SXSW 2017 Music Preview

For those of you who actually follow this blog, you know that I typically start posting previews for SXSW at least one month in advance; and that’s typically because there are so many bands that I’m excited about that there is no way I could possibly preview them all in one article. Well let’s just say that I’m happy I didn’t go into debt this year by purchasing a badge as I had to dig super deep just to find some quality acts that were coming to town this March. Now don’t get me wrong, I did eventually find some artists I’m excited about but for the most part this year’s fest feels like it’s a redemption tour for quite a few scrubs out there. I see so many bands like Sleigh Bells and Electric Guest who initially started their careers off on fire but one day went to Marfa, did way too many drugs, and decided to make a Yaz record for their follow up album (and yes I realize how esoteric of a joke that was but I really don’t give a damn). And in making that terrible follow up, they fell off the map a bit and are now trying to recreate some buzz around their name.

So needless to say, I will be splitting my time between seeing the new up and coming acts that are out there and checking out the "veterans" that are still in the game. And of the latter group, I’m most excited to see the former Walkmen crooner Hamilton Leithauser, Sohn, Denzel Curry, Broncho, Temples, and of course Le Butcherettes. The last of which, I’m hoping throws yet another shoe at my head.

But that’s not why you’re here, you’re here to see what’s the new hotness in rock n roll these days and it took me some time but I now realize that those words are now a relative term for today’s youth. I view rock n roll very much the way Sam’s grandparents did in Sixteen Candles. After hearing her scream when she was exposed to Long Duc Dong for the first time, they rolled their eyes and said to each other "Those damn kids and their rock n roll music! Well I’m afraid it’s here to stay!" And you know what? You’re damn right! Rock n Roll should be loud with high pitched screaming attached to it but Sleigh Bells misinterpreted that and just started screaming; they forgot about the music piece of it. But having said that, here’s the best of what’s to come.


HIP HOP
LIZZO – she’s the next coming of Missy Elliott as she’s big boned and proud of it. She sings about feeling herself (not literally) as she looks in the mirror and slaps her own ass for being thick (okay so maybe literally) and she drops rhymes about wearing so much Prada that she’s a Prada G, get it? Her beats are dope and so is her wacky style as she drops a Missy Elliott "Oooh" every now and then just to keep it fresh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjILCNcHevY

THEY. – I know that They. have been around for a while but they have yet to reach their full potential to this point of their careers. This duo from L.A. was originally put on the map with the song they did with Skrillex called Working On It and they eventually followed that up with a hot EP got Nu Religion. Well now it seems as though they are finally ready to bring off-kilter style to the world with the full length version of Nu Religion. I suggest that you get in on these guys before they turn into R, Kelly and start peeing on people.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiKqvfT3i68

HONORABLE MENTION – PORTER RAY – he’s been described as the "Prince of Seattle hip hop" but since Macklemore is considered to be the king, that’s not saying much. I do like his song Wet Dreams though as he definitely has potential to get better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUgzjV55MI0

RnB

　
BIBI BOURELLY – I know that every girl out there is going to lose their collective minds over this next statement but Bibi has the feel of becoming the next Queen Bey or Rihanna (hopefully without the herpes and the penchant for cheating). Now clearly she doesn’t have the vocal range of the two mentioned but she certainly has the attitude, the presence, and the street wise lyrics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnugCpTmJE8

KHALID – I don’t quite understand the buzz around this kid but you can just chalk that up to me being old. He sounds like the black Bruce Springsteen on his signature hit American Teen; and trust me when I say that’s not a good thing. Thankfully his other songs aren’t nearly cheesy and they definitely show his potential; it’s just that he’s missing the "soul" piece that you normally get in RnB.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by3yRdlQvzs

BILAL – he’s an uglier version of D’Angelo with his dreads or as Eddie Murphy called them in The Nutty Professor "Damn Reggie (Dave Chappelle) I’ve heard of dreadlocks but shit locks?!?!" He’s the return of Neo Soul with smooth beats; you know, that "there’s no way I’m pulling out tonight" music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zgp6-DzZgK0

JAIN – calling her music RnB is kind of a stretch as it’s really more Pop than anything else but anyone who reads this blog knows that I don’t have a Pop section in any of my reviews. Plus her dance hit Mekeba sounds like a collabo between Gwen Stefani and Tracy Chapman, and the last time I checked, Stefani actually did a collabo with Eve, so that’s enough street cred to count as RnB. Her unique voice and style definitely makes her worth checking out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59Q_lhgGANc

HONORABLE MENTION – BANKS – she apparently wants to follow you around like a dog that needs water. Or at least that’s what she says in her thumping electronic hit Gemini. At times her voice is aided by technology but when she does break away from the pseudo auto tune, she puts her range on full display. She’s this year’s AlunaGeorge but thankfully she’s a better dresser.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7z-tA9oLPw

ROCK
WARBLY JETS – They may be from L.A. but they clearly want to be British. Their music is a high energy whirlwind that reminds you of the revival of rock days that took place in the early 2000’s. Think Strokes meets Blur.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDVHvirhpKk

LO MOON – I love bands whose music is hard to find but when you finally do unearth it, it totally captures everything you love about SXSW; hearing something that you immediately connect with. This indie prog rock trio reminds you of Grizzly Bear with their slow building beats and melodies and I would certainly expect them to be featured on an ACL stage sometime in the near future.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhZdG3R77G0

CHAIN OF FLOWERS – these boys from Wales listened to A LOT of The Cure and Joy Division when they were growing up as they are desperately trying their best to keep the post punk scene alive; and for the most part, I have to say that they are doing a good job of it. If you still have some teenage angst in you, definitely give these blokes a shot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vacg-GoNkqA

