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Let’s get the sobering news out of the way. Austin logged three more homicides over the holiday weekend, pushing the year's count past 35. July 4th also landed as the one-year mark of the Central Texas floods that killed over 130 people, including 27 kids at Camp Mystic. Camp Mystic has since filed for bankruptcy and is staying dark this summer, and the grief is still very much present out in the Hill Country. Scrutiny around the Travis County Cares flood relief fund is growing; specifically about how recipients get chosen and how transparently the money is actually moving.
Meanwhile, the workers who literally keep this city moving just voted 99.5% to authorize a strike. CapMetro subcontractor Keolis has been in negotiations with their union for ten months already. The line that union president Brent Payne dropped is ringning in everyone’s ears: “over 75% of CapMetro workers can't afford to live in Austin.”
On the weirder front, Texas Republicans are now championing the psychedlic ibogaine as an addiction treatment. Austin's health community and startup crowd are already buzzing about whether Texas ends up as a regulated psychedelic hub, which is well, not a stretch from what we already are here in the capital city. Also worth your attention: activists with VOCAL-TX held an overnight vigil outside the Cicero Institute on 6th Street to put a spotlight on Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale's growing influence over local criminal justice and homelessness policy. And in South Austin, a newly formed nonprofit called the South Austin Neighborhood Safety Alliance is organizing against a planned homeless navigation center near I-35 and Oltorf.
The biggest story this week on the food scene is Birdie's being named America's 4th best restaurant while gearing up for a star-studded 5th anniversary dinner on July 18 with Aaron Franklin, Edgar Rico, Mariela Camacho, and NYC's Brooks Headley. First come, first served, 200 trays! MML Hospitality's Neighborhood Sushi opened its first out-of-Austin location in Dallas on June 30 and is also planning to relocate its Austin spot from South Congress to the old 1417 French Bistro space on S. First St. As for openings, vegan ice cream shop Gati Scoops landed on Duval, Kura Revolving Sushi went into soft open in Sunset Valley, and Ugly Dumpling brought Shanghai street food to the Arboretum area. The bar scene saw July 4th specials citywide plus a pirate pop-up called Shipwreck'd and a new weekday happy hour at Jupiter Supper Club. Hot Summer Nights (July 16–18) announced its food vendor lineup with two newcomers: Persian coffeehouse SipHaus and gourmet hot dog trailer Ditty Dog. And a fun bit of gossip for you: Katz's Deli filed a TDLR permit for a 6th Street location with a $2.5M renovation starting September 1; Austin may be getting the iconic NYC deli in early 2027!
Cancer season is in full sawy this week: two zodiac birthday bashes, an astrology class, tarot at half the pop-up markets, and a cry-themed music festival are all competing for the emotionally available 😂 Meanwhile, Dirty Martin's turns 100 and the Rancho Alegre Conjunto Festival fills Doris Miller. Don’t forget to click in for the full lineup.
Tuesday, July 7th
Persian Tea and Art
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM @ 7951 Shoal Creek Boulevard, FREE!
A loose, communal studio session mixing bead work, painting, patchwork, and hand art over cups of tea, no skill level required. It's the kind of slow, hands-busy afternoon that's harder to find than it should be.
DAMD at CSW (Austin)
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM @ Texas School for the Deaf, Seeger Gym, FREE!
Deaf Artisan Market Day returns for its third collaboration this year, spotlighting Deaf-owned businesses, artists, and food vendors in one gym. It's community commerce done right — family-friendly, and worth the trip even if you weren't already shopping.
BYO Vinyl Night
6:00 PM - 11:00 PM @ The ABGB, FREE!
Bring your weirdest or most beloved record and the bartender hands you a free beer for playing it. No DJ booth, no curation committee — just your questionable taste put to a public vote via jukebox democracy.
"Tiara Tuesday" LIVE: The 2nd Queens' Brunch
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM @ JW Marriott Austin - RSVP req’d
Eyes Like Mine Inc. hosts a mini-pageant judged by members of the 2025 Ms. Blind Diva Queens Court, brunch included. It's a genre of pageantry you won't stumble into twice in one summer.
More interesting events on Tuesday @ WhatsGoodATX!
