As the multitude of journalists and writers who were in Austin slowly get their heads back together, more SxSW wrap ups are trickling out. Check out pieces from the world of print – The Toronto Sun, the Associated Press, New York Magazine, NOW and The Washington Post, The Seattle Times, while Chart updates with not one, not two but but three more reports from Austin. If you want more, Google News is your friend.

The online community also continues to report back – here’s stuff from PopMatters, Pitchfork (and with photos) and MTV while bloggers in attendance are checking in. Largehearted Boy has also been collating recordings of the festival for your perusal.

I’ve only skimmed most of the above so I haven’t quite gotten a feel for who the concensus breakout acts of the festival were, save to say that I almost guarantee I didn’t see them. The photo above doesn’t nearly capture the chaos that was E 6th St on Friday and Saturday nights when the UT spring break kids were starting to filter back into town. Just one more day of SxSW recaps tomorrow and then that’s it. For a year, anyway.

DIW sits down and talks creative process with both John Darnielle and John Vanderslice. Two Johns. Two of them.

Bradley’s Almanac has MP3s of Serena Maneesh’s recent show in Boston. Brad also finds out that the reason they’ve cancelled all their Canadian dates isn’t our immigration, but Americas – if the noisenik Norwegians leave the land of the free, they stand a good chance of not getting back in. Alas and alack, but they plan to be back in the Fall and make it up to the Canucks.

The long-rumoured Feist compilation of remixes and rarities will see the light of day next month as Open Season, tracklisting available here. Release date is a little sketchy right now – it looks to be out April 17 in the UK, but no info as to whether we’ll have it domestically the next day.

Mojave 3’s Puzzles Of You has been given yet another release date – third time the charm? Look for it on June 19, and the first single Breaking The Ice on May 29. Artwork here, more info here.

Idlewild frontman Roddy Woomble is putting out a solo record. I, for one, would be delighted to be able to see “Roddy Woomble” in my iTunes playlist – it’d just look so funny. I mean, look at it. Woomble.

The Washington Post thinks the Rabbit Fur Coat looks good on Jenny Lewis. For The Records reports back from her show in Toronto last Thursday.

Synthesis asks the same questions of Isobel Campbell as every other publication.

24: Subtle hints at giving him something he wants, longing glances, offering a “wet list”… is Jack coming on to the German agent? But Jack will rue crossing the Germans, you know it… but how exactly do you program a flash memory card to self destruct? Man, Collette is such a disappointment. You know Mandy wouldn’t have been caught so easily. You know, I’m not sure how much I’m buying this Julian Sands as the big bad thing. He’s practically a Eurotrash villain cliche these days. It would be much better if Peter Weller was higher up the food chain than he, and above him? John Lithgow… as Dr Emilio Lizardo! BUCKAROO BANZAI, PEOPLE. BUCKAROO BANZAI. But seriously, I didn’t see that Audrey twist coming and I’m not sure I buy it. They better have a damn good explanation for it one way or the other. I will once again be abroad for the next two weeks, so more than likely no 24 commentary. Be strong. Carry on my wayward son.

np – Mogwai / Mr Beast

4 days, 50 shows, around 1000 photos, loads of BBQ and one pair of sorry sore feet. SxSW 2006 in the bag.

Though only my second year attending and the first for all four days, I still felt like something of a grizzled veteran heading down to Austin. I knew where the clubs were, which showcases would be worth hitting and which to not bother with. More than anything, logistics are the name of the game at SxSW. How far point A is from point B, how thick a sea of punters you’ll have to cross to get there and if you have a snowball’s hope in hell of getting in when you finally arrive. Is there anywhere to get food nearby and how clean their washrooms are. This is a big one – in a nutshell, Red 7 good, Emo’s bad. So very bad.

