Interview: ROCKRGRL Carla De Santis Black's new MEOW

One of my favorite events during my time at SXSW 2012 was the WIMPS (Women in Professional Music Society) and MEOW (Musicians for Equal Opportunities for Women) High Tea Ladies Luncheon. One hundred and twenty women in music assembled for the tea — a spin-off of a monthly WIMPS gathering in Austin and a collaborative effort with MEOW founder Carla De Santis Black — and all of us got a chance on the mic to briefly introduce ourselves and work. The result was a pretty mind-blowing and motivating demonstration of musical accomplishment. The event also gave me a chance to catch up on the work of De Santis Black who I'd lost track of in 2005 when she published the final issue of the pioneering magazine for women, ROCKRGRL. Now relocated to Austin, she was once again leading and building the music community under the auspices of MEOW, with a mission to "to level the playing field for women in music through networking, education, outreach and advocacy." De Santis Black graciously answered my questions about her work.

Q: You published the last issue of ROCKRGRL in 2005 and founded MEOW in 2011.  Did you take some downtime or did you always know you’d start something new? Can you discuss how different (or similar) it was starting ROCKRGRL compared to MEOW?  

CDB: Well, when I started ROCKRGRL it was 1995 and the Internet was just starting to catch on. Now, because of the Internet, print is struggling but nobody really knows how to monetize content on the Internet yet so it's still like the wild, Wild West out there. 

When I stopped doing ROCKRGRL Magazine at the end of 2005 I was completely burned out. I could see the writing on the wall as far as drop in subscription numbers went, but the conferences were still well attended - although it was also a challenge to find sponsorship money to sustain that as well. I didn't really have a plan when I folded the magazine other than I wanted to do something new. I just wasn't sure what that was. Within a year I realized that I was ready to move on and leave Seattle. I got my condo ready to sell and then the economy hit the skids and selling was not a possibility. It took until the end of 2010 to finally sell it. I wasn't exactly sure how to continue the mission I had in ROCKRGRL — to create a strong community of like-minded women in music to GROW the number of successful women — at the top. I had come up with the name MEOW (Musicians for Equal Opportunities for Women) a few years earlier but not sure what to do with it. When I finally moved to Austin at the end of 2010, I took a year to get my bearings and meet people to see if there was a need in the local community where I could be useful. 

The web site — MEOWgazine (www.meowonline.org) — was a very recent decision I made at the end of last year. I want that to be a hub for female musicians to learn about the business, opportunities and ways they can succeed in an industry that is, quite frankly, still a boy's club. It's updated every day and is very much in the style of ROCKRGRL Magazine — which I hope is smart but also entertaining. 

Q: You’ve pioneered so much for women in music.   Who were/are your role models for both playing music and leading change in the industry?  Was activism a natural choice for you?

CDB: Great question. I was really raised to believe you need to be the change you want to see in the world. The early '80s was the time frame when I was playing music and the Go-Go's were so influential to me. I wanted to hear songs in my own voice that I could relate to. At that time there were also so many other women coming up - Pat Benatar, The Pretenders, Heart, the B 52's, Cyndi Lauper - so many cool women playing so many different styles of music. That age of women in music was quickly followed by the less female-friendly hair bands. I was offended that so many people regarded women playing music as simply a "trend." So odd!

Q: You’ve lived (and led) in (at least) two strong music communities (Austin & Seattle) Why Austin now? And was it hard to leave Seattle after having accomplished so much there?

CDB: My family moved at pivotal times in my childhood, so I guess that has always made me feel that I am destined to play out different chapters of my life in different locations. I really enjoy creating events for women in music. I can see how much women enjoy the opportunity to meet and talk about what is important to them. Because SXSW is such an enormous event, I thought Austin would be a great place to do more conferences from. I have already done one in November and have another MEOW Conference scheduled for May 26th. They are starting out small, but I am hoping to grow them into large, national events - SXSW for girls!!

Q: How do you think the obstacles and opportunities for women in music have changed over the past 20 years? Are there more or less?

CDB: I don't think people hear "you're good for a girl" as much any more, but there are still areas where women are not as prevalent: as drummers and behind the scenes. I wonder why there is not a woman who is famous as a guitar player - and just as a guitar player. I wonder why all-female bands are still a rarity in mainstream culture. These are still questions that keep me up at night.

Q: Your clearly very busy with coaching, writing, advocacy and all that is MEOW— how do you take care of you?  

