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SXSW’s defining moment: the Stooges
There is nothing, nothing, nothing in rock ‘n’ roll more powerful than when the Stooges open a show with “Loose.” The bass line is full-on, frantic Motor City madness and then comes Ron Asheton’s riot-in-the-streets guitar and vein-covered Iggy Pop running all over the stage and doing body contortions in time to the beat.
The guy next to me at the Stooges’ jam-packed show at Stubb’s Saturday night said the band would almost certainly open with a song from their new album. “That’s what they’re here to promote,” he said, but you’ve never seen a guy so happy to be wrong. For me, “Loose” was THE defining moment of SXSW, as the world’s first alternative rock band (the grassroots Rolling Stones) put pushing product way behind frying neck hairs on the priority list.
Such new songs as “Trollin’” from “The Weirdness” would come later, but first Iggy and the Stooges had to establish themselves as the undisputed kings of the fest. And guess what? Everyone in line with a badge eventually got in by the time a corny “No Fun,” which had a stage full of ridiculously grinning fans “dancing,” ended the set at the 45-minute point.
How’s this for an opening trilogy? After “Loose,” the Stooges did “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” with Iggy diving into the crowd, followed by “T.V. Eye,” Ron Asheton’s greatest guitar moment.
A couple of disappointments: 1) it appears that the Stooges play to taped augmentation. This was revealed when the bass line for “Skull Ring” kept pumping while bassist Mike Watt was working amp problems with his sound tech. It’s OK to use the canned help, but never let the audience know. 2) Asheton’s guitar wasn’t as loud as it should’ve been. I saw a better Stooges show in New Orleans about three years ago and the guitar and Iggy’s voice were on equal footing. Saturday night posed Iggy as the focal point, and he is a star, but the ugly beauty of the Stooges was when Iggy flailed in the feedback of chaos coming from stage left.
SXSW review: Au Revoir Simone
Act: Au Revoir Simone
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Venue: Copa, 12 a.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Their MySpace songs have an intriguing juxtaposition of electronica and sweet pop female harmonies.
High point: Pretty voices.
Low point: The harmonies showed little development or variation from song to song and quickly lost their novelty, and the singers’ detachment made for a static performance as well.
Post-show buzz: Major attrition after a few songs.
Afterthoughts: Watching the band wasn’t as much fun as watching the body language of couples first growing restless, then tentatively sharing their interest in possibly leaving, and finally slipping resolutely away together.
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SXSW review: Perry Farrell’s Satellite Party
Act: Perry Farrell’s Satellite Party
Hometown: Los Angeles, Calif.
Venue: La Zona Rosa, 12:30 a.m. (started 12:51 a.m.) Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Non-existant. Only a few people in the audience even knew who was going to perform.
High point: When Farrell took us 30somethings in the audience back to the first Lollapollooza by playing “Stop” and “Mountain Song.” I taught myself how to play bass partially by learning the infectious bass line on “Mountain Song.” The audience erupted with those gifts.
Bonus points: Coming back out for an encore. The “Satellite Party” song was quite beautiful; it’s middle-eight speed metal bridge was nothing short of awesome.
Off-the-scale coolness points: Perry Farrell announced from the stage at the end of the show that he would be available in La Zona Rosa’s patio to discuss ideas about how the 6 billion people on Earth can — and how they should — save the planet. He noted that the “Solutionist Movement” idea came about in the garage while his band was rehearsing. “I want to get to know you,” he said with his patented child-like sincerity.
And true to his word, shortly after 2 a.m., Farrell came out to talk with his fans about solutions.
Funniest bit of between song banter: Farrell spoke about death between songs, multiple times: “I heard that in hell they make you stand on your head in doo-doo.”
Post-show buzz: “The new songs were actually good.”
Afterthoughts: It doesn’t make any sense for one of Austin’s best venues to be virtually empty on a Saturday night during SXSW. If Farrell’s new band was no good — maybe. But they were good. And the Jane’s Addiction/Porno For Pyros/creator of Lollapalooza is actually a living legend in rock ‘n’ roll. It would have made more sense to have his band playing at Stubb’s with the Stooges.
The Polyphonic Spree
Act: The Polyphonic Spree
Hometown: Dallas
Venue: La Zona Rosa, 11 p.m. (actually 11:20 p.m.) Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Only die-hard fans even knew the orchestral, “Up With People”-esque band was playing. SXSW listed them as “thee spree” in the Saturday night schedule. Who is “thee spree”?
High point: The revisionist version of “It’s The Sun,” complete with acoustic intro. Band visionary Tim DeLaughter was in his typical awesome form.
Low point: La Zona Rosa was virtually empty. No musician enjoys playing to an empty room, no matter what they might say.
