Tonight: Golden Cities + Animals as Leaders + Dead Leaf Echo + He Is Legend + Chase Hamblin + Born Liars + More

Despite my current focus on SXSW Overflow Fest, that doesn’t mean nothing else is going on this week, music-wise; far from it, actually. Tonight, in particular (Thurs., March 13th), there is a crapload of cool stuff happening, way, way more than you’d normally see on a piddly Thursday.

First and foremost, I want to give a big thumbs-up to both floors tonight up at Fitzgerald’s — on one they’ve got some excellent, ridiculously technical metal going on, with headliners Animals as Leaders, who are phenomenal, and on the other (somewhat more importantly, to my mind), there’s the back-from-the-dead shoegaze glory of {Golden Cities}, a band I was sad to see leave the stage the first time around and am damn glad to see back.

Think heavy, skull-assaulting spacegaze, and you’ll be along the right track. I’ve heard truly good things about the next band down the bill, as well, NYC outfit Dead Leaf Echo, so don’t be a dick and show up for just the last band, alright?

Walter’s has a pretty mindblowing bill, too, with Southern-bred metal dudes He Is Legend at the top and cool locals {Rahab The Monster} at the bottom. The awesome Chase Hamblin & The Roustabouts open for Geri X over at Dan Electro’s, and Rudyard’s has garage-rock icons {Born Liars}, while Mango’s plays host to some quirky experimental electronic people I dig ({FLCON FCKER} and {The Illegal Wiretaps}, in particular) as part of the S.X.F.U. festival.

Here’s the whole list; get on out tonight:

THURS., MARCH 13TH:
Golden Cities/Dead Leaf Echo/Empty Shells/Bloody Knives @ Fitzgerald’s (free!)
He Is Legend/Lionfight/Dear You/Bleach Blonde/My My Misfire/Rahab The Monster @ Walter’s
Animals as Leaders/After The Burial/Navene K/Chon @ Fitzgerald’s
Born Liars/Dumbell/The Guilloteens/Black Actress @ Rudyard’s
Geri X/Chase Hamblin & The Roustabouts @ Dan Electro’s Guitar Bar
S.X.F.U., featuring FLCON FCKER, Sannhet, Stephen Farris, & The Illegal Wiretaps @ Mango’s ($10 for 4-day pass)
SXSW Overflow Fest 2014, featuring Vandella, All Eyes West, Redrick Sultan, Even the Dogs, & Bam Bam and The Gigolos @ Super Happy Fun Land (9PM-2AM)
Amplified Heat/Buffalo Killers/Beetle @ The Continental Club
Nick Gaitan & The Umbrella Man @ The Big Top
Bobby Bare, Jr. @ McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
RodeoHouston, featuring Maroon 5 @ Reliant Stadium