If the zoom on my camera was better, this photo of Kanye would be so much cooler:

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

The last day of SXSW always is a bit of haze. It’s hard to consider watching bands all day and eating free food as “work”, but man, tell that to my feet. Dang. I started the day off at the Rachael Ray party, an event that had one of the longest lines I’d seen all week. I was able to bypass it and get in early (dont hate), and went on to drink way too many Rachael Ray mojitos. Ate her food, too. This beer and beef burger with chedder bacon biscuit ruled my life. I would seriously cut someone in the neck for another one. (I saw Rachael briefly, but she was crowded. I wanted a photo of her for my sister, but it didn’t work out)

It was then off to The Hot Freaks party again, this time catching Vivian Girls, Mason Proper, and Viva Voce. This is how it went down: Vivian Girls‘ instruments broke down after a few songs. The pains of doing too many shows, I think. Their hearts weren’t totally into the set, but I enjoyed what they played. If it was any other band I might not give them the leeway, though.

Mason Proper sounded AMAZING live. Seriously, they recreate the sounds of their album almost too perfectly live. Lead singer has a lot more energy onstage than I saw most bands all week, so that was a refreshing change. As for Viva Voce, well, I dunno dudes. When I saw them as a two piece they seem to have amazing fire and energy in them, but their set as a four (5?) piece wasn’t as inspiring. I’ll have to check them out again in a non-SXSW environment.

Vivian Girls

It was then off to the Fader Fort for one of the worst kept secrets of SXSW: Kanye West performing. Before he went on, there was some good stuff though. Diplo and Switch’s new band, Major Lazer. If I had any energy in me, I would have danced like a crazy person to this, but I was already running on empty. They threw out several hundred t-shirts to the audience and it made everyone sort of lose their mind. It was fun.

I spent the next few hours hanging out with the SCHED team, talking about next year’s SXSW. Side note: I’ve learned that at SXSW you don’t need to see 20 bands a day to have a good time. In fact, I saw fewer bands this year than any other but probably had more fun. Hanging out with old friends goes a long way, let me tell you.

Before Kanye’s showcase, Dead Prez came out for a three song set. I have proof:

It was then time for Kanye West’s G.O.O.D Music Showcase. I’d never seen Kanye live, unfortunately, so catching him in a smaller venue was a real thrill. In keeping with the SXSW spirit, he played some of his songs while also introducing his up and coming artists of his label. People went absolutely insane for Kid Cudi, man. And when Kanye brought out Common and Erykah Badu, people just about lost their marbles. Definitely a special event and I was glad to be there. Read Pitchfork’s story for a more thorough write-up.

After that I went to to see Silversun Pickups, but their show was running late and I had a 6:30AM flight to catch, so I went home for the night, already plotting out SXSW 2010.

NOTES
- SXSW is the greatest music festival, hands down.
- Shout out to my Irish roommate Niall of Nialler9. You don’t know it yet but I’m crashing at your house within the next 2 years.
- Thanks again to Energizer’s Energi to Go. You can see the photos I took on their Flickr, some videos here. Also they’re on Twitter and Facebook.
- Don’t forget to get some vitamins in you during SXSW. Pizza is delicious, though.
- It was great meeting old and new friends alike.
- For readers of DW who aren’t into SXSW, coverage is over! (for now)
- 2010 SXSW can’t come soon enough.

Started the day off at the Pitchfork party. Caught Girls (ok), and then it was onto Little Boots. Her set had a lot of energy, was a ton of fun, and if my schedule permits I’d even try to see her again today. Think Annie meets Lykke Li.

Blurry Little Boots

It was then onto The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. This was their 7th show in 3 days during SXSW, but they played it as if they were fresh as daisies. Believe the hype on them.

After that it was off to the music blogger hosted event, Hot Freaks. Caught some of Port O’Brien and The Thermals until it was time for the epic set by The Hold Steady, the band in which I stole a lyric from to name this year’s donewaiting.com SXSW coverage.

Okay, now the thing I’ve noticed at previous Hold Steady shows is there’s usually 20 fans that are a little more excited than the rest of the crowd. Granted, everyone in the crowd is excited, but these are super fans. So when you’re at SXSW, a festival that is drawing people from all over the world, when you see The Hold Steady you have a crowd made up of those 20 fans from everywhere. The energy was amazing. There was so much joy in that tent while the band played (close to 20 songs), it gave me chills.

The Hold Steady photo stolen from chromewaves

I went back to the Central Presbyterian Church in the evening and caught Fanfarlo. The band didn’t catch my interest in the beginning of their set, but by the end I was warming up to them. I saw them sell a ton of CDs after their set, so they’re definitely doing something right.

