I feel a little dirty having attended the St. Patrick's Day parade afterparty sponsored by the Observer, but hey, I did it for Ghostland Observatory. And they were phenomenal as usual, although I think you need to see them at night for their cool light show to really get the whole experience.
But day or night, they totally rocked the crowd, which seemed small to me. I don't know what kind of turnout was expected, but there was plenty of room to carve out a little dance floor for you and your friends. And I have to say, the small-ish crowd probably contributed to the portable toilets being the cleanest on Greenville. Thanks, Observer!
As countless hungover musicians pack their bags and load their equipment into vans and (for the lucky ones) airport shuttles, I try to remember last night. The ol' brain's a little cloudy from what my Austin friends call "party weekend." And that's a good phrase to describe South by Southwest -- it's an extended weekend where there's something going on in every nook of the city. It's much like the weather was during these four days. You never know what to expect.
That's why I gave up the idea of "having a plan" last night. I wanted to go where the wind took me (and it was mighty windy in Austin). First stop in the afternoon? Auditorium Shores, a large outdoor festival stage next to the river. Large enough that everyone could get in free to see one of the best showcases of the festival. N.E.R.D. made me jump up and down the night before, but rapper Lyrics Born and his full band had me wavin' my hand from side to side. His set was all upbeat, in the style of his best song, "Callin' Out." I've always wondered why he wasn't more famous.
Next up, after an intermission of recorded smooth jazz (?) was DJ Pete Rock, who would handle the beats for Jean Grae, Talib Kweli and others. After a few minutes of classic hip-hop, Grae came to the stage ready to challenge the large but lazy crowd: "Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought this was a bill with me and Talib and Ice Cube. What did y'all come here expectin' to see, Kenny G?" That lit a fire under some folks, and all kinds of people from babies to grandmas got into her sometimes boastful, always intellectual rapping.
Kweli, also smart as a whip, joined Grae on stage for a couple tracks and then took over. I've always loved the way he attacks beats with unconventional rhymes, so seeing him at the top of his game was a thrill.
Rather than stay late for some Ice Cube, I hoofed it over the river and through the lushes to Opal Divine's on West 6th. Despite the venue being a leetle off the beaten SXSW path, Denton singer Daniel Folmer drew a few dozen folks to his 8 p.m. showcase, including members of the Theater Fire and Doug Burr, both scheduled to play there later. Folmer and his backing band did a handful of songs, and then he stayed on stage alone with his guitar to play a couple. Was glad to see a few faster songs (including "Shut Your Mouth" and a rocked-up version of "Final Scene") in the mix. I looked around to see if showcase headliner Deana Carter was watching, but I haven't seen her since the "Strawberry Wine" video, so I probably didn't know what to look for.
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