Wednesday, 16-March 2005
This year’s Guitartown
Party made it easy to be lazy and to stay at one party on this
unseasonably cool Wednesday afternoon. A great line-up, a bigger and
better venue, and much improved sound made for an excellent event.
Tom Freund @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“Venice-based Tom
Freund's newest CD,
Copper Moon, is something to
howl over. Four years into a solo career, there's a poise and growth
here that amounts to three steps forward and no steps back. Freund's a
hipster troubadour whose albums reflect work he's done with others,
like the soulful Ben Harper and rocking Graham Parker. A serenely cool
song like "Mercury" has such an assured stride that you just wave and
salute as Freund's parade swooshes by.” - Tony Peyser, Santa Monica
Mirror
When I arrived at Mother Egan’s at 11:30am, Tom Freund
was just getting
ready to play. He was backed by The Silos’ rhythm section, Drew Glackin
on bass, Konrad Meissner on drums, plus Steve McCormick on guitar and
assorted other instruments. He opened with “Synagogue”, followed by
“Copper Moon”, “Mercury”, and “Francie”. By the time Tom closed his set
“Pay The Man”, a David Lindley number first released on Tom’s 1992
collaboration with Ben Harper, the tent was filling up nicely.
Walter
Tragert @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“Walter Tragert's Lousy
With
Desire was, very quietly, one of the
best local albums of 2004. Likewise, his regular Sunday night gig at
the Saxon allowed his dry humor to develop around his punchy, soulful
songs. Tragert is a survivor of the music business and his hard-earned
wisdom imbues his music with unexpected backbone and muscle.” –
Margaret Moser, Austin Chronicle
Next, a group of seasoned Austin pros assembled on
stage to back Walter
Tragert: “Scrappy” Jud Newcomb on guitar, “Cornbread” on bass, Jon
Greene on drums and Ron Flynt on piano. They played a well-rounded set,
and the first dancers started to show up on the dance floor.
Jeff Klein @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“Austinite Jeff Klein
is a star in
the UK, where his songs of heartbreak and the darker side of life cut
to the bone. Here too. His third disc, The Hustler, is due this summer, featuring Dave
Pirner and Ani DiFranco.” – Jim Caligiuri, Austin Chronicle
Playing together for the first time in public, Jeff
Klein and his
reconfigured band delivered a strong set of mostly new songs from the
upcoming album. You can preview the title track on his SXSW page.
Two Cow Garage @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“This young trio from
Columbus, Ohio,
has following the loud and proud roots rock path trampled by the likes
of Drive-by Truckers and Slobberbone. Their second blast of cowpunk, The
Wall Against Our Back (Shelterhouse),
was released in 2004.” – Jim Caligiuri, Austin Chronicle
By the time Two Cow Garage hit the stage, the tent was
comfortably
full, and despite some backline problems they proved that there is no
need to worry about Slobberbone’s demise - TCG sound like Slobberbone
on Red Bull and they are ready to carry on the torch…
.
Chris Stamey @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“From
the Sneakers to the dB's to his
solo work, North Carolinian Chris Stamey is a seminal figure in the
evolution of Southern pop. His new Yep Roc-er, A Question of
Temperature, utilizes Yo La Tengo as
a backing band, with additional assistance from Carolina bluegrass
troupe Chatham County Line.” – Greg Beets, Austin Chronicle
Chris Stamey’s plane was delayed, so when he finally arrived at the
venue, there was only time for a few songs he performed as a duo with
John Chumbris on bass.
Jon Dee Graham @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
“As with Eliza
Gilkyson and Ray Wylie
Hubbard, every new Jon Dee Graham album is better than the last. With
2004's The Great Battle, the
local singer-songwriter-guitar-monster notched another critically
adored solo disc. Bittersweet and worldly wise, Graham's songs are rich
and rewarding.” – Margaret Moser, Austin Chronicle
Next up was another Austin favorite, Jon Dee Graham.
Mike Hardwick
couldn’t make it for this show, so the band (dubbed “The Fighting
Cocks“ for this show) consisted of John Chipman (drums) and George
Reiff (bass).
Towards the end of his powerful set, he asked the crowd to email New
West Records to let them know how much fun they had at the show, before
launching into an angry “Laredo”.
The Silos @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
The Silos continued on from where Jon Dee Graham had
stopped, with a
blistering set. Opening with “Innocent”, they quickly found their
groove. “Four On The Floor”, “The Only One”, and Jonathan Richman’s
“I’m Straight” were next, before they finished with “Satisfied”.
Steve Wynn & The
Miracle 3 @ Mother Egan’s
(Guitartown Party)
Another change to the original schedule switched Steve
Wynn and Stan
Ridgway, which created a perfect running order. Steve Wynn & The
Miracle 3 played to a packed tent and brought the energy level to a new
high. No new songs this afternoon, but the set, including many
favorites (“Death Valley Rain”, “Strange New World”, “What Comes
After”, “There Will Come A Day”, “Amphetamine”, “John Coltrane Stereo
Blues”), brought an enthusiastic response from the crowd.
Stan Ridgway @ Mother Egan’s (Guitartown Party)
Stan Ridgway had also played the Swollen Circus the
night before, but
unlike the two bands before him, he played a virtually identical set.
The crowd mostly went back to the bar or left for dinner at this point.
Kacy Crowley @ Cedar Street Courtyard
“Kacy Crowley
deserves your
attention. [2003’s] indie return from major-label purgatory, Moodswing, gave insight to her inner grit and
grace. Her upcoming acoustic set, Tramps Like Us, promises even more snarl for your buck.”
