are they going to sell those $75 wristbands again this year like last year? would the wristband get me into shows or would i have to pay another cover for other shows? basically, what kind of access does the $75 wristband get me? are the individual record label parties going to require a separate pass or something?
for interpol, bloc party and lily allen shows, would i have to wait in line all day likely for those?
for shows likely to sell out–bloc party, morrissey, stooges, etc–a wristband probably won’t be enough to even get you in the door. last year i remember tons of wristband wearers getting left out as the badge wearers went straight to the front of the line. the individual record label parties are free for anyone regardless of what type of pass you have. the ones that claim to be “invite only” are a bit trickier to get into but not that tricky.
hello all…every year we feature cd reviews and bands that are going to sxsw. if you have a cd to review send it over and we’ll get it up for march…thanks
I’ve been the last two years, there is very few shows the wristband didn’t get me into. I saw Morrissey last year with no line or anything, it all depends on the venue these guys play. If they play the Austin City Hall or Stubbs, you’ll have no problem with wristbands…the only bands I’ve missed are the big hype bands playing small venues, Arctic Monkeys and Editors being the two from last year.
I don’t know where the $75 comes from though, thats not the cost. Last year they sold a certain number for $110, $130 and then the bulk at $150. They sold out but you could pick them up on the wednesday in austin all over the place for $150, although plenty of folks paid 200+ on ebay and Craigslist.
Where are the spots you can secure the wristbands on Wednesday? I always hear conflicting reports about being able to get wristbands if you come in the day of the festival.
yeah if morrissey plays again at austin music hall you might be able to get in but for shows at placed like antones the chances are slim. last year superchunk played there and there was a line a block long. for the clap your hands say yeah show the same thing.
The Austin Chronicle is the official source of wristband information (the Chronicle comes out on Thursdays). The info spreads across the internet pretty quick, though. The first place usually they go on sale is Waterloo Records.
In 2005, they sold wristbands at Waterloo Records, and added a second location later on.
Here’s what happened in 2006:
Feb 22: 600 wristbands went on sale at 7:00 pm to the people who signed up with the Official SXSW SMS List. It was a last minute thing, people got a text message, dropped everything, and showed at Waterloo. They only sent the SMS to people with an Austin area code and were cross-referencing numbers with the list.
Feb 22: Official wristband on sale date of Feb 23 announced in the Austin Chronicle and the SXSW SMS List
Feb 23: Wristbands went on sale to the general public starting at 10 am Waterloo Records. First 2000 wristbands going for $130, the next 2000 wristbands cost $150. Cash or CC only. Each person limited to 2 wristbands. Sold out by 6pm. SXSW said they were going to consider releasing more dependent on badge sales.
March 14: A limited number of SXSW Music wristbands were put on sale at the Convention Center for $175 each at 10am. They had to be worn at time of purchase to prevent scalping. Badgeholders could buy at a slight discount, $150.
As you see, it’s gotten more and more complicated.
As far as I can tell, selling wristbands at the Convention Center/music venues right before SXSW is determined by how much demand there is, and how many leftovers there were. And obviously they want to increase badge purchases as much as possible while maintaining a cap of attendees due to crowding. So if badge registrations are way way up, they’re probably going to sell as few wristbands as they can get away with or else the clubs will be too crowded. So it’s never a sure thing.
I think bkh and Kathryn both give pretty good advice there. In my experience its the small but popular places (Antones, Eternal, The Parish) that can have the long lines, but its very hard to predict. Both years i’ve been shocked by who demands a big crowd and also at how easy its been to see certain performers. Walking straight up to the music hall an hour before Morrissey came on and walking straight in being the best example.
If you haven’t been before I will say this, its never been a problem for me, you don’t get in one place, there is usually 4 others on your list you are interested in seeing that evening as well, so you just go there instead. Also the day shows have turned out to be a great way to see bands as well. One of my highlights last year was paying $2 in to the Insound afternoon party, getting free beer and seeing a great Clap Your Hands gig.
Both years I’ve been walking down 6th street early wednesday evening and had multiple people approach me offering wristbands for face value, no guarantee it will be that way this year but thats whats happened before.
Hope this helps….
yeah, steve’s right. the clap your hands day show was supposed to be “invite only” (as was a tilly and the wall day show) but if you just tell the person at the door that you’re on the list, you can get in. and yeah, free beer at most or all of the day shows. i agree with steve, those are some of the best shows of the whole festival.
On the subject of day shows, I went to the sxsw.com listing of official day shows http://2007.sxsw.com/music/parties/
I took some of the info and emailed the relevant record companies etc…saying I was coming down and interested in such and such a band, could I get an invite. So far all the folks I’ve emailed have said yes….not sure if I’ll use them but they are essentially passes to 4-5 hr parties with food and my favorite type of beer (free!) always a nice option to fall back on.
the day parties on the official site usually are lame fyi. the day shows at venues like emo’s and red eye fly plus some record shops tend to be the best. especially waterloo in stores which are crazy packed. there’s a ton of free beer night shows you just have to ask around. for the past 4yrs with no badge or wristband i saw most the headliners for free at various day and secret night shows. just ask around is my best advice.
thanks Steve for the info on the record parties. what a strange coincidence … one of the vendors at the day parties is a client for the company i work with in sf. this should be fun.
