Lite + Brite: 39 Smol Austin Events 6/13
Hello, what’s up, and welcome to the Lite + Brite newsletter.
Are you ready to grab this week by the lapels and shake it until all the fun times fall out? Or, are you ready to live vicariously through reading about all the fun stuff that’s out there while you safely ensconce yourself in a cool, protective barrier of air conditioning? Either way, that’s what we like to hear!
Two items of business before we get to the meat of the matter. First off is that we still want you to help us build a playlist of (very broadly defined) songs of the Summer. We’re a dozen songs deep but we want more. Click this link to go to the Summer playlist and add a song, or just listen.
Secondly, this very night is the penultimate No Lights No Lycra at West China Tea. We’ve been dancing in the dark at West China (+ its prior incarnation Guan Yin) for more than five years, but they’ll be moving due to I-35 expansion and so will No Lights No Lycra. We have plans for the party that don’t end there, but these are your last two chances to experience NLNL the way it’s been. Tonight we’ll start the music at 8pm, and from 8:30 – 9:30, once the sun has set, we’ll be fully dark. If you can’t come tonight we’ll be doing one final NLNL at West China on Thursday, July 11th.
As to some highlights of what’s happening this week, you could: find out how a “biscuit cannon” works, engage in “straight world cosplay,” watch drag performers remember electroclash, interact artfully with strangers, go for a cold plunge, watch a panel ruin sports films for straight people, watch LARPers eat pickles, or become a proud plant parent via a seed library. All that and more is a scant few pixels below so get to scrolling, buckos.
If you’re not already a subscriber to this newsletter and you want to be, click here. We do one newsletter a week, usually on Fridays, plus a bonus edition around the start of each month. If you enjoy this newsletter, please support us by contributing to our Patreon and by forwarding this email to your friends who enjoy things like listening to music and leaving the house sometimes.
Let’s do fun stuff!
—Leila + Brian
liteandbriteatx.com
OUR STUFF
As mentioned in our intro, No Lights No Lycra is tonight, and it’s one of the final two times we’ll be doing the party at the lovely West China Tea House. We’re hoping to move the party to a new venue down the road but we’re not sure how that timing will work, so this might be the only NLNLs for a while, depending on how everything plays out. Bear in mind that tonight due to the lighting in West China it won’t be properly dark until about 8:30pm so if you want it fully dark before you start dancing you may want to come a little late. We’ll be there playing tunes regardless.
Last night on No Humans Allowed, Brian’s synth-loving radio show, there was a double length episode that delved deeply into mellow and introspective early house + techno mostly from around 1990. You can stream Wireframes from the Kpiss archives here or scroll down for the tracklist. NHA broadcasts live every Wednesday at 6pm CT on kpiss.fm.
What is No Lights No Lycra?
Austin’s twice-monthly, judgment-free, substance-free, high-impact dance thing in the dark. It’s a DJ night that’s not at the club, a workout that’s not at the gym, a personal meditation that’s anything but silent. It’s produced by us, your kindly L+B overlords, and usually one or the other of us is on the hook for DJ duties. Read more about us in the Austin Chronicle. You can listen the kind of music we play over on Brian’s Mixcloud.
