popwreckoning

Local Kansas City band, Everyday/Everynight has been busy this year.

Here’s a recap so far:

-They played the MidCoast Takeover showcase at SXSW this year.

-Released an EP. I had the chance of getting my hands on this and it is extremely good.

-Love Drunk, this really awesome one-shot video project out of Omaha did a session with ED/EN at the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum here in Kansas City. To watch that go HERE. The song is “You’ve Died In A Dream” which can be heard on both the EP and upcoming full-length. The video was recorded on the first night of Love Drunk’s upcoming 15-date tour.

“A small crew of audio and video nerds will capture performances by acts from each city at visually, historically or otherwise interesting locations.” – lovedrunkstudio.com.

To check out their other projects, which capture talent from all sorts of media arts areas, go to lovedrunkstudio.com.

-Now, back on track. ED/EN also released “You’ve Died In A Dream” on a compilation done by PopWreckoning and Element Recording Studios (to get one, email casey@popwreckoning.com).

-They finished their third full-length album, etc.,  which is set to release on May 17. BUT pre-orders are available now. With the pre-order you will receive an immediate download of the entire album and get $2.00 off – $2.00! That’s two tacos!

Oh, and if the album is anything like the EP then make sure to pick up a copy. Which you can do  either online or from the band in person. Which brings me to my next point.

-Their upcoming tour!

May 20th – St. Louis, MO at Lemmon’s
May 21st – Lexington, KY at Underdogs
May 23rd – Philadelphia, PA at Kung-Fu Necktie
May 24th – New York, NY at Kenny’s Castaway
May 25th – New York, NY at Local 269
May 26th – Tillonsburg, ON at Norma Jeans
May 27th – Grand Rapids, MI at Pyramid Scheme
May 28th – Grand Rapids, MI at TQ’s Magic House
May 29th – Chicago, IL at Quenchers
May 30th – Madison, WI at High-Noon
May 31st – Minneapolis, MN at Cause
June 1st – Des Moines, IA at 504 Club
June 2nd – Iowa City, IA at The Mill
June 3rd – Omaha, NE at O’leavers
June 5th – Kansas City, MO at recordBar

Their Kansas City date is the release party for etc.

LINKS!
Love Drunk Session
Website
Facebook
Email

The Body Rampant just dropped a new EP, Transient Years. And prior to the EP’s drop, the experimental rock band took SXSW by storm. The group took the time during the festival to chat with PopWreckoning about how they formed, where they got equipped with their well-known paper mache mask accessories and more. You can check out the full interview with the band below:

PopWreckoning: How did you guys meet and form the Body Rampant?
J.M. Lopez, Vocals: I was playing an acoustic show back home and met our bass player, Dylan [Schleifstein]. He was playing in another band. I was in northern California at the time and moved down to LA with this kid, Dylan, and we just recruited basically all the members on different outlets. Me and Jacob [Nichols] had been in touring bands, previously in the past, like hardcore bands, stuff like that. We kind of knew each other–recruited him. Found Ryan [Sabouhi], our other guitar player. off Craigslist.
Ryan Sabouhi, Guitar: Yeah, Craigslist: a really good outlet for several different things – selling shit, etc.
JML: Then we found our drummer, Mike [Thomas]. He’s just a rockstar. We knew about him from basically everyone in town, you know what I mean?
Mike Thomas, Drums: Word of mouth
JML: Yeah, word of mouth. He’s a smoking drummer. We’ve got a good lineup. We’re pumped.

PW: How did the masks on stage thing come about?
MT: Basically,JM knows this guy, Duane Flatmo, who is just this incredible artist and he actually made all these masks out of paper mache. It just catches the eye with an alter-ego kind of thing.
JML: A lot of the breweries and local companies, he does art for them – murals. He’s a world famous artist – he’s been on the Tonight Show and shit. I just, well, he’s a local in northern California, where I’m from, so I’ve just always seen his stuff around. We just hit him up with our music and he liked it and was down to work with us.

PW: Did you draw any influence from other bands that use costumes/masks on stage?
Jake Nichols, Guitar: We don’t really use them on stage, so it’s not like we’re the KISS Army or something like that.
RS: We just use them to basically get our name out there and have this kind of huge thing going.
Dylan Schleifstein, Bass: I think we use them because it enables us – when we put the mask on it gives us the freedom to go out and do what we want and not worry about what else is going on
JML: Our bodies are basically rampant when we have the masks on – we can do what we want. We can get nuts. When we’re on stage, we still get nuts, but we’re a little more ourselves.

PW: What can people expect from your live show?
RS: Energy. Energy for days. We’re like a pop band, alternative rock band, but we like to rock.
JML: We hate when bands just stand there and they’re not loud. We like to be really loud and move around a lot.
MT: A lot of involvement. You want to get the crowd as involved as possible: best way to bring them on.
JN: We just try to have fun with our live show.

PW: Sounds great. Now you have a new EP, Transient Years. Tell me about that and how you came up with the album title?
JML: The album title is kind of loosely based around the masks as well because they’re transient – and it’s like when you’re stuck in time in one place and you’re doing nothing for so long – it sounded cool too. The album comes out April 5. We’re pretty stoked on it.

PW: Who would you say are some of your influences on the album?
DS: So many.
RS: We have varied, but similar musical styles. Casey Bates–we got to work with on a lot of the songs. Definitely working with a producer who had that much input and had worked with so many other big bands that could coach us to be as on point as possible. Musical styles? Could go for days. Anybody’s who’s good.
DS: We listen to hip hop, oldies, metal, grind – everything.
RS: You’d never know that by listening to the CD. A lot of different artists we listen to have to do with our style.

PW: So who are some of the people you’ve been checking out at SXSW? Have you had much time?
MT: That’s the problem when you’re a band at southby, you don’t have time to see your favorite artists. We tried a couple times.
JN: Saw Wiz Kalifa – that was awesome.
JML: Saw The Limousines – they were sick. Mike, did you see anyone? Mike was the drunkest, haha.
MT: Dude. I probably did, but I don’t remember. The Stroke s- I wanted to see the Strokes really bad.
DS: Saw the singer and drummer walking around. He was so dirty. haha.
MT: He gets paid basically to be that way.
DS: If i was him, I’d get that dirty.
JML: Girls love that.

