1st Annual Maverick Festival

On March 23 I attended the first ever Maverick Festival in San Antonio. The festival was at La Villita and ended up being an all day affair. 6 hours of local bands that were free during the day light hours, and as the sun went down, those lucky enough to have tickets (yippe me!) continued to soak in the sounds, along with some amazing chalupas from local food stands.

The line-up consisted of:
 Maverick Stage 
12-12:45 p.m. Elora & Gasoline Alley
2-2:45 p.m. The Heroine
4-4:45 p.m. T Bird & the Breaks
Juarez Stage
12:30-1:15 p.m. Trees
1:30-2:15 p.m. Este Vato
3-3:45 p.m. Hour Band
4:45-5:45 p.m. Villela
Maverick Stage
6:30-7 p.m. Arum Rae
7:15-7:45 p.m. Henry + the Invisibles
8-8:45 p.m. Girl in a Coma
9-10:15 p.m. The Toadies
10:30-11:45 p.m. Gary Clark Jr

 After fighting the limited parking spots that there are downtown, I walked in just in time to get a good spot for Henry + the Invisibles. Henry calls San Antonio, New York and Austin his home. The stage was elbaorately decorated with guitars, keyboards, a computer, and a light drum set all under his sequined cloth. The way he moves and his facial expressions show how much he loves being up there. I couldn't hold back from dancing by myself and snapping my fingers while I ate my chalupa with a huge smile.

The sets changed very quickly, which was great because sometimes shows linger and linger, and no one wants to wait for great music! Girl in a Coma was the next set, who I have never seen live before have heard soooo much about them. They are a local ALL girl band, and these girls rock so hard. They have the look, the attitude, and the sounds that blend so perfectly together that they are nothing but a hit.




A long awaited performance came up next, and the crowd certainly showed their support when they came onto the stage. The Toadies are a four piece set that have a standing with those who love rock in San Antonio. The venue became packed and I was forced to move in between strangers I did not know, but that made it all the better. I felt like I was the youngest person to attend this festival, besides the two five year olds I saw playing tag. Maybe the Toadies were before my time because I did not know their music, but the men clearly have been rocking for generations, drawing crowds from all over.






I was incredibly dissapointed to have to miss Gary Clark Jr. who put the whole festival together, however I am sure after this great success of a Saturday he will soon return to the great city of San Antonio.

-Jacqueline Golden
Student D.J.
You can hear Jacqueline on air Tuesday Nights at 10 p.m. 

Free(d) Earl

                                    Earl Sweatshirt (left) and Jason Dill (courtesy of Epicly Later'd)

One in the morning at The Scoot Inn and Captain Murphy (Flying Lotus’ rap alter ego) comes on stage quite collected, as if set times weren't running into the wee small ones. He picks up a mic and says, simply, "Introducing Earl Sweatshirt," and out comes the man - er, boy - that's been hyped to stratospheric proportions since Odd Future began their takeover of the rap underground two years ago.

On stage, he looked vaguely nervous, as if worried that the crowd – prepped by an evening of indie rock from the likes of Mac Demarco, Unknown Mortal Orchestra and DIIV - might not respond to his bombastic rap attack. But from his bone skinny frame boomed a thunderous and confident voice, shaking the crowd from its sleepy state. Earl performed material from his upcoming debut album Doris, including the new single “Whoa,” all over the masterful beats laid down by FlyLo.

To finish his set, Sweatshirt brought out the eponymous "Earl," the song that launched a hundred thousand “Free Earl” chants (Earl was across the globe during Odd Future’s 2011 hype tsunami, at an at-risk boarding school in Samoa). On it, the young rapper displays his knack for lyrical content and internal rhyming that makes his brand of rap so simultaneously offensive and extraordinary:

Stop screamin’ bitch, you shouldn’t be that alarmed

When big lips is in the attic armed with an addict’s arm

Hearing Earl navigate his insane rhythms with incredible ease it’s clear that if Frank Ocean is the creative powerhouse of the Odd Future collective, Earl is a close second. And while the power of a young voice has never been lost on the rap community (Nas recorded Illmatic at the age of nineteen), Earl’s lyrical command at the age of eighteen is undeniably impressive.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra @Mohawk

If you have never ventured out to the Mohawk in downtown Austin before it is one of the greatest outdoor venues I have ever been to. Sadly the forecast predicted rain, and they were correct but that did not keep the crowd away. The crowd was filled with your typical Austin hipsters, but everybody appeared to be above the age of 20, which could be explained because the show was on a Wednesday night. Lots of moustaches, beanies, and leather shoes. As Foxygen took the stage after Wampire the venue really filled up into every corner. Luckily they have multiple viewing levels and angles so you can find a spot to dance no matter where you stand. 

