KPSU reports from SXSW

SXSW, Austin, TX

Downtown Austin is currently a cacophony of every single type of music you could imagine. Walking down 6th street or Red River, our ears are met with hip-hop beats overlapping rock drums, pushed up against brass horns, and given a large dose of metal guitar for good measure. And as the music spills out the doorways and into the streets, so too does the hordes of rock'n'rollers, many stumbling from either drunkenness or heat exhaustion, or maybe both. And the end of this night, the gutters are certain to once again be awash with vomit and discarded promotional material.

But it's more than just a decadent street scene. SXSW is about music, and the music industry (in which order is open for debate.)

Let's start with the music highlights:

Day 1:
After a tiring plane flight, hotel check-in, and conference registration period, Ando and I wandered on over to the festival to find out what was going on. At Emo's Jr., we found Panther getting down and doing his thing. After the show, we showed him some Portland love, and he reciprocated.

Later that evening, I missed out on a Saturday Looks Good To Me performance because of some switched showtimes, but that allowed me an entire hour to get in line to see R.E.M. I spent most of that hour wondering whether or not I would be disappointed when I saw them. As any R.E.M. fan will tell you, the band hasn't exactly maintained their credibility as they've found more commercial success (not that I am suggesting that the latter is the cause of the former, but there is a definite correlation.) At the end of the hour, I was still unable to get in, but along with a growing crowd on the sidewalk behind the stage, I heard a few songs of their opening set. They started out their set with some really early stuff, which I was pleased to hear. Soon, however, the sidewalk ambiance wore on me so I went to catch Dan Deacon's set at Emo's. He played behind a screen, on which clips from various Schwartzeneger films had been cut together and distorted to hilarious effect. After that, I received word that they were letting people into R.E.M., as there had been a mass exodous when they started to play new material. I heard a few songs, and my conclusion is they still got it. They are aging, out-of touch rockers, but still relevant nonetheless.

And that was just day 1. More to follow.