for SXSW

Back in the days of my youth, I went to college at the University of Texas At Austin. So I was there at the beginning of SXSW. Back then, it was a regional music festival, a chance for bands from Texas and the states around to try and be seen by whatever music executives* could be lured into town. It went on all over Asutin, and for $25 or so you could get a pass and see a lot of good music in a very short time. And when I say "see", I actually mean "see". Ordinary people could actually get in and watch bands, not just high-falutin' executives, famous musicians, and various other monied hangers-on. SXSW these days is pretty much an industry love-in, where the next big band, already chosen, brushed up and made ready for marketing is, well, marketed.

You'll need to embiggen this to read it, though you probably wont recognize many of the bands when you do, which was the whole damn point of the thing! I can assure you, though, it was great, which is why, like most wonderful things, the money arrived and fucked the whole thing up for everyone but the folks with the money.
But hey, listen up you oh so cool folks, so pleased with yourself for being at SXSW and hanging with the bands and being fabulous and all. I was there before it was cool, which in modern terms makes me even cooler than you. So suck it! Bwa ha ha ha!
By the way, if you want to see something more like SXSW used to be, you gotta head north these days, to 35 Denton, which, sadly is done for this year.


* i.e., those who couldnt be arsed to go to regular shows in scattered locations, and were pleased to have the bands come to them. I call that lazy, myself.