The Wild World of the Van Gogh Truthers
In 1990, after years of practicing medicine and reviewing Van Gogh’s case history via his hundreds of letters, Arenberg published a paper in JAMA diagnosing Van Gogh as suffering not from epilepsy, as the artist’s physician claimed a century earlier, but from Ménière’s disease, an inner-ear affliction that can cause vertigo, of which Van Gogh complained, and tinnitus, a persistent ringing in the ears. Ménière’s, to Arenberg, could better explain Van Gogh’s decision to slice off his ear. After retiring, in 2017, Arenberg recommitted himself to studying Van Gogh and became convinced that art historians had made an even more alarming mistake: Van Gogh had not committed suicide. He’d been murdered.
Read the article for free on Air Mail, a lively digital read for the world citizen, with stories both foreign and domestic that you won’t find anywhere else, written by some of the world’s finest journalists.
Wednesday, July 8
Jack White Advance Listening Party
8:00–10:00 PM @ Drinks Lounge & Records, FREE!
Pre-order Jack White's new album and you'll hear "Frozen Charlotte" in full two days before its official release, alongside record stores in Nashville, Detroit, and London doing the same thing simultaneously. There are party favors, a shot at a signed copy, and you walk out with the album early — RSVP required.
Local Multiplayer
7:30–10:00 PM @ Blue Owl Brewing, $7 (first drink included)
No tournament brackets, no sweaty competitiveness — just a Switch loaded with Mario Kart, Smash, and Jackbox at a brewery. Whether you roll in solo or drag your trash-talking friend, this low-stakes hangout is built for spontaneous conversation over cutthroat gaming.
Secret Service Songwriter Showcase
7:30 PM @ Cactus Cafe, $5
Four Austin songwriters perform completely anonymously until the moment they step onstage, a structural gimmick built to strip away algorithm-driven fandom and force you to actually listen. It's a clever premise for a songwriter showcase in a city drowning in open mics.
Sacred Family Constellation
6:00–9:00 PM @ Northwest Hills, $44
This immersive group therapy practice has participants stand in for members of each other's family systems to surface inherited patterns and generational stuff you didn't know you were carrying. Not for the skeptical, but genuinely fascinating if you're curious about experiential healing work.
Wayback Wednesday
10:00 AM @ The Original Pinballz Arcade, 25% off all games, all day
Every Wednesday, Pinballz quietly knocks a quarter off the price of every arcade game in the building, all day long, no strings attached. It's the simplest possible excuse to go feed quarters into pinball machines on a weekday.
More interesting events on Wednesday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Thursday, July 9
The Astrology of Now
6pm–7:30pm @ Austin Public Library Windsor Park Branch, FREE!
A free monthly astrology class and community discussion blending current transits with hands-on chart-reading, open to total beginners and seasoned star-chart nerds alike. Bring your own birth chart or just come curious, register here.
Solarpunk Summit Presents: Yawanawa Hapé Circle & Musical Performance Pt 2
6pm–9pm @ The Sapien Center, $44.52
The Yawanawa are bringing sacred Amazonian song and medicine ceremony to a street corner in East Austin, which is either the most on-brand thing this city has ever hosted or a sign the apocalypse has a really good playlist. Expect live music and communal ritual in equal measure; details and tickets here.
Bring Us Your Garbage
10pm–11pm @ Fallout Theater, $12.38
A self-described "work-in-progress art project" with a title that doubles as a dare. Details are scarce by design — grab a ticket if you're the type who shows up for mystery over marketing copy.
Lip Service: An Advice Show
9pm–11pm @ East Austin Comedy Club, $13.54
Billed as your weekly group therapy session, this show has you spill the tea while hosts serve advice with love and just the right amount of chaos. Tickets here for cheaper catharsis than an actual therapist.
Find more fun stuff on Thursday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Friday, July 10
Dog Days of Summer: Rock Show + Hot Dog Eating Contest
Doors 8pm, music 9pm @ Valhalla, $10
Ne'er-do-well is debuting new material for the first time in three years, which would already be enough reason to go—but they're also staging a competitive hot dog eating contest mid-set, and yes, you can enter if you're brave enough. Counterspell and Dayeater round out the bill, so the question isn't why you'd go, it's why you wouldn't.
Postcards from America: Beerthoven
7:30pm @ Neill-Cochran House Museum, $25 (also on Sunday)
Beerthoven is the local concert series that pairs chamber music with free beer, and tonight flute-and-harp duo Chaski joins Native American soprano Mikaela Pace for an American program spanning five centuries: inside one of Austin's oldest buildings, dating to 1856. Two intermissions with cold beer and warm pastries from Easy Tiger and Lazarus Brewing are included in the ticket price, which seems almost unfair.
