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I'm not a country fan, but Garth Brooks is playing the outdoor stage tomorrow. Badges and wristbands only with ga tickets that are restricted to residents only and are sold out already.
Also, for the Rachel Ray show tomorrow, what are the actual chances of getting in without a wristband/badge if I go and line up super early (and what is super early for this? 7am? it says it starts at 10)? It doesn't actually say it anywhere, but i'm assuming that they still get priority...
Also, The people in line next to us are making mimosas and I'm super jelly.... so if you wanna come say hi, bring mimosas!
I hope you get in! I'm still laying in bed
Got in! Free food. Free booze. I'm in heaven. Action Bronson cancelled tho so some other people very not action Bronsony are playing. People look...... confused. Lol
Edit: ok, he just did intros and there's a guy from Spoon in the band. Their name is Hamilton Light something?
A friend has told me Sturgil Simpson is performing at St David's church downtown. Not 100% if this is true. If I can't make it into the Roots Jam, I may opt for that
A quick top 10 off top of my head. I'll do a full review Monday or Tuesday.
Future Islands @ Pandora !!! At Pandora & Maggie Maes Rainbow Kitten Surprise @ Pandora Wu Tang @ Moody WeDC w Wale @ Moody Magic Giant @ Moody Flint Eastwood @ Pandora Jimmy Eat World @ Pandora Roots Jam w Rae Sremmurd, TI, Brandy, Shakey Graves, Method Man, Redman, De La Soul@ 800 Congress Har Mar Superstar @ Cheer Up Charlies
HM: Lana Del Rey @ Apple Music, Colony House @ Pandora, Smashmouth @ Antones
I just found out that apparently my friend is friends with them. She knows them from Michigan and last year when they played SXSW she (Jax Anderson) stayed with them and she left her panties and her bath towel at their apt.....
A friend has told me Sturgil Simpson is performing at St David's church downtown. Not 100% if this is true. If I can't make it into the Roots Jam, I may opt for that
That's Roots jam.....hold shit. Shakey Graves, De La Soul, Brandy, Method Man, Redman, T.I, Rae Sremmurd, Cloves...
After waiting in line for 4 hours i eventually got in. During Jidenna's set. Method Man & Redman was the best part. TI was dope too but only did 2 songs. Shakey Graves is awesome. Brandy was a surprise.
Sxsw is more of a go with the flow thing for me. I don't set out to see certain people, just be with my friends and see where we end up.
That said, best show of the few days I went was def vagabon. Really, really amazing show at some dark Irish pub. All girl band with indie rock vibe. Spotify them!!
Denzel Curry was fuckinggg liiiive at the Ham on Everything showcase at Old Emo's. During Ultimate they got their sound turned off and everyone got pissed, so Denzel jumped in the middle of the crowd and finished the song accapella until the sound got back on, then jumped back on stage and did the song for a third time. I don't use this term often but, it was so lit. Xavier Wulf was awesome too.
That's Roots jam.....hold shit. Shakey Graves, De La Soul, Brandy, Method Man, Redman, T.I, Rae Sremmurd, Cloves...
After waiting in line for 4 hours i eventually got in. During Jidenna's set. Method Man & Redman was the best part. TI was dope too but only did 2 songs. Shakey Graves is awesome. Brandy was a surprise.
When we were leaving Rachael Ray's around 4:30 there was already a line forming outside of Stubb's for The Roots jam. My friend and I *very* briefly thought about waiting in line and going to that too (we would've been like 10th people in), but when I found out doors weren't until like 8 I decided against it. Waiting in one 2.5 hour line was enough for the day, I wasn't prepared to wait for nearly 4 hours for another show. I really wanted to go though and it sounds pretty awesome.
Anyways, I worked a lot of the week and only went out Wednesday and Saturday. Weezer and De La Soul were awesome though and so super worth the wait. Overall I'm happy with what I made it too. Only regret was getting over to Scoot Inn for Sylvan Esso, but I was working that morning and didn't think I'd get in around 1-2ish when I finished up and would've gotten there so I didn't even try. *shrug* I've seen them before though, so no harm no foul for me.
That's Roots jam.....hold shit. Shakey Graves, De La Soul, Brandy, Method Man, Redman, T.I, Rae Sremmurd, Cloves...
After waiting in line for 4 hours i eventually got in. During Jidenna's set. Method Man & Redman was the best part. TI was dope too but only did 2 songs. Shakey Graves is awesome. Brandy was a surprise.
They made some great improvements over last year. They gave the Roots plenty of time to just jam out and have fun, picked better, more energetic guests, upped the free beer (4 16oz and burgers vs 2 12oz). The space was decent aside from that crushing squeeze to the bathrooms. Line management wasn't a total clusterfuck. I def hope they do it again.
