I guess the best way to start is with the ending.
It is six in the morning on Sunday and I walk out to smoke my last cigarette. Outside my hotel room door, I see three people a little younger than me holding each other. I’m still buzzing off an abundance of free Monster energy drinks and ask them if they are okay.
“Yeah,” the shirtless one responds, “it’s just been a crazy day.”
“Yeah, I feel that,” I respond, really meaning it.
“We were in a car accident tonight,” he tells me, “but we are all safe and that’s what’s important.”
It turns out the gentleman is in a band call Glas Nost, and they played a few shows over the week. I talk to him a minute and can see the discouragement in his face, with him even questioning whether he is doing the right thing with his life.
“The important thing is that you are with two people who obviously care about you,” I tell him, and verify his band name so I can write it down when I go back inside. South By Southwest is an emotionally grueling experience for all involved. But, for the media, it is work that is a condensed version of what we do on a daily basis. For bands like Glas Nost, it could be all or nothing. And though I know nothing of their quality or work ethic or even character, I can say that they are the reason this even exists. Whether it is in film, in music, or in interactive media, some people have a chance to catch the world’s eye. Most won’t. Most don’t deserve to. But, to even try is something. Right?
- Tuesday
The first things I noticed about Austin, Texas were that Austin City Limits had a store in the airport and someone had set up a stage near the baggage claim. I arrived in the capital of Texas with only one specific task: cover Odd Future. No problem, right? I mean, they were playing a packed schedule of shows, so covering one band in five days wouldn’t be so hard, right? Well, not so much.
But Odd Future aside, I wanted to cover as much music as possible. And drink. For free. A lot. This personal goal brought me to Red 7 on Tuesday night, where FYF had put together a free show with a couple of bright rising stars, a beloved staple, and one of the best bands in the contemporary rock scene. It pretty much ruled.
- The Audacity
It might be intimidating to kick off a show with No Age watching you from side-stage, but The Audacity didn’t show it one bit. The garage-rock four-piece from Fullerton, California has a terrific reputation around Los Angeles. As of late, they are featured on frequent bills with established punk bands and other FYF mainstays. And, they deserve it. Sure, they may look like your twerpy little brother, but they bring the punk-based fuzz like your favorite 80s brats.
The crowd, well, got kind of nuts. I was pushed to the front and hadn’t realized that this was a free show, not an industry event; so the decorum that would benefit me carrying around an expensive camera and being on the smaller side of average male simply wasn’t present. Plus, it was the kickoff show for SXSW for a lot of people. And they drank. A lot. But, you have to hand it to an unknown band to effect the packed patio like The Audacity did. For these young kids, success is measured in sweat. One whiff of the crowd and you would understand where The Audacity came out on this scale.
Austra
As many showcases and parties would later prove, lineups for the music conference were not geared sound similarities or audience appeal. This No Age-headlined party followed suit with the billing of Austra with three punk-rooted rock bands. Austra, from Toronto, is more futuristic in their reach, with an emphasis on melody and layering. The scope is expansive, but, luckily, it is not too heady or difficult to access. Even the rowdy No Age crowd could get into excellent cuts like “Lose It” without difficulty. And they even stopped pushing each other for a half hour. Maybe we should send Austra to Libya and see if they have the same peace-keeping affect that they displayed at Red 7.
Also of note was the addition of two backup singers to flesh-out the sound. Apparently, they are a part of the band that remained home on their first trip to Los Angeles, but had made the trip to Austin. Two more attractive women on stage is rarely a bad thing, and they were no exception. Austra makes sexy music, and this, my second experience with them, saw the Canadian band achieve the potential heard on record. Now, the question is if they can sustain their captivating live shows for more than thirty minutes. But, they have a while to figure that part out.
Japanther
Japanther was the one band on this night that I had never seen before. A two-piece from New York City, you had to worry that even playing under the name Japanther would seem in bad taste considering the events on the other side of the world. But, we can hardly expect the word Japan to be forbidden from use in puns (Japandroids would be at risk, as well), and Japanther seems like a couple of guys it would be impossible to get mad at. They opened their set by thanking Sean Carlson, the organizer of the event, profusely and dedicated the first song to him. This song was probably called “Sean Carlson,” as it was made up of a repeating of the words “Sean Carlson” to a pop-punk bounce that got the crowd out of sexy-synth mode and back to the point where they were hurting each other.
Japanther seems like they give as much thought to their stage set up as their music, using phones as microphones and featuring elaborate chalk drawings behind them. Sound wise, they are a party band, plain and simple. For the first night of a festival it was perfect.
No Age
Next, Ted Leo wrapped up his between-band DJing of classic punk cuts and No Age took the stage. If you have ever talked to me about music, you’d know one thing: I love No Age. I own the fucking No Age shoes. But even with my best graces, I have to admit that they seem to be caught in a setlist rut. However, though there was some predictability with what would be played, the other side of the coin is that this setlist is a complete win. “Life Prowler,” like it is on Everything In Between, is a perfect starting song; it doesn’t allow the crowd to freak out, but, rather, eases them into the show. They save the freak out for Nouns opener “Teen Creeps.” And following with strong material like “You’re A Target,” “Every Artist Needs A Tragedy,” and the Randy Randall count-off shining moment that is “Fever Dreaming,” makes the show a frenzy of energy.
Of course, energy isn’t the only reason No Age are becoming a live favorite for many. The addition of William Kai Strangeland-Menchaca to help with samples allows the founding members to focus on their instruments, the most noticeable effect coming from singer-drummer Dean Allen Spunt and his more confident vocals. But, this was lost on the majority of the drunk and enthusiastic crowd. They hung from the rafters. They jumped from the stage. They threw beer into the air. They had fun.
No Age seemed to enjoy themselves just as much. In fact, it was hard to view anything about this SXSW kickoff show as anything but a total win for all involved. But it would be only an appetizer for the barrage of music, booze, chaos, and fun that was to come.
Setlist (as written):
Life Prowler
Teen Creeps
You’re a Target
Every Artist Needs a Tragedy
Fever Dreaming
Depletion
Common Heat
Losing Feeling
Cappo
Glitter
Valley Hump Crash
Eraser
Brain Burner
Chem Trails
Sleeper Hold
Shed and Transcend
Miner
Read: South By Southwest day two – Wednesday March 16th >
