Red Eyed Fly

I have only recently started coming here, but will be coming more as more awesome shows are added! Drinks and service are great! Live sound is great! Door guy isnt a douche! Bathroom isnt too terrible and drinks arent too pricey! Satisfied customer!

Just another live music joint in Austin, true. But small enough to be intimate. Dirty enough to be believable. Good service. Good staff. This one of those places you could come across a real gem of a performance on any given night. This is what makes Austin, well, Austin.
Cheap beer too! Just go!

Dive atmosphere at best. Yet, I will say that I have been three times and I have always enjoyed myself there. Management should open the outside up in the winter, to get fresh air in the concert hall.

Incredibly divey place, wait staff was okay. Came to watch a friend play but was kinda hard to hear them due to the power band playing in the back room.
Limited places to sit but the couches are pretty comfortable. Overall, not a bad place, not a great place.
Check it out and see if it fits your preferred scene.

New ownership that is more about music and less about profiting off of bands. Punk Rock Tuesday is every Tuesday, first band is shortly after 9pm so dont be late. Once more of the top local punk bands get in on the rotation its gonna be the real deal. Currently you get a mix of newer young bands and great seasoned bands and some Tuesdays it may be all rookies. but support our punk scene and keep Austin punk. Tuesday’s you know where to find the punk chillers.

Watching the Black Pistol Fire #sxsw event first band to start this the 2015 music scene. Ready to enjoy local and interesting bands passing through the Capitol of Texas.

Dear mr. Bartender in the douchbag hipster hat 2 sizes too small for your swollen head:
You might want to consider remembering you’re in the service industry thus you are there to serve and give customers what they ask for… that’s how you make tips. All I asked for was a slice of orange in my vodka and soda. Here was your reply: «Nope. No such thing». Really?
Guess what. Here’s your tip: keep your misery to yourself and serve your customers.
This place is depressing. So many other places in Austin to have a few drinks and listen to music without having to deal with staff who think its cool to be an a-​hole.

Sound guy gives band great quality music! Though venue itself dirty, dust and bugs all over making me sneeze and throat feel tight. If your allergic to dust don’t come here or have strict breathing restrictions.

Below average as far as downtown Austin live music venues. Stage is horrible, sound system is old and run down, and the ‘stage lighting’ consists of half a dozen red LED party lights. While Austin’s live music bars consistently fall short of what I experience in other cities around the country, this one is wayyyyy down the list.

This is a common stop for the hubby and I when around Red River. The drinks are cheap, the bartender has become a «friend» over time, and they don’t mind a bit that we carry our Deer Dogs in from the Hot Dog King truck next door and nosh at the bar.
Good music on the jukebox; or live on inside stage. Live music in the «backyard“as well for a small cover. The Fly brings in some hard core, top notch, up and coming bands. With two stages, if you’re searching for live music this might be your spot.
Nice #ATX downtown spot.

This is a fun bar, when it’s going off or even just for a quick drink. The barstaff is helpful and friendly… and also pretty quick!
There are two stages — one inside and a larger one out back, this one is covered and even has some studio sound proofing foam behind where the band plays, so the acoustics are not bad.
The drinks are very inexpensive… one night I was here with friends before a Stubbs concert, and they had a special on white wine… so we each had a bottle!
This is a great place for SXSW. Thought it gets very packed, they showcase great bands and it was all free.
The door guy is also really cool — he won’t hesitate to give up a cigarette or let you know about different Austin type stuff going down.
Looking forward to coming back!

I hate this place! Rude and unfriendly door guys! If you want to see a show… go to EMO’S!!! Also mixed drinks are overpriced and they underpoor :()

I’ve passed by Red Eye Fly for many years, but have never ventured in, despite the many great bands I’ve heard playing there. I’m sorry I’ve missed out on this place.
Came here first time this weekend to see a friend of a friend’s band perform. Quickly found out there were two stage areas — front part right off the street where a doorman checks your ID, then a back area where I guess you pay for shows. Back area is mostly standing room only, with a side area for seating.
Price was a good $ 5, not sure how much of that goes to the bands, but if the soundman gets a cut, he needs to be ashamed because the sound was atrocious the evening I went there. I won’t slag REF for that though, unless I find it a constant problem.
Beer selection (at least out back) was limited, but it was cheap, and they take credit/​debit cards. I can’t be sure, but I don’t think they had hard liquor in the back.
I’ll probably come back sometime to check out the music in the front area. I’ll definitely also make an effort to come see the bigger acts when they come through here, so long as they get the sound situation figured out.
Next trip, I’ll also pay closer to attention to the details — no idea what the front part really looked like as we made a beeline from front to back and then back to outside when the gig was over, so I’ve no clue if this is a bar I’d come in for a few pints after work, or if it’s primarily a music venue. I think with a couple return visits, I can bump this review up another star…

