Friday, 18-March 2005
Just like last year, Comboplate Booking had organized the lunchtime
"SXSoup Fest" at the Caritas of Austin soup kitchen. The Friday
line-up was strong enough to get me out of bed early.
Eric Hisaw @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
"Like the true son of
the New Mexico desert that he is, Eric Hisaw delivers Western roots
music that's as real as a backyard full of rusting cars and as edgy as
a smuggler's knife. If Chris Knight had grown up in New Mexico, he'd
sound like this." - WM Smith, Rockzillaworld
At 11am, grace was said at the Caritas soup kitchen,
and as the room
filled with hungry guests, Eric got to play his song. Yes,
unfortunately only one, before handing the mike over to…
Ana Egge @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
“Brooklyn-by-way-of-Austin
songsmith
Ana Egge emerges from opening-act status for the likes of Shawn Colvin
and Ron Sexsmith to deserving headliner with her fourth CD, Out
Past the Lights, a breakout
collection. Egge sings about tangled relationships and new beginnings
in her lyrical tunes that are dreamlike and haunting, delicate and
rough, folksy and hard-strum rocking.” - Billboard
Elizabeth McQueen, who was supposed to share
this 15 minute slot with
Eric Hisaw and Ana Egge couldn’t make it, so Ana got to play two songs
before sitting down and chatting with the crowd.
Alexi Murdoch @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
“There
aren't many new
singer-songwriters who understand the importance of sparseness and
subtlety like this Scotland-born, L.A.-based KCRW favorite. His "Orange
Sky" has been on Dawson's Creek and in Garden State, but deserves a
fuller life on his soon-to-be-completed debut LP.” – Andy Langer,
Austin Chronicle
Alexi Murdoch got a full 15 minute slot, but sparseness and subtlety
weren’t in high demand at the soup kitchen, so his beautifully crafted
songs were largely ignored.
The Be Good Tanyas @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
“This
Canadian bluegrass trio hasn't
recorded much since their thrilling sophomore album, Chinatown (Nettwerk), but they scored the opening
spot on the soundtrack to the film Because of Winn-Dixie and will
release their third album this spring.” – Melanie Haupt, Austin
Chronicle
It took a while to for the 5 members of the Be Good Tanyas to set up on
the tiny “stage”. The highlight of the set was a beautiful version of
“That’s How Strong My Love Is”.
Rich McCulley @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
“McCulley's vocal
chords sound like they've been marinating in a whisky bath with a three
pack a day habit added. Nevertheless, they suit his mix of late 70's
power pop and roots-rock (think Tom Petty mixed with Wilco).” –
Nashville Scene
Rich’s beautiful Fender Steel Resonator guitar got him
some compliments. Unfortunately, a noisy disagreement at one of the
tables during his
set was almost louder than
the music.
Trashcan Sinatras @ Caritas of Austin (SXSoup Fest)
“The
Sinatras' lovely, contemplative
SpinArt Weightlifting CD
breaks new ground for the band when it comes to turning broken hearts
into perfect pop lullabies. There's no better UK single this year than
that album's title track, which gives the Red House Painters a new
yardstick to measure their angst by.” – Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
They were founded in 1987, yet the first time I saw the Trashcan
Sinatras was at a soup kitchen in Austin almost 20 years later. They
got the best response from the “audience” that morning. Things were
running late by then, so unfortunately I could not stay for the set by Chatham
County Line.
Blind Boys Of Alabama @ Waterloo Records
“Time's never
a-wastin' with the
BBOA; Grammys for their three previous albums in as many years couldn't
stem the new Atom Bomb (Real
World), another blast of God-refracted pop from this trio of gospel
survivors. Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky" never sounded so at
home.” – Raoul Hernandez, Austin Chronicle
It took me even longer than 20 years to finally see the
next band,
which was originally founded in 1937. And I’m glad I did, as their set
at Waterloo Records was my favorite show of SXSW2005.
