Tell Us Your Music Discoveries

by Robin Hilton

Bob and I (and Stephen and Carrie) are always bloviating about all the wonderful music we've discovered, and this year's South by Southwest festival and conference gave us even more to talk about than usual: The Phenomenal Handclap Band, Passion Pit, The Shackeltons, Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, and many more.

Now it's your turn. Tell us your favorite music discoveries so far this year. If you attended SXSW and found some great new artists, let us know. Tell us what you know about the groups and, if possible, add a link to where we can hear them.

5:30 PM ET | 03-31-2009 | permalink

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Wow, They're Good! Never Mind; It's Just A Backing Track

by Bob Boilen

The Decemberists did it. Loney Dear did it, and so did K'Naan. They all used prerecorded performances to enhance their own live appearances at this year's South by Southwest music conference and festival.

Backing tracks are the anabolic steroids of live music. They add muscle where there otherwise might just be a bunch of humans doing the best they can. And there's no denying that they can make something average sound pretty over-the-top.

When you go to a show and hear prerecorded backing tracks, does it bother you? Would you rather hear the climax of The Decemberists' new record without the children's choir? (It's admittedly nearly impossible to pull off live, since you can't expect a bunch of kids to tour with the band.) Would Loney Dear be less Loney without the pizzicato strings? (They're probably sampled anyway.) Would K'Naan be less K'Naan without the invisible drum ensemble?

For me, it's an old question without an answer. I used to perform my electronic music in the early '80s with sequences I had composed ahead of time on my Atari 1040. It always seemed a bit weird to be in front of an audience and start the song by pressing the letter "A" on my computer to start the first sequence, and then hitting other letters to change reverb settings, randomize the start of other sequenced loops, and so on. I always had this nagging feeling that I was cheating, even though this is the way I made my music.

I seem to remember some story about how the backing track to the Electric Light Orchestra went awry and revealed the man behind the curtain, so to speak. I also remember hearing that fans sued the band for what they viewed as a scam; after all, they came to hear live music and not a good stereo system.

So where do you fall on this? Is it the honesty you seek when you hear a live band, or is it the spectacle you want -- along with whatever it takes to make that happen? Or is it something else?

8:21 AM ET | 03-27-2009 | permalink

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Video: Grandaddy's Jason Lytle At SXSW

by Robin Hilton

We're back from Austin and still recovering from last week's orgy of amazing music at the South by Southwest conference and festival. In addition to all the concerts we webcast and broadcast, Bob, Stephen and I were lucky enough to find time to record some of our favorite artists giving solo performances. We're still cutting up the video, and will get these out to you as quickly as we can, starting with Jason Lytle.

Lytle, the singer, songwriter and creative force behind the band Grandaddy, met us at the historic Driskill Hotel in Austin for this shoot. He was joined by Rusty Miller, singer for the band Jackpot, who offered some nice harmonies.

This first cut is a new track from Lytle's debut solo album, Yours Truly, The Commuter. It's called "Brand New Sun." The area where we were sitting is pretty cavernous, so you can really hear the echoes of people walking and talking nearby.

This cut is also from Lytle's new album. It's called "Birds Encouraged Him."

One of the things I love most about Lytle's music is his storytelling: Few songwriters can craft a tale as well as he can, and they always cut to the bone. This song, which is actually a Grandaddy tune, is a good example of that. It's not very well-known -- it was only released as a B-side to a single in 2003 -- so it was a real treat to get to hear him do it. It's called "Derek Spears."

Since it's a pretty rare cut, Miller said he didn't know the song. It's nice to watch him listen and see the look on his face as he follows Lytle's story.

More videos to come, including PJ Harvey, Asa and Mirah.

1:08 PM ET | 03-26-2009 | permalink

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Warped And Wrapped

by Carrie Brownstein

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I'm back home in Portland after four days at the SXSW music festival in Austin. I was ready for the following to end: beer, bad drumming and Facebook updates. (Admittedly, I fell prey to two out of the three). On the other hand, I wasn't quite prepared for the reality check that accompanies a return home.

The strangest aspect of this year's festival was the excitement I felt leading up to it. And I wasn't alone. From emails to texts to blog posts, it seemed that there was a collective enthusiasm surrounding SXSW. I suppose it could have been on account of the long winter -- for some of us, that meant snow on the first day of spring -- but I have a feeling that the eagerness had to do with disparate parts coming together in a single locale. As much as I love the choose-your-own-adventure aspect of computers and the Internet (sample some MP3s, read music news and reviews, cue up a mix I made on iTunes), every once in a while, I like my music consumption to be a bit more "no assembly required." And at SXSW, all you really have to do is show up. A short walk down 6th Street or along any of its tentacles will leave your head crackling long after you've gone to bed.

So here, then, is a summation of my final day in Austin: I tried, I really did, to make a schedule. The Pains of Being Pure of Heart at some place at some time, followed by the Vivian Girls at some other place at some other time. The events were circled and highlighted, memorized, ingrained and just short of tattooed. But none of that happened. Instead, I ended up on S. Congress in search of good coffee and food. Then, I walked back downtown and over to the French Legation Museum. I had already messed up the first half of my day -- at least music-wise -- so my plan was to now see Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson. And I did see him, three hours later, after a series of false starts, truncated sets, and a band who had sabotaged another one of my nights began to unravel this day, as well. But it was all worth itm for a few reasons. For one, it was a day spent out on the lawn with a friend watching what barely constituted a breeze give sway to a pinata. Second, there was free ice cream handed out with a smile from an Airstream trailer. Finally, Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson was worth the wait. Even his backing band was worth it, with a carrot-topped bass player and a tight-jeans-clad violinist who together (and beautifully) sang "Single Ladies" by Beyonce while waiting for Benjamin to take the stage.

