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SXSW 2012 - Diary re-visited for Fatea

Venue: Multiple
Town: Austin Texas
Date: 10th-17th March

Saturday 17-3:

After breakfast it was up town to Fado's Irish bar for some FA Cup footy. AH, St. Patricks day and Ireland playing England at rugby and Fado's was out of the question due to the horrendous queue.

However, the little known bar next door which everyone passed by and which had TV screens was where we deposited ourselves. A sad abandoned game later (get well Fabrice!) and several beers and it was off for some music at The Jackalope.

Upon arrival, the punk band Dirty Fences from Brooklyn were just getting started. The Jackalope, a venue to behold playing b-rated porn movies on several TV screens with not dissimilar memorabilia adorning the unkempt walls. Put that mix together with an aging punk West Ham United fan as a manager and his harem of busty tattooed barmaids and this 6th Street dive is the perfect venue for raw punk and metal.

Dirty Fences were the real deal when it comes to fast paced punk transporting you straight back to 1977 with several covers from that era amongst there own material. Old men pogoing could be seen amongst the throbbing crowd.

Torche up next and having not heard of this band I am guessing we were in the minority since most of the crowd were merely here to see this four piece Stoner Metal band from Miami. Oh dear am I getting old. But hey, better late than never, this band rock or at least at this place and time. A heavy bass instrumental undertone was laced with occasional melodic overtones. Few lyrics were heard from memory although we had been drinking for a while.

I remember thinking this sounds like a metal band that wants to break free and become something else. I am not sure what I meant by this but having listened to their various studio albums, there is some merit here.

Riverboat Gamblers finished what was to be our visit and after all that's why we were there. I have now lost count of the number of times I have seen the Gamblers but it must 5 or 6 and each time they do not disappoint live.

Mike Wiebe parading along the Jackalope's central bar trying to avoid people's drinks whilst performing various acrobatics during the set. Marvellous! If only they could transpose that energy and sound into their studio material.

On exiting and passing Latitude - The Dunwells from Leeds were playing and although having no great recollection to provide comment on this band, which by all accounts are getting great reviews for their album Blind Sighted Faith. Note to self: Need to pay more attention in the latter stages of the evening and festival.

After dinner at Threadgills, it was onto Stubbs and Michael Kiwanuka. Having last seen Riverboat Gamblers and Torche, to experience Michael Kiwanuka for the first time did not go down well. Stubbs is big, open and impersonal, so to stand and listen to a soul singer not being able to move around and tap your feet was not what the doctor ordered.

I did however make a mental note to listen to this guy when I got back and that proved to be a correct decision. This guy is excellent and has a superb voice and songs to go with it. Home Again is for me, consistent all the way through although I have read mixed reports some of which state the album fades half way. Not for me and although I only stayed for 5 songs, it was enough to make a judgement. I like what I heard.

So unbeknown at this point to me onto the venue, Swan Dive for what was to be the penultimate artist, Great Lake Swimmers. 5 studio albums and this polished Toronto folk rock band did not disappoint. Having warmed to their first 2 albums I was looking very much forward to seeing them live. The rich weave of strings, acoustics and harmonies serves up a rich sound of old style country rock and modern day folk.

Once done, en-route to the hotel, the din from an outdoor venue, the Jacked Stage and a flash of the wristband and entry was secured to see Chappo. This was a four-piece psych pop band I had never heard of and they looked more like a rock band than the music let on. Having stayed alone to watch this New York band I couldn't help feeling a better name might have helped their cause. Still, the music was good and would recommend listening to their EP Plastique Universe.

Gary Rose