SXSW2002 - The Desperation Derby

Saturday, 16-March-2002

Kevin Salem @ Stubb’s (Slamm Magazine Party)

The first album in five years from one-time Dumptruck guitarist Kevin Salem, Ecstatic expertly balances emotional angst and urgently played music. The growling "Deep Dark Love", the driving "Magnetic", the pensive "Home Again" and the hooky "The Medicine Down" are a quartet of tunes that stand out on this brooding effort. Salem's dark-toned music suggests a cross between Matthew Ryan and pre-Fuse Joe Henry, but with a rockier edge. Vicki Peterson (Bangles/Continental Drifters) numbers among the performers appearing on this disc. (Miles of Music)

This was the perfect example why it’s a good idea sometimes to see the same artist more than once during SXSW. For this midday gig, Kevin had assembled a largely different band - only Scott Yoder was back on bass duty. No keyboards for this show, but Matt Cullen (Ware River Club) on guitar, Bob Egan on Pedal Steel, Ken Coomer on drums, and Sax-man Ralph Carney (Tom Waits) joining them for a few numbers. Despite the fact that they played a lot of the same songs as they had on Thursday, sound and delivery were drastically different - much more rootsy, but just as enjoyable.

Mary McBride @ Continental Club

“A playwright, actress, musician and producer, Mary has been at the center of New York's downtown art scene for the past decade. As a performer, she has worked on several plays with avant garde director Richard Foreman and was a resident artist at his theater, The Ontological, for three years. Mary was the Co-Executive Director of The Digital Club Festival, the world's largest online music festival which featured over 200 bands online in a four-day period and which The New York Daily News called "the Woodstock of the Internet." Most recently, she has been focused on writing music for her own band and just finished recording her first album in Springfield , MO. ” (Bio on wiresight.com)

I embarked on the traditional Saturday afternoon crawl along the various party spots on South Congress and started at the Continental Club, where Mary McBride was on stage. It sounded pretty much the same as two days earlier, except that Mr. Mojo Nixon himself joined Mary in a song the two had written together.

Richard Buckner @ Yard Dog

“One of America's most unrecognized songwriting talents, Richard Buckner tells dusty tales of fortune and failure with uncommonly disarming conviction. With a voice that seems to channel the heartsick and fallen ghosts condemned to stir from one empty shot glass to the next, Buckner entrances all in earshot with his captivating and beguilingly simple poetics. Like his literary style, his economical progressions find their targets quickly with immediate, wrenching timbres.” (Kelly B., listen.com)

I’ve seen various versions of Richard Buckner over the years. In 1995 I saw the folk singer, playing solo acoustic shows. Since then I have seen him with various bands. This time it was the duo version: Richard playing electric guitar with Penny Jo Buckner on drums. It was raw, loud and good. The delivery may change, but two things remain unaffected: his outstanding voice and the quality of his songs.

Jad Fair @ Yard Dog

“Perhaps best known for his Half Japanese (with his brother David), Jad Fair has released dozens of full lengths and countless singles. Has collaborated with Yo La Tengo, The Pastels and Teenage Fanclub and has released records on Alternative Tenticles, Drag City, Matador and Jagjaguwar. The man knows what he's doing. --- From the songs he self-recorded on a boombox at the family piano to he releases on Shimmy-Disc, Homestead, Artistic Vice and Atlantic, this Beatles fanatic is All American and we wouldn't have it any other way.” (SXSW band info)

I’ve never been a Jad Fair fan, and I didn’t become one during today’s set.

Michael Hall & The Woodpeckers @ Yard Dog

“Lucky Too, album number two from Michael Hall and the Woodpeckers, is a raw and wild affair. Midnight drives across Texas , hitchhiking in the rain, pondering moves to New York City - the songs here speak of wandering, lost souls. More of a group effort, this disc boasts a more diverse sound. There is the edgy roots-rock of "Sometimes I Wish I’d Never Heard The Rolling Stones", the raucous garage feel of "My Girl Bill", the falsetto soul of "Testify" and the contemplative moodiness of "Constant". Binding it all together is the music’s balance of hope and world-weariness.” (Miles of Music)

Setlist: “My Girl Bill” / "Sometimes I Wish I’d Never Heard The Rolling Stones" / “Lucky, Too” / “In The Crypt With Eleanora” / “A Heart Needs A Home” / “Angel”. Silo Walter Salas-Humara became a temporary Woodpecker that afternoon, as regular drummer Steve McCarthy wasn’t available. A very enjoyable performance, as always...

