Phoenix Music Blog

If you are like most people reading about SxSW on every blog out there, it can be a bit overwhelming. But that is nothing compared to how overwhelming it can be to actually be at a festival where 300 bands are playing at every minute (how many stages does Coachella or EdgeFest have going at any one time? Three? Four? SxSW has HUNDREDS at any moment).

Well, the people over at Digital Music News came up with a way to see who really was creating a buzz at the festival this year. Twitter. They searched Twitter for the most talked-about bands related to the festival.

Who came out at number one? Metallica, who played a "secret" show at Stubbs on Friday night. It was secret in that everyone in the world knew they were there but "were not announced." Number two was our music editor's hometown boys Devo. Kanye West was third. And fourth was one of my personal highlights from the trip, The Hold Steady (I must admit The Hold Steady's show was one of two times I tried to Twitter about a band at SxSW, but AT&T sucked). Rachael Ray even made the top 10.   

Other bands getting top Twitter action included Black Lips, Silversun Pickups, Dinosaur Jr., Quincy Jones, Superdrag, Perez Hilton, M. Ward, Peter Bjorn and John, Glasvegas, PJ Harvey, The Decemberists, New York Dolls, and Tori Amos.

Martin Cizmar

Dear and the Headlights at Tinest Bar in Texas

Of all the Arizona bands at SxSW, no one had a higher profile than Dear and the Headlights. They played five shows over the course of the five-day festival, including headlining the I Heart AZ showcase and the same official showcase at Spiro's that Miniature Tigers played.

I caught up with them for a late Friday afternoon show at the Tiniest Bar in Texas (which was also possibly the most remote bar in Texas, 16 blocks from the heart of Sixth Street) and found a crowd that reminded me of the times I've seen them in Phoenix: full of people smiling and singing along, the way people who've really lived with a record do. At SxSW, that was pretty unusual, especially in the afternoons, when most folks seemed to be wherever they were out of convenience and/or interest in free beer.

It cemented, for me, something I've heard a lot of people say: If Phoenix's scene is going to break out, these guys are going to be a big part of it.

Martin Cizmar

In some ways, Arizona's first "official unofficial" showcase at SxSW wasn't a big deal. Other cities, states, and countries have been doing it for years. Hell, Seattle's party is even promoted by a flier in the high-value real estate of the official party envelope you pick up with your badge. Butfor Phoenix, the "I Heart AZ Party" was pretty huge. Thursday's showcase featured a lot of the best bands in town, acts we write about all the time: Miniature Tigers, Kinch, Back Ted N-Ted, The Stiletto Formal, What Laura Says, Dear and the Headlights, Reubens Accomplice. 

Martin Cizmar

What Laura Says at SxSW

Greetings from the outskirts of Austin, Texas, where we're holed up in a hotel after a long day of music at South by Southwest's opening day. What happened? Well, a few Phoenix bands played their showcases, hopefully making an impression on tastemakers and industry types at this massive festival, which ends up being make or break for a lot of indie acts. I saw sets by Miniature Tigers and What Laura Says tonight (Dear and the Headlights also played in a late slot, but we'll catch up with them later in the week) and both went pretty well. Also, I got a cigar from notorious Texas author (and former gubernatorial candidate) Kinky Friedman. More on that later.

The music portion of SxSW starts today, but the interactive portion finished yesterday. One of the big stories out of interactive this past weekend was how ill-prepared AT&T was for the influx of iPhone-wielding hipsters and geeks descending on Austin.

Tens of thousands of attendees are using their phones far more than usual to stay in touch with everyone else at the conference, meet up with co-workers and do the sort of networking that people who go to this kind of industry event do. 

To add to the list of hip parties we have told you about happening at SxSW next month in Austin is the most random one yet. Rachel Ray will be hosting the party "Rose's Mojito & Rachael Ray's Feedback: The B-Side." The party with have Acts such as The Hold Steady, Ra Ra Riot, The New York Dolls and The Thermals among others.

We knew home girl could cook, but who knew she had great taste in Music?

