Oh My Rockness

Thanks for a great SX2013! We'll see you in February 2014 with all the best shows and parties, official and unofficial, happening around SXSW 2014.

Sign up for our newsletter ( ---> look right -->) so you'll know when we're back!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY - 10am
Rachael Ray's Feedback
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Eagles of Death Metal, Frightened Rabbit, The 1975, Pujol
Stubb's (FREE - RSVP Closed, some tickets at door)

DAY - 11am
American Rag & Filter
Surfer Blood, IO Echo, Young Dreams
Cedar Street Courtyard (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11:30am
Rolling Stone
Free Energy, Jake Bugg, Lord Huron, Surfer Blood
La Zona Rosa (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
The A.V. Club
Telekinesis, Frightened Rabbit, Baths, Fear of Men, The Thermals, METZ, PAWS
Mohawk (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Dawes, Indians, Ra Ra Riot, FIDLAR, Mikal Cronin, The Zombies
Waterloo Records (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Ground Control Touring
Beach Fossils, Merchandise, Lemuria, Alex Bleeker & The Freaks, His Clancyness
Beerland (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Portals
Toro y Moi, FIDLAR, Blue Hawaii, Haerts, Mac DeMarco, Chrome Sparks
Hype Hotel (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
METZ, Mac DeMarco, Ducktails, Caveman, Pure X, Mood Rings
Urban Outfitters (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
South By San Jose
Dawes, The Heartless Bastards, Phosphorescent, Foxygen, Lucius, Allah-Las
San Jose Hotel (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Brooklyn Vegan
Unknown Mortal Orchestra, King Tuff, A Place To Bury Strangers, Austra, Foxygen, The Orwells, Palma Violets, Autre Ne Veut, White Lung, TEEN
The Main (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
SPIN HOUSE
Bleached, Savages, Cloud Nothings, Jonathan Toubin
Easy Tiger (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Pop Montreal
Pat Jordache, Sinkane, Young Galaxy, Sean Nicholas Savage, Waxahatchee
The Liberty (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
French Montana, Delorean, Earl Sweatshirt, inc., Mac DeMarco, Parquet Courts, Fear of Men
FADER FORT (RSVP CLOSED)

DAY - 12pm
Impose Austin Imposition
White Lung, Single Mothers, Parenthetical Girls, Absolutely Free
Yellow Jacket Social Club (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Sailor Jerry
The Spits, Nobunny, Audacity, Jacuzzi Boys, Wampire, The Black Lips (DJ Set)
Gypsy Lounge (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 2pm
Brixton & Filter
Thee Oh Sees, Natural Child, Nobunny, Papa, Summer Twins
Clive Bar (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 2pm
Dickies & Filter
Talib Kweli, Poolside, TOY, Bear Mountain
Lustre Pearl (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 2pm
BUST Magazine
Rush Midnight, Weekend, Marnie Stern, Bass Drum of Death, California X
Pussy Palace (FREE with RSVP)

DAY & NIGHT - 2pm
Burger Records
Roky Erickson, Sam Flax, Useless Eaters, Audacity, Lovely Bad Things and more
Hotel Vegas (FREE before 7pm)

DAY - 3pm
POUR LE CORPS RECORDS & REDEFINE MAGAZINE
Delicate Steve, Wampire, Psychic Twin
House of Commons (FREE)

FIND SHOWS WITH FREE DRINKS >>

FIND SHOWS WITH FREE FOOD >>

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY & NIGHT - 7pm
Burger Records
Nobunny, The Coathangers, Shannon and the Clams, King Tuff, Jacuzzi Boys, Warm Soda, FIDLAR, Gap Dream
Hotel Vegas (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 7pm
Red Bull Sound Select
Smashing Pumpkins, The Sword, Girl in a Coma
Gatsby's (FREE with RSVP)

NIGHT - 7pm
!!!, Vacationer, MO, Caveman, Ski Lodge
Hype Hotel (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Action Bronson, Kendrick Lamar, The Black Lips, Parquet Courts
Viceland (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
True Panther Sound & Terrible Records
Delorean, Supreme Cuts, XXYYXX, LE1F, Majical Cloudz, Empress Of
Mohawk (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
The Soft Moon, Naomi Punk, Mac DeMarco, DIIV, Beach Fossils
The Parish (OOFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Vampire Weekend, Sky Ferreira, Small Black
Stubb's (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
ACL Live
Vampire Weekend
Moody Theater (ticket required)

NIGHT - 8pm
Parquet Courts, Novice, Merchandise
Red 7 (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Prince
La Zona Rosa (OFFICIAL - ticket required)

NIGHT - 8pm
Austra, The Soft Moon, Xeno & Oaklander, SURVIVE
Elysium (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

FIND ALL SATURDAY SHOWS & PARTIES HERE >>

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY - 11am
American Rag & Filter
HAIM, The Neighbourhood, Wild Belle, St. Lucia, Haerts
Cedar Street Courtyard (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11:30am
PureVolume Bake Sale
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Wavves, The So So Glos, Weekend, Marnie Stern
Easy Tiger (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Vampire Weekend, Dawes, Iron and Wine, Divine Fits
Austin Convention Center (OFFICIAL)

DAY - 12pm
Rhapsody Day Party
The Walkmen, Foxygen, inc., Nobunny
Club De Ville (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
The Afghan Whigs, Disclosure, Ra Ra Riot, The 1975 and more
FADER FORT (RSVP Closed)

DAY - 12pm
Under The Radar
Small Black, Girls Names, IO Echo
Flamingo Cantina (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Stereogum
Sky Ferreira, Youth Lagoon, METZ, Hundred Waters, Bleeding Rainbow
Hype Hotel (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Selebrites, Rush Midnight, Wampire, Chrome Sparks, Mood Rings
Malverde (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

