For the 8th consecutive year, Rachael Ray’s Feedback Party took over Stubb’s BBQ for the final afternoon of SXSW, seeing a mix of bands from around the world play across three stages, while four Rachael Ray recipes (which you can see HERE), were enjoyed by the masses (you have to try the tacos!) – some of whom had lined up since the early hours of the morning to get their position in what has become one of the most popular and anticipated events of SXSW each and every year.
Headlined by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Bob Schneider, Australia’s Cody Simpson and Athens buzz band Reptar opened up the event, all hitting the stage before Noon. Electronic outfit Big Data also arrived early, having been one band hard to miss at SXSW, impressing with tracks like “Dangerous”, which closed the set. There was plenty of energy from them on the stage, with the live show very much that – comprised of five members and, interestingly enough, pre-recorded computerized messages.
On the Feedback Stage, The Cringe impressed as did Delta Spirit (no surprises there), who Rachael’s musician husband John Cusimano said they’d been trying to get on the bill for years. Opening with “Patriarch”, the band pushed through a high energy set that included “Live On”, dedicated to growing up in Austin, “People C’mon”, “Bushwick Blues” and the soulful grooves of “White Table”, which ended their set.
Raekwon (pictured above), meanwhile, battled a lost voice to perform tracks of his own alongside classic Wu-Tang and ODB numbers like “Shimmy Shimmy Ya”. While that was happening outside, Banditos, Surfer Blood and Jeff The Brotherhood played on the indoor stage – which was at capacity for the entire day.
Four piece The Districts gave the crowd a good taste of their recently released sophomore record A Flourish And A Spoil with tracks like “4th and Roebling” and “Young Blood” proving to be stand outs. And it was Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros who closed out the day, taking requests from the crowd as they jumped through now classic tracks “40 Day Dream”, “Up From Below” and “Man On Fire” – as well as “Truth” off Alexander’s solo record.
The set ended with the popular “Home”, which sees the crowd take over the parts of the songs that Jade Castrinos once sang. Awkwardly, the only reference to her absence (in spite of some messy circumstances) was that the crowd was singing these parts because “Jade isn’t here”. But, with the crowd dutifully singing along, it didn’t seem anyone needed convincing.
The party continued back at the Feedback House through the night, with live music, Hawaiian sliders, ice cream and drinks. For more on the Rachael Ray event, head to her official website. And stay tuned to the AU for a look back at more of the action from SXSW 2015. Photos by Johnny Au (full gallery will be online soon!)
