In the middle of the madness and mayhem of Austin’s SXSW is the core of what runs this festival: the musicians. Often lost behind free drink lines and giant Dorito Ads these artists travel from all over the globe just to have a chance to perform. The majority of them don’t get paid and some aren’t even booked to play on a stage but the allure of a chance to get seen and heard is enough to warrant long travel and an exhausting week. As crazy as SXSW is, one thing it has provided is the chance for bands to start their career. Labels come to check out unknown acts and for many it provides a huge opportunity to be signed.
We drove down to Austin not knowing what we were in for. We hoped to get a chance to see some awesome music and have a better understanding of the festival. We left with just that and more. While we were down there we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to speak to six amazing bands/musicians (Spank Rock, The Drums, Elizabeth and the Catapult, HAIM, Radiation City, and Illustrate) and ask them about their SXSW experiences. We found ourselves listening to a lot of very similar stories and were surprised to find interweaving themes and connections between each of them.
It became quickly apparent that within the community of musicians at SXSW there are two camps. The veterans, those who have played the festival more than once and were no longer jaded to the double edged sword that SXSW has become, but still grateful to have a chance to come back. And the newcomers, those who were at the festival for the first time whose excitement and exhilaration still pulsed through them and who were nothing but thrilled just to be there.
But there was also a theme of great friendship, love, and support that melded the two camps into one. In a place where there is such an opportunity to get signed you might think that competition between artists would run fierce, especially in the fame hungry society that we live in. But none of that seemed to live there. The musicians that we talked to felt nothing but great excitement and support for their fellow comrades. They were just as much fans as the droves of people who came down to Austin to see them and one of the main complaints that they had was not enough time to go and see their friends play.
The Veterans:
Spank Rock
It became obvious that we had just woken everyone up in the house that Naeem Juwan aka MC Spank Rock was staying in when the dude who answered the door was wearing only his underwear and squinted harshly at us through the glass of the window pane questioning who we were. I was slightly horrified and embarrassed when he informed us that Naeem was sleeping, but refused our offer to come back later saying it was fine. We sat nervously on the couch and when Naeem came out in his sweatpants and hoodie and laid down on the couch diagonally across from us we both at the same time said “I feel so bad. Are you sure you don’t want us to come back later?” “TWINS!” he exclaimed in his hoarse voice “I just got in an hour ago.” Despite our offer and his clear exhaustion he again refused and told us that it didn’t make a difference. His day was filled with interviews and shows and at this point he was in it for the long haul. His lack of sleep didn’t seem to affect his ability to answer each question with a sweet passion and intelligence. I on the other hand never fully recovered from my nerves and couldn’t find my list of questions for the first half of the interview, something that did not go unnoticed but at least provided some comic relief.
This was Spank Rock’s fourth year performing at SXSW. A true veteran, he’s experienced the transformation of both the festival and the feeling of performing, “The first time no one cares and no one knows who you are and if you do something that grabs someone’s attention it’s very exciting. It’s fun because every experience is new and magical. And the second time around no matter what you do you’re in this world of criticism and competition.” It was at this moment we began to realize the difference between those performing for the first time and those who have been at it for years. “The musicians that make the festival the festival, they don’t get much out of it.” he told us. Instead it’s the brands, the corporate sponsors whose logos are attached to every square foot of downtown Austin that get the most out of the festival. He was the first of many to tell us about the love hate relationship many artists have with SXSW. He explained to us how he was inspired by his mom’s generation when “music was music” and “people who got sponsored were looked down upon.” That now-a-days the industry itself has turned more into the fashion industry. “SXSW looks so good because it’s all based on marketing.” Despite his qualms with the corporatism of the festival he is grateful to be back. It isn’t all bad he explains “Sometimes you get to see a show that’s magical, like last night Andrew WK, that was magical, so it’s a love hate relationship.”
