SXSW 2019, Day 5 w Mike Krol, Spider Bags, Gymshorts, Bad Moves, Low Cut Connie, The Beths, CHAI, and Charly Bliss

Charly Bliss

The Ides of March

After our showcase at Hard Luck Lounge on Thursday, Chris Dickman and I surprised ourselves with how early we were up and out the door. We took the rented equipment back over to the good people at Austin's Rock n Roll Rentals (Again, can't recommend them highly enough), and then picked up the Yawn Mower dudes for a little blunch at P. Terry's Hamburger Stand.

Chris was looking to browse for some records, and I still hadn't caught a set from Mike Krol. The stars aligned on that one as Mike Krol and his band were playing the Waterloo Records Day Party. We hopped over there, and I got myself situated in the photo pit.

One of the things I often forget to do when shooting a show is format the card in my camera before I start. After about 16 shots of Mike Krol, I got the message that my card was full. Forgetting that I had my SD card case in my bag, I just re-formatted the one in the camera and pretty much missed out on my two-song allotment from the pit. Oh, well. I shot from the barricade, and still ended up with way too many.

Mike Krol

I've grown into a huge Mike Krol fan over the last several months. This set was good, but it didn't have the wild vibe of an indoor club at night with Krol's strobes giving me a seizure.

We left Yawn Mower at Waterloo so they could see Spiral Stairs, and I headed to The Side Bar where The Midgetmen's annual Jump Start showcase was going down. Chris and I took our sweet time, and I ended up walking in just as Dentist were breaking down from their set. Who knows if I'll ever get another chance to see them play?

There were plenty of other bands on the bill that I wanted to see, and I managed to catch sets from Spider Bags, Gymshorts, and Bad Moves. I've seen Spider Bags a bunch at this point. Friday's set took me back to that first time they blew me away at The Saint. I remembered Gymshorts from their opening set for Tacocat at Rough Trade a few months back. They're heavy and loud with a big dose of humor thrown in.

Gymshorts

Spider Bags

I've loved Bad Moves since their self-titled EP from a couple of years ago. 2018's Tell No One is one of my favorite albums maybe ever. It's a power-pop masterpiece. I'd never managed to catch a set from them before, though; so I was grinning like an idiot when they played "Spirit FM," "The Verge," and other songs I've been in love with for a while now. Both Gymshorts and Bad Moves played in the bar, and it was bordering on pitch black in there.

Bad Moves

The line across the street for The Current's showcase at Barracuda was around the block for most of the day. By the time I walked over there at 5pm or so, things had died down enough for me to get inside for Philly's Low Cut Connie. I was able to stake out a spot up front among the Low Cut Connie die-hards. Frontman Adam Weiner is a showman and a blast to shoot. He came down from the stage at one point and put a big bear hug on me as well as anybody else he bumped into in the crowd. It's impossible not to get swept up in the emotion and community of a Low Cut Connie set, and I was feelin it.

Low Cut Connie

Time for a dinner break, so Chris and I headed over to one of the many Torchy's Tacos that dot the city. I would eat at this place every frigging day if we had them here. Then, we drove over to Hard Luck Lounge just in time for me to walk in after another set from Dentist. Welp. Guess that was probably my last chance with them.

Anyway...

2/3rds of Dentist and I headed over to the Rolling Stone party at Native Hostel to catch The Beths and Charly Bliss; while Chris, Emily, and Yawn Mower headed over to Lady Bird Lake to see the big show from Big Boi, Cee Lo, and Dungeon Family.

Native Hostel was starting to pack out, but we got in early enough that I was able to worm my way up front. Taylor Janzen was playing when we walked in. In just the few minutes that we watched, the Winnipeg native blew me away with her voice.

Taylor Janzen

The Beths delivered another great-sounding set, but they were clearly a little more subdued than when I'd seen them earlier in the week. When I'm at South By Southwest, I'm kind of cut off from the news. It wasn't until after they'd played that I learned of the horrific terrorist attack that took place in their home country of New Zealand earlier that day. It stung to think about how they must all be feeling being so far from home on such a sad day. All I could do was silently will some peaceful vibes their way.

The Beths

In between The Beths and Charly Bliss was Japan's CHAI. What a wild set. Twin sisters. Everyone dressed in pink. Sugary, joyful, and a little bit subversive. Narduwar The Human Serviette was right next to me absolutely loving them. Judging from my Instagram feed, I think I'm the only person who was at South By Southwest who was too nervous to ask him for a picture.

