Music Notes

White Denim to play benefit show, plus more Austin music picks

White Denim to play Central Machine Works.

Photo courtesy of White Denim

The first half of June is loaded with a lot of great things – the start of summer, Spurs vs. Knicks in the NBA Finals, and the beginning of the World Cup — but don’t let all of that distract you from the many great local shows that will be happening as well. See here for recommendations.

Future Clouds & Radar at Hole In The Wall – Friday, June 5
Indie rockers Future Clouds & Radar will be throwing a vinyl release party for their recently released album, Big Weather, at Hole In The Wall this Friday, June 5. Support will be provided by Molecular Steve and Whalers. Tickets for the show are $12.76.

Armadillo Live at Central Machine Works – June 5-7
Armadillo Live, which is a three-day celebration benefiting KUTX, will take place at Central Machine works this weekend, June 5-7. Fans can expect performances from White Denim, Holy Wave, Annabelle Chairlegs, Gran Moreno, and others; plus, there will be Austin music memorabilia swaps, specialty drinks, immersive installations, local vendors, and more. Each day will have a suggested donation of $9.98 at the door.

Blues On The Green at Zilker Park – June 9-10
Local tradition Blues On The Green returns to Zilker Park on back-to back nights Tuesday, June 9, and Wednesday, June 10. Alejandro Escovdeo, Aaron Behrens, and Kylie Hernandez will play the first show; then the second one will feature Brownout, Mama Duke, and Nik Parr & The Selfless Lovers. This is a free event.

Magna Carda at the Mohawk – Friday, June 12
Hip hop standouts Magna Carda will ring in the release of their new album, INNINOUTCHEAMIND, at the Mohawk on Friday, June 12. The rest of the lineup for the evening includes Mike Melinoe, LLUVII, and DJ Cortez. Tickets for the show are $21.

CorMae at the 13th Floor – Friday, June 12
Everything Is So Great is the title of CorMae’s impending album, and the punk act will be celebrating its arrival at the 13th Floor on Friday, June 12. Topdown, Fifi Knifefight, and Heavy Velvet will play as well. Tickets for the show are $18.40.

Radio’s 12th Birthday at Radio East – Saturday, June 13
The team at Radio Coffee & Beer are throwing themselves a 12th birthday party at Radio East on Saturday, June 13. The psych-dipped Golden Dawn Arkestra will headline the bash, and they’ll be joined by Club Coma, who will be celebrating the release of a new single titled “These Days Are Over.” Tickets are $20.72.

live music concerts

Survey Says

Austin AANHPI artist survey launch doubles as benefit for injured band

Peelander-Z crowdsurfing at NightMarket.fun

Photo courtesy of the Lunar Foundation

The survey launch will help raise funds for Peelander-Z, whose frontman is pictured here crowdsurfing at NightMarket.fun,

The Lunar Foundation, an organization that advocates for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) artists in Greater Austin, is launching a new initiative to gather data on its community's needs. At a public launch party on June 4, the foundation will also launch a speaker series and raise funds for the Austin-based Japanese-American punk band Peelander-Z, who were injured in a tour van crash.

The launch party will take place at the Hope Outdoor Gallery, a once-defunct graffiti gallery that reopened in late 2025.

Called "Austin Creates Together: Greater Austin's Survey on AANHPI Arts and Culture," the initiative will survey AANHPI artists with help from Nielsen, a large media audience measurement firm. A press release says the survey will cover "how their cultural work is created, experienced, and supported within Austin’s changing cultural landscape." Nielsen's volunteers through the Data for Good program helped design and create the survey.

Lunar Foundation executive director Andrew Lee explains that there is little data available about the intersections of AANHPI artists' careers, cultural identities, and economic stability while seeking new opportunities. Learning more about the community will help the foundation decide what to prioritize going forward.

"We're not just programming events, we're working to build real economic pathways for AANHPI artists," said Lee in the release. "Our artists shouldn't have to build careers that depend on perpetual fundraising. We're designing an economic development model that helps them earn sustainable income through their craft."

The launch party, hosted in partnership with the Hope Campaign, will serve to announce the survey and sign people up via registration stations. It will also draw folks in with DJ tunes and food trucks. Those who miss the event can still stop by and register for the survey in person until July 31.

While at the launch event, attendees can help support Peelander-Z by donating to an existing GoFundMe campaign that has raised nearly $200,000 at the time of this article's publication. A $20 donation at the event gets the donor a free T-shirt from NightMarket.fun (a nonprofit festival by the foundation), and guests can also buy Peelander-Z merch with 100 percent of proceeds going to the band. The three bandmembers have a serious recovery ahead of them, but other music industry community members have been stepping up to support them.

"Peelander-Z are beloved in Austin and a true expression of the joyful, boundary-breaking spirit that AANHPI artists bring to this city,” said Lee. “They've always been so generous with their talent, including performing at our inaugural NightMarket.fun. When we heard what happened, it felt right to make space at our launch[.]"

Finally, June marks the launch of the Illuminate Speaker Series, which will spotlight "distinguished AANHPI artists and industry professionals," the release says. Each moderated discussion will be free for anyone to attend, with a Q&A and community networking built in.

The Lunar Foundation is collecting RSVPs for the launch event via Partiful. The event runs from 5-8 pm at 741 Dalton Ln.

fundraiser benefit data