Archive for category Music
One Month Later
It’s been about a month since I returned from SXSW and thought that it might be interesting to highlight some more music that I’ve fallen for since coming back.
Jason Lytle, from the band Grandaddy, performed a couple of songs for NPR from his soon-to-be-released solo record. I also saw him perform in Austin, and the show was great – a nice intimate show at a church! Since coming back and listening to him a little more, I’m definitely excited for his new record.
The Shout Out Out Out Out’s performed at the Canadian Blast BBQ, that I attended but decided to leave early and missed their performance. Hearing them now, I’m very disappointed that I missed the show.
I’ve seen Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s records at my favourite music store for a while now, but only now have a strong appreciation for his music. He was the guest DJ on my favourite radio podcast, and after listening to the show I’ve added him to my list of favourites.
I didn’t see these guys perform, but I did buy their most recent record when I was in Austin and love it. This album is definitely in high-rotation on my iPod.
Hipsters and Skinny Jeans, oh my!
What a great week it’s been at SXSW! I find myself feeling sad that it’s all come to an end. During the festival, walking around downtown and seeing all those people, all there for the same reason you are, they almost feel like your family! Granted, most of them were hipsters wearing skinny jeans and Ray-Ban Wayfarers, but now that it’s over you miss the skinny-jean wearing hipsters. You want to start the week over and you want the Lego back on display in the Austin Convention Centre.
Happily, this week wasn’t just about the hipsters but about some great music. Some I had heard, some I had not, but most were just fantastic! Some of the biggest surprises for me included Mother Mother, among others. I had listened to them many times before but was shocked by how great it was to watch them on stage. Ryan, the lead singer, is so animated, and Molly and Jasmin have great voices – the three of them combine to give this incredible performance!
I also caught a short performance by The Oak Ridge Boys, leading with a song containing the line “the boys are back”. Claiming to have new life injected into the band by a 32 year old producer, it sounds like the Boys are looking to make a more mainstream comeback. Their new album also contains a cover of the White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army. Using Richard Sterban’s AWESOME bass voice as the rhythm section, this remake was a lot of fun. I’m looking forward to checking out the new record.
Dlugokecki was another great find (it’s pronounced Duh-lugo-keski). They performed in this small room at the Hilton, sponsored by The Bedford in London – the Bedford was there promoting UK artists. Dlugokecki was this great band with lots of energy (some softer moments too) with lots of great drums, piano, guitar and well written lyrics. After the show, I got to meet the band members and got myself an autographed CD. I’m looking forward to getting to spend some time with it when I get home.
I’ve already written about some of the great finds from the Day Stage – performers like, Mumford & Sons, Diane Birch and Emily Wells all wowed me with their music to the point where I either already bought their CD or have added them to some list. The Day Stage was a great way to sit down, recharge (physically and electronically) and have some food while enjoying some great music.
One of the other notable moments was meeting Bob Boilen from NPR’s All Songs Considered – I listen to Bob regularly for his insight into new and exciting music (a lot of what I went to see Bob and his team had recommended). Not because he directed us to where we could find tons of free NPR swag, but it was an absolute pleasure to meet him in person and listening to All Songs will be all that more enjoyable now. (I got a pin that says, “music that’s boilen hot”. How awesome is that?)
In addition to Bob, we met some other great people too. On the first day we met a couple from Manitoba that had originally planned to get married at SXSW (!!), but plans had changed and they were just there for the music. Imagine that, eloping to SXSW? I also met a guy from London, Ontario waiting in line for the Andrew Bird show to start. He had moved from Ontario to live in the south and was there for both the Interactive and Music festivals. It was really great meeting fellow Canadians who had also made the trip to discover new music!
There were some not-so-great moments as well. There’s a whole article over at NPR which cynically describes the need for credentials, badges and wristbands. Here’s an excerpt:
SXSW access is dictated by credentials. The options are, as far as I can ascertain: all access, which involves a series of laminated badges tied to a hugely ugly lanyard; artist: a hugely ugly green lenticular slap bracelet; volunteer: a fugly XXL baby blue tee-shirt and hugely ugly bracelet; and paid visitor: a hugely ugly lenticular bracelet dispensed by a volunteer with a side of bile. In order to obtain a bracelet, one must show up at the downtown convention center and queue accordingly. Like the DMV, only more depressing. Attending SXSW as a paid visitor will cost just shy of $700.
I paid the $700 and got the badge and expected I would be granted access to any and all events without question. This, most certainly, was not the case! For most larger events there were separate lines for badge holders, but there were some events where we were sent to the back of the line behind regular ticket holders and people with wristbands. Oh, and I didn’t mention the lines for “VIPs” – if $700 doesn’t qualify you as a VIP, I don’t know what does! I will certainly make my concerns known to SXSW and cross my fingers that next year will be different.
There have been times when I thought I was close to being a hipster myself, but after spending a week in Austin for SXSW I now know that I am nowhere close to being a hipster. I guess the one thing the hipsters and I have in common is the music! I am already thinking about next year’s trip and can’t wait to be back at SXSW for 2010.