The singer Sam France really brought the energy, providing the crowd with a look into a present day psychedelic show. He had face paint on and it felt as if he was channeling Jim Morrison’s behavior from the Doors. At one point he even decided to dance in the crowd below. As a duo, Sam France and Jonathan Rado had you forget that you have been standing for nearly three hours and most likely smelled like a pack of american spirits. After two more hours of dancing to Unknown Mortal Orchestra, and a few minutes of rain I made my way through the crowd and found myself outside the back of the Mohawk where I saw Jonathan Rado casually smoking a cigarette on the stoop. After exchanging a few kind words about the show I decided that would be a good ending to my night.

- Jacqueline Golden
Student D.J.
You can hear Jacqueline on air Tuesday Nights at 10 p.m. 

Toro y Moi @ Emo's

 I’ve been pretty into the  new Toro y Moi album “Anything in Return” for a couple weeks now, so I had very high expectations when I went to go see Chaz and his band at Emo’s in Austin on Feb. 2^nd. I’ve been to a couple of shows at Emo’s now, and I always have a good time there. I love the shape and the size of this venue and the atmosphere the place manages to create.  It’s my first time going to a weekend show in Austin in a long time and I’m really surprised by age of the crowd, which is younger than I had expected.

There’s two openers, first of which is Dog Bite from Atlanta. The band describes themselves as “psychedelic/folk pop” and features Cameron Gardner of Washed out and I can definitely hear (or at least imagine) some of his influence on their overall sound.  I keep on hearing references to the cure and I feel as though the people enjoying the concert the most were a group perpetually surrounded by a small smoke cloud.  Sure enough, the lead singer calls them out and mentions “being on stage I can’t help but notice little puffs of smoke. We’ll talk later.”

The second opener, Wild Belle, a product of siblings Natalie and Elliot Bergman, comes on stage to the crowd’s excitement. It’s pretty clear that there are many who are familiar with their work. The crowd is particularly favorable towards Natalie and it’s pretty clear why; she has a great stage presence and manages to be relaxed and yet intense, she seems like she’s having fun without trying too hard. With their funk rock jazzy sound it’s no surprise that this Austin crowd loves them and their new song “Backslider.”

Toro y Moi comes on to screams of “Chaz!” which admittedly leads itself more easily to chanting than his band name.  I’m really impressed by the lighting set up featuring white textured blinds that reflect the LED lights above them. The lights are definitely utilized, but are not overwhelming as I had feared, it was really in keeping with a lo-fi concept.  He gets “Say That” in pretty early but “Talamak” is the real gem live. Given the “Say That” music video (which is really tongue in cheek,check it out)



I wasn’t really sure what to expect of Chaz’s stage presence, but I was impressed.Stuck behind keyboards the entire time,  he was definitely working, but seemed like he was having fun in a way that was true to himself, or at least the image he’s created. During the encore he came out and said this was the largest crowd that they’ve had in a while and snapped a picture on his phone. Well, with this sort of performance, I’d expect he’ll get an even bigger crowd at SXSW in a couple weeks.

-Michelle Padley

Indie Overnight Promotion's Assistant

You can her Michelle on hear show Pandamonium every Monday night at 10 p.m.

Purity Ring @Mohawk

Purity Ring played Mohawk, Austin on January 22nd. The show was “sold the f*** out”

according to signs posted in the bar and even relatively early arrivals to the venue were greeted

by a rapidly expanding line - an unfortunate pitfall of indie fame is that secret excellence never
turns out to be much of a secret, especially not in Austin. It was a young crowd and not quite
as hip as I expected. Apparent general youth notwithstanding, the fragrances of a great many
combustibles began to waft through the outdoor venue as the crowd grew to fill the small space.
It didn’t take long for the crowd to get drunk and high and very obnoxious. Par for the course, I
suppose, but still unfortunate.

The opening act, Young Magic, who appear (in part, at least) on the Purity Ring track
“Grandloves,” clearly subscribe to the “All the Way Turnt Up” philosophy of live music. Snare
hits were given particular ferocity in the house mix and the lower notes of the set audibly rattled
parts of the venue. Volume here, though, had the surprising effect of revealing textures and
rhythms that are all but inaudible in the studio recording of Melt, their 2011 full-length. The
aesthetic of the set was palpable; dense red light saturated the stage, perfectly mirroring the
heavy, droning sound of the guitar and vocals, punctuated with crisp, bright drums and drum
samples. The set was brief, focused, and extremely well executed; an excellent warm-up for
Purity Ring’s formidable stagecraft.

