Ulrika Spacek Played Baby's All Right with Honduras and No Swoon, 10/17/18

Ulrika Spacek by Rose Lamela

A Breezy Fall Night

Words and Pictures by Rose Lamela

Going out during the week is hard for me as I have settled in my ways of kicking off my shoes after work and relaxing in my cozy dwelling. I've been embracing the older me, so it only bothers me part time. When it starts to get cold out, I get even worse. I growled to myself a little when I saw Ulrika Spacek playing on a Wednesday; but, when my second thought came in,  I was immediately reminded how much I love this band.

I left my shoes on this past Wednesday and set my mind to Brooklyn. I usually hit shows on my own, but this time I had a companion. Hitting the streets of Brooklyn with someone to enjoy the over-priced coffee and thrift store creatures is definitely rewarding. Introducing someone to a new band and then bonding over a live show is priceless. If the rock gods are listening, thanks for the plus one on the guest list!!

Baby's All Right is a sweet venue. It's very spacey and has a specific room for the live music madness. I especially loved the decor and found myself with a feeling that this was what it was like in the 1960s in London when Pink Floyd was playing the psychedelic circuit. Ok, maybe that's not accurate, but the desire for it to be real is serious.

No Swoon started off the show with some soft vocals over the crunchy sounds of a guitar. In and out weaved the synthesized keyboard sounds of what was a good start to a show. Very mellow and a precursor to what was ahead. Honduras woke us from our meditative state only to kick it into a solid gear. There was a woman in the audience that struck up a conversation with me just to tell me that this was her favorite band. I smiled and understood immediately.

No Swoon

No Swoon

No Swoon

No Swoon

No Swoon

A little after Honduras walked off the stage, a weird mix of synths and a french-speaking woman started playing as the stage got super dark and a projector lit up the back of the stage. Maybe I am on point when I thought Pink Floyd in the 1960s. It looked like a live show I watched on VHS of Floyd playing "Interstellar Overdrive" back when Syd Barrett's acid problem was still manageable. Or was it?

Honduras

Honduras

Honduras

Honduras

Honduras

Ulrika Spacek took the stage, and I looked behind me to see a packed, dark room. They were worth coming out for on the first cold day of the fall. They played a few songs from their latest album, Modern English Decoration, which has been playing in my car for most of the year. The best jam session they had was during the song "Everything, All the Time." I try not to compare things when I listen to bands, but their live performance was very reminiscent of Radiohead but way more raw and louder. Lead singer, Rhys Edwards, stopped playing at one point to make a comment about the decibel restrictions in NY and London. I had no idea what he was talking about as my sensitive aging ears found it rightfully loud. I am not complaining, as I love my music loud; and this band damn well deserves to be as loud as they want. I was especially delighted to hear the song "Full of Men."

Ulrika Spacek

Ulrika Spacek

Ulrika Spacek

Ulrika Spacek

Ulrika Spacek

We exited the room and witnessed a completely different universe of happy Brooklynites dancing around after midnight. I got myself together, and we walked into the cold breezy fall night. It's these nights where you swear the next morning will not hurt but it always does. Even though I woke up feeling like my eyes would never fully open, all I had to do was put Ulrika Spacek on my car speakers for the commute to work, and everything was just right. I'm ready to hike it back to wherever I need to go, where the wallpaper screams kaleidoscope dreams and the music is louder than my thoughts.

Check out Rosi's full photosets over at her Flickr account.

SXSW Day 6 w/ The Gloomies, Dentist, Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires, Fruit & Flowers, BOYTOY, Sharkmuffin, Kino Kimino, High Waisted, Honduras, A Giant Dog, and Roky Erickson, 3/17/18

A Giant Dog on the big stage.

Rock Or Die

Saturday was the big day of our "Rock Or Die V" showcase. Little Dickman Records, The Garden State Beard & Mustache Society, and I worked on it together; and we held the show at Valhalla Tavern right in the thick of it on 7th and Red River St. The line-up was chock full of friends and favorites with The Gloomies, Dentist, Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires, Fruit & Flowers, BOYTOY, Sharkmuffin, Kino Kimino, High Waisted, and Honduras. All of these bands were super-busy throughout the week, and it was great to be able to get them all for our show.