PW: So what’s after South by for you?
JML: We are during a lot of online, commercial stuff.

PW: What’s your favorite social media outlet to reach out to your fans?
JML: Facebook.
DS: Facebook’s where’s it’s at.
JN: There’s been a lot of cool things we’ve seen popping up at SXSW and a lot of people approacing you about it. Everyone’s trying to build the new Twitter.
MT: The new iPhone app.
JN: We usually use Twitter and that goes to everything else. we like to keep it simple. post to Twitter.

You can follow the Body Rampant on Twitter here and find out more from them on Facebook here.

The Gallery is a rock band that knows how to write catchy hooks and sharp lyrics. The Florida band by way of Massachusetts is made up of brothers Brendan Cooney (vocals/guitar) and Ryan Cooney (drums) and their friends Shea Brennan (guitar) and Dave Mozdzanowski (bass/vocals).The band recently performed at SXSW 2011 and took some time to chat with PopWreckoning about their Come Alive EP, the festival and future plans. You can read the full interview below.

Bethany, PopWreckoning: Let’s start at the beginning. Where’d you guys meet and how did you form the Gallery?
Ryan Cooney, drummer: Brendan [Cooney] is my brother, so we met at my house. Haha. Shea [Brennan] lives in our town and Dave [Mozdzanowski] lives near by, so we’ve all been friends. We’ve played together and we kind of branched off from all the people that we were playing with and started playing in our basement and went from there. 

PW: I know on your bio that is says you’re all from Massachusetts, but you call Florida your second home. What’s the connection between the two?
Dave Mozdzanowski, bassist: We went to school down there. I went down for school, then Ry came down after a couple of years and then these two guys [Brendan and Shea] came down a couple years after. Then we met a lot of friends down there, so we have all those connections.

PW: For people who haven’t heard your band, how would you describe your sound and what are some of your influences?
Ryan: We just say rock. It’s so easy to put a bunch of adjectives in there, but I guess people say it has a kind of folk feel. We do listen to a lot of music like that. Bob Dylan – we’ve learned a lot from his songs. Then Tom Petty, 90s rock bands like Oasis or Third Eye Blind or Matchbox 20. We like everything, so I guess it just comes together to form some sort of rock music.

PW: You guys have a lot of support from a lot of online and print publications. You were just involved with a Rolling Stone unsigned cover battle contest. How did you get picked for that? Is that still going on?
The Gallery: We got involved in it – we played Miami for a festival that someone in the industry suggested that we go to and then next thing you know, we got picked. We were just in the top 16. The top 8 have already moved on. It’s over now for us.

PW: You guys have been playing every single day of SXSW. What have you learned from your experience and if you had to, what would be in a SXSW survival kit for you?
Ryan: We’ve…moderation would be the key, probably. A lot of bands, I’m sure, only play one set or a couple sets and then have the rest of the week to do whatever they want, but if you’re busy playing everyday, it’s probably not the best idea to stay up really late. Especially if you’re sleeping on the floor of hotel. We’re at the Marriott – downtown Marriott. We had to sneak in through the garage last night. Take it easy, enjoy the music and stay busy.

PW: What have been some of the craziest or coolest things you’ve seen since you’ve been here?
Brendan Cooney, singer/guitar: We were actually saying it’s not exactly as crazy as we thought it would be. I think it’s just the type of people that are attracted to this kind of music fest. There have been a lot of drunk people. That’s the craziest that I’ve seen. Coolest things? We only caught one song, but this Augustana set – that song – was the best song that I’ve seen all of SXSW.
Ryan: I feel like yesterday [Friday] we saw the best bands. At least my preference.
The Gallery: This guy from The Testament over at Rusty Spurs – this jazz fusion thing. That was the best.

PW: What’s next for you after SXSW?
Brendan: We’re actually going back to Florida and we’re playing some music festivals in Florida. Then we’re going to tour up the East coast and do some shows in the New England area. Then we’re going to hit the road for a month or so after that.

PW: You guys just released an EP. Is there a plan for a full-length?
The Gallery: We’re kind of playing it by ear. We’re not sure, but we’re always writing, so there’s always an opportunity for the next release.

The Gallery’s Come Alive EP is available now. Get it on iTunes and Bandcamp at thegallerymusic.bandcamp.com.

Ethereal Brooklyn act Acrylics had a busy schedule at 2011′s SXSW, but they found some time to catch up with PopWreckoning. The synth heavy duo, Jason Klauber and Molly Shea, chats about new album Lives and Treasure, Super moon vibes and the influence of “Twin Peaks. Check the full interview out below: 

PopWreckoning: You just played a set here at SXSW, earlier, right?
Jason Klauber, Acrylics: Yes.
PW: Was that your first SXSW performance ever?
Molly Shea, Acrylics: First of this year.

PW: You’re a fairly new band and you just had an EP that came out on Grizzly Bear‘s Chris Gehringer‘s label – the first to come out on his label. How did you get hooked up with him?
JK: Pretty much we’re a part of that Brooklyn band cesspool. We’ve crossed path Chris over the years and he thought it’d be fun to have us record some sessions. These sessions ended up being put out as an EP, so they just put it out. At the time they were just doing singles, and we were just going to record a single, but it stretched out into a 5-song thing. It was really casual. We spent about a week in a church that he records out of. It was really fun to do that. That was our first release and we’re putting out a new record – well it just came out.
MS: It came out March 1.
JK: We’ve been working on it for so long that it’s hard to say – to put it in the past tense, but it did come out.

PW: It’s still pretty new. Present tense. Now on that record, you did a song with Chairlift‘s Caroline Polachek.
MS: She’s just a friend that we met three or four years ago just through musicians in Brooklyn. It’s really true about Brooklyn, I guess.

