The Austin Music Minute is about to do some bragging. Brace yourself. Your AMM maven had the honor of hosting the debut live performance of a new(ish) band in Studio 1A earlier this afternoon: MIEN played a couple of tracks from their new self-titled release, in anticipation of their LEVITATION show Saturday night at Stubb’s. I say “new(ish)” because you’ll very likely recognize the talent that was electrifying the room, including Alex Maas (The Black Angels), Rishi Dhir (Elephant Stone), and John-Mark Lapham (The Earlies). Bandmate Tom Furse (The Horrors) was not able to be here today, but Moog master Jordan Geiger, mad drummer Rob Kidd and most mystical percussion wizard Thor Harris were on hand to amp up the vibes and add to the layers of swirling sonic awesomeness.
This, darling, was the perfect way to kick off LEVITATION 2018.
The AMM would refer to the formerly-known-as Austin Psych Fest as “the little festival that could” since its inception in 2008, and now, the internationally acclaimed event is burning brighter than ever. Among tonight’s scheduled LEVITATION shows, daemonic dandy and AMM fave Ty Segall (featured on today’s AMM) takes over Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater with hoodlums Parquet Courts, glorious rabble rousers A Giant Dog, and man/myth/legend/really nice guy Ron Gallo; plus, you’ll find Dead Meadow at Barracuda, Holy Wave celebrating the release of their LP Adult Fear at Cheer Up Charlie’s, and longtime AMM fave Ringo Deathstarr owning it at Beerland.
It’s a lovely evening for a psych-out. Check the LEVITATION website for schedule details, and tune in to KUTX for more LEVITATION recommendations this weekend.
-Photo of Ty Segall by Denée Segall, Pitch Perfect PR.