Now it’s time to talk about The Low Anthem. One of the greatest things about SXSW is seeing a band you know nothing about and falling in love with them. This year, The Low Anthem is that band for me. The band is made up of three people who were all amazing multi-instrumentalists, switching instruments constantly during their set. And man can they sing too. A lot of their songs have a noir-y fold sound to them, but there was at least 2 songs where they busted out some real soulful music, too. Check out their website to stream some of their music to hear what I’m talking about. As soon as I get home I’m ordering all their stuff.

MP3: Charlie Darwin by The Low Anthem

Closed down the evening watching the Eugene Mirman and John Wesley Harding Cabinet of Wonders show. This event featured Eugene and John performing with special guests in between. Alina Simone, Todd Barry and Sally Crewe were a few of them that played early on the set. At that point of the evening the music from the venues surrounding them sort of bled into what they were doing so it was a little difficult to follow, but if the tour comes through your area I would definitely check it out.

NOTES
- Yes, Metallica played. Chip Midnight was there and he took some video.
- Reuters ran an article about the blogger panel I was on.

Day 2 of SXSW began with me speaking at the music blogger panel. Here’s a photo of me and Amanda Palmer’s legs:

It was a real honor to be on the panel, and I enjoyed hearing my fellow bloggers (Justin of Aquarium Drunkard, Bill from Brooklyn Vegan/Sound Bites, Janet from Out the Other, Glenn from Coolfer), talk about what we do, impacts on the local scene, etc. While the title was “Bloggers Are Now in Charge,” the description of the panel actually applied more to what we discussed: “Amid the rubble of the music industry, a new breed of music enthusiasts has established instantaneous and direct links to like-minded fans. What exactly is their impact on the scene?”

After the panel, I met up with Alina Simone and her high school bud Amanda Palmer for lunch at Iron Cactus. Tacos were goooood. I didn’t spend any time really seeing music in the afternoon, just hung out with friends and caught up. After coming to SXSW for a few years, I realized some of my favorite times of the festival are unrelated to actually seeing bands.

I was walking to see Cursive with Taylor when someone invited us into a hair salon to drink free margaritas and hear music. I’ve never seen a musician perform while I sat in a chair that is normally reserved for people getting their hair cut, but there’s a first time for everything. Only at SXSW! The musician I saw was Madelyn Cascio, and it was a nice relaxing way to start the day. I took a video you can see here.

My evening schedule got f’d up in the beginning. I went to Aces Lounge to see Rosie and the Goldbug and Vivian Girls, but after waiting around forever I found out that the entire schedule was pushed back an hour. OOOOOOF. I went next door to catch the last song of Peggy Sue, who were good and I’d like to catch a full set at some point.

I walked upstairs to the Parish upstairs to catch Anya Marina cover T.I. and then it was off to the live.create lounge to catch Alina Simone’s set. Her new stuff sounded amazing and I can’t wait to hear her next full length. Also added to the amazement: they piped in chocolate scent into the venue. I felt like I was at Hershey Park.

Onward to the Central Presbyterian Church for Amanda Palmer! After missing her the day before and meeting her for lunch, I was really excited to finally see her live. And she didn’t disappoint. Because it’s a church, she was able to perform her first song a capella and she quickly had the crowd in the palm of her hand. Margaret Cho joined her for a funny duet, and she also played the song she penned with Neil Gaiman called “I Google You.”

At this point of the night I realized that I had unintentially only seen female musicians. I ended the evening with Elvis Perkins in Dearland again, and was cut short when I got a text message that donewaiting.com went down. Had to head home early to fix the website, and prepare for today.

NOTES
- Agit Reader SXSW coverage here
- I’ve been taking photos for my sponsor, Energizer’s Energi to Go. You can see all of them here.

The first full day of SXSW music has passed and I have the aching feet to prove it. Watching music from 12pm to 1:30am is hard work people, but I do it for you.

The day started at the Austinist party with Garotas Suecas, a band made up a bunch of 19 year old Brazilian kids. Garagey, fun, it was a great way to start the day. After them I only caught one song from Here We Go Magic, the new band featuring Luke Temple. I liked what I heard, and I’m going to try to catch an entire set by them this week. I blame my first time drinking absinthe as the reason for f’ing up my schedule.

I left the Austinist event and went to Little Radio’s show and caught The Whispertown 2000 who rocked out a lot more than I expected. After them was the Evangelicals. For some reason I’ve let Evangelicals pass me by all this time, and now I want to dig into their albums. Drenched in a blissful blanket of feedback, making an impact even though they were only able to perform 4 songs.

Scheduling issues made me miss Amanda Palmer, my first :( of the week.

