Songs, Sun, and Lone Star Beer: SXSW 2009, Day 2 PM

Start with Day 2 Day Parties

I had exactly 12 seconds to hit my room, clear the day's photos off the camera, and run back across to the faaar west side of town. Night Two in Austin was going to start with a one-two shot of Silver Lake, CA.

1. Eulogies
Eulogies was a band I'd heard a ton of good things about from reviewers outta Silver Lake. Makes sense as the reviewers I know gotta thing for fuzzy shoegazey stuff with chimey guitars (but who doesn't right?)


The band was playing upstairs on The Ranch's semi-enclosed deck. On the second song of the set, all their mikes suddenly went out. But it didn't frazzle these guys, they merely continued playing, finishing the song as an instrumental. Says a lot about a band that can seamlessly do that without missing a beat.


They had some rather unique things about them. One was their drummer's playing style. He didn't play a typical 1, 2, 3 beat, it was more....scattered. But it made the songs way more interesting and made you pay attention. The second was the ingenuity of using a Fosters beer can filled with...something (pebbles maybe?)..that they used as a maraca. Gotta love a band that jams econo. The third was the happy realization that this is a band of brainy types-how many bands do you know that would freely use the word "sycophant" in a rock song?



The lead singer's voice was a cool delicate fake out. It's one of those great voices that goes along and kind of lulls you into a state of calm. And then he lets loose, throwing melodious rocks in that pool of calm, and you think "WHAT the hell was that wonderful thing??" They did a song that was possibly called "I Won't Lie" like this, and was just tremendous...truly goosebump inspiring.

(See the rest of the photos from their set here)

My only wish? That the band had moved around a little more (I know shoegazey music is a bit on the maudlin side and somewhat mopey, but movement in a live band is what separates live from Memorex you know?). And better lighting (with the sun slowly making its decent on that side of town, many of the photos look like the band was playing under large boom lights). Hopefully both things will be different when they play with Great Northern and The Dears at the Black Cat on May 7.

Give a Listen: If I Knew You-Eulogies

I had to leave before Eulogies finished their set to cover the great number of blocks for my 8 pm slot back on the east side of town. But, as it was on the way, I also planned to catch the first few songs of The Airborne Toxic Event's set at the Austin Convention Center's "Bat Bar." Upon arrival though, I realized that was going to be impossible as the line for Airborne's venue was enormous. But it was still great to see. Airborne went from playing the tiny Cedar Street Courtyard, a place the size of a bowling alley lane at last year's SX, to a huge room like the Bat Bar in 12 months...pretty commendable. I texted Airborne's drummer, Daren Taylor, and said, "Wow the line out here is huge!! What a difference a year makes eh? Go you!"

2. Castledoor
I moved on to continue my "taste of Silver Lake" with Castledoor, a band that played a lot with Airborne early on. Another band of many (six in this case), they had two keyboardists, three guitarists, and a drummer.


They were also, by far, the most colorful band I would see all weekend. No somber hipster-black for these kids...


Their music reflected that celebratory spirit too. I'm not saying the lyrics were all shiny happy people-esque, but more that introspective lyrics were paired with harmonic music that moved, jumped, and swayed.


The lead singer's mannerisms and soaring ring of a voice put me in mind of Bono (which I found positive cause I like Bono). And yes, while Bono can be over the top, he always achieves what a good frontman is supposed to do: connect to his audience. Castledoor's frontman had that same talent, perfectly bonding and whipping up his crowd to level 5 of adoration.


There was only a handful of people at the Independent, and while some bands might have phoned it in with that small a crowd, Castledoor wasn't having that. Clearly this is that sort of band who plays their hearts out for a crowd of two just as much as they would for a crowd of 2,000. Those Silver Lake kids, they don't mess around.

(See the rest of the photos from their set here)

Give a Listen:: Skipping Stepping Stones-Castledoor

3. One Day International
I took my first pedi-cab trip (cool but bumpy) from Castledoor's set to the band I had high on my list for seeing at SX, One Day International.

Another group of multiples (5...what was it with many-membered bands this year?), they hail from Dublin, Ireland.

I pretty much cringed when I saw they were playing The Rio venue, a Mexican restaurant with god-awful lighting and mediocre sound. But I found that if anyone can handle such a place, it was a band like ODI.

