SXSW Music Wrap Up
For those of you who aren't familiar, SXSW is the biggest music festival in the U.S., happening over five days and four nights each year in gorgeous Austin, Texas. More than 1,200 bands play the fest while thousands of music industry folks and fans run amok in true Spring Break style. We're sure at least some business gets done, but overall it's an excuse to stay out late, hang with your friends and (over)indulge in margaritas and tasty Tex-Mex food.
After unsuccessfully requesting a last minute press badge, we headed to Austin with only our hopes and the coveted free party list. We don't know who compiles the free party list, but we thank the gods each year when some kind soul forwards us a copy. All of the official showcases happen at night and require an expensive badge or wristband for entrance, but the free parties happen during the daytime when press, record, marketing, and Internet companies rent out a venue, serve free beer and get great bands to play. We figured we could see enough free music during the daytime to warrant our trip down south. Luckily our thoughtful friend John Doe saved a wristband for us, so by Thursday afternoon we had access to the evening showcases too. (John's new record Forever Hasn't Happened Yet was released today. Read more about it here.)
We admit it's a bit strange to travel all the way to Texas just to hang out with our San Francisco friends, but we had SFist content on our minds. Arriving late Wednesday night, we managed to find SFist Jackson for a few minutes before our hunger drove us further down 6th Street for sustenance. During dinner at Paradise, a nondescript college burger and beer joint, none other than Joanna Newsom swanned past us in her colorful regalia. She was cozied up at the bar with a beau, whose identity we would discover later. Having not yet gotten our free wristband, we wandered about, unable to see any shows, and called it an early night.
We actually see some live music, after the jump.
Thursday morning kicked off with some hearty and cheap breakfast tacos, a delicacy that California food menus are regrettably lacking. WOXY's LoungeLive party was our first stop, where we caught Feist's solo set. The Canadian chanteuse and Broken Social Scene-member opened for Kings of Convenience last week in San Francisco to an enthusiastic and packed crowd. She played a similar set in the outdoor patio of Austin's Blind Pig Pub, with her warm, raspy, Raitt-like vocals and smooth electric guitar, looping and layering her own voice and guitar parts until you forgot she was playing solo. Feist will be opening for Apostle of Hustle and Stars at Bimbo's on March 26 -- get your tickets now and show up early.
We dug the one song we heard by The National after Feist's set, but had to run off to Emo's to support our friends at Devil in the Woods and Tag Team Media and see a song or two by Tegan and Sara. The next stop was the party for local label Jackpine Social Club, along with Download.com and some other dot-com sponsors that we can't recall now. You know a party is hot when it's a cab ride away from all the other festivities, you have to be on the guest list to enter, and it's still packed. That could have something to do with the amazing talent they had lined up to play, including The Oranges Band (on Lookout!), American Music Club and The Wrens. From there we went to dinner with our friend who produced Spoon, Sound Team and Trail of Dead, begging him for a copy of the new Spoon record, to no avail. Our final stop of the evening was the Yep Roc showcase to support our friends Ian Moore and John Doe, whose set included a surprise duet with special guest Exene Cervenka, in town to perform with her band the Original Sinners. We were invited to the Nylon party next door which apparently raged past 5 a.m., but perhaps it's a sign of our old age that sleep sounded more enticing.
Friday morning began at BMI's Annual Acoustic Brunch at the Four Seasons. Spread across the sunny back lawn of the Four Seasons was a buffet of breakfast tacos, home fries, fruit and breads, and free-flowing coffee and mimosas. This is purportedly a guest-list-only event, but there is no one monitoring the door so the food was gone an hour into it. We caught up with old bosses and old clients, and then headed to find some real food with our friends Blu Sanders and JW from BMI NYC. After lunch we stopped in by the Filter party to listen to Stars play songs from their incredible record and catch some of Embrace's emotional britpop. Fab Filter rep Penny filled us in on the dangers of blogging from your Sidekick as the afternoon and the free drinks stretch into the evening. What is it about those Sidekicks that inspires scandal? Next, we waited in line to get into the packed SPIN party at Stubb's, armed with our VIP badge courtesy of our former V2 compadre Karla. Once inside we heard the end of Bloc Party's set and the first few songs from the New York Dolls. After pondering whether David Johansen has less body fat than Iggy Pop, we got hungry and headed to Scholz Beer Garden to see some Texas music and eat some grub.
Friday evening began at Antone's for the Billions showcase, starting with Oakland's The Heavenly States. The crowd was stunned into attention by the States' rock violin pop noise celebration. By the end of the set, the band had proven why Rolling Stone recently put them on their Hot List. We went backstage to say hello to Ted, Genevieve, Jeremy and Rob (formerly of Eleventeen), only to discover a who's who lounging about. Jolie Holland sat on the couch with David Dondero, across the room from Ms. Newsom hip-to-hip with Smog's Bill Callahan. (Note to SFist editor: time to spring for another digital camera.) Next stop was the gorgeous Crowne Plaza venue to see the Ditty Bops, a vaudevillian duo due to play San Francisco this Friday. Don't miss their schtick-y sweet set at the Independent. We caught a bit of Erase Errata's sweaty prog-rock recital before ending the evening at Centro-matic's rock show. On our way out of the club, we ran into the mayor of SF indie rock, John Vanderslice, who gave us one of his trademark bear hugs and wished us a safe ride home.
Having an early plane to catch on Saturday afternoon, we caught a ride from our hotel with the Nick Luca Trio down to the Yard Dog party sponsored by Harp Magazine. As people took advantage of the free beer and free Southern Comfort hurricanes, we hung out with our friends Brandon from Messenger Records, Nick from Jackpine and Rosemary Pepper from Dogster, and again Mr. Doe, who ended his set with a cover of "Money (That's What I Want)," dedicating it to all the bands who played SXSW. "$175 for six shows in three days," he sang, alluding to the amount SXSW pays each showcasing band. Perhaps he should have learned from the ingenuity a friend's band, who shall remain nameless and blameless, who sold their wristbands on Craiglist for $150-200 each, funding their trip from San Francisco to Austin and back. We like their style.
John Doe album cover from the Yep Roc site. Other photos by Jason Blalock.