SXSW Celebrates 25 Years, Part IV – By Peter Dysart

Future_of_SXSW — The future of SXSW seems well in hand.

SXSW 2011, Part 4

This report has four parts.

Friday

Another important aspect of SXSW is that it is truly an international affair, with many new and established music acts from around the world. I heard a lovely Columbian singer yesterday who was channeling the Babel Gilberto vibe but with a Central and South American sound that placed a greater emphasis on native Columbia rhythms whilst keeping some of the same electronica bossa nova found in Gilberto’s production. I’ve yet to discover this artist’s name but the search in on.

Friday afternoon I attended the Showcasing Scotland Party at the British Music Embassy and listened to a very nice unsigned Scottish band from Glasgow called PopUp. Their music is a messy mixture of Indie and Scottish folk rock and highly accessible lyrics. The band instantly gained my attention when guitarist/vocalists Adrienne Giudici took the stage and launched into some solid guitar pop. She’s gifted with a lovely voice and pulled off such an honest delivery, I was immediately pulled into the set. God, I love the Scots accent.

Whilst some of their music has a sweet and sorrowful folk edge, other songs have a more distinct Indie rock edge. In particular, “Broken Hearted” is a really nice slow burner. Give it a listen here.

From there I headed to the Billboard Bungalow showcase at Buffalo Billiards. Another set from Screaming Females has me even more sold on Marissa Paternoster and her band. During the set, I stood next to a couple of late middle-aged industry farts who looked more at home with a good whisky and a Sinatra record. They stood fixated through much of the performance, and afterwards each shook their head and asked if they’d ever seen anything stranger. “She’s like the reincarnation of Hendrix and Zappa rolled into one.” Yes, she is that much fun.

Next up, again, was The Joy Formidable at Buffalo Billiards. This was their best-attended and most enthusiastic audience yet at SXSW. Over the week, I’ve met many fans of this band, so it wasn’t a surprise that this was the show to draw us all in together. Gooner Dave, Damage, Mike Blirbis, and a few others whose names I’ve forgotten — we’re all hardcore Formidable friends and yes, we are all a bit touched by a single band at the moment and it’s so easy to understand why. We all agree that we’ve watched and listened with great interest to many other bands this week, but there’s something about this band that gets us physically engaged. So for the next 45 minutes, we fanatics jumped, pogo’d, waved our arms, pumped our fist and sang along loudly with every chorus. At the end, I was covered in sweat. There’s no question that there’s a near spiritual resonance to these performances, as there was also little question that this was the performance of the week.

OMDsetlist — The OMD post-accident set list

Maybe we should have called it a night, but I was so energised by TJF performance that I met up with Dennis and few others at Stubb’s for the OMD show at 1AM. Dennis had secured a position near front and center and as I pushed through I noticed an HD camera to the left of the stage that was going to swoop in and video the performance. We eagerly awaited what should have been a great show by these stalwart 80s synthpop innovators. But just as McCluskey and Humphreys took the stage and were about to start, something flew on stage. At first I thought people were throwing things, but out of the corner of my eye I saw something large fall swiftly. It was a huge crane assembly that held Stubb’s HD video camera. At first, McCluskey joked, but soon it was clear that this was no laughing matter. I let the video tell the rest of the story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8b-YMIvMw8&feature=related

Afterwards, Humphreys recalled the event:

Oddly, earlier that day, the morning paper had published an article calling for greater crowd control and safety measures for next year, however, aside from one or two drunks and the story of the poor crowd management at the Stroke’s show, I saw little evidence of trouble at SXSW. For the most part, people were well behaved and simply attending for the music. But what I witnessed at Stubb’s that night was nothing less than gross negligence on the part of Stubb’s and SXSW’s management. It now appears that they are blaming each other for the accident, and yes, lawsuits are in the works. Whilst that event was a sour note, it didn’t negatively colour the rest of the week.

Saturday

tjfchopshop — Ritzy Bryan ignites the crowd at the Atlantic Records Chop Shop Party.

Saturday, I woke up very late and was running on fumes most of the day. I was RSVP’d to attend the Atlantic Records/Chop Chop Party, and at 4PM, the LA-base band Kitten took stage with their quirky brand of synth and guitar noise pop that immediately the heads started turning. Should I mention that their lead singer, Chloe, is kind of a wild child? Here’s “Kitten with a Whip” — a song they did at the Pure Volume showcase a few days earlier.

http://www.purevolume.com/thehouse/kitten-live-from-the-purevolume-house

Matt's_silhouette_2 — The Joy Formidable’s Matt Thomas at the Atlantic Records Chop Shop Party.

We endured a few forgettable acts before The Joy Formidable took the stage for their last SXSW gig, but it was worth the wait. I joined my new friend, Mike Blirbis, in front of the stage and away we went on the rollercoaster again. Mike likens TJF to an addictive drug, and with the exception of hearing loss there are no other dangerous long-term effects from exposure. We knew something was up when their stage manager placed a large guitar shaped piñata behind the band’s gear. It’s nice to see bands having fun on the road, but I’ll let my video tell the rest of the story.

Pearl_and_the_Beard[1] — Pearl and the Beard in the Hilton Hotel lobby.

Later that afternoon, the wandering spirit took over and the next band we saw was Pearl and the Beard, a quirky hipster folk/rock/American soul trio from Brooklyn that was another prime example of what the SXSW ethos is all about. This is another band that has no problem with experimentation, finding edges in odd pop instruments whether they’re a kazoo or cello, and then wrapping it all up in sophisticated vocal harmonies and crafty arrangements. All I remember was that it was another great show and I’d see them again somewhere.

For some reason, I begged off of seeing special guest P Diddy at Fader Fort and opted to see an exhausted and nearly voiceless Sharron Van Etten at a local Presbyterian church. Excellent show and sorry the rest of the night was a blur.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDmvDASSnGU

Sunday morning we had to hit the road, but I was already thinking of all the acts that I had missed or needed to see much more of: Edwin Collins, Alcoholic Faith Mission, Bear Suit, Wye Oak, Esben and the Witch, Yuck, Dale Watson, Ringo Deathstar, The Belle Brigade, DeVotchKa, Smith Westerns, Surfer Blood, Edwyn Collins, Edwyn Collins, Bear Suit, etc. You get the idea. My blog will soon have more to say about Edwyn Collins and Bear Suit.

It’s been quite the experience, one I recommend very highly. Next year, I think my SXSW goal will be to see more acts, sleep less, and randomly pass out in the balmy Austin spring weather. Why not, Dennis did. I’m making plans already. See you then.

– Peter Dysart