Hiromi’s Sonicwonder

Friday 26, Paramount Theatre

Saturday 27, Parker Jazz Club [sold out]

Pianist Hiromi Uehara studied classical music and wrote jingles in her native Japan, was mentored by the late jazz genius Ahmad Jamal at Berklee College of Music, and has had a prolific career, releasing over a dozen records, joining bass monster Stanley Clarke’s band, and scoring a No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart with 2016’s Spark. Uehara’s most recent album, Sonicwonderland, finds her exploring jazz funk fusion with synthesizers, electric pianos, and a crack band featuring trumpet star Adam O’Farrill. “Jazz funk” may be a bad word in some circles, but Hiromi’s joyful attack silences haters with ease.   – Michael Toland

Open House feat. AAPI Artists

Friday 26, the Cathedral

Kicking off Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month a few days early, local collective atxGALS rounds up a roster of women and nonbinary artists. Abstract, figurative, landscape, collage, watercolor, and more are promised among the visual works of Ahn Hee Strain, Neena Buxani, Tsz Kam, Umbreen Ahmad, Yasmin Youssef, and Ziesook You – not to mention groove-focused R&B-pop provided by soundtracking local duo Rococo Disco (see latest “Green Man”). The open house benefits Asian Family Support Services of Austin, which provides free support to survivors of domestic violence.   – Rachel Rascoe

Austin Psych Fest

Friday 26 – Sunday 28, Far Out Lounge

Back for its second year as a springtime complement to Downtown Halloweekend romp Levitation, Austin Psych Fest once again sets up shop down south, at the Far Out Lounge. Friday headliner Courtney Barnett, Sunday big-names Alvvays and Kurt Vile, and founders the Black Angels – playing Saturday – appeal to a certain indie-favoring, millennial crowd, but smaller acts represent both ends of the psychedelic spectrum. On Friday, Colombian songwriter Lido Pimienta pairs Spanish lyrics and tribal percussion with glitchy synths. On Sunday, Boston duo Sweeping Promises recalls the infinitely catchy, bass-driven post-punk of the Eighties. (See interview with Friday performer, psych-soul outfit Chicano Batman, here.)   – Carys Anderson

Tequila Mockingbird

Friday 26 & Sunday 28, Saengerrunde Hall

Saturday 27, location TBA

Presented by those spirit-forward musicians over at Beerthoven, this concert celebrates our fine feathered friends – in more ways than one. Utilizing tunes like “The Lark Ascending” by Ralph Vaughan Williams, the piano trio “Bird Oratorio” by Indra Riše, and assorted music from household names like Mozart and Stephen Sondheim, 10% of concert ticket sales benefit the Travis Audubon Society, a nonprofit working to protect bird habitats. So go ahead: Take a drink from your free cocktail, munch a pastry, and lift off at this corvid-centric concert.   – James Scott

Bad Bunny

Friday 26 – Saturday 27, Moody Center

Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio rides into the Texas state capital at exactly the right moment. Between March’s vernal equinox and June’s summer solstice, the Puerto Rican rapper closes some 21st century loop. When COVID took down 2020, up rose Bad Bunny behind insomniac beats and an up-all-night electro purr on breakouts YHLQMDLG and Las que no iban a salir. 2022 summer soundtrack Un Verano Sin Ti reopened the globe, while last fall’s Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana arrived branded by a rodeo bronco and cowboy.   – Raoul Hernandez

Austin Blues Festival

Saturday 27 – Sunday 28, Moody Amphitheater

Only narrow-headed fools might grumble that Austin Blues Fest doesn’t have enough blues, when faced with a broad mix of gospel, second line brass, Afro-Cubanism, bounce, soul, jazz, funk, and zydeco that represents both the roots and outgrowths of America’s definitive genre. Purists will dig living treasures Buddy Guy and Bobby Rush (performing with Blind Boys of Alabama; see interview on p.16) as well as Jimmie Vaughan, while Cuban showstopper Cimafunk, NOLA bounce queen Big Freedia, and Southern soul septuagenarian Robert Finley are assured to elicit multi-generational dancing. Meanwhile, Houston-born pianist/producer Robert Glasper – who precedes Sunday’s headliner, Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes – serves as ABF’s lodestar, synthesizing a variety of disciplines into one Black Radio.   – Kevin Curtin

Queer Blues Revue

Saturday 27, Cheer Up Charlies

The soulful spirit of Austin Blues Fest drifts on over to Chup’s neon patio courtesy of platter purveyors Queer Vinyl Collective. After a fab-o opening number from local legend of hip-hop Mama Duke, the dulcet tunes of Alanna Royale will fill Red River ’til late, late, late. No awkward quiet moments here, though, as QVC fills all available air space with hot wax – which means partygoers won’t be stuck pondering their existence between tunes. Bring $10 for donating at the door, so all those talented girlies and boylies and nonbinaries can get paid.   – James Scott

