First, a few words on SXSW 2009

This year's SXSW, even more so than what I experienced in '07 or '08, offered an unbelievable amount of the following:

Impassioned, energetic performances -- most notably but certainly not exclusively, Easy Star All-Stars, Dan Auerbach playing with Hacienda, Hymns, The Wrens, The Avett Brothers, Arkells, The Black Lips, and King Khan and the Shrines.

Gracious and sometimes even humble artists -- again, not exclusively but especially, Vetiver, Hymns, The Wrens, The Avett Brothers, Frances, and Loney Dear.

Full-on rock stars -- Tony Joe White, The Wrens, The Black Lips, Beach House, King Khan and the Shrines, and PJ Harvey.

Expertly grouped showcases -- Thursday's nighttime, Cedar Street Courtyard Blackberry Showcase and Friday's daytime, Flamingo Cantina Under The Radar Showcase. In both "cases" (ha!) the musical stylings of all bands involved were similar without being redundant making the build up to the headliner that much more exciting and rewarding.

The stories and photos behind this madness will follow shortly.

I suppose I should tell you that I did not take photos of every band I saw even though I promised I would. Usually this happened when I came in mid-way through the set and couldn't get close enough to see the stage show. This was the case with Here We Go Magic, J. Tillman, Grande, New Villager, Jennifer Leigh Mayfield, Jill Barber, and a couple of other bands who played while I chowed on free food but whose name was unknown to all I asked. Still, all of these were highly enjoyable shows thanks wholly to the strong impact of their music (since I couldn't see their performance). And sometimes I didn't take a photo because it just wasn't my kind of music. No names need be mentioned here but suffice it to say that this only happened three times.

Also, I forgot to charge my camera battery Thursday night, and so spent all of Friday staring down a blinking red battery warning me not to get photo happy. One pic a piece is all I afforded myself.


P.S. Mad props to The Wrens for being impassioned, energetic, gracious, humble, ROCK STARS!!