SXSW 2009: Part 2 March 20, 2009

7:30 p.m.: No line for wristband holders @ Stubb’s. I grab my first Lone Star of the night and head over to the stage, where I land front and center in a sparse crowd. Not for long. By the time 3Oh!3 comes on, I am swimming in a sea of teenagers and very low 20-somethings, rocking out to what could possibly be the most energetic, infectious show I’ve seen in a LONG time. I literally could not stop dancing for 45 minutes straight, and rocked out to every single song. Fantastic show. On my way to the ladies’ room, I meet a security guard who informs me that my green Artist wristband is fundamentally no different than a badge, at least when it comes to concerts, but that didn’t stop me from finding my way into the Green Room to meet 3Oh!3. Apparently, when people think you’re in a band, you get a lot more perks. 😉

9:00 p.m.: On my way out of the Green Room, I meet a Canadian band called Lloydminster, and they become my BFF’s for the night. These guys were so effing hilarious that I could hardly stand it. We drink, dance, sing along to Meat Puppets, and drink some more. I become an honorary band member. I now play the finger cymbals.

10:00 p.m.: Gomez plays Stubb’s. Fantastic show. Again, I duck into the Green Room, but the band members are kind of occupied and I need food. I grab a sausage wrap (yum!), my 10th beer of the night, and make my way back to my new band.

11:00 p.m.: There is an absolutely hypnotic violinist on stage. I discover this band is called Andrew Bird. I love them. The boys and I have a few more beers, then go up to the VIP lounge to watch Ben Harper from an elevated perspective. On the way, my new security guard friend informs me that Metallica will be playing at Stubb’s tomorrow night, but it hasn’t yet been announced.

12:15 a.m.: Ben Harper is way late coming on, so I go to the Green Room yet again, and manage to catch him in a moment where he has time to chat. He’s cut his hair since the last time I saw him. It looks great. He kisses my hand. I melt. I see his wife. I go away. Back to the VIP lounge. OMG. Ben Harper. LOVE. While dancing lustfully to that sexy guitar and crooning voice, I meet Joyce, an agent from Fearless Records in Orange County, and she is just effing fabulous. We hug a lot. I get her card and promise to call her with my whereabouts tomorrow.

1:00 a.m.: Leave Stubb’s slightly early to try to catch Kid Cudi @ Aces Lounge. With the boys in tow (and very drunk), I make my way back to 6th Street. Drunken Todd is hard to contain, and we don’t make it to 6th Street until 1:30. Chris and I make an executive decision to go to Nuno’s instead, so I can make good on my promise to Tank. Glad we did. Nuno’s is packed, with great blues as always, and the whole family seems to be around tonight. Angie, sweet and precious as ever, is collecting tips for the band. Chris and I dance for a while, then Nuno Sr. stops to talk to us. I love his philosophy on finding talent: “Everyone is local. Fuck everyone else. We’re here for the locals.” Time for more drinks, and Nuno II leaves the bar to dance. I suddenly realize how effing hot Nuno II is. I immediately develop a temporary SXSW crush on the guy I’ve seen almost every weekend since New Year’s Eve Eve. More dancing, more drinks, and we leave well past 2:00.

2:30 a.m.: I can’t believe this happened. The boys and I have walked all the way to I-35, completely the opposite direction of my car. We walk halfway back and my feet really start to hurt. Chris offers to carry me. I seriously consider. We find a pedicab that fits 3 of us, and Chris sits with me, while the other 3 remaining band members take turns running beside the pedicab and sitting with me and Chris. Todd finds it amusing to yell at our pedicab driver and smack him on the ass as he drives. FML.

3:30 a.m.: Breakfast @ Kerbey Lane. So hungry. We finish up, and I drop the guys off to sleep it off at their hotel with a promise to call them tomorrow.

4:00 a.m.: Home in Round Rock. SO EFFING TIRED. Can’t wait to go back tomorrow.

SWSX 2009: Part 1

Headed to downtown Austin yesterday for my first official all-day venture into the SXSW 2009 Music Festival. Had to stop off for a few work errands off of Barton Springs Road, and by the time I finished up around 1:00 p.m., the vehicular chaos was already in full swing. Spent an entire hour driving up and down the nearby streets, checking out my usual parking spots near 8th & Red River, 4th & Congress, etc. Finally realized there was no way I was getting a parking space down there. So I then began examining all of the lesser-known (and more distant) lots for parking. About another 30 minutes of that before I found a diamond in the rough: a half-empty LEZ lot off of 5th & Nueces across from Little Woodrow’s (near Key Bar). Parking was $10 until 7:00 p.m., or $20 until 2:00 a.m. Beggars can’t be choosers. I tipped the man $10 for saving my life, and won his heart in the meantime. He offered to place a cone in my parking spot if I had any need to leave and return throughout the day, and to save me a spot all weekend. Score one for overtipping.

