Ley Line (l-r: Maddy Froncek, Emilie Basez, Kate Robberson, Lydia Froncek) is the KUTX Artist of the Month for October. Photo by Julia Reihs/KUTX.

Last year, Austin’s Ley Line released its second album We Saw Blue, a welcome breath of fresh air in the tumult of 2020. On the album, the KUTX Artist of the Month alumni continue to expand their globetrotting folk sound, tying it in with nature-centered lyrical themes.

On May 21, the band will screen a visual version of the album at the Paramount Theatre called “We Saw Blue: An audio-visual journey through Brasil” that features footage from the group’s 2017 Brazilian tour paired with songs from the album. The show is in partnership with the SIMS Foundation, and it will also showcase a short film from fellow Austin band (and KUTX Artist of the Month alumni) Nané.

This week on My KUTX, the four members of Ley Line–Maddy Froncek, Kate Robberson, Emilie Basez, and Lydia Froncek–are back as our guest DJs, spinning an hour of favorites from fellow Austinites and around the world. Hear Ley Line’s My KUTX on Saturday, May 15 at 6 p.m. or listen anytime in the player above.

–Art Levy // producer, My KUTX

Playlist:

1. Dominque Fils-Aimé – “Birds”

2. Sampa The Great – “Energy” (feat. Nadeem Din-Gabisi)

3. Melody Gardot – “It Gonna Come”

4. Kalbells – “Diagram Of Me Sleeping”

5. Adrianne Lenker – “ingydar”

6. Nané – “Always On My Mind”

7. Ley Line – “En Busca Del Agua”

8. Greentea Peng – “Hu Man”

9. Branko & Mayra Andrade – “Reserva Pra Dois”

10. Ley Line – “Sereia”

11. Little Dragon – “Another Lover”

12. Sly & The Family Stone – “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)”

Photo by Maria Jose Govea.

Simón Mejía and Li Saumet formed Bomba Estéreo in Bogotá, Colombia in 2006, and it wasn’t long before the duo exploded internationally. They’ve received a handful of Grammy and Latin Grammy nominations, worked with Arcade Fire and Sofi Tukker, and have quickly become a must-see live band at festivals worldwide. Their music is a blend of heart-pumping rhythms and electronics, mixing the past with the future in surprising ways.

For Deja, Bomba Estéreo’s sixth album, the group consider our present, writing songs about this current moment of vast simultaneous connection and disconnection. They’re releasing the songs as EPs organized around the four ancient elements: water, air, fire, and earth.

This week on My KUTX, Simón Mejía is our guest DJ, providing a mix of Bomba Estéreo’s influences and inspirations, ranging from Peruvian electro-dub and Argentinian cumbia to the music of Malian blues legend Ali Farka Touré. Hear Bomba Estéreo’s My KUTX on Saturday, May 8 at 6 p.m. or listen anytime in the player above.

–Art Levy // producer, My KUTX

Playlist:

[intro music: Bomba Estéreo – “Deja”]

1. Lutchiana – “Eki Bis”

2. Chancha Via Circuito – “Tarocchi”

3. Son Palenque – “La Negra” (Bosq remix)

4. Dengue Dengue Dengue – “Ágni”

5. Nicola Cruz – “Siete”

6. Ali Farka Touré – “ASCO”

7. Four Brothers – “Ndibvumbamireiwo”

8. Poirier – “Sowia” (feat. Samito)

9. Joe Arroyo – “Suave Bruta”

Photo by Robert Hein. Artist portraits by Ismael Quintanilla III.

Last spring and summer, as the reality of the pandemic settled on the Austin music scene like a shadow, Ismael Quintanilla III grabbed his camera and sought to document this historic shutdown. He’s used to capturing Austin music in all its live, sweaty glory, working as a photographer with the Red River Cultural District and Do512. But in 2020, Quintanilla saw musicians in an unfamiliar place: stuck at home, with no live concerts on the horizon, severed from the audiences, spaces, and music they hold so dear.

The result is a gorgeous book of photography called I Am Here All Day, featuring poignant, intimate, and emotional portraits of Austin musicians like Sabrina Ellis, Jackie Venson, Bad Boy Croy, Ray Prim, and more. All proceeds from the book will benefit Austin non-profits, including HAAM, SIMS, DAWA, Banding Together ATX, Free Lunch, and Niñas Arriba.

