3/18/2010 – Day2:
I arrived downtown around 2 p.m. and met up with a good friend who happened to arrive at the exact same time. He did not have a wristband or badge so the plan was to just check out some free stuff. There was supposedly a Cajun music event going on in this park, but when we arrived there around 2:30 p.m. it was already over and some hip-hop DJ was spinning some not-so-great music. So, we walked to 6th street and went to the Paste Magazine day party which was free and open to the public. They supposedly were to have free beer, but when we got inside the bartender told us they were all out of the free beers and that we would have to pay. Well, we had been walking for about 20-30 minutes by this point and being as thirsty as I was, I shelled out $4 for a Lone Star beer (aka. cheap Texas piss beer, normally ~$2 at a bar). The place housing the Paste Magazine party ( temporarily called The Galaxy Room ) had an indoor and outdoor stage.
So after getting our drinks my friend and I watched the band Gordon Gano & The Ryans which consists of the lead singer from Violent Femmes and a couple other guys. They actually played a cover of Violent Femmes’ “Blister In The Sun” which was interesting being that it featured an accordion and a small guitar. Nevertheless, it was good daytime chill music. Next, we briefly walked inside and saw Lou Barlow and the Missingmen. For those of you who may not know, Lou Barlow is the front man of the old 90’s rock band Dinosaur Jr. They were not bad, but unfortunately we did not stay long.
Next, a close friend of mine who was in town for SXSW and a few other friends were heading to the 2010 Levi’s Fader Fort Party which was set up in some large tents in the middle of what is normally a big plot of dirt between 4th and 5th streets. This party had a long line of people wanting to get in (since it was open to the public), but since I had a badge I was able to get both myself and my friend in instantly. It was a great feeling bypassing a line that long and I’m sure I’ll be feeling it again tomorrow when I see Muse.
At the Fader Fort I stuck around to see two bands: Neon Indian, who were a quite good electronic rock band and Local Natives who were also some sort of rock band. By the time Local Natives were on, I had already taken advantage of the unlimited free beers so I do not remember them very well. Anyway, it was 5:15 and I had to walk about 2-3 miles back to my car to change shirts and head to my venue. I vaguely remember drunkenly stumbling all the way across downtown to my car and then stumbling to Headhunters for day 2 of the SXSW showcase. So, without further adieu, here are the reviews:
Hotel Hotel – I do not remember them very well because I was very tired from walking and still a bit tipsy from all of the free beers, but I know they played very soft chill music and they were much better than the two bands following them. It was the perfect band to begin the evening’s work with.
The Ghost Songs – During this show I was mostly working outside so I can’t provide an accurate review of them. I only remember them having a very chill, relaxing pop-rock sound. Really, it was nothing special or interesting enough to me to make me want to go inside and hear them.
The Back Watch – I remember that they did not sound very interesting. I was still working outside during this show so I did not watch them too closely, nor was I compelled to based on what I heard. I seem to remember the vocals being quite bad.
Notekillers – This band did exactly what their name implies – - killed notes. All they did was bang on instruments and make noise. Nothing sounded structured at all. Since they are an instrumental band, there were also no vocals. And, they were really loud. Picture someone banging two metal trash can lids together over and over and that was pretty much how this band sounded. It was disappointing because they were one of the bands I was kind of looking forward to for the night (based on their website’s song samples). Oh well, the night does get better moving forward.
Woodgrain – This was perhaps my favorite band of the night. They were an instrumental electronic rock band with 4 synthesizers (2 per synth player), one of the best drummers I’ve ever watched, and a really awesome bass guitar player. The band jammed all kinds of really complex electronic rock riffs while the drummer was just insanely pounding away different obscure beats on his drums. One really interesting aspect of the band is that they seemed to not use any prerecorded loops or beats. Everything was created live. Each note of the loops were played over and over by hand. It was just amazing to watch! I kind of wished they would have had some better lighting/stage effects. But overall, a must see in my book. Since they are from Austin I might check them out again sometime.
Lick Lick – Another favorite of the night. This band is on the same record label as Woodgrain and consisted of both a female and male vocalist (who also played electric piano parts), a really awesome guitar player, a bass player, and a drummer. They played some really interesting rock/punk songs with a very polished sound. After the first song or two the bass player’s big string broke so the lead singers attempted to keep the crowd going with about 10-15 minutes of talking/jokes while the bass player re-strung his bass. During this time the band was still pretty entertaining. Another thing I loved about the band was their energy. Highly recommended!
Black Cock – This was a pretty heavy garage rock band with a female vocalist. Her voice got kind of annoying after a few songs and a good friend of mine was seeing Riverboat Gamblers over at this punk venue called Red 7, so I decided to bail on Black Cock and work and go check out Riverboat Gamblers for the 2nd time this week. I think Riverboat Gamblers have become my absolute favorite Texas punk band after this show. The lead singer just shows so much energy, constantly jumping into the crowd while singing – - it really makes it a fun show. All of the band members seem to know what they are doing, every song has melodic undertones, and you can actually understand the vocals. I highly recommend anyone into punk music check this band out and see them live when they tour your area. They have become quite big over the years and have toured all around the world in the past. Anyway, after about a third of their set I went back to Headhunters so I could resume working.
Migas – This was a heavy metal band that had a lot of energy, but just isn’t the style of music I enjoy. I sat outside during most of this band’s performance and mentally fell asleep, for it was approaching 2 a.m. and I was ready to go home. From what I could tell about half the attendees enjoyed Migas while the other half were not too impressed. I’d pass on them.
Well, there is the day 2 summary. Check back tomorrow when I post my reviews of Muse, Broken Bells, Hole, and more. I’m really excited for what’s in store. But for now only one thing lies in my immediate future – - sleep!
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