DAY - 12pm
Windish
Alt-J, Toro y Moi, Guards, Icona Pop, Doldrums
Mohawk (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Laneway Festival
Merchandise, Palma Violets, Parquet Courts, XXYYXX, Alpine, CHVRCHES, Flume, Guards
Red 7 (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Noise Pop
Youth Lagoon, Surfer Blood, METZ, Phosphorescent, Poolside, Caveman, Papa
Red Eyed Fly (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
SPIN
Kendrick Lamar, Solange, CHVRCHES, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Parquet Courts
Stubb's

DAY - 12pm
Charli XCX, Autre Ne Veut, Doldrums, Majical Clouds
Urban Outfitters (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Billy Bragg, Alt-J, Frightened Rabbit and more
Waterloo Records (FREE)

DAY - 1pm
Pandora Discovery Den
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Dead Prez, St. Lucia
Antone's (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 1pm
White Lung, Ex Cops, Tashaki Miyaki, The Orwells and more
Cheer Up Charlies (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 2pm
Tumblr & Gap
Ra Ra Riot, Shout Out Louds, Peace, Ducktails
Clive Bar (Free with RSVP)

DAY - 3pm
Dr. Martens & Filter
Bleached, White Lung, Bleeding Rainbow, NO
Bar 96 (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 3pm
Dickies
Frightened Rabbit, Young Galaxy, Gold Fields
Lustre Pearl (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 3:30pm
The Flaming Lips, Jim James, Divine Fits
Auditorium Shores (OPEN TO PUBLIC)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT - 6pm
AdHoc.fm
Diarrhea Planet, Majical Cloudz, Sam Flax, LODRO, Religious Girls, Roomrunner and more
Cheer Up Charlies (FREE)

NIGHT - 6pm
CAKE SHOP / CAPE SHOK & LOGLADY
Part Time, California X, TV ghost, Waxahatchee
Trailer Space (FREE)

NIGHT - 7pm
Jonathan Toubin, Thee Oh Sees, Mac DeMarco, Bleached, Marnie Stern, Mikal Cronin, Vitenam
Hotel Vegas (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 7:30pm
Braids, Doldrums, Blue Hawaii, Pat Jordache, Majical Cloudz, Sean Nicholas Savage, Mac DeMarco
Swan Dive (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Youth Lagoon, Savages, San Cisco, Palma Violets
Club De Ville (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Impose Austin Imposition
Secret Guest, Nu Sensae, Naomi Punk Jacuzzi Boys, Big Ups
Longbranch Inn (FREE with RSVP)

NIGHT - 8pm
DIIV, Trash Talk, Celsea Light Moving, Parquet Courts, Merchandise
Mohawk (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Green Day
Moody Theater (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 9pm
The Black Lips, Deer Tick, White Lunch, The Orwells
Long Center for the Performing Arts (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 9pm
The Joy Formidable, DIIV, Small Black
Lustre Pearl (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 9:30pm
Wavves, King Tuff, METZ, Phosphorescent
Bar 96 (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

FIND ALL FRIDAY SHOWS & PARTIES HERE >>

Come to our party today and say HI!

DAY - 12pm
INSOUND & OH MY ROCKNESS
Marnie Stern, Cheatahs, The Soft Moon, Bleeding Rainbow, Widowspeak, Mac DeMarco & Roomrunner
Club De Ville (FREE + $5 Brooklyn Brewery Bottomless Beer Bracelet)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY - 11am
American Rag & Filter
Local Natives, Shout Out Louds, Charli XCX and more
Cedar Street Courtyard (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11am
Slip Productions + Hood Booking
Edsel (reunion!), Single Mothers, Stagnant Pools, Whirr
The Liberty (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11:30am
PAWS, Warm Soda, Broncho, Audacity, Big Ups and more
Side Bar (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
INSOUND & OH MY ROCKNESS
Marnie Stern, Cheatahs, The Soft Moon, Bleeding Rainbow, Widowspeak, Mac DeMarco & Roomrunner
Club De Ville (FREE + $5 Brooklyn Brewery Bottomless Beer Bracelet)

DAY - 12pm
Pitchfork
Youth Lagoon, Toro y Moi, Foxygen, Delorean, UMO, White Lung, Parquet Courts, Rhye and more
1100 Warehouse (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
SPIN HOUSE
The Thermals, Fletcher C Johnson, Majical Cloudz
Easy Tiger (FREE with RSVP)

DAY & NIGHT - 12pm
CHECK YO PONYTAIL x MAD DECENT x FOOL'S GOLD
!!! (chik chik chik), Andrew W.K., Wavves, Chrome Sparks, Icky Blossoms and more
Emo's East (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Solange, DIIV, Small Black, Cayucas, CHVRCHES and more
FADER FORT (FREE with RSVP - RSVP closed)

DAY - 12pm
Under The Radar
DIIV, Caveman, Foxygen, Poolside, Young Galaxy and more
Flamingo Cantina (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Reverberation Appreciation Society
Indian Jewelry, The Besnard Lakes, The Black Lips, Allah-Las, Jacuzzi Boys, TEEN, Jacco Gardner, Akron/Family, Sinkane and more
Hotel Vegas (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
I Guess I'm Floating & YVYNYL
Austra, CHVRCHES, Flume, St. Lucia and more
Hype Hotel (FREE with RSVP - RSVP closed)

DAY - 12pm
IAMSOUND & Production Club
Palma Violets, Disclosure, Papa, Lord Huron, DIIV, Hunters and more
Mohawk (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Thrasher Death Match
The Black Angels, Merchandise, Chelsea Light Moving, Allah-Las, King Tuff, PAWS, The Orwells and more
Scoot Inn (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Brooklyn Vegan
Beach Fossils, Cloud Nothings, Widowspeak, METZ, PAWS, Moon King, Single Mothers and more
The Main (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
TERROREYES.tv X THE NEEDLE DROP
BADBADNOTGOOD, Anamanaguchi, The Coathangers, Nu Sensae and more
The Museum of Human Achievement (FRREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
RatKing, The Joy Formidable, Gold Fields, Diamond Rings and more
Waterloo Records (FREE)

