As I prepare and wait for next week's Austin Vida Indie Showcase, I was looking through my old mini-cam files and found this clip of showcase artist, In Situ Sound, that I took during Free Week. I am really feeling this band right now and that is exactly why we (Austin Vida crew) chose to spotlight them. For more info on the showcase with Hydra Melody, check out our Facebook page here: Austin Vida Indie Showcase on Facebook.
We at Austin Vida are always on the forefront of the Latino music scene. Whether it is the hottest Rock en Español band, an international touring act or an angsty singer-songwriter, we make sure they are given their moment in the spotlight. We care not if they are major label or unsigned. That is why we have teamed up once again with Bemba Entertainment to bring you two of the best unknown young bands in the music scene. You don’t know them now, but we will make sure that you do from here on out.
In Situ Sound is an ambient, progressive rock quintet composed of young Rio Grande Valley natives and a couple of their non-Latino friends. In Sit Sound is now proud to call Austin home and eager to impress with their new EP, Between All We Can See. While no member of In Situ Sound is older than 24, this young band’s sound is reminiscent of a mature Minus The Bear and early Dredg. Having already been featured in Austin Vida and recognized by the Austinist during Free Week, In Situ Sound will win over even the most pretentious of indie music lover. They are so good, that they will even win over the average listener who is ready to be moved by the power of music.
Headlining will be Helotes, Texas’s best kept secret, Hydra Melody. A progressive indie sextet that features the congas as recent addition to their live show, Hydra Melody impresses audiences everywhere. They impressed me with their exciting live show and insane energy on a trip to San Antonio recently. I immediately thought they sounded like Cursive meets Mars Volta. Having recently been featured in the SA Current (San Antonio) and a West Coast tour, Hydra Melody’s stock is also quickly rising. Stay tuned for their feature coming up this month in anticipation of the Austin Vida showcase on February 20th.
These amazing young bands will take the stage at Mi Casa Tamales & Cantina, Austin’s new Cantina and Austin Vida favorite. Mi Casa is located at 503 East 6th street between The Dirty Dog and Coyote Ugly.
So my favorite Free Week discovery this year was In Situ Sound. This is the kind of indie I like and I couldn't be happier that these dudes are here in Austin now. I'm hoping people get as excited about them as I have. Kudos to my girl Chantel Clopine for not only taking amazing photos, but also introducing me to the band.
Man oh man, am I sleepy. For the past ten days in Austin, my Red River cohorts and I have been venue hoping all over downtown for Free Week. With Beauty Bar and The Parish participating in Free Week this year, there was even more to check out. It was fun to see some of my favorite local bands I usually pay to see and to check out some new bands I had yet to check out live.
I didn't go out every night of the week, but almost all. I was glad to see people come out despite the cold weather. After talking to random strangers, old friends I hadn't seen in a while and eaves dropping people's conversations, I learned that a lot of people were really excited about what they were hearing. I only hope that their excitement carries over throughout all of 2010. As much as I love to go check out major touring acts, which I do regularly, there is just something special about seeing a good Austin based band. It is as if our local bands are only for us cool Austin kids and no one else. Some may call it snobby or pretentious, but Austin has the best local scene in the world.
So which band did I "discover" or check out for the first time? Well I liked a young band called In Situ Sound and finally got to see Haunting Oboe Music for the first time. Sadly enough, they will be playing their last show soon from what I'm hearing. Bummer. Other than that, 2010 is off to a good start.
Here's one of the clips I captured on my new toy. It features The White White Lights, a cool indie band with a foxy lead singer and killer guitar player. She even wished David Bowie a Happy Birthday. I just wonder which Bowie she was talking about. Was it Ziggy Stardust Bowie?
This Wednesday I am heading over to one of my favorite Austin venues, Red 7. While Red 7 is mostly known for hardcore punk and metal acts, they also go a good job with booking the occasional Latin and indie bands. Wednesday night. I'm going to personally going to check out a semi-new band to the scene, In Situ Sound.
I got wind of these guys from my good friend and Austin Vida staff photographer, Chantel Clopine. According to Chantel, three of the members are from Weslaco, Texas. For those of you outside of Texas, that's in South Texas or the Rio Grande Valley area. Natives refer to it as "The Valley" or "El Valle". The Valley seems to be producing some good indie these days, with bands like Dignan leading the way.
Their sound is ambient/experimental indie and they just released a new EP. Again, they seem new but I"ll find out and share more info at a later date. From what I heard on the band's MySpace, they have a good sound. It'll be interesting to see what they sound like live. I thought about going to see jay Retard, but after posting that video where he peed on the audience I'm kind of turned off to him. I'll just play his mp3s and stick with that. For anyone who is willing to hear something new and local, see you at Red 7.Doors are at 9:00pm and the address is 611 E. 7th.
Ian is a graduate of Round Rock High School and attended St Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. In 2008 he joined the team at Double Stereo (formerly CD Fuse) as their Blog editor where he reviewed concerts, albums, and did interviews for the popular music site.In January 2009, he became the Editor in Chief for Austin Vida. In 2010, with the help of some of his most talented friends, he launched Red River Noise. "Ian's Music Blog" is also one of the few blogs selected to be a Do512 All-Star.
On any given night of the week he can be found in downtown Austin on 6th Street and the Red River live music district.