CDB: Ha! Good question!  I collapse in front of the television and fall asleep to something brain-numbing like Judge Judy or Real Housewives of Wherever. I could definitely do a lot better in that department!

 For more information about Carla and MEOW, visit http://carladesantisblack.com/ and http://meowonline.org

SXSW Wrap-up: Local Music Community in Action

If you've been reading here this week, you know that the Local Music Vibe Road Trip to Austin in Chuck Prophet's van was a success. LMV founder Shelley Champine, San Francisco photog/videographer Matthew Washburn and myself shepherded Chuck's van and associated music gear across four states with a minimum of fuss (one low tire, one jammed back door & lot of smooshed insects on the windshield but nothing major), and as much fun as one can have driving long hours across vast swatches of often desolate looking country. We ate local Mexican food and pie whenever possible, caught some live music in Tucson, while blogging, photographing, videoing and Tweeting about it all when we weren't at the wheel. There was even a little yoga and on-the-fly songwriting along the way (see video below). We got into Austin Wednesday after midnight, unpacked the van, disbanded our road-trip trio and waved Shelley off to deliver the vehicle and her support to Chuck and his band where he had a successful run of shows. Meanwhile, Matthew and I met up with our respective friends and we all soaked up as much music as possible.  Let's her it for Local Music communities working together to get things done!

SXSW: Class acts

We went in more for the tried and true — Chuck Prophet, Peter Case, Alabama Shakes, Barbara Lynn & Alejandro Escovedo & His Orchestra — rather than the shiny and new acts in listening department yesterday. Chuck Prophet is completely on, rocking the Ginger Man Pub's crowded back patio with songs from his new CD "Temple Beautiful" before going on to play about a half dozen more gigs around Austin. I knew a couple of Case's tunes  but went more on the recommendation of friends and was reminded upon entering the packed club that he was in The Plimsouls. You know "A million miles away...." The sheer density of music happening on 6th street gets a little too oppressive for my tastes and once again, we found our way back to Austin's South Congress District. Austin's eminence grise,  and one of my favorite musicians,  Alejandro Escovedo would be performing with his orchestra to close out the evening at SX San Jose and he had two amazing 'openers.' Alabama Shakes are a newish band with old souls and major pipes. And while they are just debuting their first CD in April, but they've been riding high on the success of a single "Hold On" and it was another crowded if satisfying listening experience. But the next act, unexpected to me, was the real highlight of the day. R&B pioneer Barbara Lynn has been playing music longer than I've been alive. She's had her tunes covered by The Rolling Stones, toured with B.B. King, and is one of the best female lead guitarists I've ever seen play. Finally, Alejandro came out to his overjoyed hometown crowd, performing a hard-driving set which included a couple slower songs including a gorgeous new song "San Antonio Rain," co-written with... Chuck Prophet! And how can you not love a guy whose encore is "Rock the Casbah"? It was a great day of music. Some scenes from Austin, March 16, 2012:

Texas music royalty:the amazing Barbara Lynn tears it up

Chuck Prophet &The Mission Express play to a packed patio

SXSW: The games begin

Well, the games have been going on all week for those who attend the Interactive, Film and Music portions of SXSW. But having arrived in Austin late, late Wednesday on the Local Music Vibe/Chuck Prophet van express, my experience of the annual festival waking up with coffee and The Punch Brothers at KUT Live at the Four Seasons. This was a kind of no-fail choice: I knew how great The Punch Brothers were having had my mind blown by their musical alacrity a couple of years ago at The Living Room in New York. Five very accomplished guys on bass, mandolin, fiddle, guitar and banjo who draw heavily on their bluegrass roots but owe as much to jazz. They're playing all over Austin in the next couple days so catch them if you can.
Fortified, we wandered down 6th St. to meet up with some friends, acclimate to the rapidly filling streets and high level of beer consumption and see what we'd happen upon...which included a Canadian Guitar Showdown with a spot by Telecaster titan Bill Kirchen, a tired Trampled by Turtles contemplating their next show by sitting on their gear outside the Tap Room, and Band of Skulls at Cedar St. We took refuge from the throngs among friends at LoungeFly SF's Showcase before heading to South Congress.

