South By South West: A Bitter Sweet Consummation

   I have to start out by saying my first experience of SXSW was nothing less than extraordinary.  Having had the opportunity to work closely with Cornerstone Promotion event staff at The Fader Fort in Austin, Texas has left me with a humbling experience.  Leaving there with friendships and opportunities I feel I'd never gain by not attending.  It goes with out saying SXSW is the culmination of everything you SHOULD know about the current climate in the world of entertainment i.e. music, film and media. However, you probably haven't been properly exposed to due to the over saturated main stream bubble we may sometimes fall victim to.  I am confident in the fact that all the others who worked, performed, show cased, paneled or simply attended feel the same. For the sake of not sounding redundant, because I can go on about how stoked the experience was, I would like to take this time to provide a closer look into the events and highlights from the most gnarly week in entertainment festivals.

      6th street in down town Austin was flooded from early afternoon till the AM with performers, which many of time rivaled artists who are currently on radio.  Not having an official venue many artists took advantage of the closed off streets to claim their own time for exposure.  If you needed a break from the tunes there was an abundance of street artists showcasing their talents through a plethora of mediums.  The fact is there is literally nothing you couldn't find to keep you entertained.

   All Dinosaurs, a lesser known group making their presence known through out the midwest caught my eye and revitalized how I viewed the thrash/punk scene.  These Cleveland boys know how to take exciting scream driven lyrics and melodically twist their twangy guitars and bass around the throats of the audience. Just when you think you can gasp for one last breath the spazzed out drum play bombards your ears with such smooth high hat and fill work you're to busy to remember what your situation was.  There EP "Paranoid Indigenous" is a very solid listen and guarantees a full listen through each time.

   Punk icon Bad Brains also debuted at SXSW making it the bands first ever performance at the festival.  

   Although all genres of music are covered at this spectacle of an event it was HIP HOP that stole the show for this week in March.  The Fader Fort did its fair share of providing some of the most relevant and highly anticipated rookies in the genre to the front lines.  Showcasing Yelawolf, Odd Future, Lil' B(base god) and one of the most talked about artists in the game Wiz Khalifa.

Even if Lil' B's performance, especially with Diddy's unexpected introduction, seemed to be the highlight at the fort, Yelawolf single handedly held down the best performance of the Hip Hop acts that week for The Fader.  His ability to spit so furiously and on point made his album "Trunk Muzik 0-60" literally jump out the speakers and smack the shit of the audience. His live performance took the songs he performed to another level creating a sense of sincerity we sometimes fail to see from artists alike.  

   It was truly a bitter sweet end to an event I felt I could had experienced for weeks, maybe even months if I was so lucky.  What SXSW does so well is having a community in Austin, Texas and a following all over the world literally converge for the two weeks and celebrate all that is fresh and invigorating in music, film and media.  

THERE WILL BE MUCH MORE COVERAGE SOON AND STAY TUNED FOR IRRATIONALMONSTER.COM