Tag: south by southwest
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SXSW 2014: SW/MM/NG x Vinyl Mag
As a seasoned SXSW attendee (two consecutive years constitutes as seasoned, right?), I’ve come to realize that – while not many – there are a few things you are guaranteed take with you from your experience.
You will, without a doubt, always leave with a full backpack-worth of “swag”- koozies, stickers, matches, sunglasses, t-shirts, CDs or whatever else was shoved in your hand as you were cramming a taco into your face while power-walking through the masses to get to Red 7 by five minutes ago.
Second, you will definitely leave with some sort of battle wound. Battle wounds take on a variation of forms, so be prepared to endure them in (potentially) multiple fashions, such as blistered ankles from the 10 miles you walked in six hours, or an unevenly proportioned sunburn (also resulting from the 10 miles you walked in those six hours of blazing sunshine).
While those things are all good, great and dandy, the last thing you are guaranteed to take away is probably most relative to what brought you to this week of SXSW in the first place – you came for the music, and without a doubt, you left with at least one new band that really, really did it for you.
For me this year, that band was SW/MM/ING. SW/MM/NG is a five-piece from Arkansas that makes whimsically dreamy tunes that put you somewhere between the California coast and the year 2004 in your mind. Following their showcase at Valhalla, we were able to catch up with some of the guys and find out completely relevant things like where they were eating and potential lawsuits they were witness to. Read for yourself, and then download their demo “Feel Not Bad” (if you’re into things like ear candy and good feels).
Vinyl Mag: Tonight was your first showcase, correct? How do you feel it went?
Jared Hennessey: Yeah, it was our first showcase and first show with Jack on pianos. It went pretty well, I think.
VM: Oh, first show with the band?
Jack Paul: Well, I’ve been with the band playing drums, but I’ve assumed a new position, because we got a better drummer.
VM: Right on! What has been memorable for you thus far [during SXSW]?
Jared Hennessey: We tried to catch some shows today, but every time we would be walking up, everyone else would be walking out.
Brian Kuppillas: The Portals showcase was really cool, though. And actually, a great set we caught was Trash Talk, and it was right outside of Beer Land. It was nuts- the cops were called; people were jumping off of the roof and falling out of trees. There was a huge mosh pit in the center of the street, and the cops rode up on their ATV’s with their sirens on during a song, and it just made the song so much cooler. Other than that, we’ve just been partying with buddies.
VM: I noticed you had a substantial amount of people at your showcase tonight who knew you guys- were those real- life friends or fans?
JP: A lot of people move away from Fayetteville, and Austin is pretty close, so they come here. We have friends all over, so they come to support.
JH: We actually have no fans – just a lot of friends.
BK: Arkansas is a good place for leaving, so they all head to bigger cities.
VM: Well, Arkansas seems to keep you content, right?
BK: It’s fine. It’s easy and really cheap in the city.
VM: I noticed when trying to google the band that you’re actually very hard to google- is that an intentional thing?
JH: No, we’re working on it. We’re thinking about it pretty hard right now.
BK: Can we talk about the story behind it?
VM: I would love to talk about the story behind it.
BK: So, there’s this UK band called Swimming, and they called Jared up one day around 8 a.m. while we were in Virginia Beach on our first or second tour. They went on with some ‘manager of the band Swimming’ stuff, and I was like, ‘No, we don’t need a manager, but thanks for the call’ or whatever. Meanwhile, he had this ridiculous accent, so I had no idea of half of the stuff he was trying to say. It pretty much came around to him stating that he was calling because he might sue us if we didn’t change the name.
VM: So, this is how the slashes in the band name came about?
JH: Yeah, that’s how that started. But there’s also this band in Australia with the name Swimming, so we may as well just call ourselves Swimming.
JP: Their main concern was that it would be too hard to tell apart in iTunes, so now we just write it differently.
VM: Well, I guess this segways nicely into another question of mine- I saw that you [were on] a list of ‘Worst Band Names of SXSW’- how do you feel about that?
JH: Well, there’s a good point to that that a friend of mine mentioned- you can literally take any of the ‘best band names’ and put them on the ‘worst band names,’ and it all still works. They’re all easily interchangeable.
BK: For example, I think Perfect Pussy is a fine band name. But as far as how I feel about it, I love that we made that list.
VM: To be honest, the name is what drew us in to check you guys out, so I guess it’s all relative.
BK: Well, that’s awesome. It could always be worse- like, The Goo Goo Dolls or something.
VM: Serious question- are you food truck people or BBQ joint people when you’re Austin?
JP: Can we be all of those people? Because we’ve already done both of those today.
VM: What exactly have you done today?
BK: The Bearded Lady and Austin Daily Press. They’re both dope places to eat, so check them out. They literally have the best hush puppies, and I hate hush puppies.
VM: Where were you when the accident happened in front of the Mohawk?
JH: Still in Fayetteville, actually. We didn’t even hear about until we were driving down here. It was really weird pulling up here and knowing we’re right beside where it all went down.
JP: I was texting my girlfriend on the way down here about how I was worried about the energy we would be coming into, but the vibes have been really good, all things considered.
VM: What’s currently playing in your tour bus at the moment?
BK: We’re all obsessed with the solo record from Kevin Morby, who is the guitarist in Woods.
JH: I’ve listened to it four times in the same day, and I never do that with any record. I’m obsessed with it- you let him know that.
BK: Our drummer is obsessed with The Zombies, so we listened to a lot of that, also.
VM: What’s the best/worst artist comparison you’ve received?
