The Queers: MTX and The Queers Tour 2019

In the final chapter of this three part series, we got to sit down with one of my favorite bands: The Queers. Joe Queer has been the longest member of The Queers and has carried out the vision of this band from the 1980s to the present day. There has been many changes from this band when it comes to labels and members but many albums later The Queers have stood the test of time.

Mr. T Experience and The Queers might be the peanut butter and jelly of the Lookout era days. They are different in styles and personalities but something about this combo really works for this pop punk fan base. The Queers have always had an allure with their bratty and tongue in cheek lyrics but has some real thought behind what they say. They want you to be in on the joke or to be offended by it. With these clever musical stylings, you can’t help but get an ear-worm from time to time.

The main focus of this interview was to find out why this fan base has been coming back to these two specific bands year after year. I have seen The Queers countless times in my punk rock career and it is just a staple of my diet. I am sure a lot of fans can say the same about both these bands. And this is coming full cycle due to their fans bringing their kids with them to have the same experience.

I wanted to know from Joe what the secret is to his success is. The Queers tour constantly and somehow make it work tour after tour. They still have relationships with bands they came up with and they also try to highlight some of the up and coming punk bands they meet on the road. I will say that was the refreshing part of this interview, is that this particular punk ethos is still there and thriving after all these years. It was a short but fun conversation but you can tell he is still a fan of the music that influenced him and wants to keep going back on the road.

Check out the interview below:

Where to See Punk at SXSW 2018

You might not associate South by Southwest with punk music since indie rock dominates the festival. Without the Fat Wreck showcase this year, there is a major void to fill. Fear not, we have you covered! I have spent weeks researching a lot of bands heading to Austin for the music conference. Some parties are free and some require wristbands/badges. Here are my top picks for this year:

Local Punk Favorites:

BLXPLTN

Wednesday March 14 at 8:00pm at Cherrywood Coffee House for The 6th Annual UGLYFEST: More Info

Capitalist Kids

Wednesday March 14 at 9:25 pm at Cherrywood Coffee House for The 6th Annual UGLYFEST: More Info

Fight Plan

Thursday March 15 at 10:35 pm at The Liberty for AFHC & FXFY Presents: More Info

Worm Suicide

Thursday March 15 at 10:00pm at Kick Butt Coffee Airport: More Info

Saturday March 16 at 7:25 pm at The Heart of Texas Rockfest: More Info

All-Star Punk Acts

The Dwarves

Saturday March 16 at 11:45 pm at Hotel Vegas for Burgermania VII (Offical SXSW): More Info

Sunday March 17 at 3:30 pm at Hotel Vegas for Burgermania VII (Acoustic Set): More Info

Altercation BBQ

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Saturday March 16 music and comedy starts at 11am: More Info

Life  (If you enjoy British punk)

Friday March 15 at The British Music Embassy at 9:00pm at Latitude 30: More Info

Saturday March 16 at Barracuda Backyard at 11:10pm: More Info

No Parents

Thursday March 15 at 4:25pm at Spiderhouse for Wienermania IV: More Info

Friday March 16 at 1:15 at Pearl St. Co-op for Burger Records: More Info

Saturday March 17 at Hotel Vegas at 10:15pm: More Info

Tissues:  (Female Influenced Post Punk)

Tuesday March 13 at 8:45pm at Barracuda Backyard: More Info

Saturday March 17 at 4pm at The Sidewinder: More Info

Grim Streaker

Friday March 16 at 9:45pm at Barracuda Bar: More Info

Friday March 16 at 12:30am at Container Bar: More Info

Saturday March 17 at 4pm at The Sidewinder: More Info

The Ghost Wolves: (Austin’s Version of The Cramps)

Tuesday March 14 at 11:00pm at 720 Club: More Info

Friday March 16 at 3:00pm(best guess) at Spiderhouse for Peelander-Fest: More Info

Saturday March 17 at 6:30 at Okar Blues Brewery: More Info

Surfbort

Thursday March 15 (Friday) at 1:15am at Spiderhouse for Wienermania: More Info

Friday March 16 at 8:30pm at Hotel Vegas Patio: More Info

Friday March 16 at 1:00am at Waller Ballroom: More Info

Saturday March 17 at 11:05 at Spiderhouse: More Info

Riverboat Gamblers

Saturday March 17 at 4:00pm at Jackalope: More Info

Punk Adjacent Bands

Andrew WK

Thursday March 15 at 4pm (best guess) at Mohawk: More Info

Friday March 16 at 2:00pm at Barracuda for Pitchfork: More Info

Friday March 16 at 6:00pm at Container Bar: More Info

Saturday March 17 at 2:15pm at Cheer Up Charlies: More Info

Frank Turner

Thursday March 15 at 1:05am at Palm Door at Sixth: More Info

Friday March 16 at 12:30am at Barracuda Backyard: More Info

Friday March 16 at 3:30pm at The Blackheart: More Info

Peelander-Z

Thursday March 15 at 4:00pm(best guess): More Info

Friday March 16 at 6:00pm (best guess): More Info

Saturday March 17 at 3:00pm (best guess): More Info

Jeff Rosenstock

Thursday March 15 at 1:00am at Cheer Up Charlies: More Info

**Set times may or not be available as you can see but I have linked all party info to keep updated. Also some of these are official SXSW showcases especially if they are after 5pm.  BUT you can pay cover if the venue is not at capacity so it is worth the wait in line  sometimes.**

DISCOVER NEW MUSIC AND LOVE OLD FAVORITES!

The Austin Punk Scene Renaissance

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Austin Chronicle Week of February 4-10 2016

 

Austin is stereotypically known as the “Live Music Capital of the World”. You see it plastered all over 6th street and in ads on television. I wish it were truer. When you think about Austin’s love affair with music, it is a beautiful and poetic one. We have the days of the Armadillo World Headquarters, the golden days of blues at Antone’s, and the Austin City Limits show. The brief punk wave happened here in Austin around 1978 with such bands as The Violators, The Dicks, The Skunks, and Big Boys. Austin became an important touring stop for punk/new wave bands during this era.

Travel forward to today. It is very hard to get bands from the East and West coasts to tour in Texas due to costs. This isn’t that stop anymore. Sometimes when I see a movie at the Ritz Alamo Drafthouse, I look at the pictures of Black Flag on the wall. I think, “why can’t we have that again?” They say that desperation is the mother of invention. I believe this is why in the past few years the punk scene in Austin has truly grown. It might be due to punks that moved here from other places in our current population surge. Or maybe there might be another punk wave to about to happen.

The truth is the Austin punk community has had it rough in this town lately. Living in an Indie/EDM scene, we are still the outcasts. Which is fine, we are used to it. But what is making life difficult is the city shutting down our fine establishments for condos and big business money. Since punk is about DIY and resilience, we have decided to join forces in certain ways. There are many advocates out there that booking shows, bars letting us have a weekly spot, and friends supporting each other’s bands. Recently this state of affairs was covered in the Austin Chronicle. Thanks to the help of Tim Segall, writer and member of the band The Hormones, wrote a piece on our scene. See article below:

Austin Chronicle

I just wanted to add more bands to the list to watch. There are a ton of hard-working punks in this town. Unfortunately, print media has a maximum paper size and word count. But here are some more awesome local bands to check out: