As I have stated before on my show when I first started this little en devour I called The Prowl, I envisioned the show mostly obtaining music from the local Austin artists and maybe a few national acts who come through Austin to play. However I had not envisioned the reach that this show would have as it started to take on a life of its own and what started as a small show dedicated to local indie artists had blossomed into a show featuring bands from all over the world now including a number from the UK. The Show now offers wonderful pop from The Memory Fades, the wonderful rock band Penney Eyes dedicated to bringing back that 90s pop rock sound of their idols, and of course the newest addition to the shows rotation The Embrooks that have revived the wonderful sound of the 1960s psychedelic rock that is just super far out and wonderful! I just wanted to take the time to say thanks to them and to all of the other bands that help make this show possible.  

If you are tired of the same old worn out prom themes and over priced formal wear then the  80s themed Punk Rock Prom thrown by Waco's own Spin Connection Record Store was for you! For just $4 you got to attend this family friendly event thrown inside the record store. The line consisted of a few local Waco bands followed by 2 hit bands from Austin to close it out. While I missed some of the performances I did get to watch the 2 heavy hitters out of Austin I have written about before The Irons and Trace of Lime! First up was the Irons and just like at Pinewoods block party they put on one heck of a show! While most of their line up consisted of their own wonderfully written songs there was a minor delay with one of Trace of Limes's band members and they managed to stall perfectly and sing some awesome covers! The crowd favorite of course being Weezers Say It Aint so. When they still had more time left they brought some audience members up to offer their free style skills and went from a concert to just some strangers all jamming out and having a great time! In my opinion though the true star of the show was their 19 year old saxophonist who just absolutely  killed it on his sax and gave some face melting solos on it! Many first time fans were super impressed with both his performance and the band as a whole. After being fashionably late it was time for Trace of Lime to take the stage  and as usual they provided a great mix of both their own songs and covers this time with a bit of 80's flair! The crowd this time was very lively and at certain points a mosh pit started to form and people were jumping and singing it was beautiful organized chaos! Like always they did the crowd favorite Girls Just Want to Have fun but also did a great Love Shack cover that I last saw at SXSW and got the crowed all sorts of excited and involved.However one I had not heard the do before was a cover of The Rammones I Wanna Be Sedated and like always they absolutely killed it! I look forward to throwing both Trace of Lime and The Irons on the show so stay tuned on Tuesday nights to hear them! 

How much did Wild Hum captivate me tonight during their live feed? So much so they made me delay going to eat dinner by a solid 30 minuets. As a man who lets nothing stand between he and his food this is about the highest honor this humble writer of opinions can bestow. While I was unable to catch the full show I did manage to catch the last 30 minuets or so of the original live feed and as I mentioned earlier I was absolutely enthralled by their performance. This past Tuesday on the show I had played their only released song at the moment Divorce in the Water and both my listeners and I were enamored by their work. However I have been a fan of bands before who sounded great on their recording but got absolutely let down by their live performances. However with Wild Hum this was not the case. While lead singer Hannah Rooth may seem small in stature she has a powerful and soulful voice that filled up that entire room! She was able to convey true soulful longing emotion within the bars and spaces we call music. But don't call her a one trick pony though as she also was able to give some heartfelt primal screams that would have both made Dave Grohl and Al Green jealous during some of her covers. Having been a Trumpet player in college and many years beyond that I am no stranger to the music scene. As my band director used to tell me the hardest songs to play are always the slow ones. The notes are more exposed and open people have time to really see the true heart of the song and how much tone and emotion each player contributes to the song will be reflected to the audience. I think Wild Hum reflected this well. The cello player provided nice dark legato technique that balanced out the bright tone of Rooths Ukulele. As my band director also once said music is more than just playing the notes its filling up the spaces in between and the soft rhythm of the guitar and occasional drums rounded out the beautiful tapestry that is the music of Wild Hum. Having only heard Divorce in the Water I was excited to hear more of the upcoming album and I got my chance with their song Tenderly which now has me even more anxious for the upcoming album release which I hope we can add to our show! However it was more than just their style that kept me forgoing my dinner despite my stomachs angry protests. Hannah Rooth had a charisma of a seasoned music veteran. I would compare to the great Graham Nash of CSNY who I saw live a few years ago. She provided not only great whit and humor to the audience but also slid some serious messages in between like the importance of supporting your local artist or how we all just need to come together and love one another. She also called up a volunteer on stage to tell a joke to the audience which in all my concert viewing experiences was a first for me. Overall their music was wonderful with impeccable showmanship and can't wait for them to head to Texas where I will be willing to pay a decent price to see them. I can't wait for the new album and wish them all the best of luck on their tour. Be sure to check out their website https://wildhummusic.com/

Often when I got to block parties or looking for live music Austin usually comes to mind first not Waco. However with Waco rapidly growing the amazing coffee and beer house known as Pinewood Roasters decided to throw a kicking music fest known as the Pinewood block party from 11:30 am to 10 pm. For $7 you got access to an all day music extravaganza complete with art work and food vendors. The morning session featured acoustics acts under the shade of a large tree which made for a splendid place for one to enjoy their coffee or beer. The evening meant the opening of the main stage and time for guitars to shred peoples faces. The first band up was Good Heavens! and good heavens did they start the party off with a sonic bang! They currently have 1 single out on spotify right now called Suck.  The following band was the cover band Flat 7 and boy did their lead singer have amazing pipes she absolutely entranced everyone listening with her sweet voice and powerful vocals! She could have done an amazing cover of Great Gig in the Sky. However she got everyone out and dancing with her version of Rock with you that would have even made the King of Pop himself proud!  The band following was known as The Irons. They were young full of energy and had stage presence that rivaled many veteran acts if the stage! They brought the young audience to this family friendly event and absolutely got the crowd going with their angsty songs of youth and love, they had a saxaphone player who demolished his solos on stage and just absolutely electrified the crowd with their rendition of the cha cha silde complete with bringing audience members on stage! Following them was the country rock act of Thomas Csorba drawing inspiration from artists like Townes Van Zandt. His cover of Plastic Jesus was fantastic filled with soul and even managed to capture some of the humor of  the song quite well. The final act was the house band consisting of owner Dylan Washington and his friends including Thomas Csorba just jamming out onstage with country and rock covers such as Rocky Mountain way and provided a fun end to an amazing day. The other Hidden Gem of the party was custom hat maker Logan Miles Allison and his mobile business The Heart Hatter! They often say you get what you pay for well with The Heart Hatter you get a truly unique hat custom built to last you a lifetime. From the moment I first talked to Logan I could tell this business was his passion and he put his heart and soul into the businesses aptly named the Heart Hatter. Not only is it custom made but he brings his businesses to you.  This hat practically pays for itself years after all your other clothes have become old and worn this piece of custom made artistry will still be going strong! you can check them out here !

Well after the Tuesday night server fiasco the Wednesday night 2.0 broadcast was a success. The show broadcasted loud and clear. I managed to fix the sound quality and got rid of the echo that was coming from the mic. So thankfully all those who tuned in could hear the rockin line up that was in store for them that evening. The show kicked off with a great new single from Scott Yutzy out of Wichita, Kansas. The song was great and had a nice mid 2000's feel to it. Honestly if that track was thrown into a 2000's post grunge track I don't think anyone would even notice it was a song dropped in 2019! Just from this one single I am excited to see what the future hold for Yutzy and his music will always have a home here on The Prowl.  Not only was Kansas represented but musicians from 4 other states excluding Texas and 1 country. Follwing Yutzy's angsty tune we blasted Detroit's punk group Heroes of Charlotte with the song Lets Dance.  It was both bright anf up bight while still having that raw distorted power of punk and it came together to form a song that both made me want to dance while simultaneously headbang! Out of Pennsylvania we blasted acid rock group Bearsloth with their song Get in the Van. It was raw, heavy, and did not skimp on the fuzz and distortion. After listening to that song I felt like I grew a few more hairs on my chest and had the urge to go by a VW microbus. Another hard rocking band we featured was the blues rock band 2000 Foot Turtle from Phoenix. They bring a raw heavy sound to the table that just makes you want to kick back on a front porch chair and jam out. I saw them live in concert at SXSW and the energy they  bring to the stage is absolutely mesmerizing.  However my favorite song of the night had to be Fifty Years from Now by the music duo DONN out of Lawrence, Kansas.  Fifty years from now is like having an existential crisis on ecstasy. The song questions if the moment they are in will even matter in the future. The song itself though is extremely bright and upbeat. It's a song that no matter how bleak your day has been will at least in the slightest make your crack a smile and have the urge to just break out in dance where ever you are. Be sure to check out these artists on spotify, Facebook, and Bandcamp 

Well after weeks of testing the radio equipment tonight's show was supposed to be a seamless transition back into the world of online radio however like most things in life it did not go that way. 3 songs into the set and one well versed monologue late I was receiving texts that the web player was not working properly and not playing any audio like it was on mute. Well considering I barley even just figured out how to properly install all the needed radio software this was well above my capabilities of  problem solving and caused almost an hour long panic session as I button mashed and tried resetting my broadcast server to no avail. I even emailed the server tech support and desperately waited for a response. Not only this but I had quite a few bands excited at the opportunity to be played on the radio and here this server was throwing a tantrum and messing it all up. Finally however after almost an hour the server miraculously started working again and beautiful music was once again returned to people speakers. However hopefully this was just a first time glitch and will be back to working like normal.The goal is to rebroadcast the show tomorrow and hope it all goes better than today. But as they say that's show business and one has to adapt at a moments notice. To all those who attempted to tune in today I thank you and hopefully you tune in tomorrow for a great show. 

After a very frustrating few weeks of trial and error the Prowl is on its way to returning to your homes. Much of my frustration was aimed at my laptop and lack of technical skills and considering much of the programs I was looking at for running the show required downloading a few different pieces of software there were a few moments I came close to just throwing the laptop across the room! However thanks to some more tech savvy friends and a great sale at guitar center this death star is finally operational! That being said though please bear through the inevitable hiccups of figuring out a whole new broadcast set up. As mentioned previously  the show is all new and for those who listened to the old show will no longer be a classic rock focused show but instead this one is for the indie fans. Dedicated to those bands who are still grinding out long van rides hoping that each next show is the one that gets them in the big time! A new feature that will take some serious trial and error with is the ability to take live callers during the show which I am personally quite excited to try out. Be sure to like us on Facebook to stay updated on our showtimes. 

For those who have never traveled to Kansas or  have just seen it via the airplane window, the town of Manhattan Kansas may not ring any bells. For those who are fans of college sports then you may be aware that it is the home of Kansas State University. However tucked away in this small Kansas town lies more than just a college. Just like Austin has its 6th street district Manhattan has Aggieville and tucked away in this area saturated by college bars and the smell of wings lies a hidden musical gem. In the heart of Aggieville lies Sisters of Sound music. Of all the 28 states and records stores I have traveled to Sisters of Sound has to be my absolute favorite. They have a very wide ranging and unique selection to choose from. They've had quite a few Reggae collections walk through the door. Albums autographed by artists who seldom sign their John Hancock. A one of a kind Dark Side of the Moon album from Australia on green vinyl and a psychedelic christian rock album that currently retails over the 1 grand mark. Not wanting to drop some serious change on a record? That is fine as well they also have their haggle bin any record you see in their is up for wheeling and dealing. However its more than just their selection that makes this record store my favorite. Through out my many travels I have realized that there is a shrinking number of places that makes one feel right at home when you walk in. Yet from the very fist moment I walked into Sisters of Sound I felt immediately right at home. From the warm welcome you get when you walk in the door to their willingness to answer all you vinyl questions. This is a far car from my fathers first experience in a record store last week. He decided to check one out in Dallas for the first time and decided to ask the person working where he could find a certain genre and was just met with a half hearted point and a "it should be over there". This however is not the case at SOS. Looking for a certain album they will be more than happy not only to show you the album you are looking for but may similar to it. I am all too familiar with this as I once went in for an Eagles album and left with almost Poco's entire discography.Another time I walked in looking for new vinyl for my radio show which led to a lengthy conversation and list of suggestions on albums with great B side songs that often get overlooked. It is not just their wonderful service and musical knowledge though that makes them truly special. Owner Sarah "sue" and all those at SOS have been very supportive of the community. They host live music through out the year, have now started doing vinyl and cocktail nights, and been wonderful for the college music programs. Thanks to SOS my partner and I were able to host a live radio show from SOS and became the first program in school history to host a show out of the city limits, she was more than willing to shout us out, rearrange the store a bit for us and brought in listeners from all over the united stated to tune into a college radio show and showed us how to quickly and properly set up our turntables for the show which was a skill my partner and I were severely lacking. We can't thank y'all enough for that wonderful experience. For those looking for an affordable vinyl store that offers wonderful service and an abundance of knowledge then go check out Sisters of Sound! 

