THAO NGUYEN GETS DOWN IN AUSTIN Swinging in for a free in-store performance at End of an Ear Records a little over an hour later than expected, Thao Nguyen and her backing backing band the Get Down Stay Down nonetheless managed to tear through a set of bluesy indie rock that kept the audience rapt with attention throughout short set. With intricate guitar-picking skills that nonetheless seems to flow from her fingertips like raindrops, and a voice that recalls a mix between a Southern songstress croon and a [...]
WHIRLWIND HEAT DEBUT NEW ALBUM If you've never heard of these Beck -referencing, groove-tastic, spazalicious, leave-it-all-on-the-dancefloor rockers, you owe it to yourself to check out Whirlwind Heat . The first time I saw these guys was summer of 2006 on their tour with another Cannibal Cheerleader favorite Be Your Own Pet . Clearly these two acts had developed a competition to who could pull off the more insanity-induced set, and the winner was definitely the audience that night. The Heat have just released their newest LP, called Self-Titled [...]
TRYOUTS - NAS & DJ LANTERN'S THE NIGGER TAPE Ladies and gentlemen: The Nigger Tape . Just when it seemed like Nas was going to be backing down from the title of his forthcoming now self-titled album (which was at one point infamously going to be called Nigger ), the rapper releases a mixtape with DJ Green Lantern that eschews any doubt that the artist bends easily to the will of [...]