Happy Heat is an invitation to slow down and find the groove. To ask who we are and what we want life to be in Austin. Check out our full archive here .

Damn. Mojo’s gone.

The Mojo Manifesto Facebook Page this morning

His New York Times obituary calls Nixon a “psychobilly musician and radio host who gained cult status for his rabble rousing and celebrity spoofs. ” We know him as one of the forces who shaped SXSW — even giving the invocation…once.  

When we arrived to interview him in 2010, the human hurricane answered the door waving a legal pad  — “I’ve got notes!” he said.  

Outside Industry: The Story of SXSW, courtesy Arts+Labor SEARCHING FOR THE SECRET ROOM WITH THE BIG GUY That’s how Mojo describes the SX hustle, the old-school way things operated when it launched in 1987. No social media, no internet, cell phones still a novelty. The term “going viral” didn’t exist.

For the bands, it was about everyone being in the same place at the same time. Check out Dash Rip Rock , early 90s. Flying through an empty downtown to connect with Mojo at Liberty Lunch.

By my count, three of the folks in the earlier clip collage are gone. As is Liberty Lunch. We’re gonna hold onto these memories.

KICK OUT THE JAMS We also this week lost Wayne Kramer, MC5 guitar god, original punk.

“We were the house band at a ballroom in Detroit, and we played there every week with another band from the area. We got in the habit, being the sort of punks we are, of screaming at them to get off the stage, to kick out the jams, meaning stop jamming.” Wayne Kramer, MC5 Problem

I first met Kramer at SX in the 90s, he’d started scoring movies, we profiled him and taped a show. Look for a clip from the archive in the next substack. Speaking of which, catch up here on the background and storytellers for our SX series, which started last week. Follow us on our socials , you’ll see something new every day.

FROM FILM TO SCREEN

You’ll recall a couple weeks ago we highlighted a sneak peak at AFS Cinema of Big Man from Thee Conductor , fronted by the multi-talented Jason Butler. The single’s on Ennoia , released by local 501c3 Spaceflight , and this week marked the video’s official premiere . It’s a project with deep Austin (and Arts+Labor) roots. Director Cody Ground also edited Sir Doug and the Genuine Texas Cosmic Groove. Director of Photography Patrick Higgins was his assistant editor on that documentary. Vicky Andres also designed the title sequence for Richard Linklater's new film Hit Man, and is the editor of Happy Heat. Jared Sosa handled special effects for Hit Man and also the video.

Vicky Andres: What was the first chat about the video like? How did this come to you?

VA: Tell me about Little Crusher. How’d you find the truck and how did it inspire the story?

VA: Tell me about the production process. How did y’all set this up?

HEADING OUT If you missed Alejandro Escovedo two weeks ago at ACL Live, catch him at a special pop-up at The Saxon Pub on Saturday night . A rare opportunity to see a legend in an intimate setting with fantastic sound.

Hyde Park Theatre’s Frontera Fest is officially sold out, but returned tickets are re-released through the website . You can also roll the dice with the walk-up waitlist, the theatre starts taking names at 7pm. Their advice:

“Come sign up, go have a beer at the Parlor across the street, and come back by 7:45ish to find out whether you got in.”

Saturday features the best of this week, and every night next week features the best performances from the month.

HAPPY HEAT SOUL FOOD SUNDAY "When a gospel band blows away the heathens at SXSW time after time, the rest of us should take notice. Hot stuff that goes beyond the limitations of whatever your beliefs are." - Midwest Record

Gospel sensations The Jones Family Singers were called a “must see” act at SXSW 2014 by Rolling Stone . Their documentary premiered at the fest in 2015, and they’ve toured the world since. We’re excited to announce The Jones Family Singers will headline Happy Heat’s Soul Food Sunday.

That’s coming up March 10th. The first weekend of SXSW. More details soon. And on we go.

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