SXSW Music Festival: Wristbands

Most of the e-mails I get about SXSW is about wristbands. This is the easiest way to explain it.

For all SXSW evening shows, there’s basically three types of people: Badge Holders, Wristbanders, and people who pay the cover for that one show.

Priority is given in that order, meaning that if there’s a line with 400 people wearing wristbands, a badge holder can roll on in and bypass all of you.

I’ve only been to SXSW twice (2004 and 2005), and both time I had a wristband. In 2004 I got to see just about everything I wanted to see with very little problem. In 2005, it was a different story. I was shut out of a ton of shows that people with badges were getting in really easily, and it definitely put a minor dent in my time.

The festival is only getting bigger, too, so I can’t imagine how things are going to be this year.

It’s not impossible, this isn’t all doom and gloom. There are hundreds of shows going on at the same time, and I’m sure you’ll find something you’ll enjoy with your wristband, but I just wanted to give you my personal experience.

Another thing I noticed last year was an increasing amount of day shows requiring badges, too. Not a lot, but a few that I took notice.

Now, the second question is, where do I get a wristband? They go onsale in a few of the larger music stores in Austin a few weeks before the festival. So you either need to live there, or know someone who can get one for you.

I’ve seen a few websites where you can buy them at a markup, but I’d make sure they’re legit.

If anyone else has comments, questions or suggestions about this, feel free to post them to this topic. Hope this helps.