My picks for SXSW 2008

The official SXSW lineup was finally released! Here are my picks (by region)...

London bands:

• South (London, UK) [sxsw profile.]
• Fanfarlo (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Thirst (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Lightspeed Champion (London, UK) [sxsw profile.]
• Joe Lean and The Jing Jang Jong (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Ed Harcourt (London, UK) [sxsw profile.]
• The Duke Spirit (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Look See Proof (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Noah and the Whale (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The People's Revolutionary Choir (London, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Stoney (Chislehurst Kent, UK) [sxsw profile.]

Liverpool bands:

• The Rascals (Liverpool, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Wombats (Liverpool, UK)  [sxsw profile.]

Bristol bands:

• Pinstripe (Bristol, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Passenger (Brighton, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]

Bands from other parts of England:

• The Answering Machine (Manchester, UK) [sxsw profile.]
• The Pigeon Detectives (Leeds, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• British Sea Power (Brighton, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• I Was A Cub Scout (Lincoln, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Voom Blooms (Loughborough, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Deluka (Birmingham, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]

Scottish bands:

• Frightened Rabbit (Glasgow, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Dykeenies (Glasgow, UK) [sxsw profile.]
• The Law (Dundee, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Our Lunar Activities (Isle of Lewis, UK) [sxsw profile.]

Welsh band(s):

• Duffy (Wales, UK) [sxsw profile.]

Irish band(s):

• Delorentos (Dublin, Ireland) [sxsw profile.]

Northeastern bands:

• Via Audio (Brooklyn, NY) [sxsw profile.]
• MGMT (Brooklyn, NY) [sxsw profile.]
• Longwave (Brooklyn, NY) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Nada Surf (Brooklyn, NY) [sxsw profile.]
• Tim Williams (Brooklyn NY) [sxsw profile.]
• Cassettes Won't Listen (Brooklyn, NY) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Tulsa (Boston, MA) [sxsw profile.]
• The Spinto Band (Wilmington, DE) [sxsw profile.]
• Wye Oak (Baltimore, MD) [sxsw profile.]

Midwestern bands:

• Office (Chicago, IL) [sxsw profile.]
• Headlights (Champaign, IL) [sxsw profile.]
• Aloha (Cleveland, OH) [sxsw profile.]
• Southeast Engine (Athens, OH) [sxsw profile.]
  
• Eagle Seagull (Lincoln, NE) [sxsw profile. mp3]

Southeastern bands:

• Wild Sweet Orange (Birmingham, AL) [sxsw profile.]
• Dead Confederate (Athens, GA) [sxsw profile.]

Texas bands:

• The Hourly Radio (Dallas, TX) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The New Frontiers (Dallas, TX) [sxsw profile.]
• Tacks, The Boy Disaster (Austin, TX) [sxsw profile.]
• Pompeii (Austin, TX) [sxsw profile.]
• Fastball (Austin, TX) [sxsw profile.]

West Coast bands:

• She and Him (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Sea Wolf (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Low vs Diamond (Los Angeles CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Goldspot (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• The Little Ones (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Buddy (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Film School (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Earlimart (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Foreign Born (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Castledoor (Los Angeles, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Mark Kozelek (San Francisco, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Minipop (San Francisco, CA) [sxsw profile. mp3]
  
• Scissors for Lefty (San Francisco, CA) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Morning Benders (San Francisco, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• Rogue Wave (Oakland, CA) [sxsw profile.]
• The Helio Sequence (Portland, OR) [sxsw profile.]
• Grand Archives (Seattle, WA) [sxsw profile.]

Canadian band(s):

• Handsome Furs (Montreal, QC) [sxsw profile.]
• City And Colour (St. Catherines, ON) [sxsw profile.]

Australian bands:

• Chris Pickering (Brisbane, Australia) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• The Panics (Melbourne, Australia) [sxsw profile.]
• Whitley (Melbourne, Australia) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Cut Copy (Melbourne, Australia) [sxsw profile.]

Scandinavian bands:

• Shout Out Louds (Stockholm, Sweden) [sxsw profile.]
  
• Tiger Lou (Stockholm, Sweden) [sxsw profile.]

Western European band(s):

• Do-The-Undo (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) [sxsw profile.]

