Happy weekend, ATX faithful! As people all over Central Texas run towards the watery comfort of Float Fest, us land lovers have a buffet of live music to enjoy. For this weekend, we recommend three release parties: an insanely fun funk/rock band celebrating a new video, a husband/wife indie duo cheering a new album, and a creative folk/rock band party in support of a new single.
Music everywhere, so enjoy and listen local!
Friday, July 20
Bourgeois Mystics video release party w/Atash, Ex Romantika
@ One-2-One Bar (1509 S. Lamar Blvd.) – Doors 8:30 p.m. – Tickets
Ever listen to a band for the first time and scream to yourself in glee, “What the hell am I listening to?” Welcome to my first experience with Bourgeois Mystics. An infectious blend of world music, rock, funk, ska, and easy-riding hip hop, the Mystics are a genre-defying dance party waiting to explode.
Tunes like “I Deal Ideals” sandwiches a smooth brassy hook between tinkling keys and sharp rhymes, while “Tremble and Take Head” blares with brash guitar and keys before effortlessly sliding into hip hop funk. Dabbling in a half dozen musical styles should have been a disaster, but thanks to solid songwriting and chops for days, Bourgeois Mystics is a soaring success.
Also playing: kindred spirits in funk, Atash and Ex Romantika.
Saturday, July 21
The Belle Sounds challenges the conventions of folk/indie rock by delivering emotionally raw music
(Credit: Barbara Frigiere)
The Belle Sounds album release w/The Sanco Loop and The Brandon Aguilar Band
@ One-2-One Bar (1509 S. Lamar Blvd.) – 8 p.m. – Tickets
In a scene awash with indie folk bands, it takes talent, skill, and a signature sound to stand out. In marches The Belle Sounds with its exceptional new record, “The Sea Within.”
Songs like the brooding opener, “Inside Out,” manage to tackle touchy political and societal topics with tact, while the entrancing eight-minute opus, “Legend of the Silver Moon,” effortlessly swings between ominous mystery and driving urgency. The record’s lead single, “Like a Villain,” speaks of internal strife in an up-tempo Fleetwood Mac style jam. A band of artistry, daring, and raw emotion.
Also playing on Saturday: virtuso country/rock act The Sanco Loop and folk/Americana act The Brandon Aguilar Band.
Belcurve single release party w/Blushing, A. Sinclair, Meanswell
@ Spider House Ballroom (2908 Fruth St.) – 7 p.m. – Event page
Tap dancing between soft and sensitive indie rock and down-to-the-floor pop punk, Belcurve is a welcoming breath of fresh air in a world of samey-sounding bands. My favorite example is “Fish to the Hand That Feeds Me” off the 2016 EP “Night Time.” Opening off kilter, the track lumbers and stomps with a pyscho circus vibe that carries front-woman Sarah Castro’s unique vocals from sweet to scream in the space of four minutes.
And on the other side of the spectrum, “Hot Mess” channels Sabrina Ellis’ punk rock jump and swagger with fine results. While the band is keeping its new single under tight wraps in anticipation of the release show, if it’s anything like its exceptional EP, then it’ll be full of musical surprises.
Also playing: shoegazers Blushing, ATX rocker A. Sinclair, and indie rock band Meanswell.
@BillTuckerTSP wants to know:
Where are you going for live, local music this weekend in Austin?
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