SXSW - Dylan LeBlanc, 3/18/10

Photo: Amanda Chapman

It’s hard to actually find a diamond in the rough these days at SXSW. A festival that was created to help new bands get discovered is now more about big bands playing to established fans. There’s nothing wrong with either situation but each year I try to catch at least a few unknown acts. The name Dylan LeBlanc caught my eye only because he was playing after Califone at the Other Music party at the French Legation Museum. I listened to a couple of songs on his myspace, penciled him in on the schedule and hoped for something great.

Dylan LeBlanc is a 19 year old Louisiana native that has just been signed to Rough Trade Records. His appearance could lead you to believe that he lives in Brooklyn and dresses the way he does to impress, but I believe his time in Shreveport and Muscle Shoals has created something more authentic in both his exterior and songs. His writing is heavily influenced by Townes Van Zandt and the normal (although great) list of singer-songwriters from the 70s. He creates gentle songs that roll along in a soft way that immediately takes you back to the glory days of “the songwriter”. This probably has as much to do with his influences as the fact that his father is a country songwriter.

The setting at the French Legation was perfect for his 1:30 time slot. He played the small stage at the bottom of the hill and seemed genuinely grateful for the crowd’s interest. LeBlanc’s songs are not all attention grabbing but it’s easy to see why he was signed by the huge UK label. There’s definitely a lot of potential in the young man’s songs and his delivery. It’s always a delicate situation when a young songwriter writes songs that speak of troubled times that may be beyond his years. I never once questioned LeBlanc’s words during the 30 minute set and simply stated; his songs are good and there’s no denying it. I enjoyed every moment immensely and can’t wait to hear more studio tracks.

Rough Trade hasn’t announced a release date for an album or EP but hopefully LeBlanc will have something out this summer. For now, you can check out his myspace tracks (all recommended) or the few youtube clips that are floating around.

SXSW - A cold wild wind will come

Day Four - Saturday

Holy crap. Beginning around 3 AM, Saturday was a bust. That was about the time I was sleeping on my friend's couch and thought I was going to get sucked out the window because the cold front and rain hit with so much force. Hence, nice weather officially over. The cold temperature and strong winds made for the most unpleasant day I have ever witnessed in the three total SXSW's I have been able to attend.

To cut short the complaining, I'll summarize by saying I did a LOT of walking in this cold wind to a number of shows that were either canceled or postponed. We caught the end of the last song of a set by Sonny and the Sunsets and the last 2 songs by Sarah Jaffe, followed by another performance by Doug Burr, but due to some poor planning and the weather disaster, the afternoon was largely a bust.

SXSW Axiom #5: SXSW is not designed with much of a contingency plan for bad weather, and your "list" for the day is likely to be thrown into total flux if this type of weather hits.

Most of all, I was super disappointed that the Ground Control Showcase, featuring Dawes, Deer Tick, Justin Townes Earle, and Lucero was postponed to evening when I couldn't attend, but such is life, even though SXSW isn't that much like real life at all.

The only redeeming factor of the day was the showcase I attended that evening at the Ale House. This showcase first featured Denton band Telegraph Canyon, a band that has been on my radar for some time now, but whom I have not had the chance to see live yet. The many band members crammed on to the tiny stage at the Ale House and put on a fantastic showcase that was quite well received by the packed venue.

As a side note, I actually saw Vic Chesnutt at this exact venue at a SXSW five years ago, so despite the fact that the small room is really only a music venue during SXSW, it holds a special place in my musical memory.

Following Telegraph Canyon, the crowd mostly stayed put for the set by Thrift Store Cowboys. Yet another large band, at 6 pieces, TSC played a very strong set, closing with one of the most upbeat songs from their upcoming album, entitled "Bright Fires."


































In short, I was extremely happy with how SXSW turned out this year. I saw roughly 20 artists that I really wanted to see, and you just can't complain about something like that. I went to only a few of the most hyped shows, and honestly, had the best time at the shows that were more low key, and had a lower proportion of people in attendance who spent the whole time talking about all the other cool parties they went to.

