SXSW 2010 - Saturday

Wow, so in 10 years of going to SXSW, I can't remember a day as cold as Saturday was. The "Coffee, No Pants" party, in its second year, had just as good a lineup as before. For you SXSW veterans, this is the new Little Radio party, right down to the venue. The Red Eyed Fly provided protection from the cold (sort of) and a slew of awesome bands. I arrived late, just in time to catch the indie-dance-pop sounds of Jukebox The Ghost. Armed with a new album (not yet released), they robbed the audience of its duct tape and then made them dance.



Free Energy were next on the outside stage, and with all the stuff I had heard about them on Sirius all week, I was expecting it to be pretty great. Think Lizzy comparisons and all of that are definitely valid, but they have such a great front-man. No one mentioned that! For me, it's almost like when Julian Casablancas sobers up half way through a set and spends some of his energy on the crowd, rather than on balancing. Multiply that by 20.



"Freelance Whales" are words I hear about 20 times a day (don't ask). The record these guys have is beautiful, but seeing them in a circle, doing an old fashioned sing-song is their real appeal. I struggled to hear a little bit, but the camera picked it up quite well. The guy I was staying with in Austin had them on this morning when I woke up, so clearly they made at least one additional fan.





I heard it was the first time in the US for The Middle East. That would explain the crowd. "The Middle East" is my new Pandora channel, and I had to favorite almost everyone on it. They brought the most gear, btu they sounded amazing.

So that was SXSW 2010. More crowded, more out of place celebrities sponsoring parties, more wankers in the streets, more lines, but still an awesome time. Stand by for my sum-up post with pics and video from our Thursday night show At FADO, I (heart) Brooklyn+Austin!