Their members have been musicians for some time before coming together about a year ago, hailing from backgrounds that include classical and jazz styles, and the theater. All of these aspects fittingly find their way into ODI songs.





Influenced by musicians like Nick Cave and Tom Waits, The Band, and Sigur Ros, ODI weaves intricate and lush melodies into songs that sit on that interesting border between indie rock and the jazz/folk/classical tangents. There is a loveliness and depth in their music, one that's as warm and inviting as a favorite childhood memory.

The band practically lives the songs onstage. The lead singer sways like a metronome as he sings, eyes closed, most of the time...


...with the bassist, keyboardist, and drummer nodding along in time. The cellist is a lithe female, but you'd never know it. She rocks the cello and makes it keen, and holds the cello while beating the bejesus out of a drum at the same time. (Turns out she's a stunt car driver in Europe too!)


All in all, I think they won over more than one person with this SX performance. Here's hoping they make it back to this side of the pond again soon.

ODI was gracious enough to give me a few minutes of their time before their set to talk about their band and favorite Irish writers, and we'll be posting that here shortly.

(See the rest of the photos from their set here)
Give a Listen: Little Death-One Day International

As always at SXSW, when planning out your viewing schedule location is an important consideration. If you're at x location and y venue is 10 blocks away, you're going to miss quite a bit of a set just getting to y. Then, probably, quite a bit of your z choice if you have to walk 10 blocks back. (Though Austin is pretty flush with pedi-cabs during SX, which is really neat.)

As my z, aa, bb, and cc locations for the rest of the evening were all in the same area, and z was starting at an odd time of quarter past the hour, I hopped over to Emos for two seconds of one of the current buzz bands, Cut Off Your Hands, knowing I’d probably miss them at the SPIN day party on Friday.

(See the rest of the photos from their set here)

This band definitely does not have any issues with being “lax.” The lead singer leapt into the crowd to surf atop its hands, and flailed himself around the stage in wild abandon. The way he moved to their power pop from Down Under, I wondered if he actually possessed a spine. (More on their live show in Day 4.)

4. Monte Negro
It turned out that Maggie Maes, the site of my 12:15 AM-1 AM was...running behind schedule-wise. As I said earlier, it's typically a pain but sometimes it allows you to discover a band you didn’t expect to find. This is what I found in the form of a Spainish/English band from LaLa Land (Los Angeles) named Monte Negro. I only saw the last half of their last song so I don’t think I can fairly comment on their sound or songs, but the lead singer was definitely something to see.


He’s one of those that Muzak could be playing in back of him, and with all that energy and passion, you’d still be riveted. By the end, he was wiped out, lying on the stage and panting for breath.

(See the rest of the photos from their set here)

Give a Listen: Pena Collective-Monte Negro

5. Val Emmich
Val Emmich is, apparently, the love interest on a tv show called "Ugly Betty." I say "apparently" because I've never it. His SX mp3 was really good, like A- good. And I can see why he's a show's love interest: hipster-boy skinny, great dimples, pretty cute overall. But by this point in the evening, your fair narrator had been standing/walking/race-walking for over 12 hours straight. She had also not eaten all day. Had plenty of water and Lone Star beer, but no food. I don't know about you, but in instances like this, my patience level becomes pretty translucent. So things like standing around for 30 minutes past an appointed start time, waiting for someone to get his butt onstage, made the annoyance scale leap from 2 to 403. And no amount of cute would make up for it. He was going to have to wow me.

I want to say I was bewitched, bothered, and bewildered but....nope.

Ok, part of it was due to sound issues, but honestly? Drying paint moves around more than this guy. The music was reasonably good power pop, much like the single I liked so much. But the combination was not enough to "wow" for me, so I left after a couple of songs.

The man does photograph well though, I will give him that.



(See the rest of the photos from their set here)
Give a Listen: Get On With It-Val Emmich

5 and 6. Kevin Seconds and Peter, Bjorn, and John
I never connected the dots that Kevin Seconds, my 1 am slot, was THE Kevin Seconds, of 7 Seconds

I'd really liked his SX mp3. "Backaches and Bad Dreams" was noted on my list as "an early 60s sound with a Paul McCartney-like voice." So walking in expecting that from a guy who's known for hardcore punk, I was all sorts of confused to find he was playing just an acoustic. In a church, that was a seated venue. Sure it was quiet and really rather lovely, but hearing quiet and lovely while seated and exhausted at 1 AM, I was pretty sure I would be passed out cold by his second song. And Kevin Seconds doesn't look like the type of guy you'd want to piss off.

