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SXSW Day 1 Recap
Check out my photo gallery from Day 1 at SXSW.
I got things started Wednesday with a stop at the Austinist day party at The Mohawk. Despite early rains, the crowd was at capacity when I arrived around 3 p.m.
When I arrived, the campy Apes & Androids were steadily bringing the rock (and the goofiness, with inflatable monsters whipping around near the stage). The singers were decked out in glam fashion that would have made Ziggy Stardust proud. The band lost a little of their tight sound as the set wore on, but the fans stayed with them throughout.
I then popped inside to check out The Hourly Radio from Dallas. You’d never know these boys were from just up the road on Interstate 35, as they displayed a layered atmospheric rock sound, one might have easily attribute to a British band. Architecture in Helsinki closed out the Austinist party with a rollicking set that had the packed house bopping around gleefully with their tunes that seem a marriage of Talking Heads and Rusted Root.
After meeting some out-of-town friends for a quick visit, I headed over to catch The Pipettes and The Rapture at La Zona Rosa. The Pipettes, dressed in polka-dotted dress, with lead singer in a platinum bob, are a British band that tends toward a campy doo-wop sound. Not really my cup of tea, but the large crowd seemed to enjoy the frivolity, and I was a little smitten with the gorgeous lead. Following the fluffy Pipettes, The Rapture took the stage and rocked out to an adoring crowd that was obviously very familiar with the catalogue of this band that featured a sound reminiscent of ’80s electro pop, although the end of their set skewed harder, heavier and louder.
The first six hours of Sx made me long for a brief respite from rock ‘n’ roll, so I headed to the serene sanctity of Central Presbyterian Church, where I was entreated to a beautiful set by the imminently crushable Rosie Thomas. I have enjoyed her music for years but had never had the honor of seeing her live. I was rather shocked to hear her speak in such a squeaky voice, punctuated with Lisa Simpson-esque laughter. Her quirky speaking voice belies a powerful and beautiful voice that would stop the grumpiest of Sx’ers dead in their tracks. The gregarious and inspiring singer reminded me of the cute, funny girl from your poetry 315 class in college who always has a clever remark and is primed for witty banter; then one day you walk into the local coffee shop and you hear the voice of an angel waft over you. You look up, and, “Oh my God! It’s her!” Sweet, smart, hilarious, self-effacing and obviously blessed and thankful to be able to perform live music for a living, Rosie Thomas was just what I needed in the midst of my first day of Sx onslaught.
I finished the night with a set from Merge artist The Broken West at Antone’s. The small liberal arts college crowd was out in full force for this power pop alt-country band. Obvious comparisons to Spoon and Uncle Tupelo obviously rush to mind when seeing these scruffy cats on stage, as well as some nods to bands as far back as The Byrds, but The Broken West really didn’t affect me much in the way those bands have. The lead singer’s voice lacked significant strength, and while the harmonies were nice, they seemed almost an after-thought, especially hidden behind the loud crescendo of strumming on which the band relied. The guitars and keyboards and drums would build on a sound, building anticipation to a nice release, but I was generally left wanting. Maybe it was just time to head home and re-group. So, I did.
This afternoon I hope to check out the following shows:
Peter, Bjorn and John at the Rhapsody party at The Mohawk
Andrew Bird at The Onion party at Emo’s
The Walkmen at the Found Magazine part at Bourbon Rocks.
Tonight:
8 p.m. - The Cinematics at Flamingo Cantina
9 p.m. - New Violators at Emo’s Jr.
10:30pm - Tom Brosseau at Central Presbyterian Church
11 p.m. - Fujiya and Miyagi at Karma Lounge
Midnight - Ghostland Observatory at La Zona Rosa
Permalink | Comments (1) | Categories: SXSW
Comments
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By Kristina B
March 15, 2007 9:03 PM | Link to this
nice picture :)