DAY & NIGHT - 1:30pm
Dustin Wong, Alex Bleeker & The Freaks, Roomrunner, Jacco Gardner and more
Spiderhouse (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 2pm
DTS & Slacker
Hanni El Khatib, Bass Drum of Death, Superhumanoids, Tijuana Panthers, Allah-Las
Clive Bar (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 3pm
Dr. Martens & Filter
Surfer Blood, The Thermals
Bar 96 (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 3pm
Dickies & Filter
Icona Pop, St. Lucia, Diamond Rings, Generationals
Lustre Pearl (FREE with RSVP)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY & NIGHT - 12pm
CHECK YO PONYTAIL x MAD DECENT x FOOL'S GOLD
A-Trak, The Presets, Icona Pop, Bonde do Role, Classixx, Pictureplane and more
Emo's East (FREE with RSVP)

NIGHT - 5pm
Single Mothers, Big Ups, California X, Sleepies and more
The Brixton (FREE)

NIGHT - 7pm
SEXBEAT & LANZAROTE
Kid Congo Powers & The Pink Monkey Birds, The Soft Moon, Audacity, Virals, Fear Of Men and more
Cheer Up Charlies (FREE with RSVP)

NIGHT - 7pm
Not Not Fun
Ducktails, Vinyl Williams, Maria Minerva, Weyes Blood and more
Soccer Camp III (FREE)

NIGHT - 7pm
The Warner Sound
The Flaming Lips, Alt-J, The Joy Formidable, Frightened Rabbit, Surfer Blood and more
The Belmont (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Religious Girls, 2 Ton Bug, D. Gookin and more
SXSWendy's (FREE?)

NIGHT - 8pm
Pitchfork
Rustie, Disclosure, Sky Ferreira, Savages, Pissed Jeans, FIDLAR, Doldrums and more
1100 Warehouse (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Paul Oakenfold, Anamanaguchi, AbdeCaf
Buffalo Billiards (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
The Black Lips, Hanni El Khatib, Allah-Las, TOY, Hunters
Cedar Street Courtyard (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Phosphorescent, Foxygen, Bleached, Small Black, Cayucas
Red 7 (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)
br> NIGHT - 8pm
Surfer Blood, Bleeding Rainbow, PAWS, Fear of Men and more
Valhalla (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)
!!! (chik chik chik), Delorean, Sinkane, Icky Blossoms
Clive Bar (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 9pm
Divine Fits, Toro y Moi
Lustre Pearl (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

FIND ALL THURSDAY SHOWS & PARTIES HERE >>

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

DAY - 11am
The Echo / Echoplex & Origami Vinyl Party
Poolside, Darwin Deez, Delicate Steve, Cheatahs, Papa, California X and more
Cheer Up Charlie's (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11am
Sonos Studio
Cloud Nothings, Allah-Las and more
Club 606 (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 11:30am
KEXP Live Broadcasts
Palma Violets, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Bleeding Rainbow, Allah-Las, Robyn Hitchcock
Mellow JOhnny's Bike Shop (FREE)

DAY - 11:30am
Consequence of Sound CoSigns
Chelsea Light Moving, Mac DeMarco, The Thermals, Jacco Gardner, Ex Cops, St. Lucia, TEEN, Wampire and more
The Parish (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
FADER FORT
Schoolboy Q, Sky Ferreira, Ducktails, Nu Sensae and more
(FREE with RSVP - now closed)

DAY - 12pm
Under The Radar
Surfer Blood, Young Dreams, Doldrums, Marnie Stern, Shout Out Louds and more
Flamingo Cantina (FREE)

DAY - 12pm
Paste Magazine
Shout Out Louds, Marnie Stern, Allah-Las, Mac DeMarco, Foxygen and more
Stage On Sixth (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 12pm
Brooklyn Vegan
Robyn Hitchcock, Delorean, Savages, Caveman, Maserati, Braids, Anamanaguchi and more
The Main (FREE with RSVP)

DAY - 1pm
Urban Outfitters & Rookie Magazine
Icona Pop, White Lung, Nu Sensae, Icky Blossoms and more
Urban Outfitters (FREE)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT SHOWS & PARTIES

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

NIGHT - 8pm
KCRW Showcase
Flight Facilities, Toro y Moi, Atlas Genius, Ra Ra Riot and more

Haven (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
White Lung, Waxahatchee, Antwon, California X and more
Holy Mountain (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Windish Agency
Poolside, CHVRCHES, Flume, The Thermals and more
Red 7 (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
NPR Music Showcase
Alt-J, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Stubb's (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Slumberland Records
Weekend, Girls Names, Wax Idols, Gold-Bears and more
The Iron Bear (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Kidnap Kid, Kitten, Hundred Waters, Selebrities, Poolside, Rush Midnight and more
The Tap Room at Six (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE)

NIGHT - 8pm
Noisey
The Joy Formidable, Icona Pop, Merchandise, Austra, Io Echo
Viceland (OFFICIAL SHOWCASE w/ RSVP)

FIND ALL WEDNESDAY SHOWS & PARTIES HERE >>

Written by Patrick McNamara

SXSW is here!!! Of course, you probably already know that - because here you are reading this page. So maybe the triple exclamation is a little excessive. Perhaps it’s possible you found this page via some type of search engine vacuum - where its vortex spins and spins and occasionally kicks a random confused person out its swirling side door. But that’s got to be the anomaly, right? And who cares about anomalies. (Just kidding, Joel in Kalamazoo and Cindy in Albuquerque.)

