Lite + Brite: 34 Propagandistic Austin Events 7/17
Hello, what’s up, and welcome to the Lite + Brite newsletter.
This weekend is Hot Summer Nights, the Red River Cultural District’s annual showcase of local bands. If you’re curious to check it out but are daunted because you don’t know the artists, be daunted no longer! The shows are all free, and the venues are all within about a three-minute walk from one another. Just go into literally any of the venues and see if you like the vibe; if you don’t, go next door. Repeat until last call. Or, if you want our recommendations, we’d suggest Hex Partner + Dream 2 Dream @ Elysium, Jet Cemetary, Lauren Lakis, + Pedal Steel Noah @ the 13th Floor, Team Trust @ Chess Club, Almost Heaven @ Kingdom, Club Coma @ Mohawk, Sexpop + Bruce @ Chess Club, or Temptrix @ Elysium.
Beyond Red River, this week we’re getting micro-operas, corgi races, music videos, free food, Richard Simmons flashmobs, Hunter S. Thompson musical tributes, Middle-earth burlesque, the sounds of Austin circa 2116, and “the only cottage(emo)core band to ever exist” playing a bookstore. And if that’s not enough for you, just keep scrolling.
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Let’s do fun stuff!
—Leila + Brian
liteandbriteatx.com
EVENTS WE’RE EYEING
Friday 7/17
- Soviet Propaganda Pop-up Market at the Antique Mule
Buy some kitschy propaganda + get a Russian prison tat - Guts 50th at Fallout
Improv comedy troupe travels to a post-apoc future to celebrate a future bday - Hot Summer Nights on Red River
Three free nights of local bands + DJs performing in Red River venues - Feast at Hyde Park Theatre
“It’s a dinner party that’s also a one-woman show. It’s a cry of resistance against tyranny.” - Passage at Smelt House
Scifi radio-play turned theater-play centers on black holes + existence - Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span
Saturday 7/18
- Music Video Film Fest at Cabana Club
Watch music videos from local acts while poolside - Richard Simmons Birthday Bus at Barton Springs
Commemorate the aerobics legend w/costumes, bus ride, + plunge - The Reverdie Ball at Distribution Hall
Formal fantasy ball w/live music, portraits, + interactive quests - Puppy Picnic + Corgi Races at Jackalope South
Corgi racing, doggie pools, treats, “tiny legs at full speed” - Jaws on the Water at Volente Beach
Watch Jaws while floating on a lake + try not to get bitten - Boner Bizarre at Come and Take It
“Perverse, grotesque, + socially unacceptable” burlesque about Tolkien - World Listening Day at the Texas State Capitol
Hear into the future of Austin using “acoustic ecology” - Stargazing Party at St. Elmo Brewing
See the stars through some very fancy telescopes, plus food trucks - Fear + Loathing at Hotel Vegas
Celebrate Hunter S. Thompson w/bands, DJs, tiki drinks, free shirts - Artsy Talks at Stargazer
“Conversations with creatives, for creatives” - Taste of Plant-Based at Wheatsville South
Try a bunch of free vegan bites courtesy of Wheatsville - Drag Wars at the DoubleTree
Drag artists from across the state compete for a good cause - Pirate Night at Tiny Minotaur
“No blaggards or bilge-rats allowed” at this pirate costume party - PowerPints at the Highball
“Drink + learn things” at comedic talks on a variety of esoteric topics - Plantmania at the Palmer Events Center
(monster truck voice) “THE ULTIMATE PLANT SHOPPING WEEKEND” - Hot Summer Nights on Red River
Three free nights of local bands + DJs performing in Red River venues - Feast at Hyde Park Theatre
“It’s a dinner party that’s also a one-woman show. It’s a cry of resistance against tyranny.” - Passage at Smelt House
Scifi radio-play turned theater-play centers on black holes + existence - Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span
Sunday 7/19
- Games Y’all at Austin Central Library
Indie game devs + fans meet up to try out games in progress - Leznite at Ani’s Day + Night
“The biggest watergun/balloon fight queer Austin has SEEN” - Plantmania at the Palmer Events Center
(monster truck voice) “THE ULTIMATE PLANT SHOPPING WEEKEND” - Passage at Smelt House
