Bonus Tracks

We might be gearing up to head south for SXSW and the bands may be ready for their annual migration as well, but that doesn't mean it's quiet on the local front. If anything, it's even crazier as local bands warm up in preparation and touring bands slide through town on their way to Austin, while our venues deal with the normal schedule as well. If you're looking for highlights, you've come to the right place. As always, we've pulled a few of the best to get you started out the door and headed in the right direction.

Thursday, March 8

The week starts out quiet with just a handful of local shows to ease into the weekend. Most notable is Brandon Clark at Blue Rose Café, mostly because his band has been hitting the road pretty heavily on the weekends, so this is a great location to settle in with a burger and beer to enjoy a few songs and a cool evening breeze with an old friend before he hits the road again. Beau Tyler also holds down his bi-weekly gig at Hunt Club, which is always fun as it often turns into a stripped back We The Ghost gig when Dain Samuelson and Jimmy Adams show up to join in.

Friday, March 9

Now it starts getting busy as Crystal Pistol hosts OKC bands Jumpship Astronaut, The Younglings and Saturday Sirens for a free show at 10pm. Also on the books are RadioRadio at Hunt Club, Dash Rip Rock at Mercury Lounge, Snorlaxx and Deerpeople at Soundpony and the Red Dirt Hootenanny for Woody Guthrie with Red Dirt Rangers, Stoney LaRue, Randy Crouch and more.

Oscar Charles (drummer for Apollo) returns to town for the weekend for a CD release party at Joe Momma's pizza for his new solo disc, Still Standing. If you're a pop fan, this will be worth your time. Meanwhile, the big rock show of the night is a little band from Sweden when Truckfighters lands in Tulsa to destroy Downtown Lounge with Midnight Ghost Machine, RL Jones and Baron Von Swagger.

Saturday, March 10

The big show of the weekend is obviously the big Woody Guthrie tribute at Brady Theater with Arlo Guthrie, John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne, Roseanne Cash, Old Crow Medicine Show, Flaming Lips, Hanson, Del McCoury, Jimmy LaFave and more. Tickets are still available for this all-star showcase and range from $45 to $250.

Outside of the big show, however, we've got some cool smaller shows worth checking out. Klondike 5 makes its first appearance at Fassler Hall while Nothing More continues the assault on Downtown Lounge with Admiral Grey opening. The stealth show of the night on Saturday, however, is the long overdue return of Lovedrug with a small show at Eclipse, supporting the band's new CD, Wild Blood, which just came out and finds the band in a much more upbeat mood than its last major release, 2008's Sucker Punch Show. Tickets are only $12 at the door with Sleepwalking Home, All The Kings Men and Tell Tale opening the all-ages show.

Sunday, March 11

Catch something fresh to round out your weekend by stopping in Hunt Club for up and comers KickTree and Take One Car or a mixed bill with Had Enough and Madewell at Crystal Pistol.

Tuesday, March 13

The parade of Austin bound bands continues as Heavy Times plays Crystal Pistol and Hunt Club hosts The Yawpers, Take to the Oars and Eldren.