BeatNonStop A Weblog by Chris Macias Bee pop music critic Music geek (n. myü-zik 'gEk) 1: A person who proudly wore KISS commemorative pajamas in third grade. 2: A person who owns multiple copies of the same album, still buys vinyl and has a room dedicated to 2,000 or so CDs and records. 3. A person who wrote a five-part series about traveling with a local band in their stinky van - and loved every minute of it. 4: Chris Macias, the Bee's pop music critic, serving Sacramento's music scene since 1999.

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March 22, 2005

Back in Sac.

Saludos, and it's good to be back in town. A full night's sleep really did the trick after six action-packed days/nights in Austin, Texas.
But the memories and temporary hearing loss from SXSW still linger. While it's all fresh in my mind, here are some highlights and other mentionables from the trip:
Favorite set by a Sacto. band: Th' Losin' Streaks at Beerland on Sunday night. Talk about garage-rock in all its sneering, sonic glory. Mike Farrell's guitar heroics also floored the crowd.
Honorable mentions: Hella's furious and fantastic set on Wednesday at Emo's; Headrush, the local trio that both rocked and charmed The Vibe on Saturday night.
Bummers: Missing The Arlenes, Sacramento's excellent alt-country group, on Wednesday night. Word has it that their cover of Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" was stellar.
I also heard that Sacramento's Frank Jordan played a solid SXSW set on Wednesday, but didn't find out about their gig until after the fact. Ooops ...
Favorite meal: Hands down (and with sticky fingers), the brisket and ribs combo at Ben's Long Branch BBQ on 11th St. near I-35.
Favorite party: The Saturday afternoon Scion party featuring Breakestra and Dakah, two slammin' hip-hop groups from Los Angeles. Did I mention the Tecate beer was free?
Most common musician request: "Hey, can I get some more vocals in the monitors?"
SXSW unofficial uniform: Shaggy haircut, fitted jeans, sneakers, t-shirt of favorite band.
Favorite music merchandise: The "Dr. Dre Sticker Packs" sold at the SXSW convention by Burlesque Design, featuring classic lyrics from "The Chronic" and other Dr. Dre productions. (e.g. "Just chill till the next episode," "Did what's his name get at you?")
Most impossible task: Sticking to a schedule. When more than 1,000 bands are playing over five days, it's easy to get sidetracked, even on those "must-see" gigs.

Posted by cmacias at 4:38 PM | Comments |