Post-show buzz: The band’s fans in attendance appeared to enjoy the new songs.
Afterthoughts: Something went horribly wrong. One of Austin’s best venues was empty on a Saturday night of SXSW at 11 p.m. And the few people there weren’t even sure who was playing until the harp appeared on stage. Polyphonic Spree deserved better.
Mew
Act: Mew
Hometown: Copenhagen, Denmark
Venue: La Zona Rosa, 9 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Although the venue was nowhere close to being full, most everyone there had come to see Mew.
High point: The entire set was a high point. Mew played grandiose, proggy, indie rock that’s ready-made for arenas.
Bonus points: To drummer Silas Graae, for setting up on stage left. It’s a bold move, but it’s always nice when someone is brave enough to do it.
Post-show buzz: Mew made a few new fans for life, including me.
Afterthoughts: I think Mew’s singer is a spot-on ringer for Yes vocalist Jon Anderson, although the person standing next to me disagreed. These dudes have been playing together since they were in middle school, and it shows in their tightness. Mew plays majestic, guitar heavy, spacey indie rock. Until Radiohead picks up their guitars again, check out Mew live or pick up one of their albums. They’ve got all the same influences and are equally as talented. It’s a big claim, but it’s true.
Trent Summar
Artist: Trent Summar
Hometown: Nashville, Tenn.
Venue: Broken Spoke, 7 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: A picky co-worker met him at Guero’s the other night and said he was a nice guy. Spoke owner James White heard he was the real thing and rocks out.
High point: Images of a blond Elvis in his Louisiana Hayride days, legs spread wide and a red jacket flapping before going down on his knees and shaking off his straw cowboy hat. Songs about horseshoes, hand grenades, St. Peter and needing “a gooseneck trailer to haul your love.”
Low point: Begging folks to dance to fast-slow-fast tunes and the few who did getting shown up by an 89-year-old Spoke regular.
Afterthoughts: Palo Duro Records should keep pushing this 40-year-old speed country artist because he writes songs that Jack Ingram and Pat Green will — and, in fact, did — cover.
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Mohair
Artist: Mohair
Hometown: Watford, UK
Venue: La Zona Rosa, 8 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Didn’t make it to my ears.
High point: Their song, “Keep It Together,” was a creative rock gem with a nod to ’60s musical sensibilities, which Mohair singer Tom Billington said was the No. 1 something or other in Bosnia. “I (expletive) you not,” he attested.
Bonus points: awarded for drummer Pete Baker’s fantastic trumpet solo during the bridge of “Keep It Together.” That Brit pop coolio put down his sticks, picked up the trumpet and played a spot-on solo, then picked up the sticks and went right back into the song. The audience rewarded his skill with applause. Additionally, keyboardist Alex Richards’ elegant harpsichord sound and his classically influenced playing was a nice respite from the typical four-on-the-floor rock ‘n’ roll that inevitably surrounds you at SXSW.
Oddest stage attire mix-match: Bassist Tim Slade wearing a navy polo shirt while singer/guitarist Billington donned something akin to the infamous “Seinfeld” white puffy shirt.
Post-show buzz: The thunderous applause felt sincere. Most folks appeared to be hearing them for the first time, but the consensus was that these guys were not too shabby.
Afterthoughts: I’d check out Mohair again if they were playing for free. But that said, they come across as one of those bands that have the potential to make great singles because they were all such polished, tasteful musicians. They’ve got potential for greatness, but their music isn’t going to change you life just yet.
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The Capitol Years
Act: The Capitol Years
Hometown: Philadelphia
Venue: Habana Calle 6, 10 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: “The hottest thing in Philly right now.”
High point: The three guitars, bass and drums all coming together on “You Can Stay There,” which makes a case that Freddie Mercury has a big influence on today’s power-pop groups.
Low point: When two band members introduced a song at the same time so that the talking sounded like gibberish. For a band with such short, snappy songs, this “comedic” bit went on too long. Also the room was way too well-lit, so the audience members just stood in place when perhaps many of them wanted to rock out.
Mastadon
Artist: Mastodon
Hometown: Atlanta, Ga.
Venue: SXSW Dew Music Festival at Town Lake, 8 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Many of us continue to hold out hope they will become the next Metallica without having to make their “Black Album.” We’ll see. That said, with the exception of Boris, Mastodon is coolest, heaviest band in ages to play the free SXSW show.
High point: Gorgeous weather; singer/guitarist Brent Hinds’ Kylesa t-shirt on the JumboTron; the galloping, triumphant one-two opening combo of “The Wolf is Loose” and “Crystal Skull,” the first two songs on the band’s major label debut “Blood Mountain;” the tasteful mid-set placement of the band’s breakout single “March of the Fire Ants; bassist/singer Troy Sanders’ “metal face.”
