You’ve all heard the saying, “Sex, Drugs and Rock’n’Roll,” but have you heard Scorpion Child?
A week ago, I sat outside of their Tuesday evening practice session, listening to them power through songs with titles like “Million Lines” and “Nose Whiskey” in a room the size of a walk-in closet in South Austin. “Damn, these guys are fucking rock stars!” I found myself muttering.
When lead singer Aryn Schwartz opened the door, inviting me in to hear the last two songs inside with bassist Shaun Avants offering toilet paper for ear protection, it reminded me that I’d come a long way since hearing about this band several months back.
***
I moved back to Austin the Monday after Barack Obama was inaugurated. I had learned enough, at least for now, about life in D.C. and was ready for round two in Austin.
By the following Saturday after a night of drinking and dancing at Beauty Bar at the CD release party for Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, I knew two things about Austin that still stand true:
1. Beauty Bar had quickly replaced D.C.’s Saint Ex as my go-to bar.
2. Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears were going to be the best buzz band out of Austin in 2009 with the release of their album.
Like Saint Ex, Beauty Bar is a place where the DJs measure their skill not by how good it sounds in the headphones, but by how many people are moving their feet. I like that.
And Black Joe Lewis, who is more James Brown than Jay-Z, isn’t just buzz worthy because the lead single, “Bitch, I Love You,” is an eyebrow-raiser…it’s more so because he and his band represent Austin at its best; a soulful singer with loads of conviction in his lyrics and a backing band with loads of talent; they even made room for a horn section!
Still, the most important thing that happened that night was that I met Aryn and he told me about Scorpion Child.
***
They’re from St. Louis, Corpus Christi, and Houston and, their newest member, Chris Hodges (rhythm guitar), is the lone Austin native in the band. They all call Austin home, especially since Scorpion Child was born in the summer of 2006.
“We all came to Austin to form a band,” Aryn stated, with Jeremy Cruz (drums) and Asa Savage (lead guitar) agreeing. None of them knew each other before they moved to Austin.
Over the last three years, they’ve played over a dozen different venues in Austin. They’ve played the Red River scene – Headhunters, Club Deville, Red7, Beerland, Beauty Bar – and they’ve played for the Sixth Street crowd, including a Rolling Stones/KnuckleRumbler show during SXSW at Peckerheads and a show last Friday at Maggie Mae’s. And they’ve played more legendary venues like Emo’s, Stubb’s (indoors) and Antone’s, one of their favorite stages.
“In Cleveland, there are three venues for local bands and in Pittsburgh there is like one,” said Aryn.
The diversity of venues in Austin is almost as good for the band as it is for the fans. They’ve played for frat guys and Westlake kids fresh off their boats in Lake Travis and they’ve played for out-of-towners during SXSW and locals who have nothing better to do on a weekday night.
Austin is attracting professionals, both young and old, from the East and West Coasts, and music fans are coming from all over. The goal for a band like Scorpion Child is to get enough of them to generate the kind of buzz that catches the attention of label reps and promoters.
Austin City Limits Festival, along with the TV show, have helped make Austin stand out as a live music hub and Scorpion Child is hoping to make the most of their residency in this city. Although they think ACL Festival doesn’t give enough chances for local bands, they’re thankful for the major attention Austin gets due to the festival.
“It draws attention to Austin, and as soon as one is over people are already talking about the next one,” said Jeremy.
The other one is SXSW, a festival that caters to small bands. The opportunities given to local bands is more to their liking, but it’s also a stressful time when guys are managing their jobs, at hip coffee shops and bars, with their shows. They played four gigs in one week at this year’s SXSW and just submitted their application for next year’s.
“It helps to keep you focused and the festivals give you goals without even having to leave this city,” Shaun opined.
All the music love in Austin breeds a lot of competition, at least you’d think so, but they say that’s not really the case. Bands like Pack of Wolves, Tia Carerra, Black Angels, and Trail of Dead are sources of both friendship and admiration, more so than envy.
Aryn has lived in cities in the Midwest that are fiercely competitive and he credits a live music culture in Austin where “people make an effort to come out” for a more easy-going, supportive atmosphere.
“The competition helps you get better and do something different, find your own sound. There are more rock bands, playing blues and heavy, here (in Austin) and we’re friends with a lot of those bands,” Aryn added.
As for how they became friends, it was Shaun and Asa who first met, around six years ago. Then Aryn, then Jeremy followed by Chris, who joined the band earlier this year. Before Scorpion Child, Chris played in many of the other guys were fans of, and the camaraderie that comes with being a local musician isn’t too dissimilar from that of a fraternity. Only this college town emphasizes live music more than keg stands and toga parties.
***
I’m not sure exactly what he said that Saturday night at Beauty Bar, but I remember ordering a 7-and-7, my drink of choice, from the bartender who happened to be Aryn. He ended up telling me about his band’s upcoming gig at Club Deville.
I didn’t know Scorpion Child was anything special when Aryn first mentioned his band, but there was something in his voice that led me to believe they’d be special.
A lot of my friends aren’t the type to drop $10 to see a random local band, but I’m always on the lookout for talent…not because I’m a manager or anything. I’m just in it for the music. So a few weeks later, I rolled solo over to Deville to check out the band not fully knowing what to expect.
A couple of hours and a few drinks later, and I had found my religion, but it wasn’t until months later that I knew my calling. I was to become a disciple of Austin’s live music scene, with the daunting responsibility of writing its bible.
Scorpion Child, with Aryn’s psychedelic words matched by what I’d describe as OMG guitar riffs (Asa) and backed by heart-pumping bass lines (Shaun Avants) and head-nodding drum kicks (Jeremy Cruz) would make up one of many stories chronicled in its pages.
From that first show to last week’s sit-down interview, I’ve seen Scorpion Child nearly a dozen times, as a band. This doesn’t include the countless hours I’ve shot the shit with Aryn and the guys as friends. This is how I’ve learned more about their story as a band and as individuals than any tape recorder could tell me.
Over that span, I’ve seen firsthand why Austin is indisputably the Live Music Capital of the World.
“There’s HAAM (Health Alliance for Austin Musicians), which probably wouldn’t happen in another city. This city is appreciating of live music and it wants to keep musicians here,” said Jeremy. “They’re trying to do rail, affordable housing and health services for local musicians and people are moving here from Houston and Dallas, not the other way around.”
I’d add L.A., New York, and a slew of other cities to the list of cities they’re moving here from as well.
I imagine many of them will become Scorpion Child fans too.
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