Each week, independent radio journalist and  Lyndsay Knecht introduces listeners to musicians and bands who either live in Texas or were born in the Lone Star State on ‘Texas Standard’ as part of the ‘Cut In’ series. The segment airs on Thursdays during the ‘Texas Standard Round Up,’ but since Knecht is in North Texas – and a KERA alum –  we’ll also be posting her recommendations on Art&Seek.

You don’t normally find these groups on the radio, which is what makes this special. Like all musicians, these acts had to get their start somewhere.

For more than 20 years, early and established bands could learn to play their instruments, experiment with new lineups, debut new songs, and be as loud as they wanted to in the basement of J&J’s Pizza on the Square. For a long time, the staff at J&J’s put a physical calendar into the hands of anyone who wanted to book a free show. All they needed was a pen and an open box.

Last Thursday, J&J’s lost access to the basement after continued negotiations with the building’s owner. The final show in the space is Sunday. So Knecht shares an unreleased track from one artist who got his start in the basement under J&J’s, producer/DJ Gavin Guthrie (TX Connect).

TX Connect has gone on to receive international notoriety for his raw, analog-fascinated music.

You can listen to “All Night Nippon” (below) and read Guthrie’s notes on its origin as the track was made live today.

If you like what you hear, consult the L.I.E.S. Records compilation, which is featured on NPR’s First Listen and includes a TX Connect track alongside Guthrie’s contemporaries. And to learn about other acts that debuted in what became called the Ol’ Dirty Basement at J&J’s, click through the developing list below. Also, tweet @artandseek with the hashtag #BasementShow with leads on bands or artists who played their first venue show there and have some music online for perusal. There are too many collaborations and groups that played their experimental first-and-last sets in the space to count.

Music From Bands That Played Their First Shows In The Ol’ Dirty Basement At J&J’s

Bosque Brown (Fort Worth)

DJ Wild In The Streets (Denton/Dallas)

Swandiver (Denton)

Flesh Narc (Denton)

Sigh Twombly (Denton)

Layer Cake (Denton)

Manned Missles(Denton)

Spooky Folk (Denton)

Sabra Laval and Ryan Williams (Houston)

Shiny Around The Edges (Denton)

Sundae Crush (Seattle, WA)