Promotional still from Alamo website Music Mondays: My Name Is Albert AylerMonday, November 19Alamo Drafthouse Downtown (320 E 6th Street)(9:45pm, $2)[info] | [tickets]Though not as well known as Ornette Coleman or John Coltrane, Albert Ayler is seen by many as one of the most important figures of the free jazz movement. Over the course of 16 studio albums and countless live releases, Ayler's passionate, aggressive saxophone playing pushed jazz back toward its improvisational heyday--an idea......

Welcome to the latest edition of Band Slam!, wherein I navigate the murky waters of Austin's club listings for the best and worst band names playing this week. The only rule: I can't know anything about the actual band, thus limiting my critique strictly to the band's chosen moniker. Let's git 'er done! Death Is Not A Joyride - Beerland, Thurs 09/06 Isn’t it though? A long, hot, smoky, barreling-through-the-inferno-in-a-stolen-car-with-a-gun-in-each-hand kinda thing? I guess......

Ushering in this season's South By Southwest reveleries is a party celebrating the launch of Marshall Escamilla and Emily Summerfield's label, Stem and Leaf Records. In a short letter to Austinist, Summerfield described her label as seeking a musical partnership in which "the songwriting is earnest, and that is consistently true, whether the songs are about girls, zombies, historical figures or whatever." The production of each album will reflect aesthetic values from the vinyl era,......

Remember when Austin had more independently owned music stores than Chipotles? Yeah, we do too. This is why we were happy to hear that a new record shop, End Of An Ear, will be opening up right around the vacant space left by the late, great Escapist Bookstore. Even though they aren't completely set up, End Of An Ear is expected to have a soft opening this weekend. This might mean cash-only purchases until......