Mandolin Orange at ACL Live

Mandolin Orange at ACL Live

Date: 01/23 | Time: 8 PM – 11 PM CST | Location: ACL Live

Mandolin Orange’s music radiates a mysterious warmth —their songs feel like whispered secrets, one hand cupped to your ear.

The North Carolina duo have built a steady and growing fanbase with this kind of intimacy, and on Tides of A Teardrop, due out February 1, it is more potent than ever. By all accounts, it is the duo’s fullest, richest, and most personal effort. You can hear the air between them—the taut space of shared understanding, as palpable as a magnetic field, that makes their music sound like two halves of an endlessly completing thought. Singer-songwriter Andrew Marlin and multiinstrumentalist Emily Frantz have honed this lamp glow intimacy for years.

On Tides of A Teardrop, Marlin wrote the songs, as he usually does, in a sort of stream of consciousness, allowing words and phrases to pour out of him as he hunted for the chords and melodies. Then, as he went back to sharpen what he found, he found something troubling and profound. Intimations of loss have always haunted the edges of their music, their lyrics hinting at impermanence and passing of time. But Tides of A Teardrop confronts a defining loss head-on: Marlin’s mother, who died of complications from surgery when he was 18.

These songs, as well as their sentiments, remain simple and quiet, like all of their music. But beneath the hushed surface, they are staggeringly straightforward. “I’ve been holding on to the grief for a long time. In some ways I associated the grief and the loss with remembering my mom. I feel like I’ve mourned long enough. I’m ready to bring forth some happier memories now, to just remember her as a living being.”

For this album, Marlin and Frantz enlisted their touring band, who they also worked with on their last album Blindfaller. Having recorded all previous albums live in the studio, they approached the recording process in a different way this time. “We went and did what most people do, which we’ve never done before—we just holed up somewhere and worked the tunes out together,” Frantz says. There is a telepathy and warmth in the interplay on Tides of A Teardrop that brings a new dynamic to the foreground—that holy silence between notes, the air that charges the album with such profound intimacy. “This record is a little more cosmic, almost in a spiritual way—the space between the notes was there to suggest all those empty spaces the record touches on,” acknowledges Marlin. There are many powerful ways of acknowledging loss; sometimes the most powerful one is saying nothing at all.

For more information on Mandolin Orange at ACL Live, click here.

Hello, Dolly!

Hello, Dolly!

Date: 01/21 – 01/26 | Time: 8 PM | Location: Texas Performing Arts at The University of Texas at Austin

Winner of four Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival, HELLO, DOLLY! is the universally acclaimed smash that NPR calls “the best show of the year!”

Director Jerry Zaks’ “gorgeous” new production (Vogue) is “making people crazy happy” (The Washington Post) and is “a musical comedy dream!” (Rolling Stone).

For more information on Hello, Dolly! in Austin, click here.

Tuesday Giving - Austin Pets Alive!

Tuesday Giving – Austin Pets Alive!

Date: 01/21 – 01/22 | Time: 6 AM CST | Location: Voodoo Doughnut (6th Street)

Love doughnuts? Love furry friends? Us too! We are proud to partner with Austin Pets Alive! for our January 21st Tuesday Giving event!


Austin Pets Alive! promotes and provides the resources, education, and programs needed to eliminate the killing of companion animals. Their goal is to ensure that every shelter animal, in Central Texas and beyond, gets a true chance at the life they deserve. ❤️

We will doughnate a quarter from EVERY doughnut sold on January 21st to Austin Pets Alive!. And don’t forget, we’re open 24/7 for all of your late-night doughnut cravings.

*Doughnuts are for humans only. 😉

For more information on Tuesday Giving – Austin Pets Alive!, click here.

2020 3M Half Marathon

2020 3M Half Marathon

Date: 01/19 | Time: 7:30 AM – 12:30 PM CST | Location: 9700 Stonelake Blvd

2020 3M Half Marathon presented by Under Armour. Come celebrate the 26th Year Running Downhill to Downtown!

The 3M Half Marathon presented by Under Armour boasts one of the fastest 13.1-mile courses in the country and will celebrate its 26th year running on Jan. 19, 2020.

Runners enjoy a point-to-point course with mostly downhill running that showcases some of Austin’s finest locations. Starting in north Austin and finishing near the Texas State Capitol, runners will appreciate a 306’ net elevation drop.

Participants will receive the best swag back in the running industry, a custom spinner finisher medal, Under Armour participant shirt, on-course live music, a massive finish line festival, beer garden (21+), and so much more!

For more information on the 2020 3M Half Marathon, click here.

Geology and Fossil Hunting Along Shoal Creek

Geology and Fossil Hunting Along Shoal Creek

Date: 01/18 | Time: 9 AM – 11 AM CST | Location: Shoal Creek Conservancy

Join Shoal Creek Conservancy and the Austin Geological Society for a walk along Shoal Creek.

We’ll take a look back in time while discussing geology and fossils along the way! This tour is for all ages, so bring your families for a morning of fun. Please wear comfortable walking shoes, weather-appropriate clothing, and we recommend bringing water and a snack if desired.

