Front RowOur favorite new bands, from the best seat in the house.
Special Series
Front Row
Our favorite bands, from the best seat in the house
Conor Oberst, a rock 'n' roll lifer at the age of 31, played a two-hour set with his band Bright Eyes at Auditorium Shores in Austin, Tex.
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On the new People's Key, Conor Oberst is no longer a prodigiously gifted kid; he's become an adventurous, fully formed folk-rock icon. Listen to Bright Eyes cap SXSW 2011 with a two-hour concert.
Janet Weiss and Carrie Brownstein (right) of WILD FLAG perform at The Parish in Austin, Texas.
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True to its name, WILD FLAG — a brand new band made up of Carrie Brownstein, formerly of Sleater-Kinney, and members of Helium and The Menders — harness a wild power.
Raphael Saadiq performs live at Stubb's Bar-B-Q at SXSW 2011.
Katie Hayes Luke/Katie Hayes Lukehide caption
He's been a member of Tony! Toni! Tone! and a hitmaking producer, but in his solo career, Raphael Saadiq has proven himself as an old-school soul throwback.
Merrill Garbus of tUnE-yArDs performs at The Parish in Austin, Texas.
Shantell Mitchell for NPRhide caption
On stage, tUnE-yArDs' Merrill Garbus performs with a microphone, some drums, a ukulele and a loop pedal. She's got a stunning instinct for harnessing limited resources to maximum effect.
Khaira Arby performs at The Parish in Austin, Texas.
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The queen of Malian desert rock, Khaira Arby has the chops to overwhelm her incredible band, who create a hypnotic backdrop for her gloriously swooping vocals.
Joy-Formidable performs live at the Parish in Austin, Texas.
Shantel Mitchell/Flickrhide caption