BK: I’ll never understand it, but there was this dude who said we sounded like Hootie and the Blowfish. I’ve also gotten the guy from Dashboard Confessional, and I don’t hear that one, either.
JH: People seem to relate things that they personally like to other things they personally like, even if there is no real comparison there.
JP: My girlfriend always says The Cure, and we’re all totally down with that.
VM: In that same token, what’s the weirdest thing anyone has said to you about their thoughts on your music?
BK: So, this dude named Buffalo once told us that our music took him to the spirit realm, but he was tripping really hard, so I’m not sure how much of that was musically-induced or drug-induced.
VM: Do you ever have those moments where you get those vibes off of your own music?
BK: There are times when you think about something too much that it doesn’t seem real anymore. You can do it with a word, even. If you say ‘orange’ over and over again it becomes meaningless; it’s easy to feel that way when you’ve played something hundreds of times. But, there are those times when you realize that you’re essentially five strangers, and everything worked out so well that you ended up together, and now you’re all playing the same song, and you’re very much in tune with one another. That’s what usually pops in my head and throws me out of it for a second.
JP: Because I live in Little Rock and not Fayetteville, I come to things a little bit later, so I have more of that outside perspective where I listen to the music and can really appreciate what’s being made.
SXSW 2014: Night Riots x Vinyl Mag
What would you get if U2 and The Killers had a baby? Night Riots – that’s what. Hailing from central California, this rock band has such an infectious sound that both MTV and Rolling Stone have taken notice. We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to chat with them during their stint in Austin during SXSW, so read on to hear about how the band formed, their influences, one band member’s premonitions, and what’s in store for Night Riots down the road.
Vinyl Mag: So you guys have playing together since you were teenagers, how did the band form?
Travis Hawley: Well Matt and I met in middle school, and then the rest of us started playing together when we were little kids. We grew up playing music together and it has just been that way ever since.
VM: Comparisons have been drawn between Night Riots and big names such as The Killers, The Clash, and U2. How would you define your sound?
Nick Fotinakes: Sort of like a mix between The Killers and U2. I don’t know; I like it. I think it has the nostalgia of U2 or maybe some 80’s stuff. But, we also grew up listening to a lot of punk music, so it still has a lot of angst and darkness. I don’t know; it’s just rock with a listenability.
VM:You guys had to change your band name due to copyright infringements. How did you guys settle on the name Night Riots?
TH: It came to Mikel in a dream.
NF: Mikel has a lot of premonitions. Like on the flight over here, he thought we were all going to crash.
Matt DePauw: No, he saw a ring of light, and it was hopeful. He grabbed my wrist and was shaking, and then his eyes went completely white, and he saw a vision…
VM: You raised the money to put out your EP Young Lore independently. How was that experience?
TH: It was fun; it was a actually a cool way to give back to our fans. You know, they would donate surprising amount of money, and then we just tried our best to make worthwhile things to give back to them. So, we just had a bunch of cool little perks.
VM: Who would you guys say are your biggest musical influences?
TH: I like INXS.
NF: Travis.
MD: Dr. Dre, 2001. I mean it, it’s a great album. It inspired me a lot.
VM: So, welcome to the heaven that is South by Southwest! Any really cool experiences yet? Or anything you guys are really looking forward to?
Rico Rodriguez: South by Southwest is just pure chaos. You have people throwing up on people, Lady Gaga flying around on meat, barbeques.
MD: Pretty much in the streets, too. She’s throwing up on stage, then you walk outside. Mikel saw that one in a premonition. He saw us eating gyros later, too…
VM: What is your favorite venue you guys have played?
TH: I like the Great American Music Hall in San Fransico; that’s pretty awesome.
NF: I like this place called Humphrey’s by the Bay in San Diego. It’s like a big outdoor amphitheater. You saw people on their boats pull up and watch the show.
VM: You were featured on Rolling Stone and on MTV Buzzworthy in 2011 and 2012. How did that feel to get that exposure?
NF: Pretty cool – like surreal. It’s something you never really think is going to happen, but then it does, and I don’t know. It doesn’t really click in until someone tells you it’s cool, and then you think it’s cool. I am really peer-pressure-influenced.
VM: How would you say your music has evolved since the beginning of the band?
TH: Since the beginning of time. It has just evolved. It has all been pretty organic, and I think recently we have been exploring a lot more textures and sounds and rhythm, so I think that’s the biggest thing. But also, just pushing ourselves to be a little bit more outside of the box.
VM: If you could play a live show or collaborate with any band or artist dead or alive, who would it be?
MD: Freddy Mercury. Or that guy Death Grips.
VM: What can we expect from Night Riots after SXSW?
Mikel Van Kranenburg: Lots of gold, gold rings. That’s what I saw.
TH: We are going to come home, and then we are actually just spending a couple of months just writing music, get[ting] a couple of music videos done. A bit of touring, and then we are going to start it all over again.
SXSW 2014: Bert McCracken x Vinyl Mag
As frontman of the well-known rock band The Used hailing from Orem, Utah, Bert McCracken is far from inexperienced in both performing and interviewing. During SXSW, we were lucky enough to sit down and talk with the veteran rocker for a few minutes of his jam-packed schedule. Despite his experience, we chatted about how he still gets nervous to perform, his fondness of Australia and the new The Used record that’s coming out this month.
VM: The Used manages to combine heavy rock and roll with strong, catchy melodies. [What is] your main focus when writing a song?
Bert McCracken: My main focus is the lyrics first, then melody second. I grew up listening to Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Neil Diamond, and so I appreciate pop melody and pop sensibility. I want to write a song that I want to hear.
