Dear Life by Mad Whit

Best known as the guitarist for Austin’s award-winning punk outfit Sailor Poon, Mad Whit (Madison Whitaker) brings Dear Life to the screen as a paired album and visual film exploring mental illness, substance abuse, and recovery. The album and 30-minute visual album were created as companion pieces, with interludes written specifically for the film and the music shaping its emotional arc. Together, they move through the shifting highs and lows of bipolar disorder, using surrealist symbolism to explore the beauty, chaos, and complexity of a mind in recovery. Directed by Houston-based multimedia artist T Lavois Thiebaud and co-directed by Andrew Whit, the film features cameos from members of Sailor Poon and has gained interest from film festivals ahead of its planned 2027 premiere. A special one-night-only screening and Q&A will take place at The Vortex on November 1, 2026, offering an early look at the visual counterpart to Dear Life, ahead of the album’s November 6 release. This is a ticketed event. All ages, free public parking available with accessible seating. Mad Whit bio: Mad Whit is an Austin-based guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter who has collaborated with notable acts like Sailor Poon (guitar) and The Dialtones (vocals and synth), creating music that channels both chaos and catharsis. Their genre-bending sound carves out a space where raw emotion collides with technical precision: an electrifying fusion of art rock, math rock, jazz, prog, and soul that defies easy categorization. Dubbed “Sparkle-Shred” by Whitaker, their music is equal parts shimmer and snarl. This project is supported in part by an Austin Live Music Fund Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment.