SXSW 2006 | Candid Cracker Shots

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SXSW Recap | Day 2 – Magneta Lane, Serena Maneesh, The Organ + more

Just back in from an amazing time in Austin and was greeted at the airport by freezing temperatures on the first day of spring…ugh. Either myself or one of the other guys will be posting the rest of the SXSW recaps this week after catching up on much needed sleep. Here’s what happened on Day 2:

Some of the crew started off the second day by seeing The Cribs at Filter Magazine’s Revenge of Cedar Street stage, while I headed over to Emo’s to catch Magneta Lane. After checking them out, I trekked back to Cedar Street to see Metric. As always, they put on a great show, with most of their set including songs from Live It Out. We all headed back to Emo’s after Metric’s set where I caught Serena Maneesh and the others checked out Of Montreal. Serena Maneesh more than made up for their performance at Bowery Ballroom earlier this month.

After filling our stomach’s at Ruby’s and “resting” a bit at our hotel we headed out for the second leg of the day. We missed Boy Kill Boy due to a surprise Flaming Lips performance that had us lined-up down 6th Street. Not to be discouraged we finally caught The Organ, Pony Up and Islands. I’ve been wanting to see The Organ for a very long time and was really impressed with their live show. Unable to find a cab and after failed attempts at hitchhiking, we were able to convince the drivers of an airport shuttle van to take us across Town Lake to Factory People where we saw Shiny Toy Guns, The Gossip, and The Presets. Another plus of the party was complimentary Red Bull & vodka and Sapporo, which made for a very rough Friday morning. Out of the three bands, my personal favorite was The Presets. We also ran into Amrit (Village Indian) while we were at Factory People, check out his site for more SXSW coverage.

Follow the “more” link below for more photos from Day 2. We are also currently in the process of uploading photos to our Flickr page, be sure to check back to see more pics.

Other SXSW Recaps
Day 1

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SXSW Recap | Day 1 – Echo and the Bunnymen + more

Yes, that top picture is Ian McCulloch of the legendary Echo and the Bunnymen, more on that later in this post. We started SXSW 2006 off with a bang. Soon after arriving, myself and the rest of the Crackers United crew headed down to Emo’s to catch I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness. I haven’t been a very big fan of their live show in the past, but I was willing to give it another shot and hear some of the new songs off of their upcoming album. Their set was solid but didn’t really grab me the way some bands do, however, the other guys seemed to be into it. After their set we headed over to The Parish to check out Yorkshire UK’s Envelopes and also caught Darlington UK’s We Start Fires. We Start Fires was the surprise act of the day, and wow’d me with their urgent and chaotic punk, reminding me of the Breeders at times, while frontwoman Becky Stefani channeled Elastica’s Justine Frischmann. Definitely keep an ear out for We Start Fires.

Happy with our new find, we trekked away from all the action of 6th Street and made our way out to Guerrero’s Produce Warehouse for the Blender/VH1 party. Free beer and tequila kept us going while we caught performances by Tapes ‘N Tapes and Spoon. I can’t really comment on either set because I could barely hold back my excitement for Echo and the Bunnymen. I couldn’t have asked for a better setting to see one of my favorite bands of all time (for the first time). The venue itself was pretty large, but the way the stage was set up made for a very intimate setting. They opened up with ‘Lips Like Sugar’ and after the song I remember being awestruck and said to the person next to me, “that’s Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant”, she kind of laughed and nodded. After 26 years of making music, the band sounded as good as ever. They mixed in some of their new songs like ‘Stormy Weather’ with Echo and the Bunnymen staples like ‘The Killing Moon’. The show made my trip to SXSW and I could have left Austin without seeing any other bands…completely satisfied.

Check out more photos from Day 1 by clicking the “more” link below.

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First Listen for SXSW 2006 | Part 5

SXSW is a little over two weeks away and I’ve been looking for some new artists to check out while I’m out there. I was browsing around Gorilla vs. Bear the other day and came across this post about the band Beirut. With a little research I found out that Beirut is actually the moniker for 19 year old Zach Condon from New York via Albuquerque. I downloaded the available songs and gave them a listen over the weekend. I immediately liked what I heard, reminding me a bit of Neutral Milk Hotel. Condon’s music has been described as “a Balkan orchestra of thirty musicians playing beautifully melodic pop songs, and Zach sings with a low crooning voice that Scott Walker wouldn’t sneeze at, even with all his allergy problems. ” Condon has been recording music since the age of 15 and his debut album, Gulag Orkestar, will be released via Ba Da Bing! in April.