This is what happens when you let Xzibit pimp your band name

It was announced this week that SXSW will be getting yet another addition to its already fruitful lineup: Tinted Windows. The band consists of Taylor Hanson (Hanson, duh), James Iha (Smashing Pumpkins), Bun E. Carlos (Cheap Trick) and Adam Schlesinger (Fountains of Wayne). It's an eclectic group, that's for sure, and if you leave out Taylor Hanson, the group formed by the remaining members kind of makes sense. As well, if you leave out Taylor Hanson, you'll lose about 75 percent of any fans you had a chance of getting. The supergroup isn't a brand new concept, by any means, so why should this one deserve special attention?

So, we don't normally blog about shows outside the area, but our contributor Psyko Steve Chilton is putting a real dandy at SxSW in Austin next month. The "I Heart AZ" showcase features Dear and the Headlights, Miniature Tigers, What Laura Says, The Stiletto Formal, Kinch, Back Ted N-Ted and Reuben's Accomplice. As Steve writes:

"The last few years have seen an explosion of new artists from Arizona breaking on the national stage. Artists as divers as Calexico, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, The Maine, Job For A Cowboy and even Jordan Sparks have all made their mark on the national music scene... Many people both in Arizona and in the music industry at large believe that Arizona could be home to one of the next great music scenes."

Steve's bill is pretty good, but I'm not showing up unless Golden Boots -- the subject of this week's music feature -- are there.

By the way, Meat Puppets and The Love Me Nots also have official showcases at SxSW. They're joining Kinch, Mini T's, Dear and the Headlights and What Laura Says as Phoenix's official showcasers. Flagstaff's The Silos and Tucson's Howe Gelb, Golden Boots, and ...music video? will also be at SxSW-sanctioned shows.

The first batch of bands for SXSW, the large music industry trade show, conference and festival every year in Austin Texas, have been announced. Unlike my Coachella post earlier this week, the list comes straight form SXSW.com so we know it is right (but subject to change).

This year's line up has a number of Arizona bands who will be officially showcasing. Dear and the Headlights (Tempe, who are also playing Coachella), Golden Boots (Tucson), The Love Me Nots (Phoenix), Miniature Tigers (Phoenix, who continue their sting of huge show announcements), and The Silos (Flagstaff) will all be there.

The Medic Droid are listed however they have since broken up. Hopefully more Arizona acts will take that their place.

Read on to see the full announced list.

By Niki D’Andrea

There’s something for everyone in this week’s edition of Future Shock, whether you’re a classic rock fan, a goth rock fan, or an indie rock head. Read on to see which concerts have been announced this week.

Club Tattoo Anniversary Party
With Rabbit in the Moon, Julien K, Jeremy Dawson of Shiny Toy Guns, and Chester Bennington.
Saturday, May 10, 8 p.m.
Marquee Theatre in Tempe
$25 (www.luckymanonline.com)

Linkin Park singer, Club Tattoo co-founder, and Greenway High School graduate Chester Bennington returns to town for the 13th anniversary of the tattoo shop he started with Sean Dowdell. Club Tattoo’s anniversary parties are known for their posh-but-intimate settings, mixing red carpet with hard rock.

Random band fact: Prior to joining Linkin Park, Bennington was in a Phoenix grunge group called Grey Daze.

Below: Julien K performs “Technical Difficulties” with Chester Bennington:

------

Peter Murphy
Monday, June 9, 6:30 p.m.
Marquee Theatre in Tempe
$23-$25 (www.luckymanonline.com)

We’re not quite sure why former Bauhaus frontman Peter Murphy is touring solo, as he hasn’t released a solo album since 2004’s Unshattered, but we do know that Bauhaus reunited for a one-off album called Go Away White (2008), so perhaps Murphy’s solo show will incorporate some of the new material, in addition to his solo classics like “Cut You Up” and Bauhaus standards like “Bela Lugosi’s Dead.”

Random band fact: Bauhaus performs pieces of “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” in the opening sequence of the 1982 vampire movie The Hunger (starring David Bowie).

Below: The video for Peter Murphy’s “Cuts You Up”:

By Niki D'Andrea

Well, I managed to survive another fun and frantic SxSW festival. While I'm laid up at home recovering, I thought I'd bring you some of the highlights from this year's fest.