There’s not a whole lot to say about most downtown Austin bars in general. The differences between most of the herd – particularly around the 6^th Street area – are subtle. I had the chance to visit Red Eyed Fly with a good friend a few weeks ago to watch her friend’s band. The band, whose name I can’t even recall, was OK. I came out of the place with an overall pleasant experience. So to review a bar like this, I think it needs to be boiled down to a few key elements, so here we go:
~The beer was cold, and cheap.
~The bartenders were friendly, and I struck up light banter with them when they weren’t busy.
~The back patio where the stage is, was pretty nice.
~And, (because I’m 99% single) there were some hot girls there.
The friendly bartenders, and the killer back porch knocked the star rating from an otherwise three to a four. Ice cold PBR’s, decent but forgettable bands, and hot chicks– what’s not to love? I’ll be back, for sure!

I’m a skivey amp junkie from way back, so this divey booze-​soaked band batcave was always gonna sit well with me.
We were here to catch a couple of SXSW acts: MØ, HAERTS and Sky Ferreira. First up was the grimy front room, all low ceiling, red lights and suss couches up near the entrance. Wonder how many groupies have been boned on those bad boys. A few judging by the stains. This might be sounding pretty grotty but it’s not, this is grassroots, Lone Star, no-​cover suburban rock’n’roll at it’s finest.
Out back is another stage with a roof, a bar, and open sides for the fresh air to stream in and flush out the jenky stench from the pit (I’m looking at you, inappropriate headbanger girl. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Who headbangs to soft rock? Not indie kids, that’s for damned sure.)

The name? hate it.
The hotter than hades inside? hate it.
The mickeys available at the bar? hate it.
Yet despite the mental anguish caused by this spot, somehow we always manage to have a good time. They’ve got a kickin’ sound system, a solid bar staff, free water (thank you god) and consistent toilet paper.
The drinks are cheap, the bartenders are friendly and not surly and they book good tunes. Also know that it’s a total dive, you’ll most likely be flashing some skin to move people out of the way and they’ll check your purse a little too carefully. It is what it is and what it is aint bad for red river.

I’ve been to this bar twice on the weekends lately. I won’t say anything about the bands because it all depends on your personal taste. It seemed everyone knew how to play their instrument. The back stage charges it’s own cover and everyone is right, the sound system isn’t great, but it’s very loud. The front bar is a good volume, if you bring a friend you would like to speak to without shouting, you can do so.
Pros:
Good atmosphere and furniture
Good food truck and pizza place nearby
They have copies of the Onion which I like to read during lame bands
No cover for the front bar/​front stage
Cons:
A previous reviewer was correct. The lone bar tender for Saturday night really discourages you from buying any drinks. I only got two, barely, and I stopped there because I just didn’t want to deal with him anymore. He’s a typical tough-​guy: tattooed, lots of attitude, lame hat, probably from Chicago. If you’re from the North and used to dealing with dicks when you go out instead of being treated with respect by Texans who had mothers that raised them with manners, you’ll fit right in with this guy. This guy must have no brains, at least pretend to be friendly so you can make some sales and tips. And there’s no «this is a rock bar, so they’re not friendly.» It’s just bad business sense all around. Do your job and make some money or stay home.
People have been bringing in their own booze because no one wants to deal with the dick bartender, so the bouncer searches purses. The last time I just didn’t bring my purse. He didn’t search under my big coat.
The first time I went it was nice and the doors were open which I liked. The last time I went it was 32 degrees the doors were still open. The back area had a couple rinky-​dink heaters but it didn’t do much. I was hoping the band would be good and attract a lot of people who would warm up the place, but that didn’t happen. Maybe I should have anticipated this and worn more layers. If you’re a guy and get turned-​on looking at women in coats and hats, you’re going to love this bar in the winter.
In conclusion, I think this bar largely makes survives off bands who have a lot of personal friends and family members supporting them. That combined with limited staff. They don’t exist because of quality of experience.

