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South by Southwest: a tale of two festivals

By Ron Brownlow
STAFF REPORTER, AUSTIN, TEXAS
Sunday, Mar 16, 2008, Page 17

R.E.M's Peter Buck PHOTO :AP

It began as a tiny showcase for independent bands, but as South by Southwest (SXSW) celebrates its 22nd year, it seems as if the festival's success has come to overshadow its original purpose as a platform for aspiring musicians.

SXSW has become a massive music, film and interactive technology extravaganza, and last year pumped an estimated US$95 million into the economy of Austin, Texas, where 70 live music venues are concentrated mostly in an area just south of the state's capitol building.

The changes have caused many who make the annual pilgrimage to the city that calls itself "The Live Music Capital of the World" to question whether it is worth the US$165 festivalgoers pay, or the several hundred US dollars participating bands fork over, to access to the official showcases.

"It's all about major labels showcasing their goods," said Cody Lee, a musician who was making his fourth trip to SXSW. "Really it should be all about these unsigned bands that are looking for opportunities. But that doesn't pay the bills."

Michael Stipe, right, and Mike Mills. PHOTO :AP

"It's turned me off," said Austin resident and musician Ruben Olivarez. "It was supposed to be more for the local scene. Then all of a sudden it blew up to a big corporate thing."

Media presence at this year's SXSW was so large that when rock icon and former Velvet Underground frontman Lou Reed gave the festival's keynote address at the Austin Convention Center on Thursday, part of his audience watched him on a video screen in a second auditorium.

R.E.M's Michael Stipe performs during the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas PHOTO: AP

And that was just one of more than 70 panel discussions with music and tech industry heavyweights. Others included RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser, Sire Records President Seymour Stein and Ticketmaster CEO Sean Moriarity.

Meanwhile, at music venues downtown, people waited in line for hours to see indie-rock legends Yo La Tengo and Irish singer Van Morrison. At midnight on Thursday, REM performed to capacity crowd at a mid-sized club to promote the band's new album.

But for every official showcase, meaning a show that is open only to people wearing registration bracelets or media or corporate passes, there's a free show at the club, bar or restaurant next door.

Austin residents and musicians say that these unofficial showcases are just as good - if not better - than the officially sanctioned events.

"All of the good bands are playing at the free shows," said John Lynch, a tour manager who booked Lee's band The Cush at two unofficial shows. (Lynch brought UK post-rock band Yndi Halda to Taiwan for last year's Formoz festival.)

"It's all about politics, and that's why bands like The Cush are playing gigs outside South by Southwest because there's less and less opportunities for unsigned bands to get showcases," Lee said. "That's why its cool to play these kind of showcases because they're outside the box. I get to discover some new acts and I also get to see a lot of bands I never see."

According to organizers, SXSW attracted about 700 attendees in 1987. Last year, attendance at all sanctioned SXSW events totaled 126,900. More than 1,500 artists officially played the SXSW music festival. This year, some 8,000 bands applied to participate in the festival.

Thousands more musicians show up every year to play unofficial shows at clubs, restaurants and cafes. Some even set up their equipment and start playing on the street. Record label representatives are everywhere, and each year a dozen or so lucky unknown acts get signed. In recent years, many more have been able to sell songs for commercials and ring tones.

On Friday, Olivarez was hoping he could get off from work early so he could head down to Backspin Records for a techno and hip-hop party with free beer.

Olivarez, also a musician whose 1970s hard-rock cover band The VoSots was not performing at SXSW, doesn't see the need to pay to see the official events when he can see so many quality shows for free.

"I just go hang out, check out the scene," he said. "A lot of the stuff, wrist bands and all that, goes to out-of-towners."

When The Cush played at Jaime's on Red River on Thursday, Mick Jones, formerly of The Clash, was sighted in the restaurant's outdoor patio, where there was room for an audience of maybe two-dozen people. At a different venue on Wednesday night, bandmembers said they met Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth.

"That kind of stuff doesn't happen in your home town," said vocalist Gabrielle Douglass who lives in Burlington, Vermont.

Austin musician Lauren Marie - stage name Miss Lauren Marie - said the festival is "very corporate." But festivalgoers, she said, tend to seek out the best music regardless of whether it's at a fancy venue or a hole-in-the-wall.

Her advice for people attending the festival for the first time: Wander around downtown Austin until you hear something that you like. As often as not, it won't be coming from an official venue.

"There's so much talent here," she said. "Hit the stuff that isn't South by Southwest and you're gonna see some good stuff."

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