PW: Well how would you describe that Brooklyn scene? Is it like just being in a family or…?
MS: It’s so huge that there’s so many different groups of bands that know each other. It’s hard to classify the whole sphere.
JK: It’s more of a social thing. Musicians like to hang out with musicians, and there’s a lot of them in Brooklyn. It’s as simple as that. With Caroline, she came to visit us in the studio one day and we had that song going.
MS: Very casual event.
JK: Yeah, we said you want to sing some backup vox? And she said yes, so next thing you know she’s singing.
MS: We thought it was the perfect song for her.
JK: She did some vocal athletics at the end of the song and it’s very atmospheric. Like, “ah-ah-ah-ah,” so we thought she deserved a feature and credit on it.
MS: It was a vocal solo.
JK: She’s a phenomenal singer, so it’s just fun to have her lend her talents to what we were working on.

. “Sparrow Song” ft. Caroline Polachek

PW: So for people who haven’t heard your music, why should they check your record out?
JK: It’s a good record.
MS: We put our hearts and souls into it. I know it sounds corny, but it’s true.
JK: I think there’s some good songs on it and it’s produced in a way that makes it a great record to listen to by yourself in an intimate space. It was created much with that type of intimacy. It’s like watching a movie that takes you from place A to place B while you’re lying in bed. I think you can achieve something similar if you run through the course of our record a few times as well.
MS: It’s a personal, intimate record. I imagine people listening to it on their headphones.
JK: It’s certainly not for everybody, but I think that people who will connect to it, will connect and have connected, in a very sincere and meaningful way. That’s what it’s about for us.

PW: Who are some of your influences on the record?
MS: Tough question.
PW: That’s supposed to be one of the easy questions.
JK: Haha, yeah. We didn’t want to sound like anybody else, but if we ended up sounding like everybody else, it can be a good thing, you know?
MS: We listen to a lot of different – I mean, I love a lot of 60s psychedelic music. I love a lot of loud, hard rock. That might not have come across in an obvious way on the record, but it’s there. We have a lot of punk rock roots that we feel are strong.
JK: I was in the middle of the “Twin Peaks” series when we were making the record so a lot of the Angelo Badalamenti scores for that project had some influence over the sound. In terms of the songwriting, we were just taking from everywhere. For me – most of those songs are just written on acoustic guitar in your bedroom. You decide as just two people how to build up your sound. I think we were interested in cinematic, rich, layered textures. When we were making this record, I wanted something that was connected to a classic, rooted American feeling, but we also wanted to bring in other worldly elements, so that together you’re home, but also somewhere else. You know, that feeling when you come home from being away and you feel great to be home, but at the same time, home looks different than how you remembered it. That sense of being somewhere else when you’re somewhere familiar. That sort of weird – we were going for that.

PW: Since we’re talking while at SXSW and this is kind of a huge and crazy festival, what are some of the coolest and craziest things you’ve seen while here?
JK: A fight! We saw a really crazy fight.
MS: We walked really far into East Austin to check out our friends Das Racist play yesterday. It took us about on hour to get there and it was in a strange part of town and a fight broke out after the show.
JK: Like someone getting his head stomped kind of fight. Very scary. Everyone ran out. It was like walking out into rural Arkansas in the 1960s. We live in the ghetto of New York, so…
MS: We love that kind of shit. We love to go on adventures like that.
JK: We lapped it up like a cat.
MS: We saw all sorts of strange things happen the other night.
JK: There’s this thing called the extreme super moon, which is coming on Saturday. It means that the moon is the closest to Earth that it’s been in 18 years. I think this stuff happening coincidentally with the super moon, is dark vibes.
MS: So everyone be vigilant.
JK: We thrive off those sorts of vibes. We wear black on the outside because black is how we feel on the inside. Haha. I say with a smile. Haha.

PW: Haha. So what’s next for you after South by?
MS: We’re going on a national tour, late April to May, with Junip – Jose Gonzalez‘ band. So we’re super stoked about that because we’ve never done a full tour.
JK: We’re bringing the message to the people. We’re in the process of writing a new record as well.

PW: One record just out and you’re already doing the next one?
G: Absolutely. We stay working. All the time. Writing. That’s what we do.

You can find more about the Arcylics, including tour dates, at myspace.com/acrylicsnyc.

Fort Collins-based dream pop band Candy Claws, played Larimer Lounge last Thursday alongside Santa Barbara indie rockers Gardens & Villa and Denver electro pop duo, FLASHLIGHTS to an amiable crowd who turned an otherwise quiet night into a blissful dance party. Candy Claws’ conceptual indie pop has recently struck a chord with various music publications and critics, including Pitchfork, as fresh and ambitious. Founding member Ryan discussed the band’s experience at SXSW with PopWreckoning, and explained the intent behind “Candy Claws in Dreamland,” a series of “documentary vignettes about nature,” that the band is releasing weekly.

Brianna Hernandez, PopWreckoning: Where does the name “Candy Claws” stem from?
Ryan, Candy Claws: The name Candy Claws sets up a vivid contrast – sharp danger with sweet innocence. There’s not much of a story behind it, just two words that sound cool together. It also rings of Christmastime.

PW: How did you come up with the idea for the “Dreamland” series? Did you approach Pitchfork about featuring them or did they come to you?
CC: Whenever we’re trying out new sounds for an album, we like to put them to video to help get the right feel. This time, we figured we’d make it a weekly thing, and let everyone hear and see what we’re up to. We live right next to the mountains, so beautiful footage is just a car ride away. Our wonderful publicist and label guys worked their magic with Pitchfork.

PW: Explain your creative process.
CC: We think of our theme first. It was the sea, then the forest, and next will be the Mesozoic Era. That helps to give a specific direction for the sounds and arrangements. We work on chords and melodies next, recording everything as we write. Lyrics come very last.