Low point: A few songs got a little too complicated and slowed the set, but this was a minor complaint. For most of Saturday, it was blissfully possible to forget that March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day, the day an ethnic group is celebrated by everyone engaging in that group’s single worst stereotype. Ah, well. The crowd (and Against Me!, who played right before Mastodon) made this impossible to forget. But if you’re going to have an outdoor metal show on St. Patrick’s Day, shouldn’t the between band music be Thin Lizzy? For shame.
Post-show buzz: Big crowd + nice evening + cutting-edge metal presented for free = extra-large fun for the whole family. And yes, there were whole families there.
Afterthoughts: Not a bad way to start a Saturday night.
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Boris
Artist: Boris
Hometown: Tokyo
Venue: SXSW Dew Music Festival at Town Lake, 4:55 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Generally acknowledged to be one of the bands one had to see at SXSW, this doomy, majestic power trio played three times during the festival — this was the final one.
High point: Since this sounded like much the same set the band played at the Scion party, there were no big surprises. Guitarist Wata droned the e-bow as singer Takeshi — still sporting that hideous double-neck bass/guitar thing — crunched away. Also, they were projected on a fair-sized JumboTron.
Low point: That more Austinites didn’t take advantage of the opportunity to see this wonderful band.
Post-show buzz: That ruled. Boy, it’s hot out. Does this look like sunburn?
Afterthoughts: On March 17, 2007, in Austin, Texas, it was entirely possible to enjoy a funnel cake and watch one of the coolest metal bands of our epoch for free in park in the center of town. In the immortal words of Ron Burgundy, “in no way is that depressing.”
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Dengue Fever
Artist: Dengue Fever
Hometown: Los Angeles
Venue: SESAC stage at the Convention Center, 2 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Multi-culti combo’s fan base grew after its music appeared in Jim Jarmusch’s “Broken Flowers.”
High point: Closing your eyes and imagining you’re in the coolest ’70s flick ever to emerge from Southeast Asia.
Low point: A middling his and hers duet (the only tune in English, not Khmer) between the singer and lead guitarist.
Post-show buzz: Judging by the number of passers-by drawn into the room by the strange sounds they heard, the band won some new fans.
Afterthoughts: The mix of Ethiopian jazz, Cambodia-inflected vocals and Bollywood spice was a lot more accessible (and funkier) than it might sound on paper.
Rickie Lee Jones
Artist: Rickie Lee Jones
Hometown: Chicago
Venue: “SXSW Live” at the Convention Center, 4 p.m. Saturday
Pre-show buzz: Hearing that the songwriter just made an album inspired by the Bible, old fans were heard wondering if she intended to preach from the microphone.
High point: “Where I Like It Best,” an unexpectedly moving song whose modern-day interpretation of Christ’s instructions on prayer elicited a burst of mid-song applause from the crowd.
Low point: Watching the TV crew try to tell the singer her time was up, just as she was getting rolling on the hushed, stream-of-consciousness “I Was There” (which runs eight-plus minutes on the album).
Post-show buzz: Biblical inspirations or no, she’s still Rickie Lee Jones.
Afterthoughts: Sticking to new material in a lovably odd, sometimes improvisational set, Jones won a lot of believers for songs that wove everyday social and romantic concerns into a religious context and vice versa.
Pela
Artist: Pela
Hometown: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Venue: Eternal, 11:15 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: None in the room. Most everyone had arrived early to see the Faint.
High point: Every song played was a high point. They rocked the majority of their upcoming release, “Anytown Graffitti.”
Bonus points: For covering the Pixies’ “The Holiday Song” without being coy or ironic.
Post-show buzz: “Those guys were really great. Who are they?”
Afterthoughts: Pela was one of the best sleeper/surprisingly delightful showcases of the entire festival. They made the band that played right before them — Austin rag-tag outfit Peter and the Wolf — look like rock ’n’ roll pretenders as Pela blew them off the stage. This crib-sheet description won’t do them complete justice, but imagine what it would sound like if Bruce Springsteen were an indie rocker who grew up listening to the Pixies and Husker Du.
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The Faint
Artist: The Faint
Hometown: Omaha, Neb.
Venue: Eternal, 12:30 a.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: Their live shows are notorious for transforming dingy indie rock clubs into glamorous, “you should have been there” dance parties.
High point: The encore that included “Desperate Guys” and “Agenda Suicide.” It was the most blissfully transcendental moment of my SXSW 2007.
Bonus points: Playing “Worked Up So Sexual” midway through the set. The audience was screaming, practically begging for it. Then the Faint unabashedly gave it up.