I have but one regret from SXSW, and that was never witnessing The Phenomenal Handclap Band, whom I previewed both on our All Songs Considered show and during our festival broadcasts. So it would really be fantastic if TPHB would come to Portland and play a show in my backyard. Please and thank you. No, really, I mean it.

Until the next SXSW, or until I feel like messing with Robin and Bob, this will be my last post on the All Songs blog, but you can always find me over at NPR's Monitor Mix.

1:53 PM ET | 03-23-2009 | permalink

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Saturday's Daily SXSW Podcast

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All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen and NPR Music editor Stephen Thompson sit up at 4:30 a.m. on Sunday morning to share Saturday's events at SXSW music festival.

Listen below or subscribe to the All Songs Considered podcast to download.

Download full concerts from The Decemberists, K'Naan, Dirty Projectors and more by subscribing to the All Songs Considered Live Concerts podcast.

6:30 PM ET | 03-22-2009 | permalink

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Friday's Daily SXSW Podcast

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All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen shares the day's events at SXSW music festival with NPR Music editor Stephen Thompson and All Songs Considered producer Robin Hilton.

Listen below for another late night roundup, or subscribe to the All Songs Considered podcast to download.

Download full concerts from The Decemberists, K'Naan, Dirty Projectors and more by subscribing to the All Songs Considered Live Concerts podcast.

1:47 PM ET | 03-22-2009 | permalink

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A Waning Bonanza

by Stephen Thompson

After a seemingly endless bonanza of big events -- our terrific run of archived concerts, the video sessions Bob and Robin have been recording, an assortment of parties big and small -- Saturday finds SXSW slowing down a little bit. Today's festival lineup will feature big shows with PJ Harvey and others, as well as high-profile daytime parties thrown by the likes of Rachael Ray (with food and The Hold Steady, among others) and Perez Hilton (with Ladyhawke and, sadly, Perez Hilton), but today marks the beginning of the festival's end.

Some of us have already begun trickling back home to feed pets and soak feet, but we'll still employ a small pocket of hardy gluttons, who are only too happy to soak up more shows, record video of a performance we're dying to see but can't talk about yet, and rock the Twitterverse @allsongs. (How I managed to avoid Tweet-gloating about the Badgers' NCAA tournament thriller last night, I do not know.)

So, for those following Saturday's festivities, any recommendations?

1:02 PM ET | 03-21-2009 | permalink

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Video: Richard Swift, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour, Passion Pit

by Robin Hilton

A few quick videos to share before heading out to shoot an acoustic solo performance by Grandaddy's Jason Lytle:

We featured Richard Swift on All Songs Considered a few years ago. He's sort of a 21st century Harry Nilsson. Swift plays with the same kind of bouncy piano pop as Nilsson, but he throws in some wonderful psych-synth textures. This clip is from one of his performances at the Mowhak.

Recently we also featured the Asteroids Galaxy Tour on Second Stage. It's a fantastic synth-pop group from Denmark with one of the year's most infectious songs, "Lady Jesus." They get serious props for being the loudest of all the bands I've seen so far.

We talked about Passion Pit on our recent SXSW preview show on All Songs Considered. It's a band I hadn't heard of before this year's SXSW, and given the extraordinarily long line of fans waiting to get into last night's show, I'd say Passion Pit will be one of this year's breakout groups. I spent most of the show waiting with everyone else to get in, but managed to catch the band's last few songs.

1:46 PM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Which Belter Is Better? It's A Cinch.

by Neda Ulaby

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For the past few years, it seems a new female soul singer is crowned at SXSW. Almost without exception, the hype builds up around a white woman from the Commonwealth. Amy Winehouse, of course, and Duffy are obvious examples, with Sharon Jones as the welcome exception.

This year, please let it be Alice Russell. The shaggy blonde from Brighton bounded around onstage last night at Maggie Mae's rooftop in a sparkly black dress and cobalt tights -- voice booming like a cannon, utterly unpretentious, and forging, note by ringing note, a pure, unforced connection with her band and audience. With a big helping of saucy on the side.

Russell could get lapped by Gabriella Cilmi, a modelly Australian 17 year old with big, throaty pipes, obvious mainstream appeal and a limited imagination. (Her cover of Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me A River" last night beautifully illustrated all three.) Cilmi's publicist says she's booked for a few talk show appearances next week. But boy, I hope a booker or two was in Alice Russell's crowd last night when the power went off in the middle of her exuberant set. It seemed almost plausible that she had overwhelmed the grid. But Russell is a giver, not a taker, and she kept her crowd dancing, shine undiminished by darkness. When the lights blew back on, it seemed almost an excess of electricity.

12:31 PM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Reading the Tea Leaves at the Trade Show

by Neda Ulaby

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I've been really interested how SXSW has been affected by the economic downturn, an issue addressed by my colleague Stephen Thompson today in a piece for Morning Edition. Stephen took an incisive look at how one band grappled with the decision to finance their trip to Austin this year. I conducted a little field research of my own: at the trade show.