Highlights of the set were songs like “(Jesus Hits Like
The) Atom
Bomb”, a fantastic rendition of “People Get Ready”, and “Amazing
Grace”. Waterloo Records was more crowded than I had ever seen it
before, and the band worked the audience into a frenzy. This was the
best show of the week!
Reckless
Kelly @ Jovita’s (Sugar Hill Records / Welk Music Group /
Harp Magazine
Party)
“Reckless Kelly is my
kind of band;
hell-raising, hard playing,
kick-ass songwriting, feet firmly in the present but with an amazing
knowledge of where it has all come from. What else is there?” - Joe Ely
Pretty much every show would have paled compared to the
one I had just
witnessed, but Reckless Kelly delivered a solid performance as usual.
It was a sit-down, half-acoustic affair, which included a fine version
of “Baby's Got a Whole Lot More” from their latest album, Wicked
Twisted Road, and a cover of Alejandro Escovedo’s “Castanets”.
Crooked Fingers @ Pok-E-Jo’s (Merge Records / Barsuk Records / KEXP / Red Stripe
Party)
“From the Archers of
Loaf rose Eric
Bachmann's Crooked Fingers, which
showcases this giant's gentle side with earthy, melancholy rock. The
Seattle trio's fourth LP, Dignity and Shame (Merge), is a thing of
beauty, experimenting with Spanish trumpet and pedal steel.” – Melanie
Haupt, Austin Chronicle
The weather was back to standard central Texas climate
(sunny and
warm), just perfect for an outdoor party. A good opportunity to catch
some rays, have my first meal of the day at my favorite Austin BBQ (at
4pm), and
enjoy a free Red Stripe. Oh yes, and Crooked Fingers were playing.
Jesse Sykes
@ Pok-E-Jo’s (Merge Records / Barsuk Records / KEXP / Red Stripe Party)
“Seattle's Jesse
Sykes gained
national exposure earlier this year as
opening act for Bright Eyes. Jesse's second disc, '04's Oh, My
Girl
(Barsuk), was hailed for its
seductive blend of brooding, atmospheric
rock and haunting country noir.” – Jim Caligiuri, Austin Chronicle
One could assume that Jesse Sykes’ quiet, low-key
material would not
come across very well at a big open air party co-sponsored by Red
Stripe, but I was amazed to see that the vast majority of the audience
was spellbound by the performance. She was accompanied by Phil
Wandscher on guitar and Bill Herzog on bass.
David Lowery & Johnny Hickman of Cracker
@
Jovita’s (Welk Music/Harp Magazine Party)
David Lowery and Johnny Hickmann played a set of Camper
Van Beethoven
and Cracker songs: “All Her Favorite Fruit”, “Big Dipper”, “Might Makes
Right”,
“One Fine Day”, “Sweethearts”, “Duty Free”. Unfortunately,
Johnny did not do any songs from his
new album.
Nels Andrews
@ Las Manitas (Little Kiss Records Party)
“Nels Andrews does a
number of things
right on Sunday Shoes. He's
got
the world-weary voice to carry the weight of his songs, and a solid,
country-rock production with a nice mix of acoustic and electric
guitars.” - Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr., allmusic.com
To get to the Little Kiss Records party, you had to
walk across the
restaurant and through the kitchen (!) to a patio area with a small
stage. I had expected a solo performance, but was happy to see that
Nels Andrews was performing with his band, the El Paso Eyepatch, which
included Jeffrey Richards (ex Hazeldine) on guitar and banjo. Brilliant
songs and a solid performance by the band made for another excellent
showcase.
Echoset
@ Love
(Love On The Lawn)
“Echoset is moody,
breathy vocals,
backed by a tight band that
will rock out when you least expect it. […] Echoset sound as if they
have closet gospel influences, but they are suppressed by their brand
of hard rocking pop. They have a familiar sound, but you just can’t put
your finger on what other groups it is reminiscent of. Maybe there is a
touch of PJ Harvey, but there is more to them than that. What is more
certain is that they sound as if they will be able to surpass their
indie status.” - Erica Leduc, Exclaim!