I went back to Austinist’s show to see Elvis Perkins in Dearland, and they blew my mind. Perkins has a huge band with him, and they sounded great. Sometimes they reminded me of Beirut, other times AA Bondy. I took a video of one of the songs and you can see it here.

Franz Nicolay of The Hold Steady is awesome solo. I’ve got proof:

I was fortunate to get invited to the Austin City Limits taping of Andrew Bird. I love ACL and I love Andrew Bird, so for me it was a perfect combination. And man, like the volunteers of SXSW, the ACL volunteers are so friendly. Right before you walk into the studio, there are two tables of free beer for you to take into the taping. Let me tell you, you do not get this kind of service at a Letterman taping. The set began with an amazing performance of “Why?” and kept on going for well over an hour. I won’t spoil the set list for you, but you definitely need to tune in when it airs.

Photo of the set:

I ended the night at Stubb’s. I first caught The Avett Brothers, which I am not too sure about. Is it weird that they sort of reminded me of System of a Down?

And like Tuesday night, I once again ended SXSW with The Decemberists. This time, though, they performed their new album, The Hazards of Love, from start to finish .. without stopping! It wasn’t until the encore that Colin Meloy actually addressed the crowd. It was a marathon performance, and I loved hearing the new stuff live. Stand outs were “The Rake Song” and My Brightest DIamond’s Shara Worden.

NOTES
- I’m in a rush to my blogger panel (today at 11AM) so there isn’t links to bands. I’ll add them later. I’ll fix some grammar too.
- Don’t worry, no more Decemberists performances.

Austin, we meet again. You’re as wonderful as I remember you.

I got into town yesterday around 4pm. Hotel check in, badge check in, good to go. I’m always amazed at how friendly the volunteers of SXSW are. Everyone is in a good mood and it lasts the whole week during the festival. It’s contagious. Also contagious: eating hamburgers at The Jackalope. Just as delicious and dangerous as I remembered.

Only one show last night, and it was a great one. IFC Film had a party that featured Gomez and The Decemberists. I’ve been a fan of Gomez from the beginning – I think I might have seen their first (or one of their first) USA shows @ Irving Plaza way back when the first record came out. But the problem I have with the band is I sort of forget them between records (there seems to be a longer than usual lag between releases these days for them). But as soon as I see them, I’m reminded how much of a fan I am. They still have the music chops that I’ve come to expect, and their new stuff is a great evolution of their sound.

Next up was The Decemberists. Now, if you’ve spent any time on this site you know they are one of my favorite bands. Actually, it was SXSW many years ago when I saw them for the first time (right around when The Tain came out) and I fell in love. This set was definitely for the fans. Beginning tonight the band is performing their new album from start to finish at shows, but last night was all about the back catalog. Here I Drempt I Was An Architect, The Crane Wife, The Perfect Crime, O Valencia, The Mariner’s Revenge Song and Billy Liar helped make a set list that was nothing short of perfect. 90ish minutes. The venue must have only fit around 400 people, a rare room size for a band that continues to get bigger. The audience was having a great time, The Decemberists were having a great time, everything clicked. Towards the end of the set, SCHED* co-conspirator looked at me and said, “Kill me because the rest of the week can’t get any better.” Well, I’m happy to report that I’m now a wanted man in Texas.

OTHER NOTES
- SXSW music wristbands are all fancy/hologrammy this year
- Heavy metal pizza continues to move locations. This year it’s back on 6th but on the opposite side it used to be.
- St Patrick’s Day was impossible to avoid last night. Whoah.
- Even though my badge says I am from Columbus I will not join you in an OH-IO chant. Sorry, not happening.
- Almost (not really) feel like you’re here with my live updates via Twitter
- You can follow my subject-to-change schedule here.
- Read Chip’s recap here.

Don’t forget! I am part of the music blogger panel tomorrow @ 11AM.

A few more acts I am excited about for SXSW….

I’ve been wanting to see Amanda Palmer for awhile. While I’m just a casual fan of The Dresden Dolls, the solo work she did with her debut album Who Killed Amanda Palmer? continues to be a recent favorite, revealing layers and layers of complex emotions, ideas, and energy. At this point I only know of three performances she’d doing at SXSW (find them here, but she’s also speaking on a SXSW panel titled Do a 360 Deal WIth Yourself (sounds naughty)..

I also wouldn’t be surprised if she announced a few last minute sets at random places on her active Twitter account.

MP3: Leeds United by Amanda Palmer

I saw Alina Simone at SXSW last year and loved her set. I loved it so much that I’m releasing a seven inch with her and The Black Swans in a few months on our small record label, Sunken Treasure Records. If that’s not an endorsement to see her ONE SXSW APPEARANCE Thursday night, I don’t know what it. Click here for show details. ALSO: Read about the Alina Simone/Amanda Palmer connection here.

