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Guide book to live music in Austin wins 3 independent book awards
Austin's Music Scene won two gold awards and a silver one for Best Cover Design.
A first-of-its-kind guide on Austin's music landscape has won notable new acclaim in the independent publishing arena. Austin’s Music Scene: Your Guide to the City’s Most Iconic Artists & Venues won two gold awards and one silver at the 2026 Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) Book Awards in May.
Austin's Music Scene is the debut title for Thunderhouse Media Group, earning the imprint the gold-level Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book in the nonfiction category. The other gold was awarded for Best Gift Book, and the silver was for Best Cover Design. The IBPA Book Awards have been held for 38 years, and there were more than 1,900 entries in 2026, the most IBPA has ever received.
The book was published in October of 2025 as a collaboration between Thunderhouse — led by “recovering journalist" Mitch Baranowski — and the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM), a popular organization that helps artists afford health care. It takes a journalistic slant, getting information straight from the venues, artists, festivals, and other featured organizations within, and presenting it as much as a historical document as an actionable guide.
No matter where Austin's Music Scene goes as a gift, it connects readers to the town through color photography, profiles, and most impactfully, a donation of half of all net proceeds to HAAM.
“No single book can capture the full breadth of Austin's music scene, and we knew that going in,” said Baranowski in a press release about the win. “Our aim was to create a real love letter, a curated snapshot of the scene today, and let the artists speak for themselves."
Baranowski also doled out thanks to several key contributors and supporters, including HAAM and its members and fans, creative director Chris Ritchie, photo editor David Brendan Hall, and the rest of the creative team. He credits Ritchie with the winning cover design, a creative collage of marquee letters and a stamp that makes it clear that the purchase will support musicians.
Most of all, we're grateful to the artists, venue owners, festival organizers and volunteers who trusted us with their stories," said Baranowski. "This is their book.”
Austin's Music Scene was one of several titles to win multiple gold IBPA Book Awards this year; in its recap, IBPA lists six. The runners-up for the nonfiction Bill Fisher Award and Best Gift Book were Blue Hour Homecoming: Finding Life on the Fringes of Reproduction and Make Myna Double: Cocktails for Bird Lovers, respectively. The gold winner in Best Cover Design in nonfiction was Art of Fabric Block Printing: An Illustrated Guide with 12 Playfully Modern Projects.
Austin’s Music Scene is available to purchase online and at select independent booksellers.
The full lineup for Hot Summer Nights 2026.Graphic courtesy of the Red River Cultural District