Amos Lee @
Austin Music Hall
“Lee has a phenomenal
voice matched
by a journeyman's sense of
songcraft that is just too good to go unnoticed.” - Matt Collar,
allmusic.com
The previous shows had been running late, and by the
time I left Love,
the 9pm showcases were already halfway over. I decided to make the best
of it and stop by the Austin Music Hall, which was on the way to my
next destination and where Amos Lee was scheduled to start his showcase
at 9:30pm.
It was obvious that opening for
the likes of Bob
Dylan and
Norah Jones had given him some experience playing larger venues; people
in the audience stopped their conversations and listened intently to
his set, which included a nice version of “Orphan Girl” (Gillian
Welch).
Caitlin Cary & Thad Cockrell @ Tambaleo
“Caitlin Cary was the
utility
infielder for Whiskeytown who went on to
record two critically hailed solo albums and a collaboration with two
North Carolina gal pals known as Tres Chicas. Thad Cockrell is a
Nashville-based singer/songwriter with a high-lonesome tenor as clear
as mountain spring water. The two had collaborated on songs in the past
including “Please Break My Heart,” which led naturally to their pairing
on a forthcoming full-length album, Begonias (Yep Roc), due out in
June.” – SXSW Band Info
At Tambaleo, Caitlin Cary and Thad Cockrell were
already on stage
when I arrived, previewing songs from their upcoming duets record.
Their voices do blend together perfectly on the faster honky-tonk
material but even better on the slower ballads.
Kathleen
Edwards @ Tambaleo
“Back to Me never comes off as bitter for its own
sake — sounding as if
it were recorded under the influence of warm bourbon and a gray sky,
the album is long on plain-spoken emotions and tough-talking guitars,
but there's a fragile undertow beneath Edwards' flinty veneer that
often rises to the surface […]. Edwards' songs are well served by
producer and guitarist Colin Cripps, and her road band gives the music
plenty of rich sonic detail (and guest musicians Benmont Tench and Eric
Heywood lend a valuable assist). Back to Me is a powerful and affecting
album from an artist who is quickly establishing herself as a major
talent.” - Mark Deming, allmusic.com
No Depression magazine had pulled together a perfect
lineup for this
evening at Tambaleo. According to the official schedule the 11pm slot
was reserved for a “Special Guest”. It was Kathleen Edwards, who had
already played her “official” showcase one day earlier. She had also
made a guest appearance during Jim Bryson’s set at 8pm.
Jim Bryson
plays guitar, keyboards and percussion in her fantastic band, which
also includes Joel Anderson on drums, Kevin McCarragher on bass, and
Colin Cribbs on guitar. They delivered a somewhat loose-yet-fun set,
starting off slowly with “Pink Emerson Radio”. “Six O’Clock News”,
“What Are You Waiting For”, “Good Things”, “In
State”, “Copied Keys”,
and “Westby” followed, before she finished with “Back To Me”. Another highlight of the day.
Jon Dee Graham
@ Tambaleo
Next up was Jon Dee Graham. I had seen him already on
Wednesday, but for this show he appeared with his full band including
Mike Hardwick, who adds tremendously to the overall sound of the band..
Steve Wynn &
The Miracle 3 @ Tambaleo
Steve Wynn Show number 4 in as many days, and once
again I got to hear one
brand new song and quite a few tunes not played during previous sets:
“When You Smile”, “Death Valley Rain”, “California Style”, “Southern
California Line”, “Why?”, “Burn”, “Wired”, “That’s What You Always
Say”, “Amphetamine”.
Rich Gilbert joined the Miracle 3 for “Days Of
Wine & Roses”, and played a far-out beer-bottle slide, eventually
breaking the bottle and cutting himself. A perfect show to end a day
with several highlights.
Continue to next
day...
Return to previous page...
Return
to A-Z photo index
Return to 2005 photo page
Return to the
TurnItUpOrTurnItOff.com homepage
All pictures (c) Steffen Paulus 2005