LAURA CARBONE – she sounds like she’s the offspring of David Lynch; and with the recent revival of the Twin Peaks franchise, this should provide plenty of fodder for all of you conspiracy theorists out there. Her music sounds like the dark alternative soundtrack to the 80’s rebellion movie The Legend of Billie Jean; a time where getting your first period was some serious business!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07kYylbtHRk

HONORABLE MENTION – FRANKIE ROSE – this is for all of you hipsters out there who loved the Vivian Girls
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VE56wTNj7J0

SNAIL MAIL – cool, lazy surfer rock. I have a soft spot in my heart for this kind of music
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HS7xudghUsM

PUNK
IDLES- They are a Scottish punk band that reminds me Black Flag with their odd videos and their aversion to normal life. They hate anyone who has a jobs in particular.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuQG6_evFc8

HIGH WAISTED – they are surf rockers from Brooklyn whose music starts off simple enough but turns into a frenzy by song’s end.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xykiiaV1oZY

HICCUP – not much to say here except that it’s traditional fun punk music. No frills, no thrills but I like it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlhnCHalg28

 

Leon Bridges and Shopping

I didn’t quite know what to expect when I went to go see the legendary garage rock band The Sonics a few days ago. I mean this is Austin, so naturally you’d expect a ton of young rich white kids who try their absolute hardest to look poor to gobble up all of the tickets but The Sonics are old, so there was also the chance that I’d see my uncle there rocking his best James Brown outfit while sitting creepily in the corner and sipping on Crown Royal.

I’m just glad that there weren’t a ton of young frat boys there in togas chanting loudly for Louie Louie and attempting to play beer pong on the speakers. What I did see was a nice mixture of hipsters and old white dudes who had their Hawaiian shirts tucked in way too tightly in their super starched Dockers. I thought the point of buying Dockers was that you never had to iron them? Oh well, I can’t give them too hard of a time as I totally see myself wearing the same outfit 30 years from now when Muse comes to play a reunion show at Emo’s during SXSW.

The point of all of this is, reacquainting myself with The Sonics has made me a little bit nostalgic for an era that even my mom was a little kid in. The music and the times were simpler then but that’s not always a good thing; see rising star Leon Bridges. First off let me say that I dig his style, as far as clothing and his hair goes, but musically he adds absolutely nothing to the 50’s and 60’s Rnb genre that he is clearly um…borrowing from. He has a great voice and the music is flawless in its imitation of that era, which is great if all you want is to be reminded of that time and actually have new songs to sing along to. But this is 2015, we want to hear songs that are relevant today. I need to hear songs about getting your girl on the side pregnant and having to tell your main girlfriend about it (Usher) or hear songs about how you beat the rap for peeing on a girl in a video (R. Kelly). I don’t ever see there being a public movement to make Coming Home the next National Anthem. Don’t get me wrong, I like Bridges but I’d never pay money to see him live; at best he’d get some play during a dinner party where I was trying to get some hipster girl to sleep with me afterwards but that’s about it. Actually, no I’d still throw on some 2 Live Crew for that, gotta keep it 100. I rate Leon Bridges as kind of WEAK!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTrKkqE9p1o

Next up is Shopping, a fun British post punk band who has simple chords and melodies. They won’t take the world by storm but if you want to hang out with cute girls who wear sleeveless jean jackets and drink PBR because they actually think it tastes good then you should check these guys out. Their best songs are You’re a Sort and In Other Words. As of right now I’d rate them as kind of FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAwUnniv7eI&list=PLMiySkMov7nh0K5aIv1Zfh3EBx3YRSsx9&index=3

New Artists: Sluteverbff and Hurray for the Riff Raff

People in Austin are seemingly having a hard time letting go of SXSW; I saw a homeless guy wearing old wristbands to the Spotify House and to Hype Hotel the other day. Maybe he was hoping someone would throw him an old Taco Bell taco? Or maybe he was hoping some drunk college girl would mistake his stench and his old ratty clothes for a hipster and take him home so he could experience air conditioning for the first time in a year. Either way, I was riding my bike around town on Sunday and every drinking hole was packed to the gills. I can’t really blame them though, this is an awesome town year round and it just so happens that great artists come here all of the time. Now with that said, here’s a look at two new groups you should check out.

First up is Sluteverbff, two West Coast girls who make frenetic punk music. Their name alone makes you want to slam an 18 pack of Beast Lite and motorboat them until the cows come home; and oddly enough that also works as a good description of their music. I like their sound a thousand times more than that of a similar band who’s getting a lot of love right now, Girlpool. Their song I Miss America is a nice ode to the grunge era and two other highlights you should check out are Smother and Teen Mom. I rate them as kind of FRESH!

https://soundcloud.com/search?q=sluteverbff%2C%20Smother

Next up is Hurray for the Riff Raff; their sound is similar to something you would hear at a dance in Nixon, Texas. I would normally run away from this kind of music but there’s something about her yodeling on Look Out Mama that draws me in; maybe I have a secret desire to hook up in a barn or something. That I’m not sure of but what I do know is that this 17 year old runaway from the Bronx seems like she was born with a banjo in her hand. Solely based off the fact that I hate this style of music, they get a rating of kind of WEAK but you should definitely give it a listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0g9nDsFHERM

The Best of SXSW 2015

After the week and a half long marathon that is SXSW, your body's immune system begins to shut down and you start noticing that the water section of your local grocery store is surprisingly understocked as there has been a mad rush on Ozarka! Are people getting ready for the zombie apocalypse or are they really just trying to rehydrate in a desperate attempt to prepare themselves for the brutal work week to come?