Additional Resources
All Songs Considered recaps each day at SXSW
SXSW Day Stage
The Day Stage at SXSW turned out to be a great place to see bands, give my feet a rest and eat some food. I was really surprised by the quality of some of the acts performing. There were a few in particular that really caught my attention. One was Mumford & Sons. Here’s a clip from their performance:
Another was the super-cute Emily Wells, who like a few artists I saw, was doing her own loops on stage. She has a beautiful voice and combines that with some violin, a keyboard and a toy mic. (I got an autographed CD!) Here’s a clip of Emily doing a radio show in Salt Lake City:
I also had the chance to see Diane Birch perform. She claims to be a pop singer, but you can certainly here a little country in her voice. Here’s a clip of her performing on Austin’s NBC affiliate:
Pete & The Pirates at SXSW
We stopped by the Cedar Street Courtyard yesterday evening for a pretty great night of music. The opener was a band called Pete & The Pirates from the UK. Here’s a clip of their show:
That’s the great thing about SXSW, finding bands you love that you didn’t expect to.
Blind Pilot at SXSW
The major problem at SXSW is the sheer volume of bands performing – if you can call that a problem. What ends up happening is the schedule you’ve mapped out for yourself is overloaded with artists all at the same time, in many different venues. You need to pick and chose the artists you really want to see, and if one them doesn’t work out, then you have others to fall back on. That’s sortof what happened last night.
I waited in line at Stubb’s BBQ to see Andrew Bird. I had heard great things about Andrew and his self-controlled loop building, his whistling and of course the huge spinning speakers behind him that gave off this great wah-wah effect. I was looking forward to this show! (I even met a fellow Ontarian, Keith, in line – we had a great chat about the South By event and how much fun we were having!)
Listening to Andrew Bird and checking the schedule on my Blackberry, I realize that I’m missing Blind Pilot. Coming to Austin and not seeing them would have been disappointing. So, I walked up the street to this little venue called Club DeVille, complete with outdoor loungers and sofas, grabbed a beer and waited for them to start.
The first thing I noticed about Blind Pilot is that there’s a female band member! I’ve listened to their record dozens of times and never knew there was a female in the band. (In fact, I’m listening to it right now and still don’t hear her) Doesn’t matter, she was cute and could she ever play the banjo! In addition to the banjo, there was a marimba, a double-bass and a trumpet. Such a great sound!
I love going to see great bands where I’m familiar with most of the songs. It really allows you to connect with the band and be a part of the show. I’m really happy I made the choice to move my schedule around and see them perform – It turned out to be a great night!
Here’s a short clip of the performance:
The Decemberists at SXSW
The Decemberists‘ show was part of an NPR hosted event at Stubb’s BBQ, also showcasing Heartless Bastards, and The Avett Brothers. Picture a BBQ restaurant with a stage for a backyard and hundreds of your closest friends. I’m still getting over how much of this city is geared to live music.
The main purpose for the Decemberists’ performance was to unveil their new record, The Hazards of Love. From what I could tell, all of the songs were from the new record with a couple of familiar songs in the encore, including a song from the recently released Always the Bridesmaid called A Record Year for Rainfall.
Here’s a short clip of The Decemberists’ performance at Stubb’s.
Phenomenal Handclap Band at SXSW
The Phenomenal Handclap Band was, well, phenomenal! I doubt that this clip will do the performance justice, but there were 8 people on stage and the funk beat was constant throughout the performance!
Mother Mother at SXSW
Here’s a short clip of Mother Mother’s Molly Guldemond doing her thing at the Canadian Blast BBQ.
I have to agree with this post over at NPR about muddy sound. The sound quality for this Mother Mother performance can almost be described as terrible. It wasn’t until about half-way through that the right speaker kicked in (someone forgot to pan right?), not to mention you could barely hear the great vocals of Molly and Jasmin!
Note: Apologies for sloppy video. I really don’t have great gear to shoot with.
SXSW Begins
It’s literally only been a couple of hours since landing in Austin, TX for SXSW and already great things have started to happen. I heard a group of people talking about what bands they were going to see, waiting for my connecting flight in Detroit. I met Amanda Palmer on the plane who’s playing a couple of shows this week, and of course, I promised I would be there. And, after a great dinner at Katz’s we wandered down 6th Street to where I’m pretty sure I saw Bob Boilen from All Songs Considered, of which I am a huge fan!
Here are just some of the bands on the agenda tomorrow:
We ended the night with a couple of pints at an irish pub, where my friend was hit on by a cute texan girl! It’s going to be a great week if this keeps up!
More SXSW
After listening to the All Songs Considered SXSW Preview Show, I can’t help but feel a little overwhelmed. There are literally close to 2000 bands performing this year, and there are so many that are worth going to see. Before the preview show, my calendar was overloaded with bands to the point where there were at least 3 or 4 acts in one timeslot at different venues! After the preview show, it’s worse – In a good way of course.
Here are some highlights from the preview show that I’ve added to my calendar: The Phenomenal Handclap Band, The Weird Weeds, Vijay Kishore, Ponytail, and Pink Nasty. But to be honest, I actually added most of what they recommended (except for a couple) – I’d probably go see anything if Carrie Brownstein told me to!