Scifi radio-play turned theater-play centers on black holes + existence - Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span - (weekly thru 7/26) Splash Dance at the Austin Motel
Poolside aerobics with Austin’s most creative aerobics instructor
Tuesday 7/21
- Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span
Wednesday 7/22
- Story Department at Radio Rosewood
Stories told by a handpicked crew of interesting folks
Thursday 7/23
- People. Make Me. Make Things! at Alienated Majesty
Live bands, live puppets, surrounded by friendly books - Queer Film Night at the Vortex
Film screening, DJ, + vendors celebrate non-binary awareness - Greetings from Queer Mountain at Ani’s Day + Night
Storytelling + performances by local queer folks w/vendors - Goblin Jam at Tiny Minotaur
Join or observe an acoustic jam session w/various goblins - Feast at Hyde Park Theatre
“It’s a dinner party that’s also a one-woman show. It’s a cry of resistance against tyranny.” - Passage at Smelt House
Scifi radio-play turned theater-play centers on black holes + existence - Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span - (weekly thru 8/27) Movies on the Lake at Mozart’s
Watch a big summer movie floating on a boat on the lake
Friday 7/24
- B-Scene: Buffering Reality at the Blanton
Data-driven art, Y2k costumes, live music, DJ, + video rental store - Electrowhip at Elysium
Dark techno, EBM, + industrial DJs from across TX - Matrix Rave at Hyperreal Film Club
Hyperreal bday rave complete w/Matrix costume contest, DJ - Float Films: The Matrix at Austin Motel
Dodge bullets in real time from a float in a pool - Feast at Hyde Park Theatre
“It’s a dinner party that’s also a one-woman show. It’s a cry of resistance against tyranny.” - Passage at Smelt House
Scifi radio-play turned theater-play centers on black holes + existence - Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera at dadaLab
Rapid-fire short operas for the modern short attention span
NHA287
Minimal Enthusiasm
This week we explore the connections between lots of minimalist moments across several genres. There’s does-what-it-says-on-the-tin minimal wave, its modern darkwave and minimal wave descendents, early electro and electroclash experimentalism, and the minimalist roots in no wave.
Tracklist
Shit Robot – Simple Things
The Soft Pink Truth – Out of Step
Dopplereffekt – Scientist
Frank (Just Frank) – Mr. Itagaki
Dark Day – No, Nothing, Never
Police des Moeurs – Tu As Honte Parfois
Slash Need – Worm
Suicide – Ghost Rider
Richenel – I Won’t Bite
The Normal – Warm Leatherette
Oppenheimer Analysis – Men in White Coats
Soft Metals – Psychic Driving
No Humans Allowed is Brian Blackout’s award-winning, 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 over 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 Liz, Melissa Dunn, Kat, James Gray, Emily Heddleson, Andrew Creswell, Robert B., Roman Gonzalez, Nick Ivons, Molly Fonseca, Lilly Ettinger, Michael Sales, Zach, Gino Scaramuzza, Erica Speegle, Thomas Refferson, Bones Malones, Katie Green, Christina Jue, Colleen MB, Alexander Freed, and Kristen Backor. We’re deeply grateful for your support, which allows us to do things like “pay our Beehiiv 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 attending a dance party in a storage unit, marching in a Greek mythology-themed Halloween parade thrown by a bat crew and a rat crew, and watching a troupe of gigantic leftist puppets from New England. Follow Lite + Brite on Instagram to keep up with our adventures. We’re now on Bluesky too. Yay federation! And come chat with us and the rest of the L+B community on our Discord server (where we sometimes post stuff early too).
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 and Side by Sideshows for live music, The Darker Side of Austin for goth and metal stuff, Concept Animals’ ATX Art for You for gallery openings + artist talks, ATX Theatre for plays, and Superfantastica for weird Austin places + things. 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, + 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 2026). 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.