I’ve gone the past three years (this will be my first year not being under 21) and have great experiences and seen great bands every year. But yeah, it can suck if a band you really want to see is playing a 21+ venue.
more bands/showcases:
3/15 – Hydrahead Industries showcase – Oxbow, Pelican, Daughters, Big Business, Clouds, and Stephen Brodsky’s Octave Museum
3/17 – Emo’s – GSL showcase – Qui (feat. David Yowie), 400 Blows, Triclops!, Anavan, Coaxial, Attractive and Popular
misc. bands: Hot Cross, Akimbo, Green Milk From the Planet Orange (from Japan), HEALTH, and Clipd Beaks
From last year’s venue list I see there were about 60 venues over all. 14 of those were all ages, 10 were 18+ (including two that are only 18+ on the weekends?). So that leaves a pretty large number of 21+ venues.
last yr i was one of the 700 people who got the wristband at waterloo records. i remember typing my phone number down on a sxsw page and receiving a text exactly at 7 pm. does anybody have a link to type my number again so i can receive a text again this yr??
no arcade fire=suck
on tour in Europe the month their album is released during one of the biggest music festivals of the year???? LAME. Merge SXSW showcase 2007=major letdown
Pretty pathetic that they have already announced the entire Coachella lineup, which takes place in over 4 months, but we have to grovel and scrounge for artists playing at festival coming up in 6 weeks. I’m not sure what SxSW is trying to do by delaying the listing of bands (something about day parties), but it smacks of greed and corporate B.S.
Does anyone have the RSVP info for the Fader/Levis party? The lineup last year was amazing (Ghostface, Eagles of Death Metal…) and the drinks are outtasite.
are they going to sell those $75 wristbands again this year like last year? would the wristband get me into shows or would i have to pay another cover for other shows? basically, what kind of access does the $75 wristband get me? are the individual record label parties going to require a separate pass or something?
for interpol, bloc party and lily allen shows, would i have to wait in line all day likely for those?
for shows likely to sell out–bloc party, morrissey, stooges, etc–a wristband probably won’t be enough to even get you in the door. last year i remember tons of wristband wearers getting left out as the badge wearers went straight to the front of the line. the individual record label parties are free for anyone regardless of what type of pass you have. the ones that claim to be “invite only” are a bit trickier to get into but not that tricky.
hello all…every year we feature cd reviews and bands that are going to sxsw. if you have a cd to review send it over and we’ll get it up for march…thanks
I’ve been the last two years, there is very few shows the wristband didn’t get me into. I saw Morrissey last year with no line or anything, it all depends on the venue these guys play. If they play the Austin City Hall or Stubbs, you’ll have no problem with wristbands…the only bands I’ve missed are the big hype bands playing small venues, Arctic Monkeys and Editors being the two from last year.
I don’t know where the $75 comes from though, thats not the cost. Last year they sold a certain number for $110, $130 and then the bulk at $150. They sold out but you could pick them up on the wednesday in austin all over the place for $150, although plenty of folks paid 200+ on ebay and Craigslist.
Where are the spots you can secure the wristbands on Wednesday? I always hear conflicting reports about being able to get wristbands if you come in the day of the festival.
thanks
yeah if morrissey plays again at austin music hall you might be able to get in but for shows at placed like antones the chances are slim. last year superchunk played there and there was a line a block long. for the clap your hands say yeah show the same thing.
The Austin Chronicle is the official source of wristband information (the Chronicle comes out on Thursdays). The info spreads across the internet pretty quick, though. The first place usually they go on sale is Waterloo Records.
In 2005, they sold wristbands at Waterloo Records, and added a second location later on.
Here’s what happened in 2006:
Feb 22: 600 wristbands went on sale at 7:00 pm to the people who signed up with the Official SXSW SMS List. It was a last minute thing, people got a text message, dropped everything, and showed at Waterloo. They only sent the SMS to people with an Austin area code and were cross-referencing numbers with the list.
Feb 22: Official wristband on sale date of Feb 23 announced in the Austin Chronicle and the SXSW SMS List
Feb 23: Wristbands went on sale to the general public starting at 10 am Waterloo Records. First 2000 wristbands going for $130, the next 2000 wristbands cost $150. Cash or CC only. Each person limited to 2 wristbands. Sold out by 6pm. SXSW said they were going to consider releasing more dependent on badge sales.
March 14: A limited number of SXSW Music wristbands were put on sale at the Convention Center for $175 each at 10am. They had to be worn at time of purchase to prevent scalping. Badgeholders could buy at a slight discount, $150.