Post-show buzz: Overheard as sweaty people sought more oxygen outside of the club on Sixth Street: “This was the best show I’ve seen at this year’s SXSW!” This writer concurs.
Afterthoughts: The Faint have always been Saddle Creek Records’ ticking time bomb just waiting to explode into the mainstream. If the Faint jump ship from Saddle Creek and move on to a major label — Internet rumors suggest Rick Rubin’s American Recordings — they will likely become the next New Order or Depeche Mode. There are multiple bands rehashing 1980s dance music these days. The Faint set themselves apart by reinventing electronic dance music with their combination of indie rock live-band verve and state-of-the-art keyboards and electronic programming, combined with guitars, bass and live drums. And songs. Songs with hooks that would be just as catchy and melodic on acoustic guitars as they are with ear-splittingly supersonic production values.
Personal to SXSW organizers: Booking the Faint at Eternal put the audience in jeopardy of being hurt. The club was entirely too small.
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Ponderosa Stomp showcase
Show: Ponderosa Stomp showcase
Hometown: South Bend, Ind. (Herb Remington); Lecompte, La. (Jay Chevalier); Lafayette, La. (Paul “Lil’ Buck” Sinegal & the Buckaroos featuring Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural); New Orleans, (Rockie Charles, Tammy Lynn, Willie Tee and the Flaming Arrows Mardi Gras Indians)
Venue: Opal Divine’s Freehouse, all night Friday
Pre-show buzz: This celebration of under-appreciated roots artists, founded in New Orleans six years ago, had a long line out the door when it made its SXSW debut at the Continental Club last year.
High point: Loads of them. Pedal steel guitarist Herb Remington sparkled on everything from “Remington’s Ride,” an instrumental from his days with country star Hank Penny, to a lovely “Sleepwalk.” Red-hot guitarist Lil’ Buck Sinegal and soulful organist Stanley Dural (of Buckwheat Zydeco fame) played together with infectious joy (they were bandmates in the late Clifton Chenier’s zydeco band), whether backing other artists or stepping out front on instrumentals such as the Meters’ “Cissy Strut.” Snappy dresser Rockie Charles had a commanding presence, as well as a stirring, gospel-fired voice and some good new songs. Willie Tee displayed wide range — he sang his sly old soul hit “Teasin’ You,” went toe-to-toe with Dural on keyboards and led the Mardi Gras Indians through some of the carnival classics he created for the Wild Magnolias. The Indians in their splendid finery also performed some traditional chants on their own, getting the crowd dancing with only bass and drum accompaniment for their call-and-response.
Low point: Jay Chevalier overdid the showbiz shtick at times, and Tammy Lynn was a crowd-pleaser, but her big voice only has one speed — full-throttle.
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Antibalas
Waiting for Antibalas to perform, a small group of guys in their 20s was having a decidedly unacademic conversation about classic jazz artists. Their exchanges had the one-upping swagger of a sports-bar argument, and the vocabulary was more what you’d expect from, say, teenagers comparing video games. “Dude, Freddie,” one said, presumably talking about the great trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. His friend started going on about organist Larry Young. “That album — dude! It’s just retarded! Dude!” Then the conversation turned to Stan Getz and his last album. “Dude, that is the greatest album. And then he died, like, two months later.” “Dude!”
Hometown: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Venue: Antone’s, midnight Friday
Pre-show buzz: The next-best thing to the late Fela Kuti (well, maybe after his son Femi Kuti)
High point: Compelling polyrhythms, intricate, peppery horn arrangements and some intriguing, jazz-based saxophone solos.
Low point: A very late start because of the difficulty setting up sound for an 11-piece band. The sound directly in front of the stage was distorted — overamplified drumbeats felt like knife blades in the eardrums — although it was not bad off to the side.
Post-show buzz: After the long, hot wait for the band — so long one couple actually sat down on the sticky floor to rest — some of the crowd wilted or wearied before the end of the set. However, the (surprisingly young) audience seemed impressed.
Afterthoughts: The venue, with its narrow space in front of the stage, wasn’t really suited to a band that likes to fully engage everyone in the audience and get the whole crowd dancing.
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Pierre Aderne
Artist: Pierre Aderne
Hometown: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Venue: Copa, 8 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: His co-writers have included prominent artists such as Seu Jorge, and Aderne scored critical acclaim with his 2005 debut, “Casa de Praia.”
High point: Interesting chord progressions and quirky percussion provided a bit of contrast for his soft, pretty vocals and soothing guitar, and he added more color by inviting young singer Alexia Bomtempo to join him on two songs.
Low point: Although he had no trouble engaging the audience, his introspective style would be better suited to a listening room than a club where patrons are standing (and the ones near the bar can’t resist schmoozing).