The day shows are also a crucial component of the fest, with most labels and magazines in attendance holding parties that offer bills as good as, if not better than the official showcases. Add in a much more relaxed vibe, less lineups and often free beer and/or food, and you’ve got a crucial means to maximizing your show intake. Absolutely necessary. And if you get into the private parties, which many increasingly were, you also get to feel cooler than the hoi polloi. Of course, if you – like me – had confirmed RSVPs in advance and yet somehow still didn’t appear on the list (hi Stereogum!), then you feel like a total knob.

I have a general “nuts to the buzz band” modus operendi – being able to say I saw such and such rock their nuts off in Austin before they got on the cover of Fader really isn’t that appealing. I prefer to pick out my personal must-sees and just keep an open mind when wandering around and filling in the gaps. You never know what you’ll come across when waiting for someone else’s set to start and my tastes don’t usually step too closely with the hyped acts. That said, I did try to see Tapes’N’Tapes and was denied with extreme prejudice. Ouchie. That’ll learn me.

But that said, I didn’t have as many of the revelatory new band moments at this year’s fest as last year. The artists I was most impressed by were the ones that I’d expected to be – there wasn’t really any backing into anything blind and lucking out into a life-altering experience. From the veteran end of things, Eric Bachmann, Rainer Maria and Centro-Matic provided some truly memorable highlights while Decoder Ring, Headlights, Band Of Horses, Serena Maneesh and Margot & The Nuclear So And So’s were tops in the rookie class.

Random observations – there seemed to be far more badges on display than wristbands this year – I still can’t imagine I’d get an extra $400 of value out of one of those, but will admit that when standing in the wristband line outside a venue and watching the delegates wander in and out at their leisure, it doesn’t seem like too dear a premium to pay.

This was also my first opportunity to interact with other music bloggers en masse, and it was an interesting experience to actually put a face to a URL. It was quite cool to actually run into people I knew on the street or in a club as well as talk shop (or whatever) with people who don’t think what I do is weird or freaky.

I mentioned in last year’s wrap up that I would have to travel to Austin this year with a cellphone. Which I did. Now I resolve that for next year, I will travel to Austin with a cellphone that has coverage in the United States. Rather sad that it will have taken me two years to perfect this whole “telecommunications” thing.

Another 2005 resolution that I didn’t address quite right was the accommodations one. My hotel was a ways out of downtown, and while it did cost me a fraction of what something in the heart of things would have, it was also a bit of a pain to not have a convenient homebase for the inevitable lulls in the schedule. Travelling in and out of downtown really wasn’t a problem with ye olde rental car, but parking could be a real bear, even with something as pocket-sized as a Chevy Aveo. Next year, maybe I’ll try to go in on a downtown hotel with some folks.

My only real regret of SxSW? I think I’m the only person who was in Austin that didn’t see The Flaming Lips in some capacity, whether it was one of their two “secret shows”, listening parties or just seeing Wayne Coyne roll down E 6th St in a giant plastic ball. Did that really happen? But otherwise I would call the experience a success. I tried to be smart about things and am thankfully not nearly as tired as I could have been. Still quite tired and achey, but not as. Last year it took me some months to want to do it all over again. This time I’m already plotting 2007. See y’all down there.

The Toronto Star has a few more dispatches from Austin as does The Globe & Mail. Popmatters also has two more. I actually haven’t had time to read any of the other reports I’ve been linking – no time. Maybe this week I’ll get the chance to compare notes with other attendees.

I am actually posting this from somewhere in the boondocks of Chicago – not sure exactly where. I took American Airlines up on their offer to stay overnight in Chicago in exchange for $500 in travel vouchers, so I’m hanging out in the U S of A for one more day. It turned into a bit of a fiasco getting to the hotel and whatever, and naturally my overnight stuff was all in the suitcase that still continued on to Toronto (making for a rather gross-feeling morning) but all’s well etc etc.

np – My 4:30 AM wake-up call.