SXSW Axiom #6: Hipper is not necessarily better. Yes, you'll hear all sorts of things about the hippest bands that came to SXSW, and for some reason, most sites love telling you about how they got in to see Broken Bells at SXSW, but all in all, it probably wouldn't have been worth your time to do the same. I saw {band name censored} and {band name censored}, who played the storied Fader Fort, at a few other venues, and they were just a plain let-down. If you have the chance, go to the smaller parties with smaller crowds and you'll have a much better time.

If you've never been to SXSW and you really love music, then try to go. Don't bother with the badge because you can see more than you could ever want to see at the free shows that happen each day and are increasing in number every year. The musical energy of this week is unlike any that I have otherwise been a part of and is not easily replicated, so please do yourself the favor of taking part.

SXSW – Peter Wolf Crier, 3/18/10

Thursday was by far the most productive day considering that we saw new bands, “must sees” and old favorites. The fourth band of the day came before noon at Habana Calle on Sixth Street. We decided to make the trek to the dreaded street because we figured that most people were still recovering from Wednesday night. I had only heard of Peter Wolf Crier a couple of weeks prior to SXSW when one of my favorite labels, Jagjaguwar, announced that they had signed the duo and planned to re-release their debut album.

The band was setting up in the basement of the Cuban restaurant when we arrived. The next 30 minutes was filled with harsh guitar lines mixed with sweet melodies. The band had won me over by the middle of the second song when Peter Pisano, the guitarist and vocalist, started looping his vocals in a surprisingly pleasant way. Looping vocals started gaining popularity a few years ago with the rise of certain artists like Andrew Bird and St. Vincent. This movement led to everyone and their mother looping everything on stage and creating unpleasant experiences for everyone involved. Pisano loops the right way and has a great understanding of how to use his vocal range with the band’s unique style of music. The Minneapolis-based band seemed genuinely appreciative of the early morning crowd and stated how happy they were to be on Jagjaguwar. Pisano also talked about the fact that he was a teacher and that he should have been grading papers instead of playing an 11 am show. Luckily for us he decided to play a few selections from the band’s album, Inter-Be.

The band infuses reverb guitar with old time blues to create something that is unique and refreshing. I enjoyed their set so much that it stood out in my mind even after seeing seven other quality bands on Thursday. I can’t wait to hear their full album, but I don’t know if it will beat what could be described as the perfect SXSW day show. The attentive crowd mixed with a great environment helped the band play at the top of their game. Muzzle of Bees did a great job noticing the band and having them play the party at a time when real music fans can enjoy real music. Check out some live footage of Peter Wolf Crier from other shows at SXSW here.

Inter-Be will be released on May 25th by Jagjaguwar.

(Photo credit Stacy Schwartz.)

SXSW - Ramble Creek and Mile Hi Fidelity parties

Day Three - Friday

Friday morning we proved to be a bit less energetic than Thursday, and without any specific early plans, we took our time before heading to the Ramble Creek day party. We arrived just before 1 PM, with the primary intention of catching the set by One Wolf, who interestingly had played a party less than an hour before across town and still somehow managed to make it on time to the Ramble Creek show, held in a perfect backyard setting.

At that precise point, the random craziness of SXSW hit full force, as H. called to inform me that she and her friends had just gotten in a minor car accident. Thus, for obvious reasons, One Wolf did not happen for us, but most importantly, everyone involved in the accident was okay. While the cars received a good bit of damage, the accident wasn't our friend's fault, and after taking care of the necessities involved with that situation, we all returned to the Ramble Creek party for some much needed stress relief.

