Friday, October 9th

Austin City Limits (Weekend #2) at Zilker Park

If you aren’t exhausted from ACL’s first weekend, we suggest that you get yourself pumped for weekend two. While the lineup features many of the same bands as last weekend, we see some new faces this time including Run The Jewels, Milo Greene, and Austin’s own Shakey Graves, to give ticketholders a memorable show. If you can’t make it to the actual festival, streaming the event is available on ACL’s website.

Tickets: $225 (3 day pass), $100 (one day pass, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday)

Austin Corn Lovers Festival at Austin Beer Garden Brewery

If you want to get away from the bands playing ACL and focus solely on local music, check out the Austin Corn Lovers Festival held at Austin Beer Garden Brewery. The event began six years ago by local group The Hickoids, as a way to represent the diverse Austin music scene during one of the city’s biggest festivals. Almost a decade into its run, the festival remains entirely independent without sponsorship, as most music websites have not picked up on covering the event. While it does focus on local and regional bands, the Corn Lovers Festival has featured a few national acts.

Pop Punx Not Dead! At Spider House

While the pop punk genre (a fusion of pop and punk music), began to wane in popularity during the mid 2000’s, Austin coffeehouse Spiderhouse is here to convince you that pop punk is not dead, by hosting a concert entirely dedicated to the genre, featuring local and regional Texas acts that bring out the best of the “dying” style.

Tickets: $6 18+

The Blues Specialists at The Continental Club

The Blues Specialists are a local band that have been in existence for twenty-eight years, and even though its two founding members, TD Bell and Erbie Bowser are now deceased, the group is still going strong by performing heartfelt blues tunes while showing no signs of slowing down. Sounding similar to blues master BB King, blues enthusiasts will not want to miss out as the band puts on a soul stirring performance.

Saturday, October 10th

The Sword at The Mohawk

Playing the outdoor stage at The Mohawk this Saturday is local band The Sword, a rock act that puts much emphasis on edgy and explosive guitar sounds with plenty of flash, while being careful not to overdo it. If you are into head banging and ear splitting rock, than seeing The Sword this Saturday evening may be a great choice, as the band’s songs are a great way to kick off the weekend.

Tickets: $25 (outside stage)

Dune Rats at The Mohawk

Coming all the way from Australia this Saturday, is an interesting band called The Dune Rats. Categorizing themselves as “stoner pop”, the bands hazy and trippy style of rock and roll won’t be for everyone, but we guarantee that many Austinites will be into their style, as their “weird” brand of rock fits in perfectly with Austin’s laidback style, as the group seems to understand the Austin “vibe.” The band also has a more experimental sound, making them an entertaining choice for your live music options this week.

Tickets: $10 (inside stage)

The Joe Jacksons at Austin Beer Garden and Brewery

The Joe Jacksons are a band that play animated and spritely rock songs, with guitar riffs that sizzle as well as feature enthusiastic band members that will keep you entertained their entire set. While the group may remind some audience members of older rock groups, we are sure that you will want to tell your co-workers about them on Monday, as their songs won’t be able to leave your mind.

Kim Prevost and Bill Solley at The Elephant Room

Ever since winning the BET on Jazz Discovery Award in 1999, husband and wife jazz duo Kim Prevost and Bill Solley have been delighting jazz fans will their delicate and breezy tunes that features Bill’s easygoing guitar playing accompanied by Kim’s sultry vocals. Getting the chance to perform with artists such as Nine Inch Nails, Arturo Sandoval, and Nicholas Payton, as well as touring extensively throughout Europe and elsewhere, neither Kim nor Bill are strangers to performing, with The Elephant Room being the perfect venue to showcase their abilities.

Sunday, October 11th

Alcest at The Sidewinder (moved from Red 7)

Coming all the way from France, shoegaze band Alcest will be performing their hazy and dreamy songs that will make you forget that the weekend is almost over. Opening their most recent album Shelter with a stunning track titled “Wings,” Alcest will certainly take you to another world as they intertwine dreamy music with rock and roll which comes together seamlessly.

Tickets: $15

Mike Stinson at Austin Beer Garden Brewery

After calling California home for eighteen years, guitarist Mike Stinson has made the Lone Star State his home, and after listening to his music it feels like he has been in Texas all along. While one might expect Mike to have more California based music influences in his songs due to his many years living in the state, Stinson plays his music as if he were a lifelong Texan, adopting a similar sound to Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. For anyone looking for country that is a bit rougher around the edges, Mike Stinson is an excellent musician to watch this weekend.

—–

Check out more of Lauren Gribble’s reviews at her website…

Featured photo: Flickr user Ralph Arveson, CC licensed.