And while you can still stock up on enough company-embossed guitar picks to hold you through the next financial quarter, truly, it seemed sparse compared to years past. Roomy. Besides inevitable repeat offenders like ACAAP and Sound Exchange, it seemed you could break many of the vendors this time round into four categories: international, Austin, gear and musician-oriented social network sites. So the folks who can afford to come either have government arts/tourism commissions backing them (New Zealand, Ireland, Japan, regions of Canada and Spain, etc), or they're local and they don't have to worry about housing and shipping costs (Austin Chronicle), or they're feeling somewhat stressed.

I asked a smiley rep for a high end audio equipment company if there'd been any debate about coming this year and his demeanor instantly changed. He looked around furtively and shrugged. "Not so much this year," he said. "Next year, we'll see."

12:09 PM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Crystal Women Furs

by Carrie Brownstein

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It's Friday morning and I shouldn't actually be awake considering that just a few hours ago the NPR music team was sitting in the courtyard of the Presbyterian Church -- also a SXSW venue -- recording a podcast that sounded like one long hiccup. But with the magic of editing (thanks, Stephen!) that hiccup will be transformed into a mellifluous yowl of enthusiasm.

Yesterday was a bit of a marathon. NPR presented our second and final showcase at The Parish. I really love that venue: great sound, lanterns, a variety of vantage points from which to view the stage, and a heat that builds and smolders. I'm a bit talked out about the showcase, you can hear my immediate thoughts about the bands here and even more about it on the aforementioned podcast.

Quickly, however, I will add that highlights included watching Bob rush to the front of the stage during K'Naan (who wouldn't?), meeting Blind Pilot for the first time in Austin even though they live in my hometown, and seeing Blitzen Trapper play a packed house after watching them five times at SXSW last year, sometime playing only to a few hippies dancing with invisible scarves.

After an hour of rest back at the hotel, I ventured out into the warm Austin night with the intention and hopes of seeing about six more artists. Considering that I'm averse to large crowds, long lines, roving groups of drunkards, and spring break "fashion" a.k.a "is that a mini skirt or just a belt you're wearing because it's barely covering your ass?" I'm surprised I enjoyed myself as much as I did.

My first stop was to see The Entrance Band. I love their song "Grim Reaper Blues" and wanted to see the guitar playing in a live setting. The two front people were clad in white and looked like extras from Dario Argento's Suspiria. I stayed for a few songs but realized that I wasn't yet in the mood for such a labyrinth of sound. Never the less, I'm not done with The Entrance Band.

Next, I saw The Crystal Stilts. Actually, that's not entirely true. The band was late and the venue threw on a local band that through the din I kept thinking was called "Etta James." I wish it had been Etta James, so that I could say that I saw her on a filthy outdoor patio in Austin under a tin shed surrounded by Port-o-Potties. Instead, "Etta James-not-their-real-name" was a three piece band that shrank to a two piece by the second song, a song that they made up on the spot. The best part of the "Etta James-not-their-real-name" show was the couple in front of me, who danced to the music -- knee dancing, I'll call it -- as if this were the band they had come here to see.

Then came the Crystal Stilts, claiming they had no idea they had a show that night. Were they just in Austin by coincidence? Who cares, actually, because this band was amazing and I felt blissful after the first note. Jangly guitar, minimal drums (Mo Tucker, fine, I'll say it), a lanky keyboardist devouring a tiny keyboard as if it were his only meal in days, and a singer who looked as transfixed by the music as I was. Crystal Stilts! Yes!

That performance was followed by a trek over to the Jagjaguwar/Secretly Canadian/Dead Oceans showcase, a label vying for MVP if the music industry was prone to those sorts of sport-inspired accolades. I really wanted to see the Calgary band, Women. I squeezed into the tiny room at the Mohawk and was immediately surrounded by tall men, as in seven-feet tall. In fact, it was the biggest sausage party of the festival thus far with only about fifteen females in the crowd. I guess dudes love Women. Here is a band whose music is hard for me to classify. But I can tell you what I love about them: Their voices, echoing and strange, the bassist who plays the lead riffs high on the neck, the way the songs have space and breaks and fall as seamlessly apart as much as they come together. I did, however, leave a bit early on account of the man coffin.

And last but not least (I can't believe there is anything else!) I saw Handsome Furs. One word: married. I don't really need to say more, imagine a lot of figurative and literal togetherness.

What now? Breakfast.

12:02 PM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Thursday's Daily SXSW Podcast

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Wandering around Austin's 6th Street to see and discover new bands is the name of the game at SXSW, and that's exactly what our NPR crew down in Texas did as Thursday night became Friday morning. Once again, Bob, Carrie, Robin and Stephen gathered in the wee hours, this time to recap NPR's SXSW showcase featuring Thao, Blind Pilot, BLK JKS, K'Naan, Dirty Projectors and Blitzen Trapper.

Standing in the streets of Austin, they also run down the other bands they heard as the night wore on -- a few favorites (Crystal Stilts, Grizzly Bear, Women, Laura Gibson, Akron/Family), some new discoveries (Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned, Passion Pit, Vijay Kishore), a couple of chance encounters and many, many more.

Listen below for the full late night roundtable, or subscribe to the All Songs Considered podcast to download.

Remember, all the NPR performances will be made available in the All Songs Considered Live Concerts podcast.

11:31 AM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Navigating Through The Chaos

From colorful wristbands to laminated badges, Monkey See contributor Elizabeth Nelson discusses the politics that govern SXSW and the hectic mash-up of sounds, empty PBR cans, and smelly bearded hipsters that surrounds her.

