From Jason:
Friday, March 23, 2007
SXSW Day 4: In which Smarmy Hipster is Tired and Perplexed
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
SXSW Day 3: Chuck the Fucking Chucks, Already
From Jason:
We started off the day EXTREMELY strong at the SPIN Party, thanks to Hannah (***Official Advertising Goddess of Smarmy Hipster***). The first band of the day was The Fratellis. They opened surprisingly weak considering how fun their music is. The music that they played was great (sounded just like their CD), but you could tell that they were mailing it in. At one point, the bassist turned around to hide a yawn. Then magic happened; out of nowhere, Pete “Freaking” Townsend steps onto the stage and fucking brought the house down. As stated earlier, we saw Pete the previous night at La Zona Rosa, but this was different. He had an electric guitar this time and simply kicked the show into another gear. It was around this time that I realized that the tequila at the bar was FREE. Free margaritas, kick ass rock ‘n’ roll, vacation from work, and some of the strongest people watching of the festival added up to a pretty special day.
SXSW Day 2: Unbefuckinglievable
From David:
This Blog Written While Listening To
Pulling Up Floors, Pouring On (New) Paint, by
Thursday, March 15, 2007
SXSW Day 1: Take Out Those Lame Earplugs; You're at a Rock Show, for Christ's Sake!
From David:
What a fantastic start to SXSW 2007! We were supposed to have pics, but Carina (**The Official Wife of Jason/The Official Photographer of Smarmy Hipster**) dropped the ball and forgot the camera last night. But it's SXSW, a time for forgiveness, so I can't stay mad at her. We will definitely have the camera tonight, and I promise rocktastic snapshots of today's festivities.
Let me just say that the beards so far have been pretty good, but I'm expecting a lot more. We did see one guy at the first show sporting a fairly stupendous molestache, so that's something. I have high hopes that by the time SXSW is over, I'll have seen at least one Rollie Fingers-style mustachio. Also, did I miss the memo about Chucks being the preferred footwear of hipsters the world over this year? Nothing marks you as a unique individual like having the same shoe as every other hipster in the club. Maybe next year, we can all decide to kick it on the haberdashery tip and wear fezzes.
Anyway, on to the show reviews:
We started off the night watching Tacks, The Boy Disaster at The Tap Room. I first heard this band a couple of months ago after seeing a recommendation on a blog somewhere (maybe Austinist?). I'm a big fan of their oft-mellow, keyboard/synth-driven brand of rock. I was a little worried about how it might translate live, but they were great. A really tight set, with plenty of volume and energy. I suggest picking up their album, posthaste. Frozen Feet is a tremendous song.
Next we went to Lambert's to see Dionysus. For those of you not familiar with Lambert's (and I wasn't until yesterday), it's an upscale barbecue joint in the new
Next up, we checked out Birdmonster at the Habana Calle 6 Annex (which is an awfully long, involved name for what turns out to be a tent across the street from the Habana on 6th). The venue left a lot to be desired, mainly because it's at the sketchy, filled-with-opportunities-to-purchase-crack edge of 6th. It attracts the bare minimum of window shoppers. Which is a shame, because I thought Birdmonster had built up a decent amount of buzz before this SXSW, and I was hoping that more people would come out to see them. I'm a big fan of their album, No Midnight. Before I talk about the Birdmonster show, though, let me tell you a little story about a band named Tally Hall (note that they get no linky — that's no accident). Jason and I hadn't really heard too much about this band, but they were on while we were waiting for Birdmonster. I regret getting there early. This 5-piece band from Ann Arbor, who came out in matching uniforms (which few bands can pull off, and certainly not some lame college rock outfit from Michigan) of white shirts and skinny ties, totally underwhelmed me. Trite lyrics and a complete lack of depth are the band's calling card. They also have this barbershop quartety-way of harmonizing that drove me nuts, and made me think they were about to break into a chorus of Goodbye My Coney Island Baby at any moment. At one point, they played a Caribbean-style song about a banana, in which — surprise, surprise — the banana was a double-entendre for the dude's wang. How droll. But enough about them. Birdmonster took the stage, giving no break or warning from the end of the warmup to the start of the first song. They rocked me ever-so-rightly. The
Well, that's it for now. We took it kind of easy last night, because we're saving ourselves for the Quack! Media day party (with The Walkmen and Okkervil River, **The Official Favorite Austin Band of Smarmy Hipster**) and the completely sick lineup of shows tonight at La Zona Rosa (Elvis Perkins, Cold War Kids, Architecture in Helsinki, Ghostland Observatory, and What Made Milwaukee Famous).
