holy smokes, what an incredible experience SXSW is. it has to be the best music festival in this country. nearly 1600 artists/bands performed over 5 days! i saw more amazing music than my brain could handle. seriously, the talent in austin was more than i thought possible. even the small bands i stumbled upon in a bar with 15 other people were pretty darn good. and the people that i met were about the nicest i could imagine; as impossible as it sounds, i didn't encounter one jerk the entire time i was there. people were certainly partying (myself included), but everyone seemed to be pretty under control. i didn't see anyone puking in the street, or people falling down. in general, the crowds seemed pretty sophisticated and very knowledgable. and the venues (i've never seen so many music venues in one city except for nyc) kept the rooms from getting too overcrowded. i never had a problem getting a good spot to see a band.
the best show i attended had to be My Morning Jacket. i was very lucky to attend a private party that had only around 350 where MMJ played for over two hours (unheard of at a festival where most bands played 40-50 minute sets, though most bands played at least twice during the festival). They absolutely rocked everyone's socks off. my brother spoke to MMJ's videographer following the perf and the videographer said that that was the best MMJ perf he ever recorded. MMJ did play a good deal of new stuff, some i liked a bunch and others i felt were just ok. They also played a much larger venue that held a few thousand people later in the week, but i missed that perf.
Some other of the outstanding performances I witnessed:
Yo La Tengo
Dragonette
Ra Ra Riots
Neva Dinova
Islands
The Whigs
Spoon
Shout Out Louds
Los Campesinos!
Yeasayer
Okkervill River
The Whigs
Evangelicals
Blitzen Trapper
White Rabbits
Atlas Sound
Black Mountain
i saw sooooo much more music than this, but i don't have one comprehensive list compiled and this is what i have notes about in my notebook (geek, i know). i lost count, but i think i saw around 50-60 bands.
the two bands i didn't get to see that were on my list were Vampire Weekend and She & Him (M. Ward & Zooey Deschanel). there was too much buzz about both at sxsw and i knew i either had to get to the venues either hours before the shows or wait in line. other than that, i saw every band that i wanted to see. before anyone asks, i had no interest in seeing REM, though i heard it was a pretty good performance.
the biggest dissappointment was Tapes n' Tapes. they sounded flat and uninspired. i'm not sure if they are just a bad live band or were tired, but it was the worst perf i saw from a band i like. but aside from them, everyone else seemed to be playing their hearts out.
i cannot express how highly i recommend attending this event. i am already looking at planning to come back next year.
the best show i attended had to be My Morning Jacket. i was very lucky to attend a private party that had only around 350 where MMJ played for over two hours (unheard of at a festival where most bands played 40-50 minute sets, though most bands played at least twice during the festival). They absolutely rocked everyone's socks off. my brother spoke to MMJ's videographer following the perf and the videographer said that that was the best MMJ perf he ever recorded. MMJ did play a good deal of new stuff, some i liked a bunch and others i felt were just ok. They also played a much larger venue that held a few thousand people later in the week, but i missed that perf.
Some other of the outstanding performances I witnessed:
Yo La Tengo
Dragonette
Ra Ra Riots
Neva Dinova
Islands
The Whigs
Spoon
Shout Out Louds
Los Campesinos!
Yeasayer
Okkervill River
The Whigs
Evangelicals
Blitzen Trapper
White Rabbits
Atlas Sound
Black Mountain
i saw sooooo much more music than this, but i don't have one comprehensive list compiled and this is what i have notes about in my notebook (geek, i know). i lost count, but i think i saw around 50-60 bands.
the two bands i didn't get to see that were on my list were Vampire Weekend and She & Him (M. Ward & Zooey Deschanel). there was too much buzz about both at sxsw and i knew i either had to get to the venues either hours before the shows or wait in line. other than that, i saw every band that i wanted to see. before anyone asks, i had no interest in seeing REM, though i heard it was a pretty good performance.
the biggest dissappointment was Tapes n' Tapes. they sounded flat and uninspired. i'm not sure if they are just a bad live band or were tired, but it was the worst perf i saw from a band i like. but aside from them, everyone else seemed to be playing their hearts out.
i cannot express how highly i recommend attending this event. i am already looking at planning to come back next year.
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