The Swell Season Comes to Austin!

Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (also known by the title of their 2006 album, The Swell Season) were in town at the end of last month for the ACL Festival (boo!), and although I had no desire to attend the dust bowl of concerts, we were lucky enough to catch them at an after show on Saturday (yay!) The show was at The Paramount Theater on Congress Ave on September 27th, and it was the perfect venue to see them in. The Paramount is almost 100 years old, and the Victorian period that it came to us from is very apparent inside with all of the intricately carved reliefs, mouldings, and ceiling details. In short, it is beyond beautiful. It is also not very large, which made it quite intimate.

Kelley and I were anxious to check them out after we fell in love with the movie Once, in which they starred and wrote most of the music for. Check here for more on that. When we found out they would be here, we jumped at the tickets.

The show was amazing! Kelley, Trisha, and me arrived pretty early, got beers, checked out the swag in the lobby and decided which shirts and posters we were going to buy. We took our seats and checked out a pretty strange act for about the next thirty minutes. If you've never heard of Bill Callahan, I would say check him out, but check him out at your own peril. I thought his lyrics were haunting and funny. He is definitely a talented writer, but his musicianship is, perhaps, not on par with his wordsmithing. Enough said on that front. You be the judge.

After the roadies cleared the stage, Glen came on stage alone. He approached the very edge, demurely said hello to the crowd, and proceeded to play a spotlit solo without any amplification whatever. It was a terrific way to start the show. Eventually Markéta came out and the duo played their Oscar winning song, Falling Slowly, and it was perfection perfected. I found out from one of the ushers in the lobby (during Callahan's set) that The Frames (Hansard's band of 18 years) were in house and backing Irglová and Hansard. Many songs from the movie were played, but new ones were tried out on us, and they were all incredible. The mood was unbelievable, and each moment that passed to bring us closer to the end of the night was a blessing and a curse at the same time.

Irglová and Hansard switched duties on piano and guitar and it was nice to have the front "man" change from time to time. The Frames were incredible and the fiddle player with the longest Irish name of ever, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, very nearly stole the show. Hansard came across as humble and genuine. He spoke to the crowd between songs, and was very funny and engaging.


The night, theater, lights, music, and people all added to the experience, and I will hold this concert forever dear to my heart.


Thanks Dad. I'd have never known about these folks if it weren't for you.

Please read

I stumbled upon this video and article on PETA's website today by accident. I was Googling for some instructions on how to transfer music from itunes between PC's, and one of the forums I happened upon had a side bar that linked to it. What I saw shocked and horrified me.

Let me make this clear: I love bacon, I love sausage. But honestly this video and article has me seriously thinking about the industry that I support with my eating habits. Oh, I'm in no real danger of becoming a vegetarian, I don't think. But I will continue to seek new ways to support industry that provide healthy, humane living conditions for the animals it profits from. I honestly can't understand how these people live with themselves.

If you can't bear to watch the video, then please, at least read the article and tell others what you have learned.

Thanks for your time. Click the link below to jump to the article and video.

Undercover Investigation Reveals Hormel Supplier's Abuse of Mother Pigs and Piglets