Jeff Klein @ Jupiter Records

“Texan-by-way-of-New York Jeff Klein is a story of love, loss, longing, devotion and disappointment. Through haunting silences to comforting beds of searing noise, he forces the listener to witness the human condition. With his nicotine enhanced vocals and lyrical wit, Klein offers up songs that recall the honest passion of Leonard Cohen mixed with the eerie grit of Dinosaur Jr.” (SXSW band info)

I liked Jeff’s first full-length record a lot, and when I heard that Matthew Ryan was producing its successor, I couldn’t wait to hear the new songs and the new album ( Everybody Loves A Winner), which also features Patty Griffin and Jon Dee Graham. Jeff started his set playing solo/electric before bringing on his band. As a trio, they fiercely rocked. Jeff’s new material covers an extremely wide dynamic range, from painfully slow acoustical songs full of sorrow to in-your-face Rock songs, but all were lifted from the ordinary by a unique underlying mood and of course Jeff’s ultra-raspy voice.

Chuck Prophet & The Mission Express

“Prophet’s follow-up to The Hurting Business finds him in excellent form, still making American roots music, but casting his net a little wider to bring in a few more influences. […] His songwriting continues to grow, and his guitar skills, which he tends to hide under a bushel a little, never flashy or grabbing the spotlight, have become mature and sophisticated, a long way from his days in Green on Red. One of America ’s great underground artists, Prophet’s slowly blooming into a major figure.” (Chris Nickson, allmusic.com)

Chuck + band played a set similar to the one on Thursday. They had time for one additional song - “Look Both Ways”, a song Chuck wrote with Chris Cacavas and Steve Wynn, and recorded on his debut Brother Aldo. Another fun show.

The Silos @ Yard Dog

“Tightly focused and fiercely confident in their own abilities, The Silos prove with Laser Beam Next Door that there is no shame in flying that roots rock flag for all to recognize and revere.” (Kevin Mathews, popmatters.com)

Silos show #3 this week: “Drunken Moon”, “Four On The Floor”, “Don’t Want To Know”, “The Title Of This Song”, “Miles Away”, “I’m Straight”, “All Falls Away”. No surprises, but another solid performance from one of the most reliable bands around.

Git @ Cheapo Records

“Suzannah Espie leads off with the country-gospel standard 'Just a Closer Walk With Thee', a heady blend of Patsy Cline and Mahalia Jackson. The other two Git gals, Trish Anderson and Sarah Carroll, have fabulous voices, too, and the trio's call-and-response romps are so joyously note perfect, they make it sound easy. Infectious, rip-roaring and occasionally sublime.” (Sophie Best, Age Entertainment Guide)

Last year, Kasey Chambers was one of the most talked about acts at SXSW. This year, fellow Australians Git could be found everywhere. Even without an official showcase and with a positively independent approach, they managed to play six performances in four days. Git harmonies have a contagiously happy feel about them and in no time even the folks who were only in the store to buy CDs were watching and listening closely. Hugely entertaining!

Florence Dore @ Cheapo Records

“Like that of Liz Phair or Laura Cantrell, Florence Dore's music is literate and personal and uses its chosen genre — folk/pop/rock with a twang — as a vehicle for an immersion in intellect and emotion. Perfect City was produced by guitarist Eric Ambel (Steve Earle, Blood Oranges, Bottle Rockets), and features references to William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury ("Perfect City") and Kent, OH ("Wintertown"), where, at the time of its recording, she was a professor of American literature at Kent State. Her stylistically informed background — punk, folk, country — allows for a diversity of styles within the album, which achieves cohesion within its own feverish and soothing permutations. (Travis Drageset, allmusic.com)

It should be said that Cheapo Discs had an excellent line-up this year, offering many artists who didn’t manage to get an official SXSW showcase a place to play. Florence Dore brought Scott Erikson (git), Scott Yoder (bass) and Ken Coomer (drums) for this 8pm show. Perfect City is a good album, and so was the show.

Linda McLean @ The Hideout

“Emerging singer/songwriter Linda McLean is garnering strong praise for her intelligent brand of song, melodic tunes and and penetrating lyrics found in her comprehensive collection of 12 songs entitled Beauty. Filling in the gaps between folk and pop McLean and writing partner Andy McLean blend the twang of roots flavoured hooks with easy grooves and sweet choruses as they pen sensual and evocative portraits of the personal becoming public.” (Artist info)

The 9pm slot wasn’t crowded with any “must-see” acts, and Linda’s MP3's hadn’t sounded too bad. Unfortunately the Canadian didn’t bring a band, resulting in a bland acoustic set and a disappointment similar to the Greg Hosterman gig the night before. Fast forward to…

Porter Hall, TN @ Opal Divine’s Freehouse

"Recovering punks who took the bluegrass/honky-tonk cure, Molly Conley and Gary Roadarmel sing of whiskey, whores, wrecked loves and other things that make life worth drinking on Welcome to Porter Hall, TN, their debut CD on the cool Missouri roots label Slewfoot Records." (The Nashville Scene)

Although the write-up sounded quite intriguing, I hadn’t planned on seeing this band, which was still playing when I arrived on the Opal Divine patio. Not overly exciting, but the “Amazing Grace” - ”May The Circle Be Unbroken” - ”I’ll Fly Away” - ”You Shook Me All Night Long” medley at the end of the set was mildly amusing.