Here’s an MP3 from her excellent Yanka Dyagilev covers album:

MP3: From Great Knowledge by Alina Smone

The Rural Alberta Advantage was recommended to me by my bro Taylor. They remind me of a lot of my favorite Merge Records bands combined into one. A little Essex Green, a little Neutral Milk Hotel, I’m really looking forward to seeing them live.

MP3: Don’t Haunt This Place by The Rural Alberta Advantage
MP3: Frank, AB by The Rural Alberta Advantage

Columbus Discount Records is one of the main driving forces of the Columbus music scene these days. This showcase is a great sampling of things going on in this city, one stop shopping style.

Click here to add this event to SCHED*

I’m no stranger to Joey Stevens’ music, I used to work with his cousin Arlene and she was always happily passing along burned CD-Rs full of his stuff to me. Not really easy to describe what he was doing then (or is doing now with Rumspringa) but it’s sort of a mix of roots rock and freak folk with maybe some hip-hop tossed in. The band’s debut self-titled EP can be purchased physically through Amazon or digitally through iTunes and eMusic (among many others).

DOWNLOAD: “Goldmine”

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Click here to see it.

(Columbus folks, sorry for all the SXSW stuff coverage, it’ll be over in a week!)

Last open thread to ask questions, hype shows, get info, whatever.

Showcase info: My Jerusalem will perform at 11:05 p.m. on Friday, March 20 @ Karma Lounge (119 W.8th).
Other shows: KGSR Live from the Four Seasons, 8 a.m. on Wednesday, March 18 (98 San Jacinto Blvd); Guitartown/Conqueroo present Kickoff 2009, noon on Wednesday, March 18 @ Fado
Click here to add events to your SCHED*

Download: Sweet Chariot

One of the cool things about SXSW is seeing bands make their debut. My Jerusalem is led by solo artist Jeff Klein who recruited friends that he met on the road (Klein was a touring member of the Twilight Singers on the Powder Burns tour). Rounding out the band are guitarist Dave Rosser (of Twilight Singers), bassist Ashley Dzerigian (formally of Great Northern), drummer Cully Symington (formally of Bishop Allen) and multi-instrumentalist Rick Nelson (of The Polyphonic Spree and St. Vincent).

The band’s debut EP, Without Feathers, came out this week and can be found on iTunes. Their full length CD will be out this summer.

Jeff Klein answered some questions sent his way this week.

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Okay, lot’s going on. Hard to keep up. Don’t forget Showlist Austin and SCHED* for all your SXSW prep work.

• RSVP for the Fader Fort here. No info of line-up or location yet.

• Rumors continue to fly around that Metallica will be making an appearance. Because there was a wide gap in Friday’s schedule at Stubb’s, it seemed to be the likely candidate. But… that gap has been filled with the Guitar Hero Metallica Madness Competition at 10pm for 2 hours 20 minutes. So will it be members of Metallica in an all star jam with Guitar Heroes? Will the band play themselves? Do I really care? Not personally, but I know a lot of people do.
• Click here to RSVP for some Paste parties.
• AAM day show features Health, Eartless w/ J Mascis, and more.
• Park the Van is part of a day show featuring Deer Tick, The High Strung, more.

Have any other things you want to discuss about SXSW? Post it up in the comments. We’re at the 1 week countdown.

MP3: Devotion by Viva Voce

Viva Voce is coming back with a new album on May 26 (mp3 above). They’re now a four piece, adding Corrina Repp and Evan Railton to the fold. To me, part of the magic of Viva Voce was that they were able to do so much with just two people. It’ll be interesting to see how the dynamics has changed now that the band size has doubled.

SXSW appearances:

Wednesday, March 18th – My Old Kentucky Blog Showcase [Radio Room – Midnight]
Thursday, March 19th – Little Radio Party [Red Eyed Fly – 4:00pm]
Friday, March 20th – Under The Radar Party [Flamingo Cantina – 1:30pm]
Saturday, March 21st – Hot Freaks Party [The Mohawk – 3:00pm]

Click here to add these events to your SCHED* calendar.

Showcase info: Deer Tick performs at 1 a.m. on Wednesday, March 18 @ Club de Ville (900 Red River St.) and 1 a.m., Friday, March 20 @ Habana Bar Backyard (708 E.6th St.)

Other appearances: Gigotron/Videothing Presents …, 11 p.m., Thursday, March 19 @ Club 1808 (1808 E.12th St.); Music by the Slice, 1:30 p.m., Saturday, March 21 @ Home Slice Pizza (1415 South Congress Ave.)

More bands to be added.