Best Local Buzz Band: What Laura Says Thinks and Feels (Tempe)

Several solid artists from our great desert metropolis performed at SxSW this year, but it seems like everywhere I turned, people were talking about WLSTaF. Here are just a couple examples of the word on the street:

From Soundcheck magazine’s “Label Alert: The 411 for Lovelorn A&R Reps” section: “I don’t know what it is about Arizona. The entire state seems to have really stepped up in the past couple of years, producing a veritable army of truly remarkable musicians – and this year, they are invading SxSW. On the frontlines of this musical onslaught is What Laura Says…, a band that hates commas and haircuts, but loves crafting sunny melodies that fall somewhere between freak-folk and indie-pop. Some of their songs sound like Elton John fronting the Super Furry Animals; others sound like Devendra Banhart covering Sondre Lerche; still others sound like Ben Folds on a bender with Ariel Pink. Regardless of what bizarre combinations you might hear in their music, one thing is certain: they will slay you. But instead of using swords and guns, they use irresistible harmonies. And instead of dying of sharp force trauma and exsanguination, you will die of pure, unadulterated happiness.” – Emily Strong.

From the blog of Arielle Castillo, music editor at Village Voice Media sister publication Miami New Times: “First cool random discovery was What Laura Says Thinks and Feels from Tempe, Arizona; a bunch of shaggy, long-haired types with a really pleasant, tripped out, fleshed out psych-ey sound. Kind of like Devendra Banhart but not quite as weird, and with a big backing band. Awesome, creepy harmonies.”

Word to the label reps: What Laura Says…is currently UNSIGNED. Hurry up and check ‘em out, because I have a feeling they won’t be available for pickup much longer.

Check out the band’s MySpace page here.

Best Promo Swag:
Cube Services, Inc. and Sprint

Cube Services, Inc. is a company that manufactures backstage passes and crew credentials for touring acts. Their promo boxes included a slew of collectible backstage passes from everybody from Prince and Aerosmith to Luciano Pavarotti and Tim McGraw.

Sprint was giving out 1GB flash drive fobs. Mine came in handy right away, when my Internet connection crapped out at the hotel and I had to transfer photos from the Dax Riggs show onto my friend’s laptop.

Best Nickname for the Illness People Brought Home:
Southbyscurvy. I’ve been seeing the phrase on various social networking sites all morning. Apparently, a lot of people brought back more than promo swag from the festival (including myself). That sort of thing tends to happen when you’re on the streets until 4 a.m. with tens of thousands of people coughing into the air, and most of them are running off nothing but three hours of sleep and a six pack of beer. I’m going to the doctor today for my official diagnosis. It probably won’t be “Southbyscurvy,” though.

Best Celebrity Sightings:
Michael Stipe in the VIP section of the Rhapsody day party, Sia outside Rio Grande Restaurant

Best Potential Celebrity Sighting That Never Happened:
Billy Bob Thornton, who was allegedly staying at the same hotel as me.

Best Musical Discovery:
P.D.A. If you haven’t checked out my blog and video clip from this Oklahoma hip-hop artist’s incredible performance at SxSW, hit it here. You’ll be seeing his name a lot more next year.

P.D.A.

Best Free Booze:
The BMI/Billboard Acoustic Brunch: Free mimosas, bloody marys, beer, and wine. I couldn’t beat my hangover with a stick, but the mimosas helped.

Musician’s Atlas’ homemade honey vodka: I took two shots after realizing I had caught the Southbyscurvy. I’m pretty sure it burned all my phlegm away, but I was too buzzed to care either way.

Best Overheard Statement:
“We wish we could be lesbians.” (overheard twice at two different shows throughout the week)

By Niki D’Andrea

Dax Riggs is humble. Okay, that’s an understatement – the former frontman for indie sensations Dead Boy and the Elephantmen (championed by Henry Rollins on his IFC show), is downright soft and shy. When I shook his hand after a stellar set at the Cedar Door tonight, it was like stroking air.

Considering Riggs absolutely tore up the stage during his 30-minute set, manhandling his guitar with powerful arms that were first developed playing for thrash metal band Acid Bath, his softness was a surprise. But the fact that he never opened his eyes while performing a song indicates that Riggs is a man lost in the soul of his music. He was far from distant – on the contrary, he was so immersed in his stripped-down, bluesy, eclectic songs that nothing else seemed to exist to him until each song was over.

By Niki D'Andrea

"That girl weighs like, 60 pounds. I'm serious."

"White belts are okay, as long as you wear them with irony."

"There are so many bald guys here. How am I supposed to tell Michael Stipe from Moby from some random dude?"

