Not to get all Murtaugh on you, but this will be my fifth South by Southwest. I might be getting too old for this sh--.
That's not to say SXSW isn't still a blast — it is — it's just that, well, I don't know how much longer I'll be able to keep doing this. Because SXSW is brutal — you hit the ground running, and you don't stop until it's all over, more than 100 hours later. You burn the candle at both ends, hopping from show to show, party to party, with little (if any) time for sleep. You drink too much, smoke too many cigarettes, make terrible decisions. By the time Sunday rolls around, your body hates you (and chances are, so does your significant other), provided, of course, you are not already dead.
SXSW is a blood-boiling, blister-inducing marathon — hundreds of bands playing thousands of shows all over Austin, plus a few non-sanctioned events held in fire-code-busting spaces on the outskirts of town (these are usually the best parties, BTW, real "howl at the Texas moon on the windswept prairies" types of shindigs). Every year, as February turns into March, I ask myself, "Do I have another SXSW in me? Is it even possible?"
But I always return. And here's why: No matter how grueling SXSW is, it's also a total and complete blast. It's a paradise of sounds and sights, something every true music fan should attend before he or she dies. There truly is something for everyone here — reunited rock legends, up-and-coming blog bands, hip-hop heavyweights, U.K. electro, spazzy noise-punk, lo-fi, no-fi, blues, pop, R&B, Rachael Ray — and I've found that SXSW is one of the rare things in this world that gives as much as it takes: The harder you hit it, the later you stay out, the farther you wander, the bigger the musical rewards you discover.
So, in the interest of exploration, I've decided to shine the spotlight on six SXSW artists who I'm willing to stay up late, wander off the beaten path and burn the candle at both ends for. These are the unknowns that keep me coming back to SXSW year after year. (And for another take on the SXSW experience, check out Marni Stern's video primer.)
Dan Auerbach: One half of Akron, Ohio, blues stompers the Black Keys, Auerbach just released his first solo album, a creaky and raw beauty called Keep It Hid. The songs on the record are stunning — sometimes whisper-quiet (opener "Trouble Weighs a Ton"), other times raucous (the guitar and organ of "Keep It Hid") — and I'm dying to see how they turn out live.
Little Boots: Pint-sized English electro pixie Victoria Hesketh has summoned up quite a cloud of hype with singles like "Stuck on Repeat" and "Meddle," and she's reportedly working on her full-length debut with the guys from Hot Chip. I wanna see what the hype is all about, plus I can't wait to see her break out the Tenori-on.
The Wrens: A bunch of middle-aged dudes from Teaneck, New Jersey, whose penchant for writing devastatingly great rock tunes is surpassed only by their penchant for recording those tunes at a crippled snail's pace. Their last album, 2003's The Meadowlands, is one of the decade's overlooked gems, and if they're really truly working on a follow-up (which is the word), well, then I can't wait to hear some of the new stuff live.
The Decemberists and Grizzly Bear: I lumped these two together because, while neither is particularly unknown, they're both coming to SXSW with new albums in tow. We're talking to both this week, and I've had a chance to sit down with the new efforts as a result. The 'Rists' The Hazards of Love is sprawling, proggy and downright gnarly in parts, and the Grizz's Vecktimest is one of the year's prettiest. Hearing both live will be one of the treats of the week.
Kid Sister: And not just because I shared the desk with her over the summer on "FNMTV." The songs are whip-smart, cheeky and a whole lot of fun — "Beeper" and "Pro Nails" in particular — but her full-length debut, Dream Date, has been pushed back more times than I can even count. Based on her (near constant) Twitter updates, it sounds like that album is finally nearing its completion. Will SXSW be where she finally reveals it all? I hope so.
MTV News will be all over the South by Southwest festival this week, with blogs, articles and video on all the gigs, the artists and the scene!
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