Yes. You know the SXSW situation. Lots of shows. Lots of them official. Lots of them unofficial. Lots of those free RSVP parties. Lots of those free RSVP parties that also have lots of that free food. Lots of those free RSVP parties that also have lots of those free.... drinks. The pause was purely for dramatic effect. You didn’t think we’d make special lists and not include one for free drinks, did you?

Oh, yeah. There are lots of bands playing SXSW too. You definitely know that. You also know there are way too many to see them all. And we’re just talking about good bands. Oh, well. Life is short. You do what you can to enjoy what you can.

We want to help you enjoy at least 13 bands, though. Below are 13 up-and-coming bands you should really try to see. These are the bands gaining traction - picking up steam - deciding to do it. Are there others you should really try to see too? Yes. There are. But these bands - these 13 bands. They won’t let you down.

ABSOLUTELY FREE

Note to self: buy stock in Toronto music scene. Absolutely Free are another good new band coming from that fine city. This band makes weird, tribal sounding pop music full of tiny explosions. It's accessible and destructive and clean and muddled and meandering and concise. It's all over the place. In a good way. In an absolutely free way. Let’s not even try to categorize them. Because NOBODY PUTS ABSOLUTELY FREE IN THE CORNER.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING ABSOLUTELY FREE SHOWS AT SXSW >>



BIG UPS

NYC's Big Ups are a completely fun and instantly likeable band. They play high energy ramshackle punk rock that you'll want to get messy and sweaty in Texas to. See Big Ups when you feel like mixing it up. But in a pleasant way. Be nice. Stay cool. Have fun. And Long Live -- Punk Rock.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING BIG UPS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



CHEATAHS

Guitars! Oh, guitars like these! London's Cheatahs (yes, that's a sic - as in "I'm gonna sic you if you don't listen to their jam that I put below these words") are a super solid new band that tap into the gone-but-not-forgotten heyday of old school shoegaze. Think early Swervedriver. Think pretty melodies. Think noise. Think Cheatahs.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING CHEATAHS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



CHRVCHES

CHVRCHES are a trio from Glasgow that play bright and squiggly synth-electro-pop. It's beautiful and happy and destined to help sell out this summer's massive festivals. Why? Because this song below is just a massive song. That’s why. Get ready for the big time.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING CHVRCHES SHOWS AT SXSW >>



FOXYGEN

These two dudes are tapping into a different time. Los Angeles’ Foxygen is Sam France and Jonathan Rado. They make pop that's swirly and hazy and druggy. It captures that musical era when rock and psych and hippy and pop all sort of merged to become something great. So if you dig, put a flower in your hair - gather a bunch of merry pranksters - do whatever it is you merry pranksters do - and then go see these guys do their thing. It’s a good thing.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING FOXYGEN SHOWS AT SXSW >>



MAJICAL CLOUDZ

Deliberate typos in your band name is the new CAPS LOCK in your band name which was the old punctuation marks in your band name. Montreal’s Devin Welsh is the mastermind behind Majical Cloudz. He makes cerebrally eccentric electronic jams. Maybe he learned some tricks from Grimes - a friend and regulator on the regular. Welsh has a good voice too. He’s a crooner. I’m always in favor of crooners. How about you? (p.s. Early indicators say bands that use symbols in their names might already be the new bands that use deliberate typos in their name - we’ll let you know.)

VIEW ALL UPCOMING MAJICAL CLOUDZ SHOWS AT SXSW >>



METZ

METZ played the Oh My Rockness CMJ show this past October. Thanks for the tinnitus, guys. We appreciate it. Just kidding. We were wearing our earplugs. We may like to rage - but we also like our hearing. It’s been good to us over the years. Anyway, these guys slay. And their shredding guitars go LOUD. They’re not angry. They’re just having fun up there.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING METZ SHOWS AT SXSW >>



PALMA VIOLETS

Another buzzy British guitar band coming over to take us over. Well, if we’re going to be taken over and held captive by someone - at least it’s someone that's armed with the good guitar jingle-jangle. So at least there’s that.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING PALMA VIOLETS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



PARQUET COURTS

Speaking of the good guitar jingle-jangle - Parquet Courts rock that solid sound too. Bouncy punk from one of the Fergus & Geronimo guys that reminds me of The Van Pelt. I liked The Van Pelt.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING PARQUET COURTS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



PAWS

Fuzzy lo-fi garage punkness from Scotland. PAWS come at you on the playful tip. See songs "Boregasm” and “Sore Tummy” for more on that. The rapid fire jams from this hyper melodic band will put you in a better mood. Bet.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING PAWS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



ROOMRUNNER

Roomrunner also played our CMJ party this past October. They blasted it. Ain’t gonna be no chit-chatting when Roomrunner play. Because you can’t hear your neighbor. No matter how loud you shout in their ear. And anyway, what could possibly be so important that you can’t wait 'til they get done playing. You’re probably just shouting, “These guys slay!” Trust us, your neighbor already knows.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING ROOMRUNNER SHOWS AT SXSW >>



SINGLE MOTHERS

Brutally fun punk from London. The one in Ontario, beeyotch. Go see them blast it. Live it. Love it. Let's get sloppy.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING SINGLE MOTHERS SHOWS AT SXSW >>



WAXAHATCHEE

Katie Crutchfield runs this show. She sings and strums mostly sad, country-folk-punk songs. I don’t know if that description will make you want to see Waxahatchee play. But this isn’t about words, anyway. This is about feeling. Watch it. And maybe you’ll feel it. And then you’ll know.

VIEW ALL UPCOMING WAXAHATCHEE SHOWS AT SXSW >>



RELATED: HERE ARE LAST YEAR'S SXSW BAND PICKS!