"Bark back at that damn dog! Little yippie bitch."

"Hang on, I'm not sure if the number is in my iPhone, my Blackberry, or my Razer phone."

"Who wants to ride in the ambulance?"

By Niki D’Andrea

When walking down 6th Street at 4 p.m. on a Friday during SxSW, pedestrians hear all sorts of music spilling out of the clubs. Sometimes they peek inside, sometimes they stop for a brief moment, and oftentimes, they just keep walking. Today, there was a performer at the Chuggin’ Monkey that not only filled an empty club, but drew a crowd of dozens outside the window that continued to grow and stuck around for his whole set, staring through the windows while bobbing their heads and smiling.

The show – a day party for Oklahoma radio station iROK – wasn’t listed in the SxSW brochure, and the performer – an Oklahoma-based hip-hop mashup artist named P.D.A. – wasn’t someone I’d ever seen live before, though I’d heard his name and checked out the songs on his MySpace page in the past.

P.D.A. gets his groove on.

By Niki D'Andrea

Phoenix-based hip-hop artist Intrinzik is a consummate performer. Before Intrinzik took the stage at Volume, Bushwick Bill of the Geto Boys jumped onstage and busted out a fierce freestyle rap that left the audience pumped up and delirious. It was a hard act to follow, but Intrinzik managed to pull it off.

Bushwick Bill gave a surprise performance before Intrinzik's set.

Joined onstage by his longtime friend and collaborator, Virus, Intrinzik soared through a 30-minute set of material, backed by hard beats and occasional rock guitar riffs. The duo jumped, pumped their fists, waved their hands, and walked through the crowd building camaraderie. The performance had been preceded by a set from Austin-based hip-hop group Kriminals, and Intrinzik and Virus gave them shout-outs and got the whole crew dancing.

Intrinzik rocks Volume.

Acclaimed underground Oklahoma rapper McNastee joined Intrinzik onstage for the last three songs, busting out some really nasty rhymes and encouraging some explicit call-and-response from the audience: “When I say pussy, you say lick! When I say dick, you say suck!”

McNastee joined Intrinzik onstage and got, well, nasty.

By Niki D'Andrea

I was gonna kick sooo much ass at Rhino Records' Geekus Musicus Maximus challenge today at the Austin Convention Center. The 305-question music trivia test (dubbed the RMAT, for Rhino Musical Aptitude Test) wasn't supposed to lead me to this rattling revelation: I don't know nearly as much about music as I've always thought.

I had motives beyond reinforcing my ego for taking this test. The winner (the person with the most correct answers) at the ACC would win 100 CDs from Rhino. The overall winner from both test sessions (the test was also administered online at 6 p.m. PST) wins a copy of every new release (CDs and DVDs) from Rhino for the rest of his or her life.

And the test was hosted by Roky Erickson, whose old band, the 13th Floor Elevators, are among my top three all-time favorite garage bands. Plus, it was free to take the test, so I figured I'd just go in, flex my mental muscles, and walk out feeling triumphant.

By Niki D’Andrea

What the hell am I doing here? It’s 11 a.m., I drank an entire bottle of red wine by myself last night, I have a bad hangover, and this brunch dealio at the Four Seasons looks way more swanky than I feel.

Actually, I don’t feel swanky at all, and aside from my friend and independent musician Jody Gnant (the reason I’m at this thing), I don’t know any of these hundreds of people who are dining on crepes, drinking mimosas (yeah, gimme three, please), and lounging around in the shaded grass by the lake.

I don’t know any of the performers, either. But my aching medulla oblongata is grateful that I don’t see anybody setting up drum kits or stack amplifiers (hence the “acoustic brunch” tag, duh). In fact, the first performer – a Nashville crooner named Ford Turrell – is just up there with an acoustic guitar and two dudes accompanying on acoustic guitar and bass.

Turrell’s style is similar to Dave Matthews’, and his folk-rock-troubadour love songs were well-crafted and easy enough to listen to with a hangover while sitting directly under the glaring sun.

Ford Turrell

Brooke Waggoner (also from Nashville) performed next, and had the misfortune of having the banner behind the stage come flapping off in the wind while she was performing. This mishap was followed by the crackling of a short-circuited amplifier. But Waggoner weathered the storm, and continued playing her melodic folk-pop in spite of the snafus. I’d be interested in seeing another performance by her, in another setting.

