The new Big Takeover 64 is in the works (if you have moved in the last six months and you’re a subscriber, please alert us to your new address as our mags are almost never forwarded!), and I’ve got my hands full, but we’re in luck, because Luke Giffen, singer/guitarist for Fresno’s awesome dreampop-shoegaze band The Sleepover Disaster (see my Top 10 review of their brand new Hover album in the current issue 63!) , has consented to send in a long and detailed diary-report of he and the group’s excursion to Austin for this year’s recent SXSW, complete with copious, terrific photos from his associate, Heather Bernard.
Here, without further ado, is Luke! Thanks to both Luke and Heather! And it sure sounds like it was great fun.
South by Southwest is madness. Thousands of bands, hundreds of thousands of people all converge on Austin for the purpose of performing, watching, experiencing, and discussing music. There are probably more cheap beers consumed, more iphones used, and more hipster jeans squeezed into the week of South by Southwest than any other week during the year. If there is a band you’ve heard of they are most likely playing there. If there is a band you’re about to hear of, they are most likely playing there. The festival is an amazing gathering of musicians, artists, journalists, and fans, and this year, in the middle of it all, there was also The Sleepover Disaster.
This was the second year that my band, The Sleepover Disaster, has been invited to play at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. We had a great time at last year’s festival, and since we had been there before, this year we felt a bit like returning sophomores; a little wiser, but still excited. What made this trip even cooler was that our friend and photographer Heather Bernard, fresh off her stint shooting for the Noisepop festival in San Francisco, was traveling with us to help document our SXSW experience.
After playing in San Francisco on Friday and San Diego on Saturday, we finally rolled into Austin Tuesday evening. My Uncle is an Austin transplant, and his girlfriend was kind enough to put us up at her home. After dropping our stuff off, we took the first of many cab rides downtown to meet some friends at a bar. Later we ended up at a “pants optional” house party (I elected to keep my pants on), where we saw our friends The Aimless Never Miss and Saything play in a living room. This first night established what would be our basic routine for the entire week: see a lot of bands, drink a lot of beer (especially Lonestar), and occasionally stop to sleep or eat tacos.
Our first show of SXSW was the showcase for our record label, Devil in the Woods. Since Devil in the Woods is a San Francisco based label, California bands dominated the night. The lineup was The Union Trade, The Aimless Never Miss, The Sleepover Disaster, Light FM, The Happy Hollows, and Or, the Whale.
First up was The Union Trade from San Francisco. The Union Trade delivered a solid set that at times reminded me of The Church, but with a more updated post rock sound. Guitarists Don Joslin and Eric Salk alternated between delicate arpeggios and distorted blasts, and Eric also sang occasional lead vocals. Primary vocalist Nate Munger also laid down driving bass, while drummer Dan Rodkewich kept the whole thing going with propulsive post punk rhythms.
Next up was one of my favorite bands on the planet, Oakland’s The Aimless Never Miss. Usually a trio, the band was using an extended lineup for this show. Former member Rosie joined them onstage, plus a couple members from drummer Winston Goertz-Giffen’s other band Saything. This extended lineup allowed them to better recreate the many layers on their recent self-titled full-length release. The Aimless Never Miss really pulled out the stops for this show. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Johnny Latimer delivered a flawless set of their signature soaring indie rock, while bassist Andrew Macey kept the low end tight.
We were up next, and we had a great time playing. Our set was somewhat hampered by technical difficulties due to a faulty patch cable on my pedal board, but nothing too serious. At one point the Aimless kids formed a chorus line out in the crowd, which totally cracked me up halfway through a song. All in all we felt we played really well, got a great response and we even met some people after our set who had traveled all the way from Brooklyn to see us.
After us, Light FM from Los Angeles took the stage. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Josiah Mazzaschi has crafted a guitar and synth driven sound that is somewhat reminiscent of bands like The Cars, The Rentals, and Grandaddy. Light FM delivered a great set that featured material from their latest release Black Magic Marker. *Kim Haden*’s keyboards curled around the melodies, while *Brian Barbier*’s bass provided great counterpoint to Josiah’s buzz saw guitars.
Next, another LA band, The Happy Hollows took the stage. I had never seen this band before, but had heard great things, and I’m happy to say they didn’t disappoint. Charles Mahoney and Chris Hernandez provided solid and bouncy bass and drums and looked like they were having fun doing it. Singer/guitarist Sarah Negahdari was a great front-person, leaping around the stage, making crazy sounds, all the while totally nailing her guitar and vocal parts. Their sound was very upbeat and punkish, and at times reminded me of a poppier Wire or Mission of Burma.
Last of the night, was San Francisco’s Or, the Whale. This band has a smooth country rock sound, but with a more modern indie aesthetic, somewhat reminiscent of Midlake or even The Shins. Singers A.P. Robins, Matt Sartai, Lindsay Garfield, and Julie Ann Thomasson delivered truly impressive stacked harmony vocals throughout their excellent set. Another standout was Tim Marcus, who delivered haunting pedal steel lines that weaved their way through the songs.
Or, the Whale went on at 1AM, so after their set we headed home to get some rest. We were playing three times on Friday, but were off Thursday so we knew that would be our only chance to check out as many other bands as possible.
On Thursday, after our usual breakfast of tacos at Torchy’s, we went downtown to the Beauty Bar to check out the Bay Area Takeover day show, hosted by Tricycle Records and SomaFM. Although the evening shows get all the official South by Southwest press, there are just as many shows going on during the day. The Bay Area Takeover, as the name implies, is meant to showcase talent from the San Francisco Bay Area. We were able to see quite a few bands, who all delivered great sets. Bands we saw included: Our friends in The Union Trade, an energetic performance by French Miami, 
electro dance pop from The Frail, 
the wackiness that is Wallpaper, 
and the sweet California pop of the Morning Benders. 