Wonder of wonders, I have survived. Day four has come and gone and somehow my feet are still on speaking terms with my cranium, though just barely. A full festival recap will come tomorrow, but for now lets cover what I hit on the last day of the fest. It had been threatening to downpour all week but held off until yesterday, when it came down pretty heavily for the first half of the day. Which, of course, was great news, because the only thing better than club hopping is doing it in mud.

There wasn’t too much club hopping in the cards for me, though, since the Misra day party was pretty successful at keeping me in one place for extended lengths of time. And though I only got three shows in during the evening (barely), all were completely worthwhile. Quality, not quantity. Though quantity is also good.

Shearwater (Austin, TX) @ Red Eyed Fly – Shearwater was my only double-shot for SxSW, fitting since the week staretd with a Shearwater post. For general impressions, refer back to my Thursday post. On this day, they were opening up the Misra party and somehow, the grey, wet skies managed to enhance the mood of their set rather than dampen it. Jonathan Meiburg also offered a brief tutorial on the palo santo tree (it grows leaves for only one month out of the year and spends the rest of the year oozing sap), which is the namesake of their new album.

The Young Knives (Oxford, England) @ Club DeVille – The Young Knives are some funny looking dudes – it needs to be said and I wager that the band would be the first to agree. But their look perfectly suits their music, which is quirky, frantic and breathless. Entertaining but a little exhausting to watch.

Jose Gonzalez (Gothenburg, Sweden) @ Club DeVille – Rather than play the proper outside stage, Gonzalez opted to perform a quiet set in the lounge of the club while the audience sat cross-legged on the floor around him (or stood), attentive and enrapt by his quietly hypnotic fingerpicked guitar and hushed voice. Mesmerizing.

The Great Lake Swimmers (Toronto, ON) @ Red Eyed Fly – I really have to make more of an effort to see these guys play around town. There’s really no excuse not to – I only caught the last song of their set at Red Eyed Fly, but damn if it wasn’t utterlly beautiful and beguiling.

The Mendoza Line (Brooklyn, NY) @ Red Eyed Fly – One of the bands I most wanted to see whilst in Texas, their set started out kind of lethargic, but gradually picked up until it qualified as laid back. I think this was their 4th show of the last couple days so they can be excused for being a little wiped, but just bad timing for me, I suppose. The played an abbreviated set that served to whet the appetite, but not satisfy.

Dr Dog (Philadelphia, PA) @ Red Eyed Fly – I hadn’t really intended on seeing these guys, but the possibility of leaving and not getting back in, thus missing Centro-Matic, was not an appealing one so I stuck around. What The Mendoza Line lacked in energy, Dr Dog made upf or in spades. Their tunes were a little more 70s classic rock/jam band than I generally like, but they had showmanship and presence to spare. These guys play Bonnarro, right? Just guessing.

Centro-Matic (Denton, TX) @ Red Eyed Fly – Though they started 45 minutes later than scheduled (thank you jam bands) and I had to miss a couple other day shows, Centro-Matic were completely worth it. When I saw them last year at Misra’s official evening showcase, they put on a good show but a rather slow-ish one. Yesterday, they were on another level entirely, allowing me to witness one of their legendary live shows. The energy levels and vibe were amazing and there was a real celebratory atmosphere in the air – enough so that they invited a couple of their fans onstage so that one could propose to the other (I think she said yes). The festival could have ended right there and I’d have been satisfied, though between you and me I’m glad it didn’t.

Adam Franklin wtih Sianspheric (London, England) – Taking part in something called the “Shoegaze Hacienda” (which is mixing eras of UK music, by the by), former head Swervedriver Adam Frankling teamed up with Canucks Sianspheric for a set comprised of a fair bit of drawn-out space jamming. The set was plagued with technical issues, so much so that halfway through the Sianspheric players just packed up and left for whatever reason. This didn’t leave Franklin to fend for himself, though – he was joined by the drummer from Th’ Faith Healers for some Swervedriver tunes, no doubt giving heartattacks to some of the more aged UK music fans in attendance.

