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Monday, March 15, 2010
Snoop Dogg coming to SXSW for Perez party
That’s right. Perez Hilton has just announced that the Doggfather will be playing his party on Saturday at a warehouse at 3rd and Brazos Streets.
Rumors were also rampant that Snoop Dogg will make a stop at MTV’s soundstage at the former Seaholm Power Plant and perform with Gorillaz, who will be headlining at Coachella next month. Snoop is a guest on Gorillaz new album “Plastic Beach,” but it’s unlikely the G-men would be in Austin. Damon Albarn debuts the new live band in England on March 21, the day after SXSW. That’s jetlag, innit?
Earlier today, Simon Cowell’s likely replacement on “American Idol” confirmed that Marina and the Diamonds and Alphabeat are also playing his party, which is sponsored by Swagg.
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Marina and the Diamonds to play Perez Hilton party
Celeb gossip blogger Perez Hilton announced on his site today that Marina and the Diamonds and Alphabeat will play his closing night party Saturday at a warehouse near the corner of Brazos and Third Streets. More acts will be announced later.
Go here for the chance to win tickets.
One party that is off, according to Shangri-La’s Tyler Van Aken, is Wednesday night’s Woxy/Future Sounds Super Rumble. The invite only party was to feature several official SXSW bands (in violation with an agreement bands sign to not compete with official night time showcases). The Woxy parties during the day at Shangri-La on E. Sixth St. are still on.
Rumors are going crazy, but our fave is Snoop Dogg performing with Gorillaz at Seaholm Power Plant (which MTV is renting from the city for $500 a day.) The cartoon band is the subject of a listening party during SXSW.
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Preliminary Austin Psych Fest 3 lineup announced
In precious non-SXSW-related news, the preliminary lineup has been announced for Austin Psych Fest 3, the annual celebration of psychedelic rock that goes down at the Mohawk April 23 through 25.
Performers include — of course — the Black Angels, the Raveonettes, the Vandelles, Ringo Deathstarr, Shapes Have Fangs, Warpaint and many more. Tickets, $45 for a three-day pass, are available now. Another round of performers will be announced after SXSW.
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SXSW free round-up: Carniville, record in-stores and 101X live broadcasts
We’re getting down to the wire, with a paltry single day remaining before the South by Southwest Music Festival commandeers Austin for four days of music and mingling. As always, there’s far too many cool free events going down on the side to even begin to touch on them here on the blog, but check out our massive SXSW side parties list and database today and throughout the festival to help plan your festival. But here are a few highlights worth your time:
I Heart Comix, Jelly and Mad Decent will present Carniville at the Mexican American Cultural Center, 600 River St., Thursday, March 18 through Saturday, March 20, from noon to 8 p.m. each day. The lineup — one of the best when it comes to SXSW day parties — includes Major Lazer, Diplo, the Walkmen, GZA, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Japanther and Sleigh Bells. This is also where you’ll find the American Apparel Flea Market, the one-stop shop for all your Los Angeles-manufactured hipster clothing needs. You can RSVP here.
Meanwhile, Austin’s other favorite record store, End of an Ear, 2209 S. First St., has a mean lineup of in-stores throughout SXSW, including Holly Miranda, Efterklang and Toro Y Moi. Check out the full lineup here.
Finally, 101X DJ Toby Ryan will be parked at Buffalo Billiards, all four days of the festival from 2 to 6 p.m., conducting a series of live on-air interviews including Spoon and Alpha Rev, with more to be announced on 101X’s SXSW page.
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Austin at SXSW: DJ Car Stereo (Wars)
Splicing together some of your favorite (and some of your least favorite — everything’s fair game, after all) pop radio hits is DJ Car Stereo (Wars) forte. The one man show features the once Austin-based Chris Rose, who is known for putting on a unique dance party that gets everyone on the floor moving (and how moved to New York a year or so ago). You can catch his musical mashups at the official SXSW showcase Saturday, March 20 at 12 a.m. at Karma Lounge. Chris answered our SXSW questions via e-mail.
Describe your sound. Sort of like pancakes filled with a bunch of different types of candy. While it doesn’t normally go together, with the right combination it might turn out delicious!
What can SXSW attendees expect at your showcase? A sweaty dance floor and rapid-fire medley of snippets of their favorite guilty pleasure jams!
What other acts are you excited to check out?
I’d like to see Neon Indian. Andrew W.K. seems to be playing everywhere, although according to a lot of web-sites he’s not the original Andrew W.K. so I don’t know… I’m pretty sure The Walkmen are playing and they don’t have any conspiracies surrounding them so maybe that’s a safer bet. Honestly, I haven’t had a chance to see who all is playing. I heard this band called Dam Funk the other day that I think is playing and they were pretty good.
Are you planning to go to any panels? I have actually never been to a panel at SXSW ever. I’d like to sound intelligent and say that this year will be the first, but really I’ll probably just follow the free Lone Star.