VM: You have a new album, Imaginary Enemy, coming out in April. What can we expect from your sixth studio album?
BM: It’s really a more selfless record than we have ever written. We wanted to ask some big questions about some really serious issues facing the world, inequality, and love and humanity, and what are we all doing not treating each other with respect…these kinds of things. So, we really keep the writing general enough so you can take it for what it means in your own personal life. But this record is going a bit deeper than we have before, and just like your typical Used record, I think there are a lot of colors that paint this canvas. So you have your heavier songs and your lighter songs and your more experimental stuff, but I think the focus is more on the consciousness of the message.
VM: How do you feel like you have evolved as a band and stayed relevant since starting out 13 years ago?
BM: I think the relevance is in part to do with our passion, and also directly a product of honest, pure love of music…there are a lot of bands out there like The Used that are just truly passionate about what they do, because they love music. And I think that is the most important thing for us – status aside, money aside, attention aside, everything else aside – other than this unadulterated love for music.
VM: Let’s talk about the heaven that is SXSW. What’s your favorite part of the Austin festival?
BM: My favorite part of SXSW is just the camaraderie and the freedom of music. There is a band here, there’s a band there, there’s a band there, there’s a band there – how great is that? Purely for the music.
VM: What’s the coolest venue or event that you’ve ever played?
BM: The Gorge in Washington is really awesome. It’s this outdoor venue that’s right in front of this cliff.
VM: What has been your most outrageous experience with a fan?
BM: There is a fan that has this fake leg that he always throws up on stage, and we always talk about it. He’s got a beer keg in his leg, so there’s a tap, and he’s got drawers, adult cigarettes and all. But we also had a Make a Wish Foundation cancer victim who chose to come spend a day with the Used in 2005, and we became super close. We talked on the phone all the time. His name was David Smith, and he lost his battle with cancer about a year ago. But that was the most outrageous fan experience.
VM: Do you still get nervous before you perform live?
BM: Very nervous. And if I didn’t, maybe I would need to re-evaluate my passion a little bit. I care a lot about what I do, and I want everyone to have a really amazing time. I want that healthy escape to be as enjoyable and memorable as possible.
VM: How have you managed to preserve your voice after years of recording and performing?
BM: I don’t know. I don’t think I have. I just take it easy, really really easy.
VM: Who are some of your biggest influences?
BM: I would say a Brazilian Revolutionary named Paolo Freire is one on my major influences. Noam Chomsky, T.S. Elliot, Umberto Eco, Charles Dickens…George Orwell is one of my main influences. I would say authors influence me a lot more than other artists. I am a writer first.
VM: If you weren’t making music, what do you think you’d be doing?
BM: Writing.
VM: So you have a pretty sweet set-up living in Australia. What is your favorite part about living in the land down under?
BM: I love the Australian way of kind of protected market systems. They have really strong protection for family-owned independent business. I think the whole world should feel that out.
SXSW 2014: Charli XCX x Vinyl Video
Reunited, and it feels so badass! You know it’s going to be a good SXSW when your first interview is a follow-up with pop princess Charli XCX.
You may remember her from our video interview last year. OR you may know her from her awesome collaborations with artists like Icona Pop and Iggy Azalea (no, but seriously…anyone who has been in my office or in the car with me over the last two weeks month can attest to the fact that I can’t. Stop. Listening to “Fancy”). OR you may just be obsessed with her last album, True Romance and counting the days until her next. Either way, every one of you should know and love this girl by now.
We caught up on a balcony at the Hilton in downtown Austin for a quick reunion on the first day of South by Southwest to talk about her new projects and what’s next for her (but not before she viciously attacked me with my own microphone – don’t worry; we hugged it out). Enjoy.
SXSW 2014: Aer x Vinyl Mag
New-age hip hop duo, Aer, is comprised of Boston natives Carter Schultz and David Von Mering. Having just released their sophomore album earlier in March, the evolution in their style over the years is not only prevalent, but pioneer-style impressive. During SXSW, and (literally) hours into their arrival in Austin, we sat down with the two to pick their brains and find out what’s going on in their world. Give it a read, and follow that up with giving them a listen (I recommend “Feel I Bring,” but note that it’s been in stuck in my head for weeks now, and that’s a commitment in itself).
VM: It appears March and SXSW are the beginnings of an extensive tour for you two- what is the ratio of time spent on the road as opposed to off?
Carter Schultz: I’d say about 65 percent on the road and 35 percent off. It’s definitely what I prefer; I get stir crazy when I’m home in Boston.
VM: Are there any artist comparisons that you frequently get that you’re over hearing about?
CS: Anything “Frat Rap” – get out of here with that. I hope you didn’t have all of these bands you had compared our sound too…
VM: Well, I did have one in mind, but I wouldn’t consider Gym Class Heroes “Frat Rap.”
CS: Oh, no, I’ll take Gym Class Heroes any day. I just hate being put into that pool of college rap, or anyone who is just doing it really “normal.” If you really listen to our music, it’s clear how different it is than that, but I honestly think the real comparison solely comes from our age. We are of the typical college kid age, but that’s as far as it actually goes.
VM: What are you most excited to see and/or do, being that this is your first year at SXSW?
CS: I want to go to Iron Works; I want to see The Felice Brothers, and I’m really excited to be playing the same showcase as Dom Kennedy and Casey Veggies.
David Von Mering: I’m looking forward to everything Carter listed, but also to finding a new artist.
VM: Do you feel like you’ve had a breakthrough moment into the industry yet?
CS: I feel like we’re not even close. We’ve had our moments where we’ve had sold out shows where it felt a little surreal, but I wouldn’t say there’s been a “break.”