For more show suggestions, check out our BANDS WE LIKE section here >>

Download our iPhone/iPad app in the itunes store!

For less than a large coffee (only $1.99), you can:

* Get all our SXSW listings (unofficial, official, whatever...) in an easy-to-read format on your phone

* RSVP to parties from your phone

* Save shows and follow bands with your My Rockness account

* Get directions to the venue on your phone

* Share shows with friends, buy tickets, and more

* Know you're helping to keep our totally independent site running and growing!!!!!! We <3 YOU!

Download our iPhone/iPad app in the itunes store!

There are tons of free shows and parties going on in Austin during SXSW. This year, we're making some extra lists to help you find the best free stuff.

FREE SHOWS & PARTIES >>

SHOWS WITH FREE DRINKS >>

SHOWS WITH FREE FOOD >>

Thursday. March 14th. Noon - 6pm. Club DeVille. FREE. 7 really good bands. No need to RSVP. Free beer. Insound. Oh My Rockness. We keep good parties simple.

Marnie Stern (5pm)
Cheatahs (4:10pm)
The Soft Moon (3:20pm)
Bleeding Rainbow (2:30pm)
Widowspeak (1:40pm)
Mac DeMarco (12:50pm)
Roomrunner (12pm)

MORE DETAILS HERE >>

Photo credit: yvynyl

Spend the last day at SXSW by going to something free and something awesome. Check Yo Ponytail + Mad Decent + Fool's Gold bring a super good line-up to Emo's East on Saturday, starting at noon. Now, you can trust me that it's good line-up. Or, I can just tell you some of the good bands who are playing and that will be your proof. Yeah. Let's go with that.

Saturday's Day Party Line-up @ Emo's East = A-Trak + Diplo + Andrew W.K. + The Drums + Digitalism + Wavves + Com Truise + Trust + Drop the Lime + Bleached + Spank Rock + Teengirl Fantasy + Caveman + LOTS LOTS MORE!

If you still need more proof as to the validity of this free show after reading those band names, well, I can't help you. (And you might just want to try taking a leap of faith on things now and again. Occasionally throwing caution to the wind can do wonders for your soul.)

The Check Yo Ponytail + Mad Decent + Fool's Gold party is at Emo's East, on Saturday, March 16th, starting at noon. BOOM.

Every year at SXSW, Mess with Texas puts on a really good multi-day and multi-stage show extravaganza. Yet perhaps all of those past events were just one long trial run towards putting on the perfect free day show. And that day is TODAY, friends. That day is TODAY. Check out the line-up of who's playing 'Mess With Texas' on Friday (which is the day that is today).

Mess With Texas Friday Line-Up = Built to Spill (5pm) + Titus Andronicus (4pm) + We Were Promised Jetpacks (3pm) + Purity Ring (3pm) + New Build (2:10pm) + Cloud Nothings (1pm) + Lower Dens (1:10pm) + the mighty Turquoise Jeep (let's "Smang It" baby) + lots more!

I told you this one was a good one. Didn't I tell you? Yeah, I told you.

RSVP to Mess With Texas HERE (if you still can). It won't suck. Oh yeah, there's an outside stage and an inside stage. So that's always fun.

We've teamed up with the amazing Insound to bring you one helluva FREE unofficial SXSW party. It's almost as if this is the free party to end all free parties! Wait. Scratch that. That would suck. Why would we want to put on the party that ends free parties? Free parties never did anything to us (except make us feel rather bloated on occasion).

So here's what you need to know. The Oh My Rockness and Insound party is today (that's Thursday, March 15th) at Club DeVille (an excellent outdoor venue) starting at noon and ending at 6pm. It's FREE. And $5 gets you a bracelet for all-day brews. But all that isn't as important as the line-up. Am I right on that, guys? Yeah. I'm right.

Oh My Rockness + Insound Party Line-up = Dan Deacon (5pm) + Mikal Cronin (4pm) + Bleached (3pm) + Trust (2pm) + Dive (1pm) + Chad Valley (12pm). Weird. We like all those bands. Imagine that coincidence.

There's no RSVP needed to this thing. Just show up with your RAGE FACE on. And be sure to say hi. Saying hi rules.

So let's wrap all of this information up and tie it in a neat little bow. Come to the Oh My Rockness + Insound Party. It won't suck.

Consequence of Sound's FREE SXSW party is our Free Party Pick for Wednesday! They don't win anything by being our Free Party Pick for Wednesday. I'm sorry if the exclamation point implied they did. No, the only one that wins something is YOU because you get to go to a good free party. And hot dang, Slim! This free party ain't no joke!

So why did this free party get picked as our Free Party Pick of Wednesday? (We gotta come up with a catchier name for this daily feature.) Well, because Consequence of Sound's free rager features a slammin' line-up that includes Cloud Nothings + Titus Andronicus + Screaming Females + The Men + Mikal Cronin + Mr. Dream + Bleached + more! We like all those bands! And did we mention this party was FREE? Pretty sure we did, but just to be safe we should add, "HEY! THIS PARTY IS FREE FREE FREE!"

RSVP to the FREE Consequence of Sound party HERE!

(Consequence of Sound's FREE SXSW party is at Beauty Ballroom, starting at 11:30am, on Wednesday, March 14th....and it's free...just to be clear that means you don't have to pay to go to it...because it's free....I'll shut-up now)

Now, I’m not sure if you’ve heard this. But there are a ton of bands playing SXSW this year. And we’ve listed hundreds of shows for these bands. But who wants to read about hundreds of bands? You want to read about the 10 best bands playing, right? Right. So here are the 10 bands we are most excited to see at this year’s SXSW. They’re in no particular order, so don’t read too much into how they're listed.