Home to Jo's Coffee, The Continental Club, Guerra's Tacos, Hotel San Jose and Yard Dog Art Gallery, the South Congress District  is my favorite place in the city. And they host their own unofficial SX San Jose event with live bands, drinks and general bonhomie.  We enjoyed the scene there before lining up for the Kelly Wilson and Bruce Robison show at the Continental Club's Gallery Annex. A little listening room upstairs from the main club, the Gallery small, cozy, and filled with keen listeners and avid fans of the married pair of songwriters. I've long heard of how great Willis is and just recently caught the fact that she was collaborating with her equally accomplished partner. Rootsy, warm and excellent at their craft— she's got one of those great sweet country voices— the duo and their band presented a spirited set of originals about love and heartbreak that made me believe in the power of playing music all over again.

Road trip continued: LMV AZ x NM X TX

It was a long day in the saddle, but after blowing through New Mexico, we made it to Austin, late late on Wednesday night/Thursday a.m.  Once upon a time people didn't have iPhones, XM or Pandora Radio, on their travels but we don't know they did it. Time to listen to some live music!

On the road: SF x LA

Filling station: Love's

“There was nowhere to go but everywhere, so just keep on rolling under the stars.”
― Jack Kerouac, On the Road: The Original Scroll 

Love's Travel Store. The necessary evil of road trips circa 2012. We filled up the tank somewhere on I5 just as this tanker filled Love's tanks. Whoa. Fuel. There's a lot of it getting burnt up in these parts, somewhere between SF and LA, day 1 of the Local Music Vibe trip to Austin. Poet Karen Hildebrand alerted me to the fact that March 12 is even Jack Keroac's birthday, a befitting time to take in some tarmac.
Things have certainly changed since Jack's time (he published On the Road in 1951). There are 1 million more public road miles and the US population has more than doubled so the West feels less wild and wooly than ever.  But the meaning of going on the road — that potential finding of something that you wouldn't have found if you didn't leave or having some sort of epiphany— really hasn't changed.  And so I always get excited about setting out ...even if it means a lot of hours of car time. Even if the first leg is all familiar ground!
 I'm not sure what Jack drove, and riding in a Econoline has a whole different flavor than, say, a Cadillac. There are more logistics given the van is full of music gear and our day's journey was to end on the outskirts of LA proper. So we didn't go cruising the Sunset Strip or other Hollywood musician haunts. Nor did the timing work for a stop at Kulak's Woodshed, my vote for coolest open mic in LA.  Nonetheless, and most importantly, we made it to our destination safely.

Hitting the 'road to Texas

I'm hitting the road to Austin, Texas, today with Local Music Vibe. Follow us as we cross half the country in Chuck Prophet's van on our way to the music celebration that is SXSW. Check for updates here and on Twitter.
@LocalMusicVibe
@DeborahCrooks

Local Music Vibe: Hitting the Road to Austin

There's been great energy generating in the Alameda Local Music Vibe Meet-Up I started hosting earlier this month at High St. Station.  In just two meetings, two projects with serious legs have sprung up: a new songwriter showcase in Alameda kicking off in April and what's going to be a cross-country adventure in March.  The latter development I couldn't have predicted as it involves me hitting the road to Austin with Local Music Vibe founder Shelley Champine...in Chuck Prophet's van. If anyone out there doesn't know, Chuck Prophet is perhaps San Francisco's preeminent rockin' songwriter. Chuck's touring Europe leading up to his appearance(s) at SXSW so he reached out to the San Francisco Bay Area music community and Local Music Vibe stepped in. Shelley and I are going to be blogging about the trip at Local Music Vibe and searching out local music scenes along the route. If you've any tips for us about musicians or venues in the Southwest, we want to hear about 'em. Stay tuned for more here or at Facebook or follow me and LMV on Twitter: twitter.com/deborahcrooks and twitter.com/LocalMusicVibe.

Austin: Greenhouse & The Continental

I'll start right off and say, yes, I managed to see Alejandro Escovedo and his band (and sometimes orchestra) three times in three days this trip to Austin. And he and his band certainly gave no reason for my fandom to waver, not letting up in energy once amid their round of shows. And the third show (that I saw), Sunday's traditional close-out of SX at The Continental Club (which has got to be the best club in town) was a complete party of post-punk rock 'n roll, complete with guest appearances by Lucinda Williams (they dueted on the song "Pyramid of Tears") and Charlie Sexton. Wow.
And it had already been a full and extremely satisfying day of music, spent watching a bunch of hard-working and excellent troubadors including AJ Roach, John Elliot and Carrie Elkin at the GreenHouse House Concert. This was listening to songs at its best, in a living room with a bunch of friendly people who were all ears. Elliot's music made me cry, his songs are that good and true. I was happy to meet and hear Elkin, who's got a full, strong voice and a big open heart, as I've been coming across her glowing album reviews in the press for the past few weeks. She even finished off the afternoon by singing the national anthem. Not content to leave it at that, the concert was followed by a sweet party of more song sharing in a warm, Austin front yard. By midnight, cellos and fiddles were arriving as well...but I knew what was going down at The Continental Club...we left and arrived at South Congress to procure tickets just as Alejandro was setting up.