Early on Day 2, we descend upon downtown Austin. It is very hot here, and our walk is a two-mile trail of tears. I pass the pawn shop/check-cashing place near the cottage and head towards 6th Street, towards the action. Dubious-looking entrepreneurs who stop us to "just ask a quick question" give way to shrugging, hung over, skinny kids with green or yellow bracelets hanging off of their bony wrists.

Civilization turns to havoc shortly thereafter, with city streets closed to car traffic and monitored by non-threatening-looking city police. It is here that I first peep an unkempt beard and plaid shirt worn by the non-homeless and a preponderance of low-cut jersey tank tops worn with little else besides a pair of slouchy boots. It is exactly like being on either the set of Pirates of the Caribbean or on the ride of the same name, take your pick. Yo, ho, indeed.

To continue reading about Elizabeth Nelson's experience at SXSW, click here.

10:08 AM ET | 03-20-2009 | permalink

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Some Words Before The Rocking Of The Rabbit

by Stephen Thompson

We've finally, after weeks of planning and logistics, pulled off two blockbuster SXSW concert presentations: shows featuring The Decemberists, Blitzen Trapper, K'Naan, The Avett Brothers and so on. They're all on the site now, ready to be re-lived, but that doesn't end our coverage of SXSW.

For starters, our friends in public radio have amazing lineups streaming online in the next few days, starting with Austin's KUT (with PRI's The World) presenting a showcase with Asa, Pato Fu, Kingman and Jonah, Monareta and Ximena Sarinana tonight. (Click here for more information.)

As for the NPR Music gang, we'll be fanning out, seeing as many bands as humanly possible, Twittering (@allsongs) while trying not to over-Twitter, and eventually podcasting as a group at some ungodly hour. I may even be brave enough to seek out the late-night, Playboy-sponsored "Rock the Rabbit" party, which last year provided one-stop shopping for those who enjoy alcoholic energy drinks, Elijah Wood sightings, and scantily dressed women who appear to have been dipped in some sort of polymer.

Oh, and tonight's show is slated to feature a performance by a certain long-defunct super-secret famous band, but keep their identity a secret! Don't tell anyone! I am a man of my word, mostly because the code to the band's secret identity can be cracked by any sleuth capable of typing "Twitter" into a search engine.

And now, to put away the laptop (at long last!) and watch some bands.

8:58 PM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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SXSW Photo Gallery: What's Happened, So Far

For those people experiencing SXSW vicariously from their desk at work or the comfort of a home computer, be sure to check out today's photo gallery.

 

5:02 PM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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Why SXSW Day Parties Rule

The Current's Jim McGuinn has this short missive on why day parties at SXSW allow more fans a chance to hear the bands most in demand during the festival.

Day parties rule. It used to be back in the day that you came to SXSW and had one shot to see a band play - at their showcase. Nowadays, the hottest and hardest working bands end up being invited to gig non-stop day and night, to be seen by as many audiences as possible. When you look through the official and unofficial day party schedules, you really see who is in demand -- and suddenly you have 8 or 10 chances to see School of Seven Bells or Handsome Furs or even the Hold Steady, who have been harped on for playing Rachael Ray's day party (haha!) but are playing about 5 other gigs this week while they are here. And if you are a band and you can't get extra gigs, it almost becomes not worth it to come here at all. In fact, many bands these days get passed by the official SXSW screening committee but show up anyway and if they can play a bunch of day party and extracurricular events make it worth their while.

Read the full post here.

4:35 PM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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Possessed By The Decemberists Inside The Fog Of Sudafed

by Carrie Brownstein

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Day three of SXSW and I'm wearing bright yellow in order to wake myself up every time I begin to nod off from lack of sleep. Despite having a cold (sorry, co-workers) or perhaps allergies (better for everyone, I think) I've managed to cram in a few shows and to help broadcast -- from inside the fog of Sudafed -- a live performance last night. Which, by the way, you can listen to here.

Speaking of last night, I had never seen two of the three bands that we presented: Heartless Bastards and The Avett Brothers. The former was the loudest of the three bands on the bill, a feat for an opener and thus totally ballsy, which I love. When I first heard HB a few years ago, I couldn't distinguish them from a better-than-average bluesy bar band, but something magical has emerged from their core--or perhaps a haunting -- and it's very effective. The Avett Brothers are folkies with teeth. And fierce folk beats freak folk any day.

The Decemberists, who I have seen a few times, premiered their new album, The Hazards of Love. Some words you are likely to read or hear about their new endeavor: Prog, risky, and epic. Here's my take on it, it's joyful; it's a band having fun with the methods of songwriting, with the notion of character and story, with genre, and with volume. The set began tentatively but ended anything but timid. My hopes are that as the tour progresses, the band will be possessed from the very first note.

Something else I did yesterday, and a first for me at SXSW, was to sit in a dark movie theatre for about 30-minutes and watch music videos. Seeing the videos on the big screen made not only the images but the songs themselves feel bigger; which is why I'm here, after all, to feel dwarfed by the sheer amount of sound.

Check out two of the better videos:

The Saturday Knights "Count it Off"

The Saturday Knights - "Count It Off" from Lincoln Leopard Films on Vimeo

Gnarls Barkley "Going On"

1:21 PM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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The Elephant In The Festival

by Neda Ulaby

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Ben squinted in spite of his sunglasses into the fading Austin sunset. "Man, this is my fourth SXSW and I keep saying I'm never coming back," he said.

"There's four thousand musicians here and you're in direct competition with all of them," he said. "You don't get enough time to set up and just a few seconds to sound check."