We began to tell him about our trip and the essence of our piece. How we’ve been friends for twelve years and have always somehow managed to be on the same page in life, supporting each other throughout it all. Spank Rock had his own friends down there who he came up with, one being a woman who introduced herself to us as Emily but whom Naeem referred to as “Rabbit”. She had been a friend of his from back in the days of Baltimore and long before he was ever on stage and now she was helping him set up his own record label. Another old friend was Dan Deacon who he had played with the night before “I hadn’t seen Dan in years, and he started telling a story about one of our first shows together and I was blushing and thinking, ‘oh god why are you telling them this?’ But you hear these stories and you are like holy shit we’ve been doing this for years now!”
When we were leaving it somehow came up that we would be meeting with The Drums later that day. Naeem had told us during the interview that he had been hanging out with The Drums, Santi (Santi gold), Terrance from Heart of Clubs, and Hot Tub the night before. “Could you give them a note for me? he asked “But you can’t read it.” He wrote the note in my notebook and folded up the paper “You can’t read it.” he teased again “I’ll know if you’ve read it.” We promised and laughed and then headed to the car note in hand.
The Drums
We met The Drums in a parking lot outside of Lustre Pearl, the venue they were about to play. There is no quiet space in downtown Austin during SXSW so much so that even the parking lot deemed too loud to conduct an interview in. We ended up going across the street to sit on the stoop of “The Palm School”, an all white concrete building close to the entrance of interstate I-35. Something about singer Johnny Peirce and synth player Jacob Graham, the two founding members of The Drums, made us instantly comfortable.
Johnny and Jacob have known each other since childhood and are now, not only in a widely successful band together, but live down the street from each other in the East Village. “We’ve lived strangely identical lives” Johnny told us. They both grew up in a strict religious household, their brothers have the same name, they both bought their first synth at the same time, and were both listening to Kraftwork in a time when everyone else around them was listening to Nirvana. “When you meet someone like that you kind of have to hold on to it.” The Drums relationship was eerily reminiscent of mine and Lorenna's own unique friendship.
Both Johnny and Jacob gave a similar account as Spank Rock did when talking about the festival. “SXSW has outgrown itself and they need to learn how to deal with that. They don’t take care of their artists. Like they literally push you out onto the street as soon as your set is done.” It blew my mind when they told us that, but at the same time made sense to the feeling I had been getting in the last day or so. The truth is each year the festival keeps getting larger but the city that holds it remains the same size creating overflow in the streets and venues that can’t hold the amount of people who come out to see bands play. “You feel like cattle” Johnny stated, and as someone who nearly cried in a bathroom from the overwhelming anxiety of being out on the streets I completely concur.
The day before we interviewed The Drums, Lorenna and I were pining for a quiet space where music wasn’t playing and people weren’t streaming in and out of. It never occurred to me that the artists who need to be able to gain their bearings in order to play a great show would be having the same issue. I ignorantly assumed they had a place to go to just sit and chill for a minute. Johnny filled me in that I was wrong. Most of the venues that hold shows during the festival weren’t made for live music and so they have no place for the artists to go and relax. “At the same time, if you create a VIP section then all of a sudden people like Paris Hilton start showing up.” he said. “Tell Paris she can’t come” Jacob chimed in. I’ve never been to Coachella, but from the influx of paparazzi shots that come out during that festival, I can only imagine that there are blocked off places for famous people to go to. Which really makes you wonder, is there any place that actually does take care of their musicians anymore?
On the other side of things The Drums were grateful to be able to be down there performing. They also, similarly to Spank Rock with Andrew WK, told us about a beautiful live show the band “Girls” had put on the night before. Johnny admitted to us that he wasn’t always the biggest fan of live music. For him he found it more enjoyable and personal to listen to a recording at home. Which is something that I can completely relate to. So when he comes across a great live show like the “Girls” performance, it is an amazing experience.
Lorenna remembered the note from Spank Rock and handed it to them. “We hung out with him all last night” they laughed and took the note from her. “He told us that we couldn’t read it, so now you have to read it outloud” She jokingly told them. They couldn’t make out his handwriting but were able to get from it that he had a present for them. It’s moments like these, a great performance, the chance to reconnect with friends and see great music that make SXSW worthwhile.
