[jump] Act: Gil Mantera’s Party Dream, an over-the-top electro-synth pop/sex rock act from Youngstown, Ohio.Where: Emo’s Main RoomWhat It Was Like: Watching a Spinal Tap-like parody of ironic hipster dance acts. Frontman and band namesake Gil Mantera is a hell of a charatcer, commenting on how thankful he was that…
Well, if you thought our SXSW coverage was over, you’d be wrong. There’s plenty more coming this afternoon. In the meantime, here’s what you maybe saw in Dallas, as most of DC9 was down in Austin… The Maine @ The House of Blues, Friday, Mar. 20″Don’t be fooled by my…
Your daily dose of national music news for Monday, March 23, 2009…Eminem and Flea are among the presenters for this years Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees. Em will induct Run-DMC; Flea will induct Metallica.It’s funny how 50 Cent likes to take jabs at easy targets like Rick Ross,…
Well, my SXSW trip is over. I didn’t manage to survive solely on day-party free food and beer the way I’d hoped to because doing so would have been at the sacrifice of other, better shows. Plus, my experience Thursday taught me not to trust a free-beer or free-food promise…
I’ve read again and again what a spectacular display Monotonix’s live show is and finally got to experience it yesterday afternoon. I stuck around for the Circle Jerks afterward, but it was clear there was just no way any band could top Monotonix. So I decided to give my fatigued…
MetallicaSXSW’s Guitar Hero: Metallica PartyStubb’s BBQ in Austin, TXFriday, March 20, 2009 Better than: anything else you could’ve seen at SXSW last night–and maybe all week. People might try to disagree on that. But don’t buy into it. This was the show by which SXSW 2009 will be remembered. Pete Freedman James…
Act: Chin Chin, a group of would-be yacht rockers from BrooklynWhere: Club De VilleWhat It Was Like: Trying to figure out if the whole thing was a joke or not, really. The band’s blue-eyed soul sound was a little hokey, and no doubt that sense was only enhanced by the…
Act: Beach HouseWhere: Cedar Street CourtyardWhat It Was Like: Packed. There were obviously quite a few fans of Beach House’s mellow, cheery songs. Also, judging by all the “Who are these guys?” I heard, many badge-holders were taking advantage of a relatively quiet set to talk, text or chill out…
The bands may change from year to year, but one thing that always remains a constant joy at SXSW is Flatstock, the annual poster show at the Austin Convention Center. This year, the 20th annual showcase didn’t disappoint. As always, there are deals to find at Flatstock, in short-run screen print concert and…
Free doesn’t always mean free, I’ve learned after striking out twice on the hunt for freebies Thursday before settling for a Reuben sandwich at B.D. Riley’s.The first stop was the Longbranch Inn on 11th Street in East Austin, where King Khan and BBQ Show, Past Lives and Tera Malos held…
With what looks to be the entire Observer music staff getting wasted on vacation tirelessly covering the SXSW Music Conference, it looks as if recommending a few of this weekend’s metroplex shows falls to this weary critic. Well, in this week’s print edition, Pete, Jesse and others did a hell of…
Night two at SXSW 2009 very much encapsulated everything I love about SXSW: Writing down a schedule of shows to see, throwing it out the window and catching a whole different lineup of acts that were probably better than any of the ones you’d originally planned to see. Act: These…
Band: Baptist GeneralsWhere: Sub Pop Showcase at Radio RoomWhat It Was Like: If you’re ever seen the Baptist Generals play one of their “rug shows” then you know what a special experience these all-acoustic sets can be in the right room with the right audience. Thursday night’s set opening the…
[Earlier this week, we asked a few bands to check in with us from time to time over the course of the week to tell us about their SXSW experiences. First up, Damaged Good$’ Coool Dundee and Trak Bully, with DJ Prince William in tow, tell us how their week got started.] Well…
Band: EfterklangWhere: Other Music Party at the French Legation MuseumWhat It Was Like: Seven people from Copenhagen playing ornate pop combining violin, trumpet and flute with glitchy electronics. Closer “Cutting Ice to Snow” started slow, quiet and choral before building into a gorgeous cacophony of yearning gang vocals and frantic…
Act: Big BoiPlace: Austin Music HallWhat it was like: Awesome. The set of the night. And yet the most frustrating. Big Boi did a couple of solo jams from his upcoming Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty. Otherwise the set was nearly all Oukast gems going all…
We already mentioned that Dallas native and Secret Machine Brandon Curtis produced the new record from BLK JKS, an act that hopes to bring South African rock ‘n’ roll to the international forefront. (We’ll have a review of that band’s performance at Mohawk’s Patio last night up shortly…) But here’s…
Your daily dose of national music news for Friday, March 20, 2009… Lil Wayne and Scott Weiland are just two of the upcoming subjects on VH1’s relaunched Behind The Music. Looks like Courtney Love is the only one who made any money from a publishing deal to license Nirvana’s music. The company…
Spent the whole day camped out at the Radio Room for the great lineup booked to play the Brooklyn Vegan/Paste party there. Well worth it, too. Act: The Wheel, a bare-bones folk duo from Denver.Where: Radio RoomWhat It Was Like: Pretty interesting, actually. And relatively compelling, too. Just two guys…
I was delayed in getting my night started, thanks to some setbacks I’d rather not go into. Let me just recommend that if you’re at SXSW, don’t carry a pocketknife. But I still caught a few interesting acts. Hopefully today will go more smoothly. Act: School of Seven Bells (another…
This was the big, obvious event of the night — a packed yard at Stubb’s, plenty of production from the NPR-backed show, and no huge surprises. Just a few great live acts we all know, proving they deserve it.Band: The Decemberists, Wednesday night at Stubb’sWhere: Stubb’sWhat it was like: Someone…