With a yellow bandanna fading into his wavy blonde hair and his Japanese-inspired fish scale sleeve tattoo, Ben Hasselbeck looked like -- well, almost every young musician at SXSW. He's here backing up Los Angeles chanteuse Juliette Commagere.

"We've got a string section and a horn section," he said. "It creates a dilemma. Do you risk showing up and not sounding any good, or making the best of it and hope everyone's too drunk to notice?"

Ben has a good point. The awful truth is that the sound at most SXSW shows is pretty muddy. Setups are fast and sloppy. When you see a band you like, sometimes you long to hear them at their home club, where the mics and amps are perfectly calibrated, where the guitars aren't drowning out everyone else and where the singers don't sound like they're wailing through thick bolts of woolen cloth.

11:35 AM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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Wednesday's Daily SXSW Podcast

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Sometime around 2 a.m. Thursday morning, after a full day of music and NPR's nighttime showcase featuring The Decemberists, The Avett Brothers and The Heartless Bastards, Bob, Robin, Stephen and Carrie sat down to give a recap of what bands they saw, who they're excited to hear on Thursday and what's to come the rest of the week.

Take a listen to the daily podcast update below.

Subscribe to the All Songs Considered podcast for more updates. All of our concerts will be made available to download as podcasts. Subscribe to the the Live Concerts from All Songs Considered podcast for details.

10:59 AM ET | 03-19-2009 | permalink

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St. Vincent Rehearses New Song

by Robin Hilton

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We're actually chest-deep in some serious rock and roll right now with The Heartless Bastards, but I wanted to take a minute to share this video Bob and I shot earlier this afternoon of St. Vincent rehearsing for SXSW. The band rented out a small practice space on the outer edges of Austin for the day to run through some material. We got to hear a couple of fantastic new tunes from the band's upcoming album, including this one, "An Actor Out Of Work."

(This version is the video I shot myself on my cheapy camera and the lighting wasn't great. We'll post a much better video with better sound, plus more music, later).

11:05 PM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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Strategies And Revelries

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Jim McGuinn of The Current discusses SXSW techniques and reminisces about past festivals as he sits aboard his plane bound for Austin.

Ah yes, Austin Texas and the annual pilgrimage to South By Southwest, the biggest music conference in the world. Over 1800 bands from as many homelands as the UN, and four days and nights to try to see as many as you can catch.

For many years I used to feel bad if I didn't maximize my band time, but a few years back I started to give up on the quantity issue and instead focus on a combination of seeing what I want to see, and allowing for the delicious accidents - which in years past enabled me to wander into venues and discover a young Neko Case or an unheralded band like Fanfarlo or We Are Standard, both of whom I hope to see again this year.

Click here to continue reading the rest of McGuinn's post about SXSW strategies and revelries.

9:30 PM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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Judging A Band By Its Name

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Over at Vanity Fair's VF Daily blog, Jennifer Turner has come up with her own method for choosing bands to hear at SXSW: band names.

Back when I was an undergrad at the University of Texas (hook 'em!), the South by Southwest Music Festival was something that happened at night, in official showcases held at Austin's motley venues. In those days, an affordable wristband took you almost anywhere you needed to go. Now, you need a $550-695 festival badge, a gold-plated Rolodex, and/or a full-time personal assistant to keep up with the dizzying array of day parties, lounges, post-parties, and who knows what else.

So how does one choose between the competing blocks of red on the iCal? I, for one, have decided to take a scientific approach: I'm choosing based on band names. More precisely, I'm looking for bands whose names fall into aesthetically pleasing patterns.

Click here to read the full post about this year's emerging band name patterns emerging at SXSW.

Carrie Brownstein also blogged about this very topic on her own blog while listening to some 900 songs in the weeks leading up SXSW.

5:42 PM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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Picturing 2,500 People In Their Underpants

by Stephen Thompson

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It's only five and a half hours until I'm expected to take the stage at Stubb's BBQ in Austin and introduce NPR Music's lineup at SXSW: The Heartless Bastards (going on first), followed by The Avett Brothers and The Decemberists. I have to give a spiel in front of roughly 2,500 people, which ranks on the Terror Alert scale somewhere around "Pants-Wetting Fear," so I'm sure it's going to go just dandy.

So, what to do? Tell a joke? Rattle off the 45 seconds of information I have to impart and then beat a hasty retreat? Filibuster for 20 minutes until the crowd is whipped into a frenzy of hatred, and thus ready to rock? Tune in live at 11 p.m. ET to find out!

5:26 PM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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The Here We Go Phenomenal Handclap Band Magic

by Robin Hilton

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Here We Go Magic was scheduled to go live at the Mohawk at 12:30. The five members of the group shuffled in at 12:45, looking a little ragged out, and began to set up their gear. When they finally started playing, the drummer said "we literally just got up." They only did a handful of songs, but I was in love. This could become one of my favorite new bands of the year.

When the show ended I had just enough time to drop by Emo's for the much-anticipated Phenomenal Handclap Band set. What can I say? It was just amazing. Thanks to Carrie for turning me on to this group. The band is a perfect mix of everything from the past 40 years of popular music: '70s funk, '60s soul and psychedelia, hard rock, hip-hop. So much more going on.

Breathlessly, I'm off to interview St. Vincent with Bob.

4:26 PM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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A Glitch In The Twitterverse

by Stephen Thompson

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

I understand that I'm not the first to comment on the effect that Twitter and Facebook have had on social interaction; if anything, as topics go, they're today's played-out equivalent of airplane food or the differences between men and women. As in, the next time someone says, "Whoa! People used to call their friends on the phone instead of writing on their Wall!" balloons will fall from the ceiling to commemorate the one trillionth time that observation has been made.