Elizabeth and The Catapult
Elizabeth Ziman has been living with my younger sister Danielle and their friend Betsy in this amazing adult treehouse of an apartment in South Slope, Brooklyn for the last three years. I have been a secret super fan of Elizabeth and the Catapult the entire time they’ve lived together and I was really excited to have the chance to sit down with and interview her. We picked her up at her hotel and drove about five minutes down the road to find a place to eat. “DENNY’S!” she screamed and pointed to the sign towering over the interstate. “I don’t think I’ve ever been that excited to see a Denny’s before in my life.” One of the many things that made Lorenna and I fall in love with this petite brunette in a bowler hat was her amazing sense of humor. Funny is the way to our hearts and this girl has got it.
Austin was Elizabeth’s last stop before heading back home, after having spent the last month in LA collaberating on her new album with the likes of Nate Walcott of Bright Eyes and Sara Bareilles amongst many others. “I was such a hobo, I don’t drive, I didn’t have a car there, I stayed on couches the whole time, was walking everywhere and taking the subway.” Up until this moment I didn’t even know there was a subway in LA. “No one has ever taken the subway before except for me and crazies, but I did it.” Through the kindness of her friends and the tight knit music community in LA, Elizabeth was able to survive the whole month out there sans vehicle or home. Our favorite story that she shared with us from her trip was one where she managed to get out of being mugged and “maced in the face” by twelve fourteen year old girls on scooters in the middle of Korea Town, by singing to them a Spanish lullaby taught to her by her old choir teacher. “They just started laughing at me and screaming, ‘She crazy!’ When they finally left I asked them where they got their scooters from and they go, ‘Our dads’, whatever!”
This was Elizabeth’s third year playing SXSW. Her story was one of the success stories you hear about that keep bands coming back to Austin every March. Her first year performing at the festival she was discovered by Verve records and signed soon after (she is no longer signed to verve). “Two years ago I got signed, Last year I had the whole, ‘get interviewed and get free shit thing’, and this year I’m playing this one really nice show and then am just hanging around and going to all of my friends shows.” Elizabeth was more content and happy to just be able to be in Austin and have a chance to see her friends play than be affected by the insanity that is SXSW.
In response to me admitting to recently giving a band a bad review she informed us that not only is the festival notorious for awful sound, none of the bands even get sound checks. A fact that makes no sense to me, considering this is a music festival that we’re talking about. “I’ve been at SXSW for a couple of years now and I’ve played gigs where I can’t hear myself at all. I’m playing in this church this year so I think it will be really nice though.” The next night Lorenna and I went to see her play at St. Davids and for the first half of the set they couldn’t get the sound of her keyboard to turn on. Eventually, due to a suggestion given by an audience member and friend of Elizabeth’s, they ended up plugging it into an amp on stage. One thing she had also told us is that if a band is really good the sound doesn’t matter, a good band shines through anyway. “You just show up knowing what you’re in for, wear a ridiculous outfit, and have fun.” And that is exactly what she did amidst the technical difficulties of her set.
When Elizabeth found out that the next day we were interviewing the band HAIM she got super excited. “HAIM is one of my new favorite bands!” she told us. As it turns out, songwriter Blake Mills, who sometimes performs with Danielle Haim, was on Elizabeth’s last record. At first Elizabeth only knew Danielle through her performances with Blake, but once she saw HAIM perform at a weekly show held at Bordot in LA called School Night she, just like Lorenna and I, fell in love. “I am an advocate for HAIM and you can record that.”
New Comers:
HAIM
HAIM is a sister trio consisting of three of the most hilarious and talented ladies Alana, Danielle, and Este Haim and their dude drummer Dash Hutton. We were lucky enough to be able to go thrifting with the girls at this awesome vintage boutique located across the river away from the Downtown crowd called Feathers. It couldn’t have been a more perfect place to get to know the three of them.