As you see, it’s gotten more and more complicated.
As far as I can tell, selling wristbands at the Convention Center/music venues right before SXSW is determined by how much demand there is, and how many leftovers there were. And obviously they want to increase badge purchases as much as possible while maintaining a cap of attendees due to crowding. So if badge registrations are way way up, they’re probably going to sell as few wristbands as they can get away with or else the clubs will be too crowded. So it’s never a sure thing.
Thanks for the info. Sure is a pain in the ass to get a wristband as an out-of-towner.
I think bkh and Kathryn both give pretty good advice there. In my experience its the small but popular places (Antones, Eternal, The Parish) that can have the long lines, but its very hard to predict. Both years i’ve been shocked by who demands a big crowd and also at how easy its been to see certain performers. Walking straight up to the music hall an hour before Morrissey came on and walking straight in being the best example.
If you haven’t been before I will say this, its never been a problem for me, you don’t get in one place, there is usually 4 others on your list you are interested in seeing that evening as well, so you just go there instead. Also the day shows have turned out to be a great way to see bands as well. One of my highlights last year was paying $2 in to the Insound afternoon party, getting free beer and seeing a great Clap Your Hands gig.
Both years I’ve been walking down 6th street early wednesday evening and had multiple people approach me offering wristbands for face value, no guarantee it will be that way this year but thats whats happened before.
Hope this helps….
yeah, steve’s right. the clap your hands day show was supposed to be “invite only” (as was a tilly and the wall day show) but if you just tell the person at the door that you’re on the list, you can get in. and yeah, free beer at most or all of the day shows. i agree with steve, those are some of the best shows of the whole festival.
On the subject of day shows, I went to the sxsw.com listing of official day shows
http://2007.sxsw.com/music/parties/
I took some of the info and emailed the relevant record companies etc…saying I was coming down and interested in such and such a band, could I get an invite. So far all the folks I’ve emailed have said yes….not sure if I’ll use them but they are essentially passes to 4-5 hr parties with food and my favorite type of beer (free!) always a nice option to fall back on.
the day parties on the official site usually are lame fyi. the day shows at venues like emo’s and red eye fly plus some record shops tend to be the best. especially waterloo in stores which are crazy packed. there’s a ton of free beer night shows you just have to ask around. for the past 4yrs with no badge or wristband i saw most the headliners for free at various day and secret night shows. just ask around is my best advice.
Are all/most of the shows 21+? Is there any point in even trying to go to shows if I’m 18?
Also, is there any word on if there’s going to be a Matador Records showcase this year like last year at Stubb’s?
thanks Steve for the info on the record parties. what a strange coincidence … one of the vendors at the day parties is a client for the company i work with in sf. this should be fun.
does anyone know if you can rent vespa scooters in austin?
only a portion of the venues are 18+
I’ve gone the past three years (this will be my first year not being under 21) and have great experiences and seen great bands every year. But yeah, it can suck if a band you really want to see is playing a 21+ venue.
more bands/showcases:
3/15 – Hydrahead Industries showcase – Oxbow, Pelican, Daughters, Big Business, Clouds, and Stephen Brodsky’s Octave Museum
3/17 – Emo’s – GSL showcase – Qui (feat. David Yowie), 400 Blows, Triclops!, Anavan, Coaxial, Attractive and Popular
misc. bands: Hot Cross, Akimbo, Green Milk From the Planet Orange (from Japan), HEALTH, and Clipd Beaks
oops… I meant only a portion are 21+
From last year’s venue list I see there were about 60 venues over all. 14 of those were all ages, 10 were 18+ (including two that are only 18+ on the weekends?). So that leaves a pretty large number of 21+ venues.
http://2006.sxsw.com/pdf/SXSW_2006_Music_Venue_Map.pdf
last yr i was one of the 700 people who got the wristband at waterloo records. i remember typing my phone number down on a sxsw page and receiving a text exactly at 7 pm. does anybody have a link to type my number again so i can receive a text again this yr??
Billboard.com reports that Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine/Audioslave will be at SxSW promoting his new solo album
no arcade fire=suck
on tour in Europe the month their album is released during one of the biggest music festivals of the year???? LAME. Merge SXSW showcase 2007=major letdown
Chuy, go here:
http://2007.sxsw.com/toolbox/sms/
Pretty pathetic that they have already announced the entire Coachella lineup, which takes place in over 4 months, but we have to grovel and scrounge for artists playing at festival coming up in 6 weeks. I’m not sure what SxSW is trying to do by delaying the listing of bands (something about day parties), but it smacks of greed and corporate B.S.
cheers jim. exactly what i was looking for
Does anyone have the RSVP info for the Fader/Levis party? The lineup last year was amazing (Ghostface, Eagles of Death Metal…) and the drinks are outtasite.
note on the GSl showcase mentioned a few posts ago: Qui features David Yow (not Yowie), singer from the legendary bands Jesus Lizard and Scratch Acid.