But still. I haven't even been here a day, and I've already 1) friended someone on Facebook and had her accept the friend request while we were standing next to each other, each holding a laptop; 2) co-authored a SXSW haiku, which was published to Twitter and then discussed, hours later, with other people, who used their phones to immediately access it; and 3) attended an NPR Music panel discussion, during which I gauged the audience reaction by following its tweets online in real time.

What have I not yet done in my 22 hours in Austin? See a band. Thank goodness the actual music part of this madness starts today, at long last.

10:56 AM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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Head Full Of Screams

by Carrie Brownstein

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

SXSW has begun! I knew I was off to a good start this morning at 4:45, when the cabbie came to pick me up from my house to take me to the airport, took one look at me, started playing air-guitar and said, "You're the girl from that one band." Then, in the backseat of his car -- despite operating on a mere two and a half hours of sleep -- I just couldn't help myself and had to establish my cred by correctly identifying Bad Brains on his iPod. This comment was rewarded by him asking if he could turn it up (what could I do? I had to say yes). Bad Brains was followed by Viva Voce, which was followed by Elliott Smith and -- tada! -- I was at the airport. Portland cab rides are the best.

Once I landed in Austin, I went directly to the Hilton, where I participated on a panel about both the genesis and future of NPR Music. During the Q&A that followed, someone asked about whether NPR music's focus should be narrow or broad. Personally, I think it should be both, like microscopes and satellites. And here at SXSW, the effects are much the same, immediate and long-lasting. I'm really excited to be inside the cacophony for a few days, but only because I know that a few of the sounds will cut through and stay with me for the trip back home.

I'm going to rest tonight, but there is much to look forward to: The Entrance Band, The Phenomenal Handclap Band, Garotas Suecas, Women, St. Vincent and so much more.

Finally, though I didn't begin filling my head with music tonight, I did go out and see a film that showed here at the SXSW Film Festival. It's called Sissyboy, directed by Katie Turinski, and you should see it if you get the chance.

1:55 AM ET | 03-18-2009 | permalink

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Austin By Day And Night

by Robin Hilton

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

The South by Southwest music festival really kicks off Wednesday, but the streets were already filling with fans and bands this afternoon. While Bob and the other suckers were giving some sort of panel discussion thing today, I was out strolling through downtown Austin, taking in the distinct smells and sounds of this beautiful little town, just before it busts open with more music than anyone can take in at once.

I love how some bands just show up with nothing booked and no real game plan, short of setting up on the sidewalk somewhere and turning their guitars up to 11. The name of this group, according to the handwritten lettering on its CDRs, is "Gay Duo."

Go, Gay Duo!

Later, after dinner, Bob and I were heading back to the hotel when we came across this group, Wino Vino.

That's some seriously infectious energy.

This time tomorrow, the entire downtown will be one big wash of sound, with countless bands playing and overlapping one another, and music pouring from every corner.

11:40 PM ET | 03-17-2009 | permalink

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Four Bobs Better Than One At SXSW

By Bob Boilen

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

Well, I've been plotting out my schedule, and I realize that all I need is four more of me.

Luckily, there'll be NPR Music editor Stephen Thompson, All Songs Considered producer Robin Hilton and Monitor Mix blogger Carrie Brownstein to be the eyes and ears for me and for you.

The plan is this: We all know the bands we must see, and we'll all write what we've seen here. We'll put pictures online and some video clips. We'll also get together and record a podcast right on the streets of Austin. At least, that's the plan.

Wednesday, I hope to see Micachu and the Shapes and The Phenomenal Handclap Band and interview BLK JKS before heading over to St. Vincent's rehearsal space and shoot some video. Then it's off to Waterloo Records for an open mic of artists performing Leonard Cohen songs. We'll record that and post it on our SXSW page. I'm not sure I'll make it to Pink Nasty, but I trust Stephen will. I'll go to Stubbs and set up for our live webcast with The
Decemberists, The Avett Brothers and The Heartless Bastards.

If you are at SXSW, I'd love to know what you're going to see, so post it here. And if you aren't here, then tell us who you think we ought to check out.

More to come very soon.

4:50 AM ET | 03-17-2009 | permalink

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The Austin 100: Picking The Best Of SXSW

by Stephen Thompson

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

We're constantly launching new projects at NPR Music: concerts at Bob Boilen's desk, songwriting experiments in our studios, blogs by musicians we love and admire, and so on. Some involve more labor and logistics than others, but each invariably requires a days-long process in which we try to name the damn thing. (The fact that our holiday-music stream was called "Jingle Jams" is still the source of tension around the office.) (Mostly because I refuse to let it go.)

Aaaaanyway, we just kicked off yet another new initiative: a 100-song continuous music mix highlighting some of our favorite artists who'll perform at the South by Southwest music festival next week. This involved a good deal of winnowing -- picking through MP3s by roughly 1,100 of the bands scheduled to play -- but actually resulted in a surprisingly useful listening experience. Whether or not you're attending the festival, the mix opens a nice portal into six and a half hours of music discovery.

After rejecting countless names -- "Songs We Could Stand"! "Bands in Bulk"! "South by SouthBEST"! -- we finally settled on "The Austin 100." I like to think it captures the sheer size of the listening experience, while also hinting at another feature of SXSW: The whole thing feels a little bit like a race, an attempt to fit as many experiences as possible into an all-too-brief window.

