The world has no clue how he pulled this off.
I'm wide awake. Hungover. Woozy. But I can still see straight and that's all that counts.
Day one of SXSW went by like a blur. Canadian showcases with incredible Texas brisket were a personal favorite. Caught the Black Angels yesterday at Pangaea nightclub. Who knew it was a chain? Same decor as the Pangaea and Gryphon nightclub at the Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood. And there's a club next door called Gryphon. Definitely a chain. Anyways...free Kettle One vodka made it worth it. The Black Angels were decent but they looked and sounded like a knockoff version of Vietnam.
Hanging with the FADER kids was alright. Felt like Williamsburg, Brooklyn though. It was just a courtyard full of hipsters competing in the hipster Olympics. Not as cool as it should have been. But I did connect with a bomb-ass hip-hopper named 77 Clash (pronounced Two Sevens Clash--taken from the 1977 Culture album of the same name--RIP Joseph Hill). ANYWAY. He's definitely worth checking out as is the Athletic Mic League who rolled through the FADER fort and represented for real hip-hop. That's about all I can remember from last night. You know, Gato Negro wine, Lone Star Beer, and Dewars scotch shouldn't be consumed at the same time. Memory loss ensues shortly afterward. Don't ever try it.
This morning is difficult. Waking up my first thoughts were...what the hell happened?
That's usually a sign of a good night. Thankfully, there was a great breakfast showcase next door to my hotel around 7:30 a.m. so I hopped over to the Four Seasons and caught Steve Poltz play a great set of music off his new album, Traveling, and then I ate some breakfast tacos with Lyle Lovett. He's a friendly guy. So is Billy Bob Thornton. But that was yesterday. Gotta stay focused here. Steve brought his A-game when it comes to folk-rock and kept everyone in good spirits. He's originally from Nova Scotia and sings about Ernie Harwell. I was sold after the first song.
I've got to say, coffee, danishes, breakfast tacos, and live music go together better than I expected. Lovett was having a good time. His flat-top is more tame than it used to be and at one point he leaned in my direction and told me I was much cooler than Julia Roberts.
Okay maybe not. But he was thinking it.
Anyway, I'm off to find more music. As I type, Scott Ian from Anthrax just walked passed me and I've got a feeling Thursday is going to be OFF THE CHAIN!