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The Redwalls
Artist: The Redwalls
Hometown: Chicago
Venue: Bourbon Rocks, 1 a.m. Saturday
Pre-Show Buzz: Four rowdy dudes, who are barely old enough to drink, take on the Brit-rock challenge with songs that would be perfect for getting sloshed while ditching school. Think of a Rolling Stones/Beatles cover band that has just started to write some stuff of their own (need I bring up Oasis?). They want so badly to stick it to the man and merely watching them try is worth one week of detention.
High Point: In the spirit of Bourbon Rocks, the Redwalls marched right into a party with something familiar that held its own with the already energized rock ‘n’ roll atitttude.
Low Point: The tight black suits and white shoes combination wasn’t very original. The same could be said for their entire repertoire. Standing on the stage before the show awkwardly tuning their insturuments while a couple of guys fiddled with their wires for 30 minutes wasn’t a soundcheck, it was a tease.
Post Show Buzz: Playing to a three-quarters full crowd might have been a blow to their self-esteem, but with half the women in their pockets and the rest craving more, let’s just say that the Redwalls didn’t leave anything behind.
Afterthoughts: The Redwalls walk the line between posing their way into the middle ground and being poised to make an impact on the Brit rock genre.
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Archie Bell
Act: Archie Bell
Hometown: Houston
Venue: “Ponderosa Stomp” showcase at Opal Divine’s Freehouse, 12:15 a.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: Is the one-time leader of the Drells still funky?
High point: The sexagenarian teaching an enthusiastic crowd how to “Tighten Up.”
Low point: As with some of the other highlight sets on the “Ponderosa Stomp” bill, Bell’s was very short.
Post-show buzz: The most danceable set of the night so far.
Afterthoughts: Like other “Stomp” singers, Bell benefited from an ace backing band highlighted by Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural (Buckwheat Zydeco) on organ.
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Public Enemy
Artist: Public Enemy
Hometown: Long Island, N.Y.
Venue: Auditorium Shores, 7:45 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: Undisputedly one of the most important hip hop acts in the history of rap music.
Best Chuck D quote of the evening: “Asking for a record deal is like asking for a plantation owner to take you back into slavery.”
High point: Chuck D and Flavor Flav delivering the one-two, back-to-back punch of “Welcome to the Terrordome” and “Bring The Noise” while Professor Griff and the S1Ws — clad in desert camoflauge Army fatigues — step danced while brandishing samurai swords.
On point: Despite Flavor Flav’s success in the strange world of reality television, he was still the spot-on court jester to Chuck D’s acerbic vocal acrobatics.
Low point: Cutting classic songs short after racing through one or two verses and a chorus is inexcusable, even if your back catalog is as large as Public Enemy’s. Medleys are for suckers.
Post-show buzz: 20 years on, Public Enemy still enlightens like few bands of any genre ever have.
Afterthoughts: Chuck D’s polemical rhymes felt apropos — now more than ever — as he and Flavor Flav addressed the current war in Iraq, presidential malaprops and the condition of oppressed people of color all over the world. A new Public Enemy album — with the original Bomb Squad producing — is long overdue.
Personal to Chuck D: Please, “bring that beat back.”
Ian Moore
Artist: Ian Moore
Hometown: Seattle, Wash.
Venue:Continental Club, 11 p.m. Friday
Pre-Show Buzz: A former Austinite, Moore returns to a familiar roots rock scene where he started his career in the ’90s as a maverick of the blues guitar. Since then, he has moved to an arts community on an island outside Seattle, cut off his long mane of hair and jettisoned his original style for the more eclectic influences of gospel, early pop and soul. Will Austin ever forgive him? (We think so.)
High Point: “Innocent Maneuvers,” which humbly admits that Moore started out with nothing but promise and ended up in a different place. Wherever that place is, we like it.
Low Point: We didn’t see much of that Curtis Mayfield soul he was bragging about … then again, 40-minute sets are rather limiting.
Post Show Buzz: Moore is one of those tattoos that Austin doesn’t regret.
Afterthoughts: He may have dropped his blues, but whatever medication he’s taking (adult contemporary, acoustic rock) seems to be working.
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Clockcleaner
Artist: Clockcleaner
Hometown: Philadelphia
Venue: Exodus, 11 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: At their last Austin gig at the Chaos in Tejas festival two years ago, their set cleared the room. For the first two songs, it sounded like the most egregious Big Black rip-off in human history, from the guitar sound to the human drummer acting like a drum machine to frontman’s Sharky’s guitar sound, glasses and abrasive on-stage persona. Five songs in, it felt like one of the weekend’s most underrated bands. Also, they get many, many points for naming their debut album “Nevermind.”