Austin: Cacti, Flip's & the Taco Express

Where to start? Well, in Saturday's case, it was playing some music for our gracious host Kami, then heading to the Cactus Cafe to hear Shannon McNally. A few years ago, I really liked the Mississippi singer's album Geronimo and was happy to see she was in Austin...but in true 'that's the way plans go at SX' we arrived to see a show schedule different than what I expected. Still the rest of the 'Live from KUT' event contained some hot music. We walked in as the The Chapin Sisters were closing their fine set of country folk. Can we say great voices and amazing harmonies? They were followed by the Generationals about whom I knew absolutely nothing. A young and spirited group led by Ted Joyner and Grant Widmer took the stage. Joyner and Widmer shared vocal and guitar duties for a set of tight, uptempo, infectious indie rock w/trumpet and keys thrown in for good measure. We were about to leave when the DJ announced that the next band, If By Yes, featured none other than Nels Cline. We sat down and waited a long half hour while the 8-piece New York project set up. The arty lyrics, slightly avant garde arrangements and polished vocals somehow reminded me of vintage Yazoo. I think I'd have heard it with better ears in a downstairs club somewhere in Europe.
Onto the KC Turner Music showcase at Flipnotic's for some Bay Area representation. Back in California, KC has tirelessly kept the San Francisco house-concert scene alive and thriving with incredible artists bookings and was presenting a similarly stellar line-up in Austin. Only, again, we missed SF's The Family Crest, but heard a snippet of Indiana's Mars on the Moon, and were very, very glad to discover Man in the Ring, a trio centered upon Brad Cunningham. Passionate singing, fabulous violin and key cajon combining for some exceedingly satisfying Americana.
Texas music, in my book, is really Americana central, and so we gravitated back toward the South side of Austin, to Maria's Taco Express, a quintessential Austin restaurant with fine margaritas, corn tortillas, and a backyard patio that provided the setting for an Alejandro Escovedo-curated line-up including, among others, Maren Parusel, Jesse Malin (who gave the performance his all, including singing on the tables despite a later performance downtown) and the somewhat legendary Willie Nile, as well as Escovedo. It was very easy to spend the rest of the day and evening here, watching and listening to legends and locals alike laugh, drink, and play their hearts out.

Austin 2011: SX San Jose & Yard Dogs

A trip to SXSW is always a bit of a barometer of the year for me: where I'm at as well as what's happening in the music world at large. This year, I'm here for a few days of pure listening and catching up. Friday was spent immersed in the South Congress area of Austin, which is really more about Austin music than official SXSW showcases. We split our time fairly equally between Yard Dog Art Gallery which was playing host to the Bloodshot Records party and SX San Jose party in the back of Jo's Coffee and Hotel San Jose.
The Bloodshot Records line-up demonstrated well its 'insurgent country' ethos. Bandmate Kwame's brother Kwab Copeland energetically played drums for Eddie Spaghetti; Exene Cervenka asked the crowd to reclaim the best 'power to the people' aspects of early punk rock, and Denmark's Maggie Bjorklund rocked the pedal steel to back the Cobirds Unite as well as Exene.
One of my favorite things about South by Southwest is going to a venue for one thing and making a new discovery. My hero Alejandro Escovedo and his Orchestra were headlining SX San Jose which definitely got me there (and were fantastic as usual), and along the way I was taken with the bit of the new-to-me The Autumn Defense set I caught as well as the spirited, great harmony singing of The Belle Brigade.
So, per usual, good music, new sounds, inspiration (with a dose of tacos). I went to bed with ringing ears and sore feet.

Great Idea Tour in Texas: SXSW, Dallas, Denton

The Great Idea Tour is spending 5+ days in Texas: Pie delivered and served, songs sung and refined, heroes heard, more miles logged, tires patched, new friends made, inspiration and snow in Dallas.

