Day Two - SXSW

Colleen and I headed back into Austin between 1:00 and 2:00 p.m. Once there, we found a great little Irish Pub, Fodo, for lunch. At the restaurant, there was a singer/guitarist named Frank Turner who was pretty good. We ate outside on a small patio enjoying the sunshine and the warm Austin weather. Yesterday had been overcast and rainy. Today is supposed to be the warmest day of the week. We heard it was snowing or supposed to snow in PA and NJ even though yesterday it had been 75 in PA.

After lunch, we walked down to the Attic site. It was about 4:00 p.m. and there were two other bloggers already waiting, Michelle and Burton. They did not have badges or wristbands, but were hoping for a general admission ticket. We went around to the other door to start forming the line. It was a warm day standing in the sun and the guys came to start setting up the crowd control barriers. While they had the gate open, we took the chance to move into the patio area and get out of the sun. It felt much nicer under the shade! Burton was kind enough to go get some waters for Colleen, Michelle and me.

Lauren and June arrived shortly thereafter and more people started drifing in. Lauren took charge of the situation and was directing people where to stand in the different lines. The manager kicked us back out into the sun and the lines got longer. We had a line for badge holders, a line for wristbands and a line for General Admission. As the time got closer to 5:30, the lines got longer but everyone was fairly organized and pleasant.

At 5:30, they opened the doors and started letting us in. We went right to the rail by the front of the stage and sat down on the floor leaving space enough for Michelle, Burton and one other gentleman who did not have badges. As Lauren will tell you, and she told us several times, you need to sit down and spread out to reserve enough space around you so you are not crushed up against the rail and have room for the others to join us later.

Our spots were ideal for the show even with the numerous photographers in the pit in front of us. I won't get the order right because it is too late, but Pete started the show off with a song. He was in a good mood and was cracking many jokes and clowning around. Willie Mason's band was excellent although we swear that his drummer was about 10 years old. His drum set even looked like a starter drum set for a child. Willie, himself, didn't look like he had started shaving yet, and their violinist looked about 16. But they didn't play like teenagers - they were very good. I had not heard them before.

Joe Purdy played and it wasn't until his last song when he had Pete and Willie Mason and band join him, that I saw the Joe Purdy I saw the night before. When Joe played solo, he stood still and was very laidback. When he had others on stage with him, he was doing a two-step and really got into it. He seems to feed off the energy of others on stage.

Mika was introduced by Rachel as a number one artist in the UK. His style was very different. I could see his songs being used for commercials and other jingles, and I liked it but I don't think I would buy his album or listen to his music on a regular basis. He was funny and comical on stage, and used his voice as a comedic tool.

Alexi Murdoch played and he was also good. I love his song, Orange Sky. The song he chose for his finale was a mournful song. He is also a solo artist and as I see more and more bands at SXSW, I've been really noticing how the band members feed off of each other's energy. It is unusual for a solo performer to get the energy up and to pull the audience in to that sense of excitement.

Martha Wainwright did not wear the horse pajamas this time. She wore a short dress that showed off her beautiful legs. Rachel had been joking about how she did the Attic shows so she could kiss all these young men, and when she introduced Martha, she said she also liked the girls. When Martha came on stage and kissed Rachel hello, she grabbed her ass. Martha played great as usual.

Rachel also played and sang well - she replaced her normal guitarist, Pete, with a new young guitarist, I'm not sure what his name was, but it sounded like Joelin. Rachel played It's a Motherfucker, Walter Raleigh, Blue, and Pleasure Seeker.

Pete played In the Ether and Can't Reach You, but his set was cut short because they ran out of time. He performed with each of the artists as did Rachel.

After the Attic show, we headed over to see the rest of Ian McLagan and the Bump Band's set. Again as yesterday, they did a great show. The club was packed but we pushed our way forward to the front of the stage. Lynne was there and we got a chance to say hello to her.

From there we went to another club and saw the end of the Hacienda Brothers, definitely a country band. I haven't seen anyone play the accordian in real life, only in movies or tv. We then saw the Mother Truckers and let me tell you, that guitarist made his guitar wail like I've seldom seen before. I had heard they were good but had never seen them before. I'd like to see them again. Speaking of a band feeding energy to each other, this band was rocking and having a blast with each other.

We tried to go see the Frattellis after that, but ended up going down to West 6th St instead of East 6th St, and then ran into a new friend. By then, their set would have been over.

It was a long night, but extremely fun. I did take pictures but unfortunately did not pack my cable connection so cannot download them from my camera. I will post them when I get home.

More to come tomorrow. My feet hurt :-(