As the afternoon transitioned into the evening, we headed over to the Elysium to see Peter Murphy. After a very long wait, we managed to get in the doors with enough time to catch the majority of the set. Peter Murphy’s performance was spot on and his band was excellent. I was surprised that given the darkness of his music, his onstage persona was so warm, energetic and funny. At one point Murphy took questions from the audience, and his answers had everyone in stitches. Murphy and his band ended their set on a high point by playing a great cover of Joy Division’s “Transmission.”
Next up at the Elysium was another established UK act, The Blue Aeroplanes. The band had a very full lineup that included three guitar players along with the usual bass and drums, and delivered a very rocking and loud performance. As they were playing some new material, singer/lyricist Gerard Langley sometimes used a cheat sheet to keep from forgetting the lyrics, which only added to the loose, ramshackle feel of their set. 
After The Blue Aeroplanes, it was time to head to the opposite end of downtown Austin to catch The Pains of Being Pure at Heart at Opal’s Dining House. After fighting our way through the crowds on Sixth Street, we still managed to get to the venue with enough time to grab a quick bite to eat before the band went on. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have been receiving a ton of positive press and critical notices lately, and so unsurprisingly their showcase was packed. The band played a very solid and energetic set that came close to matching the thick production on their debut self titled release. Drummer Kurt Feldman and bassist Alex Naidus laid down bouncy rhythms, while keyboardist/background vocalist Peggy Wang ably filled in sonic space, and guitarist/vocalist Kip Berman cooed and strummed fuzz chords over it all. A highlight was a great rendition of their catchy single, “Come Saturday.” 
Next, we again had to cross the entirety of downtown, this time to see Peter Bjorn and John at Emo’s. Unfortunately, when we arrived there was a long line and the place was packed. As we weren’t sure we were going to be able to get close enough to the stage to get some decent shots, we contemplated heading somewhere else. Just then, a serendipitous text message from my cousin informed us that Dinosaur Jr. was holding a secret show at the Mohawk, only two blocks north of us.
I’ve seen Dinosaur Jr. a few times before, but never with this few people (there were only about 200 people there), or with the original lineup including Lou Barlow on bass. J., Lou and Murph played an absolutely fantastic, and massively loud set that included a lot of old favorites and newer material. Murph was totally solid on his sparkly green drum kit all night, despite being pounded by J. Mascis’s massive wall of amp stacks. Lou Barlow looked like he was having a blast as he furiously strummed his bass, and he delivered a great vocal performance on “Back to Your Heart.” J. Mascis delivered his usual laconic vocals and fiery and toneful guitar work. One particular stand out was on “Freakscene,” where J. threw in some unusual tremolo effects during the solo. The evening was slightly hampered by an overaggressive mosher in the audience who I had to constantly fight off, but all in all it was a really fun show, and one of the best performances I’ve ever seen by Dinosaur Jr.
Friday was a busy day for The Sleepover Disaster. We had three shows, the most fun of which was a day show at Guero’s Oak Garden. Guero’s is a pretty famous taco shop in Austin, and it has a large courtyard venue next door. It’s a great place to play, and is always packed during South by Southwest. The lineup for this show featured great bands from all over the country, and we were honored to be a part of it. 
One particular standout was the Austin band, and the hosts for this show, The Boxing Lesson. This band has a cool sound that marries post punk, shoegaze, and psychedelic rock. Drummer Kevin Sparks laid down the hypnotizing grooves, keyboardist Jaylinn Davidson played fat synth lines, and Paul Waclawsky delivered great vocals and absolutely brutal guitar tones. A great band and super nice people as well!
We played two more shows: a day show at The Spider House, and then another show at the Blue Café at 10pm. After our last show, we headed home for a bit and then decided to head back out to Emo’s to drink some beers and blow off steam. We were dropped off a few blocks from the club at the corner of Sixth and Congress. We figured we’d walk the rest of the way, but we forgot to take into account the craziness of Sixth Street during SXSW. Sixth Street is blocked to traffic, which means it’s flooded with people. All along the street for several blocks are venues, every one of which is hosting bands. As you can imagine, it’s loud, it’s crowded, it’s nuts. After trudging through the crowd for a block, we got smart and cut over to Seventh Street. When we finally arrived at Emo’s, we were pleased to catch an intense set by King Kahn. His music seemed perfect for late night revelry.
Our last show of South by Southwest was Saturday night at a cool little punk rock pizza place called The Parlor. We were all feeling a little tired by this time, which made this set extra fun. My cousin Spencer Goertz-Giffen, who plays in the Kinetics and The Hospital Ships, was in attendance. At one point during our set when I gave her a signal, she jumped on stage, took my guitar, and totally jammed out with Vince (drums) and Eric (bass) on our song “Hold My Tongue.” 
I’ve failed exactly two classes in my life, and they were both music theory courses, so of course I told Spencer the incorrect key for the song. Luckily, this only added to her making some more interesting note choices during her solo. It was pretty rad.
After our set was over, we loaded our gear back into the van, grabbed some caffeine, and braced ourselves for the long twenty-four hour drive home. We’d played five shows, seen a ton of great bands, made a lot of friends, drank a lot of beer, eaten many tacos, slept an hour or two here and there, and now our second South by Southwest was officially over. It was time to get back to normal life (well, as normal as our lives usually are), and of course to start planning for next year’s festival.