Listen
Beirut – Postcards from Italy
Beirut – The White Whale
Beirut on MySpace

Beirut @ SXSW 2006
March 17th – Blender Balcony at The Ritz   8:30pm (Ba Da Bing!/Leaf Showcase)

Previously on First Listen…
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

First Listen for SXSW 2006 | Part 4

I was browsing around the internet today and listening to this band Scarling on MySpace, when Ray told me that The Duke Spirit was on KEXP. We both agreed that we never heard The Duke Spirit on John in the Morning’s set before. I then remembered that U.S. release of Cuts Across the Land is coming out soon, March 7th to be exact, on the excellent StarTime International label. The U.S. release has a few extra bonus tracks that aren’t on last year’s UK release (Loog).

This is a band that I’ve really wanted to see live since getting their album early last year, but have not yet had the chance. Their tour supporting Ted Leo kicks off on March 2nd at The Hook here in New York and continues through the month of March (including dates at SXSW). I think I’m going to hold off until SXSW to see them, but if I miss their show, I have another chance when they play the Knitting Factory on March 26th.

Listen
The Duke Spirit – Cuts Across the Land
The Duke Spirit – Dark Is Light Enough

The Duke Spirit @ SXSW 2006
March 17th – TBA
March 18th – Red Eyed Fly – 11:00pm

Previously on First Listen…
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

First Listen for SXSW 2006 | Part 3

The SXSW schedule was posted the other day and just glancing at it made me feel overwhelmed. However, I did find a show at Spiro’s that I definitely want to check out along with the band What Made Milwaukee Famous. The show at Spiro’s is on Friday, March 17th with New York’s Dirty on Purpose; Los Angeles’ Silversun Pickups and Gliss (pictured above); Toronto’s Most Serene Republic; and to top it off Liverpool UK’s The Aeroplanes. Definitely not one to miss. Check out what I previously had to say about Silversun Pickups and Gliss here and here.

What Made Milwaukee Famous (WMMF) is comprised of vocalist/guitarist Michael Kingcaid, keyboardist Drew Patrizi, bassist John Farmer, and drummer Jeremy Bruch. The Austin, TX based band named after a Jerry Lee Lewis song, creates elegant pop songs influenced by Radiohead, The Shins, and The Wrens. The band has some steam coming into SXSW after a big year in 2005 appearing on the nationally televised PBS show Austin City Limits and sharing bills with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and The Arcade Fire. Check out WMMF during SXSW at one of the shows listed below. Fellow New Yorkers not making the trek out to Austin this year can catch them at Pianos on March 28th and The Mercury Lounge on March 29th.

Listen
What Made Milwaukee Famous –Mercy Me
Myspace Page

What Made Milwaukee Famous @ SXSW 2006
March 16th – The Parish – 1:00pm
March 17th – The Beauty Bar – 12:00pm
March 18th – Stubb’s – 8:00pm

Previously on First Listen…
Part 1
Part 2

First Listen for SXSW 2006 | Part 2

Due to last week’s overwhelming response to my weekly list of interesting bands playing SXSW this year, I’m continuing the post as planned. Actually, there were no recommendations, not a single one, but that’s ok, I’m continuing this week with Band of Horses (formerly Horses when they toured with Iron & Wine and Okkervil River). Again, feel free to leave your favorites in the comments.

Band of Horses formed in 2004 from the ashes of Seattle’s Carissa’s Weird by vocalist/gutarist Ben Bridwell and bassist Mat Brooke. The first thing that I thought when listening to their songs was My Morning Jacket. The vocals are strikingly similar to those of Jim James (this is a good thing), but their sound is a beautiful blend of dream pop with tinges of southern rock. If this band isn’t heavily buzzed about by the time SXSW rolls around, they sure will be afterward when their debut album Everything All the Time hits the streets on March 21st via SubPop.

Band of Horses play the SubPop showcase on Friday March 17th at Red Eye Fly (which I hear is tiny) with Rogue Wave and The Elected. Listen below to ‘The Funeral’ and ‘Bass Song’.

Band of Horses – Bass Song
Band of Horses – The Funeral

Previously on First Listen for SXSW
Part 1