Wristbands didn't sell out
Read for yourself.To me, that means the new system gets a thumbs up. The rest of the wristbands will go on sale this Thursday, the 28th. This time, it
won't be a lottery.
Wristbands, my thoughts
So, the new
wristband policy was released the other day. Go ahead and read through it, I'll wait.
Done yet? No, seriously. Read it. It's interesting.
In the past, there was always a release of wristbands seemingly out of nowhere. As soon as you heard news that they were released, you'd have to run down to Waterloo Records and stand in a line that was anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours. Recently, you could sign up for text messages on the SXSW website and you would be informed exactly when wristbands went on sale.
Now you go online and get entered in a lottery. Many people think this sounds like ACL early bird tickets. It's not though. Because the policy here is that you have to put the wristband on when you pick it up and you can only enter once. I think this will significantly cut down on scalpers and most people that really want to go won't have a problem. In fact, I would always buy a second just in case I had a friend that missed out. I think a lot of people used to do this. You can't really do that anymore since you have to give the name of the person you are buying it for when purchasing the wristband.
However, after thinking about it for the last 36 hours, I hate the new policy. Louis Black claimed that he wanted to change the policy because people were complaining about having to leave work on a moment's notice and drive across town just to stand in a long line. He wanted to give those people a better opportunity to get wristbands. I don't think those are the people that wristbands were designed for. Wristbands are for hardcore music fans that are willing to put some effort into obtaining access to all the new indie bands that are at SXSW. Now, more casual fans that really want to see REM can lay down a little money and have just as much of a chance at a wristband as the hardcore fan that would be willing to camp out over night just to see a bunch of bands that no one has heard of yet. SXSW is catering to the wrong crowd here. Oh well. I hope Gus, Sarah, Josh, Carter, and Tary can all get wristbands. If not, this new policy is a complete failure.
She gives me Dollywood
Dolly Parton, the first well known act to be announced for SXSW, has now canceled her upcoming tour, including her stop in Austin. This follows news that The Black Crowes have also pulled out. I'm truly am upset. Seriously. This is the Internet. Only facts live here. Dolly Parton would have pulled hundreds of festival attendees over to Austin Music Hall. Combine her set with the time it takes to walk there and back, that's two solid hours where the venues with exciting new indie acts would have been slightly less full. The Black Crowes could have pulled a couple thousand to a venue like Stubb's. Oh well.
Maybe some Hoek's will cheer me up... What?!?
They closed "heavy metal pizza"! Well shit down my throat and kick me in the balls. (At least that will taste better than
Roppolo's.) I guess that makes
Best Wurst the only option for quality, 3am snacking this year.
2001, redux
I'm a fan of Daft Punk. And by that, I mean I bought
Discovery in 2001 and absolutely loved it. About a six months ago I noticed that my favorite song from that album,
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger, was becoming popular again. However, it took me awhile to realize the reason. I don't follow hip hop, so I didn't know Kanye West was using the song in his new single,
Stronger. I hate it when awesome songs are ignored until someone from a slightly more popular genre, like rap or country, remake the song. However, Kanye is a class act, so I forgive him. I love his homage to Daft Punk in his Grammy performance, embedded below (awesomeness starts around 2:44).
The List
Just skimmed it, but I don't see anything new and exciting on there yet.
Super Tuesday
Who is voting for Clinton?! Stop it! My theory is that crafty Republicans are voting in the Democratic primaries for what will prove to be the least likable candidate since Bob Dole. She's too conservative for liberals and too "Clinton" for conservatives. Obama is the only person that can even compete with McCain. Oh well.
WHAT MORONS ARE VOTING FOR RON PAUL?!? I know he's only getting a few votes, but what the hell? His only supporters are liberal Republicans, but he keeps saying stupid shit out loud like, "I'm the most conservative candidate." McCain will prove that America really wants a liberal Republican as their president (and America will regret it, but not as much as I regret voting for Bush in '00).
Anyone want to take me to
Bonnaroo? I never thought they would
absolutely destroy Coachella's lineup. Sorry, Portishead and Pink Floyd mean nothing to
people under 30 me.
New Austinite For The Win!
If you watched the Superbowl as much as my wife did, you may remember
this commercial. What you may not have known, is that Kina Grannis is actually an Austinite. Or, as much of an Austinite as everyone else that lives here now. According to the Statesman, she moved to Austin in May after graduating from USC. She's a good looking girl with a great voice and an average song. The next Vanessa Carlton? For her sake (and Austin's), I hope not. Best of luck, Kina!
A lot of old people...
It appears that The Presidents of the United States of America are playing SXSW and are bringing along Bowling for Soup and Zebrahead. Are these bands currently unsigned or just wishing they had "indie cred"? I actually own a few Zebrahead albums, so I might go check them out.
The Breeders announced that their SXSW show will be at Waterloo park and open to the public. I don't recall there ever being shows at Waterloo park before. This is the same location as the now annual, indie-filled FunFunFun Fest. I think this is a great move by SXSW. Waterloo is close enough to downtown that festival goers can stop by without too much trouble and free shows are great for locals that don't want to spend over $150 for a wristband.
Random note:
Morrissey is apparently endorsing Obama. Why is this old dipshit still relevant and why is he sticking his ugly British nose into US politics? The best part is that he displayed this sign at a show in London. How many registered US voters were there? (Probably the same number as if he were playing a show in NYC. Apathetic non-voters FTW!)
The Amen Break
Watch
this. Does it change your perspective on sampling?
No Ms. Ray. That band was not "yummo".
Last year I stood in a Bestwurst line right behind
The Ace of Cakes, Duff Goldman. I was too much of a pussy to say anything to him, and I'm sure he appreciated me not pestering him. However, if I see
Rachael Ray at SXSW this year, I hope I'm not too much of a pussy to punch her in her annoying, over hyped mouth. Oh wait. I forgot. I'm nothing
but a big pussy. Why am I even thinking about this?
Shitty Beer. That's what made it famous.
Stereogum is the type of blog that talks about all good music, not just the hipster shit that no one has heard of yet that all the other music blogs focus on. That's bad since I like to read
Gorilla Vs. Bear so I can stick my nose up in the air at all my friends who haven't heard of "Del the Funky Homosapien". But at the same time, that's good because Stereogum doesn't ignore bands that are actually creating a (gasp!) second album that people might be excited about.
Check out this entry on Austin's
What Made Milwaukee Famous. The embedded song is delicious. I understand the comparison the author makes to Radiohead, but Radiohead wouldn't be caught dead with acoustic guitars and non-synthesized drums these days. (Unless they're playing "Just", which they totally don't play often enough.)