Give a Listen: Backaches and Bad Dreams: Kevin Seconds

So instead, I went to meet the guys who were ending their evening with those three-non-blondes from Sweden, Peter, Bjorn, and John.



They were good, but Val Emmich was more animated. Based on their dance-floor staples like "Young Folks" and "Nothing to Worry About," I totally expected them to be way more upbeat live. Plus, their guitarist was kinda, well, creepy. Creepy stuff before bed is never a good idea. And then, I hit the proverbial wall.



Give a Listen: Young Folks: Peter, Bjorn, and John

Many beers, no food, and being in constant motion all day had found me. I fell asleep fully clothed and face down on my bed in the hotel that night. SX had caught up with me...for now.

Day 1 review here

"Rock and Roll Spring Break, or My First Time at SXSW (Day 2 cont)

(Day 2 begins here)




DAY 2 (continued)
The talk with Ken Bethea took awhile so the guys went on without me. (I don't know how anyone survived before without texting capabilities at these things, it is essential.) As I mentioned before, sleep and food are kind of as-you-go at this thing, but I decided to take full advantage of a sushi bar that was near the 8 pm venue. I was still trying to maintain a semblance of the vegetarian diet I'd been on via my trainer to make up for the amount of beer I was taking in (made perfect sense to me at the time), so this place was a godsend.

This was my first time seeing any bands at Habana Calle thus far (well, ok, unless we could count the 1/2 a song I saw Born in the Flood play at soundcheck the day before). I gotta tell you, I saw some great bands there, none of them really sounded good. Bands played in the downstairs bar area which put me in mind of someone's finished basement. Not the best for acoustics.

3.The Brother Kite
That's why I'm hoping The Brother Kite heads down the east coast again soon. Hailing from Providence, RI, they sound like Fountains of Wayne mixed with the swirly guitar sounds of Belle & Sebastian. I would assume that bands pick the best song they have to submit as their SXSW mp3-all the stuff these guys were playing was just as good. Great punchy pop songs that were really, really catchy. They had two lead singers that traded off songs, and the one had a dual neck guitar, something not often seen these days. And yup, the sound was a bit ick because we were in a basement, but I liked them so much, I made sure to pick up their cd, which you too can do here.

I'm Not the Only One-The Brother Kite(MP3)

As I’d sort of gotten comfortable with the lay of the land venue-wise by this point, my goal for the 9 pm slot was to hit three bands in 40 minutes: Born in the Flood, a band out of Youngstown, OH called The Deadbeat Poets, and Stephen Kellogg and The Sixers, from up near home, Northampton, MA. The best laid plans require planning, diligence…and in this case, bands to go on stage on time. And maybe a cab, because there was no way even one who walks as fast as me would make those three venues in 40 minutes even if they did go stage on time. Again, first rule of SXSW: location is essential when mapping out your bands.

4.Born in the Flood
Given what I heard at their soundcheck earlier in the day, and the fact I liked their submitted mp3, I really wanted to catch BITF. When I first got to the venue, I saw it was a Relix magazine-sponsored showcase, I thought “Uh oh…” (For those that don’t know, Relix is “the only magazine to truly cover the jamband scene and improvisational live music.” Or noodle-rock. “Greaaaaat….” I thought.) But BITF turned out to be to my liking…serious pop sensibilities and a lush, tight sound. The first song was a tad boring (or maybe I was just antsy as they’d gone on 10 minutes late), but the second one was raucous….I thought of a harder version of Pete Yorn. I had roughly 20 minutes if I was going to catch another band so I only stayed for 2.5 songs of their set. But I'd probably consider seeing them again.

