ACL: Sunny Sweeney Yes, Vampire Weekend No

I think ACL has managed to squeeze all its country between noon and 3 p.m. today. Luckily Sunny Sweeney, a Longview native now based out of Austin, was part of it. Sweeney, a former improv comedienne, has a winning stage presence and a wicked way with a lyric. After the…

ACL Is Underway, Rootsy Early On

Paula Nelson (Chris Gray) The hordes of shirtless (or soon-to-be shirtless) camp-chair toters are streaming into Zilker Park, and the Rocks Off team is up and running. Us media types got a nice surprise this afternoon; there’s a separate entrance from the rest of the behind-the-scenes goings-on this year. The…

Li’l Cap’n Travis

From the sound of “My Ship Is Coming In,” a smooth-as-silt track near the end of Li’l Cap’n Travis’ latest platter, you’d assume the Austin sextet is manning the helm of a yacht-rock revival. You wouldn’t be quite right, but only because the band refuses to tie up in any…

Don’t Go Bust

He looks like a good cop. He’s got the ‘stache, the short-cropped hair, the pushed-out chest and the shiny badge. He sounds like a good cop too; drawled and official. He’s got a TV reporter’s microphone in his face and a brick of marijuana in his hand, and he’s answering…

Bubba Patrol

Bill Parmley’s dad was a sheriff and his granddaddy was, too, and one thing Bill learned early in life was the difference between right and wrong. Now a month shy of 50, Parmley grew up in the small South Texas town of Sarco, 10 miles down a dirt road from…