Chad Valley- Oxford's Chad Valley (real name: Hugo Manuel) creates homemade electro-pop bliss that sparkles with radiantly danceable synth melodies. These are some seriously smooth NEON anthems with lots of that laid-back groove going on. The sweetly sublime sounds Chad Valley makes is often compared to Ernest Greene's Washed Out. And that's understandable because they both do a very similar thing. But it's such a good thing that there should be plenty of room in your musical heart for two one-man band bros whose music is directly kissed by the sun.

DIVE- Brooklyn's Dive is Cole Smith (Beach Fossils) + Devin Perez + Andrew Bailey + Colby Hewitt (ex-Smith Westerns). This great new group (who says "group" anymore anyway?) plays shimmery and shiny pop that swirls along with that super clean reverb-y guitar sound that gets me in the gut every time. There's definitely a bit of Kraut rocking around under these melodic jams too... something not in the Beach Fossils repertoire... yet. Go see these guys so you can say you saw them before they took over the world.

Purity Ring- Purity Ring creates great dub-step-y electro with lots of samples and lots and lots of super melodic hitches and machine made catchy glitches. My favorite Purity Ring jam is "Ungirthed," so maybe start your listen there. In it, singer Megan James' perfectly sweet soprano acts as a nice and unexpected contrast to that song's staggered synth breakdowns. It's perfectly crafted and, well, just darn good stuff (language, Rockness, language!). Oh, and their explosive live show is one of the best in the biz. As good as they sound from your speakers, they sound even better from the stage. I'm tellin' you....

TRUST- Well this is nice and creepy. Trust is a dark electronic dance duo comprised of Robert Alfons and Maya Postepski (she plays drums in Austra's live band). They're from Toronto and they make gothic club hits to nourish the souls of the damaged. So yeah, these synths and big beats aren't necessarily bright and happy - they're a warning that something is lurking somewhere nearby. But I'm not scared, because this is just music which is just a form of entertainment, right? Right, guys? Guys? OH MY GOD THEY FOUND ME! I DON’T KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME!! Good band.

Howler- Minneapolis' Howler is the once side-project now main-project of Jordan Gatesmith. He is (was?) in that band Total Babe. He's also 19. He was also named by NME as one of the "50 coolest people of 2011." Oh, brother. So Howler plays that lo-fi surf garage thing that's been popular these days. But it's not really THAT lo-fi because these super catchy songs definitely have some polish. That's not to say lo-fi doesn't have much polish; it's just that lo-fi doesn't seem to have much polish. When I first heard Howler I thought they sounded like Surf City. Other comparisons range from The Vaccines (Howler's upcoming tour mates) to The Strokes (haha) to any of those other bands that sound abrasively sunny but like... kind of doo-wop, too. You know what I'm saying? Good, because I don't.

Big Deal- "All I want to do is talk, but seeing you fucks me up." That's the chorus to one of Big Deal's songs. I feel like that gives you an idea of what this London duo is all about. But my feelings are often wrong (When I don't "stay true to myself," as reality show cast members tend to say... FART NOISE). So let me explain further. Big Deal is Alice Costelloe and KC Underwood (oh, he's American; isn't that fun). Together, they write fuzzy, sparse songs full of relationship-weary pathos. These slow moving, mostly acoustic songs are generally about being fucked up and not being able to think straight and just not wanting to think about the problems of love in general. Sounds like a party to me!

Spectrals- Spectrals is 21-year-old U.K. chill popper, Louis Jones. As Spectrals, Jones creates (mostly) sunshine guitar pop that mixes some slow soul swirl with a little bit of laid-back doo wop retro rock. Yes, that's a fancy way of saying not much at all. So how about this; do you like Real Estate? If you do, you have a 95% chance of liking Spectrals. Same kind of breezy jingle jangle guitar thing at work here. I think if you like Girls you'll also be into this too. These jams are about as easy going as you're going to find out there in indie land. Jones has a good voice but it doesn't overpower anything. Rather, his voice acts as a warm compliment to the groovy melodies (yes, I did just write "groovy"... you trying to tell me you've never done it?).

Bleached- Bleached is the bright and energetic duo of sisters Jessica and Jennifer Clavin. You might know them from that really good band Mika Miko. As Bleached, the Clavins crank out the short and quick classic punk rock riffs of yesteryear (with a little bit of sunny surf buried down deep in there to keep things sounding 'happy punk' instead of 'I'm a smack addict and angry and utterly utterly alone' punk). So to get a grasp of what this band's sound is all about imagine if Max's Kansas City was in Southern California instead of NYC and Bleached played there for free to a crowd drunk on free booze every Thursday night. You'd also have to imagine a time machine to imagine all that, I suppose. Hell, stop imagining and start listening. You'll see what I mean.

Grimes- I guess you can call this ethereal atmospheric electronic music, but then you'd probably want to walk away from this profile at best and... well... let's not get into worst case scenarios here. You and I both know that what I just said to describe Grimes' music means absolutely nothing. "Ethereal" music like this is hard to describe. That's why people say things are "ethereal." No one questions "ethereal." Let's start over and try to do a better job of describing Grimes. How about this, "Grimes sounds like a pop triumph!" Oops, that's another thing that doesn't mean anything. How about, "Whatever Grimes is; chillwave and Dub Step this is not." Closer. How about, "Don't walk! I command you to RUN and see Grimes play!" Farther. Ok, final try. "Grimes is good music made with good machines and sung by a good singer who has a good voice." BOOM! (Grimes also sounds like whales jumping out of the sea in slow motion.)

The Wedding Present- They're playing "Seamonsters" in its entirety! That's only, like, ONE OF THE BEST RECORDS EVER!!!!

Check out our SXSW SHOW LIST for many, many, many more band and show suggestions!

We're adding tons of the best SXSW shows as they are announced. So keep checking back often! We won't let you down.

CHECK OUT THE OH MY ROCKNESS UNOFFICIAL SXSW SHOW LIST!

