Austin Museum of Popular Culture

08/25/2026

On August 28, 2013 the Black Angels performed at ACL. Mishka Westell created the magnificent poster that is now quite collectible and not easy to find.

Mishka Westell is one of the premier music poster artists working in Austin today. Mishka is also a woman, quite rare in the world of music postering. Her art is reminiscent of a by-gone era in Austin’s music culture, hand drawn and surreal, odes to those poster artists who came before.

Mishka has worked primarily with silkscreen and block prints, including concert posters for legendary musicians such as Willie, Robert Plant, Emmy Lou Harris, Wanda Jackson, and many others.
Her work is hand drawn in a vintage inspired, often psychedelic and surreal style.

She created the image to celebrate the films of legendary film maker Richard Linklater, to promote an exhibition of posters illustrating his past work at the Mondo Gallery in Austin. It channeled the vibe of the original Armadillo Art Squad, exactly what Linklater had hoped for.

As an artist and designer currently living in Austin, Mishka is constantly exploring the history and culture that had attracted her from an early age. It has influenced all of her work over the last few years. Mishka also does freelance illustration and design work for companies all over the world, occasionally still finding time for block printing, etching and painting.

Now, here's a little bit (well, maybe more than a little bit) of info about the band and a link here to some music: Black Angels, 2013, Evil Things: https://youtu.be/SZ6fWcnL-Gw?si=O4CnU5F8DmFpf9oI

The Black Angels are an American psychedelic rock band from Austin, Texas. Formed in May 2004, they took their name from the Velvet Underground's "The Black Angel's Death Song". They have released six studio albums and one compilation album.

Current band members are:
• Alex Maas – lead vocals, bass, organ, guitar, percussion, flute, Mellotron (2004–present)
• Christian Bland – guitars, bass, keys, vocals, occasional drums,
organ, harmonium, autoharp, electric piano, celeste, Mellotron
(2004–present)
• Stephanie Bailey – drums, percussion, occasional bass (2004–
present)
• Jake Garcia – guitars, bass, vocals, Mellotron (2016–present)
• Misti Hamrick – bass, organ (2024–present)

Former band members include
• Nate Ryan – bass, guitars, vocals, organ, electric autoharp,
occasional drums (2004–2011)
• Jennifer Raines – drone machine/organ, keyboards, percussion
(2004–2008)
• Todd Keller – guitars (2004–2005)
• Rachel Staggs (aka Rachel Goldstar) – bass, vocals (2004)
• Kyle Hunt – guitars, bass, keyboards, percussion (2006–2016)
• Ramiro Verdooren – guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals,harmonica,
percussion (2019–2023)

In 2005, the Black Angels were featured on a dual-disc compilation album of psychedelic music called Psychedelica Vol. 1 from Northern Star Records. This, along with the growing popularity of their MySpace page, gave the band a jump in popularity in the underground scene.

The group's debut LP, Passover, released in 2006, was generally well received in the underground independent rock community and was noted for its dark tones and lyrical content. A review of Passover described them as "Walking in the shadows cast by Spiritualized mastermind Jason Pierce," invoking "dirges" reminiscent of the 13th Floor Elevators. Passover included a quote in the liner notes from Edvard Munch: "Illness, insanity, and death are the black angels that kept watch over my cradle and accompanied me all my life." The band was featured on the soundtrack of the 2007 Kevin Bacon movie, Death Sentence, on the second episode of FOX's Fringe, and in the ninth episode of Californication.

They released their second album Directions to See a Ghost in 2008. Songs from Directions to See a Ghost were also featured in The History Channel's 2009 documentary, Manson. Their song "Young Men Dead" was featured on the March 17, 2010 episode of UFC Primetime, "St. Pierre vs. Hardy", on Spike. "Young Men Dead" was also included on the soundtrack for the 2011 snowboard movie The Art of Flight. "Young Men Dead" was used in the soundtrack for the 2020 video game The Last of Us: Part II.

Festival appearances by the band during this time included Lollapalooza 2007, SXSW 2006 & 2008, and All Tomorrow's Parties 2008, among others. Touring partners included the blues rock band The Black Keys, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Warlocks, Roky Erickson, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Queens of the Stone Age, The Raveonettes, Wolfmother, and The Horrors.

Between October 28 and November 2, 2008, the band performed as Roky Erickson's backing band on the West Coast. The band featured on Unkle's May 2010 release, Where Did the Night Fall, collaborating on a song called "Natural Selection".

On April 23–25, 2010, The Reverberation Appreciation Society and the Black Angels presented their third annual music-and-arts festival, Austin Psych Fest. Bands topping the 43-band bill included The Raveonettes, Pink Mountaintops, The Warlocks, The Gaslamp Killer, Warpaint, Night Beats, and Silver Apples.

