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← back to archive	SXSW 2012: Day Two And off we go. Walking to my first show of the day at one in the afternoon, I go by a tent in a car park and this band is playing. DIVE. Not bad. Look like they are 13yrs old. into the Stage at Sixth, which over the week will have some of the best bands , thanks to the afternoon parties of Paste magazine, in association with Senheiser. Here is a photo which shows how I am feeling at that moment ( blurry) and the band, Typhoon, one of the hottest Portland bands at SXSW. Next one of my favourite venues Red Eye Fly, to see Dan Mangan, the guy in green , with his skewered take on folk music. A great venue next, formerly a garage, now just an event space, called Empire Automotive, to see Unknown Mortal Orchestra, the first of my must see groups who turn out to be good on record, look good, but crap live. Next door in a little dive called the the Sidewalk, four LA girl teenagers are tearing down the house. They are Haim. A bit like a Heart for 2012. Next, back in the Stage at sixth but on their outdoor tent stage, the first grand moment of SXSW 2012. Rich Aucoin!!! On vinyl he has a majestic indie pop noise. Live he is a madman conducting call and response banter with the whole crowd, showing his homemade video clips and being a cartoon performance artist. Appealing very much to the rave crowd, he made everybody smile. With Rich under his parachute. SingalongaRich. Still shaking I manage to blur more photos, here are Honey Honey on the Conference Day Stage...Fiddles & Cowboy boots Ok, so that was the afternoon, now on to the first official evening show of Wednesday. To St. David's Bethal Hall to see man mountain/angelic voice Adam Faucett. Wait till you hear his voice. He did not need the microphones in the hall. Played to about thirty people and seven of us had to leave before he finished to get to the next show, making it even emptier. You should hear more of this guy. Emily Wells put down her violin to croon with PillowFight Back to BD Rileys, for pint of cider and The Black Flamingoes, psychedelic Brooklyn band. Yes that is the street outside with folk watching through the open window...... John called to say get back to St Bethal Hall to see Solander, so I did. Swedish pastoral music... I do eventually fix the blurry stuff, but not yet. So whilst it looks like I am photographing some sweaty woman, the aim was to photograph the guy behind her. Only because he is an ikon of British indie guitar music. Here with a completely new backing band is David Gedge, The Wedding Present. They played a ton of shows and I met him walking down sixth street. Age has not been kind. From The Swan Dive I head next door to formerly Emo's now The Main Room, where Ezra Furman has just stripped down to his bare essentials for some reason. This guy is a great angry storyteller but needs a good meal. If you read that a guy is like a cross between David Johansen and Iggy Pop on stage with the swagger of Morrisey, your attention is grabbed, so back to the Stage at Sixth to see Devin. It is a wild show but not quite up to his own description. To Maggie Mae's downstairs to see Agridoce, one of Brazil's hot bands. Then back for last time to the stage at sixth to see one of the highlights of the week for me - 1,2,3,. Great sound, great voice. Ones to watch. My pet hate at SXSW is Stubbs. It is the biggest venue, outdoors, on a slope and sucks up all the bigger names. Always crazy busy and I have never heard a great sound there in six years. Until now. Andrew Bird was brilliant. Andrew Bird doing it in style. What better way to round of the day with the eighteenth live show in the hands of something Scottish? Here are Three Blind Wolves, a very ginger haired heavy & loud bunch. At this point it is a bit like having opened the first two or three presents on Christmas Day. You are enjoying it, you expect a fair bit to come, but you also know that it will be over way too soon. Anyway, jetlagged and happy, I go to bed around 3am. Three full days to go...

← back to archive

SXSW 2012: Day Two

And off we go. Walking to my first show of the day at one in the afternoon, I go by a tent in a car park and this band is playing. DIVE. Not bad. Look like they are 13yrs old.

into the Stage at Sixth, which over the week will have some of the best bands , thanks to the afternoon parties of Paste magazine, in association with Senheiser. Here is a photo which shows how I am feeling at that moment ( blurry) and the band, Typhoon, one of the hottest Portland bands at SXSW.

Next one of my favourite venues Red Eye Fly, to see Dan Mangan, the guy in green , with his skewered take on folk music.

A great venue next, formerly a garage, now just an event space, called Empire Automotive, to see Unknown Mortal Orchestra, the first of my must see groups who turn out to be good on record, look good, but crap live.

Next door in a little dive called the the Sidewalk, four LA girl teenagers are tearing down the house. They are Haim. A bit like a Heart for 2012.

Next, back in the Stage at sixth but on their outdoor tent stage, the first grand moment of SXSW 2012. Rich Aucoin!!! On vinyl he has a majestic indie pop noise. Live he is a madman conducting call and response banter with the whole crowd, showing his homemade video clips and being a cartoon performance artist. Appealing very much to the rave crowd, he made everybody smile.

With Rich under his parachute.

SingalongaRich.

Still shaking I manage to blur more photos, here are Honey Honey on the Conference Day Stage...Fiddles & Cowboy boots

Ok, so that was the afternoon, now on to the first official evening show of Wednesday. To St. David's Bethal Hall to see man mountain/angelic voice Adam Faucett. Wait till you hear his voice. He did not need the microphones in the hall. Played to about thirty people and seven of us had to leave before he finished to get to the next show, making it even emptier. You should hear more of this guy.

Emily Wells put down her violin to croon with PillowFight

Back to BD Rileys, for pint of cider and The Black Flamingoes, psychedelic Brooklyn band. Yes that is the street outside with folk watching through the open window......

John called to say get back to St Bethal Hall to see Solander, so I did. Swedish pastoral music...

I do eventually fix the blurry stuff, but not yet. So whilst it looks like I am photographing some sweaty woman, the aim was to photograph the guy behind her. Only because he is an ikon of British indie guitar music. Here with a completely new backing band is David Gedge, The Wedding Present. They played a ton of shows and I met him walking down sixth street. Age has not been kind.

From The Swan Dive I head next door to formerly Emo's now The Main Room, where Ezra Furman has just stripped down to his bare essentials for some reason. This guy is a great angry storyteller but needs a good meal.

If you read that a guy is like a cross between David Johansen and Iggy Pop on stage with the swagger of Morrisey, your attention is grabbed, so back to the Stage at Sixth to see Devin. It is a wild show but not quite up to his own description.

To Maggie Mae's downstairs to see Agridoce, one of Brazil's hot bands.

Then back for last time to the stage at sixth to see one of the highlights of the week for me - 1,2,3,. Great sound, great voice. Ones to watch.

My pet hate at SXSW is Stubbs. It is the biggest venue, outdoors, on a slope and sucks up all the bigger names. Always crazy busy and I have never heard a great sound there in six years. Until now. Andrew Bird was brilliant.

Andrew Bird doing it in style.

What better way to round of the day with the eighteenth live show in the hands of something Scottish? Here are Three Blind Wolves, a very ginger haired heavy & loud bunch. At this point it is a bit like having opened the first two or three presents on Christmas Day. You are enjoying it, you expect a fair bit to come, but you also know that it will be over way too soon. Anyway, jetlagged and happy, I go to bed around 3am. Three full days to go...