Anthem-Born in the Flood (MP3)

5. Stephen Kellogg and The Sixers
Stephen Kellogg and The Sixers were over in the area where the rest of my evening’s picks were playing, so I ran over there for the rest of the 9 pm slot. The band seemed to have a built-in audience much like Centro-matic the night before, because the place was pretty crowded. I really liked their SX mp3, but what they were playing sounded different somehow. Immediately, James Taylor came to mind, and not just because they both live in Western Massachusetts. The sound had a mellow country tinge to it, very “singer-songwriter”-esque, jangly power pop with a harmonica and Kellogg playing acoustic guitar. I found it…just ok, not great. I was there for about two songs and then Kellogg requested folks start singing along with him….I dunno, that kind of thing always struck me as “hoky.” I mean, Dr. Dirty does stuff like that, Poison probably did stuff like that, do you really want to be lumped into that category Mr. Kellogg? So I left.

4th of July-Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers (MP3)

6. Magnolia Summer
Thankfully, Magnolia Summer was playing a 9:30 pm slot nearby so I got there right as they were starting. Admittedly, I’m a huge sucker for fiddle-playing, it just adds something so emotional to a song. When it’s done really well, a violin can make you feel so much emotion, it’s almost like lyrics aren’t even necessary. Magnolia Summer did just that (though the lyrics were great too). A three-piece (an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar, and a violin) from St. Louis, MO, they play beautiful music of the alt-country variety. An example of it would be Strangers Almanac by Whiskeytown minus the drummer. They mentioned having a record out this summer so be sure to check them out.

The Slip that Leads into the Fall-Magnolia Summer (MP3)

10 pm had me running, trying once again to hit three bands in 40 minutes: The Mission District, The Blood Lines, and The Steps. This time, however, the venues were close together so I actually pulled it off.

7. The Mission District
Remember when I said before about how while some bands were good, they often just sounded like the last band you’d come from? That’s a good way to describe the first two of the three 10 pm bands. The Mission District’s sound was good….edgy power pop is always good. Think a British version of Blink 182, a comparison I probably only make because the band members looked about 12. And probably I wouldn’t have been like “fuck this” after two songs had Maggie Mae’s not been 800 degrees Calvin inside. John had had an interest in them as well and asked whether it was worth coming over from where he was. I sent back the following:

They r good-but not that good. I mean doing the cmon clap along thing in the first song? But u r missing slutty girl scouts so…”

Listen, I’m not too old and cynical, I think crowd participation at a show is good. Springsteen is a great example, his shows are a blast, but he also works the crowd for close to three hours beforehand. You can’t just start that with your first song…unless maybe your lead singer is Mick Jagger.

Oh and yes, the slutty girl scouts. Like “How are they not falling out of those outfits and I hope they never have to bend over” slutty girl scouts. The weird thing was they weren’t the only people I saw dressed in costumes during my time there. Maybe SX is also home to some weird alternative celebration of Halloween in March or something...

Youth Games-The Mission District (MP3)

8. The Blood Lines
Before I passed out from heat exhaustion, I left to go a few doors down and check out The Blood Lines from Canada. Thankfully, they were playing on a rooftop so I was revived by the cool breeze of an Austin night in March. The Blood Lines were similar to The Mission District (power pop) but more synth power pop than edgy. Some very lovely harmonies and a really tight sound. The lyrics didn’t really do it for me (“I wanna die on a mountain” for example…uh, ok), and there was more imploring the crowd to clap along (but not the first song thank goodness), but I liked the sound. And their look! One of the lead singers was wearing a suit…and a toque (indeed, it is a beauty way to go eh?), and the female keyboardist had this white sequined bedazzled top on and white go-go boots….those crazy Canadians….

Modern Science-The Blood Lines (MP3)

9. The Steps
From Canadians to barely legal Austinians….I ran down the street to check out the third of my three bands in 40 minutes, The Steps. Frankly, I should have stayed at this one for the full 40. The boys may be youngsters but they play some serious rock with balls…makes sense as the aforelinked article states their love of the Rolling Stones and the Strokes. I heard some Jet in there….some Cribs in there…and for some reason, Weezer ala that "Hash Pipe" song. These guys are definitely worth checking out further.

Belle-The Steps (MP3)

10. Patty Hurst Shifter
Do yourself a favor and go here right now, and purchase PHS' "Too Crowded on the Losing End." Then put it on and rock your face off. I've been going to see these guys since roughly 2000 or so when I was in graduate school. They used to play at a place called Humble Pie a lot, which was an old garage converted to a restaurant/bar. The acoustics sucked like you would expect, but PHS could still kick ass.