This week on My KUTX, Quintanilla talks about the impetus of the book and plays a DJ set full of Austin favorites. Hear Ismael Quintanilla III’s My KUTX on Saturday, May 1 or listen anytime in the player above.

–Art Levy // producer, My KUTX

Playlist:

1. The Human Circuit: “No Warranty”

2. The Guacamole Police – “Get Off My Lawn”

3. Pleasure Venom – “Fascist”

4. Gina Chavez – “La Que Manda”

5. Square Waves – “Constant I Know”

6. Croy & The Boys – “For The First Time I’m Starting To Think About My Age”

7. The Dead Coats – “Fire Again!”

8. Ley Line – “Slow Down”

9. Ray Prim – “Too Much To Lose”

10. Cosmic Chaos – “Bananas”

11. The Boleys – “Sick Of The Man”

12. Belcurve – “Not Alone”

13. Jackie Venson – “Back To Earth”

Image credit: Texas Monthly

On Thursday, April 29, Willie Nelson turns 88 years old, and KUTX celebrates the only way we know how: by playing wall-to-wall Willie, all day long.

To get you in the Willie mood, we’re rebroadcasting a special edition of My KUTX on Saturday, April 24, featuring Texas Monthly writer John Spong and Willie Nelson biographer Joe Nick Patoski. They’ve listened to every single album Willie Nelson has released, and last year they ranked all 144 of them.

We teamed up with John, Joe Nick, and Texas Monthly to bring you a special guest DJ set featuring an hour of wild, wonderful, and weird Willie songs, from his early Nashville days to his dalliance with reggae and beyond. Hear For The Love Of Willie on Saturday, April 24 at 6 p.m. or listen anytime in the player above. And don’t forget to tune in for wall-to-wall Willie on Thursday, April 29!

Produced by Art Levy // KUTX

Recorded and mixed by Brian Standefer // Texas Monthly

Playlist:

1. “Midnight Rider”

2. “Night Life”

3. “Columbus Stockade Blues (#2)”

4. “I Never Cared For You”

5. “The Party’s Over”

6. “Intro/Me And Paul”

7. “Kneel At The Feet Of Jesus”

8. “Dreaming Of A Little Cabin”

9. “American Tune”

10. “Bloody Mary Morning/Take Me Back To Tulsa” (Live at the Texas Opry House)

11. “Sugar Moon”

12. “Rainbow Connection”

13. “Nine Pound Hammer”

14. “The Harder They Come”

15. “Only Daddy That’ll Walk The Line (Reprise)” (Live)

Photo by Kevin Garner

Some songs take a long time being born. Austin singer-songwriter Chase Frank–whose music has appeared in Netflix’s Lucifer–started working on “This Big Blue” about a decade ago, performing the song live but never capturing a studio version. Yet the song’s message of identity and affirmation took on extra resonance during 2020’s health and moral crises, inspiring a new sense of urgency. Frank finished the song with the help of Joe Woullard, known for his expert horn work for Hard Proof, Gary Clark Jr., Cilantro Boombox,  and more. Together, “This Big Blue” turned into more than the sum of its parts, uniting country and folk with psychedelic soul.

On April 20, Frank releases the single paired with “The Only You,” an instrumental remix that features a sound collage of social justice protest audio, news broadcasts, and more. This week on My KUTX, Frank and Woullard celebrate the song’s release with a guest DJ set featuring their influences, ranging from Lauryn Hill’s poetry to Bobbie Gentry’s grit and beyond. Hear My KUTX on Saturday, April 17 at 6 p.m. or listen anytime in the player above.

–Art Levy // producer, My KUTX

Playlist:

1. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell – “California Soul”

2. Bobbie Gentry – “Fancy”

3. Sly & The Family Stone – “Underdog”

4. Hard Proof – “Soul Thing”

5. Lauryn Hill – “Everything Is Everything”

6. The Pharcyde – “Runnin'”

7. Gil Scott-Heron – “Your Soul And Mine”

8. Chase Frank – “This Big Blue”

9. Black Pumas – “Confines”

10. Curtis Mayfield – “Give Me Your Love (Love Song)”

11. Aretha Franklin – “Wholy Holy”

12. Chase Frank – “The Only You”

13. Malik “The Freq” Moore – “Life’s For The Living”