SXSW 2006- More fun that a barrel of monkeys
Badges? We don't need no stinking badges.
This year was my first year ever getting to experience SXSW. I had no idea what to expect. Somehow, as much as i love music, i had never been to one before. And up until last week it didn't look like i was doing this one either. Funds are tight, you know--since i don't exactly work much, so i decided i couldn't afford to buy a wristband. i think they were $180 or something. WAY out of my price range. So, naievely, i assumed that meant i had to miss out on all the SXSW activities. I even took a job working SXSW to make some $$. But then i found out that there's some free stuff that goes on during SXSW during the day. And then i decided i might not want to work. So i told the guy i didn't want to work. And boy am i glad i did. Several days before the SXSW mayhem was about to begin i found the motherload of information on the free shows taking place. I wrote down all kinds of things. I mapped it out. I was ready. I found people to go to the shows with me. I had a blast. In short, I had 3 of the best days of my life. Here's what I did:
The very first day of free shows was Wednesday night. I had planned to go see some folks (jon dee graham, james mcmurtry, the gourds, etc), but the day was too spread out, and it didn't look like there would be free drinks or anything, so i decided to just stay home that night and rest in preparation for the 3 days. That was perhaps the best decision i ever made. That helped me survive.
So, the first day for me was Thursday, and my friend Jess agreed to hit up SXSW with me. On the schedule was The Schuba party at Yard Dog. It was supposed to have free drinks and free music. I had no idea what to expect. I thought it might be super crowded, so we got there early. We easily found a parking spot, and got to the place 30 minutes early. No one was there. It was dead. So we walked around some and visited my soon to be home on wheels. We got back to Yard Dog 40 minutes later or so. Mercy. It wasn't dead anymore. We had a little difficulty finding a parking spot, and there were a lot of people in the Yard Dog parking lot. I didn't know how the beer tent worked. So i walked up and asked that specifically that: "how does this all work?". the nice lady said that they worked for tips and that the beer was free. They had High Life on tap. High Life. I was totally psyched. One of my favorite beers, and i don't think i've ever had it on tap. I went at it. It was so exciting to have free high life at noon. We drank our first three or four really quick. On my fourth trip back a lady asked if i'd tried their whiskey drinks. I said that no, i had not. "Would you like to"? she asked. Yes i would. So i did. It was pretty good. Some new cherry flavored whiskey. A little strange, but free, so I had a couple. Then we finally slowed down our drinking a little. We saw a couple bands and i honestly have no idea who they were. Then Nickel Creek played. They were fun, but the sound was messed up so we had some problems hearing the vocals. Scott Miller was scheduled to play right after Nickel Creek, and we were totally psyched about that. We made our way to the very front before he took the stage. As he was setting up I told him something about being from VA, and how i'd never gotten a chance to see him before, so was really looking forward to seeing him. He apologized that he was only going to be playing 3 songs in that set, but said he was playing the next day at Jovitas. I asked if that required a badge, and he said it did, so he hooked us up with 2 passes for the show! Rock! 2 passes to see Nickel Creek and Scott Miller and the Commonwealth. We were totally psyched. Scott played 3 songs. they were awesome. Then we saw some of Deadboy and the Elephant Men's set. Pretty good stuff. Some other friends of mine showed up. They had the scoop. They gave us the crucial info. They had found out that the Drive By Truckers were supposedly playing a free show at Mean Eyed Cat, so we made plans to head there as soon as we saw Scott play again. He played 4 songs this time, all great, and we quickly headed over to the Mean Eyed Cat in hopes of seeing the Truckers. It took us a while to find the Mean Eyed--i don't exactly know my way around Austin yet. Mean Eyed was great too. They had free beer as well--Lonestar and Shiner and something else. I had a Lonestar. The last one they had actually, so I had a couple of Shiners after that. We saw Danny Schmidt in the crowd just hanging out. As we were walking in, i saw the DBTs on stage, and was scared we had just missed them. Luckily we hadn't. They were just setting up. We had apparently just missed seeing Perry Farrell sing one song, but i didn't care. The DBTs sang 4 songs. It was awesome. Shiner was great. We were feeling good. Not sure what to do next. And then someone said that the Beastie Boys were going to play a free show that night at Stubbs. Hold Crap. We had no idea if we'd be able to get in, but we knew we had to try. We figured since it was still 3 or so hours away from when they were supposed to start, we might have a decent chance, so we headed straight there. We didn't necessarily have a plan. Just a desire. And we did it. We totally snuck in. Second Row. And we saw the Beasties. And they were most excellent. Seriously. They were so great. They played a lot of old stuff--- Brass Monkey, No Sleep til Brooklyn, Paul Revere, Sure Shot, and more. They probably played about 75 minutes. It was so freakin cool. Every minute of it. It was totally mind blowing to see the Beasties up there. It was bizarre to think about them singing those same songs, dancing around, way back in the 80s. And now they're old and still doing it. And they totally rocked. Mike D and Adrock looked about the same. Mike D's hair was darker, and you could see a little gray on Adrocks hair creeping out from under his baseball cap. MCA though? holy crap. his hair was almost all gray. and he had a full beard, and it was all gray too. but he rocked. it was so cool to see him up there having a blast. they were all having a blast. it was classic. they jumped around, and laughed, and put on a heck of a show. the best part was the encore. Mix Master Mike started up the notes to "Intergalactic", and the Beasties came out, and Mike D started rapping, and all of a sudden there was no background music. He kept rapping, and you could see Mike D looking back at Mix Master Mike, who just shrugged and mouthed something about the power being out. So Mike D rapped freestyle, acapella, while Mix Master desperately tried to get the power back on on his turntables. Some big guy came out and fooled with. And just as it got to the chorus, the music kicked in, and they didn't miss a beat. Bad Ass. "that's why you're a fuckin professional" said Adrock.