Friday 3.10 - Improv show @ Santa Cruz Dance studio (would have gone to Capyac/Joywave @ Cap1)
Saturday 3.11 - First Volunteer shift @ Long Center - Walked into our break room and met Nick Offerman who has the exact humor you would expect. First band happened due to a rain warning moving fuzzy rockers Naked Giant into the lobby to perform for a quick set. Afterwards, a 90s Seattle/Grunge doc aired, all free to the public.
Sunday 3.12 - First ventured out. National Geo had open bar from 12p-12a so I stuck it out there for awhile and watched a panel with Ron Howard regarding an upcoming Showtime Series on Einstein. After a few drinks, I split to the first bands of the fest, none other than Fastball and Smashmouth. Never thought I'd be at Smashmouth concert. When you let go, get drunk, and realize everyone else around feels the same way, it turned out to be a lot of fun. Fastball earned a "you still got it" chant from the crowd. (2)
Monday 3.13 - First Double shift. Luckily, I was able to leave early and hit-up Pandora house on 6th street for a nice run of Frenship > !!! > Lo Moon, then headed to Empire for Cut Chemist and a jam sesh from Robert Glasper. -Frenship from what I remember was just an average indie band. Don't remember much other than some good energy. -!!! has moved to one of my favorite live bands. Pure danceable funk, incredible chemistry in the band and the lead singer Nick just always out performs. Before Fitz and the Tantrums, there was and continues to be !!!. -Lo Moon was a great band. Indie rock with some synth, like a upbeat Beachhouse. I'd check them out again. -Cut Chemist was rather disappointing with a pretty shitty rapper accompaniment. -Robert Glasper was insanely packed at Empire and I could barely see the jazz band perform. It felt more like them just at a rehearsal, and I was already quite spent.
Tuesday 3.14 - Completely off today but made a bad judgement of making a fitness class before trying to hit up Scoot Inn and meet up Rothric. They had an incredible line up of Diet Cig>Rainbow Kitten Surprise> Night Beats (no show) > Lizzo > Thee Oh Sees. Also, free beer from Lagunitas. The joint opened around 11ish? and had a line around the block by 1. After realizing there was no chance Id get in, I decided to explore other options. After attempting a few other spots that were at max capacity, I found a podcast event happening with Al Madrigal, Bill Burr + 2 other comics which was a great change of pace. Love Bill Burr. He just gets laughs so easily. Also met Wendy Davis unexpectedly. After this, I headed back to Nat Geo for a quick couple drinks and made it to the Official Open Party (more free drinks, catered food) with rock orchestra Tredici Bacci, rapper Noname, and a 2nd set by !!!. -Tredici Bacci - these guys were wild. Mashing up all sorts of different styles feverlishy, they reminded me of a classical Zonkey album by Umph. After a few songs, the lead singer and guitarist ripped his shirt off and proceeded to lead a "Hey Mother Fucker!!!" chant with the entire crowd. Energy wise high and completely weird...I loved it.
-Noname, she had good swag, decent backing band but it def seemed like she was still finding herself on stage which is fine for a new artist. She seems poised to rise. She works with Chance.
-!!! Another badass set by these guys with a slightly different set list. New album coming in May.
Other acts were scheduled but I booked it over to the WeDC party @ Moody Theatre which was much easier to get into than I thought. Notable acts were, of course Wu-Tang, Thievery, Erykah Badu DJ set as Lo Down Loretta Brown. Openers were Boomscatt, Magic Giant, DC legends Rare Essence featuring Wale. -Of the openers, I enjoyed Magic Giant whom felt like a more up-beat, punkier version of Mumford n Sons -Rare Essense absolutely crushed with what felt like 100 performers on stage, and rapper Wale guesting. -Erykah Badu DJ set was awful. Nothing jived and she was there for only 15-20 minutes after a 45 minute late start. -Thievery is always an enjoyable set, but I headed to the balcony to relax as my it was late as fuck -Wu Tang gave me a 2nd wing a 115am/ Loved that I finally caught them collectively.
-Ill do the 2nd half tomorrow- Wednesday 3.15 Thursday 3.16 Friday 3.17 Saturday 3.18
3/11 Golden Dawn Arkestra @ Hotel Vegas: Such a great live band. At least 12 members. Total immersion of sound, visuals, and smells. If you've never seen them then you have no idea what im talking about but if you have then you know what's up! Go see them!! You won't be able to just stand still the minute they go on. Brownout @ Empire Garage: Funky as hell. Seen them a few other times. They're always a great show.
3/12 Started my volunteer shifts at Alamo Ritz. This was the night we had the secret screening of Trainspotting 2. Danny Boyle showed up, Ewan McGregor was there, and Richard Linklater did the intro & Q+A. It was a stressful night but that's what i love about sxsw! How often does that sort of thing happen?? Got off at 2 am, so i didn't catch any shows this day.