Deck & Balls: Magician vs. Clown
10pm @ 616 Lavaca St, $11.24
A magician and a clown each show up to perform their solo show, only to discover they've been double-booked into the same time slot—and what happens next is structured theater rather than a police matter. This could go beautifully avant-garde or fully off the rails, and honestly either outcome is worth eleven dollars.
2026 Rancho Alegre Conjunto Music Festival
7pm @ Doris Miller Auditorium, FREE (through Sunday)
Three days of Tejano and conjunto from across Texas, and tonight's opening lineup brings Julian Olivarez y Jazz Tuvo, Los Mungias, and Rene Joslin y Los Favoritos to one of Austin's most beloved cultural institutions. It's indoors, air-conditioned, free, and honoring a tradition that predates Austin's current obsession with authenticity—frozen margaritas available.
Cancer Zodiac Party w/ Queen Serene, Flags, New Strangers, Vendors & More
Doors 7pm @ The Far Out Lounge & Stage, $12
Queen Serene drops her 7" vinyl tonight at a full-production Cancer season birthday bash with a Cancer-themed signature cocktail, tarot readings, an outdoor vendor market, and three bands—New Strangers at 8, Flags at 9, Queen Serene at 10. The headliner's own birthday party, essentially, starts after most people's bedtimes.
BodyRock ATX: Songs in the Key of Stankonia
9pm @ Sahara Lounge,$15
DAWA's long-running Body Rock party pulls off an only-in-Austin double tribute tonight: Stevie Wonder and Outkast; two artists who have no business being programmed together and will absolutely work on the same dance floor until 2am. Sahara Lounge is the right room for this: low-lit, full of regulars, and big enough to move.
Leather, Lace, and Bass: A Rock N Roll Tribute Show
Doors 8:30pm @ Kick Butt Coffee, $19
Up In Smoke Cabaret makes their debut production with a burlesque-inflected rock tribute show covering every sub-genre, plus trivia and a costume contest for anyone who comes dressed in their best rocker look. First show means rough edges are possible and memorable moments are guaranteed—tip the performers, enter the games.
Float Films: 10 Things I Hate About You
Doors 5pm, film at dark @ Austin Motel Pool
The Austin Motel's summer film series screens the 1999 Julia Stiles classic from the pool, because that's where the screen lives and that's exactly as good as it sounds. Completing the late-'90s teenage cinema experience while floating in a motor lodge pool on a July night in Austin is a very specific kind of perfect.
Witching Hour Market
5pm–9pm @ St. Elmo Brewing Springdale, FREE!
A nighttime pop-up market at St. Elmo Springdale with a DJ, frozen bevs, tarot readings, and an artisan market—which is exactly the kind of low-stakes mystical Friday evening Austin does better than anywhere. Free to attend, food trucks open for dinner, drink specials all night.
More amazingness on Friday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Saturday, July 11
Featured on Saturday: Abductee
What if your sleep paralysis wasn't just a disorder? Abductee is a gripping indie film following Andrew Freeman's obsessive quest for answers after a lifetime of nocturnal terror; and his sister dragged along into his unraveling. Screening inside the hauntingly atmospheric Scottish Rite Theater, where vaulted ceilings and century-old woodwork make the perfect backdrop for a story about things that lurk just out of sight, just $10!
RARE FORMS
7PM @ dadaLab, $12 presale
Four Austin artists: SINE, Jonas Wilson, Curse Mackey, and the live debut of King Thievery, converge at dadaLab for an evening spanning electronic music, industrial performance, visual art, fashion, experimental film, and readings from a published artist survival guide. It's part gallery opening, part concert, part something dadaLab was built for; doors open at 7pm with an artist reception. Supported in part by the Austin Live Music Fund.
Build Your Own World Through the Subconscious
1PM–3PM @ Cloud Tree Studios & Gallery, $49.87
A three-part creative workshop:writing exercise, painting exercise, and immersive Photo Booth! All built around the premise that the subconscious contains entire worlds you haven't yet explored. It lands somewhere between guided introspection, art class, and small-group ritual.
CRY BBY FEST
7PM–11PM @ HowMuch?! Studios, $17.85
A night of original Austin music organized specifically to celebrate Cancer zodiac signs who love to cry: DAMARIS, Marfa Motel, Talking Backwards, and Von play HowMuch?! Studios in what may be the most emotionally specific festival premise the city has yet produced. You don't have to be a Cancer to attend, but feelings are encouraged.
Legend of the Realms
8PM–11PM @ SkyCandy, FREE!