The first act we got to see was Collin Herring, an awesome artist currently based in Austin (formerly of Fort Worth) who I've been a fan of for a number of years now. Herring played a number of tracks off of his new release, Ocho, recorded of course at Ramble Creek, and produced by Will Johnson, and also mixed in some of his earlier songs. If I hadn't mentioned this before, Collin has about the coolest steel player around, Ben Roi Herring, his dad, and their duo performance (and banter) were a real pleasure to watch/hear.


















Did someone just say Will Johnson? Yes, that's right, THE Will Johnson of Centro-matic, South San Gabriel, and most recently, the drummer for the Monsters of Folk, graced the Ramble Creek party with a beautiful solo set. I hope I didn't embarrass myself as I sat roughly 10 feet from Will with my jaw resting on the ground, but hearing "Just to Know What You've Been Dreaming" in this particular setting was on par with the very best experiences of my entire SXSW, or maybe more accurately of the past few years. Whatever it took to get him to come play at this show, I can't thank the folks at Ramble Creek enough for making this happen.























I haven't described the exact locale of the Ramble Creek show yet, but it was by far the most enjoyable day party of SXSW by far. It was held in a backyard with the perfect set-up and perfect weather to accompany, and to boot, a big tub full of Lone Star was available for all in attendance.

The next act was one I have missed seeing live ever since we moved to Colorado. Doug Burr has written some of my favorite songs of the last decade, and in my book he has about as much integrity as any artist I listen to. He has recently recorded a new album, from which he played a number of songs. In short, I couldn't be more excited for these songs, as they are absolutely phenomenal. Doug has crafted a career in exactly the fashion that he wants, and this diligence has surely paid off as more and more people begin to take notice. He was backed at this show by his frequent collaborator Glen Farris, as well as members of Seryn and Monahans drummer Roberto Sanchez for some songs.



















































Next up was Austin band Monahans, who include Ramble Creek owner/engineer Britton Beisenherz on guitar. I had not seen this band before, although a number of years ago I saw a previous project of some of the musicians called Milton Mapes, and was a fan of all of that band's material. Monahans, however, is a new project, and as I think was the intention, the transition has infused a new energy into their music. The band is tighter than ever as a performing group, and their set at this day party was absolutely flawless and one of the best of the entire SXSW for me. The band has two albums to their name, although they are in the process of a project in which they will release one song a month for download for the rest of 2010. The first track is already available, and you can check out their Web site for details on how to get in on this opportunity. Monahans is a band on the rise and I fully hope they can ride the momentum to more widespread success and notoriety in the near future.



































Alas, as much as I hated to leave, I had to take off after Monahans because I wanted my Austin friend to see Denver's Slim Cessna's Auto Club, and knew this would be our best chance. While I missed Telegraph Canyon's set at Ramble Creek, I was able to make up for my exit by catching them on Saturday night.

After some frantic traffic navigation and hurried walking, we made it to the Mile Hi Fidelity party just in time to catch the latter half of Slim Cessna's set. Do I even have to mention that Slim did not disappoint? Munly was in top form, having just arrived from the year 1840, performing an extremely high energy set as co-frontman to Slim, just as we have all come to expect out of him and the Auto Club. Very few bands can claim to hold a foot firmly in the alt country legacy of the early 1990s while also remaining relevant for modern Americana/Southern Gothic music as well. In short, SCAC brought their tent revival to Sixth Street, and the end of the set no doubt saw a new group of converts leaving their first Slim show. Please see Slim if you get the chance. Sadly, even though they were the last band, Slim's energetic finale didn't lead into any encore, despite my desire to hear their epic "He, Roger Williams."

SXSW Axiom #4: No encores necessary at SXSW. There is simply too much music during the week for 99% of crowds to ask for another song. Few listeners even catch full sets, and no matter where you go you hear more music, so the encore is largely absent at SXSW, probably to everyone's benefit.

As you can see in the pictures below (click to enlarge), Slim and Munly's crowd involvement made for some of the best action pics of the festival, although "best" is a relative term with my crappy camera. You can't see it that well in the small version, but I love Slim's look in the background of the second picture below.

