- {Fat Fox Showcase @ Lambert's}
It was at Lambert's when I realized my day was becoming eerily focused on bands from Nashville and Portland -- through no fault of my own. Come on, Kansas City! Where are you!?
{Eileen Rose and the Holy Wreck} come straight out of Nashville, with an expert brand of “music that makes you want to drink” (direct quote from my accompanying pal). Rose wore her voice out to a raspy growl within five songs, which might not work so well for her in the future, but her sweet June Carter croon dominated the southern mix of lap steel, lightning-speed guitar licks, upright bass, and snare-heavy drums. “I've got such a good band up here, it's like driving a Ferrari,” Rose joked. Rose has three-full length albums available from Rough Trade.
{Setting Sun} (video above), fronted by Gary Levitt from New Paltz, NY, had the unenviable task of recreating a five-piece band “too poor to make the trip,” which I suspect has happened more than once at SXSW. Backed by an iPod playing recorded mixes of the missing band, Levitt recreated the full, folky sound of Setting Sun so convincingly that if I'd been looking away, I'd have had no idea. He was also joined by Jen Turner (current guitarist and singer for Joe Arthur and now recording under the name Inner) for a few songs, filling the void completely. If Bright Eyes were all grown up, it would sound like this. Setting Sun's latest album is out now on Young Love Records.
----
- {My Old Kentucky Blog Showcase @ Radio Room}
I wandered around 6th Street, program in hand like a n00b, and tried my luck at the Radio Room, hoping to check out My Old Kentucky Blog's showcase. Success! I made it just in time for {Viva Voce}, one of those bands I've heard bits and pieces of and always thought, “Hmm, I should check that out in detail.” Serendipity landed me right in the front row for the Portland-based (see!?) band's set, and it quickly became obvious that these people are total pros and not above throwing disparaging glances at the Austin City Social Club that had formed in the front row. Kevin and Anita Robinson switch off lead vocal duties with ease, supported by new members drummer Evan Railton and multi-instrumentalist and singer Corrina Repp. Viva Voce's sly, psychedelic-with-a-kick character definitely gets a boost from these two, so y'all should be excited about their new album, Rose City, which comes out May 26 on Barsuk. “A band name and a record label that are equally hard to pronounce,” quipped Kevin.
----
- {Austin Rock Camp for Girls Showcase @ Maggie Mae's}
Maggie Mae's charges you $2 for water, whether it's tap or a bottle. Uh, fascism. Just sayin'. At the suggestion of my friend, I tagged along and checked out the Austin Rock Camp for Girls showcase just in time for {Ten Out of Tenn}, a 10-piece touring band made up of ten Nashville-based singer/songwriters who release albums together, along with their own individual records. Since each song was written by a different member, I find myself liking the taste of some more than others, with a sweet ballad called “Let the Woman” reigning as a standout. My music-soaked brain did not have the energy to jot down each member's name, but to give you the best idea, I'll just refer to Ten out of Tenn as Nashville's response to The Last Waltz, and you can't really go wrong with a stage jam-packed full of talented people. Ten frontpeople are better than one, in this case. Volume II of their collaborations is being released in conjunction with American Songwriter magazine sometime this summer, and I'm sure they could have played the entire album, but were thwarted by a 2 AM last call. I squeezed myself onto a hilariously chaotic bus to get across the river to my hotel and fell asleep to a band practicing in the room beneath me, which would normally turn me homicidal, but really, it seemed perfect.
