Tag Archives: Austin

Concerts, SXSW

SXSW Day 4: Cold Weather Doesn’t Stop Hot Rock

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The last day of SXSW proved to be much chillier than what I expected down here in Austin, Texas.  Winter wasn’t going out with  a band just yet and on the first day of Spring, a cold northern wind and storm brought things back to winter like conditions.  I speculated before the night time shows that the crowds would thin out.  I was only partially right, which is a testament to all of the  music fans who showed for SXSW.

During the day I hit up some of the SXSW sponsored and witnessed some free flowing music, along with some free flowing drinks.  I recharged at the IFC Crossroads house, hit a local pizza joint, and then headed out for the night shows.  By the time the winds calmed down, the night time air was more than manageable.  I didn’t stay out until 2 am, but we did get another full day of tunes under the belt.  Here’s the good stuff of what I saw:

  • The first stop for the day saw us hit the Soho Lounge for an Mpress Records Showcase.  The Meiko Canon played along and while they didn’t blow my lid off, the mix of folk and rock along with the female vocal marked a good start for concert going.
  • After a quick detour to the day stage at the conference center, we hung out at the Hauge party tent.  Nicad played and picked up the energy even more.  The lead singer push his voice toward Weird Al Yankovic territory while the punk rock rythms flowed through.
  • The Capital Records tent next door kicked off shorthly thereafter and I had a couple of drinks while watching Mackintosh Braun.  My interest didn’t pick up until they played their last song.  The synth and keyboard filled ambient noise washed over a baning drum set.  It’s worth checking them out.
  • I had a thirst for more food and drink so I went to the Aussie BBQ Showcase at Maggie Mae’s.  Andy Clockwise cursed like a sailor and rocked out like a soldier.   What better way to get your blood flowing to keep you warm than a nice hard rock set in the middle of the day?
  • The show off the night was at the Billboard.com Bungalow.  Street Sweeper Social Club brought down the tent with its funk infused rock and covers set.  Little known fact:  Tom Morrello of Rage Against the Machine just happens to be the guitarist.  Oh and it showed too.  That guy is an official guitar god in my eyes.
  • Hoofing it over to the Alehouse, I was expecting some Celtic music from the Mighty Steph.  What I got was a blues/country/irish mix of music that sat perfectly with the run down atmosphere of the joint.  If I ever need to just get drunk alone in a dank bar, I will be sure to play the Mighty Steph when I do so.
  • Finally, the last set of SXSW for me saw it being performed in the most fitting of places: the Driskell Hotel Cafe.  The Wave Machines are a British band from Liverpool and they sound like the evolution of another Liverpool band, the Beatles.  They had an impressive collection of drum machines, synths, and all things electric.  But they also had the standard rock setup of drums, guitar, and piano.  The didn’t go overboard on the instruments, however, picking and choosing the right piece for the right song.  All of it smooth, poppy, and dancy.  A great way to finish SXSW.
Concerts, SXSW

SXSW Day 1: Music Blast Off!

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Okay Day 1 of SXSW Music saw myself kick into full swing of the tunes here in Austin.  It also helped that it was St. Patrick’s Day.  Naturally, me and my lovely girlfriend started out the Irish way and then ended up in the good ole nonprofit way.  In between shows, we checked some cool local shops.  But the important thing stuff was the shows.  So let’s get to it.

St. Patrick’s Day is a day celebrated by Irish alcoholics across the world.  So what better way to do so than at the British Music Embassy at Latitude 30.  The only band the caught my eye was And So I Watch From Afar.  Those guys did some instrumental rock riffs that rival that of Kyuss.  I also enjoyed a lovely pint of Guiness in celebration.  Great times indeed.

We hit up the shops and then the convention center to get our SXXpress pass for the NPR Music Showcase.  The lineup was huge and we made our way to Stubb’s BBQ about 2 hours before the show.  The line was already long so we were glad to use the new pass types and be first inside the show!  The outdoor venue is a great place to watch bands and also snack down on some great BBQ, even though it’s not as good Kansas City.