By Niki D’Andrea

I don’t consider myself an emotional person. I rarely cry at sad movies, I don’t dote over puppies and babies, and naturally sappy people annoy me. But Sia, the Australian sensation who’s been building a buzz via distribution through Starbucks around her sixth album, Some People Have Real Problems, made me cry. I’ve seen hundreds of shows in my lifetime, but I’d never seen a performer who could actually make me weep. Until Sia. And she did it with a single note that left an audience of hundreds absolutely breathless.

Before I caught this 6 p.m. show, I expected Sia to be shy -- maybe even self-conscious -- onstage. That preconception stemmed from repeat listens to her album, which is a brilliant pop record brimming with beautiful melodies, soulful vocals, and the sort of lyrical introspection that tends to come from surviving some real bad shit and taking an internal-dialogue sabbatical.

But if Sia was ever self-conscious onstage, it didn’t show. Audience members were handed multi-colored glowsticks as they walked in the door. When the lights went down, Sia’s band came out dressed in neon happy-face costumes that glowed under the blacklights. Sia came out with a Dayglo happy face on, too, and the gimmick set the tone for an incredibly fun and laid back-but-emotive show.

Sia sets the tone for her show with a happy face.

By Niki D’Andrea

Shortly after the last Concrete Blonde reunion tour (for the Group Therapy album in 2002), front woman Johnette Napolitano gave me an interview for a small press publication called Musik Kulture magazine (now-defunct). One of the things she said toward the end of the interview was, “If the world went to hell tomorrow, we’d all be out in the desert, stomping our feet and clapping our hands.”

This sentiment encapsulates the performer Napolitano is today – gone are the lights, the smoke, the band, the glam, and the high-falutin’ productions from her Concrete Blonde days. In their place is an older, wiser woman with just a guitar and a huge voice. Watching her perform solo acoustic at SxSW was like sitting in on the coolest house party jam ever.

The show took place on the 18th Floor of the Hilton Garden Inn. When Napolitano took the stage shortly after 1 a.m., there was a substantial but intimate crowd gathered. People started screaming out accolades before she even picked up her guitar.

“Johnette, you are the sexiest woman on Earth!” someone shouted.

To which Napolitano responded, “You’re getting me hot and bothered already. Don’t get me started, bitch.”

By Niki D’Andrea

A lot of people think things like catchy band names and cool album covers are irrelevant in the Digital Age, when most people download their music and nobody can afford to pay $18.99 for an unheard CD based solely on how cool it looks. (That’s not a good idea, anyway – the last time I did that, it was a Blowtorch Betty CD, and I regretted letting my eyes make decisions for my ears).

But I don’t whole-heartedly agree with the idea that a band’s name isn’t as important as a band’s sound, especially at a massive festival like SxSW, where thousands of unknown artists are clamoring for a break and playing all over the place. I have gone to see bands I’ve never heard of play at SxSW, based on solely on their band names. Last year, I went out of my way to catch this band from India that was cleverly christened Menwhopause, and I didn’t regret it. The music was a great mashup of acoustic rock, heartfelt harmonies, and complex compositions – sorta like Dave Matthews Band, but with a better moniker and fewer sweaty gesticulations from the singer. And I was eternally amused at the crass name one band from Houston took – The JonBenet. I never got a chance to catch one of their shows last year, but they’re slated to perform again this year.

But now they’ve got more competition. Going through the 2008 SxSW performer schedule, I found a whole slew of mostly-obscure bands with outrageous (and sometimes, outright stupid) band names. If you’re going to be in Austin for the festival this year and find yourself with some down time, consider checking out some of these intriguingly-named acts:

Fuck Buttons (Bristol, UK): As one of my co-workers said when she heard the name, “Oh, that’s cute!” Perhaps they should have named themselves Cute Is What We Aim For. Oh wait…another band already did that.

The Fuck Buttons, and friend

Psychedelic Horseshit (Columbus, OH): Whether it’s meant to be an abstract or a literal thing, this name kicks ass. Because while I may hear meandering psychedelic music in my head, I envision Day-Glo dung.

Awesome Cool Dudes (Austin): This name sounds like a euphemism girls use when trying to hook their friends up on blind dates with ugly guys. “Well, he’s not really cute – but he is an awesome cool dude!”