Well before I personally reached this point of desperation, quite a few awesome things happened to me, and quite possibly a few others as well, as I tried to reclaim my youth this SXSW. For the most part I failed in my lame and pathetic attempt of regeneration but before I realized that I'm just a younger version of Walter Matthau (Grumpy Old Men) I was able to take a few notes along the way on what I considered to be the highlights of this year's festival.

Hip hop was on center stage this year and I have to say that for the most part all of the artists delivered. For one, they all showed up where they were supposed to and were all relatively on time; this is a modern day miracle for Black people and it should definitely not go unnoticed.

Vic Mensa out of Chicago was a clear stand out as the one show he had early on in the festival set the tone and the bar for what was to come later on in the week. Every SXSW has that one moment where you can simply look at the performance and instantly know that that person on stage will be a bona fide star. This moment happened last year when I saw Sam Smith (admittedly I didn't quite understand why at the time but I noticed everyone else's reaction to him around me) and it happened a few years earlier when I saw Young the Giant. Well Mensa came on stage and immediately grabbed the attention of the capacity crowd as he ran through grimy hits like Feel That and Wimme Nah. And this is something that's considerably hard to do at one in the morning when after a full day's worth of drinking, most people's thoughts are on late night food and/or sex. But by the time he got to Orange Soda and Down on My Luck, even the hardest G in the crowd found himself letting go of his cool demeanor and was caught jumping alongside of me like a 12 year old schoolboy. Be sure you catch Mensa while you can before he's playing to large arenas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jUGAVUwhRU

Next up was Run the Jewels, a hip hop duo that's taken over the genre right now and consists of El-P out of New York City and Killer Mike from Atlanta, Georgia. EL-P is able to perfectly blend his progressive mix of old school hip hop and semi electronic beats with the deep and angry rhymes of Killer Mike and the results have crowds loosing their minds for 45 minutes straight. The raw energy these two bring on stage is palpable and maybe too much so as one hefty fan walked on stage and tried to attack El-P during one of their performances. I guess he forgot the fact that Killer Mike weighs like 300 pounds and looks like he eats small children for snacks.

After this incident, the Austin Police Department was on high alert as they brought in Robocops to monitor the festival. I seriously had a robot yell at me the following "Sir with the red bike, please get closer to the curb so that you are not impending traffic!" No one around me could figure out where this voice was coming from and it took all I had in me not to randomly flip off the voice in hopes that a giant robot man would fly down from a rooftop with a semi automatic weapon to attack me. This incident alone was cooler than the stupid reboot of that movie that came out last year. Check out Run the Jewels as they are FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-S9mtYowPY

I am going to combine the next two as they played the same showcase and each had their sets cut short due to time. But the artists I'm talking about are Rae Sremmurd out of Mississippi and Kaytranada out of Montreal. Rae surprised me as I had previously heard their music and thought that it was both fun and funny but nothing more. But I had no idea that these two country boys knew how to command a crowd. I found myself booty shaking to songs about dropping money in strip clubs and only liking bad bitches like every other social degenerate out there. For better or worse these two will definitely blow up this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzMrK-aGCug

I've raved about Kaytranada for almost a year now and after seeing this DJ perform live, I like him and his versatility even more. He can do anything from hip hop to house music and can do so at a high level. When he brought out a few hip hop artists that he's worked with over the past year, you could immediately tell that his beats took their game up to another level. While they were ok performers, everyone in the venue knew the real talent lied with the beat dropper, and that you can expect everyone in the game to reach out to him soon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rppKW9eIvE

So since I found myself cursing more than I ever have in my life and also caught myself randomly dropping the N word, which is something that I NEVER do, I felt it was high time to mix it up a bit by seeking out the soothing sounds of distorted guitars. This way I could at least mosh the aggression out of my system.

Speaking of, why do people wear expensive shoes to these festivals? All they're doing is making a conscious decision to waste the hard labor of a 12 year boy in China! I saw $200 pairs of Jordans getting covered in beer, mud, and self loathing; why else would people do this to themselves?

So as I was ruining my four year old pair of $60 Puma's from dancing and freaking out to the crushing guitars of the Canadian rockers Metz, I noticed that they were just as hung over and tired as my friends and I were. "You'll have to forgive us as we've been here since Sunday and we no longer have the energy to play songs back to back. We need a little break." He of course followed that up with a giant swig of Hamm's Original to help get his mind right. And as the beer began to flow in their system and they felt last night's buzz returning, they slowly turned into the amazing live act they've become known for. They shredded through crowd favorites like Wasted and Wet Blanket before introducing songs off their new album which sound just as good as their debut album. Their sound doesn't make them the most accessible band but if you want to rock your socks off, feel free to give these guys a listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6qGeNVwwfw

Cloud Nothings is a three piece power punk band that started in the lead singer's bedroom and now they are gracing the stages of one of the world's biggest festivals in SXSW. Their lyrics of "I thought I would be more than this" in Wasted Days or "I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless" had young kids crowd surfing and old men tearing ligaments in the mosh pit. If you ever want to feel 16 again, give these guys a listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxeNn_O5u5E