Austin Death Fest

Saturday 27 – Sunday 28, Mohawk

UK doom storm Conan summoned a who’s-who of ATX heshers to the Lost Well recently, including an Oblivion Access principal who confirmed the avant-extreme fest is on hiatus. Chaos in Tejas ceased in 2014. Austin’s thus ripe for a dedicated metal fest. Between a matrix of local venues including Empire, Come & Take It Live, and now Parish, the scene currently enjoys a metallic renaissance stoked here by Mohawk’s two-day, 18-act death metal decanting. San Jose longhairs Mortuous and Pennsylvania sledgehammers Outerheaven top Friday, and Ontario trio Tomb Mold imports top 2023 prog prize The Enduring Spirit. Horns up!   – Raoul Hernandez

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

Wednesday 1, Circuit of the Americas

Perhaps never has an album title so succinctly described a band’s essence as Neil Young & Crazy Horse’s 1990 grunge primer Ragged Glory. Young and his on-again-off-again backing band, helmed by bassist Billy Talbot and drummer Ralph Molina, have been kicking up an unbridled breed of rock since 1968. This outing now enlists Willie Nelson’s 33-year-old son Micah on guitar, guaranteeing it to be extra ragged and hopefully as glorious as the band’s coruscating ACL Fest set in 2012. NY&CH arrives fresh off an awesome Record Store Day purge of retitled live classics named after their essential statement: Fuckin’ Up.   – Kevin Curtin

Caroline Rose

Wednesday 1, The Scoot Inn

Despite a recent move to L.A., reliable pop-rock shapeshifter Caroline Rose maintains frequent performances and deep musical connections in Austin – including a final album cycle stop riding the complex catharsis of fifth album The Art of Forgetting (and a recent Bayonne remix). “We’re busting out all the stops before I once again hermit for many many months,” Rose wrote on IG. Opener Ian Sweet, outlet of Los Angeles indie pop balladeer Jilian Medford, also released a high-octane evolution last year in Polyvinyl select SUCKER.   – Rachel Rascoe

Longriver, Little Mazarn

Thursday 2, Sahara Lounge

David Longoria crafts folk tunes that feel both simple and complex. Longriver’s 2019 debut LP, Of Seasons, delivered easy rolling melodies that could belie his poetic allegories and subtle, Fahey-esque fingerpicking. Preparing his sophomore release, Longoria offers a taste with a take on the Flatlanders’ flowing “Keeper of the Mountain.” Little Mazarn adds support on the track and the show, with the 2024 Austin Music Awards Best Folk winner lingering in the sweet and mellow pull of last year’s Honey Island General Store EP. Ethan Smith opens, along with DJ Honky Tonk Amnesia spinning records throughout the night.   – Doug Freeman

Rhiannon Giddens

Thursday 2, Paramount Theatre

Rhiannon Giddens is primed for this moment. Long before Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter reignited a conversation about the longstanding but often masked role of Black people – particularly Black women – in country music, the banjo player had made a name for herself in the most traditional corners of the genre. As the lead singer, fiddler, and banjoist for the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Giddens wove folk, blues, and country – boundaries she skirted and melded further in her solo career. The two-time Grammy winner played banjo on Beyoncé’s latest album, giving widespread name recognition to a country stalwart. Charly Lowry, a singer of Lumbee/Tuscarora descent dedicated to bringing visibility to Indigenous people, opens.   – Abby Johnston

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Music Notes

by Derek Udensi

Keep Austin Country Showcase

Friday 26, Dainty Dillo

The fairly new Armadillo Den spinoff located on East Cesar Chavez hosts free acoustic performances from Ellis Bullard, Jordan Matthew Young, and Kathryn Legendre. Aaron McDonnell closes the evening with a DJ set.

Happen Twice Third Anniversary

Saturday 27, the Coral Snake & High Noon

Austin-based bookers celebrate three years of crafting intriguing shows across town – by throwing another double-venue party at these neighboring Eastside locales. Performers at the Coral Snake include Flight by Nothing and StaleFish, while the High Noon lineup features Retro Cowgirl and 2024 Austin Music Award winner for Best Pianist/Keyboardist, KindKeith. Admission to both shows is free.

Kane Brown

Sunday 28, Moody Center

Tennessee-raised country music star Brown (“What Ifs”) headlines with support from Tyler Hubbard, best known as one half of Florida Georgia Line.