43 Songs About 43 Presidencies (Sacramento): Sounds boring as hell. I hope the band name is just an attempt at being clever, and not wholly conceptual. Because I, for one, have no interest in hearing songs with titles like “Keep on Rockin’ in the New Deal” or “Ode to Grover Cleveland’s Cheek Tumor.”

This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb (Pensacola): Makes me feel like I’m missing some big inside joke.

This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb. But where's the bike?

The Bang Gang Deejays (Australia) and CPC Gangbangs (Montreal, QB): If given the choice, I’ll take a bang gang over a gang bang anytime.

The Yuppie Pricks (Austin): I think I know these guys.

Does Is Offend You, Yeah? (Reading, England): If they were from Canada instead of England, they would be called Does It Offend You, Eh? At least they’re taking advantage of the newest trend in band names – punctuation.

Secret Lives! of the Freemasons (Asheville, NC): This band gets in on the punctuation trend, too, albeit in a grammatically incorrect way. And I’m not sure I’d want to hear what those old married guys in the Freemasons do in their off-time.

Horse + Donkey (Austin): Equals what? Spider pig?

Soiled Mattress & The Springs (NY, NY): I hope that Wet Spot makes an appearance somewhere, and that somebody else has to sleep in it.

Pissed Jeans (Allentown, PA): Probably responsible for Soiled Mattress.

Pissed Jeans: Yeah, they definitely did it.

Fourcolorzack & Pretty Titty (Seattle): Fourcolorzack? Who cares? Show me Pretty Titty!

You, Me, and Everyone We Know (Washington, DC): Well, if I’m in the band with everyone I know, it’s bound to suck.

Fucked Up (Toronto, ON): Works great for on-stage band introductions: “Hello, Cleveland! We’re Fucked Up!”

Holy Fuck (Toronto, ON): Not quite as good as the Unholy Fuck, but much better than Holy Shit.

Ketchup Mania (Tokyo, Japan): Sounds messy but fun. I’ll wear a hot dog hula skirt to this one.

Ketchup Mania: Use a bit of mustard.

Care Bears on Fire (Brooklyn, NY): Please tell me they have costumes and a stage show to accompany the images their name evokes.

My Dad Is Dead (Chapel Hill, NC): Mine is, too. Yet I feel no camaraderie here. If they’d named themselves with another statement – perhaps something like My Foot Is Asleep or I Hate My Credit Card Bills, I could probably relate a bit more.

Turbo Fruits (Nashville, TN): Sounds like a ballistic, high-octane pineapple in the eye. Owee.

By Niki D’Andrea

With more than 1500 acts at this year’s SxSW music festival, it’s pretty obvious that festival-goers won’t get to see everything, even if they could make hella clones or disperse themselves into cognitive atoms. For me, SxSW is all about running around the blocks to catch such-and-such band at such-and-such place, before shuttling off through the melee to catch the next thing. And while there’s plenty of cool, undiscovered stuff to serendipitously stumble upon, I always like to make a rough guide of the shows I want to catch at SxSW. Here’s a day-by-day breakdown of the acts that will inspire me to run even faster through the streets to see their sets. My “absolutely-cannot-miss” gigs are in bold:

National Acts

Thursday, March 12:
1. Van Morrison at La Zona Rosa, 7 p.m.: The legendary crooner always carries a catalogue of classics in his head (“Brown Eyed Girl,” “Gloria,” “Wild Night”), but he also honed a slew of new material on his stateside tour last year.

2. Kid Beyond at Prague, 10 p.m.: This L.A.-based DJ provides some seriously sweet grooves, turning cult classics like Portishead’s “Wandering Star” into bumping, thumping symphonies of downbeat seduction.

3. The Slits at Elysium, 11 p.m.: In addition to being the first all-female punk band (they formed in 1976), this U.K. quintet’s got some serious cred in the form of fans like Johnny Rotten and Frank Zappa. Slits member Hollie Cook is also the daughter of Sex Pistol Paul Cook.

4. Johnette Napolitano at 18th Floor at the Hilton Garden Inn, 1 a.m.: The former Concrete Blonde frontwoman released an amazing solo album, Scarred, last year, a record that captures some of the sultry singer’s best vocals to date. Having just seen her give a super-solid performance in Scottsdale last December, I’d feel safe in saying her performance at SxSW will be nothing short of intimate and intense, and well worth hanging out until 1 a.m.