PW: You are largely inspired by nature. What else inspires your music and writing?
CC: Science and the scientific mindset. The world is incredibly beautiful, bizarre, and enthralling the closer you look at it, the further back you step. Thinking about deep time and the far future. Carl Sagan. The cosmos. Evolution. Burt Bacharach, George Gershwin, Tchaikovsky. Golden Guides.

PW: What made you want to record Christmas songs?
CC: Some of the best songs ever are Christmas songs. They have the perfect balance of sweetness and melancholy, some very clever chord changes, exciting dream pop instrumentation – sleigh bells, etc. It seemed worthwhile to add to the canon.

PW: What is it like performing with your close friends? Do they get to weigh in on the creative process? Do you ever have any disagreements?
CC: It works, for the most part. It just Kay and I making all the creative decisions on the records, so when the time comes for everyone to learn the songs for the live set the parts are already there.

PW: Your previous work has been inspired by “The Sea Around Us” by Rachel Carson and “Secret Life of the Forest” by Richard M. Ketchum? How did you get into Carson and Ketchum?
CC: I found Rachel Carson’s “The Sea Around Us” at my grandparents’ house, and fell in love at once. They have an extensive collection of really great, old science books. I love to visit and poke around for new material. Lots of Sagan, Attenborough, etc. Kay found Richard Ketchum’s “The Secret Life of the Forest” at a used bookstore in town. The illustrations were what convinced us to buy it, and when we read through it the words were just as inspiring.

PW: You performed at SXSW for a second year in a row this year. What was your experience like?
CC: SXSW was a blast. It was a special time because SXSW 2010 was our first time out on the road, so this year was sort of an anniversary for us. It’s our favorite fest to play, by far. It was hot and chaotic, and all the people and bands we’ve been in touch with over the year were all there in one place. We played seven shows in four days, and some of us were in the first annual SXSW fashion show. So fun!

PW: What does the remainder of 2011 have in store for you?
CC: We’re hoping to tour Europe in July, continue the Dreamland series, and make a new album. Fingers crossed!

—

You can check out Candy Claws’ new video series here and download an mp3 of their song “Snowdrift Wish” below.

. “Snowdrift Wish”

Saturday at SXSW was a day of great excitement mixed with a little sadness. This was the final day of the festival, which meant there some big heavyweights to look forward to, but this was also it. When the music stops on this day, it’s time to go back to reality.

I had big plans for Saturday, and sorry folks, but they didn’t include Kanye. I didn’t really care to trek all the way out to that venue just to gain street ‘cred.’ Saturday I was anticipating seeing Community’s Donald Glover rap, Panic! at the Disco‘s return with just two of the original members and of course, some of my favorite local bands.

I began my day on a very sunny rooftop (hello, sunburn) to interview some of the fantastic artists on Big Picture Media‘s roster. PopWreckoning talked to bands such as LoveBettie, Death on Two Wheels and more. We even talked to a representative from To Write Love on Her Arms. You will find those interviews posted on PopWreckoning in the come days.

After grabbing some much needed coffee after the interviews, I decided to check out the PureVolume House. I hadn’t been yet this year and was feeling guilty for already missing out on so much of their amazing lineup. PureVolume throws one of the best parties at the fest. After grabbing some free pop chips and and a drink, I found a nice spot to watch James Vincent McMurrow. I had heard the name, but had yet to actually hear any of the music. The vocals were amazing – just beautiful. The gentle folk tunes performed a nice backdrop for this guy’s standout voice.

Home Video followed with some fun pop rock songs, but I had to head out after just a song because I had a long walk to catch one of my favorite formerly-local bands.

I hope these guys know how much I love them, because it was quite a trek across the interstate to find the tiny park that the Noise FM were about to play in. My poor feet! This Chicago trio (formerly of Lawrence, Kan.) delivers fun indie dance rock songs. Singer/guitarist Alex Ward‘s voice was a little scratchy from the jam-packed week of performances, but it was still fun and his sore throat didn’t stop his good humor – there were plenty of jokes to be had about the Pabst sponsorship.

From there it was back to the main stretch of the fest to catch the ever-so-wonderful Chop Shop/Atlantic Records Showcase. (PopWreckoning has interviews to come from that showcase as well, so keep an eye out). Scars on 45 had just started when I made my way in. The six-piece British band quickly had me hooked with their catchy indie pop tunes with passionate lyrics.

After Scars on 45, I caught another performance from Kansas City’s very own the Republic Tigers. I had already caught them at SXSW at the Central Presbyterian Church, which was an ok performance, but the guys seemed a lot more together for this one. It was a huge improvement and especially showed on their newer songs, which were a lot more engaging this time around. Perhaps all they needed was that extra rehearsal, but boy, what a difference it made. “Merrymake It With Me” especially stands out from the new material and really gets you dancing.

My final Chop Shop/Atlantic performance was the rock/punk act the Joy Formidable. Frontwoman Ritzy Bryan was mesmerizing to watch as she executed some beautiful dynamic control. The petite woman has some power to her pipes.

A brief phone charge and a giant water later, I found myself in line in front of Red 7. A group of us were eagerly anticipating seeing one of our favorite NBC comedy stars: Donald Glover. But instead of performing comedy, we’d get to see him rap. Unfortunately there seemed to be some confusion about what line we were supposed to be in. Our line had merged with a line for the Beauty Bar’s “secret show.” The secret act? Death from Above 1979. It was very tempting to stay in the line I had accidentally ended up in for Death from Above 1979. Very. But I was excited about Glover and there were like 20 other acts I wanted to still see that night. If I went to DFA, I’d be committing myself to only seeing them after a long wait. I tweeted what I was considering, but settled on finding the correct line for Glover.

Some running around with a group of Glover fans and we finally found where we were supposed to be for Glover’s performance as Childish Gambino. By some crazy luck, once inside the venue, I found myself standing right next to Glover’s “Community” co-star: Danny Pudi. Nicest and most genuine guy ever. He talked to everyone around him, answered tons of questions and took photos with a people with a very authentic smile. It was great to see him there supporting his best friend, not only on television, but in real life as well. When it came time for Childish Gambino to start, Glover began with, “Alright. Where’s my boy, Danny? Let’s get a light on Danny.” A spotlight found where Pudi was standing and everyone cheered. With a big grin, Glover finally set into his first rap.

