We got there early, mostly because I convinced Jay that The Futureheads at 11PM would probably be the most kickass show of the festival, and he didn't have anything on his must-see list that trumped  mine.

No complaints about this band, really. But this turned out to be the night of the Freakishly Tall People, and I was lucky to get this tiny blurry photo. My comfort level was about to decrease rapidly shortly after taking this picture.

Heh. "Afoot."

We got to Elysium and discovered that it was already filled to capacity and there was a line of one-in, one-out badge holders already trailing down the street. And they were probably all there to see M.I.A. We were screwed, blued and tattooed, dude.

It was around this time that I picked up a free teeshirt from a really cute Jack Daniels rep who informed me that if I showed the teeshirt at the bar I would get a dollar off my next Jack Daniels purchase, and I am here to tell you now that it was TRUE, she spoke the truth, a Jack and Coke was the same five dollars as a bottle of Shiner Bock, I kid you not. So kids, ask for it by name! JACK! and COKE!

...but when we got to the venue, the folks checking for SPIN IDs didn't look like they had a sense of humor, so I didn't try it. We decided to go drink at the Gingerman instead.

He seems like a real good egg.

Prior to the fest I did some research and learned that this band has a recording coming out soon that is produced by Gil Norton, who I hold in high esteem for his Pixies work, among other things. So I marked this one as a must-see on my calendar, and was not disappointed. Loud, driving, lots of attitude, and yes, the singer is a babe.

And she asked for someone to buy her some whiskey, so I did. 

Do I feel used? In a good way, perhaps, yes.

But hey, at least I didn't buy her a teeshirt or anything impulsive like that.

Calexico

Call me old-fashioned, but I think a violin can only help a rock band.

This band does good things with violins and with rock in general.

If pressed, I would probably buy them whiskey, but probably not an Antone's teeshirt.

He played very good rootsy, bluesy, rocky, soulful music.

(*)A long time ago a singer/songwriter by the name of Milo Binder did a cover of Abba's "Dancing Queen" which is my favorite cover song of all time. I don't know if Milo Binder is still around, but if he is and you know where he is, please let me know and I will buy you whiskey or maybe even an Antone's teeshirt.

I should point out that by now I had likely been drinking for about 9 hours straight, with only the occasional bathroom or meal break.

Roundabout this time, I also vaguely recall buying an Antone's teeshirt for a cute girl in appreciation for her having saved my spot next to her at the front of the stage while I went off to pee and get more beer. She looked a lot like Ashlee Simpson. She was there to see the Frames at midnight.  We had a good Frames-related conversation, but sadly, I don't think our relationship was ever meant to be. Apart from our mutual interests in things like The Frames and maintaining our prime positions in front of the stage, we didn't really have a whole lot to talk about. Plus I think I may have somehow inadvertently offended her when I used the phrase "lip-sync." 

But I know they have been playing the SXSW festival for the last few years, and I've had them on my list of sxsw "options" even though I've never actually "opted" to see them.

And after seeing this performance, I am kicking myself. 

Literally. 

Ouch. Ouch.

Ouch.

What a great band. They're from Dublin. And in addition to the tight musicianship, they've got the cool accents. 

Calexico is a band from Tucson who has an AWESOME dvd out, called "World Drifts In," which is a live performance recorded in London, and if you have a good DVD player and a good stereo to pump the audio through, you may very well have a religious experience, whether you are the religious type or not.

Lick a toad, and then think Alt-Country, and spaghetti-western soundtracks played by talented punks, with Mariachi support. And picture the musicians lit by blue lights. And then, REALLY REALLY gaze at your hand.

This live performance did not put me into the same sort of mescaline trance as the aforementioned DVD and a set of headphones did. But they were still DAMN GOOD. Plus, by the end of their set they were joined onstage by the lovely and talented Neko Case, as well as the aforementioned Nick Danger fellow. It's right up there with the Best of the Fest, I'm tellin' ya.

The soup was pretty good, although it did have this funky aftertaste of burning hair.

Tracker was a decent band from Portland, although they took some heat from the Austin slacker crowd for their use of some pre-recorded sounds. Personally, I applaud them for their creative use of feedback, and for the fact that the guitarist/vocalist looks almost exactly like a friend of mine known as The Sorcerer (Rev).

Vocals were not particularly strong at this performance, which is probably the only thing "tentative" about this pick, and it might've just been a bum soundboard mix, but so what. The musicianship kicked ass.

(*) And for the love of GOD, you do NOT want to visit their web site. Ever.

So, we got their for their last few songs, and the initial impression I got of Zanzo was of a Japanese Mogwai with occasional sythesized vocals. I was lulled into a trance, and then I was shaken out of it with prog-rock time signature changes and screaming. Interesting stuff.

I was impressed enough to visit their swag table, where I was greeted by the Titan Go Kings who did a cheer and lured me in to buying their CD instead of Zanzo's, so 20 minutes later, when I realized I was holding the wrong CD, I returned and bought the Zanzo one, too.

Then we crapped out. The Enb.