The music, the madness and a whole lotta the Drums – SXSW 2012 Reviewed
- Mar, 20 2012
- By Caitlin
- Review
- 4 comments
All photos and video by Zack Teibloom
You’re walking briskly through the dark, a slight wind whispering through your hair, as tree roots present themselves like a Disney cartoon, seemingly meant for you to hop from one to the other as crunchy, fallen leaves collect and form a path leading you downtown. You no longer remember what day it is, and time is only meaningful as a marker for where you need to be, and what band you’re about to see. You’re so exhausted that other people and structure are flying past you in big blocks of color, but you just keep walking, determined not to miss that next band that you just really, truly have to see.
This is South by Southwest. It is constantly flitting from one show to the next on an almost-empty stomach, grabbing free breakfast tacos here and there when time permits. It is a creature with such a short lifespan, that you devote yourself, mind, body and spirit to it so that you can get the most enjoyment out of it as is humanly possible. This is what the festival brought me this year, and despite seeing fewer bands than I normally am able to, I feel that it was one of my most successful fests to date.
SXSW 2012 – Bands to See
- Mar, 11 2012
- By Caitlin
- What's Going On
- No comments
It always creeps up on me. One minute, my friends and I are lamenting the fact that South by Southwest is over, and we have to wait a whole year before we do it all again. The very next, it’s time for a constant barrage of music, libations, and general merriment. And so, here we are again, poised on the edge of greatness (or a great catastrophe, depending on how organized you are). What’s that, you say? You don’t even know who is playing this year? Worry not, o yon procrastinator! That’s what I’m here for. I’ve scoured the SXSW lineup this year and have come up with the below suggestions of bands you really can’t miss. Per our usual format, you’ll find below the name of an incredible band, a brief description of what they’re like, a video of a song that encapsulates what they’re about, and the venues & showtimes where you can actually find them. Some are new to me, some are old favorites. Either way — buckle up. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Read More...Austin City Limits Festival 2011 – Who to See
- Sep, 14 2011
- By Caitlin
- What's Going On
- No comments
I have been excited about this year’s Austin City Limits Festival for a while, but the giddiness just hit me on Sunday. It is indeed that time of year where Zilker Park closes to lazy weekends with your dog to make way for tall white tents, towering stages and tons and tons of your favorite bands. My all-time top two will both be performing this weekend, so I’m more than ready for it all. Mostly, I’m excited to stumble upon some new bands I’ve never heard before – there are quite a few that could fill some empty spaces in my schedule. For now, I will recommend the bands I feel secure in signing off on. Below, you’ll get a song and a snippet about who I think you should see. Drink tons of water, reapply that sunscreen, and rock out with abandon.
Read More...SXSW Preview No. 3 – Who to See
- Mar, 14 2011
- By Caitlin
- What's Going On
- One comment
Here it is – the last preview before the South by Southwest Music Conference descends and we all lose our minds. I scoured the band list to try and find the best groups I could to recommend. Below, you’ll get a quick-hit description of the band from me, a link to a song that exemplifies their sound, and the time and venue the band is performing at. I break it all down day-by-day; if you really love a band, check the sxsw.com schedule to get all of their performance dates (a lot of ‘em are playing 3+ shows). Read on, and then get out there and rock!
Tuesday, March 15
Admiral Fallow – upbeat orchestral pop from Glasgow; like if Freelance Whales had Frightened Rabbit’s accents. The Bat Bar, 9pm
Admiral Fallow – Squealing Pigs
Dry the River – Bon Iver-ish vox over sweet, smooth tunes. Like a brighter Margot and the Nuclear So & So’s. The Bat Bar, 10pm
Fences – Beckish vox, gentle singer-songwriter stuff with a little folksy overtone. (His appearance = TOTALLY deceiving). The Bat Bar, 11pm
Mr. Heavenly – Man Man meets the Ronettes. The Bat Bar, midnight
Mister Heavenly – Pineapple Girl
Surfer Blood – Move the Drums south to Florida to beach up their sound; there you go. Emo’s Main Room at 1am
Wednesday, March 16
Brett Dennen – Paul Simon-y. Pretty voice, pretty songs. Moody Theater @ 7:30pm
Erland & the Carnival – something familiar about this; like Travis-esque vox with throwback pop rock music. 8pm at Club de Ville.