I not sure why I have some residual bad jui-​jui about Red Eye Fly, maybe it is because they are partially responsible for the fact that I can never drink gin and tonic again. But I am trying to get over it.
I went there last night and had a really good time: my Bombay and orange was a mere $ 5 and Lone Star tall boys $ 3.
I paid my cover, $ 5, and told the door man which band I was there for. As Paul G. said, telling the door person who you’re there for directly affects the bands future bookings, so it is important.
As others have said, the sound is not the best. It sounded especially poor last night, though that may not have been the venue or sound person’s fault. I have seen other friends band there and they have sounded really good. Staff was friendly, nice, and funny. Apparently, the door guy had to check my TEENY purse for flasks, weapons, or grenades. Too bad I didn’t have my taser in there…
Women’s restroom is fine, much better than most places downtown; I especially like that my stall had a purse hanger and a mirror.
Star breakdown: 1 star for being a decent live music venue, 1 star for good prices, 1 star for good bathroom. One extra star for the cool «band incubation» process. I think knowing that REF is really trying to help new bands launch will go along way towards healing our fractured relationship (I do miss gin and tonics).

This is a very important venue to the Austin music scene, and not many people understand why. Understanding, though, is key to understanding the scene and why it is so challenging to have a good band in Austin.
REF isn’t the most prestigious, doesn’t have the best sound or the best lighting, it doesn’t have a built-​in or trendy clientele, and it doesn’t attract A-​list bands. If you want to see bands like Faster Pussycat and Marcie Playground, this is the place you are likely to do it at. That is part of what makes it awesome :)
But what makes Red Eyed Fly distinctive is its status as a jumping-​off point for brand-​new bands. Anyone with a band can book Red Eyed Fly, but 9 times out of 10 they have to go through «the process» — they will book you Sunday-​Wednesday. If you draw 30 people (they ask at the door), you are eligible to play a Thursday. If on Thursday you draw 40 people, you are eligible to play Friday or Saturday. These hoops you jump through get you into the habit of working hard to promote your band (a great habit that most bands shirk), in order to attain the goal of booking a great gig night with other bands that also promote and be exposed to their fan base, thus multiplying your own.
It’s a good proving ground. My band is better and stronger for having started out there and gone through the wringer. It took us two tries to clear the Thursday hurdle, and failing once was a rude awakening to how hard we would need to work to achieve what we wanted to achieve, especially since none of us were veterans of the Austin scene with big groups of friends and fans from ten years of past bands.
This process has been undermined, ironically, by Austin’s own reputation as the «live music capital of the world.» As this reputation contributes to the population boom, lots of dinky little music venues have started opening (and closing just as quickly) trying to catch lightning in a bottle and cash in on the flood of burnouts with guitars moving into the Metroplis every week. It is easy to book a weekend at these clubs if you meet the right shady manager/​promoter and promise him a «kickass show,» even if your band is pure shit and has never played a gig.
These pretenders to the rock ‘n’ roll throne dilute the scene into impotence with their misunderstanding of how to build a band. They see packed houses at the Red Eyed Fly, Emos, Mohawk, and Red 7 on Friday and Saturday nights, then play to empty houses on Tuesday night, and they take the absolute wrong lesson from it. They assume that there is something totemic about the weekend, and that if they can just play a Friday or Saturday night, wherever that gig may be, they don’t have to hand out a single flier, text a single friend, or post a single Facebook update, and still they’ll play to crowds of rowdy kids just dying to be converted to die-​hard fans of their three-​piece experimental atonal metal band vying for a Line6 endorsement.
As such, instead of fighting for gigs at a handful of worthwhile venues like Red Eyed Fly or Headhunters, build a fan base, then keep them, and band together with other bands that they respect and can be friends with, tons of mediocre-​to-​awful bands are allowed to form around the indulgent and lazy visions of weak musicians, who drag their 10 friends (who should be checking out new bands at Emos or the Fly) to a dead hole-​in-​the-​wall with atrocious sound and a stage the size of a postage stamp, and while away a pathetic, moribund existence (similar to the limited days of those weak clubs), leaving those friends jaded about the quality of bands and musicianship Austin has to offer (and that will be the last show they go to downtown for a month).
Some bands complain about not getting a fair shake from the Fly — you hear stories about being gyped at the door, treated rudely, whatever. Cry me a river. If you draw you get decent money. Like every band is populated by saints. That’s the business. In the meantime, the Fly has an important lesson to teach anyone who dreams of having a pro band. Most musicians these days just don’t want to listen.

Not only does Austin have a music venue seemingly on every corner, but many of the venues have not just one, but TWO stages. Usually one indoor, one outdoor, making for a perfect setup for music events/​festivals (when one band ends, another can begin, allowing venues to squeeze in more bands and cut down on lag time between sets).
Inside, there was your typical dive bar stage setup (not a bad thing, of course), but I particularly liked Red Eyed Fly’s outdoor stage, partially encased in a barn and spilling out to a sunny courtyard. Very rustic and old-​timey, aptly matched by the lovely banjo + strings folk music being performed on the stage while I was there. Pair that with a tall can of Lonestar and, well, you’d be drinking Lonestar at a really cool music venue in Texas. Not a bad life.