=================

Bands who are playing day shows, but aren't playing official nighttime showcases:

• Attic Lights (Glasgow, UK)
• Nyles Lannon (Oakland, CA)
• The Republic Tigers (Kansas City, MO)

Artists who have been removed from the official list:

• Air Traffic (Bournemouth, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Stateless (Leeds, UK) [sxsw profile. mp3]
• Ida Maria (Stockholm, Sweden) [sxsw profile.]
• Office (Chicago, IL) [sxsw profile.]
• The Concretes (Stockholm, SWEDEN)
• The New York Fund (London, UK)
• Richard Hawley (Sheffield, UK)
• One Night Only (Helmsley, UK)
• Gran Ronde (Los Angeles, CA)
• Ours (Ridgefield Park NJ)
• Peasant (Doylestown, PA)
• VHS or Beta (Louisville KY)

Comments

[mikem]

this is where Puressence should make their US debut, esp since they are Itunes artist of the month,etc

[torr]

don't tease me like that, Puressence will never ever play the U.S.

[woyo]

I'm really looking forward to Cut Copy the most although, I'm not sure if its in your genre of liking.

A band you might like is The Whigs. Others include Born Ruffians, The Lovely Sparrows, Lymbyc System, Jens Lekman, Throw Me the Statue, Bon Iver , Tokyo Police Club, Yeasayer, Shout Out Louds, Division Day and VHS or Beta.

Is there a list of Scandanavian bands that are playing this year? Last year had good number of them. I was hoping either The Bell or the The Mary Onettes will be performing at least.

I haven't seen The Hourly Radio or Tack the Boy Disaster in the past year or so. Maybe they will have some new stuff to perform as these are two of the most exciting Texas bands out there.

Is it Mark Kozelek or Sun Kil Moon it in entirety who are performing? I initially heard it was Sun Kil Moon but now just see Mark's name only.

[bill p]

On the Scandinavia front, I emplore you to see Ida Maria who was the best thing I saw at CMJ last year.

[Pete]

What do you think of the list, Torr? I don't of course get to go ;-) but I think some lists from previous years might have been a bit stronger than this year's. There's no band there this year that I'd be really dying to see.

[Alix!]

No list of Japanese bands?

[torr]

Peter, I think chromewaves summed up it best when he said this:

"my initial reaction to this year's lineup - relative to the past three years I've attended, anyway - is pretty meh. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'll see lots of terrific stuff, old faves and new discoveries, but when I scan the band list I'm looking for those up-and-coming acts that've already caught my ear but who are too small to mount a tour to North America and whom I can only reasonably expect to catch at something like Sx. Those bands - the ones I've never seen and want to - are the ones that seem sorely lacking this year."

Also, with having lived in LA for a while now, a lot of the bands who I normally wouldn't ever seen before SXSW (living in Dallas), I have now already seen.

And, so many UK bands that I really really like, never seem to come to the US: Thirteen Senses, Delays, Ghosts, Twang, etc.

As for Japanese bands, tell me which ones playing SXSW are good and I'll check out their myspaces and see if I like 'em. thanks!

[Jane]

No Pan I am (Ed Larrikin)
No The whip?
No Frightened Rabbit?
Different strokes for different folks I guess.

[MikeM]

Torr-maybe not. I got a e-mail from Puressence's manager who said James in supposed to sing in NY at a Judy Collins tribute show in March and they will use that as an excuse to do some local shows. So, you might have to come to NY
fingers crossed, Mikem

[torr]

MikeM, that's great new about Puressence. Let me know if any shows end up happening!

[liz]

nice list torr! you gonna be down in austin again I hope?

[torr]

Yep, ill be at sxsw. I believe this will be my 9th year in a row. Wahoo!

[Jack]

Christopher Rees really should be on that top tips from Wales list. He's truely awesome!! Catch him if you can!!!

[Clairecords]

Don't forget Secret Shine from Bristol UK!

Thursday March 13th @ Habana Calle 6
709 E 6th St
8pm The Brother Kite
9pm Secret Shine

[DJ Max Power]

What about Spottiswoode & His Enemies? They're from New York and they play, like, nine different kinds of music at once.

[Jenn]

Air Traffic looks to be removed from the list.

[Home Slice Pizza]

Wanted to let everyone know that many of these acts are playing at Home Slice Pizza's SXSW day party, Music by the Slice, March 13 - 15th.

Our lineup includes Earlimart, The Spinto Band, The Morning Benders, Castledoor, Goldspot, AA Bondy, Dead Confederate and many more... 34 bands in all!

Full details can be found on our blog, follow link below...

thanks.

[torr]

that sucks about Air Traffic not being on the schedule anymore. I wonder what happened?