Day two begins with a visit from our awesome landlord and SXSW afficionado John, who keeps a stock of beer in his garden – John’s top tip: Pour your beer into a covered metal coffee cup so you can slyly drink in the street.
Half the band head out into town to print off a 1000 flyers for our gigs while me (Bob) and Martin stay back in the house to practice singing, mindful that in the absence of our gear we may be doing an acoustic set, which is fine but really we want to turn up the volume to 11 at our showcase and rip out some face melting guitar solos… or something.
After long delays doing some “band admin” we head out to watch some music, our first shows really to support our friends The Invisible and Vado in Messico, who both demonstrate that the words “pure passion for music” don’t have to mean cheesy and naff. Two incredible sets show the guys are really psyched to be here, and it’s visible on stage. It’s the Transgressive Rock Feedback stage, and Jonny Flynn also pulls out a highly entertaining set of rhythmic, endearing folk pop.
The whole of Austin seems to be totally buzzing, almost a carnival atmosphere. Here I was, expecting some alternative fringe event where locals get on with their daily lives, when in fact the whole town seems to be on fire with passion for music and partying. The sheer scope of this festival is incredible, it’s like the Camden Crawl times 500. Throw in St. Patricks day and Spring Break, and it’s a heady mix of mayhem. As we watch The Invisible, Martin returns from watching storming sets from Nas and Damien Marley, and tells us of harassing Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey for a photo, like some teenage groupie, which at heart I’m sure that’s what he really is…
We leave the gig and head home a bit early for a morning phone interview with Tom Robinson at BBC 6, but not before witnessing a bad ass MC battle in the street, accompanied by bongos, a cheering crowd and lots of “your mum” insults. Finally, a slice of the real America. Now it’s time to find some fresh American talent, as opposed to British “hype bands” that we could see in east London any day. As soon as we find something fresh, we’ll let you know.
Photo by Scott Chasserot