3/13 Second volunteer shift. Didn't really much else other than that. Saving energy for rest of week. But i did meet comedian/actor Brett Gelman. He's a really nice dude.
3/14 Third volunteer shift. Was super jealous about missing Thee Oh Sees. Covered my sorrows in open bars around 6th, at this air bnb house called Collide which had free mimosas and food and was just a badass place to hang out. They paid $2000 a night for that spot. Easy Tiger had an awesome open bar which included every drink on their menu. Afterwards I met up with some friends at the old La Zona Rosa venue which was being rented by Apple Music.
Vince Staples @ Apple Music (612 West 4th St.): I'd seen Vince at Stubbs during sx in 2016 and also at Bonnaroo (met him before that set, he had an asthma attack but still killed it). The production on this tour he's having is premier. His sound in that place was perfect. And he raps every lyric. It was a great set by him, but you could tell he wasn't really feeling the crowd, which is completely understandable. He didn't even say a word to us. Usually he cracks jokes and disses corporate sponsors, but this time he just didn't really want to take any risks or something. The mosh was okay but some crazy white lady grabbed me from my backpack and wouldn't let go, constantly screaming in my ear to stop. It was the most obnoxious thing ever. She could've just moved over and minded her own business. She also told some kid to go home and choke on his vomit. Real classy lady...
3/15 Fourth and Final volunteer shift. I pretty much just hit open bars again during this shift and took naps in the theater during the Grateful Dead doc Long Strange Trip. Also saw Lemon, which was fantastic. After my shift, i booked it to Mohawk for ATDI. There was a line for badges, albeit not too bad, but i did miss Temples & Denzel Curry. Then, i made it in. I was so amped to make it in 15 minutes before ATDI went on.
At The Drive In @ The Mohawk: Then they did. And it was epic. To see them in such a small venue, was remarkable. The setlist was perfect, even though it was kind of short (45 minutes). Ptetty much all the best songs off Relationship of Command and 1 new song. It was the sort of show that makes volunteering and waiting in lines worth it. I almost stayed for Polica and The Black Angels, but decided to meet up with some friends at Cheer Up Charlie's. The line for this place was none-existent. Went straight to the bar where this kickass bartender told us about the free Lone Star in the backbar. Before we headed that way, some security grabbed us and started interrogating me about when i got there and to go back out and wait in line to get back in. Turns out they had me confused with someone that was wearing a very similar UT bomber jacket!! It was weird as fuck. They apologized when they realized i wasnt the dude, since his jacket apparently had the Longhorns logo on the back, and mine didn't. We brushed that off and went to the bar for Lone Star, where i saw Sam Herring chilling at a table with a bunch of people. I walked by a couple times, realized it was him and went up to meet up. "Are you Sam Herring from Future Islands?" "Yeah!!" "Dude, hell yeah, you guys are awesome. I won't be able to catch your show on Friday but I will be there for Bonnaroo!" "Oh cool!! We're really excited for that show." "Cool if i get a picture?" "Absolutely!!" So random!!
Lil Yachty & Noname @ Cheer Up Charlie's: Noname's set was good and i dig her tunes but she kind of was awkward on stage and kept commenting about how nobody knew the words to her songs.. Like chill, you're a new artist, and we get that you're finding your place on stage. No need to hate on us. Nevertheless, after her set ended, people were ready for Lil Boat. I don't listen to too much of his music, only like 4 songs, but for some reason i was really stoked to see this show. This guy is blowing up so quickly, to be able to see him on a small stage is something that'll be in my sxsw lore. The crowd was turnt. He had a nice pit going, i was surprised. All the hate people give this dude... They don't even know what his shows are like. I approve. He's dope.
I saw about 10 minutes of that yachty set and thought it was pretty terrible. I left and caught the rest of Danny Brown's set at Empire. It was a great decision.
I saw about 10 minutes of that yachty set and thought it was pretty terrible. I left and caught the rest of Danny Brown's set at Empire. It was a great decision.
It got pretty rowdy about 30 minutes in. Danny Brown is always great live, too.
I saw about 10 minutes of that yachty set and thought it was pretty terrible. I left and caught the rest of Danny Brown's set at Empire. It was a great decision.
It got pretty rowdy about 30 minutes in. Danny Brown is always great live, too.
I'm not a big fan of Danny Brown, but I'll take him over Yachty any day. Ill admit he is blowing up and has a massive cult following which makes show completely wild (at times, other times they're complete shit shows). To me, that is no excuse for being a complete shit rapper, performer, entertainer and person. Sam Herrings (very jealous that you met him!) is a better rapper, performer, entertainer and person than Lil Yachty.