Amongst all of the insanely gorgeous and ridiculous clothes we got to see each of their individual personalities come out. They were clearly more than just musicians, they were performers. Each outfit that they tried on came with a different character. “This one I call, Beyonce’s Single ladies” one of the girls proclaimed when coming out of the dressing room. Being married to a sketch comic I felt right at home. These were our girls.
They also had a very astute understanding of each item of clothing they found stating which designer it looked like or which line it resembled. Their penchant for fashion only escalated our love for them. Este even informed me that the girls were hoping to one day start their own fashion line. This nugget of information came out during one of the best self comparisons I’ve ever heard. “It’s crazy but there are so many different parallels between us and Selena. We’re obviously a family band, our dad drives the bus just like hers did, and we want to have our own fashion line someday, I just hope our best friend doesn’t kill us.”
Hailing from Los Angeles they were another insight into the growing community of amazing musicians from the city. “So many bands have come out of New York and we really feel that there is finally this great community of people who are coming out of LA” Alana, the youngest of the three sisters, told us. “All of our bros are out here; Harriet, White Arrows, Milo Green, Superhumanoids” They each explained how all of the bands are such big champions of each other. There is no jealousy or competition, just love and support. “We all want to get to the same point, and when we get to that point then we can tour together.” Este, the eldest, exclaimed and then added, “We need more girl bands though. We love our dudes, but we need more ladies.”
When we asked them about their SXSW experience I couldn’t help but think back to what Spank Rock had said about his first time performing at the festival. The three of them each concurred that they had “The most amazing experience.” “Everyone has been so cool and I tend to thrive on the energy. The whole hussle and bussle of it all makes me want to do so much shit and just keep going.” Este said. The one downside they had which wasn’t even really a downside was that they were so busy with shows that they had no time to let loose and join in on the party. “We are really conscious of our shows and think it’s really important to put on a really amazing live show.” They didn't want getting caught up in the party atmosphere to affect their performances. That was probably the most refreshing thing I had heard anyone say all week.
Radiation City
Lead singer/ keyboardist Lizzy Ellison and guitarist/singer Cameron Spies, the founding members of the Portland based band Radiation City, were the first to arrive at the Mexican restaurant El Sol y La Luna where we were holding the interview. Having just performed a set at the Austin Humane Society Showcase, the two of them rushed over to the restaurant just to sit down with us, while the rest of the band struggled to load up and navigate the van through pedestrian traffic. Much like what the Drums had told us before, the band found themselves on the street being rushed by traffic cops to load up their van and get out of there once their set was over.
Radiation City was formed by Lizzy and Cameron after meeting about four years ago while Cameron, a Portland native, was living in San Francisco. He was about to move back to Portland in order to start a band with Lizzy, when at a show in West Oakland he ran into a childhood friend who was coincidentally playing the same show with Radiation City’s now drummer Randy Bemrose the duo quickly became a trio. The rest of the band, which includes bassist Matt Rafferty and singer/keyboardist Patti King, came together organically over the next year or so. “We have the luxury of getting along really well” Lizzy stated. “It’s been like the best relationship ever. No break ups or anything.”
The band has great pride in their hometown Portland, Oregon. “We are really lucky to live in Portland at this time. It’s a great city” Lizzy told us. Before being signed to their current label Tender Loving Empire, they had started their own tape label called Apes Tapes inspired by the thriving house show scene in Portland. “That was a great community of people, we all wanted to just help each other out, be able to put our music out cheaply, and combine our resources and efforts.” Cameron explained.
Despite being Radiation City’s first time performing at SXSW the band came to the festival fully prepared for the craziness they were about to face. “It’s kind of everything I’ve anticipated just from stories I’ve heard. It’s pretty similar to CMJ which we had just performed at last October, except ten times bigger and ten times more insane.” Lizzy told us. “But I really enjoy playing and really enjoy meeting the people who are throwing the events, because I think behind all the drunkeness and ridiculousness there are really good people throwing really great shows and supporting really amazing bands.” The night before, they had played at Homeslice, a local pizza place that hosts shows in an outdoor venue during the festival. Everyone in the band raved about how great the venue was and how well they were treated by them. After all of the negative feedback we had been getting about venues treating their artists poorly it was nice to finally hear of a venue at the festival that was doing things right. Not to say that the band hadn’t come across their own negative experiences with both sound and the mistreatment of artists by promoters, but it seemed Radiation City had lucked out with mostly great shows and very minimal issues.