Season 2 of Austin's most quietly singular fantasy showcase continues — a live performance experience built around original fantasy realm concepts, centering art and healing with each new installment. This is the kind of homegrown creative event that quietly becomes the thing people tell you about years later.
7-Eleven Day at Blue Owl Brewing
12PM–10PM @ Blue Owl Brewing, FREE!
In honor of the holiest convenience store holiday, Blue Owl is handing out complimentary hot dog and chips combos paired with free slushies in two frosty flavors — NA and boozy, mix-and-match encouraged. At 1pm, their Ice Dye T-Shirt Workshop kicks off for $30, including a Blue Owl logo tee, all dye materials, and a complimentary beer to sip while you work.
Dirty Martin's 100 Year Birthday Celebration
11AM–10PM @ 2808 Guadalupe St, FREE!
One of Austin's oldest and most beloved burger joints is turning 100, and the whole block is celebrating. Live music, local vendors, state fair carnival games, and a century of greasy tradition on the Drag — plus the burgers, shakes, and full bar that made Dirty Martin's legendary in the first place. Free admission, all day, family-friendly.
The Cartoon Art Show
9PM @ Vector Collective ATX, $17.85
A celebration of cartoon culture featuring local Austin talent, national gallery pieces, live DJs, and a vendor market — with free entry for anyone who shows up in full cosplay. It's part late-night gallery opening, part costume party, and entirely the kind of thing Vector Collective was made for.
Shelley Duvall Appreciation Night
7:30PM @ We Luv Video, FREE with RSVP
Two years since her death — July is also her birth month — the Shelley Duvall Archive and We Luv Video are hosting a curated tribute night of Faerie Tale Theatre episodes, behind-the-scenes clips, and personal interviews. They couldn't pick just one film (The Shining? Popeye? 3 Women?), so they're showing a variety; pizza from Home Slice and refreshments provided, RSVP requested for headcount.
The Rocky Horror Puppet Show: An Improvised Musical
7PM @ 616 Lavaca St, $19.32
A felted take on a cult classic: the Rocky Horror Picture Show, reimagined as an improvised musical performed entirely by puppets and clocking in at just one hour. It's exactly as unhinged as it sounds, and probably funnier.
Other cool stuff happening on Saturday @ WhatsGoodATX !
Sunday, July 12
Death in the Family Wrestling: Teenage Anarchist
5pm @ Pinballz Lake Creek, $16.87
Austin's cult indie wrestling promotion brings its first-ever Pinballz show with Teenage Anarchist — a tribute to the outlaws who helped build the Austin wrestling scene, staged in the middle of a massive arcade. DIY wrestling inside a pinball parlor is exactly as chaotic and correct as it sounds.
Golden Girls Drag Brunch
12–2pm @ Cap City Comedy Club, $22.99 🔥
Hosted by Daphne York, drag queens pay tribute to all four of the original fab four — Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia — plus beloved supporting characters, in a format that should not work as well as it does. You know the characters; you haven't seen them like this.
Sunday Funday 2 at Austin Beerworks
2–10pm @ Austin Beerworks Sprinkle Valley, FREE!
A vintage, retro, and art pop-up market runs from 2pm; at 6pm the screens come out for a curated lineup of local short films, animation, retro TV, and a surprise movie to close the night. Free, all ages, no agenda beyond a good Sunday afternoon.
Curator-Led Tour: Sable Elyse Smith: Clockwork
2–3pm @ The Contemporary Austin Jones Center, $10
Closing day for Sable Elyse Smith's Clockwork, and head curator Alex Klein leads an intimate, conversational walk-through with behind-the-scenes insight into how the show was built. Last chance before the exhibition comes down — questions welcomed, no expertise required.
Make Your Own Silver Ring with Raw Metals
12:30pm @ Meanwhile Brewing, $120
Local maker Emilio Aguilar walks you through measuring, shaping, soldering, and finishing a sterling silver ring from scratch — no experience required, all materials provided. Choose a single 4mm band or two stackable 2mm rings; leave wearing something you actually made.
Ma++ Ingalls Epic Circular Breathing & Peter Stopschinski's Slowest Music Ever
7pm @ Cherrywood Center, ~$12
Three short sets of underground contemporary acoustic music: Oakland composer Matt Ingalls performs 30 minutes of continuous circular-breathing clarinet that synthesizes difference tones perceived as originating inside the listener's own ear, followed by Stopschinski's Satie-and-soap-opera-influenced electric trio and multilingual original songs from Julie Slim and Shawn Ellison.
More interesting events on Sunday @ WhatsGoodATX!
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