Golden Dawn is exceptional, one of a kind outfit right now. I try not to hit up locals during SXSW since they'll definitely be performing around he soon (I did hit up S U R V I V E), but I was tempted to make a set. Incredible band that deserves a lot of recognition and fortune.
Wed: 3.15 - Worked through my final double. Didn't get out of the Long Center until 1145pm, missing At The Drive-In, Polica, Denzel Curry and Black Angels. Ended up catching:
-Lizzo @ Bat Bar - Awful place for her to perform. POS bar on dirty 6th. Her crew looked completely out of place, and 2 bouncers almost fought each other. She did the best she could and bounced after 4 songs. Hannibal Burress was suppose to have a DJ set for some reason, but I think he looked at the place n just bailed.
-Jimmy Eat World @ Pandora - At the very least, I caught one of my favorite bands from High School, at least 2/3 of the set list. The other 1/3 I heard from 6th street. They hit all my favorites and will def be making it out to see them again. They were very humble to "still be relevant."
n/a Dirty Dog - Attempted to see Crazytown for lulz @ 130am, but they were the next night.
Thurs 3/16: Worked out to feel better then:
-Rainbow Kitten Surprise @ Pandora: It feels like this is where I spent a majority of SXSW. After missing them, and hearing them kill outside Scoot Inn, I made it a point to make this set. They're a hell of a band, with high, connected energy. Lead singer spends most of the time in some combination of dancing, skanking, and jumping with the crowd. A must see act.
-Temples @ Floodfest (Cedar Street) - They had a short set (which seemed to happen a lot here). Very low energy, but catchy, clear songs. Incredible dry humour that was charming. I don't think I'd make a strong effort to see them again but wouldn't pass em up.
-RagnBone Man @ Youtube (CopperTank) - Stumbled in here since the line was short which worked out well to an open bar w vodka cocktails and chips. Caught this up and coming soul singer from the UK. He has a much stronger, deeper voice than his recordings, and occasionally drops into some rap. Def enjoyed his set though it was lower tempo than my normal liking.
-Frankie Rose @ Hotel Vegas - I've been really digging her past 2 albums so seeing her live was a must. Personally, enjoyed her darker, pop/synth sound and she had great vocals. Unfortunately, she was a complete bitch to the staff and tech booth. Every song ended w a complaint about reverb, lighting, monitors, ect. I understand as an artist it sucks when things aren't where you like them, but at some point you start to lose your audience. She even pulled a "how about tacos? I guess that's all you eat in TX right? Well I don't." Ehhh, is that some kind of LA/Brooklyn superiority complex?
-Colony House @ Pandora - Came into them knowing they have a few catchy songs, but I really digged this set. Very catchy, clean sound. Tons of energy. They def impressed.
-Flint Eastwood @ Pandora - Stumbled upon them after hearing some buzz build up. Very mixed sound. Crushing energy from their lead singer, although the band is only a 3 piece versus a 5/6 piece from earlier videos. Still, she worked the place to high level dance party. Would def check out again.
-Young M.A. @ Pandora - Pretty buzzing female rapper who def won the crowd over with a slower than normal swag than Ive seen. I knew nothing about her but if you like hip hop, Id check her out.
-Future Islands @ Pandora - One of the main targets for me was she FI again and they just get better every time. The lead singer just never gives under 100%, the music is so on point, clear sounding that it moves everyone in the whole yard.
Fri 3.18 Jain, The Districts, Middle Kids, San Fermin @ Floodfest Lana Del Rey @ Apple (fka La Zona Rose) Electric Guest @ Bar 96 The 4ontheFloor @ Sidewinder
Notables: Jain had a short set but I see her really surging with a charming voice and dance beats. Lana Del Rey was decent, but Im not a huge fan so I stayed for half the set. Electric Guest was ok. 4ontheFloor is an awesome high energy rock band w a hint of country.
Sat 3.19 Slowkiss @ ACC Flatstock - weird place to a see a band in the middle of a trade show S U R V I V E @ Cheer Up Charlies - Walked around with mi madre and she really enjoyed their music. ROOTS SXSW JAM @ 800 Congress - Absolutely amazing, see above. Har Mar Superstar @ Cheer up Charlies - Probably my favorite way to end the fest. Har Mar rules
Final thoughts: This was my 2nd favorite year just under 2015 (Incubus, Flaming Lips, Hot Chip) and over last years for sure. You can def tell the music portion is not as nearly sprawling with as it was a few years ago, but it made it easier to find fun parties without feeling too much FOMO. Next year may be my last year of volunteering and running around this shit show. Total acts seen: 40
For your viewing pleasure, an awkward video of Smashmouth