Decoder Ring (Sydney, Australia) @ Red 7 – These Australians certainly took the prize for most elaborate A/V setup hauled halfway across the world. Decoder Ring were circled on my calendar as a must-see since their gorgeous “Fractions” leapt out of the SxSW bit torrent and took my ears hostage. The main questions were a) could the live performance measure up to such a perfectly constructed studio track, and b) would the rest of their material be as good? The answer to both was an emphatic “yes”. Difficult to classify as either a rock, electronic, dance or whatever band, they split their time between dense, driving and cinematic instrumentals and soaring, anthemic vocal numbers. They got a room full of worn-out hipsters dancing at 8PM – think about that. Irresistable.

Rainer Maria @ Karma Lounge – It’s amazing how refined Rainer Maria has become in recent years. I’m not just talking about the songwriting, though the forthcoming Catastrophe Keeps Us Together certainly stands to be their best album yet, but just overall. They’re tighter, smoother, more dynamic, and Caithlin De Marrais has become a truly formidable singer and frontwoman. But old-school fans who worry that the band might have gotten a little too polished, fear not – based on their truly explosive showcase last night, they’ve still got all the raw energy that was always there. It’s just now ultra-focused and bolstered by confidence. It’s always exciting to see a band finally realize its potential, even if it’s taken a little longer than usual.

Okkervil River (Austin, TX) @ Emo’s Annex – I had said before that there was no way I was standing in line for anything at Sx. Too much else going on, I said. Waste of time to pass up other showcases for possibly/probably no avail. And yet, there I was on Saturday night, hanging out on Red River for almost two hours at the festival’s finale, hoping that the badgeholder line would either lose interest or be struck down by lightning. I was absolutely determined to close out the week with Okkervil River, be it in front of the stage or listening from the street. And really, there wasn’t anything else going last night that I’d rather be doing and the in-line company was entertaining. Thank goodness that after local buzzy band I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness finished up, enough of those inside cleared out in search of hipper pastures that I was able to squeeze just before their set began. Victory! And yes indeed, this was the right way to finish things off. Will Sheff was in fine form playing the maniaclly wide-eyed black sheep prophet, leading his followers both onstage and down in front into the dark forest of his twisted folk stories. Their set was far too short (okay, the same length as everyone else’s but it certainly seemed too short) but superb and the perfect farewell to Austin from Austin’s finest band.

And now I have a plane to catch. Overall festival recap action tomorrow. Thanks for coming along.

np – Maximo Park / A Certain Trigger

Day three down and somehow I’m still upright! That’s actually thanks in large part to the Merge/SubPop party at Pok-E-Jo’s yesterday afternoon. Rather than having me dashing all around downtown to get from day show to day show, I got to plant my ass in front of the stage there and let the bands come to me, which they did. Excellent. So let’s get to it.

Metal Hearts (Baltimore, MD) @ Lucky Lounge – I only caught a song and a half of their set thanks to having to run around hunting down quarters for the parking meter, but what I did hear sounded pretty good. Very much like the record, but in a live context the quietly lo-fi songs take on a more interesting ambievalent dimension. Hard to explain. The addition of real drums overtop the programmed backings was also a nice touch.

Bound Stems (Chicago, IL) @ Lucky Lounge – I think I got sent a copy of these guys’ album many moons ago, but never listened to it. After seeing them play a couple songs (again, the parking meter) I’ve made a note to dig that record out and give it a proper listen. Fairly standard indie rock but with a certain je ne sais quoi that intrigues.

The Brunettes (Auckland, NZ) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – Arriving late I only caught the very end of their set, which was cute as always but maybe it was a little too early in the day for the crowd to really get in the proper mindset to enjoy their quirkiness. They did garner polite applause and their Mary-Kate and Ashley gag did get the guffaws from most. Not so much from me but I’ve already seen them do it three times now.

Kelley Stoltz (San Francisco, CA) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – Another artist who’s album I have at home, most likely unlistened to. He and his band played some slightly goofy, shambolic singer-songwriter-y pop that was rather good fun but didn’t make too much of an impression.

