Lite + Brite: 29 Poetic Austin Events 8/9

Hello, what’s up, and welcome to the Lite + Brite newsletter.

This week, you can celebrate Austin Pride with storytelling, a parade, trans comedians and queens, “dark and dirty” drag, or campfire vibes. (And if you read that sentence and thought, “Wait a second, isn’t Pride in June?” then you’ll probably appreciate this KUT explainer!) Other things to celebrate this week include 54 years since the Armadillo World Headquarters opened, 50 years since Nixon resigned, and the so-called “end of summer”—even though it’s 100 degrees for the foreseeable future and the autumnal equinox isn’t for another six weeks and so this is in no way the “end” of summer; nonetheless, we will take it as an excuse to experience the promised “Wild Things Zoofari petting zoo” at this block party. Given that it is peak summer, consider doing something on a lake, like watching Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse or being serenaded, or beat the heat by grabbing a frozen drink at one of a bunch of bars during FREEze Week. Also, the Austin Arts Mixer looks like a really cool opportunity to find out what dozens of local arts organizations are up to! This event includes many groups whose events we regularly list in this newsletter, so that’s proof that it’s a quality lineup.

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

No Humans Allowed, Brian’s radio show, continued its arc of Olympics-inspired episodes with an episode specifically inspired by the incredible women’s road race this year (a distance cycling event). Tune in for a mix of cosmic disco, italo, synthwave, + library records to soundtrack an imaginary cycling race in your imagination. Listen to Tour de NHA in the Kpiss archives + scroll down for the tracklist.

We’re taking a break from No Lights No Lycra while we find a new venue. If you have a suggestion we’d love to hear it. Reply to this email or hit us up on our Discord. Any space needs to be able to get very dark, and also to not serve alcohol. We’ll bring sound.

EVENTS WE’RE EYEING

Friday 8/9

  • The 50th Annual Nixon Resignation Party at the Carousel Lounge
    Musicians pay tribute to the end of the Nixon era w/70s costume contest + “mayhem”
  • Queer to Tell at Captain Quack’s
    “Queer Stories told by Queer People in Queer Businesses in Queer Austin”
  • Our Stories at the Motion Media Arts Center
    See narrative short films from emerging local filmmakers
  • Malum Malus at the Vortex
    Wicca-inspired “occult-based burlesque performance art”
  • FREEze Week at various bars
    Grab frozen bevs from some of Austin’s coolest bars to earn free swag

Saturday 8/10

  • Pride Parade and Festival at Fiesta Gardens
    Celebrate Austin Pride w/parade + outdoor performances
  • ATX Trans Pride at Cheer Up Charlie’s
    Celebrate trans pride w/drag, comedy, speakers, + DJs
  • Carnival of Pride at Elysium
    Dark drag revue w/big names + local performers 
  • Häxan with David DiDonato at We Luv Video
    Watch a terrifying 1920s witch documentary soundtracked by musicians
  • Kickball Social at Parque Zargoza
    “Curated family reunion playlist,” kickball tourney, + grilling
  • Plus Size Clothing Swap at the Future Front House
    Get some new-to-you XL+ sized digs + trade in some old ones
  • Everything Everywhere All at Once at Indra’s Awarehouse
    DJs, costumes, fight scenes, hero training + uh, hot dogs
  • Midnight Mayhem at the Luxeart Warehouse
    Rave-themed late night party w/circus performers + DJs
  • Pirate Night at Tiny Minotaur
    Grab your favorite parrot for some fantasy pirate cosplay
  • Second Saturdays at the Blanton Museum
    Dance to a silent disco, check out art, + hear art talks by curators
  • Solar Saturday at the Carver Museum
    Live music, panels, + art activities about political resistance
  • Art Quest at Art for the People Gallery
    A scavenger hunt across art galleries for prizes
  • Malum Malus at the Vortex
    Wicca-inspired “occult-based burlesque performance art”
  • FREEze Week at various bars
    Grab frozen bevs from some of Austin’s coolest bars to earn free swag

Sunday 8/11

Monday 8/12

  • ATX Short Film Showcase at the Spiderhouse Ballroom
    The films are short, the filmmakers are Texan + of varying heights
  • Silent Book Club at Last Stand Brewing
    Silently read books together + optional sharing
  • Classical Jam at Batch Craft Beer
    Like open mic night but for classical musicians + fans

Thursday 8/15

No Humans Allowed 202
Tour de NHA

This week we held the inaugural Tour de NHA. Imagine an array of AIs and console jockeys leaving glittering data trails as they arc through the countryside of cyberspace. Witness the distributed speed of the peloton, the rush of the chasers, and the undulating beauty of the simulated countryside sliding by. We’ll have a soundtrack of italo, cosmic disco, synthwave, + library selections to let your mind wander.

Stream Tour de NHA

Tracklist
Jean-Pierre Bourtayre – Start Theme
Electric Youth – Right Back to You
Cube – Concert Boy
Jean-Pierre Decerf & Myriam Chadcar – Like the Wind You Are
Slick – Space Bass
Bassrace – The Dance Dome (to the Megadome)
Influx – Vs 128
Alan Hawkshaw – The Speed of Sound
Cruisin Gang – My Man (Hysteric Edit)
Back from the Wave – Final Dances
Gazebo – Masterpiece (the Tuesday Tapes Dub)
Nicholas Kasko – Last Summer in the City
Jean-Pierre Bourtayre – Generique Fin

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.

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 (which is on hiatus but will resume), + 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.

SEE YOU NEXT WEEK, CHAMPIONS

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