High point: The guitar sound hasn’t changed a lick, but Sharky displays an amazing ability to translate deceptively simple songs into something tight and shiny. Nobody in the world needs a six-string bass, yet the bassist — a proper-looking gal who might as well be wearing a sign that says, “I’d rather be reading” — makes it work. Massive sound, massively catchy tunes, a whole mass of new fans.
Low point: Well, I’m sure the fight that broke out was not so fun for the folks that were involved, and the piñata filled with flour probably made the folks at Exodus none too happy, but Times New Viking followed by these guys made for the best one-two bill of the festival.
Post-show buzz: More than one patron was heard to remark, “Well, I just saw my new favorite band.”
Afterthoughts: They can play at my house if it means getting them back to Austin.
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Times New Viking
Artist: Times New Viking
Hometown: Columbus, Ohio
Venue: Exodus, 10 p.m., Friday
Pre-show buzz: Lo-fi art-rock geniuses with two albums on Siltbreeze; now signed to Matador.
High point: Where to start? Even though they front-loaded the front row with Columbus pals (whose slamming very nearly killed our photographer), they more than lived up to every bit of excitement. Simple, fall-apart riffs, dinky keyboards and heavier-than-God drumming adds up to something thrilling and fun.
Low point: N/A
Post-show buzz: The second coming of Pavement.
Afterthoughts: No, really.
Me: “Is this what early Pavement shows felt like? Because this is amazing.”
Longtime scenester: “No, these guys are WAY better than Pavement were live at this point in their careers.”
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Blues Control
Artist: Blues Control
Hometown: Ridgewood, N.Y.
Venue: Spiro’s, 8 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: Almost nonexistent. Not only are they all but unknown outside of Internet noise-record collector circles, their name is, um, inaccurate. This impossibly noisy duo has little, in fact, to do with either blues or control.
High point: Repurposing (what I think was) the riff to “My Sharona” into the fairly abstract noise guitar-keyboard vamp, thereby giving one of the most annoying songs on the planet a whole new context.
Low point: The facial expressions of Spiro’s regular employees. They looked unprepared for the peals of skree.
Post-show buzz: Everyone was happy to finally get a copy of the record.
Afterthoughts: The handful of folks who were there thought they had accomplished something, but I can’t see them opening for, say, Spoon anytime soon. (Sonic Youth, on the other hand …)
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Luminous Orange
Artist: Luminous Orange
Hometown: Yokohama, Japan
Venue: The Ale House, 9:00 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: One of the only shoegazer, dream-pop bands playing SXSW 2007. If you follow the genre, they need no introduction.
On point: Singer/guitarist Rie Takeuchi’s guitar playing. She chops apart the “good for a girl” cliche with assured playing on her vintage Fender.
Dear SXSW organizers: If y’all are going to bother inviting this band over from Japan, why not give them a better showcase?
Post-show buzz: Almost every one of the 30 or so people in attendance left after purchasing a CD or a T-shirt. If those 30 people tell two people about Luminous Orange’s shimmering noise-pop, and those two people tell two people, then this blissfully noisy pop band will be slightly closer to receiving the notoriety they deserve.
Afterthoughts: If you like beautifully fragile vocals and Sonic Youth meets My Bloody Valentine soundscapes, you better ask somebody about Luminous Orange.
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Blanche
Artist: Blanche
Hometown: Detroit
Venue: Stubb’s, 3 p.m. Friday
Pre-show buzz: dreamy, carny alt-country; the soundtrack to a Jim Jarmusch documentary about Flannery O’Connor
High point:The angular “Superstitious,” where the dreamland met the gutter, where Lyle Lovett and Tom Waits were brethren.
Coolest member (tie): the gum-chewing female drummer and the ingenue on bass, who looked like she’d stepped out of a Mickey Spillane book.
Post-show buzz: A lot of folks who wandered inside during the set breaks at the Stubb’s party were happy to hear a band that was more intriguing than some on the main stage.
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Aqueduct
Artist: Aqueduct
Hometown: Seattle
Venue: Day show at Emo’s Annex, Friday
Pre-show buzz: One-man “bedroom band” becomes full-fledged live act
High point: Gotta love a band with its own theme song. (“Who wanna rock with the Aqueduct … I’ll make you jump around like an awkward duck.”)
Low point: Primus frontman Les Claypool, spotted in the crowd, didn’t join them onstage.
Department of Unneccessary Covers: The Pointer Sisters’ “I’m So Excited,” turned into a kind of halfhearted torch song.
Afterthoughts: Seeing songwriter David Terry in this format, with bandmates to help with the hand claps and dueling keyboard choruses, was a lot more interesting than seeing him alone on an empty stage with only a bank of samplers to give support.