EVENTS WE’RE EYEING
Friday 6/14
- Tiny Fest at the Lost Well
Local LARP parlor raises funds w/live music, costumes, pickle eating contest - Bodyscapes at Greenhouse ATX
Art opening featuring works incorporating bodies in landscapes - Broadway Rave at Empire Control Room
For ravers secretly into broadway or theater kids who wanna go to the club - Body Mechanics at 4211 Todd Lane
DJs happily blurring the lines between a dance party + a fetish party
Saturday 6/15
- Juneteenth Parade and Festival at Rosewood Neighborhood Park
Celebrate Juneteenth w/a proper parade w/marching bands + outdoor gathering - Reddit Global Meetup at Barton Springs + Cidercade
Join the Austin subreddit in free Reddit-funded swimming + arcading - Carpet Church at Mass Gallery
“Straight world cosplay” mixes ridiculous everyday w/Christian symbols - Vivid Parlor at Open House Austin
Art + prompted activities intended to spark interaction among strangers - Yes, And at the Contemporary Austin
Immersive performance art examining Black womanhood - Stay Black and Live at the Carver Museum
Juneteenth cookout w/BBQ, DJs, games, vendors, + educational workshops - Smol Show at Highland Collective
Art show where all art is no bigger than a standard piece of paper (8.5×11”) - Dad Jokes Competition at the Brewtorium
Celebrate fathers w/corny jokes, “Dad-cathlon + Dad Fashion Show” - Summertime Celebration at Third Eye Lounge
Beat summer heat w/a cold plunge, mini-classes, tarot, + vendors - Poo Poo Platter: Ladytron vs. Miss Kittin at Elysium
“Shit show of a drag troupe” evokes two of our fave electroclash musical icons - Grand Opening at Time Being Books
Enjoy food + drinks while you check out new bookstore focusing on the unique - Pride Sock Hop at Independence Brewing
Pride-themed nostalgia w/DJ, swing dancing, drag, Grease screenings - First Anniversary Party at Austin Beerworks Sprinkle Valley
Brewery celebrates being open w/DJ, live music, vendors, + limbo contest - Sandlot Baseball at the Long Time
Community baseball games w/live music, slip n slide, + a “biscuit cannon”(!) - Texas Roller Derby at the Palmer Events Center
Roller derbyists murderously crash their way through a banked track - Brain Damage + Proun at Eastside Cinema
End of an Ear-curated pairing of a grindhouse horror film w/live music - Babestock at Cheer Up Charlie’s
“All Femme + Gender-Expansive Electronic Music Festival”
Sunday 6/16
- Chunky Dunk at the Austin Motel
Celebrate safe spaces w/DJs, drag performers, + swimming - Shiny Market and Fire Jam at Shiny Things for Shiny People
Fire dancers, DJs, vendors, live painters, crystals, + more - Babestock at Cheer Up Charlie’s
“All Femme + Gender-Expansive Electronic Music Festival” - (weekly thru 7/21) Splash Dance at the Austin Motel
Poolside aerobics with Austin’s most creative aerobics instructor
Monday 6/17
- Queer Skate Night at Playland Skate Center
A special Pride-themed roller skating night at Playland - The Route to Emancipation at the Paramount
A home-grown cycling documentary about Juneteenth + Texas - (weekly thru 6/24) Hyperreal Film Club at Hotel Vegas
Enjoy a classic film mixing aliens, grandparents, + Steve Gutenberg
Tuesday 6/18
- Astronomy on Tap at Celis Brewery
Gather and talk astronomy + black holes while imbibing beverages - Queer Crafts at CRAFT
Crafting for good causes w/snacks + supplies provided
Wednesday 6/19
- Black History Social Ride + Block Party meeting at the State Capitol
Explore the history of Austin’s Black community by bicycle - Astronomy Bizarre at the Long Center
Neil deGrasse Tyson discusses black holes, dark matter, + more astrophysics
Thursday 6/20
- Summer Solstice at Laguna Gloria
Site-specific “music for plants,” seed library, + gardening vendors - Latino Moonlight Serenade at Texas Rowing Center
Float on the river under moonlight listening to live Latino music - Latte Art Throwdown at Cosmic South
DJ, vendors, free drinks, food trucks, + prize giveaways - Night of a Thousand Lanas at Volstead
Lana Del Rey-themed dance party w/DJ, hosts, costume contest, cocktails - Queer Film Theory 101 at Barrel O’ Fun
“Basically, we ruin films for straight people + yell about the characters that made us feel gay” - Games Y’all at Last Stand Brewing
Play video games + RPGs made by regional devs - Boyz of Austin at Elysium
“Drag King + gender diverse” burlesque troupe tackles Pride - (weekly thru 6/27) Rocket Cinema Listening Party at Cloud Tree Auxiliary
Hear music in a sound bath-style atmosphere of comfortable meditative surroundings
No Humans Allowed 195
Wireframes
We were horsin around this week for an extra hour since Worship Hour 100k had the week off, so the result was a double length No Humans Allowed. Press play to hear lots of introspective early horse + techno, I mean house + techno.