Erland & the Carnival – Trouble in Mind
The Black Atlantic – saw ‘em at CMJ, absolutely gorgeous music. Teitur with more folk leanings than pop. 10pm at Esther’s Follies
The Black Atlantic – Fragile Meadow
1,2,3 – gritty pop-rock with a snarl. 10pm at the Parish.
Sea of Bees – 11:30pm @ Central Presbyterian Church; somewhere between Stevie Nicks and Martha Wainwright. Gorgeous voice, she’ll shine in this venue.
Flogging Molly – the perfect band to get you ready for St. Patrick’s Day on Thursday. 11:45pm @ Moody
Flogging Molly – If I Ever Leave This World Alive
Sharon Van Etten – heartbreaking singer/songwriter with vocal power that overwhelms you. Midnight at Swan Dive.
The Spinto Band – these are my boys. Super fun and smart pop music. Midnight on the Barbarella Patio.
The Spinto Band – Japan is an Island
Young the Giant – This band has a song in heavy rotation on 101x right now, and it hooked me. I’m weary that they might be another ‘The Hours’ for me (where “Ali in the Jungle” is amazing but everything else falls flat), but seriously – watch that video and tell me you’re not curious. Midnight at Buffalo Billiards.
The Dodos – I’ve been a fan of these guys for a while. If you’re into heavy rhythms and incredible guitar playing, check ‘em out. The Parish @ 1am.
Thursday, March 17
Sondre Lerche – gorgeous intricate delicate pop music. I’ve loved this Norwegian since I was 16 (I’ll be 24 on March 16). Not to be missed. Maggies Mae’s @ 9pm
Sondre Lerche – To Be Surprised
Phantogram – electronic rock, super catchy, bop-able. Playing Lustre Pearl at 11pm
The Kills – Allison. Effing. Mosshart. ‘Nuff said. Emo’s at 11pm.
Emmylou Harris – Classic country darling. Plus…will Conor make a guest appearance? She’s play his set at Auditorium Shores for sure. Antone’s at 11:15pm
Emmylou Harris – Making Believe
Miniature Tigers – saw these dudes open for the Freelance Whales, and fell in love. Incredible onstage charisma, great pop tunes – winners. Lamberts at 11:45pm
Miniature Tigers – Cannibal Queen
Maps & Atlases – really great vox, deep and luscious, plus uptempo rock to back ‘em; reminded me a little of TV on the Radio, but I like this better (keep in mind I’m not a fan of TVotR). Midnight at Red Eyed Fly
Dom – saw ‘em at CMJ, they totally won us over. Fun, dancey, energetic, depth – definitely a must-see. 1am at Club de Ville
Friday, March 18
Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears – local funky rock; the baby-makin’ kind. Moody Theater @ 8:05pm
Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears – Sugarfoot
JBM – A blog favorite. The kind of gorgeous folk music that will make you ache in your guts. Central Presbyterian Church @ 8:15pm
Alex Highton – sweet singer-songwriter from the UK. 9pm at 18th floor at Hilton Garden Inn
Alex Highton – You’ve Got the Trees
Sarah Jaffe – You know where we’ll be at 9pm on Friday. Jaffe is stunning, stunning, stunning. If you haven’t caught her yet – you must. She’s at Momo’s.
The Bright Light Social Hour – Austin’s men of rawk. Put your fist in the air and let loose. Momo’s at 10pm.
The Bright Light Social Hour – Bare Hands Bare Feet
Thao with the Get Down Stay Down – Thao is a beast. She’s emotive and fabulous and crafts kickass pop rock tunes. See for yourself – 11pm at Antone’s.
Thao with the Get Down Stay Down – Body
Wye Oak – gorgeous folksy music with stunning lead vox. Great for woods-walking. 11:45pm at the Parish
Little Dragon – gorgeous R&B vox and moody/peppy electronic music from Sweeeeden!!! SVERIGE!! Lustre Perle at midnight.
Saturday, March 19
Man Man – Wild and crazy collaborative party good times. 4:30pm at Auditorium Shores
Middle Brother – Collab between Dawes, Deer Tick and Delta Spirit members. Old school country-fried rock. 5:25pm at Auditorium Shores
Bright Eyes – I don’t even know what to say about this. This will be my first ever time catching Conor with Bright Eyes. He’s my musical soul mate. Dig it. 7:30pm at Auditorium Shores.