Glover’s rapping isn’t quite as smooth as his acting, but he has a lot of potential. His lyrics are hilarious and filled with pop culture refrences. Some roughness to his voice and occassional rushing of the lyrics against the music where his primary flaws, but those are things that I have no doubt he can work out with more practice and chances on stage. This was, after all, one of his first live performances as Childish Gambino.

From Childish Gambino, I found myself at Stubbs. I had no idea who was about to perform, but there was a group of guys very, very excited in the front row. I asked them the band about to play. “Tres Mountains!” they excitedly responded. They looked a bit aghast when my face still didn’t register any sign of recognition. “Pearl Jam‘s guitarist!” They finally cheered together. I admit, the music was not my type of thing. The guitar solos were pretty amazing, so I get the excitement there, but as a whole, the songs really blended after awhile: none really stood out.

In complete contrast to Tres Mountains, the band that followed blew me away. Awolnation came out and the way the audience responded, you would have thought that this was some sort of legendary act that had been around for years – not some band that just got their first single on the radio just a few months prior. Perhaps some of the excitement was carryover for singer Aaron Bruno, who started Awolnation as a solo project after his other band, Under the Influence of Giants, went on hiatus. Awolnation is atmospheric indie rock – there’s almost a spacey quality to it, but it is also very heavy, and thusly, grounded. It isn’t what I’d usually call danceable, but there’s an element of dance to it at times. It’s a big blend of a bunch of different genres and these guys pull it off well.

Bruno is very charismatic on stage. A stretch of his arms produces a wild cheer from the crowd. A reach out of the microphone gets a huge chorus response. Bruno was also the first musician that I heard bring up the tragedy of the earthquakes and tsunamis in Japan. He not only voiced his concern and support of the country, but he also wrote it on his arm.

The band I was most eager for at Stubbs was Panic! at the Disco. I know that I lose hipster points for liking such mainstream music, but I can’t help it; they’re fun. This performance was a of particular interest to me because not only were they debuting several new songs, but it was also one of their first performances since the band was reduced to just two of the original members: singer/pianist Brendon Urie and drummer Spencer Smith. Two friends filled in on the bass and guitar parts vacated by the former bandmates.

This was a ridiculously fun set. We laughed, sang and danced. Urie has one of the most animated faces that I’ve ever seen in music. Even when he flubbed some lyrics on a new song and had to peek at a cheat sheet, it was still a fun moment. I also really enjoyed when he squeezed in “super moon,” into of his lyrics: “your eyes are the size of the super moon.” This band has come a long ways from when I first saw them six years ago and brushed them off as Fall Out Boy ripoffs. I stand corrected for my younger self’s comment.

To end out my night, I decided I would hole up at the PureVolume House. They had a great lineup planned to close out the evening. One of my favorite violinists, Owen Pallett was finishing tuning when I arrived. I found some friends at the venue and found a spot to watch Pallett. They had never even heard of him and were a bit wary of a guy with a violin, doubting he could really rock out. Their jaws dropped once he began playing. Pallett is a one-man show, but he creates his full sound by engaging in loops. He plays out a line on the violin and records it. Then plays it back as he plays or sings something new. It’s fun to watch him build songs on stage. His music is sweet and breathtaking. For those unfamiliar, you might recognize his signature sound on some early Arcade Fire work. He used to heavily involved with their string arrangements and he even wrote one of his songs about the love story of Will and Regine from that band.

I had already caught a Cults set during SXSW, but they continued to impress with their mysterious lyrics and lo-fi indie rock.

It was getting late and I was ready to grab some Z’s before having to drive back home the next day. However, I was determined to make SXSW go out with a bang, so I planned on sticking around for PureVolume’s final band of the night: Das Racist. Some DJ kept the crowd awake and moving, but what should have been a fifteen minute started to turn into over an hour. Finally, the duo in Das Rascist jumped up on the stage. After all the anticipation, this was my biggest flop of SXSW. These guys were so drunk that they were barely together and coherent. It was a complete mess. Some drunk kids up front still seemed to enjoy it, but after waiting for as long as I did for the shit show, I quickly left after two songs. This was not worth it, but at least I saw plenty of other amazing acts to make up for it.

My phone had died ages ago, shortly after my last tweet about possibly seeing Death From Above 1979. So I was surprised when I had tons of missed calls, missed texts and missed tweets about what happened to me. True, I hadn’t meant to be out past four – dumb Das Racist’s fault – but the amount of worry about my whereabouts seemed a bit much. Turns out the Death from Above 1979 set turned into a riot and police had to come pepper spray and taser some of the crowd. People thought I might have been a part of that because of my last tweet. Eeks. Maybe I ended out my night the right way after all. Regardless, this was a very memorable experience and I look forward to seeing what future years at SXSW bring.
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Check back for interviews from SXSW. You can see more from PopWreckoning’s Bethany and her experience at SXSW at the following links: Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3. Check out more photos from Saturday, March 19 below:

SXSW – a time to explore, see new music, and eat a ton of street food. Also a time to meet new people and hang out with friends you wouldn’t normally get to see. Amongst all of the official SXSW showcases there are tons and tons of unofficial parties, official parties, unofficial showcases, and other cities showcasing their own talent. That’s exactly what Kansas City did.

Friday: First stop of the day, the MidCoast Takeover showcase at Liberty Bar on East Sixth. A ton of Kansas City, Lawrence and Chicago bands all drove or flew or transported down to Austin for the unofficial showcase. Seeing a band from Kansas City play in Austin at this huge festival is a little surreal to me. They’re friends and people that I see night after night at bars or at restaurants having dinner.

The first band I saw was the Slowdown. I’ve been hearing their name a lot lately but hadn’t had the chance to see them yet. Even though the sun was hot and burning my skin, they grabbed my attention enough to stand outside for the set. For more information and to listen go to their Facebook.