Purity Ring wasted no time in taking the stage, a decision welcomed warmly by an audience
that was rapidly devolving into various states of chemical imbalance. Megan James and Corin
Roddick appeared with little fanfare, diving immediately into a set that encompassed the vast
majority of their first and only record, Shrines. James’ showmanship has improved dramatically
in the past months, as evidenced by youtube videos of earlier performances. She moved freely
and relaxed about the stage, playing up the audience and generally appearing to enjoy herself
while Roddick studied his equipment.

If Roddick is primarily responsible for the intricate sonic backdrop and complex stage lighting
that typifies their performances, it is James who provides the spectacle and human drama.
She is magnetic, moving around the stage in ebbs and flows that mirror the pulsing power
of the music. That said, The presence of the band on the stage is thoroughly made tangible
by the beautiful “cocoon” lighting, based on a custom rig with an equally intricate controller
designed and built by Roddick himself. Purity Ring’s DIY attitude doesn’t stop there, either;
James designs and sews the clothes they wear during their performances. Unfortunately,
all the wonderment of the set was short-lived, as Purity Ring moved through the majority of
their catalog, including a cover track whose title I couldn’t decipher through Roddick’s liberal
manipulations of James’ voice, in just under an hour. When Purity Ring reached their set-closer,
“Fineshrine,” which was not followed by an encore, I couldn’t help feeling that the end had come
far too soon. Fortunately, athough the concert was brief, it would seem that Purity Ring are just
getting started.

-Johnson Hagood 

      Student D.J.

      You can hear Johnson on air Wednesdays 12:00 a.m - 1:00 a.m.   

*Photos Courtesy of Faith Bradham

Josiah Wolf of Why?

I was on an overcrowded Friday afternoon bus in Roxbury, Massachusetts the first time I heard Why?. A bag lady across the aisle had vomited on the ground, the splat lining up with the opening bass line of "The Hollows" in my headphones. I remember being grossed out as I heard Yoni Wolf croon, "In Berlin I saw two men fuck in the dark corner of a basketball court, just a slight jingle of pocket change pulsing," only the first of many Why? lyrics to be etched forever in my brain, this one with an oddly Wolf-ian memory attached.

Four years later, at this year's Fun Fun Fun Fest, I'm standing to the side of the stage in a trance, spitting back all the images that come sporadically into my head - "Even though I haven't seen you in years, yours is a funeral I'd fly to from anywhere" - or the ones I mull over to myself out loud walking home, just because I like the way they sound. "My dad wore this face in old photographs, calico cats..."



Whenever I mention the Cincinatti band to a friend who's never heard them, I explain their writing style as beyond anything myself, or any musician I've ever met, could reproduce. And it's not just the imagistic, stranger-than-fiction lyrics of Yoni Wolf, the band manages to stack rhythms with insane precision and grace. Just check the video above, where Joni and his brother Josiah create a percussive mix of hip-hop and indie rock, as Josiah lays down a simultaneous combo of drums and vibes. Suck it Gary Burton.

After their set, I talked with Josiah Wolf before Why? had to leave for OKC for a show the following night. Unfortunately, our mics spazzed out before we got to the good stuff.

KRTU What have you been up to in the time between Eskimo Snow (2009) and this year's release, Mumps Etc?

Josiah I did some touring with my wife - not at the time, but my wife now - and I toured on my record, Jet Lag. I recorded that record in that time, and working on this new Why? record.

KRTU So Sod in the Seed EP came out in August and Mumps in October. What was behind the decision to split it up?

Josiah Well, we had too many songs for one record so we decided we'd put them on an EP.

KRTU Are they thematically linked?

Josiah We put Mumps together first and made that work, so the EP's kinda leftover songs, it's a little more eclectic.

KRTU When were they recorded?

Josiah We recorded about a year-and-a-half ago, in May of 2011, down here actually. Not in Austin, but in Denton, Tx.

KRTU What was the decision to draw heavily from Alopecia (2008) today?

Josiah It's a festival set and we wanted to keep it hyped. The songs we know off of Eskimo Snow are more mellow so we didn't do any of those, but that's just how the set worked out. We did stuff from Alopecia and the new record mostly.

Yoni Wolf once said in an interview that Eskimo Snow was "really the least hip-hop out of anything I've ever been involved with." If ES is their most straight ahead indie pop/rock record, then Mumps Etc. is Why's foray into Top 40. With a template of of standard 4/4 beats, infectious melodies, and hooks for days, Wolf, Wolf and Co. reach out into uncharted territory, missing occasionally, but that's okay. Part of the peerless nature of the band is their willingness to fuse together musical ideas that no one else could make work.