I was thrilled to know they'd be playing SX as I hadn't seen them in a couple years so I made it a point to catch their whole set after as I didn't get to on Day 1. They were playing the same venue as The Steps, this little cheesy faux-dive called Dirty Dog Bar....I'll put it to you this way: there was a smoke machine and the graphic for the bar's name is a busty woman with a bulldog humping her leg. It reminded me of....a garage. We even had two roller derby women (I'm not making that up) doing something that can only be called "interpretive dance" with each other in front of the stage.

Ah, the more things change....

Ok, now granted, I know them and granted, I know I'm probably biased. But they make the 20th band I saw at SX in two days and of those 20, I can count on one hand the number that a) are great musicians, b) have lyrics you wanna go back and read, and c) they just bring rock music like it's supposed to be brought. These guys blow the doors off consistently when they play. There's not a lot of bands that can claim that.

Oh, and I got hit on by a cute 26 year old digruntled-with-music guitarist from Greensboro, NC who added 12 years to my age (he was a little drunk...I think he was kidding but it was tough to tell). Nonetheless, he was adamant about me having a drink with him. Thankfully I was spirited away by the PHS wives...

Anyway, I shot a few photos of PHS on stage but unfortunately, they didn't come out as nice as the Old 97s ones. This one is probably the best...



Life is Mostly Waiting-Patty Hurst Shifter (MP3)

11. Ari Shine
PHS was my 11 pm slot and although I had a few other options in between 11:40 pm and 1 am, I wound up having some beers and such with the PHS crew for awhile instead. I then started to make my way over to Lamberts, a good six block walk for the 1 am slot. I wound up getting there early, meeting up with John and Sean for the last two songs of this guy John was raving about, Ari Shine. One of the songs they did was a sped up cover of John Mellencamp's "ROCK in the USA"...sped up like Mellencamp was on crystal meth sped up. Good bar band sound, and sure, entertaining...but every town in mid-west America has a good bar band that's entertaining. I didn't understand John's enthusiasm. But then he's not into PHS and we love a ton of other stuff collectively, so I don't bother to comprehend.

Cooler Than Me-Ari Shine(MP3)

12. Buttercup
John and Sean bid me adieu and I stuck around for Buttercup out of San Antonio, TX. I really liked their mp3 submission. Their write up stated they had "influences such as Neil Young, The Kinks, and the Talking Heads," which I found interesting...But by this point, I'm more than a little pooped, and after waiting, waiting, waiting, finally 1:15 am they decide to start playing. Strike 1.

Odd, odd, odd stuff...and not a good odd...

They started with this song....let me put it this way: there's slow to fast songs and all, but their version of slow to fast was more like progressive rock opera than a regular song....and I am not a Jethro Tull fan, I'm sorry (strike 2). Then they went into some Hawaiian-sounding ditty....I'm sitting there going "I waited 15 minutes for this?" Now remember, when you listen to the mp3s and plan your band lists, it's quite a bit prior to SX itself (typically), so at times you find yourself thinking, "Uh, I chose these guys why exactly?"

This was definitely one of those times. I called Strike 3 and went to join the guys down the street for Denton, TX natives Bowling for Soup.

In Love-Buttercup (MP3)

13. Bowling for Soup
Ok, did I look at the crowd around me at this show and go, "Are we the oldest people here?" Yes, yes, we were. Was the band kick ass and funny as hell? Yes, yes they were. This was the perfect way to end a night. You might know their song 1985, which was a hit awhile back. But if you get the chance, go see them. They're a damn good band and I promise you, you'll have a blast.

Baby Hit Me One More Time-Bowling for Soup (MP3)

Day 2, Total Bands Seen: 13

Day 1
Part 1
Part 2

Day 3 coming up...

"Rock and Roll Spring Break, or My First Time at SXSW (Day 2)

DAY 2
So Day 2 started out a bit of a clusterfuck. I only had until 3 pm to catch anyone at day parties because we had passes to the invite-only New West Records party, and it seemed either the schedules were posted wrong or bands weren't being timely. Three bands I'd wanted to see via their mp3s, Born in the Flood, Driving By Night, and Delorentos, I wound up missing because of stuff like that. No wait, I take that back…I did catch a little of BITF’s soundcheck.