Indeed.
It was great. We almost died though. At some point in the day we realized that we had forgotten to eat, so we did manage to eat a quick BBQ sandwich before the show. But we almost waited too long. And we didn't drink enough water. I was totally dehydrated, and fell asleep soon after i got home. It was a totally super day.
I woke up the next morning not knowing at all what to expect. It didn't seem like there was anyway that Friday could live up at all to what Thursday had provided. But I was looking forward to it nonetheless. The highlight of Friday was going to be the Bloodshot Records Party at Yard Dog. I like almost everybody on the Bloodshot label. They are awesome. And though i was disappointed that Bare Jr was not on the bill, i still knew it could be fun. Jess was my partner in crime again, and we arrived to Yard Dog right on time on Friday. I was pleased to see that Fridays party was sponsored by Pabst. In 2 days they provide me with my 2 favorite beers. That suits me just fine. It was a little cold and rainy though, and the PBR cans were a little cold in my hand. I fought through and managed to drink a couple. First thing we did when we arrived was check out the lineup that was posted on the tent. I can't tell you just how excited i was when i saw that Bare Jr AND Bobby Bare Sr were going to be playing together. I was elated. I was beyond elated. That was the ONE thing i had wanted to see that day. And it came true. I couldn't believe it. I had just said that in the car. And it happened. I should have wished for boobies or something else. I was pretty dang psyched for Bare and Bare though. Then i was nervous that they, or the Bottle Rockets--the other band i really wanted to see that day--would be playing the same time as Scott Miller and i would have to make a hard decision. No worries at all. Bare Jr and Sr played right before the Bottle Rockets, and they got done in time for us to get to Jovitas, snag the only parking space left, and see most of Nickel Creek's set and all of Scott and the Commonwealths set. 4 great back to back performances. Bare Jr was awesome as always. He played a song or 2, and then invited his dad up on stage. He said that now we would see what a slacker he was, and how he wasted his genetic talents. Bobby Bare played one of his classics--Detroit City maybe--and then, much to everyone's surprise, played 2 or 3 dirty, raunchy songs. Bare Jr was a bit perplexed. "He really does do some straight country songs sometimes" he told the audience before he played a couple more songs. I requested "Naked Albino", and just like every time before, he refused to play it. It was still awesome. Totally awesome. The Bottle Rockets were great too. I'd never seen them before. They rocked. They played a couple covers--some Neil Young--and some classics. Great stuff. Nickel Creek sounded really good over at Jovitas, and Scott Miller and the Commonwealth played a bunch off of the new album, and put on a really good show. We saw Steve Earle and Allison Moorer hangin out at the show. Fun times. AND, since the Jovitas show was sort of an industry showcase they had free food, so we actually got to eat that day. Chicken fried steak fingers and poppers and chips and queso and cheese. yum. After that, it was back to Yard Dog for some more Pabst and Bloodshot Rock. We saw a lady named Carolyn Mark, and i think Devil in a Woodpile, and a bit of the Meat Purveyors, and Matt May and El Torpedo. Matt May and El Torpedo were my favorite of the lot. Canadians who rock. They were good. The Waco Brothers closed out the Yard Dog party. I'd never seen them before. Holy Crap. They are drunken, raucous, and rockin and loud. And i loved it. All my other friends there left b/c it was too loud. I agreed to leave a bit early too as Jess was a little bored with their music too. From there, we met up with the group of folks that had left early. They were eating some Mexican food down the street. We joined them but just drank water. We had learned our lesson the day before. This day we drank water and ate food. Sometimes that's smart when you drink beer all day long. The night ended with a free Billy Joe Shaver concert at Jo's Coffeehouse. I was hoping Kris Kristofferson would show up there, but he didn't, but it was alright. The sound was pretty muddled for the BJS show unfortunately, but by the end, it was sounding pretty good. Billy pulled out a couple classics i don't here too often-- "I couldn't be me without you" and "ride me down easy", so that was pretty cool.
And then Friday was done too.
Another fun part of Friday is that i stayed at the RV that night.
And the RV is only 1.5 miles away from where we spent the entire day.
It's a cool part of town. I'll never have to leave my neighborhood. And that suits me fine.
There was one concert that day that was not in the neighborhood, and unfortunately we missed it. If we were serious troopers we would have tried it. Kinky Friedman and Roky Erickson were playing and i sort of wish we had tried to get to it, but we were exhausted, and it would have been nearly impossible to find parking, and it just seemed smarter to stay where we were and rest.