Eugene Mirman (Brooklyn, NY) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – The organizers had the great idea of having comedian Eugene Mirman come out and do some stand-up between sets. I’m not being sarcastic, it really was a great idea. Mirman’s a funny dude.

Band Of Horses (Seattle, WA) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – One of the bands on the bill that I most wanted to see, Band Of Horses gamely endured a truncated set time and a self-destructing microphone to put on a short but impressive set of beard-friendly countrified/country-fried rock. They’ve got a great sound and their debut is due out in a couple weeks. Should be worth checking out.

The Essex Green (Brooklyn, NY) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – A band that’s fallen off my radar of late, but undeservedly so. The put on a quick but quality set of pop from their new album, Cannibal Sea, which is out next week. It sounds classic but not as retro as The Long Goodbye – it may be that they’ve found that elusive zone of timelessness that all pop bands aspire to.

Camera Obscura (Glasgow, Scotland) @ Pok-E-Jo’s – Another band with a new album to shill, though Let’s Get Out Of This Century isn’t out until later this Summer. The new material they previewed all sounded great, and a good deal sprightlier than their older material. Tracyanne even cracked a smile or two! A red-letter day indeed.

Mates Of State (East Haven, CT) @ Beauty Bar – I technically wasn’t at this show, I had some time to kill and couldn’t get past the velvet rope so I just watched the beautiful people at the Jane party from over the fence. Mates Of State sounded excellent from where I was standing, creating a surprisingly full sound for just two people. I wouldn’t mind seeing them properly sometime.

Ambulette (Chicago, IL) @ Red 7 – Starting 15 minutes late (an eternity in SxSW time) and seeing rather disinterested, the band formerly (?) known as Bella Lea and risen from the ashes of Denali were behind the 8-ball a bit with me when they finally got underway. Still, anchored by the powerful and emotive voice of Maura Davis, their moody, dramatic rock was worth taking note of. Pity I couldn’t have stuck around for more than four songs, but tick tick tick.

Dirty On Purpose (Brooklyn, NY) @ Spiro’s – The boys played pretty much the same set as they did in Toronto a couple weeks ago (albeit abbreviated), albeit to a crowd probably exponentially larger. I have to say the sound on this little makeshift stage was actually better in some ways than the mix they got at Lee’s Palace. George’s shrieking guitar was way too low, but the vocals were actually audible. Someday, this band will get a good mix and they will rule the world.

Isobel Campbell (Glasgow, Scotland) @ Dirty Dog Bar – I think Isobel Campbell’s musical muse is still a work in progress. Even if her set hadn’t been plagued by technical gremlins, it probably still would have been rather patchy. Touring vocalist Eugene Kelly simply doesn’t have the weight or subtle menace that Mark Lanegan adds to the Songs From The Broken Seas album, and when paired up with Campbell’s wispy delivery, it just lacks the substance a lot of the material needs. This was particularly evident on their ill-advised cover of “Love Hurts”. When the benchmark for this song is Gram and Emmylou, you better be able to measure up if you try it in public, and they just couldn’t come close to giving it the emotion and gravity it deserves.

Eric Bachmann (Seattle, WA) @ Capital Place, 18th Floor – This fancy penthouse lounge was by far the strangest venue I’d been to this week. The Crooked Fingers leader was playing acoustically on this night, accompanied on a few numbers by a backing vocalist and violin, and my god was it amazing. Ironic that at a festival ostensibly dedicated to uncovering new and emerging acts, it would be one of the grizzled veterans who would put on the best performance of the week so far. Playing a few new numbers intermingled with classic material, Bachmann was absolutely riveting to see perform. His set was the perfect respite from the general state of bedlam occurring 18 stories down, and finale “You Must Build A Fire” was a moment of sublime beauty. Perfection.