However....the day party where BITF was playing wasn't a total wash. Remember that cool Gram Parsons tshirt the guy from The Playing Favorites was wearing? It so happened that Worn Free, the folks who make those shirts, were sort of sponsoring the day party where BITF was playing. I didn't notice anything until I saw two women whose bags had the Worn Free logo on it. So I inquired and they directed me to this little remote, behind a fence corner where Steve, the cat that I believe may own Worn Free, was hanging out. With a big ass blown-up poster of that Gram Parsons shirt I was coveting. So I raved about the shirt and how I'd just heard about the company last night via TPF bassist. He said great, the company is really advertised by word of mouth. AND he was giving out free t-shirts. He didn't have my coveted one but I did walk away with this.



I was so thrilled, tears literally came to my eyes. The kindness of strangers....I mean, it had been great to see bands on Day 1 but….nothing had really jumped out at me and made my heart jump, you know? And then these scheduling mishaps. I thought yeesh man, is this what is so great about SXSW, is this what I paid 98787687686 dollars for? When a friend from NY called to see how things were going, I actually said, “Yeah, it’s ok, but I don’t think I’ll need to come again.” Yee of little faith….(heh)

Oh, and about the shirt, I found out later that these suckers aren’t cheap, they go for like $40+ a pop! And yes, I do plan to order this one, $40 or not.

So back to the music....

New West Record Party
By this point it was closing in on 3 pm, so I high-tailed it up to Club Deville for my first private SXSW party, the New West party, primarily for the Old 97s set, (I know, big surprise right? My friends all know my naughty fantasies about this guy.) Small venue, free beer, not crowded....It was great, kind of like your friend set up a tent in the backyard on a really nice day, made up tshirts for the event, and hired some of your favorite bands to play.

1.Old 97s
The 97s sounded great, had lots of energy, and they looked really happy to be there. Lots of stuff from the new record, Blame It On Gravity, due out May 13th. For me, the jury’s still out on whether I’ll like it yet or not. I know I’m not crazy about the first single (“Dance With Me”) but we’ll see, some of the other new tracks were decent and seemed to sound a bit like my favorite record of theirs, Wreck Your Life, which is a plus. I was so close to the stage, I was able to capture some really great shots (and with a camera phone no less!)

A funny one of Rhett Miller (I think it was during mid-hip swiggle)



Rhett and Murray Hammond



Ken Bethea


Another good one of Rhett


The new one
Dance With Me-Old 97s(MP3)
One I like
Valium Waltz-Old 97s(MP3)

2.The Drams
Haven’t heard of The Drams? Their sound is a little like Slobberbone, another ass-kickin band, because that’s the previous band of three of the Drams. John and I discussed who we thought would close the NW party-I thought maybe the Old 97s because they were the “bigger” band, John claimed it would be The Drams because “they would bring the rawk.” He was right. And bring it they did. Great god in the morning did they. Both the drummer and the lead guitarist receive extra points for being able to tear up the guitar and drums during 3 minute songs with lit cigarettes in their mouths the entire time. And it didn’t hurt that the bassist/vocalist Keith Killoren could have been the bastard son of Gram Parsons, looks-wise….

Make a Book-The Drams(MP3)
Unhinged (Live)-The Drams(MP3)

So remember when I said I was thinking SXSW kind of stunk and hadn't been too impressed that morning? This party changed that for me. The 1-2 punch of seeing the Old 97s and then the Drams in such a cool place made me realize the beauty of SXSW that I may have missed otherwise.

Oh! And I had a long talk with Ken Bethea after the Drams set. He said they’re super happy with the new record and feel it’s their best one in 10 years. One title they were working with was “The Fool,” a track on the record, but I guess it got vetoed because it would smack too much of the titles of Rhett’s solo records ( The Instigator and The Believer). While talking to him, he introduced me to Robert Jenkins, one of Rhett’s best friends and the “Robert” from the line in Big Brown Eyes that goes “Cause if Robert’s dad is right”…nice guy. When I explained to Ken that I wrote a blog and had written one named after the song, Designs On You, he proceeded to tell me the story behind that song (the lyrics are all true), and I also learned that the song Melt Show was based on a show with the band Melt, who were a band that included a majority of the people now in Centromatic. Overall, a really down to earth guy.

2nd half of Day 2 to follow...

Day 1
Part 1
Part 2