[Kill The Critic] The Independent Entertainment Blog [Film-Theatre-Comedy]

The Daily Fix in The ATX: Seven Days of Music in "The Live Music Capital of The World"



The Up and Coming Zeale32 [ zeal-ee thirty-two] (One of my first and best interviews.)

News Flash: Hip Hop is alive and kicking it in the ATX, and I found the blog to prove it.

Thanks to fellow blogger Minto Tsai's Austin Hip-Hop Scene, I discovered that live hip hop isn't just a myth. After catching a few shows with Austin's own Zeale 32, Mr. Bavu Blakes, and San Marcos, TX collective The Word Association, I was a little disappointed that more hip hop acts weren't choosing to stop in the ATX. Pardon all the the name dropping, but I did catch memorable shows with Tha Fucking Transmissions (Houston, TX) at The Mohawk and Little Brother (Durham, NorthCarolina) at Emo's. I've interviewed most of these solo artists and bands for local press, and I'm really looking for more "alternative", or underground artists to play more shows in Austin by word of mouth and blogs- like Cali Agents and The Alias Brothers (formerly known as Asamov). Thank goodness for Tsai's ear to the ground. I look forward to posting about local and touring hip hop acts.

Sunday, May 27th


El-P or El-Producto (Jaime Meline, one of the masterminds behind Definitive Jux)

El to the P at the E to the Mo: EL-P, a.k.a. El Producto, hits the stage with Hip Hop at Emo's Tonight

Brooklyn, NY native EL-P is now on the pop culture radar with his track on the free Definitive Swim album, which is currently hyped on Adult Swim. But I was really impressed with the fact that he operates his own label, Definitve Jux, which seems to have a penchant for indie hip hop that is smokin'. He's made a bold marketing move by producing the album with Williams Street, and premiering the "Flyentology" video on the Adult Swim site. It's a "f*ck you" to corporate labels, commercial radio, and MTV who don't seem to get it that hip hop isn't a trend. (And yeah, there's an explicit version.) My favorite track is "Smithereens (Stop Cryin')", which is also available on his LP-CD I'll Sleep When You're Dead. EL-P performs with a crew - DJ Mr. Dibbs & The Mighty Quin, Hangar 18 (N.Y.C.), Yak Ballz from Queens, and Slow Suicide Stimulus (New Jersey), so expect some stage antics, and not just two turntables and a microphone.

Emo's (Outside)
603 Red River
Austin, TX
All Ages/$15