The band's third album, Phosphene Dream, was released on September 14, 2010. The group played the ATP New York 2010 Music Festival in Monticello, New York, in September 2010. On Record Store Day 2011 a 12" LP titled Another Nice Pair was released, a limited edition red LP containing the band's first two EPs. Of the total records pressed, 100 were randomly inserted with a print signed by Alex Maas, Stephanie Bailey, Christian Bland, Kyle Hunt, and Nate Ryan.

The 4th annual Austin Psych Fest ran from April 29 – May 1, 2011, and was held at the Seaholm Powerplant (the last event to be held inside the building) and featured Roky Erickson, Spectrum, Omar Rodriguez Lopez Group, Atlas Sound, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Prefuse 73 and A Place To Bury Strangers topping a lineup of 55 bands.

The band's fourth album, Indigo Meadow, was released on April 2, 2013, and they embarked on a tour across the United States in May 2013 in support of the album.

In February 2014, the Black Angels recorded a version of "Soul Kitchen" for A Psych Tribute to the Doors, released by Cleopatra Records.

The 7th annual Austin Psych Fest was held during May 2–4, 2014 at Carson Creek Ranch next to the Colorado River and featured a rare Friday night performance from the legendary 1960s baroque pop band The Zombies, The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre performing together on the same stage, the psychedelic folk band Quilt, the electronica duo Peaking Lights, Temples, Sleepy Sun, The War on Drugs, Loop, and an incendiary performance from Japanese drone rock band Acid Mothers Temple in which several instruments were lit on fire.

On July 22, 2014, the Black Angels released their EP, Clear Lake Forest.

In December 2014, the Black Angels released a split single, along with Sonic Jesus, called "Molly Moves My Generation".

The 8th annual Austin Psych Fest, now renamed Levitation, was held from May 8–10, 2015 at Carson Creek Ranch and featured an impressive lineup, including a rare 50th anniversary reunion of pioneering Texas psychedelic rock band The 13th Floor Elevators, The Flaming Lips, Tame Impala, The Jesus and Mary Chain's 30th anniversary performance of Psychocandy in its entirety,
Spiritualized, Primal Scream, and Earth. Melody's Echo Chamber and Rose Windows were scheduled to perform, but Rose Windows announced their breakup prior to the event and Melody's Echo Chamber had travel issues and had to cancel.

The band released their fifth album, Death Song, in April 2017. They released their sixth album, Wilderness of Mirrors, on September 16, 2022.

08/16/2026

08/12/2026

Today was THE day back in 1972. Yep, Willie Nelson's first performance at the Armadillo World Headquarters (say that in Jim Franklin's MC voice, please) and Micael Priest created the poster for it. This poster was the ONLY one that Eddie ever gave instructions for the design...he'll tell you about that when next you see him. The photo shared here of Willie on stage is a very rare shot of that performance taken by Burton Wilson on that August night.

Listen to this song clip from 1961 of Willie performing his hit song CRAZY while you read Michael Corcoran's description of that first AWHQ gig - written on August 10, 2022 for Texas Highways Magazine: https://youtu.be/OnYEQbEHNZE?si=mOMBUmVdsok_Nd2j

With the Vietnam War still raging in the summer of 1972, there was a cultural chasm that seemed too wide to cross in Texas: Longhairs weren’t welcome in honky-tonks, and cowboys didn’t mingle with “peaceniks.” But five words built a bridge.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Willie Nelson!”

On Aug. 12, 1972, a short-haired, clean-shaven Nelson stepped onto the stage of a counterculture haven and changed country music. Roughly half the crowd of 400 came to the Armadillo World Headquarters that night to see opening act Greezy Wheels, a local favorite, while the other half was split evenly between hardcore country fans who usually saw Willie at the Broken Spoke and the hippies in cowboy hats curious to see the country Bob Dylan.

“Willie seemed a little nervous before he came out,” recalls Cleve Hattersley of Greezy Wheels. “Nobody knew what to expect, but as soon as he started singing ‘Hello Walls’ and all his other songs that had been hits for others, it was complete adoration from the crowd.”

Country acts usually played for their contracted amount of time— between an hour and 90 minutes—but Willie, bassist Bee Spears, and drummer Paul English played for almost three hours. And nobody left. As the divergent groups of people filed out together post-show, drenched in the sweat of satisfaction, they realized they had more in common than they thought.

Willie’s first concert at the Armadillo—50 years ago this Friday—was the Big Bang of Austin being known as a music mecca. The word on this groovy bohemian cowboy scene got out via dispatches in Rolling Stone from Chet Flippo, a grad student attending UT on the G.I. Bill.

Eleven months after his ’Dillo debut, Nelson and friends drew 40,000 to his first Fourth of July Picnic in Dripping Springs, just west of Austin. “Outlaw country,” “cosmic cowboy,” “progressive country”—whatever you called it—had become a national fascination. Everyone was singing about “Willie and Waylon and the boys,” from No. 1 single “Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)” by Waylon Jennings, who followed Willie to the Armadillo.