So, whether you're attending SXSW or listening from home, I dearly hope you listen to The Austin 100 -- and feel free to add your comments, recommendations and favorites below. What do you want to hear at SXSW this year?

[Click here to view the playlist, and here for NPR Music's full coverage of the festival.]

3:39 PM ET | 03-11-2009 | permalink

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Free Album Download: A SXSW Primer

by Robin Hilton

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

Next week, we'll load up the wagon and head to Austin, Tex., for our coverage of the annual South by Southwest music festival. We'll live webcast a bunch of great concerts (The Decemberists will premiere the new album The Hazards of Love), send out Twitter updates, blog about the shows we're seeing and much more.

To help you get ready for our coverage, we've put together a great mixtape for you with some of the bands we'll be featuring. You can download the whole thing for free from iTunes. It's got music from The Decemberists, Blitzen Trapper, BLK JKS, The Dirty Projectors and six others.

So go get your free copy of the mixtape now, and check back later for our complete SXSW coverage.

3:50 PM ET | 03-10-2009 | permalink

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Extreme Music Makeover

by Robin Hilton

How important is a producer? Think of the albums you really, really love. There's a good chance the same producer appears on more than one of them. Daniel Lanois comes to mind: He was at the mixing board for some of my all-time favorite albums, like U2's The Joshua Tree, Peter Gabriel's So, Bob Dylan's Time Out of Mind, and Wrecking Ball by Emmylou Harris.

Lanois brings a distinctively warm sound to the records he produces. That has a lot to do with his love of analog equipment and ribbon microphones, as well as the way he uses space. He talked about this with NPR's All Things Considered a few years ago.

But how much of it is Lanois and how much is it the bands? Would The Joshua Tree have been such a big hit if someone else had produced, or if U2 had gone it alone?

We were talking about this recently at NPR Music, and wondered whether a great producer could take a mediocre band and make it successful. Bob Boilen and I recently finished our albums for the RPM Challenge, and they're about as good as you'd expect from two people who barely know what they're doing. But I got to thinking: What if Daniel Lanois (or somebody like him) produced Bob's album, or mine? Could he turn what we wrote into works of art?

So here's the new show we want to do: "Extreme Music Makeover." We take a mediocre, marginally talented musician, give him or her a few days in the studio with a brilliant producer, and see what they come up with. Attention Brian Eno, George Martin, Daniel Lanois, Tucker Martine, Jon Brion, Jim O'Rourke, John Vanderslice and all you other beautifully gifted artists: This is your big chance! Drop us a line at allsongs@npr.org, and we'll get you booked into NPR's Studio 4A with whatever middling musician we can come up with.

While we wait to hear from them, tell us what you think. Do producers matter that much? Who are some of your favorite producers, and what do you think they bring to the albums you love most?

2:47 PM ET | 03- 6-2009 | permalink

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'The Beatles: Rock Band'

by Bob Boilen

Below is a press release for a Beatles video game. Perhaps this will be fun, but Apple Corps., I plead with you: FINISH REMASTERING THE CATALOG BEFORE I DIE.

Thank you.

And Beatles music on a video game, but not on iTunes? I hope that means digital Beatles music is coming, too. Paul McCartney has said that there will be digital Beatles music in either '08 or '09, and one of those years has already passed. I am told there will be announcements regarding new Beatles projects at the end of March at Beatles Fest.

Anyway, here's the press release regarding "The Beatles: Rock Band." (Rock Band is a video game that lets users play in a virtual band.) Note the date of release, which would make John Lennon smile.

APPLE CORPS LTD., MTV AND HARMONIX ANNOUNCE "THE BEATLES: ROCK BAND,"
WORLDWIDE RELEASE SET FOR 9/9/09

New York, NY - March 5, 2008 - Apple Corps, Ltd., Harmonix and MTV Games, a part of Viacom's MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), today announced the 9/9/09 worldwide release of The Beatles: Rock Band (http://www.thebeatlesrockband.com). The music-based video game, an unprecedented, experiential progression through and celebration of the music and artistry of The Beatles, will be available simultaneously worldwide in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other territories for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system and Wii(TM) home videogame console from Nintendo.

The Beatles: Rock Band will allow fans to pick up the guitar, bass, mic or drums and experience The Beatles' extraordinary catalogue of music through gameplay that takes players on a journey through the legacy and evolution of the band's legendary career. In addition, The Beatles: Rock Band will offer a limited number of new hardware offerings modeled after instruments used by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr throughout their career.

The Beatles: Rock Band will be offered as standalone software and hardware as well as a limited edition bundle. The game will be compatible with all Rock Band instrument controllers and other current music-based video game peripherals.

The Beatles: Rock Band marks the first time that Apple Corps, along with EMI Music, Harrisongs Ltd, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing, has agreed to present The Beatles' music in an interactive video game format. The Beatles: Rock Band will be published by MTV Games and
developed by Harmonix, the world's premier music video game company and creators of the best-selling Rock Band. Electronic Arts will serve as distribution partner for the game. In addition, Giles Martin, co-producer of The Beatles' innovative LOVE album project, is providing
his expertise and serving as Music Producer for this groundbreaking Beatles project.

Exclusive content created by Apple Corps, MTV Games and Harmonix will be made available to fans over the next few months who participate in a pre-order campaign through major retailers. More details on The Beatles: Rock Band game and pre-order will be revealed in the coming
months.