DVM: It’s funny, because I feel like five years ago the big “break” was just signing a deal, and now deals aren’t really prominent or even normal. I wouldn’t say we’ve had a break, but the “Feel I Bring” video did a lot for us.
VM: Currently, what are your favorite releases of 2014?
CS: I’ve been bumping Satellite Flight (The Journey to Mother Moon) by Kid Cudi a whole lot lately, and obviously the new Arctic Monkeys has been on replay non-stop since it came out.
VM: Are you two hands-on with your own social media accounts, or does anyone handle that for you?
DVM: Our manager usually does boring, dry announcements, but other than that it’s one of us.
CS: I think it’s so important to give that personal interaction. It takes tweeting, “Haha thanks” or a little smiley face, but that means so much to the fans. I’d say that we owe most of our success to the tools on the internet.
DVM: I’m not totally satisfied with my Twitter, personally, but I’ll get there. The thing with that is you can tweet one thing, and it gets totally misconstrued into something else. I do love Instagram, though, and all the photos from artists that I follow- I like that sh*t.
VM: Have you ridden in a pedicab yet?
CS: A bike cab? I have not, but our hotel is like seven miles away, so maybe they can take us that far. It’d probably take like eight hours or something insane like that. I did see this beautiful girl today who was a pedicab driver, and she had these leopard pants on- I may have to find her later.
VM: Do you both participate in songwriting, or is one of you more prevalent than the other in that aspect?
CS: David is the one who is most prevalent, because he produces all of the music that you hear. But in terms of songwriting, we each collectively come up with a concept, and I’ll write my verses to the concept, and David will write his hook to the concept. So I’d say we each have our respective duties, but David takes on the bulk of it.
DVM: Our songs usually start with instrumentation, so I usually try to let that dictate where I personally go with it. Also, if I have an idea but Carter doesn’t like it, we scrap it or vice versa. But definitely instruments come first and play the most part.
VM: What can we expect from Aer for the rest of 2014?
CS: Over the summer, we are touring the UK, and later in the summer we’re going on another tour that’s still in the works. In the fall, expect videos, more music, and just more.
DVM: This is just the beginning, kind of like one of those sitcoms like Seinfeld or Friends; there’s still a lot more to come from us.
SXSW Recap: Females Shine at House of Vans
Checking the pages upon pages of lineups the morning of March 12th with coffee in hand, I found it. I found the one party that day not to be missed. It was taking place at the historic Mohawk in downtown Austin. Four amazing female acts played, and they were not there to mess around. Below is a short synopsis of each act.
Unfortunately, I was running behind and arrived late to this rising star’s set (in my defense, no one is ever on time during the chaos that is SXSW). But on the positive side, I did get to listen to the last half from behind a protruding wall partially blocking the overflowing room for which she was playing. The number of people willing to pack into that small room was a good indication of the huge amount of talent this petite blond possesses. Her country twang had an infectious edge reminiscent of the rich voice of Stevie Nix. As her set came to a close, I understood why so much hype surrounded this artist coming into the music week of South by, and she sure lived up to it.
Kelela:
Oh, Kelela. I could listen to this songstress’ lovely layered voice for hours on end. She is impressive pre-recorded but even more so live, her voice boasting such a range from full and rich bass notes to beautiful and airy falsettos. Unfortunately her set overlapped slightly with Lydia’s, so I only truly caught the tail end. The uniqueness of her sound, her breathtaking voice layered on top an eclectic mix of bass, drum, and electronic tones, especially rang out on “Cut 4 Me,” the title track of her 2013 LP.
Her avant-garde sound is difficult to pin point, which could be because of her out of place feelings as second generation Ethiopian Immigrant raised in the states. Yet her music reaps amazing benefits from this situation, breaking the confines of any particular genre.
Charli XCX:
Punk pop princess of the UK Charli XCX was next on the bill at the House of Vans – the performance I had been waiting for all day. Bounding onto the stage, she immediately began strutting around the stage like she owned it, throwing her wild black locks around as she danced. Known for her synthy pop beats with a dark side, the 21-year-old shined on slower track “Black Roses” and fist pumping crowd favorite “SuperLove.”
Not only did she sound fabulous, she looked the part as well donning a lovely vintage plaid dress and stunning the crowd with her intense stare and sassy red lips. She ended her high energy set with an appropriate cover of the famous tune “I Want Candy.” Needless to say, Charli XCX did not disappoint.
Dum Dum Girls:
If you are looking for a powerhouse all female rock band, then go see Dum Dum Girls live. In their 40 minute set, the four-woman group managed to kill all guys rock harder stereotypes. Dee Dee’s voice soared high above the dreamy psychedelic guitars, sounding especially ethereal on tracks “Coming Down” and “Lord Knows.” All four wore all black, fitting for the slight melancholy that melds into their music. Addictive 80s melodies are sprinkled into certain tracks, especially those off their 2014 album Too True such as “Rimbaud Eyes” that captivated the crowd. Although the Dum Dum Girls went last for the females that day at the Mohawk, they certainly weren’t the least.
SXSW with Hunters
Hunters was my last interview at SXSW, and I have to say, I couldn’t have asked for a better one. Because it was the last day after a long week of running around frantically like a headless chicken, I was feeling a little fried, and forming full coherent sentences was getting a little complicated (more than usual).
Fortunately for me, Izzy Almeida and Derek Watson – Hunters – are two of the chillest, most conversational interviews I got all week. To cut to the chase, these dudes are just plain cool (cheesy? Deal with it). It was one of those interviews that felt like just hanging out rather than firing questions and receiving formulated answers.