I just recently allowed myself to once again like Twin Shadow as the first time I saw him, it was unbelievably hot outside, I over served myself at my pre party, and his show was packed to the gills making it nearly impossible to enjoy it. Plus I didn't like the fact that he looked like the kind of guy who'd have quick sex with my girlfriend in the artist lounge while I went to buy him a beer.
But he has improved his act tremendously since the last time I saw him perform live as he no longer relies on lasers and smoke machines to bring his recorded music to life. Instead he now has a real band to play every instrument in his songs and you can see how that energizes him on stage. Messing around with nothing but a keytar and a beat machine on stage can't help but make you feel like an uptight German with a mock turtleneck. Check out Shadow but just keep an eye on your girl at all times.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg4IhOpndrQ

The last act to check out is the electronic group Odesza. I was only able to see a song and a half of theirs but what I saw was pretty damn good. This Seattle duo has vocalists on quite a few of their tracks but none of them were able to come down and perform live with them but that certainly didn't take away from what they were able to deliver live. If you want something to groove to before you head out at night, definitely give these guys a listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdzI-191xhU

Well that's it for me, I'm going to fly to London and marry the cute girl I met at the Bomb Tacos stand.

SXSW 2015 Preview: Metz and Slothrust

In an attempt to get myself into partying shape for SXSW this year, I actually stepped out of my apartment for the first time in a while this past weekend and let's just say that the results were mixed at best. I woke up Saturday morning with a huge gash on my forehead after having apparently gotten into a fight with myself the night before. The most violent thing I remember happening that night was hanging out with hipsters who were wearing black fishnet pantyhose and then passing out while eating Detroit style pizza. Maybe that's part of the Detroit experience; seeing if you can actually finish your pizza before getting mugged.

And then there was Saturday night were I promised a friend of mine that I would take her to Mars on her 37th birthday (seven years from now); the look of confusion on her face was only topped by the look of shock after I promised her a black baby for her 38th. So suffice it to say, that I have a little work to do before moshing in the pits of these next two acts that I'm about to preview for you.

First up is Metz out of Toronto; they are a noise punk rock band whose sound reminds you of the Horrors and their first album. This is of course before the Horrors got smart, sold their souls, and started using synthesizers. If you want a trip back to the days of Nirvana's Bleach album, then this band is definitely for you. Their lead pours out every bit of angst that's in him into the mic while his band mates punish your ears with blistering guitars and the result is nothing short of electrifying. I love noise, I love distortion, and I love this band so they get a rating of FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNxVxzLnYBQ

Next up is the band Slothrust; and I have to be honest when I say that the only reason I checked these guys out in the first place was because of their name. And it's because they have such a fresh name that I am convincing myself that I actually like them. Their songs sound like they have a female Johnny Cash telling twisted stories over distorted guitar rhythms and their style reminds me of a post grunge rock band in the mid to late 90's, so basically it's Nada Surf meets Silverchair. Now I'm purposely underselling them a bit as I do think they are talented and offer something fresh to the rock game but there is a slight chance that six months from now I'll look at this article and ask myself what in the world was I thinking. They get a rating of FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cANcbev6ZFc

SXSW 2015 Preview: Vic Mensa and Girl Band

The point of all of these previews is to help make the SXSW experience just a bit easier for you. I know that it can be a bit overwhelming with over 1900 bands playing over a five day span but if you simply narrow it down to 5-10 bands that you want to see, you can just sign up for the free parties they will be performing at and at the same time get exposure to a ton of additional artists that you never would have otherwise seen before.

The worst thing you can do however is to simply just wing it and go downtown to see what you can get yourself into because there is a high probability you’ll be stuck listening to some hipster singing  covers of Muppets songs while Sam Smith is singing in a restaurant right next door to you. Seriously, I’m not a big fan or anything but last year I was literally 5 feet away from the guy at Fader Fort and now he’s headlining arenas. So with that in mind, here are a few acts you should check out before they blow up this year.

First up is Vic Mensa out of Chicago. When I first heard Orange Soda I thought he was just a stoned hip hop artist with a smooth flow who reminded me of the Pharcyde but the more I listened to him, the more I realized that there’s an actual method to his apparent laziness. He has the skills to be as deep as almost any rapper out there but that would limit what he could do musically as he wants so badly for hip hop to be fun and interesting again. He is able to utilize both his ability to sing and to rhyme to try and accomplish this; so while he’s singing over house music in one song, he’s dropping lyrical literature over 808 beats in the next to help turn his mix tape into one of the most diverse albums to drop in a while. As you can tell I’m pretty excited about his potential and apparently so is Kanye as he already put him on his latest song Wolves with Sia; check it out when you get the chance. Mensa was more than able to hold his own on that song and you should check him out while you have the opportunity this March. He gets a rating of TIGHT! You should also check out his song Down On My Luck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUIIVJMY7jQ

Next up is Girl Band, a four piece noise rock band out of Ireland. They finally provide a show that you can absolutely lose your mind to as every piece of the band screams noise. The lead, who looks like Justin Bieber, initially sings/moans barely discernible lyrics in the early parts of their songs but then the distortion kicks in and all hell breaks loose! They are another one of my favorites this year and you should definitely see them when they play. They get a rating of FRESH!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqxe3NZKYL0

SXSW Preview: The Districts, No Somos Marineros, and Pujol

You can almost feel, taste, touch, and hear SXSW in the air here in Austin; even though they make a ton of money working it, service industry workers are dreading it, hipsters are equally sighing in disgust and somewhat raising an eyebrow in anticipation, and scrubs like me are getting into arguments over what's fresh and what's not.

 I had a girl tell me that I was stupid because I buy a badge every year; she claimed that I can still do cool things without one. My response to her was if you're going to do it, why not go all in? I'd rather be the person with a badge that people look at with disdain than the scrub who walks around with 20 cents and a pack of bubble gum trying to barter my way into shows. So with that said, here are a few acts to check out.