– Andy Langer, Austin Chronicle
At 8pm sharp, the SXSW Music Festival officially
started. After putting
on the $110 wristband, I entered Cedar Street Courtyard, which was
already filled with a good number of people, especially considering the
early hour. Kacy and her band delivered a well rounded set, ranging
from radio-ready Pop to quieter numbers. She managed to hold the
audience’s attention on the latter, and got a warm response from the
crowd.
Trespassers William @ Copa
"Singer Anna-Lynne
Williams has one
of those crystal-clear voices made up of shyness, loneliness and quiet
despair, while her band dream up the kind of space country that might
have sound tracked 'Twin Peaks: The Comedown Years'.” - NME
The SXSW schedule listed Holly Williams
in the 9pm slot at the Fox &
Hound, but she had to cancel on short notice, so I moved on towards
Sixth Street and stopped at Copa to check out Trespassers William. They
performed well-crafted songs in the vein of Azure Ray or Hope Sandoval.
Check out one of their songs on their SXSW page.
The Amazing Pilots @ Vibe
“Hello
My Captor is the stateside debut from
Dublin
Ireland’s The Amazing Pilots. Brothers Phil and Paul Wilkinson create
eleven tracks of tear-jerking, heart-tugging, brain-teasing,
genre-bending pop that will have you humming for days. The album was
mixed by Mercury-nominated producer David Odlum whos credits include
The Frames, Josh Ritter and Gemma Hayes (who also guested some vocals
on the record).” – Undertow Records press info
Organizing over 1300 showcases is not trivial, and it’s
always amazing
to see how the folks at SXSW do it year after year. But finding so many
venues and sound crews is a challenge, especially on Sixth Street,
where most SXSW venues don’t even host live music throughout the rest
of the year. The Vibe was a good example, looking more like a
construction site than a venue, and at 9:45 they were already way
behind schedule. That was actually not so bad, because otherwise I
would have missed the second half of a solid set by The Amazing Pilots.
Willard Grant Conspiracy @ Vibe
“Willard Grant
Conspiracy, fronted by
Robert Fisher of Lancaster, Calif., features a rotating cast of 31 from
around the world. With songs of remarkable sweep and vision, Fisher and
friends create vibrating soundtracks to the wide-open spaces of the
American Southwest. Last year's Regard the End found worldwide critical acclaim.” – Jim
Caligiuri, Austin Chronicle
While the Willard Grant Conspiracy got ready for their
set, the reason
for the delay became apparent. The person in charge of the monitor mix
seemed to have no idea what he
was doing. Then, shortly after the band finally started, he just
disappeared and left the board unmanned. The person doing the
front-of-house sound ended up doing double-duty, trying to patch things
up. The sound in front of the stage was actually okay, but the band
members had a hard time hearing themselves on stage.
Jason Victor from Steve Wynns Miracle Three had been
playing with the
Conspiracy since their European tour last year, and his guitar work
added yet another dimension to their sound. Unfortunately, just when
Robert Fisher was getting ready to ask Steve Wynn to sit in for a song,
their set was cut short after 30 minutes.
The setlist: “Ghost Of The Girl In The Well”, “The
Trials Of Harrison
Hayes”, “Soft Hands”, “Day Is Passed And Gone”, “Fare Thee Well”, “The
Suffering Song”.
Michelle Anthony @ The Lounge at Crowne Plaza
“The Lounge” turned out to be a simple meeting room,
complete with
chairs set in front of the make-shift stage. While it felt good to get
of the cold and to sit down for a few minutes, the room felt more like
a library than a venue for concerts, let alone rock performances.
I was there to see Michelle
Anthony, whose 3
song set
at the Swollen Circus the day before had been much too short. Michelle
switched back and forth between bass, piano and acoustic guitar, and
certainly made the best out of the situation and location.
While the 10pm slot had been crowded with several “must-sees” such as
Willard Grant Conspiracy, Susan Cowsill, The Wailin’
Jennys and Jennifer O’Connor, the options at midnight
weren’t overly exciting. The plan was to stay at the Lounge to see Brandi Carlile,
but the depressing atmosphere there made me move on before she began
her set. I briefly stopped at Buffalo Billards, but Blue Merle's sound
was way too far in Jam band territory for my liking.
The crowd loved them, but I headed over to BD
Riley’s across the
street, where Austin’s own Dime Store Poets
played to an almost
empty room.
The Bottle Rockets @ Fox & Hound
“Their home is in
Festus, Mo. (though one lives in Austin), but the
Bottle Rockets' hearts lie squarely southwest of the Mason-Dixon Line.
Their 2003 release, Blue Sky,
produced by Warren Haynes, was their
seventh and more solid songwriter rock.” – Margaret Moser, Austin
Chronicle
By now it was 1am, and the temperature had dropped to
below 40F (or
4C), and I was standing at the parking lot stage behind the Fox &
Hound. I was cold and ready to head back to the hotel. But then Brian Henneman welcomed
the crowd joking:
“It’s good to be back in Duluth, Minnesota”, and as the Bottle Rockets
began their set the
audience crowded together in front of the staget.
A healthy looking, newly married Brian Henneman and the
rest of the
band warmed their fans with old chestnuts such as “Gravity Fails”,
“I’ll Be Coming Around”, “$1000 Car”, “Kerosene”, “Waitin’ On A Train”,
and a long, long version of “Cortez The Killer” to end the set just
before 2am.
And that was the end of day one. A real fun afternoon
followed by a cold hit and miss evening, which ended with a memorable
show.
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All pictures (c) Steffen Paulus 2005
