The ABGB is a new venue in Austin since August last year, and I had a great evening there last night. First I saw Jane Bond, whom I haven’t seen for many years, and after a quick walk up to Maria’s Taco XPress to see Leeann Atherton, it was back to see Rick Broussard and his band Two Hoots and a Holler.

Rick is to me the quintessence of an Austin musician. He plays rock, country, cajun, blues, whatever, in the same set, without anyone batting an eye. This kind of style agnosticism is to me the heart and soul of Austin music, dating back to the days of the Armadillo World Headquarters when Willie Nelson, The Thirteenth Floor Elevators, Frank Zappa and a jazz band could share the same stage.

Another thing that I, as a Norwegian, like about Rick Broussard, is that he has played a lot in Norway, and he has even written a song about one of our towns, Halden. This town is the closest you get to Austin in Norway, and Rick’s song “Halden (is a Hell Raisin’ Town)” describes the town pretty well.

Among the songs Rick and the band played, were Diggy Diggy Lo by J. D. Miller, and the cajun national anthem, Jolie Blon. The band is tight, and the instrumentation, with guitar, bass, accordion, steel guitar and drums fits well to the different styles.

The venue, ABGB, or Austin Beer Garden Brewing co., is located on Oltorf by the railroad tracks, and the stage is set in front of the big beer tanks. They brew excellent beer, with a wide assortment of different kinds. I didn’t test more than one of them last night, but their lager, “Hell Yes”, was real tasty.

Since this was my last night in Austin for the SXSW this time, I have to wait a year for my next visit. But I will definitely go back to ABGB next time I am in Austin. Rick Broussard may come to Norway in the summer, and he is well worth checking out.

All pictures are © Per Ole Hagen and must not be used without written permission.