From SXSW the band will head up the coast touring their way back to Portland stopping in both San Diego and LA. Something they all seemed really excited about after spending the last few months entrenched in a Portland winter, which I can only imagine involves a lot of rain.
Illustrate
Brooklyn based Hip hop artist Josh Board aka Illustrate has been one of Lorenna’s closest friends since she was nine years old. Having met at the YMCA day camp their bond was as strong as their love of summer. I met Josh when he was thirteen through a mutual friend of ours, before I even knew Lorenna. We have watched Josh grow both literally and musically and the fact that we all ended up at SXSW at the same time still blows my mind.
A week before the festival Josh set up a fundraising show/event at Franklin Park in Brooklyn in order to help Illustrate & Friends get to Austin. Having landed two performances at the Oy Vey Showcase it was an opportunity he could not refuse and his friends had no problem helping out. More important than the luck of having booked a show at the biggest music festival in the world is the luck of having such a strong community of music, friends, and family that supports you wholeheartedly. Josh was lucky on both fronts.
When he finally got to Austin alongside his friend and hype man Nick Spinale, he had no idea what he was in for. The initial reaction was a whole lot of excitement and just as equal shock. “Everything I see out here is really amazing!” he exclaimed, “I feel like a small ass fish in an overpopulated pond.” Josh’s sense of gratitude for this experience shined through more than anyone we had spoken to. “I feel so lucky to be here, Just the fact that I have an artists badge, I’m like Yeahhh Motherfucker!” His first night at the festival we saw him at a bar where he said to Lorenna and I “This is the year man, I feel like people are just thinking, ‘shit man if 2012 really is the end of the world I better do this!’”
Josh found himself, like many other artists, finding a better reception from people on the streets than he did from the audience at a showcase. One night he walked up to a group of people standing in line and rapped to each person. “The most love I got was on the street and that shit was beautiful.” he told us. The harsh reality of an overcrowded festival hit smaller showcases hard. People tended to show up more for the drink specials and free swag than for the acts that were playing, which lended to lukewarm audiences. But for Josh it provided a much needed push forward. “Maybe we weren’t quite ready this year, but I’m so glad we did it because next year we’re going hard. I saw how much work I need to do which is a good thing, but it was definitely humbling.” For artists like Illustrate SXSW does tend to lend a good kick in the ass. Being surrounded by thousands upon thousands of different people and musicians, how could it not?
The End...
Talking to these six bands/musicians really opened up a whole new world of understanding of the festival for us. The concept of SXSW still remains a beautiful one, a place for bands to come and be showcased and have an opportunity to share their art with fellow musicians and industry insiders. But the reality of it’s unsustainable growth is hurting the festival and most importantly hurting the musicians who travel so far just to have a chance to be a part of it. The ability to change is still ever present. With less emphasis on free drinks and free swag and more emphasis on the music SXSW could re-vamp itself into an even greater event.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to sit down with us and the people behind them who made it happen. We honestly had no idea what this piece would end up shaping itself into but are really happy to have the opportunity to not only shed light onto this side of things but showcase amazing people and talent. Hopefully it will make a difference somewhere down the line. This really was such an insanely amazing experience and for that we are ever grateful.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 05:56PM 
The floor of my room at my Mom's house, which is where I have been living for the last month, is buried under various mountains of clothing. The suitcase I'm borrowing for our upcoming trip is laying open and empty on the floor. Body dysmorphia, fear, and excitement are fueling the insanity of this mess. My packing skills have always been horrendous. I'm genetically predisposed to it. My mom brings three bags with her when she comes to visit us in Brooklyn from Long Island, for a day trip. No matter how much I pack there is always this looming fear that I'm unprepared, that I'm forgetting something, and I usually am.