MFR's Guide to SXSW: Mpls/St. Paul Bands

P.O.S.


*MP3: P.O.S. - "Goodbye"

Thursday, March 19 11:15 p.m.
Habana Bar Backyard (708 E 6th St)
&
Friday, March 20 11:00 p.m.
Buffalo Billiards (201 E 6th St)

Doomtree


*MP3: Doomtree - "Flex"

Wednesday, March 18 8:00 p.m.
Back Alley Social (303 W 5th St)

"Absolutely fucking nothing but Doomtree."

The "it" MC and his crew bring rhymes and beats down south to show the industry what hip-hop sounds like if you freeze it for nine months. In other words, fresh and freaking cool. Hip-hop fans, don't miss these shows.

Haley Bonar


*MP3: Haley Bonar - "Big Star"

Wednesday, March 18 11:30 p.m.
Victorian Room at The Driskill (604 Brazos St)
&
Thursday, March 19 2:30 p.m.
SESAC Day Stage Cafe Austin Convention Center (500 E Cesar Chavez St)

Ms. Bonar plays and sings country-tinged pop songs that would provide an adequate dictionary definition for 'smoldering.' Go and see TC's favorite heartbreaker, but don't stand too close to the flames. (*Note: Bonar is on Afternoon Records, however, is a staple of the TC scene and needs to be mentioned).

Brother Ali


*MP3: Brother Ali - "Good Lord"

Wednesday, March 18 12:30 a.m.
Back Alley Social (303 W 5th St)
&
Thursday, March 19 12:00 a.m.
Habana Bar Backyard (708 E 6th St)

Sometimes the hardest thing in this world to be is just one of the most gifted rappers in the country. The truth is coming to Austin, so give the man a mic and step back. But not too far.

Dosh


*MP3: Dosh - "If You Want To You Have To"

Wednesday, March 18 10:30 p.m.
Mohawk (912 Red River St)

When not recording and touring with Andrew Bird, Martin Dosh puts out records of distinctly emotional electronic, beat-driven music. His one man show will be a highlight of the festival.

et al.

* The 757s
* Solid Gold
* Josiah Wordsworth
* Toki Wright
* Eyedea & Abilities
* Gary Louris & Mark Olson
* John Gorka
* Grant Hart
* Elizabeth Hunnicutt
* I Self Devine
* Mark Mallman
* Marcy Playground
* Cecil Otter
* Plain Ole Bill
* Birthday Suits
* BK One

Venues and times can be found for all HERE.

Other local bands like Gospel Gossip and First Communion Afterparty will play their trade at unofficial gigs outside of the festival.

We have missed a band, please add them to comments below.

(Erik Martz)

Vita.MN Announces "Are You Local?" SXSW Send-Off Concert @ First Ave.

Star-Trib entertainment offshoot vita.mn has announced its SXSW sendoff concert called "Are You Local?"*, the purpose of which is to send off local musicians headed to ye ole' South-By-Southwest music conference in Austin, TX.

Judging by the flyer posted above, the line-up is a doozy: Recently Forkcasted dream-pop trio Gospel Gossip, neo-psychedelic collective First Communion Afterparty, synth-dance-pop trio Solid Gold, and Sims of hip-hop nonet Doomtree are but four of all the excellent acts playing this show. Check out the rest of the lineup at the top of the post.

Here are the deets:

"Are You Local?"
March 14th @ First Avenue
$3 advance, $6 at the door

There will also be hot dogs. Check it all out at the top of the post.


*Well, no, not really. But it's cool if I do this, yeah?

Rhymesayers Announces Lineup For SXSW Showcase

This just came over at the Eyedea and Abilities MySpace blog. It's the lineup for the venerable hip-hop label's South-By-Southwest music conference showcase, and, as you can imagine, it's a doozy. Check it out:

+ 03.19.2009 + Rhymesayers Label Showcase
Venue: Habana Bar Patio / Backyard
Address: 708 East 6th Street
City: Austin
State: TX
Doors: 8:00PM
Ages: All Ages
Cost: SXSW Wristband

8:00 - 9:00 - Plain Ole Bill
9:00 - 9:30 - Toki Wright
9:30 - 10:00 - I Self Devine
10:00 - 10:30 - Abstract Rude
10:30 - 11:15 - Eyedea & Abilities
11:15 - 12:00 - P.O.S
12:00 - 12:45 - Brother Ali
12:45 - 1:30 - Freeway & Jake One
1:30 - 2:00 - BK One

Read more info here.

Live Performance: Cloud Cult at SXSW

Download: Cloud Cult - "When Water Comes to Life"
Download: Cloud Cult - "The Tornado Lessons" (via Tsuru Radio)

If you dear readers are anything like me, then your attitude regarding attending SXSW is that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. And by "flesh", I of course mean "Necessary Monetary Funds". Luckily, for those of us po' folks head over heels in this country shit, The Current has been airing live broadcasts of various acts who are performing at this year's showcase. One of those acts is Minneapolis' very own Cloud Cult, who are on the precipice of releasing their eight album, Feel Good Ghosts (Tea-Partying Through Tornadoes), and, naturally, are playing the Austin circuit in order to promote it. If you want to hear the band perform three new songs from its upcoming record, in addition to a track from the group's previous album The Meaning of 8, then click here.

And while Feel Good Ghosts doesn't hit stores until April, those intrepid souls who want to get their mitts on it before everyone else can do so legally at the band's website. If you buy the album at the Cloud Cult store, you can either get a full-length album download, or have the physical copy of the album shipped to you. Not too bad. Listen to two Feel Good Ghosts tracks at the top of the post.

Feel Good Ghosts is available on April 8th.

Cloud Cult MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)