Tuesday, March 24, 2009 6:00PM - By davidhall
By the early Friday evening at the 2009 SXSW music conference, the line for the “secret” Metallica show at Stubb’s BBQ had extended halfway around the block.
Even when the doors opened, the queue didn’t budge.
After nearly an hour of glowering at a steady stream of mostly middle-aged hipsters flashing their badges (which cost nearly $700 for the highest level of access) to waltz right in past the endless line, my patience was spent. With the urge to scream, ‘Screw all you yuppies!’, I tromped off to try my luck at a smaller show. After waiting in yet another line, I finally found solace at the Cedar Street Courtyard, where Dinosaur Jr. dominated the stage later that night.
This type of frustrating situation seemed to typify the experience of many SXSW participants at this year’s festival. If one searched hard enough (and exhausted all patience), SXSW still has its marvelous moments, but it appears that (for the most part), the festival now caters primarily to the wealthy or the “in” crowd.
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Monday, March 23, 2009 1:00PM - By Sergio Garza
Ace’s Lounge Friday night was a night to rock with Future to the Left starting the evening off with high octane rock and head banging. Think of this group as audio cocaine and look them up for your next fix.
Check out photos from the show below…
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Monday, March 23, 2009 9:30AM - By Sergio Garza
Friday night at Ace’s Lounge, Airborne Toxic Event gave an astonishing performance sounded by screaming fans mimicking the bands lips as the crowd sang to every lyric uttered.
Check out photos from the show below…
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Monday, March 23, 2009 8:00AM - By Sergio Garza
Friday night was a great night at Ace’s Lounge with Funeral Party, showing off their hard work for the now dazed and tired fans at SXSW. The band looked quite comfortable as they took the stage, despite the massive audience of sudo-zombies. As soon the the first strong broke the silence, Funeral Party infused the audience with life again and it was as if the entire festival had just began all over again.
Check out the energy from their amazing show below…
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Sunday, March 22, 2009 2:45PM - By davidhall
While the wind picked up to make it an exceptionally cool day four (March 21) of SXSW in Austin, the excitement seemed to be dying down. It could’ve been because of a hangover epidemic that seemed to have a grip on everyone’s brain, or it could’ve been because most of the big-name acts (Metallica, Jane’s Addiction, Ben Harper, etc…) had already come and gone. Or maybe we can thank Kanye West, who played adjacent to downtown at the Fader Fort party, for distracting everyone long enough to bring down the lines.
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Saturday, March 21, 2009 1:30PM - By davidhall
According to some fans, day three of the SXSW music conference was referred to as ‘Metallica Day’ – and yes, the metal legends did take the stage at Stubb’s BBQ for a 90-minute greatest hits set to help sell their new game ‘Guitar Hero: Metallica.’
But for others (like myself) who didn’t make it in to the industry-dominated showcase, day three was more like ‘So-Much-For-Metallica Day.’ And with lines around the block at Emo’s and many of the other well known venues, it was the same story at many of the showcases for anyone without a badge.
But musical magic was still to be found at Cedar Street Courtyard on W. 4th Street, where I slipped right in and camped out for an evening of indie rock that culminated into an extraordinary shred-show with indie/alternative legends Dinosaur Jr.
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Saturday, March 21, 2009 12:19PM - By Sergio Garza
Cool, calm, and radiant would describe Ben Harper‘s performance at Stubbs Thursday night. His prodigious guitar playing filled the sweet Austin sky, with an aroma that lingered even after the show.
Check out photos from the show below…
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Friday, March 20, 2009 6:00PM - By Sergio Garza
A modern day Pied Piper, Andrew Bird wooed followerss into his whimsical adventure that took us away from the chaos of the SXSW streets. Bird is an amazing artist that has the ability to make any inanimate object into a music dispenser.
Check out the photos from the show below…
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Friday, March 20, 2009 5:00PM - By Sergio Garza
Live at Stubb’s Thursday night, Gomez exploded shock waves of their upbeat, head knocking sound, keeping the audiences attention fresh from 3OH3′s previous performance.
Check out photos from the show below…
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