Voxtrot

Your Biggest Fan

Playlouderecordings

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There may be a wait for Austin’s next big thing. In what has to be one of the longest teases in rock history, VOXTROT has released its third consecutive EP. As in, just a measly three more songs. The group’s previous two EPs met with the kind of acclaim that would send most acts scurrying to the studio to get an album into the stores. Yet Voxtrot, which recently signed a deal with independent giant Beggars Group, has only just begun work on its full-length debut. Meanwhile, YOUR BIGGEST FAN (Playlouderecordings) is bound to stoke the fire. Front man Ramesh Srivastava, who put his band on a slow track by studying for a time in Scotland, sings in a twee rock vibrato, not unlike the Undertones’ Feargal Sharkey or, when things crank up, Pete Shelley, of Buzzcocks fame. Srivastava is a natural, talented singer, and the group’s material is even better; bands have had entire careers without creating three songs this good. These are taut and expertly arranged gems—sparkling, pulsating pop, from the hook-laden title track to the chamberesque closer. Voxtrot may or may not have a hit on its hands, but there’s no doubt it has set up some great expectations.

Snowbyrd

Snowbyrd

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Looking to feed your indie-rock jones? San Antonio’s SNOWBYRD may be just what you’re seeking. Hard-driving, chugging guitar rhythms, melodic songs with off-kilter Phish/Meat Puppets/Grateful Dead (pick your generation) harmonies, a flair for weird turns, and, of course, a proud lo-fi aesthetic are all combined on the band’s self-titled debut (Saustex). And it’s a winning concoction. One thing is noticeable right off: Most songs are accompanied by a floating, disembodied pedal steel. On the more alt-country tunes (such as “Tower of Pearl”), this is a natural fit, yet it is also strangely at home on the rockers (“Remember U,” “Las Vegas Buffet”) and the fuzzed-out psychedelic numbers (“Ram,” “For Today”). Led by brothers Chris and Scott Lutz, Snowbyrd is one of those young, hungry bands that’s easy to love. Despite losing its home base, S.A.’s famed rock hangout Tacoland, when owner Ram Ayala was murdered during a robbery last summer, the band shows no trace of disillusionment in its infectious music. Its members write their songs together, and several, like “St. Mary’s Night,” perfectly conjure a certain subset of Alamo City nightlife.

Blaze Foley

Cold, Cold World

Lost Art

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Much has been written about BLAZE FOLEY over the yearsmaybe too much. His outsized reputation has overshadowed his recordings, which by comparison seem enigmatic, unfocused, and devoid of ambition. But this could actually describe Foley, who in his short lifetime (he was murdered in 1989 at age 39) never made it into the elite echelon of Austin songwriters. He was easily his own worst enemy, and hes remembered as much for his drunken escapades as for his sad, funny, street-smart songs. Which makes COLD, COLD WORLD (Lost Art) such a welcome arrival. These are charismatic, sublime recordings made early on (1979-1980), Foley trying his damnedest to nail his creations to tape before his demons tipped the seesaw permanently downward. With compatriot Gurf Morlix, he took the songs into the studio to record an album that would never be finished. Morlix headed west, while Foley, a menacing-looking giant who wrote lines like Faded loves and memories/How they take the best of me, took another path. A release back then could have changed everything. Instead, Cold, Cold World stands as a signpost pointing in a brighter direction.