10. Airport Tacos. It sounds absolutely ludicrous to say that my favorite meal was at the airport waiting for the flight back to Chicago, but it’s true, for the second year in a row. They come from famous BBQ joint the Salt Lick, and they are sloppy, spicy and delicious. As a bonus, the margaritas at Ray’s Roadhouse (owned by Asleep at the Wheel’s Ray Benson) are equal to Guero’s, and the band onstage featured an adorably pregnant Katie Rose from the Shotgun Party.
9. The Donkeys. On
Thursday I broke the cardinal rule of going to see a band, I wore their
T-shirt. But with the crush of people
everywhere, I feel like it is advertising rather than gratuitous. As I rushed past the Bayou to get some free
BBQ courtesy of Billions, a tall, handsomely grizzled man said “I like your
shirt.” I’d thanked him before I
realized it was Donkeys’ drummer Sam Sprague. He probably wondered why I was going the
wrong way. It was an absolute killer
set, one that made me wish I was going to see them more than once. I couldn’t stop smiling. They are touring coast to coast this summer
and I think a road trip is in order.
8. La Quinta. Not
quite as close or posh as the Hilton Garden Inn, but just as convenient. It was cheaper and the beds were even more
comfortable. It may have been the first
time I could wait to sleep in my own bed again after five nights in a
hotel. Thanks again to my yearly
roommate Lauree for getting a badge and the huge room discount that goes with
it.
7. Ha Ha Tonka. I only saw them (gasp) twice this year, but I
kept running into them. It was weird not
to have them at the Bloodshot showcase, but they were all hanging out. They also came out to see their friends, and
now mine, the Spring Standards who I love more every time I see them (despite
some crippling sound problems tonight).
And their set Thursday night topped off the best day/night of the
fest. In fact, it deserves its own spot
on the list.
6. Thursday. From start to finish, the Whigs, Chris Mills,
the Donkeys, JD Wilkes & the Dirt Daubers, Paul Burch, Jon Langford &
Skull Orchard, Mandolin Orange, Autumn Defense, The Baseball Project, Phil
& Dave Alvin, Ha Ha Tonka. So many
of my favorites, all in one day, plus free BBQ.
Thanks Thursday.
5. The Bloodshot Yard
Dog Party. The one day I don’t have to
plan because I know where I will be from 10 am till 6 pm. There were great sets from Luke Winslow-King,
Bobby Bare Jr, Rosie Flores, Lydia Loveless, and of course Tonka and the Waco
Brothers. There was delicious beer
compliments of LaGunitas, whiskey compliments of co-owner Nan, and tequila from
co-owner Rob. What else could a girl ask
for? I know, fish tacos and margaritas,
both obtained at Guero’s afterwards. I
even caught a set from Ezra Furman on the way back to the hotel, though by that
point I was close to pulling a Marcus.
4. Jon Dee Graham. I
usually see Jon Dee at the Guitartown party within hours of arriving in
Austin. This year however he played at
noon, which I couldn’t have made even if our flight hadn’t been delayed three
hours. That meant I didn’t see him till
Saturday at Mojo Nixon’s Mayhem at the Continental, and boy was he happy to
see me. I got a giant hug from the
stage, which had everyone around me wondering who I was and how I rated. I know it’s his favorite show he does during
SXSW, and it was a killer today. He
dedicated a searing version of “Airplane” to his friends while smiling at Laura
and me. A few hours later we moved
upstairs at the Continental, to the appropriately named “Gallery,” for an art
opening featuring his bears and drummer Darren Hess’s portraits, as well as
music by the artists and their subjects.
Hess’s subjects that is, no bears were allowed, but Walter Salas-Humara
and James McMurtry both took a turn.
Hess’s solo material is a revelation, he has more in common with the pop
sensibilities of Matthew Sweet or Michael Penn than he does the Texas
singer-songwriters he backs. Sunday was
Jon Dee all day starting with the gospel brunch at Strange Brew and ending with
an edition of “& Friend” that went till midnight.
3. The weather. There
have been many years where it was too hot, and one memorable day when it was
far too cold, but this year was just right.
Most days had a high in the upper 60’s or low 70’s, overnight in the
50’s. I even wore a pants a few
days. It was nice to not have to shower
twice a day.
2. Jon Langford. The
only person who may play more shows than Jon Dee Graham is Jon Langford, but he
does it rather sneakily by playing some of them with the Waco Brothers and some
of them with Skull Orchard. He showed
dedication getting to Austin on time.
His flight from Chicago was cancelled, so he flew to Houston and took
the Greyhound. In fact, almost all the
Wacos had a tough time making the Bloodshot showcase on Wednesday. Mandolinist Tracey Dear was on my flight, and
Deano lives in Austin now, but the rhythm section didn’t make it to Texas till
late that night. Luckily Langford knows
a lot of people, and they had no problem getting subs. Langford also curates a day of terrific music
at the Gingerman, on Thursday of course, and I spent a lot of the day
there. The Donkeys were the best set,
but nothing made me happier than when Chris Mills jumped on stage to sing
backing vocals with Skull Orchard and Langford backed away from the mike,
giving him a whole verse. Swoon.
And number 1, Chris Mills.
I was delighted last year when Chris Mills went to Austin for the first
time since I started going. I didn’t
expect to see him there again so soon, but with Alexandria receiving its
official release just a few weeks earlier it made sense. He was the best part of Langford’s line-up
(sorry Jon), and his showcase on Saturday was terrific. Last year he focused mainly on the new songs,
but this year his sets were more like his basement show had been, a nice
sampling of his terrific catalog.
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