I am the queen of the secondhand "great idea"—I always come across simple, fantastic ideas that I can't believe I didn't think of first. The "Austin Unsigned: Austin's Best Kept Secrets" cd series is a great example of those forehead-slapping moments.

The series' first disc harbors ten varied tracks from local musicians like Blake and Fallon, Topher Williams and Dave Madden.  One of my favorite local groups that I've mentioned on this blog before, Meridianwest, also graces the album. (And not only that, they were also chosen as one of the seven bands to watch in 2007 by Austin Monthly magazine AND they've been asked to open for Dave Matthews Band this summer.)

The plight of Austin Complications and this disc specifically is pretty obvious—to get talented Austin musicians some much-deserved attention and help pave the way toward a record label contract. And as icing on the proverbial cake, participating artists do receive earnings from the sale of these discs.

Listen to snippets of Austin's most promising artists here before picking up your copy of Volume I.