We found ourselves a quiet little place to sit and talk, and we had ourselves a nice little chat about their SXSW experience, their influences, and what is next for them.
If you haven’t listened to Hunters, you’re in for a treat. Be sure to check them out. The duo has just signed to Mom+Pop and announced a tour with Bleached. So check out this interview, check out their tunes, and then be sure to hit up their tour.
VM: So, [how has it been at SXSW?].
Izzy: I’ve been having a lot of fun, even though I’m super sick – I have horrible allergies, I can barely breathe and I have no voice. But I’m still having a lot of fun!
VM: How has the audience response been?
Izzy: It’s been great, actually, yeah. I think it’s been a good opportunity to meet more people and see a bunch of bands. And it’s nice out and we’re coming from New York – it’s so cold there, so I’m enjoying it.
Derek: We’ve been running into friends in other bands, you know, all playing in one place…
Izzy: And you play some pretty weird shows, like playing after a rap group, and it doesn’t make any sense, but somehow the crowd’s into it and you’re like, ‘okay, cool!’
VM: It’s a really mixed crowd, but it’s fun. It keeps you on your toes, you know? So do you have a favorite venue or show that you’ve played so far?
Derek: I think maybe Mohawk.
Izzy: That was fun, yeah.
Derek: I’m trying to think what else… it’s kind of all a blur… oh, no! The Gypsy! That was the best one.
Izzy: Oh yeah, the Gypsy was awesome; it was like a house party. It was really cool. It was really packed and small, really cool. It was really fun; I didn’t really have a voice, but it didn’t matter.
Derek: Yeah, there was one monitor, and it wasn’t really working, so we couldn’t really hear ourselves, but it made us feel comfortable. You know, it made us feel like we were doing something we always do, so yeah, that was probably the best one.
VM: So I read you met at your job, and then you never went back.
Derek: It was a horrible job. It was one of those things were you’re in New York and you have to get a job quickly.
Izzy: It was definitely a temporary job, like, ‘okay, I’ll do this for now, and then I’ll go find something else,’ you know, but then we found each other. That’s really cheesy.
Derek: Wow. You should write Hallmark cards.
Izzy: I do actually, that’s what I do on tour!
Derek: That’s her next job! She just comes up with different cards and then sends them into Hallmark (laughs).
VM: So, did you find your sound the first time you ever played together?
Izzy: No, it was really weird and easy for some reason. I don’t know why. Well, I think the reason why is we had an adventure, playing together…we had talked about music before and had a lot of similar tastes and backgrounds.
VM: You’ve been compared to the Stooges and Sonic Youth. Do you like that comparison – do you think that’s accurate?
Derek: I don’t know if it’s accurate, but it’s nice. I mean, those bands are awesome.
VM: Izzy – I read that you’d had a bunch of bands in your head since you were a kid. Was it always the same genre?
Izzy: Oh, when I was way younger, it was really cheesy stuff, like…it’s embarrassing. But then when I started getting more into rock and stuff, that’s when I started trying to write rock songs, but they were really bad because I was really young. I still remember them because, wow, they were awful. They’re going to the grave with me (laughs).
VM: No sharing?
Izzy: No way. It’s definitely one of those secrets you have to keep.
Derek: And I think maybe the Sonic Youth thing comes up, because we use tunings for our guitars and stuff, so maybe in that way I could hear it. And, you know, since it was a guy and a girl, I think people gravitate toward stuff like that automatically. In that way it makes sense.
Izzy: The Stooges and Sonic Youth were definitely a big influence for me, especially coming from Brazil where it was hard to find out about bands. So for me finding out about the Stooges and Sonic Youth was already a huge thing, like, ‘oh my God, I found it!’ And there was a scene in Rio that knew about those bands, but I wasn’t part of it. Like, my brothers and sisters were listening to stuff that’s just not good, and I was just trying to find stuff out on my own, you know?
Derek: Yeah, and they’re really good intro bands, bands that you can start to dig with.
VM: So how did you get put in touch with Nick from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs to mix you?
Derek: We just knew him from around, and the timing was just such that they were on a break – like they had just finished touring, and they were kind of taking a break to sort of regroup and have a little time for themselves – and he was down; he was like, ‘oh, I’m kind of interested in doing stuff with you.’ And we didn’t have any money, so for someone to offer to do it for free was kind of, you know, from the heavens. No matter who would’ve asked us we would’ve said yes, to be honest. It was just a really lucky situation. And he was super cool about going back and forth with mixes and stuff like that, so that worked out really well.
VM: Wow, that’s awesome. So, [Izzy] what was it the Village Voice said? Did you read that? They said that when you’re on stage, you’re the world’s most rhythmic stroke victim.
Izzy: I feel like that makes sense actually, because sometimes when I see a video of a show or something, I feel like I’m just not even in rhythm, like I don’t even know what’s happening. I think it’s funny; it’s cool. I don’t care.
VM: So I know we’ve talked about your favorite show, but who’s your favorite person that you’ve seen at SXSW?
Izzy: I haven’t been going to that many shows, because I’ve been so sick!
Derek: Wow, I’ve seen a bunch. Believe it or not, I think Riff Raff was kind of awesome. I wasn’t expecting that. I wanted to see the dude from Hawkwind – he was doing Space Ritual, but I couldn’t go – I think we were playing at the same time. That was kind of a bummer. We saw Pangea and FIDLAR – that was good. We saw like a song of Bleached.
VM: Aren’t you touring with them?
Derek: Yeah, almost as soon as we get back we’re leaving.