First up is The Districts out of Pennsylvania; they are a mix of the Band of Horses and early Kings of Leon. Now typically when I even hear the word Americana I instantly throw up and move on but I decided to give these guys a shot. And wouldn't you know it, as soon I heard their song Funeral Beds and heard a harmonica in it I threw up in my mouth a little bit but as I continued to listen, they grew on me; they actually aren't that bad of a group. Don't get me wrong, I still prefer their indie stuff but you should give their song 4th and Roebling a listen; just do yourself a favor and don't look at the lead when he sings as he looks like a blind kid trying to eat corn on the cob. I rate them as barely FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTLqyoVV9EU

Next up is No Somos Marineros out of Mexico, their exact location there is unknown for their own protection because they don't want family members being held hostage for ransom. I kid, I kid. Their music is the side project that we've always hoped we'd eventually get from the Deftones' Chino Moreno. Instead of his going completely off the rails with Team Sleep or Palms, we just want the side of the Deftones that loves The Cure but still plays it with a ton of distortion. He's always given us the atmospheric sleeping aid version of the Deftones. Well I can't help but think that he called up his homies No Somos in Mexico and told them about his dream; so they went back and listened to White Pony and the self titled album and this was the result. I don't speak Spanish but thankfully he barely sings in each song and when he does his screaming is mainly drowned out by the music. I rate these guys as FRESH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTrjbw28Afo

The last group to check out is Pujol out of Nashville. His music is all over the place but he does rock your socks off at times. His energy and rocking style reminds me of Ted Leo a bit. This is the kind of music you drink beer to and knock over a lamp while dancing to it. I'm not a big Ted Leo fan and I'm not quite what I think of him yet but I will check him out. I rate him as barely FRESH.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43HOewv3eCo

Institute and Billion

We have now entered what is called the dead zone of the live music scene here in Austin, Texas; it's actually starting to get a little chilly and all of the major bands are taking a quick break from banging hot young groupies on the road. They instead have decided to get their annual STD tests in before heading home to kiss their little cousins hello because nothing says Happy Holidays like seeing your 6 year old nephew all of a sudden sporting a herpes sore on the second of Hanukkah! So naturally the month of December brings tough times for us music lovers who still want to get a quality show or two in from time to time; we find ourselves convincing ourselves that some local acts are better than they actually are, or we are eagerly running off to go see Spoon or the Toadies for the 20th time this year.

Well one of the local acts I'll hopefully see soon is starting to get a little buzz on the national level and their name is Institute. This band is comprised of members from The Wiccans, Glue, and Recide and they bring a lazy post punk sound to the Austin music scene. Their lead singer Moses Brown sounds like he's just some drunk guy who stumbled upon a mic at a live band karaoke bar and all of a sudden started slurring barely discernible lyrics on stage while everyone else in the venue ran outside to grab a smoke and escape the horror. Honestly there's nothing really new that they bring to the table but I think they're worth checking out if you're looking for a cheap show while out on the town. They do at times remind of the band Protomartyr out of Detroit and because of that they get a rating of barely WEAK as opposed to straight up weak.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZySVeZgTSo

Next up is the UK duo Billion, they are producers who make the kind of music that would not normally qualify as my cup of tea as it sounds like something you'd hear playing over a Devil Wears Prada style show scene. But no matter how much I tried  to stop, I found myself dancing to it; I can see their music playing in some upscale lounge in Upper West Side Manhattan with guys who are just a little too old to be wearing hipster glasses (cough cough) dancing to it. Special is a pumping jam that sounds like it has Crystal Waters singing "100% pure looooooove!" on it, and yes  Ijust said pumping jam. I rate these guys kind of FRESH!
 https://soundcloud.com/search?q=Billon%2C%20Special%20feat.%20Maxine%20Ashley

Raury and Lower

After my experience with We Were Promised Jetpacks this past Tuesday, I've learned that I have to be careful when it comes to giving scrubs props in public; scrubs should be constantly reminded that they are just that, scrubs. Don't get me wrong, I actually like a few Jetpacks songs and their new album shows that they can actually make good music that's not poppy. In fact I like their new album more than their first one but it's not like it's hard to recreate their sound live; it's still basically the same three chords over and over again.

Anyway, at the after party my drunk friend was about to lose her mind because she had the opportunity to get a pic with the band. I had no desire to meet them but I was a weird Miller High Life drunk at the time and this cute girl kept bugging me to run up and get in the pic too. After about 5 minutes of back and forth with this girl, I finally caved in and ran up to get in the pic but when they saw that a dude was getting in on the photo, they immediately dispersed without even acknowledging my presence. Eaaaaaaasy scrubs! Let's not forget that your lead singer is fat and that you are from a country that England basically boned in Braveheart.