But the groundwork for the comingling of good ol’ boys and hippies was laid years earlier by Kenneth Threadgill, who played every Sunday night at the Split Rail Inn from 1965-72. A country beer joint on South Lamar, the Rail was “where the heads meet the necks,” an unofficial slogan.

Threadgill was a hardcore country singer, a throwback to Jimmie Rodgers and Hank Williams, but he often had longhairs in his band. He was known, after all, as the guy who mentored rock star Janis Joplin at his Threadgill’s Tavern on North Lamar in 1962.

After his Armadillo bow, Willie became the main force and spiritual guide of what this new musical movement has become. He was always a different kind of Nashville artist, singing around the beat and playing gypsy jazz guitar. But after years of wearing a suit, trying to fit in, Willie moved to where his true audience was. His new best friend Leon Russell, a former studio musician who had gone through a similar cultural transformation, was a model for the country outlaw look.

When Armadillo honcho Eddie Wilson heard that Willie, wife Connie, and the kids had moved into an apartment in Austin in July 1972, he made it his mission to book Nelson into his hippie beer barn. It wasn’t hard. Willie stopped by the Armadillo not long after his utilities had been turned on. As detailed in Wilson’s Armadillo World Headquarters memoir, Willie just showed up one afternoon. “I’ve been looking for you,” said Wilson. To which Nelson replied, “Well, you found me.”

07/31/2026

Miceal Priest (1951-2018) designed this very popular poster for a 1982 Grateful Dead show at the Manor Downs, just east of Austin, Texas. The central image features a skeletal jockey feeding his equally skeletal horse what appears to be an acid-laced sugar cube. Consequently, this poster is sometimes referred to as “Sugar Cube,” and this poster can be difficult to find because it was actually rejected by the band for the drug reference and was not used to promote the show.

Here's a photo of Manor Downs racetrack where Frances held some real important concerts, including the 2nd Farm Aid show.

The tickets for the show were $10.

Austin-based artist Micael Priest was known for his iconic laconic style of drawing. Quick witted and with an incredible sense of humor, Micael drew his way through life. “Priest was a walking, talking, real-life cowboy hippie cartoon character artist,” offers Kerry Awn. “Ink ran through his veins. When he came to town he changed everything just by being himself. He never heard a story he couldn’t embellish, an experience he couldn’t top, nor a chance to let you in on a pearl of wisdom spoken in a down-home manner so thick you might have thought it was all an act. It wasn’t. He was an original.”

Manor Downs was a horse track outside Austin owned by Frances Carr, who was a close friend of the Dead. The band played there first in 1977, then again in 1981, 1982, 1983, and 1985. July 31 was the day before Jerry Garcia’s birthday, and the band hit Austin after three nights at Red Rocks. It was 900 miles away, only to turn around and head back up to Oklahoma City for a 2pm show the next day, but Manor Downs was Sam Cutler - Cutler had been the Dead’s tour manager Dead for a number of years - and so they were visiting friends. Indeed the show, has been officially recognized as the 1982 entry on the "30 Trips Around the Sun” box set, went to 1:30am with the party no doubt continuing on to celebrate Jerry’s 40th birthday!

Here’s a link to a film the show:
https://youtu.be/gUn3UYfDvQU?si=azWLiOjL1Rr1br9J
The set list included:
Alabama Getaway, Promised Land, Candyman, El Paso, Bird Song, Little Red Rooster, Ramble on Rose, It's All Over Now, Brown Eyed Women, Music Never Stopped, Deal, Scarlet Begonias, Fire on the Mountain, Estimated Prophet, Eyes of the World, Uncle John's Band, Truckin', Morning Dew, One More Saturday Night, Don't Ease Me In

07/18/2026

We are watching Scott Conn's 2007 documentary titled Dirt Road to Psuchedelia at the Gilbert Shelton echibit downtowm at 506 Congress.

07/18/2026

A look into last Sunday’s salon where Sam Hurt, Ngozi Ukazo, Billy Perkins, and Alan Schaefer spoke about ’s influence at the exhibition at the Austin Museum of Popular Culture! Many thanks to Arts+Labor for the video!

07/18/2026

This was another really fun time at the exhibit!

07/17/2026

Saturday is going to be a real fun day over at 506 Congress.
First of all it is the last Saturday of the special exhibit co-curated with Gilbert Shelton Comix titled “Poddy Rules The World: Gilbert Shelton’s Underground Comix & Art”. What a great day to come see the exhibit and there’s no admission fee! Hours are 10am to 5pm

Second, at 2pm tomorrow AusPop will screen “Dirt Road To Psychedelia” the documentary created by filmmaker Scott Conn in 2007 that explores what lead up to and the creation of the Vulcan Gas Company. Scott Conn will be on hand to talk about his project. There will be popcorn and cold drinks!

This project is supported in part by an Elevate Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment.

This project is also supported in part by a grant from Humanities Texas. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or Humanities Texas.