The evening showcases kicked off with Austin’s own Strange Boys, who hit the stage at Emo’s Jr., inside, at 8:00 pm. These guys (and one gal) have a very retro, ’60s garage rock sound. They’ve been generating some local buzz and the room was full of onlookers. Singer/guitarist Ryan Sambol has a gritty rasp that fits the R&B-flavored tunes well, but this sound is going to be an acquired taste for some. I don’t think it was quite my thing. I suspected this might be the case, so I had lined up a backup plan.
Category: Rock (Page 54 of 241)
Exiting the Levis/Fader Fort, I heard a bluesy sound coming out of the Independent across the street. The Maldives out of Seattle were rocking the stage with a honky-tonk, roots rock sound that recalled Neil Young and maybe Ryan Adams & the Cardinals. There were three guitars, pedal steel, banjo and fiddle along with the rhythm section and free Pyramid Hefeweizen on tap, which really hit the spot since it was rather steamy inside.
(Editor’s note: we went to add a picture from the band’s MySpace page to this entry, but received one of those fake anti-malware messages, so no picture. Sorry, Maldives.)
Over to the Levis/Fader Fort, which I’d seen described on Twitter the night before as a “funhouse for hipsters.” I wanted to check out Philadelphia buzz band Free Energy, and therefore braved a ridiculous 45-minute line to get in. I was rewarded with free drinks, which are often served at the sponsored day parties, but the power-pop rock quartet turned out to be a bit of a disappointment. They have catchy tunes, vintage gear, a great name and cool looks, but something seemed to be missing. The band members seemed like they were into it, but the tunes kept falling a little flat, like the musicians lacked the chops to propel the songs higher in a live setting. I wanted to love this band, but I just wasn’t feeling it and the crowd seemed to feel the same way. I wanted to catch one of their other showcases to give them a second chance, but was unable to do so. The Fort was definitely a great venue though, with lots of spots to chill, beer pong, a blogger’s lounge with laptops, a Korg soundlab with musical toys and more.
AUSTIN – I sacrificed an extra hour of sleep to make it out for what was scheduled as an 11:35 am day party set from Sass Jordan, the sensational Canadian blues rock goddess that seems like she’d be more from a place like Austin. But the stage at the club had collapsed and they had to move to another venue, pushing their set back to 12:20 pm. I told Sass I’d catch one of her other two shows, because I had a moral imperative to catch the 12:30 pm panel on “Music and The Revolution,” featuring ex-Weather Underground leader Bill Ayers, Country Joe McDonald, the MC5’s Wayne Kramer and Kent State 1970 massacre survivor Alan Canfora. This was an amazing panel that I will report on in-depth in my SXSW wrap-up next week (along with more on all the following bands.)
Then there was a great panel on the 40th anniversary of Miles Davis’ seminal jazz-rock masterpiece, Bitches Brew. More on that next week as well. The 1969-70 revolutionary rock magic was clearly in the air…
After a quick lunch it was over to the Jambase Treehouse Party at Cheers Shot Bar on 6th Street, up on the roof deck. Very nice setting for Red Cortez, a band out of Los Angeles that are pals and tourmates with the Airborne Toxic Event. They have an edgier sound, but clearly some of that same soulful, tuneful indie-rock thing that has long been brewing in LA’s Silverlake district.
The Mother Hips from San Francisco rocked it next, throwing down a hot set of their rich, melodic and bluesy sound. Paul Hoagland even brought his 12-string custom Hamer bass, and did it ever sound great out in the sun in the 5 o’clock hour. I was originally planning to stick around to see a couple more bands, but some gear issues had pushed it all back a half hour. I rode my trusty Trek 800 over to Threadgills to meet a friend, where we also heard a bit of Austin legend Roky Erickson, from the 13th Floor Elevators. Classic sounds…
Then it was over to Auditorium Shores, where LA’s Ozomatli was headlining the free outdoor fest by Town Lake. The band entertained a huge audience, driving the crowd into a frenzy with a “Masters of Puppets” tease during one funky bluesy jam (recalling Metallica’s electrifying semi-secret performance at Stubbs during SXSW 2009.)
From there it was over to the Austin Music Hall for Stone Temple Pilots, who threw down a true headlining set of 90 minutes that featured some strong new material and just kept getting better. The peak was during the encore when Robbie Krieger of the Doors joined the band for “Roadhouse Blues”! Absolutely epic SXSW moment that seriously raised the bar for the rest of the weekend. Krieger tore it up.
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals were up to the task afterward at Antone’s, throwing down a captivating 75-minute set that went right up til 2 am, also featuring very strong material from their impending new album. At least three tunes went into sick jams catalyzed by the fantastic bass skills of new Nocturnal (and former Cardinal of Ryan Adams), Catherine Popper. The two of these gals were just dynamite and a hoped-for cover of “White Rabbit” did indeed materialize (they play it on the soundtrack for the new “Alice in Wonderland” flick), a great match on the evening with “Roadhouse Blues.”
Now I have to go find out when Potter & Co are playing tomorrow and try to get some sleep!
RIYL: The Cribs, Bromheads Jacket, Air Traffic
When read together that combination of album title and artist (No Hope, No Future, Good Shoes) sounds like a daily proclamation of despair by a depressed fashionista. Strangely enough, that combination of depressing and oddly upbeat fits as a descriptor for Good Shoes’ sophomore release, as it mixes dance-friendly Gang of Four-style post-punk dance with some woefully depressing lyrics. Does something suck? Odds are Good Shoes touch on it whether it be the evils of organized religion on “I Know,” the cruelty of growing old on “Times Change” or the overall crappy nature of interpersonal relationships on just about every other track. It doesn’t reach the level of Morrissey-level misery, but it’s omnipresent and depressing nonetheless. About the only stand-out in all the self-pity is “Our Loving Mother in a Pink Diamond,” which features slightly more abstract lyrics and an creeping bass line that complements the dark lyrics better than any other track on the album.
Saying that No Hope, No Future is an accurate prediction of how Good Shoes should view their career is a little harsh (although if they’re lyrics are any judge of their attitude, Good Shoes might disagree), but unless they step it up soon they will really have something to be down about. Fans of British post-punk might enjoy this, but event hat’s a stretch since it’s just so derivative. (Brille 2010)
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