While the posters say the music goes until March 21st, it’s on the 20th that 90% of the music in Austin comes to an end, so with that in mind, welcome to my fourth and final day from Austin.
SXSW really was something truly amazing – an event that’s quite hard to fathom – let alone put into words. The city itself is vibrant, evolving and feels custom built for live music. Indeed, they don’t brand themselves as the live music capital of the world for nothing. Meanwhile, the festival itself, which attracts the entire industry, is so well run you wouldn’t have known it was so crowded. So it’s with sadness that I am to say goodbye, but with no doubt that I’ll return next year – I almost couldn’t imagine a life that didn’t include SXSW, now that I’ve experienced its splendour.
But indeed, it wasn’t over just yet, and Saturday brought with it some exciting musical treats – as well as unseasonably cold weather. While the rest of the week brought with it a beautiful, comfortable 25 degrees – today it dropped to below 5. It pretty much felt like I had entered a snowstorm – minus the snow. So when I arrived at the Aussie BBQ (my third this month!) I was quite pleased to spend much of the event indoors.
Nathan Gaunt (pictured below) was performing when I entered Maggie Mae’s. The Perth-based artist has been on the circuit for over 10 years now, but I have a feeling this was the first time I’d seen the acclaimed singer/songwriter. And after seeing him today, I had to ask myself why – he’s quite the talent, well worthy of his multiple WAMI awards.
Paul Dempsey, meanwhile, played the outdoor stage. Like the rest of us, he was definitely feeling the cold. As a one man band, there was also only so much sound he could produce. Resuling in Paul spending much time producing some hilarious banter about the freezing cold and the band next door, which unfortunatley often played over him at times. The set was much the same as what I saw at the Aussie BBQ in Los Angeles the week prior, with his dry wit showing through once again and the songwriting of the solo tracks impressing all. “Ramona Was A Waitress” continues to impress me – I think I can already call it one of the best Australian songs ever composed.
Paul wasn’t the only member of the Los Angeles Aussie BBQ crew to play today – City Riots, Washington and the Cassette Kids were among the follow-ups. City Riots and Washington played virtually the same set to what I saw in LA, except this time City Riots replaced being noticably tired with being ridiculously cold. Poor guys. I hear they’ve been having quite a few dramas on the roads of the USA. But once again, it did absolutely nothing to falter their performance. And that’s what they call Rock and Roll, I believe?
I missed Cassette Kids in LA, but they were performing with the same strength and vivacity that made their Sydney BBQ performance so wonderful – definitely leaving their mark on Texas in the process.
Surf City (above), a band I’d never heard of before, were given the warmer stage. Apparently they’re from New Zealand, which probably explains it. Why were they playing the Aussie BBQ, then, you ask? Well they were given a spot on the Popfrenzy stage, alongside Crayon Fields, Beaches and Love of Diagrams – all of whom played excellent sets. Their lo-fi partially surf-inspired rock and roll, which includes tracks like “Dickshakers Union” and “Records of a Flagpole Skater”, is simply good fun. And they’re a tight band to boot.
Mind you, they’re definitely to be taken a little more seriously than what you might find with Goons of Doom, who also performed today. But similar to GoD, their talent shines through above everything else. Although the shark attacks during the GoD set feels like a gimmick that doesn’t really get old, as it changes with each crowd and each setting. Hurray!
Also playing the Popfrenzy stage were one of the surprising “buzz bands” of SXSW, LA’s Best Coast (below), who SPIN highlighted in their pre-SXSW “50 Must-Hear Bands” article, and elbo.ws championed. I can definitely see why – while I only caught a few songs, they almost blew the Aussie contingency away! But thankfully, we had Children Collide to rock everyone’s socks off. Much like in LA, it was standing room only as the crowd tried to get their dance on.
Speaking of rocking people’s socks off – I didn’t even realise Songs (below) were playing the Aussie BBQ until I arrived at the event – and it was a pleasure to see them so far away from home. One of Sydney’s best kept secrets, I hope they made a few waves in Austin. They’re a truly talented band, and showed us all that today.
Best known as the lead singer of New Buffalo, Salt Seltmann (pictured below) has had plenty of success as a solo artist and songwriter. She’s even been nominated for a Grammy for co-writing the irresistable “1234” with Fiest. And now she’s pushing her solo career further, performing at this years SXSW. She’s a talent pure and simple, and with a strong backing band at her side, there’s no telling how far she’ll be able to push it.
Andy Clockwise (pictured in the header) finished up the day portion of the Aussie BBQ, proclaiming “thanks for having me back Australia” – despite listed as being from Los Angeles in the official program. Choose your side Andy! Choose your side! His music has always been quirky fun, and not much has changed there.
Ah, and with that, my Aussie BBQ adventure for 2010 comes to an end. Some of the bands would go on to play in New York City – but I would be on my journey back home by then. But SXSW still had one last treat left in store for me… oddly enough, it was the Perez Hilton party.
Stay tuned for the final part in this epic saga!