Tracklist
RFX – 00100000
Chip E – No Reason
In-Dex – Give Me a Sign (club mix)
The Beloved – Sweet Harmony
Holy Ghost Inc – Walk on Air (Sun & Moon mix)
Hercules & Love Affair – Roar
Watussi – If All We Had Was Love
Stereo MCs – Step It Up (Stereo Field dub)
Ben Cook – Orange
Quartz – Meltdown II
C.T. Satin – Found a Friend (Garage mix)
Soft House Company – What You Need…
Felix da Housecat – B4 Wuz Then
Paradise 3001 – Cherry High
Maurice – This Is Acid (a New Dance Craze) (S&T Mix)
808 State ft. Bernard Sumner – Spanish Heart
Raze – Break 4 Love
Beat Kick – Claro Que Si (Acid dub acid)
Mr. James Barth – Hold Still
Technomania – Let the Energy Flow
No Humans Allowed is Brian Blackout’s award-winning, dodgy European news coverage receiving, weekly robots-themed radio show on internet station KPISS.fm. Machine vibes 4 machines. Songs for robots, androids, mandroids, cyborgs, AIs, cylons, skinjobs, roombas, wifi routers, smart devices, anything colored Bondi blue, and virtual assistants. Humans not required. Broadcasts live every Wednesday at 6pm CT on kpiss.fm, with nearly 200 episodes now streamable in the archives on topics like and Beach Simulations, Roomba dance parties, undersea adventures + Cyber Texas.
No Lights No Lycra ATX 168
w/Brian Blackout
An all-80s edition of No Lights No Lycra. Recorded live in the dark at West China Tea House on May 23, 2024.
Listen to No Lights No Lycra 168
Tracklist
Moondata – Let the Moonshine in (Universal Cave Edit)
Rocky and the Horrors – Sweet Diana Dance (Jaz Edit)
T’Pau – Heart and Soul
New Edition – Once in a Lifetime Groove
Nu Shooz – I Can’t Wait
Robbie Nevil – C’est la Vie
Heaven 17 – Let Me Go
Prince + the Revolution – Let’s Go Crazy
Haircut 100 – Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)
U2 – Two Hearts Beat as One
Romeo Void – Never Say Never
Naked Eyes – When the Lights Go Out
Laura Branigan – Self Control
Kate Bush – Running up That Hill (a Deal with God)
Kano – Another Life (Pontchartrain Edit)
Stevie Nicks – Stand Back (Eli Escobar Edit)
Pretty Poison – Catch Me (I’m Falling)
Level 42 – Lessons in Love
The Cure – Friday I’m in Love
The Icicle Works – Whisper to a Scream (Birds Fly)
Modern English – I’ll Melt with You
Psychic TV – Roman P.
Bruce Springsteen – Dancing in the Dark
Erasure – Oh l’Amour
Home – All at Once
PATREON THANKS
A huge thank-you to our Patreon subscribers Bones Malones, Amy Hayes, Katie Green, Christina Jue, Colleen MB, Lilly Ettinger, Lena Long, Amalia Litsa, Alexander Freed, Spencer, Kristen Backor, Timon A., Kate Murray, and Amy Wilde. We’re deeply grateful for your support, which allows us to do things like “pay our Mailchimp fee” and “spend hours researching Austin events when technically we should be working.”
If you’d like to support us on Patreon and get access to exclusive member-only benefits, you may do so here.
SOCIALS
Recent weeks found us watching brass bands at HONK!TX, watching the eclipse at Bobo’s Snack Bar, and watching dancing forklifts at The Way of Water at Onion Creek. Follow Lite + Brite on Instagram to keep up with our adventures. And come chat with us and the rest of the L+B community on our Discord server!
ABOUT US
How do we choose which events to feature?
Honestly, it’s pretty random. We might include anything in Austin that we, personally, would conceivably want to go to, generally excluding normal concerts, comedy shows, and movie showtimes because there are many other good resources for finding those. (We especially recommend Showlist for live music, The Darker Side of Austin for goth and metal stuff, and the 60+ Weirdest Things in Austin for exactly what it sounds like). This list is by no means exhaustive; it’s just stuff that caught our eye this week. If you have an event that you want us to consider including, send it over.
Who are we?
We are Leila + Brian. We make this newsletter. We do our own events, most often No Lights No Lycra (every second and fourth Thursday of the month), + also BYOT, a party where we share very good YouTubes (here’s a playlist from the last one). We go very hard seeing bands at SxSW (here are playlists of our favorites from 2024). We once got called “local Austin couple” by KXAN. We do some other stuff here and there. We love going out to creative events in Austin, and we want you to join us. Visit us at liteandbriteatx.com, and support us on Patreon if you like what we do.