What are some Austin must-do or must-sees for out-of-towners? Oh man, I love these questions because I get to talk about Mexican food. Every out-of-towner should eat at: El Chilito / Maria’s Taco Express / Polvo’s / Torchy’s Taco’s / Koriente / Tamale House / Kebabalicious / El Chile / Casino El Camino. All pretty obvious to anyone that lives here, but imagine having never had a Polvo’s margarita?
Where do you like to hear live music, when it’s not SXSW? I love going to The Mohawk, Emo’s and The Parish.
What’s your favorite ‘only in Austin’ thing to do? The Drafthouse. I miss The Drafthouse so much!
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Austin Music Foundation presents “PARTY: SMART” at Momo’s
For the thousands of musicians, managers and other industry types in town for the South by Southwest Music Conference and Festival, the Austin Music Foundation is offering an excellent chance to gain some insights into the business even before SXSW officially kicks off.
Tomorrow night, Tuesday March 16 at Momo’s, 618 W. Sixth St., they’ll present “PARTY: SMART,” featuring Martin Atkins, author of the irreverent, definitive “TOUR: SMART,” alongside Ariel Hyatt of Ariel Publicity and Charlie Cheney of Indie Band Manager. Each will give a 20 minute presentation featuring career advice and will also meet with attendees throughout the evening.
The event will feature free food and music from industrial tribal drummer Chant and China’s AV Okubo. “PARTY: SMART” is free and open to the public and runs from 5 to 8 p.m.
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SXSW 2010: 10 questions for the Bowerbirds
Photo by Derek Anderson/FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Much of the Bowerbirds’ naturalistic, thoughtful indie folk was first composed in an isolated, rural spot in North Carolina, and it sounds like it. After singer and guitarist Phil Moore graduated college with a degree in biology — and “halfheartedly considered life as an organic farmer” — he took a job in the sticks of South Carolina tracking birds. That work eventually dried up, but he found the environment creatively freeing. Years later, Moore and his girlfriend, visual artist and Bowerbirds accordion player Beth Tacular, decided to return to the country, moving into an Airstream and crafting their debut album, 2007’s environmentally themed, critically praised “Hymns for a Dark Horse.” Their second album, the more personal “Upper Air,” was released in July of last year.
Moore spoke with the American-Statesman by phone from the band’s tour van to discuss the North Carolina scene, the frustrations of touring for the eco-conscious and how he recorded much of “Upper Air” in an old mill.
Is this the Bowerbirds’ first time playing SXSW?
No, it’s actually our second. We played in 2008. We’re really looking forward to seeing some of the acts play. I’m excited to see Califone play — they’re doing a fully scored film — and there’s a lot of great North Carolina bands there.
Looking at yourselves and some of the bands you’ve played with — like the Mountain Goats and Lost in the Trees — it seems like there’s a pretty well-developed North Carolina scene. Would you say that’s fair?
It really is, actually. It’s pretty wide and I guess relatively small but for the amount of bands, the quality is pretty amazing. There’s a lot of different sorts of genres. It’s very tight-knight. We play a lot of shows here and take each other out a lot. We try to support each other.
How did the circumstances that informed the recording of “Upper Air” differ from those behind recording “Hymns for a Dark Horse?”
Well, the writing process was very different. We had years and years to figure out what the Bowerbirds songs were going to be like for the first album, and then only a couple of years to write the second album. And the actual recording was done more piece meal. We didn’t really have the songs worked out fully at first, so we kind of added things piece by piece, as opposed to the first album where we just sat in a room and played them and they came together pretty complete. I think the second album is a little more rich for that, maybe.
You spent a huge amount of time touring after the release of Hymns for a Dark Horse. How did you feel about that lifestyle?
I love it right now, because we do a good job balancing being at home and being on tour. We were back for a month in February and got some time to see our friends and be at home. I’m kind of a homebody personally, and I have lots of other interests like gardening and bird-watching. And we’re building a cabin right now, and I don’t get to do things like that on tour, so that’s kind of limiting. But at the same time we get to see the whole world, which is amazing. I would hate to be home all the time.
Since you’re such an eco-conscious individual, is it frustrating on that basis? It’s a very resource-consuming lifestyle by necessity.
Yeah, it is. I looked on Google yesterday and realized that by the end of SXSW, to get there and back in ten days, we’re driving 4,000-something miles, which is gallons and gallons of gasoline, and that in and of itself is the most frustrating thing. But we try to do small things to stay as green as we can. We try to not take all the little tiny water bottles the venues give us and we try to eat at co-ops across the country and eat locally. We recycle, even if it means bottle start building up across our car.
Do you have any hope, when you record songs like the ones on “Hymns for a Dark Horse,” that they’re affecting people’s views or informing their perspective? Or do you worry that you’re preaching to the choir?
It’s not even so much preaching to the choir as it is preaching to myself, I guess. I don’t even really think about how they might be seen when I record them. While I’m writing I try not to think about that at all. I try to think about what they mean to me, basically, and if it means something to somebody else, that’s great, but I try not to take that into account.
“Hymns for a Dark Horse” was a very environmental and Earth-focused record, and while those themes are still very present on “Upper Air” the songwriting also seems like it’s grown more personal. What led to that?