Great Ideas, PowerPies & GoGirls @ SXSW

I'm appearing several times during SXSW, including a Great Idea Tour stop at lululemon Austin on W. 6th St. (3/18, 1-3pm) , a panel at the SXSW Convention (3/19 @ 12:30pm) and the GoGirls Invasion of SXSW @Austin Java Parkway (3/19@4:30). Say hey if you're @sxsw!

Great Idea Tour-Come along!

I'm touring the Southwest with Jean Mazzei for the next two weeks. Join us!

Following muses: Keeping At It

The night I got into New York, I played at Café Vivaldi with Alyson Greenfield, a show attended by our mutual friends and fellow songwriters Jennifer Richman and Allison Tartalia. Jennifer, Allison and I had once shared shows and lodging during SXSW in Austin. A few blocks away, another songwriter friend who’d shared one of those Austin gigs, Nashville artist Jenn Franklin was playing at the Bitter End. After our shows we met up for dinner: it was the first time in four years we’d been in the same place together so multiple Cds, tours and adventures later, we had plenty of notes to compare. Allison was teaching music to kids first thing in the morning; Jenn & her tour mate Marie McGilvray were hitting the road back for Tennessee on the back end of their '900 Mockingbirds Tour.' Jennifer was in the midst of preproduction for her next Cd. Despite many distractions, it was heartening to see that this many years later we were still working at our craft.

Jennifer was also continuing her work teaching and lecturing about Autism and the benefits of music in mental health rehabilitation. She teaches at a center where people are coping with or recovering from mental illness including schizophrenia in upper Manhattan. Many of her students, she said, were talented musicians.

A week after our unofficial SXSW reunion, Jennifer invited me up to talk to her music students at the Inwood Clinic. As we made introductions, it quickly became clear that the students would teach me as much or more than I had to say. As the room was filled with guitars and percussion instruments and class soon turned into a song share. The students had written songs together and apart, and a stack of lyric-filled papers was at the ready. A jam and a discussion of process soon entailed. Everyone in the room played, drummed or sang. One student couldn’t remember the first two weeks of his time at the center, but he remembered Jennifer was the first person he met. Since that time he’d amassed a realm of songs and had gotten deeper into his guitar work. In all honesty, the conversation and his process wasn't really different than any of my many other music-related meetings during the week. While there are plenty of slippery aspects to music, the students process was yet more proof that act of creating it and the solace it could provide, was worth the ride.

My Life of Pie: the SXSW chapter

I have a lifelong love of actual fruit pie. I grew up making them, I eat a lot of it for breakfast on the road and consider it equal parts, comfort, art and nutrition. So when when LA musician Patrick Gallagher opined that life-streaming musician Jody Gnant, super interactive/music label expert Rynda Laurel and me, indie artist/communications catalyst, with the addition of CyberPR superstar Arial Hyat formed a virtual 'power pie' of music, tech & marketing know-how, I laughed out loud. This was at the ASCAP "I Create Music" Expo back in April and, dissatisfied with some of what we were hearing, Jody, Rynda & I had an unofficial music biz & lifestyle 'panel' of sorts out in the hallway. Patrick heard what we had going on and ...The idea stuck (coincidentally, Fast Company recently ran an article about the dearth of women influencing these sort of arenas)...and in 2010 the PowerPie has a great chance of going public....if YOU so choose. SxSW's Panel Picker went live today.

Vote for SxSW’s tastiest music panel: The Power Pie feat. Arial Hyatt, Jody Gnant, Deborah Crooks, Rynda Laurel http://tiny.cc/sxswpie sign in & give it the thumbs up.

David Rawlings Machine @ Great American

I've been working to digest all that was SXSW last week. And after all the music I heard, I realize the two favorite shows I've seen in the past 8 days (counting in what I saw last night), were extremely 'simple' performances unassociated with the actual festival. That is, duos who play unadulterated music at a truly great level: Bill Frissell & Greg Leisz at the Continental Club, and last night, David Rawlings Machine at the Great American Music Hall.
Like "Gillian Welch," "David Rawlings Machine" is still Gillian Welch and David Rawlings playing together BUT with him now taking the lead turn. The guy is indeed a machine of a guitar player: he's fucking good and self-effacing ...shy really,until he starts playing. "I'd be a lot more comfortable if fewer of you showed up," he said as he set to tuning somewhat sheepishly.
"Take your time," someone yelled from the audience. Meanwhile, another 'compassionate' audience member blew a bunch of herbaceous smoke toward Rawlings, but he didn't comment. Finally, clow of smoke disipated, tuning complete, he let his guitar rip. Anyhow, enough said.
Check out this video I found on YouTube of the two covering Radiohead's "Black Star" at Bonnaroo. They played it last night and it's been haunting me all day.

