
Date 9/6/09 Location Scoot Inn Doors 6pm Tickets $5 @ Door I hope you've heard that indie radio station Woxy is making a move to Austin and plans to start broadcasting and setting up live sessions in the live music capitol. We couldn't be more excited to welcome the crew to town! To celebrate their arrival, the station is putting [...]

As we mentioned a few weeks ago the wonderful online radio station WOXY.com will be making it's way down to Austin, TX and setting up camp. When we first heard the news we were really excited because what better place than Austin for them to go? Imagine the possibilities for them to record live performances with all the bands coming through town. And now maybe they can invite us to come check out these performances? hint hint... Well now the good people of WOXY are in [...]

Belaire is in Austin band that have been going strong for quite some time now and we really never get tired of seeing them live. As if these Austin veterans weren't enough, the night has two solid openers in Cryptacize and Black Before Red joining in on the fun. Tickets are on sale now for the low price of $7 and doors open at 9pm. Download: Belaire - Back Into the Wall [MP3]

Option numero dos for Friday shows sees new local favorite Shearwater returning to town for a show at The Mohawk . Tickets are very cheap, running at only $8 . Doors for the show open at 8pm and music starts shortly after with sets by Black Before Red followed by Brazos . We've given this band all kinds of praise this year ( including sneaking into the top 10 albums of the year ) so we of course think this will be a good one. Download: Shearwater - Rooks [...]

From Austin, Texas (where else) comes Black Before Red , a band that in my opinion hasn't received enough fanfare for a stellar debut effort, Belgrave to Kings Circle , back in 2007 (oh so long ago). I haven't heard much recently from the sunshine pop stars but I figured I'd highlight some of their music in an effort to maybe get them back on the radar. Black Before Red is Marc Ferrino, Kevin Schneider, Brent Baldwin, and Marc Dickey. They're brand of music kind of flies under the radar with soft [...]
For not entirely obvious reasons ‘Underneath Gold’ just has that feeling of a sunny Saturday morning. Perhaps its uncluttered vision depicts a world without alarm clocks, irritating work colleagues, statutory cigarette breaks and stale sandwiches. Instead one thinks of a walk in the park, the smell of coffee brewing or just a world filled with relaxing distractions. Black Before Red are a well

And so we've finally arrived, 15 days late. I'm writing this intro after finishing this first part of the list and let me tell you, this is a beast to write. It's a labor of love and even though it's a pain to write, I look forward to writing it every year. I'll keep it brief so you can get to the list, but with this list I want to stress one thing in particular. Most of these albums could have easily been placed as much as five higher or even five lower, so don't make [...]
Ever run across one of those smartly crafted little pop records that sort of stops you in your tracks? Well, that's happened to me with Austin's Black Before Red. Their recent album, Belgrave To Kings Circle is one of those completely understated pop gems where sunny, whimsical 70's pop meets the indie/poprockness of The Shins & Spoon & Arizona & Oh No! Oh My! & Fountains of Wayne. This is a
10. Throw Me The Statue - Moonbeams (6/07) Listen to : About To Walk ( mp3 ) I know that Secrectly Canadian is rereleasing this album in February '08, but it was available for several months on Baskerville Hill . Scott Reitherman creates hybrid pop by combining electronic, lo-fi recording, and straight-up brilliant melodies and lyrics. His music is so pure and familiar yet unique and irresistable. 9. Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond (4/07) Listen to: [...]

W hat is it about Austin that makes it the music mecca that it is? I'm not sure either. The latest thing I've heard outta that fair Texas city is the latest from Black Before Red called Belgrave To Kings Circle . Pleasant enough, this is the sort of stuff that the indie rock geeks are gonna be all over. Combining good pop sensibilities with the layered and varied instrumentation that checks itself to a who's who like Arcade Fire meets Clap Your Hands Say Yeah or even What Made Milwaukee Famous. [...]

I almost ignored Black Before Red without listening to them (because there are so many good bands to listen to these days and so few hours in the day) until I saw Oh No! Oh My! took them on tour. Listening to them it makes sense, their music is in the same vein of Oh No! Oh My! and Kite Flying Society. Anyway I’m glad I checked them out because they’re exactly the kind of indie-pop fun I can’t get enough of. MP3: Black Before Red- Teenage America MP3: Black Before Red- Matagorda [...]
I started listening to Black Before Red after seeing them pimped out on Oh No! Oh My!'s myspace page. Austin bands unite, huh? The suggestion was warranted, as what I've heard of their new album is really good. MP3: Black Before Red - Underneath Gold MP3: Black Before Red - Matagorda "Underneath Gold" ...

Hey Austin, no one cares about Arkansas State. The game will be over in the 1st Quarter. Get yourself over to the Scoot Inn as soon as possible on Saturday for the First Annual Austin Sound Off. Here's the word: AustinSound.net is celebrating its one year anniversary with the first annual Austin Sound Off Festival , an all-day party at the Scoot Inn with some of our favorite local bands and bloggers. On tap to peform are Golden Bear, Peel, Brazos, Black Before Red, Leatherbag, The Black, Sunset, Charles Potts Magic Windmill [...]

Ben Lee - American Television Caribou - After Hours LCD Soundsystem - North American Scum Yeah Yeah Yeah's - Down Boy Black Before Red - Finding Peace in the City Lost in the Trees - If You're Afraid of the Dark Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova - Sleeping Glen Hansard & [...]

Black Before Red Belgrave to Kings Circle I Eat Records 2007 Belgrave to Kings Circle by Austin's Black Before Red is the type of album I thought I was getting with the new New Pornographers disc -- 11 pop songs with hardly a throwaway in the set ranging in sound from collaborative Canadian indie pop ("Underneath Gold" and "Bossa Nova #7"), classic Beach Boys and Beatles style songwriting ("Matagorda") to American indie pop in the vein of The Apples in Stereo ("Waiting for the Bang.") And unlike that Canadian supergroup who [...]

As successfully as minimalism (or "theater composition") worked for the likes of Philip Glass and Steve Reich, some artists simply prefer an openly expendable approach. Thick arrangements that one would call "challenging" or rich production values that ring off as "efficaciously substantial" may initially appear daunting for those who prefer the simpler and uncongested ways of life, but successful music is all in the same flavor regardless of a weighty or barefaced approach. The four members of Black Before Red make no secret about their musical proficiencies, all being skilled multi-instrumentalists and equal collaborators toward their fledging final [...]

I've had a bunch of stuff piling up around here so I wanted to clear the deck, so to speak, which means you get a whole ton of cool MP3s and new records to check out. So, let's get going. Imperial Teen returns after a 5 year break to do various adult-type stuff (babies, etc) and is still plowing through the guitar-pop field. The new album is named The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band .This track has a certain Southern California calculated-pop edge to it [...]
From Chapel Hill, North Carolina , the following mp3 holds it's own w. the best hip-hop tracks released this year. From Endless Mic , who have a new album coming out 09.18.07 called ' Baby Geniuses ' which you can pre-order here. So now you know. Thanks to Trekky Records for sending this my way. Endless Mic - Watching Your World Endless Mic | The MySpace Continuing on the hip-hop tip, now you also know about Junk Science , ( [...]

TACKS, THE BOY DISASTER - OH, BEATRICE (Arc Recordings) I thought I'd start your Monday off with some chill sounding bands to ease into the work week. The first band is from Texas, and I've been enjoying their CD, ' Oh, Beatrice ' for awhile now. It's one I like to put on early with my morning coffee to prepare to brace for the wave of communication about to pounce. Only seven songs deep, TACKS, THE BOY DISASTER have pieced together a gorgeous album. Check out [...]