The point is, it's tough for me to give an 18 year old from Atlanta any props at this point in my life but he does look and feel like he's going to be the next Pharrell. His space age and dreamy Woodcrest Manor piques your interest a bit as you instantly realize that something's different about this scrawny little kid from the dirty south, and this track alone separates him from the other 300,000 high school kids that are out there with mix tapes. God's Whisper shows that he's basically a poet speaking and singing over non traditional hip hop beats, some of which have a rock feel to them. The opening track on his mixtape Indigo Child will get your Saturday night started right as War Pt. 1 is a pretty on point jam. And his What Goes Up reminds you of Kanye's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, which is saying a mouthful. I rate this kid as FRESH and suggest that you check him out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlCGwLMPT7g

Next up is Lower, a band from Denmark that sounds like early dysfunctional punk. Does it come any other way? Some of their songs like Lost Weight, Perfect Skin sound heavily influenced by the 80's; think early and not that good Cure. It's like Television recruited the lead singer from The Stone Roses and formed a band. But then they have songs like Pictures of Passion and Escape that are closer to modern hard core punk; songs that make you want to punch a hole in the wall because your mom brought home Twizzlers when you asked for Starburst. I prefer this style to their brief dabbling in emo punk but I respect them both and I rate these guys as FRESH.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5m1pfZivl8

SXSW Preview 5 : Slaves, Perfect Pussy, and Sza

I continue to burn bridges in the infant stage of my writing career by trashing most of the artists that this nice PR firm sends me out to preview for them. And apparently I am too lazy to actually vote for the Austin Music Blogger awards, so consequently they tried to charge me a cover price to get into the awards show! Yeah, that didn't quite happen. But I figure maybe its time for me to actually make friends and hopefully stop the bleeding at some point. So I have decided that I will only preview or review artists that I actually like for at least two to three days and see where that gets me; probably right back on my couch! Who knows though, Jimmy Fallon has next to no talent but being nice got him the Tonight Show gig with The Roots as his supporting band. With my luck I'll end up as Wayne Brady's sidekick on his syndicated late night talk show playing the role as the black conspiracy theorist. "You see the game of pool is racist! The game is over when the white ball knocks the black ball clear off the table!" That quote actually belongs to Martin Lawrence in Boomerang but I'll be too lazy to give him credit for it and try and claim it as my own.

So ironically the first artist I'm previewing today happens to be a punk band from Great Britain called Slaves. I was a bit scared to preview them because they were a band that I discovered while drinking by myself at midnight, and typically those bands don't sound nearly as good to me the next day. But these guys actually held up. They literally sound like the reincarnation of the Sex Pistols as they spout out random obscenities and lyrics like "I like it better when you're mad at me, you're really boring when you're nice". This is something I can relate to as I love me some crazy girls too. I rate these guys as FRESH!
http://soundcloud.com/slavesuk/wheres-your-car-debbie-1

Next up is Perfect Pussy, a band out of Syracuse, New York. Their sound is basically organized noise with a chick screaming about how she never wanted children but just a niece apartment with drapes. It's bold punk that I know I shouldn't like because on the surface it sounds like "Sex and the City makes a band", but you can tell there's so much more to it than that. Their demo sounds like it was recorded under my bed but that simply adds to their charm. Plus who isn't in a search for perfect pussy? I rate them as very FRESH!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKPc7kD4vjM

I actually previewed this next artist on my site earlier this year but I think she's worth bringing up again as she will be playing Hype Hotel this SXSW. Sza is an RnB artist from Jersey who has a light voice that sounds like it’s a natural auto tuner. Her sound is next of Sade at times and she even looks a bit like her if you go back to the No Ordinary Love era. At other times, her music sounds like Purity Ring, if they ever decided to go with a hip hop sound.  This is cool, definitely get you laid type music. Who would have ever thought that RnB mixed with bass heavy Enya could sound so good? I think that once she eventually teams up with a real producer she can’t help but take off as she definitely has the vocal chops for indie stardom. Plus lyrics like “None of my panties match, my fella hates it” in Castles, will have dudes having unprotected sex with their girlfriends in no time! Yes, just the mere mention of panties gets us going. Atmosphere and Ice Moon are the highlights on her 8 track mix tape, which for some reason has 3 long movie clips on it. Who is she, the female Redman? Who has the time to put obscure movie clips on their mix tape? Despite this minor complaint, I give her a rating of FRESH and suggest you get on this bandwagon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3OCRsSJNs8&list=PLdXiEijcRY1MVhQJNs-4PBNx_fDLrmijU

SXSW Preview 4 : The Bots, Eminence, and Cerebral Ballzy

My head is literally spinning from all of the rsvp'ing that I have been doing lately to get into the hundreds of awesome day parties this year. I'm secretly hoping that Fader Fort decides to come up with another creative musical marriage between R. Kelly and Mumford and Sons so all of the scrubs run over there and I can catch Outkast's secret show, wherever that will be. Actually I would love to catch Sir Robert but the second he started to play Black Panties, I would impregnate someone on the spot and I'm way too broke for all of that. So on the future R. Kellys.

First up is The Bots, a duo that hails from Glendale, California; and lucky for them it appears that Fader has found two more black kids to like. They just so happen to be brothers (not like soul brothers or anything)and one plays guitar or bass while the other bangs away on the drums. Their style is punk music with a garage band feel to it and you get the sense that they fit this in somewhere in between skateboarding and listening to Bad Brains albums. For being kids they certainly seem to have a bright future. And while their music isn't  not quite mind melting yet, they do have the ability to get me rocking from time to time. I rate them as FRESH!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb5P4cqsLj0

Next up is Eminence, a band out of Brazil that I hope can bring back my love for metal. Recently I have discovered that all of my favorite metal bands are either racist or wannabe Satan worshipers and clearly I'm not down with either. But since these guys are from Brazil they can't be racist right? Most of the country is actually blacker than I am. And with the gigantic Jesus statue they have on that mountain they'd be too scared to be devil worshippers for fear of lightening bolts coming from his eyes! Well musically they bring back memories of when metal was simple; a time where it had punishing guitars, deep screaming from the lead vocalist, and drums that made you want literally bang your head against the wall in ecstasy. I'm not sure if they will blow up but I give these guys a rating of FRESH.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1EJa4bq-vs