We have a pair of tickets to giveaway to see Here We Go Magic and Sinkane at Cameo Gallery tonight, July 20th. Winners will be notified this afternoon!

For show info annd tickets, click here.

Stay tuned! We'll be adding the best shows happening at SXSW 2012 as they're announced! Check back often!

Vancouver's Dirty Beaches is Alex Zhang Hungtai. That guy is definitely down with the lo-fi. So lo-fi, I can't really hear what's going on at times. It's all minimal and muffled and stuff. And Hungtai has one of those low voices that kind of vibrates your bowels a bit (in a good way, of course!).

There's something about Dirty Beaches that sticks with you. It evokes... what's the word... mood. Yes, mood. You know, I bet this is kind of what the Velvet Underground would have sounded like if they started in 2011 and were Canadian (yes, I realize that means absolutely nothing... oh well, it happens).

There is definitely a spooky, haunting vibe hovering around this music. I'm not sure if it's that Hungtai feels kind of sad, or he's just really serious, or what. But as I say, it's pretty damn great no matter what the guy's feeling.

My favorite Dirty Beaches song (so far) is "Lord Knows Best." So if you want to quickly check the band out, I recommended you check out that track first. It's kind of haunting and sad right? But those piano plucks give it some nice levity. Get down with Dirty Beaches if you get down with the (sad) (serious) lo-fi that kind of sounds like a 2011 version of Velvet Underground.

Dirty Beaches play Longbranch Inn tonight (3/19) as part of Impose Magazine's Austin Imposition.

Brooklyn's Small Black create synth-y lo-fi love songs (it sounds like love, anyway --- maybe they're singing about hate, but I doubt it) using a couple of casios and some beat machines. The vocals are the kind that, again, sounds like they're sung from a Fisher-Price microphone. But here, that sound definitely works.

Small Black works better than a lot of the other people rocking the "hot new old sound" of lo-fi because their melodies are just so damn pretty. Sure, there's some roughness and scratchiness with the way it's recorded (an aesthetic choice), but really when we talk about Small Black we're talking about beauty.

So just saying "lo-fi" doesn't give these guys a whole lot of credit. Gosh, I love pretty songs. Seriously, is there anything better in this life? Pizza is pretty good, but not as good as a pretty song.

Small Black plays their last (of only two) SXSW shows at Club DeVille today 3/18.

Trippy, man. Trippy. Los Angeles' Puro Instinct (formerly named Pearl Harbor) is a laid-back, breezy band comprised of two sisters; Piper and Skyler. Piper is in her early twenties, and Sky (as of this writing) is 14 years old. Yes, 14 years old. Woah.

Anyway, the two sisters make swirling shoegaze-y music that's hazy and harmonious and dreamy and sunshine-y and, well, you don't need more adjectives to get the gist. Like most leisurely, dreamy and swirly pop music, this can be a cerebral head trip where all you want to think about is the fleeting, drifting days under the relaxation of the mighty sun's rays. Told you. It's trippy, man. Trippy.

Puro Instinct will probably appeal to fans of all those old '80s shoegaze bands (you know the bands I mean... let's not get into it) and Best Coast for sure, that band Dunes, and First Aid Kit maybe (but really that's just because they're two young sisters too). Comparisons foreva!

Now if you'll excuse me, there's a pool raft with my name on it (I like to put my name on all my pool accessories for some reason... it's weird).

Puro Instinct plays the Insound party today at Club De Ville.

London's Yuck is a band that plays shiny, shimmering shoegaze with light and airy male/female vocal harmonies. This band reminds me of the good times I've had listening to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Good, good times with that band.

Yuck also features a couple members of the now-defunct band Cajun Dance Party. Remember them? They were really buzzy for a moment. Ah buzz, if only we knew how to sustain you, we'd all be rich rock stars.

One of the people in Yuck (the drummer, I do believe) is from New Jersey. I thought that was worth mentioning for some reason. Anyway, Yuck is a very good band that plays perfectly pleasant pop (sorta sounds like Yo La Tengo, too).

In closing, I refuse to say something like "Yuck's music isn't yuck at all," or something like that. But dang it, now that I called attention to it, I just went and said it without saying it. How do we get around this conundrum?! Maybe just by quietly ending this band profile and turning up my stereo... which happens to be playing Yuck.

New York's (via Wisconsin) Yellow Ostrich is the work of the forever prolific Alex Shaaf. He's self-released a TON of stuff (six records in 2010 alone!) so I wasn't just saying "prolific" to say "prolific," know what I'm saying?

Live, Shaaf works with drummer Michael Tapper (of course that's his last name) who is (was?) in We Are Scientists and Bishop Allen.

Together, Yellow Ostrich creates mostly mellow music that's looped and layered and kind of lo-fi folk-y. It's also got a pleasant eccentric vibe about it that makes you want to listen to these well-crafted songs with wide, bemused eyes.

I don't know what other bands Yellow Ostrich sounds like, so don't ask me. I will say that if you like your melodic pop to come with texture and substance and just a bit of off-kilter-ness, Yellow Ostrich might be the band for you.

Now, I’m not sure if you’ve heard this. But there are a ton of bands playing SXSW this year. (Additionally, SXSW stands for Sweet X-Ray, Surgeon Walters.) We’ve listed hundreds of bands playing this festival. But who wants to read about hundreds of bands? You want to read about 8 bands, right? Ok, fine. Fine. Here are the 8 bands we are most excited to see at this year’s Sweet X-Ray, Surgeon Walters. They’re in no particular order, so don’t read too much into this.

Cloud Nothings- Up-tempo DIY lo-fi that veers towards the punk side of the bedroom pop spectrum. These short and snappy songs have that nice, messy feeling that make you want to dance all down and dirty. And if you claw and scratch away through the layers of Cloud Nothings ample use of distortion, you'll find some remarkably catchy melodies that form the core of these exceptionally fun songs.

