As promised, Surfer Blood got the Village Voice's SXSW showcase started right on Saturday. VV's Camille Dodero confirms that the guys from West Palm Beach are "the nicest kids ever," and posted some nifty snaps from the other acts, including the Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Superchunk, and the xx.
In other news from the Astro Coast-ers, New York Times music scribe Ben Sisario followed Surfer Blood around during their time in Austin, and an excellent profile of their rise (as well as an explanation to why dirt-poor indie rockers are always wearing fresh kicks) has emerged here.
An important stat to consider from the NYTimes piece: Astro Coast has sold a whopping/minuscule, depending how you look at it, 18,000 copies since its January release.
The key graf:
Mr. Pitts, whose baby face betrays no sign of his unusually clear
understanding of the requirements and limitations of indie-rock success,
said the band's influences included Built to Spill and the Flaming Lips. "A lot
of people say that our music makes them nostalgic for the melodic guitar
music they grew up listening to," he said.
What sort of people
say that?
"People 25 or older," he answered.
No mention of Weezer or the Shins, somehow. Influences aside, it's great to see that Surfer Blood are interested in collaborating with the xx, and actually got out to see some shows while they were in Austin. Even that Ty Segall guy.