SXSW - The early bird gets to hear more bands

Day Two - Thursday

Our second day of music showcases began quite early in SXSW terms, starting at 9 AM with the KUT acoustic showcases in the lobby of the Hilton. Given the excitement and reveling we saw on Wednesday, we predicted, quite accurately, that few would be up this early and that we could see some good acts in these early sets without dealing with the crowds.

First up was Dawes, one of the bands I most wanted to see this SXSW. The acoustic set was everything I could have hoped for, showcasing the band's vocal harmonies perfectly and giving us the chance to see them up close and without being sandwiched in on all sides like was the case at a number of the Wednesday parties. The drum-less set was a great setting to see the band, although it didn't provide a forum for their most upbeat track, "When My Time Comes." Catching this set proved especially important since I was not able to see any of Dawes' full band shows the rest of the week. Sorry I missed them, as it sounds like the band was very well received.

Next up at the Hilton was Frightened Rabbit, a buzz band of sorts who has been getting lots of attention lately, and so we were glad to catch them in this more intimate setting. Playing as a two-piece, the band put on a solid performance and lived up to the hype that I often hear about them. Shifting gears considerably, the next band was the Carolina Chocolate Drops, a band I hadn't seen live, but one that I know is quite popular in Colorado. The sound is actually modeled after a 1930s group called the Tennessee Chocolate Drops, as described by one of the members during their interview, and has what I consider a genuine old-time feel. Bluegrass is not my favorite type of music, but the Carolina Chocolate Drops' performance and stage presence made our time watching them very worthwhile.

Following the Hilton, we moved about a bit for some shows I won't detail because Derek likely will do so later. However, I will say that we did attend our favorite large-scale day party of the week at the Babelgum Lawn party at the French Legation Museum east of I-35. The party was well-organized and had a great sound system, with the only deficiency being the number of porta-potties.

SXSW Axiom #3: Porta Johns are the ultimate status leveler at SXSW. That is, badges don't mean a thing when it comes to the line for the bathroom.

For such a large venue, easily accommodating a few thousand people, the French Legation Museum had only 5 porta johns. I only waited in the line once, for about 15 minutes, but I can only imagine how terrible it must have been for the largest acts of the day like The xx and Dum Dum Girls.

Thankfully our schedule led us next to South Congress for the Sin City Social Club party. Tim Easton provided a great set of his desert-infused rock and was followed by Thrift Store Cowboys, who played a set of mostly new material that is to appear on their recently-recorded new album. The $2 pints at this day party were also far preferable to the $5 of the previous day, so the locale change was appreciated once again.

We ended Thursday, a day in which we saw 11 great musical acts all across Austin, in a way that couldn't be much more fitting. At the large day party known as South By San Jose, we caught Texas icon Billy Joe Shaver's set to close the night. We had the great pleasure of hearing Shaver dedicate an a capella version of "Star in My Heart" to his late son Eddy, followed by his classic "Live Forever." Even Joe Ely was in attendance for this legend's performance, clearly recognizing as we all did that Shaver is one of Texas' best living songwriters, and his live show is one that you should not turn down the opportunity to see if given the chance. Given our success at seeing so many great bands, I could have been happy with Thursday being my last day of concerts at SXSW, if not for the fact that there were still quite a few bands I hoped to see.

SXSW - The badge and the badge-holder

As I've already briefly noted, my plans to blog during SXSW failed miserably. It just wasn't realistic to spend time on blogs late at night after music/friend time, and similarly, I wasn't exactly getting up with the roosters every morning. Similar to the blogging plans, my intentions of taking lots of pictures of the bands I saw were limited by 1) my crappy camera and 2) my unwillingness to push and shove to the front of crowds to get the best shots. Thus, I didn't take many pictures over the week and provide only a few of the better ones.