I missed most of Auternus‘ set due to the need of food, and of course, the free Boulevard.

Apparently it was a day to see bands that I hadn’t seen before. Even though I feel like I should have. Next up, the Republic Tigers. I absolutely love watching these guys. Vocalist Kenn Jankowski‘s energy on stage combined with the rest of the band just makes me… happy. Seemed like everyone else had the same impression too, dancing along with new tunes from their upcoming EP.

Oh, Appleseed Cast. How I kick myself for not going to a show sooner. I’ve missed out on so much. They absolutely blew me away. Actually, I don’t even have words to describe how awesome it was. They’re such an influential band to every other band that I listen to now. I had friends from New York, Chicago, and all over the country at this showcase just to see them.

The rest of my day consisted of wandering around Sixth Street, eating veggie dogs and hanging with friends. Kind of a slower midday for me when it came to shows.

Tried to make it back to Liberty Bar in time for the Beautiful Bodies, but didn’t get there until right as they were loading out. However, I did get to catch Cowboy Indian Bear‘s set. And per usual, they didn’t disappoint.

Back to the west side of the bridge for Junius at Valhalla. I had never heard of these guys, but my friend convinced me to go. I’m really glad I did too. It was intense, and heavy. I loved it.

Saturday seemed the longest and busiest day out of the entire week. Woke up late, rushed to get downtown for a few interviews with the Big Picture Media group. Look for those sometime in the next week.

That hot sun burning on my skin that I mentioned earlier? It officially conquered it’s goal and gave me a pretty bad sunburn.

Now on to the highlight of my day, the No Sleep Records Showcase. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to stay for the whole day like I wanted to due to other interviews scheduled. I did, however, get the chance to see Former Thieves. I’d been looking forward to seeing their new set all week. All songs except one were off their highly anticipated album, The Language That We Speak which will be available online and in stores on April 19. Needless to say, this album will fucking slay. They’re set was so damn good. They were in sync with each other and had a great stage presence. My favorite performance of the day.

I also saw Into It. Over It. play again on the inside stage. He gets better and better each time I see him.

After Evan’s set I walked to the Atlantic/Chop Shop Showcase to do a few interviews. Watched the Republic Tigers set and I think I liked it this time around better than the day before.

Joy Formidable played after the Republic Tigers. I couldn’t get close enough to see without lifting my camera up over the crowd that formed close to the stage. Good thing it didn’t make a difference to enjoying their set. Front-woman Ritzy Bryan‘s energy swept through the crowd and picked everyone off their feet.

Portugal. The Man headlined the showcase. I was slightly disappointed that we didn’t get a preview of their new album set to release sometime this year.

I ended up back at Liberty to catch my friend Sheppa (from the Nomathmatic)’s DJ set. Then danced the night away with friends! A perfect evening to end the week of SXSW.

Oh, and one more thing. On Sunday we had the most delicious crepes! I can’t decide if it was the crepes themselves or the atmosphere, or quite possible our totally awesomely French waiter.

See you next time, Austin.

For more SXSW photos check out my Flickr HERE.

Just as important as going to Austin to see music is going to Austin for the food. I’ve previously mentioned my affinity for breakfast tacos, but Friday I tried a different culture’s food. Not sure if it blasphemy to eat something that isn’t Mexican that close to Texas, but this morning called for Coffee with a capital “c.” No one does Coffee like the French. So Friday morning, I found myself at Le Café Crépe, being handed a menu by a Frenchman who was greeting me with a “Bonjour, mademoiselle.” Behind a glass window, employees were preparing mouth-watering crépes. Sadly, we were in a rush (as always), so we got our mochas to go and paired then with pain au chocolat, which is bread with chocolate. The flaky bread was fresh from the oven and filled with gooey chocolate. A light dousing on powdered sugar made this perfectly delectable. As we walked toward a first venue in considerably better moods, we promised to revisit the restaurant when we had more time, which we did Sunday morning before driving home.

After brushing some spilled powdered sugar off my shirt, I dashed into Emo’s for the mysterious Cults. For a long time, it was downright impossible to find out anything about this band and hopes of catching them on tour were slim to none. Fortunately, they seemed to have changed their mind on that as they have started touring more extensively and the band was practically everywhere at SXSW. The band is essentially the pop project of couple Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin, but they were joined by a full band for the performance. “Go Outside” was the only tune I really knew, but the lo-fi pop songs were all catchy and light-hearted…at least in sound. Lyrically, the duo likes to stay true to their name and often draw inspiration from cult leaders.

Chain Gang of 1974 was playing in another room at Emo’s just above Cults, so I went to check out this buzz band. Don’t be fooled by the 1974 in their name. They sound like a better fit for the 80s, but without going overboard on synths. There was an edge to the music, but also a danceable beat. If you’re like me and have heard the buzz about this band, but hadn’t checked them out before, start by giving their epic “Hold On” a listen.

Foster the People is a band that I was saying should be huge since last year. “Pumped Up Kicks” was my summer jam. Radio was a little slower to recognize its catchy awesomeness, so a lot of people are just discovering Foster the People. In the year since I’ve first learned of this band, I’ve only come to love them even more and seeing them live only solidified my love. At times this piano pop rock group sounds like Peter Bjorn and John and then other times it seems like they’ve got some Vampire Weekend thrown in, but with the subtlety of a group like Tennis. There are a lot of diverse influences working together very smoothly for this band, so if you’re lagging behind with the radio stations, get on it and check this band out asap.

Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt was a performance that was so epic that it got its own post. You can find that here. In short, the wild performance art band got us to run around the venue, freestyle dance in the middle of a clapping circle of strangers and jump up and down under a parachute while shouting, “We’re alive! We’re in love! We’ve got hope…just because!” Definitely gets the award for most memorable set of SXSW.