SXSW Music Day 4

A mid day gig at Austin Java-Parkway kicked off another busy day. Austin Java's are a good example of why Austin is called "live music capital." What in most other town would be your 'typical' popular cafe (with better food) has a regular music schedule, a stage out back plus decent sound AND eager listeners. Austinites simply appreciate music and musicians. It goes a long way. After sharing three shows with her, I'm now officially a Valerie Orth Music fan. Good stuff. And local Patric Doyle gets a big shout out for sitting in on guitar with me all week. Good people.

After the gig, I headed back to the Convention Center, where the tradeshow had been supplanted by a Vintage Guitar Show. Many b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l guitars about...and overwhelming. That said, I had one of those only-in-Austin chats with one vendor, Austinite Snakeboy Johnson & his wife Deborah, so I made a pitstop at his Texan blues show which was making a crowd of locals happy at Club 311, as well as at the live.create.lounge to check out the songwriter du jour, The Whole Foods flagship store for a raw food moment, and before heading back to the official showcase action.

 Eamon Ryland, who played some of his kickass guitar on Adding Water to the Ashes, has been touring with LA's Juliette Commagere. While the Rusty Spurs stage barely accommodated her 11-piece band, making a soundcheck overlong, it was easy to see why she's also been getting some buzz. Singing lush, ethereal lyrics in a pitch-perfect voice, her music is pop, evocative of Bjork (though more delicate), and with trombone, cello, viola, keys, AND guitar, bass, drums and two backing vocals, both cinematic and orchestral. I'd like to hear her somewhere like Davies Symphony Hall. Speaking of Bjork (who I once did see in Austin, oddly enough), some in the crowd at Stubb's to see PJ Harvey (!) thought the Harvey was turning in another version of the Icelandic singer. I was expecting a full frontal assault from Harvey, but she came out looking demure if slightly alien, dressed all in white with a spiky white 'tiara' on her head. Touring in support of her latest collaboration with John Parish, she seemed more torch singer than punk & while I enjoyed the single "Black Hearted Love," and the band's well-rehearsed, progressive sound...and even PJ couldn't lift me out of my Day 4 fatigue. I called it an early night after a fight broke out in the crowd which shifted the vibe...so sadly, no Alejandro Escoveda (who was in So. Congress area putting on a free show to his peeps) no Perez Hilton Party (my eyes rolling), no last-call new discovery lurking around the corner...capacity had been reached on sensory input. Later, I heard, PJ lived up to her anything-goes reputation and reportedly emitted barks on stage!   

SXSW Music Day 3: Mashing it up

Carlene Cash does not likely care about Twitter, but she's a natural at talking in sound bites, such as "I was in a hurry to get married, I was in a hurry to be a mama, I was in a hurry to get divorced." Funny, whip smart, seasoned and as talented as her storied mother and father-in-law, Cash was interviewed in a large conference room occupied by about 12 people, half of them crew. Every now and again she'd pick up her guitar and sing a tune, making most of in attendance cry for its beauty, power & truth. The through-line of songs has traveled through her country-royalty family,  four husbands, hits & misses, addiction & recovery, and her newest CD "Stronger" is purported to be among her strongest.    Next door, where I split the difference of the time block's two panels in which I was most interested, was a talk on "Social Networks for the Anti-Social" where a crew of social media experts were giving full room of avid listeners their fill of online marketing strategy & tips.  The difference in attendance spoke volumes about the taste of most of the festival goer @ SXSW...(this year's line-up of showcases seems more indie than  roots) and average attentional span. 

Post gig at Austin Java-Barton Springs (a patio set, thanks Austin Java), I took a tip from Carter's admitted appreciation of a London radio station that played all genres back to back, irregardless of any 'program' and spent most of the evening hopping from show to show, venue to venue.  I left much of the day's agenda of day parties, gigs, panels and showcases, loose and made some new discoveries: I walked into a Canadian day part @ 12:45 at went whoa, more than free tacos here: Two whit,  Jill Barber . Go to her site. 

At another spectrum, Portland's young Viva Voce. Two guys, two girls, two & three part harmonies, a slide electric guitar, looping guitar=ethereal rock

The Toxic Airborne Event Silverlake indie joy club. Great crowd, thick beat, good showmen & woman.

Austin's Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears Horns, soul & songs about booty got the crowd shaking their's.