SXSW Day 1 (Wednesday): Return To The Center Of The Universe
All photos by Clint Miller
We left Savannah, Georgia a few hours after the St. Patrick’s Day parade and made the cross country trek to Austin, Texas. Upon arriving at SXSW around noon, everyone in our crew was already exhausted from traveling, but there is certain adrenaline that carries you through upon arriving to such a magical experience, and we were poised to tackle the day regardless of our condition.
We started things off at Paste magazine’s day show, and it was a fantastic way to kick this thing off. First up, I finally got to see Anathallo and they were everything I had hoped for. They churned out a set mostly made up of Canopy Glow tunes, and they sounded spectacular. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to start the day.
We hung out a little while and then checked out Port O’Brien. I had listened to their last album and enjoyed it, but it didn’t really blow me away. Live, the songs took on new life, and the dueling solo contest between the two guitarists was fun to watch. In typical SXSW fashion, the band had arrived in town about 10 minutes before their set and even said their manager was driving their van around in circles during their set because they didn’t have time to find a parking spot. It was apparent they were “winging” the set, but it sounded tight despite that.
Following that, we caught Loney Dear next. The things I love most about his newest album come on the production side, and I was very interested in how in the world he was going to be able to perform the songs in a live setting. For this, he opted to play most of the electronic effects through a ipod. While that is not exactly the most appealing instrument for a show, that was far from the biggest problem with the set. The three-piece incarnation of Loney Dear was marred with technical difficulties including not having an amp for the electric guitar parts. The first few songs were about the biggest trainwreck of a live performance i can remember seeing in a long time. He was basically singing out of tune by himself for half of it. While it started out wholly disappointing, he fought through the set and turned it around by the end. I was extremely impressed with his poise. A lesser musician would have bagged the set early and ran for the hills, but he pushed through and in the end it was an extremely unique experience. It was like watching a war movie or something.
After that we braved the long line to pickup our bracelet and got some food. We dropped by Maggie Mae’s to see Wavves, and it was yet another exercise in overcoming adversity. Nathan Williams had to perform the set by himself as he explained that his drummer had injured himself earlier in the day. Pretty much the only effects he used were some echo on his voice, so it was about as far from the over-saturated distortion found on his albums. He only played 4 songs in this manner, but I really enjoyed hearing them stripped down like this. It was like watching Wavves on MTV Unplugged or something. Also, he kept explaining that he was very drunk, and changed the words to “So Bored” to reflect his condition:
The big power show of the entire fest was probably the Wednesday concert at the Central Presbyterian Church, and we arrived almost two full hours early in anticipation of a huge crowd. Our diligence paid off for those of us with wristbands in the front of the line, but so many people showed up that noone planning to pay admission could get in. The wait in line was long, but it was entertaining between meeting some cool new peeps and listening to the quirky people from the church try to convert the crowd. The venue itself was the perfect setting for the lineup, and as my body was growing continually more tired, I really appreciated the fact that everyone was sitting down in the pews for this.
Anni Rossi was the first act to play, and i had made sure to listen to her album on the drive down. She does almost a more minimalistic St. Vincent/My Brightest Diamond sort of thing, but nowhere near as good as those gals. She played the songs faithfully live, and while it was nothing to get excited about, it was a nice opener.
Next up was M Ward, who now suddenly seems to be the biggest thing going around SXSWland. He played a great set, but I find myself a bit disinterested in him now. His style is just a little too conservative for my personal taste, but there is no denying that the man is a prodigy.
Between each set, people would come and go to the packed out church and everyone would shuffle around where they were sitting. Right before Department of Eagles‘ set, Grizzly Bear‘s Chris Taylor and musician Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson came and sat down next us. It is moments like this that make me love SXSW.
Department Of Eagles played a set that was almost too perfect to describe. I just absolutely love Daniel Rossen. Seeing DOE live is just as awe-inspiring as Grizzly Bear, but like a different delicious flavour. Rossen opened and closed the set with songs performed by himself, and the closer was mind blowing. It was a new song, and Rossen did a bunch of vocals loops live flawlessly. They played one other new song, and I got it on video:
While DOE is a hard act to follow, St. Vincent did the job as good as anyone. Her set was heavy in new songs from her upcoming album, and they were incredible. She is definitely taking the intensity level up a notch. Also, I was struck by how much shredding she was doing as she is quite a remarkable guitarist.
I was getting ridiculously sleepy by the end of the night, but I stuck it out to see Camera Obscura close things out, and I’m glad I did. I hadn’t really listened to them for a while, but I got a reminded of how beautiful this band sounds. They just have this visceral aesthetic that makes me want to be at a ’50s dance on a beach or something. They played a ton of new material and it sounded nice, but the “hits” from their last album that they closed with were probably my favourite parts.
The first day is in the books and it feels like I never left. It never ceases to amaze me how awesome this festival is. Every photographer, blogger, music personality, and other rando we’ve met along the way at other fests and such all converge at one place, at one time. Everyone here is on a mission: To find the best music in the universe. It is inspiring and it is just too much fun.
- Posted by Davy Minor on March 19, 2009 at 4:15 pm