Pujol – Jack White’s babies. Raucous and fun. Mohawk Patio at 9pm
Toy Selectah – mashin’ up the hits for you to get your dance on. 9:30pm at Prague
The Rural Alberta Advantage - kinda whiny vox (think Neutral Milk Hotel) but if you can get into it, the music is great. Great energy. 10:30pm at Central Presbyterian Church
The Rural Alberta Advantage – Stamp
Ezra Furman & the Harpoons – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! vocals set to folksy pop rock. 11pm at Speakeasy
Ezra Furman & the Harpoons- Take Off Your Sunglasses
Royal Bangs – forceful and fun electronic rock. 11pm @ the ND
Royal Forest – Austin heroes; will sometimes cover Neil Young and the Talking Heads. (Full disclosure – I help manage these guys and they’re the bomb. See them.) 11pm @ the Marq
Deer Tick – Gritty country folk rock. 1am @ Lustre Perle
Yoko Ono – Yoko! I mean. It’s Yoko. 1am @ Elysium
Yoko Ono – Walking on Thin Ice
BONUS: The Black & White Years are quickly becoming my favorite Austin band. They don’t have any official showcases, but they’re playing gigs every day until SXSW ends. Check out their show list here.
CMJ Preview Post #1
- Oct, 13 2010
- By Caitlin
- What's Going On
- 10 comments
The 2010 CMJ Festival in New York City is fast approaching, and Austin Writes Music will be on the scene this year to report our findings and listen to as much music as possible. If you, too, are heading to NYC, or you’d just like the skinny on some up-and-coming bands, you’ve found the right post. For the next few days up until we head outta town, we’ll be posting previews of the bands we wanna see at CMJ. Admittedly, CMJ is totally overwhelming; after spending 3 hours listening to bands last night, I managed to only get through one hour of ONE day of the festival. So, if your favorite band is playing the festival, let us know! If you’ve heard interesting buzz about somebody, clue us in. This blog is here to serve, after all, so help us cover the bands you’re interested in. Below is a preview of the bands we’re most excited for and/or curious about playing on Tuesday, Oct. 19.
Lawrence Arabia is a folksy-rock fellow from New Zealand. I’ve heard nothing but good things from friends who’ve seen him and his band live, so this is a group I’m going to try very hard to catch at least once during the festival. They play at 6 p.m. on Tuesday at Le Poisson Rouge.
Alfonso Velez was one of my discoveries last night as I scoured the schedule. He’s a New York native that plays delicate, emotional folk-pop; think Travis as a one-man band. He plays at 7 p.m. on Stage 1 at the Rockwood Music Hall.
Another late-night discovery. Luluc is a Brooklyn-by-way-of-Melbourne duo that creates lullabies for adults; their soft, breezy love songs will make you feel small and vulnerable. These two are at the Living Room at 7 p.m.
Quilty are a Brooklyn band that create catchy, punky and raw music; check out “Supernova” on their MySpace page. The trio plays the Knitting Factory at 7 p.m.
sleepy vikings hail from Tampa, Fla., and their Americana-tinged pop does have that rubbing-the-sleep-from-your-eyes, morning-dew aura about it. They’ll be at Kenny’s Castaways at 7 p.m.
Baby Alpaca, apart from being an ADORABLE fuzzy animal, is a band from Brooklyn with a sound that’s a little shoegaze-y, a little moody, and totally gorgeous. They play at 7:30 p.m. upstairs at the Delancey.
One of my favorite pre-CMJ discoveries, Ma Mentor are from across the pond, and they sound like the Strokes if the Strokes suddenly decided to go electronic. They’re playing Pianos at 7:30 p.m.
The Barr Brothers are a four piece from Montreal that come off like a less bombastic Avett Brothers (which is a good thing). They’re playing at the Cameo Gallery at 7:30 p.m.
I’m incredibly excited to finally catch this band live. The Miniature Tigers played Lollapalooza this year, and have been touring all over the place. They come home to New York for CMJ, and they play the Music Hall of Williamsburg at 9:45 p.m. Try “Cannibal Queen” to see for yourself how crazy-catchy their pop rock tunes can be.
Jenny Lewis, people. Siren. Musiker. Queen of indie rock. She’s one bad mother shut-your-mouth, so basically I will follow her through whatever incarnation she deems fit to play in, whether it be solo, with her band Rilo Kiley, or with her beau Johnathan Rice. The pair will perform at the Irving Plaza at midnight.
Don’t forget to drop your suggestions for bands we should cover in the comments below! We could particularly use your help if you can point us in the direction of bands that can’t be described as “folksy.” (I was raised on Nanci Griffith! I’m predisposed to love folk!! I’M SORREEEE!!!)
Rock Love Austin