2:30 p.m.: Peckerhead’s on 6th for free Red Stripe. At this point, I’m operating sans wristband, so day parties with free stuff are the way to go. Met up with Rob and some cool chicks he knows upstairs, and enjoyed the vocal stylings of Reverend Payton’s Big Damn Band and Port O’Brien. Good stuff. And the free beer rumor was true. Hooray Beer! I Tweet and Facebook my (Rob’s) find, but am sad to see I have a low battery on my iPhone.

3:30 p.m.: Stop in at Nuno’s to say hello to Tank and check the band list for the night. (Who am I kidding? It’s always great music.) Tank gives me a big hug and tells me I look even better in the daytime. Rob decides I come here way too often. Promise Tank I will return between shows later in the evening. My dying iPhone makes me sad. I want to Tweet my whereabouts and cool discoveries, but AT&T’s poor planning for SXSW combined with my low battery = Michelle sucking at social networking.

3:45 p.m.: Rob and I duck out of Nuno’s and head back over to Mohawk for the Rhapsody VIP party, featuring free Trudy’s tacos, and open bar, and some really cool bands (namely, Vivian Girls and Trail of the Dead). I missed out on Vivian Girls by showing up later in the day, but Trail of the Dead was awesome. Tacos were delicious, and the liquor did in fact flow freely. Met John, a friend of Rob’s who works for a federal judge in Atlanta (small world!), and Rob’s official SXSW girlfriend, a married woman with lots of energy who informed Rob that it’s alright if they make out, but they can’t go to third base. Duly noted, married chick. Duly noted. Crystal, a friend of married chick, introduced herself to me by burning my arm with her lit cigarette, then apologizing profusely. We became great friends. Very cool girl. Quite a bit of sun on the upstairs deck, so Rob supplied us all with margarita-scented SPF 30 from his backpack full o’goodies, and saved us all from an untimely skin-cancer-induced death. Thanks, Rob. And another very special thanks to Rob for sliding not one, but three additional people, into the Rhapsody party on his VIP invite. We bow down to your popularity and generosity.

4:45 p.m.: Rob, John and I leave Mohawk to make our way to HiLo for the Soy Bombs show. Stop on the way to take a photo of me (in a very short skirt) on the Jackalope. Rob entertains the masses by waving his arms wildly above his head and screaming “Soy Bombs @ HiLo! Freeeee!” as he runs down 6th Street. I briefly consider slapping some random woman on the back of the head after she calls my friend a douchbag. I decide it’s SXSW, and I refuse to perpetuate the hatred. Soy Bombs, as always, are a blast. Bought a cool new Soy Bombs tee for the bargain price of $6. I run into Cheryl and Holly there, and Cheryl leaves with me to go pick up my wristband and grab some food. My iPhone is really dying now, and I don’t have enough battery to waste my time waiting for Twitter to load.

6:45 p.m.: Dinner @ Hut’s Hamburgers hit the spot. My iPhone is totally and completely dead… like, won’t even show me a red battery indicator. Thankfully, we’re near my car, so I stop to charge the phone for a bit, and we part ways. After allowing a miniscule charge to my phone, I call my buddy Connor and we decided to meet up at Mother Egan’s so he can provide me with the hallowed “Artist Wristband.” Wristband on my arm, I set out for Stubb’s.

7:15 p.m.: iPhone still dying. I stop in at the Emo’s Annex to use the phone charging station. It’s gone for the day. FML. I use one last text to tell Rob I’m going to Stubb’s.

Preliminary SXSW Schedule March 17, 2009

Alright, folks… it’s that time again. The annual SXSW Music Festival. And since I’ve missed it for the last, let’s say… decade… I thought it important to show my support for all of those fabulotastic artists that make my heart soar.

I’m not 100% certain of my plans for the week, but SXSW has a terrific calendar function that assists in sorting through the artists you’re most interested in seeing. So, without further ado… here are my picks.

Michelle Cheri’s SXSW Calendar

Anyone else heading out to SXSW this week?