Sally Crewe & The Sudden Moves (Austin, TX) @ Club DeVille – Recently transplanted to Austin from her native UK, Sally Crewe and her band churned out a set of lean, compact and irresistably tuneful pop songs. The smallish crowd probably meant that she hadn’t yet won the hearts of her adopted home, but it should just be a matter of time before they catch on – while there was no immediately killer single in her catalog, everything they played was remarkably consistent and quality. Worth watching.

Soft (New York City, NY) @ Spiro’s Patio – A band I’ve written about in the past, Soft were unabashedly Anglo in their influences and it works for them. With a singer doing his best to ape Ian Brown and a band that captures the spirit of dancey Manchester, Soft offer a great alternative for those who want to emulate skinny folk who don’t get enough sun, but who can’t really figure out how to dance to the herky-jerky post-punk sound.

I didn’t make any 1AM shows because, well, there were obscene lineups coming from every club and I was in no mood to stand around and hope. In fact, I was quite happy to call it a night and head back to The Ranch. ‘Cause that’s what I call my hotel. The Ranch. I pretend the bathtub is a corral.

You’ll have to be patient for my SxSW photos – I’ve so far managed to get shots of every band I’ve seen, so there’s several hundred photos to sort through and process with still a day to go. I will be getting to that as soon as I get home, I’m as anxious to see how they’ve turned out as anyone, but in the meantime you can pop over to my now-complete run at Scene From My Life to see a couple of pics from the week. Rest assured there are many, many more.

There was also a big “Blogger Brunch” dealie yesterday morning where almost all the music/culture bloggers in town for the big to-do got together to gnarf down breakfast tacos and drink beer before noon, sponsored by Filter. They also had a “Blogger Of The Year” award to give away to one of the attendees, as voted on by the other attendees. The big prize went to Gorilla Vs Bear, but yours truly took home third place. Yeah, third. It goes without saying they only had prizes for numbers one and two.

And so henceforth, I declare myself no longer the Susan Lucci of the blogosphere – not only does that let on a little too much about my childhood watching soap operas but she actually finally won the damn dayime Emmy – but I am now the Martin Scorcese of the blogosphere. He is the true master of futility when it comes to awards. And, of course, this means I have to develop an unhealthy fixation on Leonardo Dicaprio. But at least The Globe & Mail had some nice things to say about me in the wake of my umpteenth Bloggies defeat.

More SxSW updates from Pitchfork and recaps of the first two days from Chart. Finally, Billboard covers Neil Young’s festival keynote address.

np – Saturday Looks Good To Me / March 2006 Tour EP

Day two. No point in messing about, let’s get right into it. And I’m writing most of this at 4AM, so if it’s incoherent or just bad, blame my dogs, for they are barking loudly and it’s hard to concentrate. That’s a metaphor, by the by. I don’t actually have any dogs and if I did, I wouldn’t have brought them with me.

The Walls (Dublin, Ireland) @ BD Riley’s Irish Pub – Tomorrow is St Patrick’s Day, so why not start off with a little Irish music? The Walls have that jangly, lightly anthemic sound that is so distinctvely Irish. Heavy enough to rock out, yet genial enough to take home to mom. I think it’s the accents – it makes everything sound that much more pleasant.

Gemma Hayes (Dublin, Ireland) @ BD Riley’s Irish Pub – Ah Gemma Gemma Gemma. Even with just a four-song acoustic set, Ms Hayes was able to beguile everyone within earshot with her lovely, honeyed voice. Le sigh. I may not be able to catch any of her other shows this week, so this brief bit of goodness will have to last me.

The Hidden Cameras (Toronto, ON) @ Emo’s – The Hidden Cameras had been foiled in their attempts to make SxSW a couple years ago (or was it last year?) when Joel Gibb was held up at the border, so this was their grand Texas debut. And it’s about time, because everyone knows Texans go nuts for songs about peeing and gay love. But even though the crowd was initially a little small, it was immediately enthusiastic and only grew as they played on. It’s interesting to see an act that’s so beloved at home trying to win over a new audience. I think it was working.