Reeling from the insanely fun experience of Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt, I stumbled out to Sixth Street a bit dazed and unsure of what to do next. How do you follow up a band with a parachute? I found myself wandering. First I traveled up to Mohawk, where Ted Leo was starting an acoustic set a little early. Crisp vocals and friendly tone demonstrated why this guy is a favorite of so many. From Ted Leo, I bounced to a tent next door where Glasser was taking the stage for the Rhapsody Party. A beautiful set, but one that couldn’t quite match the almost holy experience of seeing that band the night before at Central Presbyterian Church.

When I wandered out of Rhapsody, I honestly had every intention of giving the music watching a break and finding a spot to charge my phone. But then luck took me by Stubbs and a woman asked me to check-in on Foursquare in exchange for two passes to the exclusive Spin Party.  How can you pass up something as simple as that? I love social media!

Some middle age guy that I had never seen before was on the mainstage when I walked in. In awe of my sheer luck, it took me a moment to realize I knew the song being performed: “Touch Me once, touch me twice…” Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark was singing the song from one of my favorite soundtracks of all time (and no this was not the OMD performance at Stubbs with the camera boom incident). I might have dismissed OMD when I first walked in as some rando middle age dude, but he’s still got it. As an added bonus, Moby joined OMD on bass.

From OMD to DOM, the inside of Stubbs was getting packed for this buzz band. “Living in America,” has long been my jam. How can you resist the slinky chorus, “It’s so sexy to be living in America”?

And back outside, the Spin Party band I was most anxious for: The Kills. With Jack White in attendance at SXSW, there were some rumors of some special collab, but this was a straight up the Kills set. And I was ok with that. Allison Mosshart continues to steal the show no matter who she’s on the stage with – her vocals, her attitude – it’s just impossible not to watch her.

I left the Spin Party before TV on the Radio to chat with the duo behind Acrylics. Look for that interview soon on PopWreckoning. After my chat with Acrylics, I wandered through the Brooklyn Vegan Party to briefly watch the Dodos, Middle Brother and J. Mascis. I had heard a lot about J. Mascis, but I found the set kind of boring. The falsetto just wasn’t my thing. So I quickly left and went to catch a band from across the great pond that I knew would entertain: A Silent Film. I had the privilege of seeing this passionate piano rock band at their first US show ever back in Kansas City during the Fall. They seem a lot more confident now and delivered such a great set that people even asked for an encore and the venue guys, who had at first seemed very anti-encore to stay on schedule, even gave their approval because they were enjoying it so much. This band could easily draw some comparisons to Keane, but I find Keane rather sleepy. If anyone has heard of the UK’s Embrace, I would say that is a more apt comparison.

!!! might not be a band name that everyone can understand or say, but people have no problem understand the band’s music. The tent that !!! was a non-stop dance party. It kind of reminded me of seeing LCD Soundsystem at Bonnaroo – a little similar with the music and with the vibe.

I trekked far from Sixth to the Lustre Pearl to catch the next two acts. Noah and the Whale is a band that I had been eagerly anticipating for SXSW. Their romantic folk ballads had won my heart on recordings, but I had yet to see them live. They were supposed to play SXSW two years ago when I was here, but canceled. Then I was supposed to see them at Lollapalooza and they canceled. This year was to be my chance. Now, after finally getting the chance to see them, I think I’m ok that they canceled. Love their music, but they were one of the most boring bands of the festival. I didn’t need another Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt, but I just didn’t feel any energy or passion from these guys. I’d rather just go home and listen to my CDs because this particular live performance added nothing.

In contrast, the band that followed had plenty to watch on stage. Gayngs followed and this is autotune done right. This is a supergroup featuring members of Bon Iver, Doomtree, The Rosebuds and more. I don’t believe I counted all 23 members there for this performance, but they sure came close to a full group. The stage was packed. The soft-rock set got the audience dancing and I think any Austinites holding a grudge for the band’s unfortunate cancellation at ACL was quickly forgiven by this performance.

When I returned back to the main area of SXSW, I headed back to Stubbs for an old SXSW favorite of mine. The Airborne Toxic Event has this amazing ability of making viola look badass. Viola is not a badass instrument, but this band knows how to make it rock. And if one viola wasn’t enough, the band had another join the performance as part of a string quartet set up on the side of the stage. Awesome. They played through songs from their popular debut and several from their upcoming release. The Airborne Toxic Event never disappoints. But the rest of the night did disappoint. TATE would end up being my last of the night. After waiting in another line for an hour and encountering several venues that ended up being Badges only, I gave up on Friday and decided to call it an early night before the final day of SXSW.

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Check back for more to come from PopWreckoning’s Bethany and her experience at SXSW. You can see more photos from Day 3, Friday, March 18 below and click these links for Day 1 and Day 2:

Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt is something more entertaining than any loling cat on the internet. Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt is more winning than Charlie Sheen could ever hope to be. And Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt is a phenomenon more beautiful than double fucking rainbows. So what does it mean?

Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt is the name of a band. There were a lot of good bands at SXSW this year, but there was only one Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt and that band was the best band at SXSW. A daring statement, but one worth making.

When surrounded by the thousands of bands at SXSW, you have to make yourself memorable. You have to stick out. This is how Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt stood apart from the crowd.

1. TPDR blew off the stage. They were up close and personal and joined the audience on the dancefloor.

2. TPDR was theatrical. With a set up and light show that looked like it was stolen from my grandmother’s garage sale the band already had a unique thing going on. It’s March and the main source of light was a light up plastic snowman. But it wasn’t just the surroundings that were decked out. The band was, too. The guitarist looked like he fell out of the 80s with his retro shirt and big ‘stache. The singer was wearing a purple dress with ridiculously poofy sleeves, but he paired the dress with some sneaks for running around the venue better.

3. Energy! This band does not stay still even when tuning. One second the singer’s hopping in the center of the floor and the next he’s pushing everyone back into a circle to direct different audience members into the center to dance. Then before you can blink, he has you marching through the venue to the back where he founds some random bucket to hop up on and sing his next chorus.