For more information on Geology and Fossil Hunting Along Shoal Creek, click here.

The Contemporary Prin

The Contemporary Print

Date: 01/17 | Time: 7 PM – 10 PM CST | Location: Big Medium‎

Join PrintAustin in celebrating its 7th annual juried international exhibition, The Contemporary Print, presented in collaboration with Big Medium.

The Contemporary Print is a survey of traditional printmaking techniques and innovative approaches in contemporary printmaking. Our 2020 exhibition was juried by Claudia Zapata.

Texas-born curator, artist, and doctoral candidate, Claudia Zapata, joins us from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, where she currently acts as the Latinx art curatorial assistant in support of their upcoming exhibition ¡Printing the Revolution! The Rise and Impact of Chicano Graphics, 1965-Now.

Claudia’s passion for Chicanx and Latinx art, and identity-based exhibitions has inspired her previous work as the Curator of Exhibitions and Programs at Mexic-Arte Museum, the Co-Founder of the Puro Chingón Collective, and now the pursuit of a Ph.D. in Rhetorics of Art, Space and Culture at Southern Methodist University.

For more information, click here.

Free Admission: Third Thursday

Free Admission: Third Thursday

Date: 01/16 | Time: 10 AM – 9 PM CST | Location: The Blanton Museum of Art‎

Welcome in a new decade with a good long day-to-night out of ART!

Our newest Contemporary Project titled “Drum Skins” by renowned artist Ed Ruscha will be on view plus a Texas-proud print pop-up in partnership with PrintAustin!

Meander over to our café to enjoy a slice of pizza & glass of wine for only $6 (available after 5pm). 🍕🍷 And don’t forget to drop by our Museum Shop for some of the best gift ideas in Austin!

Our full line-up:

12:30pm ~ PUBLIC TOUR
Enjoy a gallery teacher-led public tour of some highlights from our permanent collection.

5:30pm ~ POP-UP EXHIBITION: Lone Stardom
All Y’all need to drop by to see this Texas-proud selection of art! Organized in conjunction with PrintAustin.

6pm ~ MUSIC AT THE BLANTON: Keep Composers Weird
A perfect opportunity to hear music by emerging composers from around the world! Hosted by Nathan Felix.

FREE ADMISSION every Thursday is made possible by The Moody Foundation.

The Blanton is located at the intersection of Congress Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

For more information on Free Admission: Third Thursday, click here.

Eco - Friendly Fashion Show

Eco – Friendly Fashion Show

Date: 01/15 | Time: 5:30 PM – 7 PM | Location: Boone PTA

Run to your overflowing recycling bin and pull out all the things that would make for a stunning look.

Be it a suit or a formal grown; we are looking for the Best Dressed human to start the new year off thinking about ways we can lessen our carbon footprint.


Basically, we are creating a fashion show with clothes made out of recyclable materials.

Join us for a night of fun and fashion.

For more information on the Eco – Friendly Fashion Show, click here.

Line Dancing Class

Line Dancing Class

Date: 01/07 – 01/23 | Time: 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM | Location: Lockhart State Park 

Don’t miss the music and fun in this family-friendly dance class! All ages and abilities welcome.

Join us at Lockhart State Park for a lesson in country-style line dancing! Class is suitable for beginners and all ages. 

Prepare: Wear your dancing shoes and bring water. No registration required.

Meet: Class will be held inside the park Recreation Hall. 

Fees: Class is free with paid entry to the park. Regular park entrance fees are $3/adult, free for children 12 & under. If our office is closed when you arrive, please use the self-pay station to check in.

For more information on this Line Dancing Class, click here.

Nomadic Matt Budget Travel Talk: Austin

Nomadic Matt Budget Travel Talk: Austin

Date: 01/13 | Time: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM | Location: Wright Bros. Brew & Brew

Learn a bunch of budget travel tips from Nomadic Matt himself.

He’ll speak about how you can save money while you travel around the world! We’re expecting a bunch of trave-enthusiasts to come out to hear Matt speak. We’ll have plenty of time for you to network and meet other travel lovers in this community.

Come out to meet and mingle with like-minded travelers, have a beer, and make new friends.

Tickets are $10 USD and you can bring a friend for free!

See you soon,

Matt & The Nomadic Network Team


What is THE NOMADIC NETWORK (TNN)?

It’s our newest initiative and is a global community of travel enthusiasts who support, connect, educate, and inspire one another to travel better, cheaper, and longer (created by me, Nomadic Matt). We strive to provide our fellow travelers with the tools, resources, tips, and knowledge to enable them to confidently plan global adventures. We encourage and eagerly share our global know-how with others.

We do this with these local TNN chapter meet-ups in cities across the world that provide time for you to meet and connect with other travelers. Whether you’re planning a short jaunt to a nearby city or an indefinite round-the-world trip, The Nomadic Network is here to help the world travel — one nomad at a time.

For more information on Nomadic Matt Budget Travel Talk: Austin, click here.