Monsters Are Waiting (Los Angeles, CA) @ The Taproom – Took a flyer on this one after hearing the one track posted on the SxSW site. They’re a new wave-ish act with a sexy, quirky singer who almost certainly spent some time in drama school. Or at least I hope that’s her excuse. Some good tunes and interesting stage presence.

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (Bloomfield, NJ) – All hail Ted Leo, closing out the South By Stereogum party. El Ted performed a blazing set of classic material peppered with some new tunes from his forthcoming album. Ted always brings it and this was no exception. A rock-tacular way to close out the daylight portion of the itinerary.

Margot & The Nuclear So and So’s (Indianapolis, IN) @ Nuno’s Upstairs – While I mentioned a little while ago that I liked their debut album and was curious to see them live, I didn’t expect to be blown away as I was by this 8-piece last night. Live, they possess and edge and energy that is only hinted at on the record, bringing some beautifully focused chaos to the songs. And as a bonus, I got to see my first guitar smashed onstage – somehow the headstock got snapped off the bass, and if there’s a cardinal rule to showmanship, it’s to never pass up an opportunity to smash an instrument. Smash it good! Margot good. Very good.

Film School (San Francisco, CA) @ Club DeVille – Coming off probably their worst week ever as a band (their gear was all stolen last week by a very determined thief), Film School was surely ready to work out some frustration. And they did so by creating some very convincing and hypnotic walls of sound to punctuate their moody, atmospheric rock. The people at the Beggar’s showcase were very impressed.

The Rogers Sisters (Brooklyn, NY) @ Club DeVille – There’s no doubt this trio is from New York. Their lightly abrasive post-punk with just a dash of pop sweetness could have come from no other place, at least not in today’s musical climate. I only caught them because I was too lazy to walk back across downtown to see the showcase I’d intended to catch, and it’s too bad because on this night, The Rogers Sisters were not doing it for me.

Some By Sea (Seattle, WA) @ Redrum – There is a definite Pacific Northwest sound these days, and we have Death Cab to thank for creating it. Some By Sea trade in similar wide-eyed, wistful indie-pop but the excellent arrangements adding keys, lap steel and cello to their sound help Some By Sea stand out from the crowd.

Jake Brennan & The Confidence Men (Boston, MA) @ The Continental Club – When you’re sequestered away in the indie world, sometimes you forget what it’s like to see a good, tight, no frills rock’n’roll band in action. Showing up early to the Continental Club served me that reminder as this outfit was kicking ass and taking names. Nothing fancy, nothing gimmicky, just the rock. Respect.

The Minus 5 (Seattle, WA) @ The Continental Club – The Minus 5 are well known for their revolving door of collaborators and their SxSW showcase was no different. With their regular guitarist called away on a family emergency, Scott McCaughey, Peter Buck and Bill Rieflin had a string of impressive guitar talent lend a hand. There was McCaughey’s guitarist from The Young Fresh Fellows (name unknown to me), Andrew Rieger of Elf Power, Steve Wynn and Leroy Bach, ex of Wilco. And Sean Nelson of Harvey Danger/The Long Winters was also along to contribute backing vocals. Neko Case was also in the house but, alas, did not get up and play with them. Or at least not while I was there. I had to bail at 2AM on account of falling down and dying.

Pitchfork is offering dispatches from Austin, Popmatters recaps their Wednesday (two writers!) and The National Post reports back on some Canadian acts at the festival.

And for the non-SxSW portion of today’s post: Dungen are at Lee’s Palace on June 6. And Drive-By Truckers, who I totally could have seen yesterday if they’d only posted set times, discuss A Blessing And A Curse with Ireland.com (Via Largehearted Boy). Oh, I guess that was still sort of tangentially SxSW related. Alas. Happy St Patrick’s Day!

That is all.

np – Young & Sexy / Panic Where You Find It