The last act for today is Cerebral Ballzy, a hardcore punk band from the dirty side of NYC. NME mag is apparently in love with them, so that alone will get them a lot of attention. I like but not love these guys as their style doesn't really separate them from most of the decent punk bands that are out there today, but they are still solid. I think their terrible cover of Stone Roses' I Wanna Be Adored is the single thing that's holding them back. But their songs about Cutting Class and being a Junky for a Girl have the typical material that you are looking for in this kind of music. Right now I'll rate them as barely WEAK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTB1XGyTBoo

Sinjin Hawke and Joanna Gruesome

My life is about to become a bit more boring as I have now sworn off bars unless there is a show happening there. So you will have fewer stories of hipster greatness from me unless they are rocking skin tight jeans and white tees that shows off their potbellies while wielding their baby making ukuleles. By the way, I’m not sure if that’s an intentional trend to shoot the finger at society’s view of what a man should look like or if hipsters are just lazy and like to drink their fatty PBR’s while eating cheese laden vegetarian meals. Either way, it leads me to talk about the unintentional yet quintessential hipster in James Murphy. If you don’t recognize that name, he is the former lead and co founder of the indie legend band LCD Soundsystem. Ever since he quit the band at the height of their popularity, he’s been kind of lost in obscurity while only popping up randomly to play dj sets in small venues. I missed his first stop in Austin but was the first to buy a ticket to see him spin records when he returned to play a larger venue.

Now I have always said that I don’t see the point of paying money to watch someone famous play their favorite records for us on stage but for some reason I fell victim to Murphy's evil yet genius plan. Think about it, he quits his band at their peak, disappears for a while so that we will pay money to simply see him do anything, and then he will then make his triumphant return at LCD’s reunion tour 3-5 years from now. He’s ultimately trying to create a Daft Punkish mystique and I can’t really fault him for that. Well in the meantime, for the most part his DJ show is boring as you could barely see him; and instead of turning it into a big disco dance party, everyone just stands there trying with all their might to catch a glimpse of the furry hermit he's become. The only fresh part was seeing this meemaw get down with what I assumed were her daughters at the show. I’m sure she had no clue what any of the newer records were but I'm also sure that she was the only one there who was alive when he started playing records from the 70’s. Why do I bring all of this up? I do so because I wish I had spent my money of seeing the up and coming DJ Sinjin Hawke instead.

If you have never heard of Hawke, he is from Montreal and he makes these live and energetic beats that take you places you’d never expect. At one point you’re thinking that this beat is kind of wack and then all of a sudden he drops horns out of nowhere that literally have you yelling “that’s the shit right there!” He does this on one of my favorites, Prom Nite. Another favorite of mine is Crystal Dust, it sounds like something that should be on a Big Boi solo album. Check him out for yourself as I give him a rating of FRESH!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XWWvOgLpxA

Next, you should check out Joanna Gruesome and their 90’s pop punk sound. They are a 5 piece from Wales with a male and a female lead. Their music makes you want to hop around off beat and it reminds you of when you had your first beer as a teenager. While their not quite a One Direction or Haim guilty pleasure, it is still something that you’ll like but will be ashamed to admit it. Check out Lemonade Girl and Secret Surprise. As of now I give them a rating of kind of WEAK!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMHbn8fQLlk

No Age and Ringo Deathstarr

I couldn’t hear for 2 days straight when I was dumb enough to rock out right next to a giant speaker while at a No Age show a few years back. They are notorious for playing a loud set, not quite as loud as My Bloody Valentine, but pretty darn loud I can assure you. And people just stared in awe as my ears literally fell off my head during their closer Sleeper Hold. Ok, so they didn’t really fall off, but I’m fairly certain I lost some equilibrium mid set from all of the noise that was ringing in my head, as my “dancing” immediately turned into swaying right when my body entered into survival mode. Since then I thought I was getting smarter with age but after this Saturday’s show, I’m not so sure.

No Age is currently on a tour where they’re playing random venues in each city they stop in. While in Austin, they played in this underground museum which is hidden somewhere deep in the east side of town; so unless you know a hipster with a monocle and a curly mustache, chances are you’ll never find it. Well lucky for me, I know a hipster or two that fits this description, so I was in the house. Just to give you an idea of the layout, it’s a giant abandoned warehouse that they have turned into a art space. It’s run by these borderline counter culture kids and it’s full of sculptures, videos, and paintings that they have made themselves; some of which are pretty interesting. They have weird live shows that are going on while you can check out their art. The main issue is that there is no central AC in this place, so unless a door is opened, you will instantly be covered in sweat. And that was the scenario this past Saturday.

I missed the first opener Coma in Algiers because I was at a party that paid homage to the poor man’s version of summer wear, jorts! That’s another story for another time but just know that there was free beer. I did however arrive just in time for Austin’s own alternative darlings, Ringo Deathstarr. They were fresh off of a trip from Tel Aviv where on their way back, they were apparently flagged as high risk travelers, and were temporarily detained while security took apart all of their equipment. So they had to deal with faulty instruments as they ripped through their grunge heavy set but thankfully they didn’t miss a beat as they had the crowd moving to Kaleidoscope and Some Kind of Sad, both of which are heavily influenced by Valentine and The Smiths. Right as they were about to play their last song, they asked the crowd if they were ready for No Age; and this led to some moderate yelling. The lead said that he couldn’t really hear us so naturally the hipsters yelled even softer than before, perfectly playing the role of too cool for school. I’ve been to a few too many shows in Austin where everyone is too busy “taking in the artistic experience” to allow themselves to let go and have fun, and sadly this hipster heavy crowd seemed well on their way to making it yet another one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxyYPlv4RVs