Izzy: Yeah, we’re recording and then we’re going on tour.
Derek: It’s hard to say though, I feel like you just see so many things here. I might wanna see Waka Flocka tonight, if that’s possible. It’s like a guilty pleasure.
VM: Do you wanna see JT (laughs)?
Derek: Oh, is that tonight? I didn’t have any plans to do that, but that could be kind of funny. Where is that?
VM: Is that that MySpace secret show or something?
Derek: Oh yeah, doesn’t he do MySpace now or something? They’re like revamping it or something?
VM: Yeah, every time I hear about MySpace now it’s associated with him.
Izzy: Maybe it’s an urban legend or something, because I don’t know how I found out about that, but that’s all I hear.
Derek: Yeah, it’s like I think of them together, which is weird, because I haven’t thought about that website in so long.
VM: So, you’re touring, and then are you coming up with anything new?
Derek: Yeah, we’re finishing our record as soon as we get back. We’ve got a bunch of days where we’ll finish up everything. I think we record the day after we get back, so we’ll be nice and refreshed for that, right (laughs)? But yeah, we record for a bunch of days, and then we leave a few days after that to go on tour with Bleached, and then we’re out with those guys until the end of April… and then we’re back, and then we have another tour after that.
VM: And you’re coming to Atlanta?
Derek: Yeah! Are you gonna come?
VM: Yeah, I’m from Athens, which is right there.
Derek: Oh, that’s pretty close?
VM: Yeah, it’s like an hour, so we’ll be there.
Derek: I’m not sure where we’re playing but…
VM: The Earl.
Izzy: Oh, I’ve been there before, it’s fun, I like it!
Derek: Oh, that’s cool. Yeah, we played the Drunken Unicorn there once, and the Masquerade.
VM: Did you play upstairs there, or…?
Izzy: Yeah, upstairs.
VM: Yeah, the Masquerade has Heaven, Purgatory, Hell…
Derek: So we were Heaven-sent? But the backstage was like Hell. It felt like jail, like a holding cell…
Izzy: It was like a green room, for real – everything was green.
Derek: Yeah, it had a high ceiling, but there were no windows, and there were these really weird, greasy chairs. It was fine. I mean, it was actually really funny. I actually liked the stage there. You could really get to the audience.
VM: Yeah, that’s cool. The floor though, if you’re in the audience, I always feel like I’m gonna fall through. It freaks me out every time.
Derek: Yeah, that’s kind of scary.
VM: Well, cool, we’ll see you in Atlanta then!
Vinyl Mag’s Guide to SXSW
Indescribable. But here I am, about to try to describe it.
SXSW was intense, exhausting, physically painful at times, and overwhelming. But it was also arguably the best week of my life. I’ve never had so much productive (and thoroughly professional at all times, of course) fun in my entire life, and I’m already ready to go back. Seriously…is it next year yet?
It is important to note that, more than being the X Games of music festivals, SXSW is also a conference and an incomparable networking opportunity. Most of the day for me was spent attending parties and exchanging business cards American-Psycho-style, making connections and building mutually beneficial business relationships (such a hard life).
This was my first year at SXSW (and definitely not my last), so I had a lot to learn. Like…a lot. And fortunately, I had the presence of mind to take notes so that I could share my knowledge with you – and so I would be prepared the next time around. So here it is. My rundown of SXSW 2013:
Favorite venue: Mohawk.
Least favorite venue: The Belmont (too crowded; unless you get there four hours early and wait to be in the tiny pit, anywhere you stand provides a pretty unimpressive view of the stage).
Favorite discovery: Ginger & the Ghost.
Favorite day parties: Spotify, Yard Dog Gallery (both of which required some serious Frodo-and-Sam-style trekking, but were well worth it).
Favorite food: Taco N’ Madre food truck (I don’t know what the sauces are, but don’t ask questions and just put all of them on your tacos — you’re welcome).
Favorite live performance: Still is (and may always be) Diarrhea Planet. They make me act stupid and get sweaty, and I appreciate that.
Favorite line-up: Sirah, Charli XCX, Icona Pop, and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis all played at The Belmont on Night One. Pretty epic.
Favorite app: Hail A Cab Austin (this saved me countless times when I was trying to get to an interview. Wish I’d discovered it Day One. Kind of wish I hadn’t told you guys about it. If I can’t get a cab next year, I’m blaming my readers).
Biggest show I sort of made it to (but more like listened to from far away): Flaming Lips at Auditorium Shores Stage. So crowded I would have gotten the same experience watching it on TV.
Earliest bed time: 3 a.m.
Latest I slept in: 8:30 a.m.
Best public place to regain strength, charge your phone, use the bathroom, and lay on the floor and complain about how much pain you’re in: Austin Convention Center upstairs (surprise, surprise).
Favorite street: Rainey Street.
Favorite celebrity sightings: Standing in line behind Pauly Shore at Iron Works BBQ, meeting Perez Hilton at the VH1 Cafe, and being too scared to go talk to LeVar Burton at the Sennheiser + Paste Interactive Studio & Lounge on Rainey Street.
Favorite fan-girl moment: meeting Icona Pop at the VH1 Cafe and acting extremely uncool about it (sorryI’mnotsorry for creeping).
Favorite score: Generous Unknown Girl came up to me while I was sitting pensively on a bench and asked me if I wanted the free red American Apparel skirt she got because she didn’t feel like carrying it around. If only she had a backpack (see Lesson One below). Thank you, Generous Unknown Girl. I am forever grateful to you.