This Blog Written While Listening To
Alligator, by The National (the new album comes out 5/22!)
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
SXSW Eve
From David:
Tonight is SXSW Eve, when Colin Meloy — that jolly old elf — sneaks down your chimney, filling your stockings with import EPs, bootleg mixes, and rare B-sides, and leaving vintage vinyl around the SXSW Rock. Please be sure to leave out a plate of breakfast tacos and a glass of absinthe for him, or all you'll get is a fucked-up Ashley Simpson CD.
What SX bands is Smarmy Hipster most excited about? Well, gather round, my ones of fans, and I'll tell you:
The Apples in Stereo
Aqualung
Architecture in Helsinki
Asobi Seksu
Beirut
Andrew Bird
The Bird and the Bee
Birdmonster
The Bravery
Tom Brosseau
Buffalo Tom
Catfish Haven
The Changes
Clem Snide
Cloud Cult
Cold War Kids
Colourmusic
David & The Citizens
Dionysos
dios
Dirty on Purpose
Steve Earle
The Electric Soft Parade
Evangelicals
Field Music
The Fratellis
Fujiya & Miyagi
Ghostland Observatory
Girl Talk
Gitogito Hustler
Golden Bear
Grand Buffet
Robyn Hitchcock
IV Thieves
Kings of Leon
Les Savy Fav
The Little Ones
The Lovely Sparrows
Margot & the Nuclear So and So's
Walter Meego
Menomena
Midlake
The Mooney Suzuki
Moonlight Towers
The Mountain Goats
Alexi Murdoch
Okkervil River
The Pigeon Detectives
Public Enemy
Razorlight
Spoon
Stars Of Track And Field
Tacks, the Boy Disaster
Tilly and The Wall
Tokyo Police Club
Tullycraft
The Village Green
What Made Milwaukee Famous
I know that’s a huge list, but that’s just how excited we are. I left bands off, including the fairly large list of groups I want to see based solely on the awesomeness of their names, such as I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch in the House and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin.
Anyway, we will be updating the blog daily from the SXSW trenches for those of you who can't make it. For those of you who can, make sure you double bag it: nobody wants to get a case of the rock clap. It burns when you throw metal.
This Blog Written While Listening To
The new mix I recently made for my special lady. How can you get your hands on this excellent mix? You can't, but there’s your shoutout, Kim.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Concert Review: Emo's 3/3/07
From Jason:
Damn, I’m lazy. It’s been six days since the What Made Milwaukee Famous and Dr. Dog show at Emo’s, and I’m just NOW sitting down to write about it (editor’s note: I’m even lazier, and it’s been three days since Jason gave me his review). Let me preface my opinion by mentioning that Dave and I were all hopped up and surly on Sparks (**The Official Malt Energy Beverage of Smarmy Hipster**), and we had to babysit a thirty-year-old who was more than a little hammered (he got cut off by the benevolent bartender and spent the rest of the show plotting violence against said bartender).
What does this have to do with the show? Shut up. WOW – Sparks DOES make me surly.
The reason this is relevant is that I was dealing with silly drunken aggression bullshit (not my own) while The Teeth were playing. Consequently, I felt as if they were stupid and sloppy. They came across as another post punk band without all that talent baggage. I’m sorry if you dig them, but I just could not get into their style.
Moving on…
As for their set… This was simply the best WMMF show that I have seen in two years. They played five new songs, most of their old ones (except for Next to Him, which I did not miss, even a little), and rocked the faces off the Emo’s crowd. Their show was energetic, and seemed to flow perfectly from one song to the next. I’m not sure if this was the Barsuk influence or simply the fact that they were playing in front of a hometown crowd, but they really seemed to connect with the audience (unlike their performance at ACL Fest, where they seemed like they were sleepwalking through the set). If you are in the