Johnette Napolitano

Friday, March 13
1. Sia at The Bat Bar in Austin Convention Center, 6 p.m.: Anybody who’s been hanging out in line at Starbucks has probably heard Sia’s CD. Anybody who hasn’t heard Sia’s CD should run out and buy it right now. The singer-songwriter’s approach to storytelling and melody is impeccably catchy and mesmerizing.

2. Eleni Mandell at The Ale House, 8 p.m.: Mandell has been around for ten years now, garnering a reputation as a “musician’s musician” (read: an amazing underground, unsigned artist that the media seems to ignore). Her latest, as-yet-untitled album sees her sound head more in a jazzy direction, as opposed to the folk-pop she’s already mastered.

3. Yakuza at La Zona Rosa, 8:45 p.m.: This is death/screamo metal. With horns. Not figurative “devil horns,” but literal, wind-instrument horns. Hey, if System of a Down could make screaming vocal harmonies work, why not horns?

4. Asylum Street Spankers at Esther’s Follies, 11 p.m.: A.S.S. is from Austin, and singer Christina Marrs once commented in an interview with me that people in the band’s hometown don’t seem to pay much attention anymore. That’s probably just because they’ve seen this amazing acoustic/swing/jazz/blues/alternative band so many times already. If you’ve never seen them, then you must. The band’s been around since 1994, but only recently started using amplification in their shows.

Sia

Saturday, March 14:
1. Georgie James at SESAC Day Stage Café in the Austin Convention Center, 2 p.m.:: I’ve found the day stage shows to among the most intimate and entertaining performances at the festival. And since indie buzz phenoms Georgie James (a duo consisting of former Q and Not U frontman John Davis and honey-voiced Laura Burhenn) canceled a handful of tour dates late last year, I’m not passing up this second chance to see ‘em live.

2. X at The Bat Bar in Austin Convention Center, 10 p.m.: John Doe and Exene Cervenka reunite and bring their legendary L.A. punk band back to life for some festival gigs. If you’ve ever heard X’s 1988 double live album, Live at the Whiskey a Go-Go, then you’ve heard how tight they can be.

3. Vampire Weekend at Antone’s, 11 p.m.: I just got back from Amsterdam two days before writing this, and when I was there, I wandered into a record store and found the NYC band’s self-titled debut album on the front display. Savvy Dutch. This indie rock quartet’s been flying below the radar until recently, but with their clever pop concoctions (and a deal with XL Recordings), they’re bound to explode stateside this year.

4. Black Diamond Heavies at Fado Patio, 1 a.m.: This duo consists of Van Campbell on drums and John Wesley Myers on Fender Rhodes organ. Sounds skinny, but Myers makes the organ buzz and groan and pummel through the songs with a visceral voodoo-vibe. Fans of bands like The Black Keys and Radio Moscow will love BDH’s burly, dirty, stripped-down blues sound.

Vampire Weekend

Local Acts
(Check the March 6 print issue of Phoenix New Times or our Web site for more detailed information about some of the bands. In the meantime, you can click on the band names for links to their Web pages.)

Saturday, March 14
1. Neba at The Jackalope
2. Lymbyc Systym at Emo’s Jr., 8 p.m.
3. Intrinzik at Volume, 9 p.m.
4. The Medic Droid (South-By-So-What) at the Plano Centre in Plano, TX

Sunday, March 15
1. The Breakup Society at Soho Lounge, 8:50 p.m.
2. Back Ted N-Ted at The Hideout, 9 p.m.
3. What Laura Says Thinks and Feels at Creekside EMC at the Hilton Garden Inn, 9 p.m.
4. Scary Kids Scary Kids at Habana Annex Backyard, 1 a.m.

What Laura Says Thinks and Feels

 

Martin Cizmar

Free beer AND swag? AZ's done come up!

In some ways Arizona's first "official unofficial" showcase at SxSW wasn't a big deal. Other cities, states and countries have been doing it for years. Hell, Seattle's party is even promoed with a flier in the high-value real estate of the official party envelope you pick up with your badge. But, for Phoenix, yesterday's I Heart AZ Party was pretty huge.