The Austin Chronicle Takes on the Rock!

99 Bands
A million voices rising up from Red River

99 dreams I have had
In every one a red balloon.
It's all over and I'm standing pretty
In this dust that was a city.
If I could find a souvenir
Just to prove the world was here.

– Nena, "99 Luftballoons"

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On May 7, Austin went to the polls, and 52% of voters registered in favor of a citywide smoking ban. Many local club owners and music lovers, especially those for whom the lifeblood of the Austin music scene stems from the DIY aesthetic of Red River, shuddered when the results came in. Was this an outright attack on the live music venues of our city? Was this the end of a fertile breeding ground where musicians young and old tune their creativity? Most businesses that still permit smoking are either bars or live music venues, Red River rock havens like Room 710, Red Eyed Fly, Beerland, etc., businesses with nonexistent profit margins easily affected by any change.
Two months away from the ban's institution, on this same strip where club owners are still considering their nonsmoking options, the local music scene has never been so rich. Oversaturated with bands of every genre – rock & roll, punk, post-rock, experimental, country, jazz, metal, you name it – Red River is alive. For six weeks (as opposed to "31 Nights"), mid-May to the end of June, we took the scene's pulse. Ninety-nine bands from Austin, San Marcos, and San Antonio. Not all of them masterpieces, not all of them inspiring awe, not a one of them anything less than rock & roll.

The Microcosm
The breeze that blows down Red River comes not from the sky but from the power of decibels – as many as the city of Austin will allow. Red River would be nothing without the rock. It's religion around these parts.
Sunday brings a free night of rock to Emo's. Before meeting the door, the sidewalk rattles with the beat of The Cutaway's bass. Unfortunately, the melodies are calling it quits: half of the band is moving to L.A. for a better shot at the music industry brass ring. Tim Lasater has the perfect rock & roll voice: too low for emo, too high for goth. It's passionate rock that melts like sugar in water.