onstage in austin

My dream show does exist: Jeff Mangum to headline ACL Live on April 29

Just announced: Transmission Entertainment is bringing legendary Neutral Milk Hotel frontman / Elephant 6 Recording Company member Jeff Mangum to ACL Live on Sunday, April 29.

A Ruston, Louisiana native with roots in Denver and Athens, Georgia, Mangum made waves in the mid-90s with his first lo-fi full-length, On Avery Island. Its follow-up, 1998's In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, was a monumental success; inspired by the story of Anne Frank, the album includes mixtape staples like "The King of Carrot Flowers," "Two-Headed Boy" and "Holland, 1945."

The year of Aeroplane's release, Neutral Milk Hotel went on hiatus, eventually splitting up as Mangum receded into increasing reclusiveness. Amid rumors of highly anticipated follow-up albums and tours, he very rarely played live shows until 2010, when a string of NYC gigs spurred a Coachella spot, West Coast dates and, now, an Austin appearance.

Tickets to the April 29 show at ACL Live go on sale Friday, March 9 at 10 a.m., so set a reminder / do whatever you gotta do to get your hands on a ticket, because this is going to be great.

Let's get psyched for the show by reminding ourselves of five reasons why Jeff Mangum is magical and revisiting some of our favorite Mangum moments (like the time he covered Roky Erickson's "I Love The Living You").

Live from Athens, 1997:

Live in Austin, April 1998:

New Year's Eve, 1998:

If you've got 40 minutes to spare, check out this set from the Occupy NYC frontline, recording last October:

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Hot Headlines

Salt Lick's new concept heats up Austin's most popular stories this week

Photo by Alie Jackson

Roxie's will open in the spring.

Editor's note: The top Austin news of the week includes a new concept from barbecue favorite Salt Lick and three luxury fashion brands making their Austin debut. Plus, we've rounded up all the ways to meet new people this winter. Read the five hottest Austin headlines of the week below, and find fun things to do this weekend here.

1. Salt Lick BBQ branches out with new restaurant concept in Austin suburb. Storied barbecue restaurant Salt Lick will extend its legacy with a new concept coming to Buda. Roxie's, a homey Southern restaurant fit for families, will debut in the growing Austin suburb sometime this spring.

2. 3 major luxury fashion brands move into famous North Austin mall. Austin's hottest shopping district will add the first three standalone stores in the city for Christian Dior, Balenciaga, and Zimmerman.

3. Way more than 15 ways to meet new people in Austin this winter. The new year is here, and maybe that means you want to meet new people. We've rounded up great ways — from classes to volunteering and, yes, apps — to do just that.

Students in a wheel throwing class. Meet fellow creatives in a wheel throwing class at the Doherty Arts Center. Photo from Doherty Arts Center Facebook page

4. Austin faces highest rent prices in Texas for 2025, new report says. A new cost-of-living index underscores what many Austin renters are painfully aware of: Local rents rank among the costliest in the U.S.

5. 14 Austin coffee shops band together for day honoring Daniel Johnston. Hi, How Are You Day is back on January 22, encouraging Austinites to meet up in community spaces and check in on each other's mental health.