The Gloomies

Dentist

Lee Bains & Tim Kerr

As for the show, what can I say? With the amazing folks on stage and in the crowd, it was a beautiful day. The Gloomies won me over during their 11:30 time slot, their Southern California vibe a perfect start to the day. Dentist's Emily Bornemann took a pretty serious spill following one of the band's shows on the way down to SXSW, but she played all of Dentist's showcases -- including Saturday's -- like a trooper. Except for the Band-Aid on her chin, you would never have known she was injured. Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires played at around 1pm with all of the abandon and passion that you'd expect to see in a packed room on a Saturday night. High Waisted have a new line-up, and brought a rainbow of color to the darkened bar. As Honduras were finishing up their set, a group of us bounced along with the music while cheering CoolDaughter #1 on in her 200 yard breaststroke final as I livestreamed it on my phone. Everyone else was, without exaggeration, fantastic, ripping through 25-minute sets and leaving us all wanting more.

Fruit & Flowers

BOYTOY

Sharkmuffin

And this is the kind of stuff I live for. Lee Bains or Kim Talon (Kino Kimino) bringing their guitar down into the crowd to play a bit in the scrum. Tarra Thiessen asking us all "Are you still having FUN at SXSW??" during Sharkmuffin's "Fun Stuff." The crowd screaming for more from BOYTOY or Fruit & Flowers as the house music came up.

Kino Kimino

High Waisted

Honduras

Almost as important, the show ran on time; and everyone was able to get to their next gig. After packing up and loading out, a bunch of us -- the Dickmans, Matt Beardo, Joe Stalker, the guys from Dentist, and I -- headed over to the big, outdoor stage for A Giant Dog and Roky Erickson. The stage was set up in a vast green space next to Austin's Lady Bird Lake. The photo pit was huge, and that left a giant space between the audience and the main stage.

A Giant Dog

A Giant Dog

A Giant Dog played their set and were maaaaaybe slightly more subdued than they were at Hotel Vegas on Monday. They didn't censor themselves at all for the family audience, which was welcome (by me, anyway); and they owned the big stage.

This got me thinking, though. The show was such a stark contrast from the show we just threw at Valhalla and even from A Giant Dog's own set earlier in the week. I missed being thrown around by the crowd at Hotel Vegas as the dust flew up from the ground and as Sabrina Ellis or Andrew Cashen got right in my face. I missed the connection you feel with the band and the audience in those close quarters.

This is no knock on A Giant Dog. Their songs are more than strong enough to bridge much of the divide created by the big stage. And they deserve to be playing the biggest stages in the world. They are that good. But the contrast made me understand what it is I love about going to shows. It's the music, sure. But it's also the shared, communal experience of living those moments -- an experience that doesn't really happen for me when the band is several yards away and several feet above my head. (Aside: I realized that I'm not as comfortable shooting those kinds of shows either.)

Anyway.

Following A Giant Dog's set, we hiked around the grounds in search of some food. I hadn't eaten anything all day. We got back in time for the set by psych-rock pioneer, Roky Erickson. Both times I've seen him, the experience has reminded me of seeing Brian Wilson in recent years. Neither is the same as they were when they were younger (Who is?), but they are surrounded by a band that seems to know all of their idiosyncrasies. And the chance to hear classic songs ("Night of the Vampire," "Don't Shake Me Lucifer") performed by the person who created them is a chance I never like to miss.

Roky Erickson

There was a lot more stuff going on late into Saturday night and into the wee hours of Sunday morning, but I had walked / stood / bopped / bounced / taken pictures about as much as I could for the week. My flight was at noon the next day (Which, in SXSW time, might as well be 6am), so I went back to the hotel to pack and get some rest.

And so my third year at SXSW drew to a close. As I've said before, if I were better at this music website thing, I probably would have had a bunch of artist interviews or photoshoots or whatever; but I'm first and foremost a fan. I pretty much just went to shows and took it all in. There were bands I missed for one reason or another (A Place To Bury Strangers, METZ), and I had some pangs of FOMO as I watched the Instagram feeds of my friends who stayed through Sunday for the "hangover parties;" but this was my most rewarding year in Austin. By now you know that I'm all about shared experiences, and there's just something so cool about being away from home and sharing this experience with friends. I hope I can do it again next year.

I've got a ton of pictures to edit, so keep your eyes peeled for a few big photo blasts in the coming days. For the most part, though, it will be back to our regularly-scheduled programming.