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Dirty Fuzz
Artist: Dirty Fuzz
Hometown: London, U.K.
Venue: Blender Bar at the Ritz, 8:00 p.m. Friday
Pre-Show Buzz: If AC/DC fired Brian Johnson and picked up Tina Turner, people would accuse them of copying Dirty Fuzz. Tough, unrestrained and very tasty, Elida Zulu is everything a lead singer of a dirty, whiskey-fueled, garage outfit ought to be.
High Point: Everything from licking the microphone to gyrating on the mike stand to the rowdy group effort during “Crash and Burn” — Zulu’s a diva in a rock band all right.
Low Point: The event was heavily sponsored by companies (Verizon, Guess cologne) that I now detest thanks to the massive film projector that played 12-feet-tall commercials throughout the show.
Post Show Buzz: I don’t know about everybody else but I was ready to let Zulu do with me as she pleased.
Afterthoughts: I felt sorry for the next guy to use that microphone.
Zach Galifianakis
Artist: Zach Galifianakis
Hometown: Venice, Calif.
Venue: Emo’s Annex
Pre-show buzz: “Comedians of Comedy” co-star hosts showcase for acts from Bob Mould to The Broken West.
High point: He announces there will be “an award for Most Disinterested Hipster”; crowd members silently congratulate themselves for their sincere love of music.
Low point: Many in the crowd feigned offense at comment “I’m as photogenic as Terri Schiavo.”
Post-show buzz: Let’s hope the bands play short sets so he has to talk more.
Afterthoughts: Acting as if each joke had just been written moments before, he turned awkward tics like smoothing his hair and applying lip balm into entertainment. Got laughs by mocking mainstream acts like Sheryl Crow and the Spin Doctors, but did it in a way that suggested equal disdain for those who consider themselves above the squares.
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Tilly and the Wall
Artist: Tilly and the Wall
Hometown: Omaha, Neb.
Venue: Day show at the Belmont, Friday
Pre-show buzz: Gotta see the indie band with the tap dancers instead of a drummer.
High point: “Bad Education” — it wasn’t the set’s tightest performance, but the flamenco-ish tap percussion showed how much passion this strange configuration can put across.
Non-musical entertainment: Watching the lead dancer do the same riff for minutes straight during soundcheck, patiently waiting for the sound guy to get the level appropriately high. She was still waiting when the set ended.
Post-show buzz: With their thrift-store-explosion garb and obvious enthusiasm, it’s a bit hard not to think of Tilly & Co. as “those crazy kids.” But their music is unlike anything around, and the large crowd this afternoon seemed charmed.
Afterthoughts: The tap thing might sound like a gimmick, but it’s thoroughly integrated with the group’s songs.
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The Buzzcocks
Artist: The Buzzcocks
Hometown: Manchester, U.K.
Venue: SXSW Live at the Convention Center
Pre-show buzz: Rare chance to see punk pioneers
High point: “Ever Fallen in Love?”
Low point: Didn’t play the tune everybody probably wanted to hear, “What Do I Get?” If you’re going to sell a punk classic for TV advertisements, the least you can do is play it live.
Post-show buzz: “That’s it?”
Afterthoughts: A set less than 15 minutes long is short even by punk standards. The climate-controlled TV-studio setup in the Convention Center was better than getting shunted off into the bleachers at Emo’s, but if they play a set this short there, they’ll be pelted with beer bottles.
Peter, Bjorn and John
Artists: Peter, Bjorn and John
Hometown: Stockholm, Sweden
Venue: Pitchfork party at Emo’s
Pre-show buzz: Buzz band is contender for most gigs booked during SXSW 2007
High point: “Objects of My Affection,” a bouncy tune (with a whistling solo!) on which the boys were joined by a guest bongoist; the tune inspired more dancing than seen at most SXSW day parties.
Low point: After announcing (maybe presumptuously, but in good faith) “Thanks, we have one more song for you,” the soundman politely but firmly declared that they did not.
Afterthoughts: It was astounding to see lines down the block trying to get into a set by a band that had already played at least a half-dozen sets this week — and to see a band whose energy had yet to flag, whose voices weren’t hoarse, and who were only barely (making a joke while introducing “Start to Melt”) bothered by lugging that gear around so much in the Texas heat.
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Rwake
Artist: Rwake
Hometown: Little Rock, Ark.
Venue: Room 710, midnight late Thursday
Pre-show buzz: Truly psychotic sounding Southern sludge metal that seems to get both more detailed and more savage with each album. “Voices from Omens,” their fourth, is a career peak. They utterly destroyed at last year’s SXSW.