4. TPDR has a parachute. That’s right: a parachute. As the set was nearing its end, TPDR brought out a mysterious duffel bag, opened it and just asked everyone to grab a piece and pull. A giant, colorful parachute popped out and the entire crowd got underneath. “Jump and sing this with me: ‘We’re alive! We’re in love! We got hope…just because!’” exclaimed the singer. Never was there such laughter and glee at a concert as when this group chanted that anthem and jumped underneath a parachute. It was kind of insane, but also ridiculously fun.

5. The music. Don’t think that TPDR is a gimmick band. They sounded great – especially if you’re into groups like Tilly and the Wall, Blastoids or This Show Is the Rainbow. TPDR could easily stand on a stage like any other band, deliver their songs and it would be a solid set. So why do all this other stuff? It’s fun. That simple.

So was it a concert? A circus? A parade? A party? Whatever it was, it was uniquely Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt.

And if you have an affinity for exclamation points or want to hear more from Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt, visit here.

Honestly, I don’t even know where to begin with Thursday’s blog. It was St. Patrick’s Day and I had originally RSVP’d to a few daytime showcases, expecting to see a handful of smaller, lesser known bands. However, without the wristbands of the day before and with the confusion of RSVP lists, I didn’t actually end up getting into anything for the first part of the day. It was a minor disappointment but it did allow me time to go find the press room and photo edit for a bit- something I desperately needed to get caught up on before I was drowning in a five day backlog.

However, this stroke of luck landed me in the line for Stubb’s about two hours before the doors, meaning I was one of the first twenty people in the door. Stubb’s tends to be one of the more popular venues (and it’s one of the few all ages venues) so it tends to get pretty full fairly quickly. Meanwhile hundreds of people filled out the outdoor venue (something this Seattle girl wasn’t used to). I planned on staying at Stubb’s for most of the evening, then wandering to see what was going on at a few other places.

Before that night, I had never even heard of Foster the People (I know this is practically blasphemy, but I live under a rock sometimes). After listening to amazing songs like “Pumped Up Kicks”, “Helena Beat”, and “Houdini,” I’m more than convinced that they will be one of the defining bands of this decade and quite possibly in the genre of indie pop. For a band that has been out about a year and a half, they are already playing Coachella and SXSW. Their first full length album, Torches, is due out May 24^th. For someone who absolutely can’t stand most mainstream indie bands, they caught me by surprise.

For me, they aren’t just another cookie cutter indie pop band. Their anthems are catchy, California summers recorded for posterity against a background of synth and some addictive drums, all layered with a dose of frontman Mark Foster’s incredibly dulcet tones. The Los Angeles based band is not just musically sound, but they are an amazing live act as well. Every single person in the crowd was dancing, clapping, and singing along, and the show was a blast. Next to Flogging Molly, they were probably one of the better shows I saw all week.  From lo-fi pop to catchy dance hits, they are going to be one of this summers greatest new bands.

Up next was Noah and the Whale, playing new tracks off their early March release, Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down. Overall they weren’t bad, but they weren’t exactly to my tastes either. An almost painfully stereotypical English indie folk band, they are classically talented and good, if that’s the sort of thing you are into. Visually, they weren’t very entertaining, but overall they had a fairly solid set. Good acoustics, decent music, and a breezy, warm summer night and you’ve got a decent show. Even if you don’t like indie folk, they are worth a listen and even maybe a gander at a live show.

The third act of the night at Stubb’s was Portugal. The Man. I had never gotten to see them live, and due to press restrictions in the photo pit, I couldn’t actually shoot the show. However, I did get to stand back and really listen- something that I don’t get to do too often at festivals. After about twenty minutes I came to the conclusion that it was minorly anticlimactic. As good as they are recorded, I just wasn’t feeling their live set. For an indie prog rock band of this magnitude, I was expecting more energy, more precision, more general enthusiasm. That just wasn’t the case for that night. I plan on catching them in Seattle at some point, but until then, I can’t really make an adequate assessment of their live set.

After two vaguely disappointing sets, I decided to hit the Velveeta Room, a tiny bar on 6^th to catch Adam Arcuragi & The Lupine Chorale Society with some friends. Surprisingly, for this infectious blend of blues, country, indie folk, alt rock, and soul, their set was pretty amazing. It was two-step at its finest and was a great way to mellow out between the other sets. Adam Arcuragi is immensely talented, but from what I could see and hear of the Lupine Chorale Society, they either needed a better sound tech or a whole new ensemble – I’m honestly not sure which. Adam’s songs are soulful, a coined “Death Gospel” of poignancy and cathartic lyrics and melodic ballads. Probably one of the more heartfelt sets of the festival, I was truly blown away by the artistry and skill that was apparent in every note of his. Some tracks could have used more piano, some a fiddle or a cello, but overall they were obscenely good to be playing a half empty venue on St. Patrick’s Day.

To round off the night, I found out that Ron Sexsmith was playing an acoustic set at the Hilton Garden at Creekside (a trek and some hunting to find, but worth it for Sexsmith). Acoustics in conference rooms are barely adequate for someone of this caliber, but with an acoustic set, I was surprised. The Canadian singer-songwriter played some of his more popular works, taking requests from the sheepish and adoring crowd. Ron played his guitar and sang his heart out, soulfully pouring passion and skill out into the waiting crowd with precision of a master of his craft. Between songs, he charmed the audience with a running commentary and some general discussion about his works and his life. Pushing the boundaries of intimacy with his fans, Sexsmith managed it with stammering grace.  One of the best acoustic performances I have seen to date and another highlight of the festival, I will definitely be checking out his catalogue and film extensively in the near future.

With that chilling beautiful set, it was time to return my gear to the hotel, a long walk to the breezy Austin night and catch some sleep before the weekend events and the upcoming long haul.

(Look for the rest of my SXSW coverage coming soon!)

Find the artists here:

Foster The People
Noah and the Whale
Portugal. The Man
Adam Arcuragi & The Lupine Chorale Society
Ron Sexsmith

SXSW

Check out more of my Day 2 photos here!
(Please note that due to memory card failure, this is a fairly small set).