CHAI

Charly Bliss came out and powered through a set marred by technical problems. They did their best with virtually no help from the on-site sound crew. Beths' guitarist Jonathan Pearce eventually came out and did some of the sound crew's work for them, dealing with the microphone that was shocking singer Eva Hendricks for the entire set.

Charly Bliss

For their part, Charly Bliss did what they could. The understandable frustration became apparent at points, but they didn't let it sap the fun from their set. I love Charly Bliss's debut, Guppy. I'm still not 100% sure how I feel about the band's new sonic direction; but, live, the new songs definitely had some edge.

Our two groups reconvened at Attabar to end the night. I did some designated driving and Uber'd back to the hotel to rest in preparation for one more go on Saturday.

SXSW 2019, Day 1 w Deerhunter, The Beths, PRIESTS, Sweet Spirit, Fontaines D.C., and Black Midi

Katie Alice Greer of PRIESTS

Welcome to Austin

As Rosi and I were walking through the Austin Convention Center to pick up our press badges for this year's South By Southwest Music Festival, I told her, "The key is to pace yourself. Don't try to do too much." I then promptly ignored my own advice.

My flight out of Newark was at 7:55 AM ET, I got to the airport super early; so I could meet Rosi before her flight which meant I was up at like 4 AM. Just before boarding the flight, I saw my friend Joe from Jersey City; and we grabbed a couple of seats together for the flight down to Austin. I was at my hotel by around 2 and having that conversation with Rosi in the convention center by 3. After some coffee and cursory planning for the week, we went our separate ways. Rosi headed over to Hotel Vegas for Strange Brew VIII featuring Thee Oh Sees, and I made my way to Mohawk for A.V. Club's "Just Another Manic Monday."

Mohawk runs 2 stages, an indoor and an outdoor. I posted up at the outdoor stage and didn't bother going back and forth so I could keep my spot. I parked myself just as Black Midi were starting. The London band are young and noisy, not doing your typical pop or rock. They've built a buzz for themselves without too much of an Internet presence, and their set was pretty relentless.

Black Midi

Fontaines D.C. followed them and were a revelation to me. I had no idea what to expect when they came out, and the Dublin band blew me away. Full-on post punk intensity. Singer Grian Chatten stalked around the stage full of stressed out energy. They had lots of fans who'd pushed up front, and I get why. Two bands into the week, and I already have a new favorite.

Grian Chatten of Fontaines D.C.

Old favorites, and Austin locals, Sweet Spirit were next on the bill. It's the second year in a row that Sabrina Ellis and Andrew Cashen have welcomed me to Austin (Last year, it was A Giant Dog at Hotel Vegas); and it's a tradition I'd love to maintain. The guy standing next to me had never heard of Sweet Spirit before their set; and, by the end, he was reaching over the monitors to grab their setlist.

Sabrina Ellis of Sweet Spirit

I missed The Beths at their sold-out Music Hall of Williamsburg show last week, so I was looking forward to catching them here. The New Zealand four-piece were spot-on live, delivering the songs from their excellent debut LP, Future Me Hates Me, with pop precision.

The Beths

It had been a while since I'd seen and shot D.C.'s PRIESTS. They're another band that brings the post punk intensity, and they are just an absolute blast to photograph. Funny moment: Guy standing next to me was talking to lead-singer Katie Alice Greer and asking if she'd play a song called "White Knights" or something. She said, "That's not one of our songs." He goes, "Oh wait. Apple music has your songs mixed up with this other band called Priest, and I've been listening to both!"

"Well, I hope you still enjoy the set," she said.

Priests

I thought about bailing after the first few songs from Deerhunter. I really wanted to see them, but I'd been up since 3 AM local time and hadn't eaten all day. It was starting to catch up with me. But, once they came out and started playing, I had to stick it out. All the noise, the vocal effects, the songs. Bradford Cox is pretty much a genius, and there was no way I was leaving.

Deerhunter

Weirdly, a mosh pit broke out at a couple of points. Cox leaned over to some of the people in front and asked if they were ok. Then he said, "Don't mosh towards the stage. Mosh towards the exit."

When it was all done, I climbed up the hill back to my hotel and enjoyed a late-night (early morning) dinner of the honey roasted peanuts and Wheat Thins Chips I got in the goodie bag from the hotel. My feet already hurt, and I'm a little beat; but it was so worth it. I'll see if I can't follow my own advice going forward.