is. [Read more…]

Black Ball Awards $150,000 to Austin Musicians

December 7, 2015 by Brittany Highland 2 Comments

Second Annual Black Ball at The Paramount Theatre

It’s easy to say we love Austin’s live music scene, but Black Fret is actually doing something for local musicians. $150,000 worth of something.

At the second annual Black Ball Gala, Friday night at The Paramount Theatre, non-profit Black Fret awarded grants to 20 musicians, for a total of $150,000 in grant dollars. Ten major grant winners received $12,000 each, while 10 minor grant winners were awarded $3,000.

The organization is built on its members, about 300 and counting. These patrons donate $1,500 per year to fulfill Black Fret’s mission: “to empower musicians to create and perform great new music.” [Read more…]

Blue Genie Art Bazaar Gives Holiday Shoppers Reason to Rejoice

December 4, 2015 by Kristin Leigh Leave a Comment

Wall of handcrafted art at Blue Genie Art Bazaar

Marchesa Hall hosts this sprawling bazaar

After the turkey has settled and the pumpkin spice lattes have transitioned to frothy peppermint mochas, grab your wallet and reusable tote bags because it’s holiday craft fair season until we land with a thud in 2016.

Austin hosts a range of fairs in November and December, but if you’re looking to score that neon dinosaur planter or Velvet Underground vinyl record wall clock at 9 p.m. on a Tuesday night, I recommend you make your way to North Austin for one of Austin’s longest-running craft shows, Blue Genie Art Bazaar. [Read more…]

Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Musician in Austin?

December 2, 2015 by Guest Blogger 5 Comments

Check out advice from four professional Austin music makers on how to be successful in Austin

Guest article by Ben Snyder

The low cost of living used to attract musicians here. Austin’s small town feel, combined with its thriving economy, drew talent away from New York and Los Angeles, simply because the rent was cheaper. But that’s not the case anymore. It’s getting harder and harder to make a living as a musician in Austin.

Below, you’ll learn about four Austin musicians who are adapting in order to achieve the holy grail of getting paid and preserving creative autonomy in our rapidly growing city. [Read more…]

Tele Novella Brings Haunting, Psych-Pop Fun to Austin’s Local Music Scene

November 27, 2015 by Andrew Chase Leave a Comment

A photo posted by Alberto | 27 | M | ATX (@ennuinie) on Oct 31, 2015 at 11:57pm PDT

It’s difficult to describe music in general, nevermind attempting to explain Tele Novella, a red hot, psychedelic, 60s-inspired rock band straight out of Austin. The description found on their Facebook page captures their unique sound quite accurately: “Tele Novella is a fresh strain of sugar-crash dream-psych popsicle punch out of Austin, TX.” Yep, that about sums it up. [Read more…]

Experience Life in the Dark During Blind Cafe Pop-up Dinner

November 13, 2015 by Kristin Leigh 2 Comments

Discussion before dinner in the dark during The Blind Cafe (Credit: The Blind Cafe)

Standing outside the American Legion, watching the sun set against a showy peach sky, I am equal parts hungry and excited. I have arrived with fifty other Austinites for a multi-sensory pop-up dinner at The Blind Cafe.

I have to admit I’m just a bit nervous, though. I eye my plus one, Lisa, secretly praying she’s excited and not about to bail before we head in. Our chef-prepared vegetarian feast, complete with an after-dinner concert and discussion is going to be amazing, but it will be enjoyed in utter, complete darkness.

The Blind Cafe facilitates unique, pop-up dinner events across the United States that promote positive social change and host legally blind keynote speakers. What that means is that dinner guests are guided by blind waitstaff into a pitch dark dining room where tables of six to eight people sit together. There they enjoy dinner, listen to gorgeously curated live music, ask questions about what it’s like to be blind and listen to the experiences of the blind facilitators hosting the event. All of this in the dark without a single glimmer of light or distraction. [Read more…]

Austin Music Foundation Empowers Local Artists

October 30, 2015 by Mathis Kennington 1 Comment

Though the typical Austinite may never see it, there is much more to Austin’s vibrant musicians than late night shows and the latest hustle.

Austin Music Foundation is one of the few local non-profits that support local musicians, so they can continue to rock our musical worlds.

Although I knew of Austin Music Foundation, I was amazed to discover just how hard the organization works to help musicians become as business-savvy as they are creative. This is vital to their lasting success. Because while Austin gets the best of their creativity, musicians aren’t always equipped with the business savvy it takes to be successful in the industry over the long run. [Read more…]

10 Illuminating Art Pieces from Pop Austin 2015

October 23, 2015 by Kelli McDonald Leave a Comment

Fair Market on Pop Austin’s opening night

Pop Austin International Art Show took place this past weekend from Oct. 23-25. This year’s theme was “Illumination,” as the United Nations deemed 2015 “The International Year of Light.” Pop Austin featured laser, neon, LED and holographic artwork and installations. Guests of all ages were immersed in light, while experiencing pieces from local and international artists.

The location of the event was Fair Market on 5th Street, with a satellite gallery at Circuit of the Americas. I was able to check out both shows, so here’s a peek at what I saw, in no particular order. Maybe you’ll be inspired to attend next year’s show! [Read more…]

Día de los Muertos: Ancient Festival Alive in Austin, TX

October 12, 2015 by Natalie Parra-Novosad 4 Comments

Credit: Larry Lamsa via Flickr CC

An ancient Mesoamerican tradition celebrating life, death and those who have passed on, known as Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead, has survived thousands of years. The tradition is still very much alive today.

As a city heavily influenced by Mexican culture, Austin will begin its annual Dia de los Muertos festival with music, art, dance, food, drink, life and memories beginning Oct. 17. [Read more…]

Austin Wins Big at Great American Beer Festival 2015

October 1, 2015 by Edgar Barguiarena Leave a Comment

Credit: Brewers Association

Every year just after Autumn makes its debut and white becomes taboo, a bearded band of Austin brewers makes its way to Denver, Colorado. Their mission? To serve beer at the Great American Beer Festival to an audience of over 60,000 craft beer aficionados from around the world, and compete against over 1,500 breweries from around the country. The Austin contingent of brewers totaled 15 this year, a full third of all breweries that hailed from the state of Texas.

If you tried three different beers a day at Great American Beer Festival, it would still take you almost three and a half years to get through every beer within the festival hall. I had three days. It was a daunting task, to be sure, but one accepted without hesitation. Somebody has to do it, right? [Read more…]

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