Just a lot of different things happening while we were on tour, I guess. I think just being on the road and the stress of that that kind of led to me looking more inwards, in so many words. Since then we’ve made sure that we treat ourselves a little more humanely than we did when we toured really incessantly. We take a lot more time off. We’re taking the whole summer off this year and just going back out a little in the fall.
Tell me a bit about the recording of the album. Where did you record it?
The majority of everything was recorded in Pittsboro, North Carolina. There’s an old paper mill from way back in the day there, and I spoke with the owner to see if I could record there. He let me, just me and my guitar and some amps and microphones, go in there and record. Because it had this natural reverb that I could capture. I had to go there around 4 in the morning to record drums, because there are a couple of other businesses in the area. A lot of it was by myself and kind of meditative.
What does your own personal music background look like? When did you start playing and writing music?
I guess I started playing guitar when I was in fourth grade, but not really seriously at all. I was just learning chords and old folk tunes. When I was in eighth grade I joined a band and started singing and eventually picked up electric guitar, I was with that group of guys all through high school and college and even moved down to North Carolina with two of them. So now I’m 31, so I’ve been playing for quite a few years.
You and Beth have a very natural-feeling musical chemistry. Was that present when you first met her?
Not really, no. Because when I met Beth five years ago, when we both worked at Whole Foods, she wasn’t even really playing music at the time. We started dating then and started the band several years later. She learned the accordion really, really quickly. I think whatever chemistry we have as musicians is probably the same chemistry that leads us to work together in a relationship. I think whatever that chemistry is, and however we have that, it’s definitely what makes our band what it is. But I can’t really explain it.
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Austin at SXSW: Marshall Ford Swing Band
The Marshall Ford Swing Band promises good times and good music at their official SXSW showcase this year — 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 17 at Momo’s. Band members Emily Gimble and Jeremy Wheeless shared their thoughts on this year’s fest with us via e-mail.
Describe your sound: Texas Swing, Country. Authentic yet original.
What can SXSW attendees expect at your showcase? Good times and good music.
What other acts are you excited to check out? Erik Hokkanen, Tue. Flipnotics, Black Red Black, Sun. Lamberts.
Are you planning to go to any panels? I plan on attending any and all management and promotional panels I can.
What are some Austin must-do or must-sees for out-of-towners? Take a Walk Around the Green Belt, visit Barton Springs. Take a walk down South Congress there is always something exciting going on down there.
Where do you like to hear live music, when it’s not SXSW? Momo’s, The Saxon Pub, and the Continental Club.
What’s your favorite ‘only in Austin’ thing to do? The best grocery stores in the world are here, visit them. We also have some great Mexican food.
Finish this sentence: ‘Industry folks and visiting bands, while we love having you as guests of our city, please don’t…’ Leave trash everywhere. Refrain from honking your horns. And don’t forget to tip.
Tracks courtesy of The Marshall Ford Swing Band.
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Austin at SXSW: The Soldier Thread
As part of our spotlight on Austin bands playing this year’s festival, drummer Drew Van Diver of the Soldier Thread shares his thoughts via e-mail on SXSW and offers some tips for visitors. You can check out their official showcase Thursday, March 18 at 8 p.m. at the Dirty Dog Bar. They’re also playing several side parties and unofficial shows during the week, which you can search for in our side parties database, or list of side parties. Here’s what Drew had to say about their upcoming performances and how they plan to take advantage of the festival…
Describe your sound: Dionysian; emotive to a degree not quite dismal, nor jubilant, yet some place in-between.
What can SXSW attendees expect at your showcase? Vibrancy. There is an inevitable frenzy that consumes each of us during a show, providing for an exhibition on par with the music itself. More specifically: one can expect to hear all new material from our full length due out this spring.
What other acts are you excited to check out? Freelance whales, choir of young believers, the walkmen, efterklang, midlake, delta spirit, white denim, rogue wave, eisley, the xx, band of horses, broken social scene, neon indian, daedelus, the cool kids, torche, the mynameisjohnmichael, the temper trap, minus the bear, maria bamford, and our good friends alpha rev, and the rocketboys.
Are you planning to go to any panels? Planning on it, yes. As to which, we remain unsure. Although, certainly, Nina Hartley’s is near the top of our list… :)
What are some Austin must-do or must-sees for out-of-towners? Enjoy some fantastic bbq, procure a western-styled hat at local haberdashery, and take a picture with Leslie.
Where do you like to hear live music, when it’s not SXSW? In alley-ways, and on street corners; the more informal, the better. Walking past some guy with a ‘cello playing Bach on the street, being the only audience, is something very precious, and unique to Austin.
What’s your favorite “only in Austin” thing to do? Appreciate new architecture? At the moment, it seems building is a(n?) uniquely-Austin undertaking. Barton Springs belly-flop competitions are also a favorite… (spectating, not participating…)
Complete this sentence: ‘Industry folks and visiting bands, while we love having you as guests of our city, but please don’t…’ Bring the rain, snow, or whatever awful precipitation-local-to-your-province with you!!
“Fractions” is from the new record coming out this spring and “Run Run” is from the record “Shapes.” Music tracks courtesy of The Soldier Thread.
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