I recently took and excursion to Houston, and during my traffic filled time there I decided to try and bolster my library for the future radio show.  After some googling and looking for what store was not going to cost me an hour in traffic just trying to go a few block. I Stumbled upon Cactus Music. Upon arrival it looked just like any other store nothing super fancy just a white building  with a plain sign that read Cactus Music. However upon entering the store I began to notice just why it has been in business for  over 40 years. The store contained a stage for live performances. The store contained an overwhelming number of Cd's, Cassettes, posters, and of course vinyl.  Not only did it contain a multitude of records but there was something for everyone in there. Not a fan of paying an exorbitant amount for Vinyl? The as long as you don't mind  them in a little bit more loved condition they had an entire wall full of 97 cent albums. Are you an avid collector? Looking for something to maybe hang on the wall? They had numerous rare finds some of which were upwards of $150 or more. They had just about every genre imaginable, everything from Tu Pac to Buddy Holly, and had plenty of specials on many of the records. Luckily for me and the future radio show they had quite the collection of indie records. After some digging I stumbled upon one that caught my eye for $15 it was only 1 of 300  made and came on clear and white vinyl. J Fernandez was the artist and one I was not familiar with however with the help of Spotify I decided to take a gamble on this record and look forward to writing a review on it in the near future. However for those looking for a music lovers paradise whether it be Cd, Cassette, or Vinly be sure to stop at Cactus Music in Houston. 

I saw Trace of Lime a few weeks ago in Austin during SXSW and was really impressed by their performance so when I heard they were coming to Waco I was more than elated to go see them. They played at a warehouse about 15 minuets outside the Waco city limit in a little rural area called Gholson. The place is called Old Diggs and was a place I had never heard of before but they apparently host regular concerts out there. Upon arrival the atmosphere was very laid back the inside of the warehouse consisted of some scattered chairs, a hammock, a couch and a border collie named cujo along with about 20 laid back friendly people who immediately recognized a new face and introduced them self to me. The first band to the stage was Makeshift and makeshift suited them very well. It consisted of a washboard, accordion, guitar, gut bucket, a trumpet, and a saw. I was very intrigued by this set up and was quite ready to see how this would all play together.  While I appreciated the passion of the band and its lead singer overall I think this band has a lot of work to do. They often got off tempo of each other the lead singer often messed up and at some points stopped mid performance. However for a mid Friday night concert at a warehouse it made for great entertainment, they had everyone laughing and dancing along even through all their hiccups. A couple of songs they attempted had not even really been rehearsed before so I think that maybe rehearsal time should be added to their weekly scheduled so they are only makeshift by name and not by sound as well.  However the performance of the night goes to Trace of Lime who headlined this Friday nights event. Self described on their Facebook page as Pirate rock and roll they have a style that mixes both shredding guitar solos and bright pop beats and can even make a song as macabre as Nobody Cares if Im dead both upbeat and quite dance-able. Their lead singer will frequently stand up and play from the top of the bass drum and the crowd absolutely loves it. As soon as they went on everyone immediately left the comfort of their seats and danced the night away. Their cover of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun is a crowd favorite and just as many of the guys as  the girls cut loose to this song and really start enjoying themselves. The other fun cover of the night was Hey Ya but Outkast. Not a single person during that song was standing still and it was absolutely a joy to watch. In the age of smartphones and people just standing a recording it was a joy to see people put down their technology and just enjoy the moment! I can't wait to see them again and if you get the chance be sure to check them out on Spotify.