The first two bands were alright.  Visqueen opened up with some rock that didn’t put me to sleep.  The Walkmen stepped on stage next and they rocked out in an almost Coldplay type style.  The lead singer hit the high notes well but really didn’t punch it through on the emotional side of things. The next three bands were the ones we really wanted to see.

Broken Bells is a collaboration of Danger Mouse and James Mercer.  They had a tough act to follow but they mellowed things out for the final performance.  The esoteric nature of their songs led to us jamming out but for some reason it didn’t fit perfectly with the line up.  It seems this is more headphone music than concert music.  That said, I’m anxious to sit down and listen to this album when I get back.

Spoon was the last show of the night and the Austin based rocked out pretty well.  We didn’t stay for the whole show and I missed the one song I really wanted to hear from them.  The show was swinging, however.  The crowd head bobbed pretty well even though they played until after 1am.  All in all good stuff from these guys.

The show of the night was Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings.  The soul funk from Brooklyn had the crowd moving the whole time on stage.  Sharon Jones held the crowd in her hands and pulled strings of funk for the whole set.  If you ever want to get your funk down, check them out.  You won’t regret it.  And you won’t regret tuning in tomorrow for the next update.  Until then, off to more shows!

SXSW

SXSW is not an Alfred Hitchcock Movie Sequel

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Some of you may be wondering why it went all quiet around here.  Welp, we were busy getting ready for SXSW (pronunced South by Southwest).  What’s SXSW?  Only the biggest convergence of technology, film, and music this site of the hemisphere!  So this blog started out as an extension of my love for music and only fully realized itself because I needed to keep track of bands I wanted to see down there.

So with that said, I’m heading down there road trip style to cover all that SXSW has to offer.  Being a first timer, I’m no where near sure how things will shake out during and after the conference.  A couple of things I have coming down the pike include my own music, more reviews of SXSW bands, more reviews of mainstream bands, and a few surprises.  Hit me on Twitter if you are heading down to Austin as well or just think I have a kick ass Twitter background.  In the meantime, rock out to some Motorhead.  They are going to be there.

[audio:http://146.190.132.255/audio/Motorhead_AceOfSpades.mp3]
Music, SXSW

Getting Some Sweet Floating Action

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Floating Action is actually the new moniker of musician Seth Kauffman.  Kauffman wrote and played most of the material and his supporting band mates take over on the road.  Hey, you can’t do everything on the stage.  These guys will trot on down to Austin, Texas for SXSW 2010.  This laid back dude sounds perfect for the chill portion of the music showcase.

So I’ve been accustomed to saying “this is the English version of this” or “this is the Swedish version of that.”  Welp it’s time to turn it around a bit.  This is the AMERICAN version of The Band of Bees.  The Band of Bees are a laid back Spanish group that goes out to left field and hangs out there for a couple of hours until it gets hungry and comes strolling back.  So Floating Action are like that, except these guys are from Black Mountain in the good ole USA.  Check out “50 Lashes.”

[audio:http://146.190.132.255/audio/FloatingAction_50Lashes.mp3]
Music, SXSW

I Follow The Law to a T

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The Law doesn’t come from the books, it comes from Dundee, Scotland. These scrappy chaps got together using their love for Joe Strummer and The Clash to glue them together. It’s a fairly young band, with most of their material showing up last year. Already, though, they are building up steam, unlike the dormant volcano from which they got their name. The Law will be making their way to Austin, Texas next month for SXSW 2010.

You know how some things end up being catchy and no matter how hard you try to figure out why, you still can’t put your finger on it? Yeah. It’s that with a Scottish Rock flavor to it. There’s a hint of Supergrass with a strong scent of Jimmy Eat World in there somewhere. I could be completely wrong. It doesn’t matter, my toes are tapping by the end of each song. Check out “The Chase.”

[audio:http://146.190.132.255/audio/TheLaw_TheChase.mp3]