Local Sounds

Who will be CultureMap's Last Band Standing? Meet the bands, Part One

Mother Falcon
Crooks
Mimi Klasson Imler
KP and The Boom Boom
The Midgetmen

CultureMap’s Last Band Standing contest is off the ground, and now is the time for you to vote on which local band will take home the title. Based on our readers' suggestions, we have selected 16 of the area's best up-and-coming bands to compete against each other in a bracket-style elimination competition.

Your votes will decide which bands move on to each round, ultimately crowning CultureMap's first ever Last Band Standing.

Bands represent all of the pockets of the Austin music scene, from outlaw country and traditional bluegrass to soul, funk and pure punk. Today, we’ll introduce the first half of the 16 bands in the competition. Take a look at the choices, and then get to voting.

Crooks

What Crooks brings to the already-diverse Austin country music scene is a reformed, modern style of outlaw country, deeply rooted in Texas tradition. In Crooks’ latest endeavor you’ll find a common honky-tonk thread: drums reminiscent of classic, pared down Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard-influenced guitar licks (think “Big City”). But you’ll also discover well-developed horns sections and skilled fills by fiddle phenom Warren Hood and Grammy Award-winning accordion legend Flaco Jimenez (of the Texas Tornados).

The Carper Family

The Carper Family trio is no stranger to Austin’s country music hubs. Frequently seen playing White Horse, Mean Eyed Cat and the Continental Club, this family is also no stranger to the road and national attention. In fact, the band's latest album, Back When, was named Best Country Album by the Independent Music Awards in April. With a panel of judges that includes music icons like Keith Richards, Tom Waits and Tori Amos, that little award grants big bragging rights for the Texas trio.

KP and the Boom Boom

A night with KP and the Boom Boom's mix of funky beats and soul will get any crowd on its feet, dancing and feeling good. KP and the Boom Boom play a funky brand of neo-soul that is often spotted at such music hubs as the Continental Club. "We just want to spread the love and give a positive message to people. That's definitely what our music is all about," says front woman Kate Priestly.

The Sour Notes

Austin-based band The Sour Notes features a rotating cast of musicians, but always includes founder Jared Boulanger. This year, the band broke out of the local scene, playing an impressive set at Houston's Free Press Summer Fest as a six-piece group with a rotating set of male and female vocalists. Plus, three synths (!) and lots of summer-y sounds.

Mother Falcon

Mother Falcon is a spectacle of a local band. Rarely does one see so many talented, young (and classically trained) musicians take to Austin's indie stages. A full stage of stringed instruments and soft, haunting sounds offers a nice departure from the noise-rock that sometimes overtakes downtown venues. Mother Falcon’s music is subdued and powerful, both in the size of the band and its inherently refreshing nature.

Befriend the Bears

Befriend the Bears has a sound that isn’t so easy to categorize. The acoustic folk/psychedelic rock/jazz ensemble plays a self-described "liberal mix of emotion and musical mess.” On or off local stages, Befriend the Bears calls its uncharacteristic music "a sound that takes you to a tripped out laser show on your grandparents' back porch." That's a place we'd all like to visit, isn't it?

The Midgetmen

Formed by some of Austin's punk rock stalwarts, The Midgetmen has been a force in local music for 10 years. Its members are grown-ups whose day jobs have morphed into careers, and for whom playing music is just a really fun thing to do while getting drunk with friends. Though it may be a side gig these days, The Midgetmen's show doesn't disappoint. (See the Weird Al 10th Anniversary tribute show for a proper example.)

Hello Wheels

Want to stomp your boots to some acoustic tunes rooted in folk tradition? Hello Wheels melds acoustic sounds with rich harmonies and deep storytelling elements. Listen up for this alt-folk band that has been a welcomed sound at the Cactus Cafe and on KUT.

CultureMap's Last Band Standing competition runs through Oct. 2. The fun culminates in a Last Band Standing party at The Parish on Wednesday, Oct. 10, featuring sets from the final two bands (decided by you!) plus a special headliner, to be announced soon.

The Last Band Standing winner will be announced at The Parish, and the winning band will receive Artist Badges to ACL Festival. You have the chance to win ACL Fest passes, too. Just vote to register!

Stay tuned for your introduction to the second half of our Sweet Sixteen contenders tomorrow.

unspecified

Movie Review

English pop star goes wild in unconventional musical biopic Better Man

Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Jonno Davies in Better Man.

English pop star Robbie Williams has been massive in his native United Kingdom for over 30 years, first as a member of the boy band Take That, and then as a solo artist, with all but one of his 12 solo albums hitting No. 1 in the U.K. But somehow he’s never had a significant impact in the United States, which may mean that the new film about his life, Better Man, will be overlooked here as well.

But whether you know Williams or not, the film from writer/director Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman) is an audacious, highly entertaining treat that throws the standard music biopic on its head. The most daring part of it is that Williams is portrayed not by a series of actors, but in CGI ape form, not unlike the recent Planet of the Apes series. Williams, who does voiceover work for much of the film, says in the fourth-wall breaking movie that he asked for the look because he's felt like a dancing monkey for much of his public-facing life.

And so the film follows Williams from a young age as he grows up with his mother (Kate Mulvany) and grandmother (Alison Steadman) while still idolizing his deadbeat entertainer father (Steve Pemberton). Taking inspiration from his dad, he pursues a singing career with all his heart, joining Take That at the tender age of 16. But like has happened to so many others, the overwhelming fame and his brash personality lead him down some dark roads, especially drugs.

Gracey, with co-writers Simon Gleeson and Oliver Cole, hits a lot of the beats present in many music biopics: Early success, trouble adapting to fame, heavy drug use, pain stemming from childhood, and more. And while the story is familiar, the way it’s presented is not, as the usage of the ape visual allows the film to go in many wild directions. Instead of the movie occasionally tipping its hat to Williams’ music, it turns into a full-on musical on several occasions in sequences that are both thrilling and informative for those who are unfamiliar with his work.

Williams is heavily involved in the film, and yet unlike other artists who want to micromanage their reputations, he lets all of his warts show. It’s clear from the start that he is an in-your-face kind of person, and so even though the film often shows him at his worst, he owns up to every bit of his story. That’s not to say that the movie isn’t on his side; he’s mostly portrayed as a cocky showman who’s still likable even when he shouldn’t be.

It’s funny how quickly the ape gimmick goes from “WTF?!” to normal, which is a testament to the motion capture technology team that brought it to life. Thanks to a great physical performance by stand-in Jonno Davies and digital trickery that puts Williams’ eyes on the ape’s face, his interactions with the other characters in the film never feel out of place. If anything, it adds an extra layer of joy onto a story that needs it at times.

Aside from his voiceovers, how much of Williams is “in” the film is unclear, but his irrepressible energy is felt throughout. Pemberton, Mulvany, and Steadman are all fantastic in demonstrating the Williams’ family dynamic. The large cast is full of people who are not familiar to American movie audiences, but they do a uniformly great job of supporting the story.

Williams may not be well-known in the United States, but movie lovers should not let that deter them from seeing this unique take on a music biopic. In fact, it probably helps if you have no distinct concept of the singer, as it allows his wild life story to be told without any preconceived expectations.

---

Better Man opens in theaters on January 10.

movies music film

Local Sounds

Who will be CultureMap's Last Band Standing? Meet the bands, Part One

17 ways to raise non-alcoholic spirits throughout Dry January in Austin

Austin suburb appears on new 2025 list of safest U.S. cities

Austin faces highest rent prices in Texas for 2025, new report says

Movie Review

English pop star goes wild in unconventional musical biopic Better Man