10:09 AM ET | 03- 5-2009 | permalink

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Antony In A Synagogue With Pitchfork

by Bob Boilen

I'm not a big reader of music blogs, magazines or interviews. I like to listen. So I really had no idea what it would be like to talk with Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons. I only know him from spending a lot of time with his previous album, I Am a Bird Now, and he didn't seem like a happy camper.

When I first walked into the Sixth and I Synagogue for the recent Antony and the Johnsons concert there, I wasn't sure if the images in Antony's music would feel out of place, or if they would take on new meaning. I did know it was something I'd never forget.

What surprised me most is this: He's actually a very chipper fellow. Smart, I figured; upbeat, I hadn't. I felt the same way when I saw Leonard Cohen literally skip off the stage like a child racing to an ice-cream truck. Go figure. In my interview with Antony, he reveals to me his three childhood heroes -- Anne Frank, Divine and Jesus -- as well as his desire to do cartwheels thanks to a music video by Kate Bush.

We have the entire show online for you to hear. You can also download a copy of the show by subscribing to our concerts podcast. My conversation with Antony can be heard here, or at the end of the concert podcast.

Antony and the Johnsons Interview:

Also, we're proud to announce a new partnership: NPR Music is teaming up with Pitchfork TV to find interesting music projects. So go watch video of Antony and the Johnsons' performance at the Sixth and I Synagogue in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 3.

Here's a sample video:

11:02 AM ET | 03- 4-2009 | permalink

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Band Name Discrimination: Culling The Herd At SXSW

by Carrie Brownstein

Full SXSW Coverage for Live Concerts and Exclusive Performances

Our subtle ways of casting judgment:

Recently, I was sent a disc of 900 songs -- a sort of SXSW preview, if you will. My task is to listen to the bands and figure out whom I might want to see at the festival, so that I might pass the recommendations on to you. Nine hundred songs! That's like purchasing 75 new albums, except that it's not. It's worse, because you don't get the cohesion of a full-length record, one singer, one band. Basically, 900 MP3s is the musical equivalent of a penny jar -- yes, it adds up to the same amount of money as dollars, but you still feel broke, and the weight of it is overwhelming.

As much as I'd like to think I will sit down and listen to all 900 songs, that idea is simply unrealistic. Instead, I must find ways of making snap decisions, instinctive decisions, based on arbitrary rules. But are these rules merely of my own design, or are there universal principles that draw us to one artist and make us reject another?

When we enter a record store or read music blogs and Web sites, we cannot merely ingest each and every artist with wholehearted enthusiasm; the prospect is too overwhelming. Thus, in order to save ourselves energy, we come up with ways of determining good from bad, and of ascertaining what endeavors are worthy of not just our time, but also our curiosity.

The quickest way to pre-judge is easy: band names. This is the first and easiest means by which -- not hearing the music yet, of course -- we can weed out the weak kids. Some of it is based on personal taste. For instance, maybe you're sick of bands with animals in their names, or you can't stand band names culled from French New Wave film titles, or perhaps you're particularly drawn to alliteration. Some confounding monikers fall to the wayside once you hear their music; Death Cab For Cutie comes to mind. Others, however, remain perennial deal-breakers. I mean, how great would Hoobastank have to be before you actually bought a T-shirt or uttered its name out loud, followed by the phrases "personal favorite" or "life changing"?

I've often tried to go back retroactively and separate the band name from the music, an impossible and frivolous task for sure, but an interesting exercise. For example, if my friends said, "We're going to call our band Led Zeppelin," would I balk and suggest that they rethink it? What this game always reveals, of course, is the force of the music and how it obliterates doubts by marrying what was once an arbitrary name with a sound. (Or perhaps my interest in this idea stems from the fact that my own band name sounded like a law firm, and always involved an explanation.)

The opposite conundrum, of course, is that a lot of band names are inherently cool -- so much so that, before you hear them, you hope that the music lives up to the title: Sonic Youth, Television, Buzzcocks and The Strokes are all great band names, whether or not you've heard a note. Unfortunately, a lot of bands with fantastic names are awful (present company in this paragraph excluded, of course).

So, to make sense of the voluminous SXSW MP3s, I did begin with the name game. For the most part, it worked! Fortunately, I also don't have to stare at a bunch of album artwork, which presents a whole other set of problems. As you know, after the band name, if you don't know the music, all you have to go on is the cover art, And when it looks like this...

Well, let's just say it's hard to know what to make of it.

Feel free to share your own experiences with the pre-judging of band names and artwork.

3:25 PM ET | 03- 2-2009 | permalink

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Why Do We Love The Music We Love?

by Bob Boilen

Last week, singer Tom Jones came to sing at my desk. It was truly surreal and sublime, but to tell the truth, I've never been much of a fan of his. Despite the fact that his voice and his songs sounded big on my little transistor radio back in 1966, I'd much rather hear Bob Dylan or The Byrds or The Beatles or The Bobby Fuller Four.

When U2 began making records in the early '80s, I was in a band making music, writing music for a performance-art group, and still reeling from so much great music that had just taken place from 1976 to 1980. I just didn't need or want the creative input from contemporary musicians. My tastes wandered to music from all over the world and to jazz. To this day, despite my admiration for the songwriting, the production and the message, I've never been a U2 fan.

So I've been wondering: Why do we love the music we love? It isn't clearly all about talent and craftsmanship, or even style. Is it the time and place we hear music for the first time? Is it where we are in our personal lives?

What do you think? Are there bands you know you should love, but don't? And just why is it that you think you don't?

9:46 AM ET | 03- 2-2009 | permalink

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