No Age however, came right out and after a short sound check went right into two new songs. Now I haven’t actually purchased their recently released new album An Object yet, but I have heard them play some of it live before and it sounded really good. So I wasn’t surprised at all that the crowd responded well to the new material. But what really caused the hipsters to put down their Lone Stars and start a mosh pit was when Dean and Randy destroyed their most popular song Teen Creeps! They immediately followed it up with Every Artist Needs a Tragedy and it was at this point I realized we were in for something special. Despite the unbearable heat in the place, the guys seemed to be enjoying themselves and were feeding off of the crowd’s energy. Quite a few of their new songs required Dean to get from behind the kit and play a guitar alongside Randy, which is a rare treat if you have ever seen them live. They played I Won’t Be Your Generator and No Ground, whose live performances were leaked online by Spin magazine a few weeks ago. But don’t let this throw you, the second Dean returned to the drums, it was vintage No Age.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQAFFgbSY2c

It felt as if we were at a high school party because after about an hour into their set, someone said they had to end it a bit early because the cops were outside trying to shut it down. Now I don’t know if this was actually true or not but everyone ran out to their cars like the INS had just arrived! Given the fact that we were on the east side and there was about 200 hundred of us packed in a warehouse and covered in sweat, it felt as though we were illegal immigrants. Add to the fact that about 20 minutes before then, I forgot for a minute that I’m actually old and I proceeded to jump right into the pit! It wasn’t until I helped catch a kid in mid-air from his stage dive that I realized I was surrounded by all 19 and 20 year olds. And the kid I caught was a guy I met last year at a No Age show on the day of his high school graduation. I also ran into this same kid in the pit of a Japandroids show! What’s it say about my music taste, when everyone at the shows I attend can barely shave? Oh well, rock on No Age, rock on! 

What Time IS It?

So I work for a company in a small country suburb of Austin and suffice it to say that most of the employees there arent really up on the new bands that are out right now unless their 8 year olds clue them in. So then I get random questions like "Why is the band Foster the People talking about shooting kids with pump shoes?" "Or why is Gotye pronounced Gauthier?" which is actually a pretty legitimate question. I mean really, Gauthier???? Just call me Key from now on, the two L's in Kelly are silent! Anyway, I send my fellow music nerd an IM with some randon Bear in Heaven lyrics.
http://onlyfreshness.blogspot.com/2012/04/bears-bells-yachts-football.html
Something to the tune of "I feel myself running to you but my legs wont move...dance with me dance with me" and about 30 minutes later she sends a reply stating that she was in the middle of a presentation when that IM popped up and everyone in the room saw it. Um...oops! And after she explained what it meant she tried to talk to them about Daft Punk and they looked back at her with blank stares. Finally one of them gets the courage to ask "Wasn't Daft Punk a Russian astronaut?". This, is why I started this blog. Speaking of, the last random Daft Punk dance party I went to, I think I was the only person in there who was actually alive when their first cd came out.

The reason I bring all of this up is, I thought I was only hanging out with old people until I walked into the No Age and Ceremony show. When I first walked in, I noticed that the place was actually pretty close to capacity but there was no line at the bar. So I take the fool's gold and happily get my drink with no wait in line. I start to get in place for Ceremony and I hear this kid scream, "I just realized that as of 6 hours ago, I'm no longer in high school!!". And his friends high five him!!! Geez, where am I??? So I had to get myself ready for another level. I'm used to punk shows but not teenage punk shows. Those kids can bring it! Well if you have never heard of Ceremony, theyre a hard core punk band from California. Quite a few punk bands have a specific formula and stick to it throughout their album but not these guys. They are not quite Deftones who can sound like Morrissey or Depeche Mode at one point and then hard core metal the next but they do have range. They literally rock your socks off with Cross Them Out or Throwing Bricks or they can sound like Black Flag with Talking on the Telephone, their most accessible song. This show is not for the light hearted who want to watch from afar because literally everyone is going nuts including the lead who looks like he's having fits on stage while he screams "the modern world is surrounding me" over and over and his Johnny Rotten look alike guitarist is jumping from speaker to speaker. Kids are going nuts jumping from the stage and grabbing his mic and screaming lyrics while the bassist who looks like a pirate watches in total bliss. If you're up for a crazy show and some traditional punk, definitely go check these guys out who I would rate as FRESH!

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gx-qd20t_Mo&feature=endscreen&NR=1

Next up was No Age.

http://onlyfreshness.blogspot.com/2012/05/is-this-it.html

So the night already felt like a win because of the Ceremony performance but I also got to meet Dean the drummer for No Age as I bought my t shirt. I managed not to embarrass myself as I did with Japandroids but thats only because I kept my responses to 2 to 3 words max. And by now everyone knows about my previous No Age experience and this was no different. I didnt learn my lesson. I was right next to the speaker again, this time with my new found fresh out of high school buddies. But by this point of the night it was about half capacity because I'm pretty sure most of the crowd still had a curfew.  And sadly,  the rest of the people that stayed were too old to mosh but that didnt stop me and the high school kids from going nuts as they ripped through Teen Creeps. Dean and Randy dont appear to be slowing down one bit as their sound was as loud and energetic as ever. The really cool thing about their show is that typically when a setlist is new song heavy, you're for the most part bored and just waiting to hear the old stuff. But honestly their new material was the highlight of the night. You can tell they write their songs for live performances and it sounded as tight and as bratty as ever.; which is promising for their upcoming album. Do yourself a favor and check these FRESH guys out. Also check out the link I provided for my review of them to get a better feel for the band as a whole.