And if we had done that, we would have missed the Waco Brothers. Decisions are hard sometimes. We probably made the right decision.
Friday night i slept soundly in the RV. it'll be fun to live there. An adjustment, but fun.
Jess couldn't attend Saturday's festivities, so fortunately Brad and Gwen were up for hanging all day. They spent most of the day with us on Friday too. I knew without a doubt that there was no way that Saturday could live up to the previous 2 days. It would be impossible, but there was still a lot of fun to be had. The main thing i wanted to see that day was Two Cow Garage and The Drams (formerly Slobberbone) back to back at Jovitas. It was pouring down rain all morning, so i was glad they were playing inside. Both of them were great. And loud. I'd never seen Slobberbone before, so was glad i finally got the chance--even if they're a little different now. They were still great. Both were awesome. My ears hurt. Poor Brad. Once, many many years ago, I convinced a group of my friends to go see Bare Jr w/ me, and it was so loud that Brad actually folded up cigarettes and put them in his ears. He hated it. It was about as loud on saturday. Brad and Gwen spent most of the performance over in the corner where it wasn't as loud. But it was fun. Fortunately the rain started to let up right about the time Brent Best and crew finished up, so we decided to head back to Yard Dog for the Yep Roc party, and hope for some more free beers and good music. We hit the major jackpot at Yard Dog that day--drinking wise i mean. The had free Shiner Bock on tap, AND Southern Comfort drinks AND free tacos. I had 2 tacos and 2 Soco drinks and several Shiners. I was very very happy. The tacos were great. And then this crzy bus pulled up that said "I love Wine" on the side, and some lady on the bus started yelling from a bullhorn. I couldn't hear what she was saying, but i was intrigued. So Gwen and i went to check it out. That was a good decision. There was a guy playing guitar in the back, but i didn't really care about that. They had 3 different kinds of wine they were giving out. I drank all 3. We had crzy conversations with the ladies. The wine was good. They gave us a gift bag. It had a little bottle of Shiraz in it, and a couple cds. I love the I love Wine bus.
then we drank some more Shiner and tried to see Billy Bragg. The crowd had gotten too big though, so we only listened to a couple songs. I then remembered that Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs were rumored to be playing at the Dog and Duck so we decided to try to see them there. At the Dog and Duck I bought my only beer of the entire weekend. And we saw Susanna and Matthew Sweet. And they were great. Susanna was super hot. I love her. I loved her way back when. And i still love her. Hot hot hot, and she can sing with the best of them, and she plays guitar? yeah... i love her. I wasn't the only one though. Lots of other guys who apparently grew up in the 80s were there too snapping pics and yelling their love towards her. They played all covers. And for some reason I thought they were going to play cheesy 60s songs. Nope. Rockin songs. Cinnamon girl and Everybody Knows this is Nowhere, and It's all over now Baby Blue, and Different Drum, and something else. They were awesome. And it was cool to see Rick Menck on drums, who I last saw drumming it up for one of my favorite bands, The Pernice Brothers, back in Charlottesville. Have i said how much i love Susanna Hoffs? Mercy. She looked and sounded great. Matthew was looking a little rough, but sounded great.
And that ended the official SXSW mayhem.
We had one more show to see before we went home, so we caught the Sidehill Gougers over at Waterloo Icehouse. They played 30 or so minutes of great original music, and we drank a couple more beers, and then went to try to find my car. Fortunately we found it.
And then, it was over.
And I was sad, and exhausted.
But it was insane and fun. Every minute of it. Best time ever. 3 days of pure mayhem and goodness and music. I saw several bands that i'd always wanted to see and never had the chance to (Bottle Rockets, Scott Miller, Slobberbone/Drams, Waco Brothers), and none of them let me down. All the music was pretty great. I saw just a ton of great great music. And all of it was free. The entire weekend I purchased exactly 1 BBQ sandwich, and 1 beer, (and then two 99 cent burgers at Wendys on the way home the final day). I tipped pretty frequently for the free beers, but that doesn't count. I did all that stuff for basically free. And it blew my mind. Between you and me, wristbands are for suckers. Don't let anyone tell you different. Sure, I would have liked to have seen Kris and Lyle and a couple other things. But i had as much fun as i could have possibly squeezed into those 3 days. There was no time for anything else.
I gotta say thanks to Jess for totally being a trooper on thursday and friday. She hit up every single show w/ me, and was totally up for it. And thanks to Brad and Gwen for partying some on friday, but for partying with me and escorting me around all day on Saturday. They were troopers too. And thanks to John for the killer concert tips. It was all tremendous, and they all helped make it so.
All my years comin down to Austin, I can't believe I'd never done SXSW before.
I guess they don't really advertise all the cool free stuff. But i found it. I found more than i could handle actually.
Man, it was great. Perhaps even better than the ACL festival--ACL doesn't have free beer and food. ACL has longer setlists, and a wider variety of bands. But most bands that i like, and music that i like shows up for SXSW. And i saw it. And it was awesome.
Dang i love this town.
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