“The audience—that’s what I love—the energy of people, just to be able to share that positivity,” Mo-Laudi of The Very Best tells me following one of the most powerful sets of Carniville. “It just blows my mind away. It’s just like a wheel of energy.”
The Death Set doesn’t like to sit still—literally and figuratively. The on-stage experience of this globetrotting modern punk trio sparked in Australia and currently based in Brooklyn is absolute insanity—mad drinking, sweating, stage diving, and pure unadulterated energy. It might just be one of the most enjoyable sets you ever see. And that’s coming from someone who doesn’t know a lot about punk.
What better way to kick off Red Bull Big Tune 2010 than in the middle of SXSW? An increasing amount of hip-hop showcases means more hip-hoppers hanging around 6th St. during the festival than ever. The bonus was that a few people who walked into the narrow confines of The Belmont’s outdoor performance space had no idea about the Red Bull Big Tune battle. So the turn out was both impressive and diverse for the return of the longest running producer competition around.
One of the most interesting moments of SXSW for me so far happened not inside a venue but outside on the corner of 6th and Congress. Here, a duo of xylophone players from Africa are joined by a local clarinetist named Roy Coon in a completely unplanned collaboration. The mixture of raw percussion and melodic woodwind sounds evoked a number of passersby’s to gather round. And this street session was made possible initially because of the clarinetist’s curiosity.
You can take the girls out of NYC, but you can’t make em blend in with the locals. We grabbed the always fashionable Gala Darling & Molly Crabapple, threw them in the “dirty” limo and had a crazy day exploring the small city charms of Austin TX. A little rain wasn’t going to get us down….we had a genuine riot of a good time!
For the tens of thousands of music heads who descend on Austin, TX each March for the SXSW music conference, the accompanying day parties have grown to equal the official night time showcases. And no place is this more true than this year’s Carniville—three days of music and mayhem presented by Mad Decent, Jelly NYC and IHeartComix. With headline acts Major Lazer, The Walkmen and Diplo, plus almost 40 other artists, rides, games…oh, and free booze, this is one fiesta not to be missed. Chinashop will be there and we asked IHeartComix head Franki Chan to get us psyched. Read the full story
Ready….Set….Go! Austin we’re coming for ya!