As you will see, I made it to a number of the shows I mentioned interest in seeing, although in true SXSW fashion, every time I chose to see one band, it was similarly a decision to miss 3 others I wanted to see. I doubt you are interested in the bands I was unimpressed with, so I'll talk about the high points and the humorous points and Derek will talk about others, and we'll try not to overlap too much, except for when we do.

Day One - Wednesday

The first day we jumped straight off of our flight from Denver and headed straight into the thick of things on Sixth Street. The first order of business was the Brooklyn Vegan party and the 1:30 set by the Morning Benders. In front of a packed crowd at Emo's, this relatively new buzz band put on a show that seemed to please the audience and their performance of "Excuses," the song that has made the rounds via its viral video, was plenty rockin' for those there to see it. The band is clearly young, as evidenced by the X's on the hands of some of the members, and while their catalog is small at this point, they have the potential to build on their buzz and become a mainstay of the indie scene.

In search of greener pastures, i.e. somewhere that wasn't charging $4 for Lone Star, we left Emo's and made our way to the Paste party down the street at the Galaxy Room, although this decision proved to be a bit of a misstep. Joe Pug was the first act at this party that we wanted to see, and I assume his set was good, although I just couldn't hear it. The set took place in a large tent and as a solo acoustic act, it couldn't have been a poorer fit, as basically everyone but those in the front row was talking to the person next to them. Which brings me to:

SXSW Axiom #1: If you have ever wondered how to spot the important people at SXSW, just look for those who go to the popular parties and talk during every band. I expect these were the people who went to this type of party throughout the festival and told everyone about how awesome {insert buzz band name} was at the Brooklyn Vegan/Paste/Burger King party, even though they didn't even listen to said band because they were talking about themselves through it all.

While not a priority, another bad sign was that we soon found that the only cold beer at the Paste party was Dos Equis and cost $5, so the grass was in fact not greener, but more expensive and more pretentious. The defining moment at the Paste party was watching the entry policies at the door. When we arrived, the line was minimal and all but one of our group got in without too much trouble. The one was held back about 5 minutes while someone from Paste (or otherwise involved with the party) went outside to throw a fit and stomp his feet at the door man because he was letting in too many non-badge holders. If you're not familiar with SXSW, official badge holders buy $500-$700 passes to gain entry into all official SXSW events, and supposedly, one is supposed to get priority at free day shows with these badges as well. Thus, as you can see, (SXSW Axiom #2) free day shows aren't exactly always free day shows. We did everyone there a favor by leaving and making room for more VIPs not too long after we arrived.

Our final try at free Sixth Street shows on Wednesday was admittedly one of novelty, as it involved getting in line at Emo's to see the GZA perform at the Brooklyn Vegan party. This line was not unreasonably long, but one of the longer ones that we saw for the week. As we reached the front of the line, a gentleman with one of the aforementioned badges bypassed the line and flippantly flashed his badge to the doorman as he proceeded to enter the venue...until the doorman stopped him and pointed to the back of the line. Following this initial exchange, said badge-holder re-emphasized the presence of the badge and said he just had to run in to tell some people inside that the GZA had canceled. This was the first we had heard of the cancellation, although as we looked up at the sign on the door, it was clearly posted in a handwritten note. Looking back to the gate crasher, the door man reiterated that the badge-holder needed to move to the back of the line just like everyone else if he wanted to get in. And at this point, the greatest line of this year's SXSW was uttered. After repeatedly being denied entry, the badge-holder pulled his final trump card and loudly exclaimed "does rollingstone.com not mean anything to you?" That's right, not Rolling Stone magazine, but rollingstone.com. The response of course was textbook Emo's, as the doorman deflated this copy editor's ego completely and turned him away for the final time. And with that, we were largely done with the big parties for the week.