One of Those Weekend Round Ups Featuring The Brixton Riot, Dentist, The RockNRoll HiFives, L.A. Witch, Honduras, Lyons, Pink Mexico, Waxahatchee, and Ought

Waxahatchee's Katie Crutchfield

Full Weekend

This past weekend will go down as one of the absolute best I've experienced show-wise in a long time. I got to spend lots of time hanging out with friends while seeing some great bands. I went and checked out New Jersey's newest concert venue. I took and edited a whole bunch of pictures, which is why I'm so late getting this recap posted today (well, that and the weird power brownout we had here for about 4 hours).

On Friday night, CoolDad Music sponsored the release show for The Brixton Riot's latest album, Close Counts at Asbury Park Yacht Club. We had our friends in Dentist and The RockNRoll HiFives on the bill, and all three bands delivered big time.

The confetti flew on Friday night.

The Brixton Riot

The RockNRoll HiFives kicked things off; and, even after a full day of work and school, their energy level was off the charts. The floor of APYC was a sea of confetti following their set. The Brixton Riot's Close Counts is song after song of expert power pop, and the band brought all of that great, tight songcraft to their set. Dentist shared some new material, and it sounds like some of their best so far. I'm really looking forward to hearing what they've been doing in the studio. Beyond just the music, though, the show felt like a real party; and it was fantastic to have CoolMom, the Dickmans, Mint 400, and all the bands there to celebrate.

Dentist

Saturday brought a show I'd been looking forward to for what felt like months. Little Dickman Records assembled a bill at The Saint that featured L.A. Witch, Honduras, Pink Mexico, and Lyons. Asbury turned out in force for the show, and the people who were there saw a good one. The sound at The Saint is top-notch, especially with Hinge at the board on Saturday nights. Pink Mexico took full advantage of it and shook all the dust from the ceiling during their set. Lyons played to an enthusiastic crowd of friends and brought out some new material of their own. Honduras are like some kind of psychedelic post-punk combo and BLEW. ME. AWAY. L.A. Witch closed things out in almost total darkness with reverb-heavy, psych rock vibes.

Pink Mexico

Lyons

Honduras

L.A. Witch

A quick stop over to Bond St. Bar to wish a happy birthday to Dentist's Emily Bornemann turned into a not-so-quick stop. It's okay, though, because we gained an hour; and I got home at a semi-reasonable time.

Come Sunday, I was pretty spent. Kind of a weird day in general with the whole reversion back to Eastern Standard Time thing. CoolFamily ate dinner at around 4:30 because we were going by the kitchen clock which nobody had bothered to adjust. That worked out because I had one more show to get to for the weekend, and it was all the way up in Jersey City. I'd be heading up to the brand new White Eagle Hall for Waxahatchee and Ought.

White Eagle Hall is a beautiful venue. Kind of a cross between something like Bowery Ballroom / Music Hall of Williamsburg and WARSAW. Lots of space. Good sound. Food. Access to the bars didn't seem too bad. It also had really nice stage lighting, which always makes me happy. Security were a little weird about wanting to maintain a "buffer zone" between the audience and the edge of the stage. Everybody was relatively laid back, though, so it wasn't really a problem. Looking forward to the next time I can make it up there.

I've been a fan of Katie Crutchfield's Waxahatchee project since its lo-fi, bedroom beginnings on American Weekend. The band has evolved quite a bit since then with the latest record, Out in the Storm, being the most polished and -- I think -- most consistent. I've seen Waxahatchee / Katie Crutchfield in various live incarnations over the years, but it's been a while. On Sunday, I saw a set honed by years of touring and performing. Crutchfield and her band have really taken things to another level performance-wise, and the set touched on most of Waxahatchee's back catalog as well as the new material. There were moments of all-out rock and moments when it was just Crutchfield, her amazing voice, and her guitar.

Katie and Allison Crutchfield

Katie's sister, Allison, is part of the Waxahatchee touring band playing keys and guitar. The pair's voices play off of each other beautifully.

Post-punk band Ought opened the evening and turned in a pretty amazing set of their own. It reminded me how much I liked 2014's More Than Any Other Day, and I spent most of today listening to that. The band have another LP coming out early next year, and people in the audience already seemed pretty familiar with single "These 3 Things."

Ought

So, what is that? Nine bands over three days? Kinda crazy I guess, but I've been happily reliving it all by going through the pictures today. You can check those out in the Flickr galleries or on the Facebook page. I thought briefly about making it four nights in a row by heading out again tonight, but I am totally exhausted. Live to fight another day, I guess.