SXSW day 1 pics

 And we're off.  I drank too much today.  Free beer + hanging out with one of my oldest friends in the world generally gets us both in trouble.  We did manage to catch some great music though, courtesy of Consequence of Sound.  Check out the pics below.

Fort Lean

Wampire

White Lung

TEEN

St. Lucia

Ex-Cops

Jacco Gardner

Mac DeMarco

Chelsea Light Moving

 In the evening, we caught a little bit of a different show that was supposed to include a performance from Jandek, but he cancelled last minute, which made me a sad panda.  The synth-goth of Troller made up for it though.

Troller

Best Coast (and Snacks the Cat) cover Roy Orbison

Because i've been drinking beer most of this week so far, and because it's SXSW, and because the latest tunes i've heard from Best Coast seem to be going back to their fuzzy, lo-fi awesome roots, here's a cover of Roy Orbison's classic "Crying," featuring Snacks the Cat (you'll hear the meowing at the end).

SXSW pre-party pics

 The good folks at Panache Booking put together a lovely free party today to kick of this year's SXSW.  It was a great line up of some bands i know and lot that i do not (as SXSW is supposed to be).  Saw some great stuff, and i'll be linking some tracks from these bands in the near future and see if anyone has any releases on the horizon.

I would have loved to stay for the whole gig, but i've got other things to attend to (my dog and my pregnant wife to be exact).  Here's to tomorrow's parties.  Check out some pics below.

Hunters

Delicate Steve

Calvin Love

Fat Tony

Roomrunner

Outer Minds

Jacco Gardner

Jacco Gardner

We'll be back with more pics tomorrow...

St. Lucia & CHVRCHES

New York electro-kid St. Lucia's "Before the Dive" gets the remix treatment from Scotland's CHVRCHES to wonderful effect.  The perfect springtime jam to get your party started, whether that be SXSW (both artists will be there), drinking a beer in a lawn chair in the backyard (always a classic), or pretending you're not at work.  Listen below.

Feuerbahn

Feuerbahn hail from Italy, combining elements of black metal, industrial, and drone to create an ethereal, chant-like funeral dirge for giant, rusted Siberian robots.  Are giant Siberian robots a thing?  Because they totally should be.  "The Fire Dance" LP will soon be available from Aufnahme and Wiedergabe, but listen to "Triumphwagen" below and sample the rest of the album here.

Phantom Love

I don't know what it is about Italians and their pulsing synth soundscapes, but god bless them for it.  Phantom Love's "Lotus" from their upcoming self-titled EP is the perfect post-heist soundtrack for an anti-hero to make his escape through a neon countryside to.  Check the song out below (sorry, all i could find was a link) and look for the EP from Mannequin Records in April.

https://soundcloud.com/mannequin-label/phantom-love-lotus

The Knife - A Tooth for an Eye

Here's another track from the upcoming new album "Shaking The Habitual" from The Knife.  "A Tooth for an Eye" uses tribal percussion, lulling you into a trance-like state as Karin Dreijer's vocals carry you away as a new member of the cult.  Awesome stuff.  Listen below and look for the album in April from Mute.

New music from James Blake

I'm really digging new track "Digital Lion" from the moody, dubby James Blake.  Dark and sexy and featuring Brian Eno.  Listen below, and keep your eyeballs peeled for the upcoming "Overgrown" LP in the near future.

Beach House - Wishes video

This video has popped up on probably every conceivable music blog over the last 24 hours or so, as testament to its sheer awesomeness.  Eric Wareheim (of Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job fame) directs a surreal vision of fire and horses and Ray F-ing Wise (Twin Peaks) for the track "Wishes" from Beach House's 2012 album "Bloom."  It's really quite wonderful.  Watch below.

Sound City Players (Grohl, Homme, Reznor)

Dave Grohl's upcoming documentary, "Sound City: Real to Reel," about the now legendary studio where Nirvana's "Nevermind" was recorded (debuting at this year's SXSW!) features an all star cast on Grohl-curated soundtrack.  Listen to "Mantra" below, featuring Grohl, Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age), and Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails).  I don't think i need to go into it any further, except to say that it's pretty damn good, and somehow manages to capture the essence of all three artists without having that "supergroup" feel to it.