Entering the Moody Theater for AMP UnGala

Through her work as Executive Director for Austin Music People, Jennifer Houlihan is devoted to advocacy and fundraising for the Austin music industry. She keeps a finger on the pulse of the industry’s well-being and does her part to ensure its growth. “The music community is the cultural soul of Austin, an economic engine contributing more than $1.6 billion a year to the local economy.”

But Houlihan’s no Atlas and she can’t do it alone. So on April 21, 2013, Austin Music People (AMP) hosted its largest fundraiser of the year at the Moody Theater, home to Austin City Limits. The turn-out for AMP UnGala was high. Who can stay away from talent like Shakey Graves and Bright Light Social Hour, and well-known local industry staples like Margaret Moser (Austin Chronicle) and Laurie Gallardo (KUT)? [Read more…]

This guest blog post is by Kyle Bailey.

Mike Milligan has a great smile.  It’s toothy, wide and communicates his warm and approachable personality. When he walks on stage, though, all of that vanishes. Once he grabs that microphone and takes center stage, Mike Milligan is six feet two inches of energy, growl and talent. A consummate frontman, he grabs your attention and doesn’t let go until he and his band are done with you.

Mike Milligan and the Altar Boyz have been performing “Texas Blues with Louisiana Attitude” in Austin and around the country for more than eight years, rolling out a unique blend of music that is equal parts blues, rock, bayou and pure energy. Powered by Mike’s amazing four and a half octave vocal range and unique vocal tone, you find yourself being impressed with the band as a whole and with Mike himself as a frontman. [Read more…]

Ben Livingston and the That’s What She Said band at Continental Club Gallery

We have eyes to appreciate the icons that contribute to our local pride: murals that tourists take home on t-shirts, the buildings that compose our recognizable downtown skyline, the beloved local businesses that we would stand in front of bulldozers to protect.

But partly because so many Austinites are recent additions to the city, and partly because many of the most integral community architects work quietly behind the scenes, we don’t always know where credit is due.

Ben Livingston’s fingerprints decorate Austin and his musical sound has been heard literally around the world. A biographic tome could be written about his adventures and talents – and I would gladly volunteer as the first reader – but an exhaustive tale of Livingston’s life is beyond the scope of this Austinot article. Instead, my goal is to acquaint a new generation of Austinites with a neighbor worth knowing. [Read more…]