Biggest rip-off: Wu Wu Fest advertising “free Wu Wu sushi” at their party if you RSVP/”Like” them on FB…what they should have said was “one tray of six pieces of free sushi to be passed around once every two hours so you probably won’t get any unless you hang out by the kitchen, suckers”…I’m bitter, yes, but I was really hungry.
Most pointless “secret show”: Justin Timberlake at Myspace. It’s not a secret show if it’s plastered all over the wall of the building in giant letters.
Now that I’ve shared my high and lowlights with you, let me move on to the valuable lessons I learned…
Lesson One: Don’t wear new shoes, stupid. Wear the most comfortable, walkable shoes you can find. I don’t care if they are Crocs (actually, I take that back — Crocs are inexcusable), but in this case, style is secondary to practicality. I seriously have blister scars on my heels from these stupidly adorable mint Oxfords that I thought were a good idea. Damn my vanity.
On that note, go with a backpack instead of a purse. Hands-free is where it’s at. And throw a sweater in there. It gets a little chilly at night.
Lesson Two: Let some things go. You will never be able to stick to the uber-strict time-crunch schedule you have made for yourself, so allow yourself to go with the flow, always have a Plan B, and remember to leave yourself some time to stumble upon some new discoveries. That’s part of what SXSW is for. It’s not just a festival to see your iPod playlist come to life (did that reference date me? Should I have said Spotify or Drinkify playlist?).
Lesson Three: Bring your phone charger with you. Bring a portable charger. Trust me. You’re gonna be InstaTweetVining the crap out of this thing, and your phone can only handle so much.
Lesson Four: Don’t wait in line for any band for more than 15 minutes. It is a waste of time. You are missing too much of the goings-on around you, and chances are the band you are impatiently waiting for will be playing an unofficial show tomorrow at 2:00. Which brings me to…
Lesson Five: Do not rely strictly on the official SXSW show schedule. Now, don’t get me wrong, this schedule is THE BOMB, and the SXSW app on your phone that allows you to make your own schedule kept me from running around like a headless chicken (more than I already was, anyway), but chances are, your must-see-or-it-was-all-for-nothing band is playing either a day party you don’t know about or an unofficial showcase somewhere. Look up your priority bands on their Twitters and websites, and chances are you’ll be able to track them down.
Lesson Six: Stalk Twitters and RSVP to absolutely everything you plan on attending well in advance.
There you have it. Now let’s do that again.
SXSW with PEACE
You’ve probably heard of PEACE by now. This British quartet are making serious waves in the music world, and we can’t get enough of them. They’ve been called the future of indie rock – although, as you’ll see in this interview, they don’t consider themselves to be “indie.” Either way, they are “the future of something.”
I was able to catch up with them for a few minutes after a morning showcase at South by Southwest to talk a little bit about what drives the music, their boredom, and who they enjoyed most at SXSW.
They are men of few words, but honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. They are the perfect caricatures of true rockstars- they give the impression that they genuinely don’t care, and it’s not a facade. They prefer to let their music speak for them. PEACE is a group of musicians, and they don’t feel the need to be anything else.
Their album, In Love, just dropped yesterday, and we’ve already run through it several times. Be sure to check it out right after you check out this interview.
SXSW with The Staves
You can’t not love The Staves. As someone who is prone to more than my share of girl crushes (I’m talking about you, Sarah Balliet, Alice Glass, Carrie Brownstein, Missy Gilbert…), I gotta say…these ladies are awesome.
The Staves gained popularity in the US through their tours with The Civil Wars and Bon Iver, and they recently released their debut full length Dead & Born & Grown in November. And since it’s been on repeat on my iPod since it was introduced to me, I was super pumped for this interview.
I met up with Emily, Camilla, and Jessica Staveley-Taylor in the convention center in downtown Austin on the third day of SXSW. I was greeted with genuine friendliness and free chips and salsa (give me food, I will love you). After a little bit of chit-chat, we got our interview on. So go ahead and live variously through my hangout session with The Staves. Enjoy.
Vinyl Mag: I read that you grew up listening to Crosby, Stills & Nash and The Beatles, which is kinda what I grew up with, because my mom was always listening to it. So, how does that effect your writing? Does that have an influence on you?
Camilla: Yeah, it definitely does in terms of the structure, vocal arrangements and stuff of The Beatles and Crosby, Still & Nash. When you think harmonies, you think Crosby, Stills & Nash more than The Beatles. But The Beatles have amazing harmonies, amazing arrangements, backing vocals, lines…I think that influenced us a lot.
VM: So, this is just a pattern that I noticed. I don’t know if it’s coincidence or not, but you’re playing St. David’s and then you’re playing St. Mary’s, and then you’re playing – what is it, St. James? Is that just me noticing a pattern or is that a thing?
Jessica: We are very holy people. We like to think of ourselves as the Holy Trinity. We always try and play saintly locations.
Emily: I hadn’t realized that there were so many churches.
Camilla: We should do like a saints tour.
VM: I was like, that can’t be a coincidence, but apparently it is.
Jessica: St. David’s here we played last year, and it was like the highlight of the week for us, so we’re really excited to play there again. It was so cool.
VM: So, you’re all sisters?
Camilla, Jessica, Emily: Yes.
VM: So how does that [work for you]?
Jessica: It’s definitely not [the normal sibling dynamic], but it works for us though. We get along really well; we always have. We always hung out together at home and had a shared group of friends and shared tastes, so it was never like a question really. We work well as a band, so we always have so much fun together.
VM: So what are your ages?
Jessica: (Points to Emily) She’s the eldest, I’m the middle, and she’s the baby (points to Camilla). Can I just say that?