The Honky Tonk Chateau @ Opal Divine’s Freehouse

"Visit the Honky Tonk Chateau and you'll be entertained. This quartet's sound houses elements of honky tonk country and rock 'n' roll; their hardy music nicely balances the gritty with the sweet. While smoky-voiced Sheri Hurst handles most of the lead vocals, bassist Matt Netzer also supplies some rawer-edged singing. HTC's seven song debut leaves you wanting to hear more, although there's plenty to enjoy here (the sultry "Don't Walk Away" particularly is a stand-out cut). This Missouri-based band co-produced this disc with resident roots-rock legend, Lou Whitney." (Miles of Music)

And the prize for the worst organized showcase goes to the folks at Slewfoot Records. The reason why I was at the club was to see Kristie Stremel , who was scheduled to appear at 10pm . But after a lengthy changeover The Honky Tonk Chateau took to the stage. It turned out that the organizers had pulled Hadacol (scheduled to play at 1am) forward to the 9pm slot and had pushed all other acts back by one hour. Result: no matter at what time you arrived, you wouldn’t be able to see the band you expected to see. How smart is that? HTC didn’t do much for me and I moved on…

Mike Rosenthal @ Hickory St. Bar & Grill

"Not unlike similar evolutions from Ryan Adams and Rhett Miller, Mike Rosenthal has orchestrated a surprisingly deft shift from uninspired alt.country to energetic power-pop on his sophomore local release, Movin' In. With only the slightest twang, tunes like "Alicia," "Marianna," and "Money" offer solidly constructed hooks and compelling melodies that come off not unlike a one-man Fastball in the midst of a Tom Petty kick." (The Austin Chronicle)

He was voted “Best New Artist” in Austin two years ago, but his debut CD didn’t impress me all that much. Tonight’s set was very different, mostly straight-ahead Power-Pop. Not bad!

Darden Smith @ The Gingerman

“Long one of Austin 's favorite singer-songwriters, Darden Smith is cherished for his winning way with a melody and his unwavering lyrical honesty. In April comes the full bloom of Sunflower, his first LP of new songs in nearly six years, featuring Patty Griffin, Kim Richey, and a definite glow.” (Jim Caligiuri, Austin Chronicle)

He looks a bit like Robbie Fulks, but he doesn’t sound anything like him. In fact, his clean-cut, well thought-out songs were a bit too smooth-sounding for me. Things got a bit livelier when a car alarm went off mid-song in the parking lot next to the (outdoor) stage. It was a basic sound-on/sound-off alarm, and the band, joking that it was almost in beat, tried to play around it. They cranked it up during the next song, trying to drown out the alarm, which was quiet for a while before making a comeback during the final song of Darden’s set.

Jeff Black @ The Gingerman

“He's got the troubadour quality of a Steve Goodman, the poetic dignity of a Bruce Springsteen, and the bittersweet, outer-fringe edge of a Townes Van Zandt. We kid you not. It's a highly demanding, highly affecting mix, capped by terrific guitar technique with both a plectrum and with finger-picking.” (Steve Morse, Boston Globe)

At the end of four days of live music, it usually takes more than a guy and his guitar to get me thrilled. But there are exceptions: Jeff Black has the voice and the songs to captivate audiences, even at SXSW. Highlights from his set included “One Last Day To Live” from his upcoming new record, which will hopefully see the light of day this year, “The Valley” off his debut, and “Bless My Soul” from B-Sides and Confessions, Volume One , which Jeff is selling only at shows and on his website.

Gingersol @ Momo’s

“Gingersol don't stop moving. On Train Wreck Is Behind You, the group explores some new musical territory while still delivering the terrific crunchy roots pop that won them so many admirers. Killer tunes like "You Fall Down", "Sleep Alright" and "Amnesia" jump off the record with their sharp riffs and ragged rock urgency. The Beatles/twang fusion in "Face Up Again" and the piano ballad "Where It Belongs" lend an appealing diversity to the disc. Steve Tagliere's rough-edged vocals fill these songs with ache and mystery, while the guys know when to crank it up and when to play it quiet. A "train wreck"? - far from it. This disc makes for a memorable ride, chock full of mighty fine music.” (Miles of Music)

1am. The last showcase for the night. Jeff Black is always a tough act to follow, and I was almost ready to go back to the hotel after 12 hours of music. But then I decided to check out Gingersol one more time to find out whether they would sound as good again as they did during the 3-song set on Tuesday. They did. Drew Glackin (Silos, Tandy) sat in for few songs, and they rocked again. Very different from their poppy, Beatlesque sound on CD.

Click here to read about the next day!