For me, the true harbinger of spring is the arrival of the SXSW Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas. Or rather, spring begins for me when I arrive in Austin for SXSW. With upwards of 1,000 artists and more than 20,000 attendees from around the world, SXSW is the world’s premiere music conference. Even better, it’s one heck of a party.
Over the next week or so I’ll be sharing some of my highlights from SXSW 2022.
WE’RE BACK, BABY!
Three years. That’s how long it had been since the faithful gathered in Austin for SXSW. Given everything we’ve been through over those years, it actually felt longer. Which made it even more exhilarating to be back in Austin. SXSW, how I’ve missed you!
AS MUSICALLY ECLECTIC AS EVER
It’s one thing to invite more than 1,000 artists from around the world to travel to Austin. It’s quite another to program a festival so that every possible musical genre is represented. But that’s what they do at SXSW. I, perhaps not surprisingly, focused my attention on the Americana, rock, country, and pop, but it’s always great to hear artists performing world music, jazz, R&B, and, well, any other genre that you can name.
Part of my routine is to preview as many artists as possible, in this case working my way through the SXSW Spotify playlist. I ended up with a tremendous list of familiar favorites and some exciting new discoveries. More on that later…
THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKING
If I was using a device to track my steps, I have now doubt it would have thrown in the towel and declared “slow down, man!” by day three. SXSW takes over more than 50 venues around town (not to mention the unofficial venues that range from retail stores to parking lots). This year saw those venues spread even farther apart in every directions – north, south, east, and west. It made for some tough choices, not to mention more than a few “crap, I need to be across town” moments.
ALEJANDRO’S TRIUMPHANT RETURN
It’s been two years since I’ve been able to play a show and there’s no place that I’d rather play than the Continental Club. – Alejandro Escovedo
As great as it was to have SXSW back in action, there was an added bonus – the return of Alejandro Escovedo’s unofficial Sunday closing party at the legendary Continental Club. For many years, Escovedo curated an extraordinary all day and evening affair. A few years before the Covid hiatus, however, he passed the torch to David Garza, who nobly carried on the tradition.
Well 2022 brought Escovedo back to the fold. All the artists, an eclectic lot, were personally invited by Escovedo – from rapper Deezie Brown to NYC garage rock band Sweet Things to San Antonio’s Mariachi Las Coronelas (with guest Patricia Vonne) to Georgia classic rocker Kevn Kinney. Chuck Prophet and Rosie Flores, both unbilled, added their guitar prowess to the festivities as well.
Escovedo kept the closing spot for himself, his return to the stage after a two year hiatus. Backed by six piece band and two vocalists, he came to rock. And rock he did.
A GLORIOUS AND MEANINGFUL SXSW MOMENT
While Alejandro Escovedo closed my SXSW spirit, Delta Spirit opened it with one of my all-time most memorable SXSW moments. I literally dropped my bags in my hotel room and raced across town for a party to celebrate the release of Delta Spirit’s new video. And it wasn’t just any video.
The video, released on 21 March – World Down Syndrome Day – was both uplifting and emotional in its celebration of inclusion. Actor Zack Gottsagen, who starred in the movie “The Peanut Butter Falcon” and appears in the video, spoke briefly before Delta Spirit commenced rocking. When they got to “What’s Done Is Done”, the song featured in the video and the lead single for the band’s new album, the place erupted in euphoric glory.
About the author: Mild-mannered corporate executive by day, excitable Twangville denizen by night.