Weekend Roundup
Our top 5 event picks this weekend to get you up and moving
The holidays are finishing up and it’s time to get up and get moving; those pies, cakes, cookies and other forms of gluttony aren’t going to work themselves off. So get out and switch it up — there’s a ton of live, active music and adventure to be had among our picks for the top events this weekend.
Neon Indian DJ set with Learning Secrets
Kick things off right with hipster-approved indie band Neon Indian (listen to their song “Hex Girlfriend” if you’re skeptical; sometimes those impossibly hip kids actually know what they’re talking about), who are teaming up with Learning Secrets for a DJ set at a pre-New Year’s Eve dance party at Red 7 Friday at 9 p.m. Actual New Year’s Eve parties are going to be crazy and crazy crowded — this is your chance to be able move.
Paranormal Cave Tour
On Saturday, scare away those rolls of turkey and pie-induced blubber by boldly making the short trek out to Burnet's Longhorn Cavern State Park for a paranormal cave tour. The price of admission gets you set up with all the gear you need and guides that’ll indulge your inner Ghostbuster. They restrict the group sizes to at least six and cap them at 15, so bring friends. There are two tour times (at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.) and they only give them 12 times a year.
Big Freedia in concert
The “bounce” music stalwart celebrated a banner year in 2011 — making the the New York Times and performing on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and at SXSW. (And if you haven’t seen her video for “Y’all Get Back Now,” you’ve been missing out. Missing. Out.) Rush back from your paranormal cave tour to catch her fast-moving set at the Mohawk, which starts at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
ACL Live presents Willie Nelson and The Mavericks
You’ve been bouncing and dancing and climbing and ghostbusting all weekend; take a breather and catch one of Austin favorite Willie Nelson’s sets at ACL Live. He’s performing a number of sets with a few acts leading up to the new year, and we think his performance with the Mavericks Sunday at 8 p.m. might be the perfect way to wind down from a busy past few days.
Austin’s New Year’s Eve at Auditorium Shores
Okay, technically this happens on Monday, but many people have lucked out with a three-day weekend, thanks to New Year’s Day falling on a Tuesday. Enjoy it with your family at Auditorium Shores, which kicks off this celebration at 5 p.m. with interactive art projects, outdoor film screenings and plenty of music. And of course, there’ll be a fireworks show to usher in 2013.