As a pleasant conclusion to Wednesday, we stopped by the ComboPlate Booking roster party at Guero's. Unfortunately we weren't able to see everyone involved, but we caught great sets by Michael Fracasso and Matt the Electrician. The atmosphere on South Congress was far preferable to that of Sixth Street, although I guess that goes without saying. While I know that the trendy big parties are a priority for many, the ComboPlate party proved to me that the low-key day shows on South Congress and elsewhere in town are far more enjoyable than the big name hip parties downtown in almost all instances. This is not really breaking news, but with the ever-expanding list of parties during SXSW week, it is increasingly not worth the hassle of Sixth Street.

NXNW

It is freezing outside today for the final day of SXSW. Not sure that the outdoor showcase I wanted to see is going to be worth the case of pneumonia that comes along with it. Okay, so maybe that's a bit dramatic, but what it won't be pleasant either way.

So much music the last few days and so little time to talk about it.

High points so far:

Peter Wolf Crier - had never heard of them, but loved their set
Ramble Creek Day Party - didn't make the entire show for various reasons, but this was by far the best setting and best lineup of the festival
Califone
Pretentious idiots with badges (not a band - more on this later)
Dawes acoustic set
Billy Joe Shaver

Also, I think we got the ultimate Wu-Tang Clan experience, because we waited in line on Wednesday to see the GZA, only to find out when we got to the front of the line that he was a no-show.

I'll do another re-cap at some point soon, although I'm sure I'll forget most of it between now and then.

Band of Horses - Boulder, CO, 03/15/10

In my book, there is really something to be said about artists who were in a band for a long time, and had maybe mediocre success, but at some point, and for any number of reasons, they create a new band with a more focused and polished sound than their original band. Case in point is Band of Horses, fronted by Ben Bridwell, who was formerly in a band called Carissa's Wierd in the 90s and 00s. Do you remember listening to them in the mid-to-late 90s? Probably not, because they never really got much mainstream attention. However, the years Bridwell spent in that band clearly taught him a lot about what he wanted to sound like and the things he needed to be doing to become successful. I think the folks in bands that seemingly aren't going anywhere reach a certain breaking point, and only a select few recognize they don't have that many chances left to make it AND also have the ability to create a "first" album under a new name that simply blows everyone away (see Vernon, Justin).

For a band with only two albums under their belt, Band of Horses is simply one of the best live bands around. As I noted in an earlier post, Band of Horses played the Fox Theatre 3 1/2 years ago, just around the time I moved to Boulder, in support of their only album then, Everything All the Time. For monetary reasons, I couldn't go, and I've regretted that decision since the show was announced. Quite ironically, Bridwell asked the sold out house at the Fox Theatre on Monday night how many of them had been at that show, and an extremely sparse response of a couple of yells and some raised hands were returned. That is to say, Band of Horses has gained some serious notoriety since 2006, clearly evidenced by the two sold out Denver area shows this week.

The Boulder show found BoH playing quite a few songs from their new record, Infinite Arms (May 18, on Brown/Fat Possum/Columbia) for which the album art has just recently been released. I have to say I'm quite excited to hear it, as the songs were very well received and fit very nicely with the band's current set list. (pic from the show here) For 90 minutes the band enthralled the packed house with energetic performances of a good portion of their catalog. It may be their most well-known song, and the main one that the half-assed fans were there to see, but if you haven't already, you need to add "hearing Band of Horses play 'The Funeral' live" to your bucket list. Yes, it's as good as you might imagine.

Returning to my original thought, I simply have a really strong appreciation for artists who construct such a clear and cohesive vision for their work that you never say "I wish they had done...." It doesn't really matter if someone finds that artistic place at 21 or 35, although I think the more time that goes into it, the better the product will be over the long term. Band of Horses are steadily producing a body of work that is going to keep them quite popular for a long time, and I feel fortunate to have gotten to see them in a small theater setting like the Fox, as their time in this type of intimate venue may be limited. Unfortunately, you are unlikely to get in to see them at SXSW this year, unless you are a major VIP, but you should take the opportunity to see them live when you have the chance.