High point: While everyone in the band sported the truly gnarly dreadlocks common to crust-metal bands the world over, sampler player/vocalist B. simply had one large lock coming from her head. It looked like a tail and it is entirely possible there are things living in it. B., crouched on the ground and screaming into a mike, proved an intriguing foil for singer C.T.
Low point: I’m gonna see B.’s dreadlock coming at me in my dreams.
Post-show buzz: It’s entirely possible they opened a gate to hell.
Afterthoughts: The deep South has produced some of the scariest heavy metal of modern times. Bands such as Richmond, Va.’s Buzzoven and North Carolina’s Corrosion of Conformity paved the way for these folks, who really do look like they’ve buried a body or two in their day. It’s profoundly ugly music capable of great catharsis and, therefore, great beauty.
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Jesu
Artist: Jesu
Hometown: Birmingham, England
Venue: Emo’s Annex, 11:30 p.m. Thursday
Pre-show buzz: It was as deafening as their guitar buzz, impressive, considering the first few dates of this tour, their American debut, were bagged due to visa problems.
High point: “Tired Of Me,” the first song on their excellent “Silver” EP, played at ear-splitting volume; frontdude Justin Broadrick’s old-school head-neck-torso thrashes, also known as “the drinking bird dance;” the fact that Broadrick — who has been making extreme metal history since he was about 16 — looks like a first-grade teacher.
Low point: The fact that it didn’t go on for another hour.
Post-show buzz: “YEAAHHH! THAT WAS AWESOME!!!!”
Afterthoughts: Part of the Hydrahead records showcase, Jesu’s doomy, wide-screen, almost ambient metal owes as much to guitar bands such as My Bloody Valentine as Broadrick’s earlier project Godfesh. It’s a sheets of sound thing, massive amp hum forged into melodies and riffs of often overwhelmingly grace. Magnificent.
The Bird and the Bee
Artist: The Bird and the Bee
Hometown: Los Angeles
Venue: Opal Divine’s Freehouse, 1 a.m. Thursday
Pre-show buzz: A somewhat unlikely fit for the venerable Blue Note label, singer-bassist Inara George and multi-instrumentalist Greg Kurstin scored a left-field dance-club hit with the ironic ‘(Expletive) Boyfriend.’
High point: George’s voice sounds airy and light on recordings, but she’s an astute and supple vocalist, as well as a charismatic frontwoman who doesn’t let her natural glamour get in the way of a good laugh. On the surface, the songs have the unabashed sensuality of ’60s French pop, but Kurstin’s jazz training give the keyboards a sophisticated twist. In the arrangements, you can hear sly echoes of everything from Michel Legrand to Burt Bacharach to Van Dyke Parks to the Roches.
Low point: The band got a late start as it took a while to get the monitors adjusted properly. As George said, ‘SXSW is fun, but it’s a sound maze.’
Post-show buzz: The crowd probably would have been bigger at an earlier hour, but everybody seemed energized once the music started.
Afterthoughts: An intricate sound difficult to pull off live, but they did it, and were as much fun to watch as to hear.
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Bloc Party
Artist: Bloc Party
Hometown: London
Venue: Stubb’s, midnight Thursday
Pre-show buzz: Bloc Party was a SXSW buzz-band two years ago. This year they were out to prove that they are not a flash-in-the-pan by playing only one SXSW performance as part of a world tour supporting their second full-length, “A Weekend In The City.”
High point: When bassist Gordon Moakes began playing the irresistibly moving bass line to “Positive Tension,” the crowd started — and couldn’t stop — dancing.
Bonus points: Bloc Party played a healthy dose of songs from “A Weekend In The City” and their new songs proved stronger under the scrutiny of the live show microscope than they sound recorded. The South London boys have cleared the infamous sophomore slump hurdle.
Post-show buzz: When Bloc Party has the engines of all four members firing together, they take hold of an audience’s collective consciousness and transcend time and space. It’s rock ‘n’ roll, but it’s also dance music that can make even the most jaded foot-tapper lose his (or her) inhibitions and just bug-out.
Afterthoughts: Singer/guitarist Kele Okereke exclaimed that this was the band’s fifth performance at Stubb’s, but methinks he has miscounted by one or two shows (possibly referring to their fifth trip to Austin). Bloc Party’s performance at SXSW 2007 was not sold out. SXSW officials could have sold $20 tickets to die-hard fans (as they’ve done at venues in the past) considering the club was nowhere close to capacity. Although their buzz has died down, the band is actually performing more solid, more inspired shows than they ever have.
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I guess I should be flattered to have been mistaken for a taped augmentation but I was right there on the stage playing the riff on my tenor sax, just like always! Steve Mackay
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Great rock band. Loved their show so much i could follow them around the world!!
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