Camilla: We’re all 21.
Emily: Yeah, we’re all 21.
VM: So you’ve toured with bands like The Civil Wars; how was that?
Jessica, Camilla: Great!
Camilla: It was really fun. That was like our first US tour, so it was really cool…mostly in the south. We were on the tour bus with them, and that was like a whole experience in itself. It was like ‘ah it’s our bus’ it was so cool!
Emily: I don’t know; it really felt like one big family. We didn’t have anyone with us…like, we didn’t have a band; we didn’t have a manger or anything, so it was just like us in there – such a small little unit.
Jessica: We just kinda said, ‘do you have room in your bus? Can we come on with you?’ Otherwise we’d have to drive a car, and they were like, ‘yeah, come on with us!’. Which is really nice of them…luckily for them we were really cool (laughs), and they were really cool.
Emily: It was lovely. We got to play some cool places.
Jessica: And we played here at the Paramount.
Emily: Yeah, it was crazy.
VM: So do you think crowds or fans are different here in the US than in the UK? What are the differences?
Emily: I don’t know. I think audiences are different, like [there are] ifferent audiences depending on who you are playing to…I don’t know if there is a huge cultural variety. Back in the UK, I guess our experience has been that Americans have been more instantly vocal with their reaction.
Jessica: On that tour with The Civil Wars…[the American audience] would just be like so friendly as we were on stage. They’d be like, ‘you guys are great!’
Camilla: ‘Welcome to Texas!’
Jessica: It was just so nice. I think maybe English crowds are a bit more reserved.
VM: So do y’all all write, or does one person do the writing?
Camilla: We kinda take turns.
Emily: Some songs will be more one person than the others, and some songs I couldn’t really remember who wrote which line. It’s just kind of all three of us. It depends on a lot of things. When we first started, not living in the same place, there were quite a few miles between us, so we would write individually and then come together and as we learned the parts of each others songs, they’d change and become a ‘Staves’ song rather than like a ‘Jess’ song…it’s basically pretty collaborative.
VM: So you just released your debut album, Dead & Born & Grown. How did you come up with the name?
Jessica: Well it’s title track. It’s one of the songs on the album, so we called the record that because that song was one of the first songs we’d ever written together years ago…so it was kinda the beginning of everything, so it’s got a really special place for us. It’s got a really nice..what’s the word…
Camilla: It’s got everything from the beginning to now…so it’s kind of like a compilation of everything – some of them were written knowing we would make an album and needed more songs, and some of them we’ve had written for ages, so it’s sort of like a ‘best of’…
Jessica: (Laughs) We were gonna call it like the ‘Greatest Hits’ but we thought maybe that wasn’t the best title for it.
Camilla: ‘Best of the Staves!’ (laughs)
Emily: We just saw someone while we were trying to cross the road, and we were waiting for the lights and this guy in front of us just started walking, so I started following him, and he just turned around and said, ‘don’t follow me – I’m drunk!’ And sure enough cars just kept passing ahead, and I thought that would be a quite good album title.
Jessica: (laughs) ‘Don’t Follow Me, I’m Drunk.’
VM: So I’m getting an exclusive preview for your next album title.
Jessica: (jokingly) Oh, yeah- we’re always inspired by everything around us.
VM: So The Guardian compared you to Mumford & Sons. How do you feel about that?
Jessica: I think that Mumford & Sons fans would be very disappointed if they bought our album. Especially bangers. No bangers on there.
VM: I’m actually not a huge Mumford & Sons person, so that was kind of a surprising thing for me too. It just seemed a little random.
Emily: It’s strange, because then people put Laura Marling and Mumford & Sons in the same category. They’re so different..like what? I think it’s just because they come from the same time, and they are kind of in the same group of people, but musically, I don’t get it.
Jessica: I think because Mumford have done so well there is kind of like an umbrella term for those types of bands – which we’re happy to be under. They’re great, and it’s always great when there’s a band that gets the success it has, and it kind of opens the door for people that are doing harmonies and playing acoustic guitars…something that’s not super pop or R&B. We’ve been doing this for so long, we’ve always listened those records like The Beatles and Crosby, Still & Nash, and for a long time that wasn’t cool. We were just kind of rattling around at home loving that music, but no one else was really into it. It seems like now there’s a real awareness I think of that whole thing. So bands like that have done a really good job. It’s cool.
VM: So who are you most looking forward to seeing?
Camilla: Alt J. Really wanna see them.
Emily: Mikhael Paskalev.
Camilla: Mikhael Paskalev, yeah. Make sure you get a chance to see him.
Jessica: I don’t know who else is playing!
Camilla: It’s so tricky when you’re playing. You [know that there are] all those people that you want to see, but it’s quite hard to actually find time to get to the places.
VM: How many shows are you playing here?
Camilla: I think it’s three. Not like a horrendous amount.
Emily: And then there’s like a session or so.
VM: So what is next for you after SXSW?
Jessica: After this, we go home and we do some laundry, sleep for a bit, and then we’re going to go on a UK tour…so yeah, that short run around the UK and the rest of Europe, and then we’re going to come over here in May and do our first headline tour in the US, which is May into June, which is really exciting.
VM: Are you coming to Georgia?
Jessica: I hope so!
Camilla: I don’t think the routing is 100 percent finished yet.
Emily: Every time I see it, it’s changed.
Camilla: If not, we’ll probably be kind of close by. I think it’s going to be a short tour, like six weeks or something.
Jessica: Your country is massive. Touring at home is like two weeks, max. You scratch the surface each time in America, which is kinda the exciting thing about it.