Yesterday was
the first official day of SXSW, and it almost kicked me ass.
I'm a complete slouch when it comes to exercising, so all of
the walking and standing in one spot sort of destroyed my
legs. That's Ok. I mean, who really needs those
two hindrances moving around down there and taking you
places? Onward!
Kicking off my day was These United States. I was a
little worried that being in Emo's without a whole lot of
people would make the band's intimate sound come off as a
little awkward, but the guys were relaxed and seemed to
genuinely be having a good time performing. So, the
set actually ended up being more of a foot-tapping time,
which was nice. Maybe I'll be able to catch them one
more time before the week ends.
I actually stayed at the Terrorbird/Force Field PR party for
the majority of the day, but the one break that I took was
to see Cassettes Won't Listen, who was fantastic. I
don't know if Jason Drake is ever really going to do a full
length record and/or a big tour, but after yesterday's tiny
set I'll be hoping every single day for the rest of my life
that he does. Don't miss an opportunity to see him
play.
- Yacht -
- Raveonettes -
Yacht sort of
surprised me, as I was under the impression that it was a
large group who were going to trot out on stage and perform.
Nope, it was just two people, a laptop and a whole lot of
pure energy. They only played three songs, but they
were all new and really good. Count me as excited for
their next album.
While it was nice to see the Raveonettes again after all
these years, I was a little bummed to be catching them at
Emo's. The sound there can tend to get muddled, so
when you have an act like this duo, who use a lot of fuzz
and reverb-heavy vocals, it just sort of clutters the air.
I'll certainly have to make an effort later this week to see
them somewhere that has a better sound system.
- The Mae Shi -
- Why? -
- The Blow -
To be honest, I
had heard a few songs from the Mae Shi before SXSW, and I
was not impressed. However, they were sandwiched
between two acts that I really wanted to see so I had no
choice but to give them another chance. And?
Well, I thought they put on one hell of a show. I
mean, I still don't think they're a band I would listen to
at home or anything, but if they're ever in town again I
won't miss their show. Those guys are insane.
Here's the problem with every Why? performance I've ever
seen, they're all too short. I literally want to hear
everything they've got in the catalog, and if I don't then
I'm just not satisfied. It's a curse. Hopefully
I'll be able to see them in a better venue before the week's
over, as they had a case of the muddles as well at Emo's.
Closing out the Terrorbird/Force Field PR party was the
Blow. As with Yacht, I was surprised to see that it
was just one person and a laptop. I mean, how many
bedroom projects are there these days!? It's crazy.
Anyhow, one of the neat things that she did was narrate all
of her songs with reasons as to why they were written and
have specific dance moves. Most of SXSW is packed with
artists running out, playing as fast as they can and then
leaving, so it was nice to actually have some interaction.
I'd for sure see her again.
- Jessica Hoop -
- Cotton Jones Basket Ride -
If I had to
pick an artist to be claimed as the biggest surprise of
yesterday then I would choose Jessica Hoop. I for sure
thought that all of her material was going to be like the
songbird-esque single that I posted up a long time ago, but
she had an incredibly varied sound that impressed me to no
end. I really need to get a hold of her album.
I knew that Michael Nau (Page France) was going to be out
and about at SXSW with his bluesy, soul-enthused project,
the Cotton Jones Basket Ride, but I didn't think that I
would get to see anything because of how little they were
scheduled. Fortunately though, I noticed that he would
be down at the SOHO Lounge early, and I went for it.
He didn't disappoint. In fact, it was so good that it
left me wondering why the world isn't just raving about it.
Wake up people!
- Delta Spirit -
Be Your Own Pet (Left) - Autolux (Right)
At this point
in the night I returned to Emo's just in time to see Delta
Spirit. I knew nothing of the band, but I thought they
were pretty good. The songwriting was a little sappy,
but their passion in performing it more than made up for it.
I'll have to do some homework and explore these guys.
Any recommendations?
Be Your Own Pet is one hell of a conundrum. One hand
they're an act that have a lot of interesting songs which
seem like great live material, but on the flip side of
things they also have the type of personalities on stage
that want to do nothing but go as fast as possible. I
mean, these four literally walked out last night, plugged in
and were ready to go. No soundcheck or anything.
Who does that!? It makes for a great time, but it kind
of destroys the work put into their music. Weird.
I mentioned that Autolux were a band that I was incredibly
nervous to see, and I was right to feel that way. Not
only did they take an eternity to setup, but the interaction
with a crowd of people who were clearly fans of the band was
poor at best. And the new songs? Yeah, they're
good. Though, I don't think they'll ever be released.
This was simply not the same trio that I saw all those years
ago. For instance, the main singer (pictured above)
introduced the last song by asking the crowd to "please take
his life." That's awkward, and kind of tragic
considering how talented they are. I sincerely hope
they figure out a way to pull it together.
- The Black Keys -
The Black Keys
killed. That's pretty much all there is to it.
Well, that and the fact that their new album is going to be
an all around incredible listen. I eagerly await it
and their next show in Austin.
-
John Laird -
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