The Vaccines- Perhaps the most hyped new band at Sweet X-Ray, Surgeon Walters this year. This British bands crosses The Pond to bring you big time jams that mix up elements of garage rock, punk, straight-up pop, and a little bit of epically swirling synth-ness. The Vaccines sound kind of like a sunnier Interpol meets The Ponys meets The Ramones meets Jesus and Mary Chain. Yes, I know those are dumb band comparisons. But it ain’t dumb if you believe it to be smart. Know what I’m sayin’?

Weekend- Did you see the write-up of these guys in Sports Illustrated (of all places)? I did. It was the issue before the Swimsuit Issue. I opted out of receiving the swimsuit issue because I’m vehemently against swimming. Anyway, Weekend play nice and noisy shoegaze stuff. They share a label and the sound (somewhat) of The Pains of Being Bros at Heart. Definitely check these guys out.

Austra- This Toronto band is epically haunting electro that darkly throbs with thunderously rich club beats... the kind of booming beats that go creep in the night. The trio makes those kinds of sounds that get under your skin and cling to your bones. Super solid dark ambient awesomeness with a goth-y groove.

Miami Horror- Can a band sound like a color? Because Miami Horror sounds exactly like neon to me. Led by Australian remix master Benjamin Plant, this band creates electro-disco-soul-hop. In other words, this is party music. Party music that doesn’t suck. And you know how rare that is. Think LCD meets Cut Copy meets Don Johnson and you’ll be on the right track. The right track to party madness. Oh yeah, Miami Horror likes to use hand claps in songs. Enough said. Enough said.

Gobble Gobble- One of our favorite new electro-dance-pop bands of the last few months, Gobble Gobble will turn a normal show into an instant party. Cecil Frena and crew get props for coming to a show with props….like butterfly wings and masks and things. “Wrinklecarver” was my jam of 2010 and the way it’s looking “Boring Horror” might be my jam of 2011. Go see these guys. They’re at the best really late at night and some crazy illegal loft somewhere.

Rich Aucoin- And if you like Gobble Gobble, you’ll like their Canadian bro Rich Aucoin. He rocks a similar thing; electro-dance-jams. And this guy once recorded an album that exactly matched the action of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” Aucoin’s live shows are quickly becoming legendary for their craziness, so don’t miss out on this happening action.

Gold Panda- This is the one-man laptop band of East London’s Derwin Panda. He spins out the big time jams that are dance-y and (kinda) glitch-y and come with lots of scattered all-over-the-place samples. It’s all super catchy in its eccentricities. Think more of an Aphex Twin electro situation than a, say, Boys Noize situation. It’s good stuff. A golden too. Boom.

Go HERE to see ALL of our Sweet X-Ray, Surgeon Walters listings. You will be overwhelmed.

mb 4

It's SXSW time yet again! Shows! Parties! BBQ! Beer! Yeah, you know the deal. Anyway, thanks for checking out Oh My Rockness' special SXSW edition of our showlist site (for all of you who stumbled upon this a roundabout way, Oh My Rockness permanently lists shows for NYC, Chicago and Los Angeles. Check us out!) Like every year, there are a billion bands playing down here, and unless you have a jetpack (we were promised one&.once), there's no way you're going to catch all of them play. So you'll have to be smart, synchronize your watches, and plan accordingly.

Below is a list of some of the bands we're definitely going to see. It's by no means all-inclusive (For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!), but we hope it helps you plan your attack during these five days of music debauchery.

Active Child - This is good stuff from just one dude. No, the dude in question is not "The Dude," but rather Los Angeles' Pat Grossi. Using the moniker Active Child, Grossi creates electro bedroom recordings (actually, I have no clue if it's in his bedroom, or not -- he could record in his utility room for all I know) that synthetically soar on the wings of Grossi's sublime vocal range. Sometimes he'll go all low like Ian Curtis, and other times he'll explode into pretty falsettos like Antony. Not many dudes can do that.

With Active Child, there is a plethora of layered keyboard (+ other tech gear) lushness (including some harp action, I believe) going on here. And that's all coupled with these deep, almost club-style beats that make for a singularly unique musical world. A world I want to hang out in for a bit, maybe play a little hop-scotch.

In a way, this kind of reminds me of TV On The Radio, but opting for a little less rock and a little more folk, and a lot more electro-ness. And not to belabor this point, but we feel we should mention again those Grossi vocals. They are the key to this whole operation. Well, that and the synths... and the beats.

As I say, Active Child is good stuff. Yes, we're being entirely redundant about all this. Don't get mad about it. This aggression will not stand, man.

Best Coast - The east coast has Real Estate and the west coast has Best Coast. There seems to be a new musical movement happening across this fair land. This movement consists of laid back lo-fi sun-drenched melodies meant to bliss you out.

Ok, in fairness, that sound's been happening forever (like way back in the cavemen days of the '60s!), but only recently does this sound seem to be catching on with the cool concert kids.

Anyway, Best Coast is comprised of principle singer/songwriter Bethany Cosentino. Now because of all the laptop-meets-guitar-meets-lo-fi layers going on here, it's hard to decipher exactly what Cosentino is singing about. But if we had to venture a guess, we'd say it's all about weed. But again, that's just a guess (based on the title "Sun Was High (So Was I)" and a picture on Best Coast's MySpace page of a mountain of --- weed).

On that same MySpace page, Cosentino lists Connie Francis as her influence. And we totally hear that! So think of Best Coast as that "Who's Sorry Now?" song meets Real Estate (or Ducktails) meets haze meets sun meets the wacky tobaccy.

Julianna Barwick - Now I'm going to tell you something I've never told anyone before. But you can't tell ANYONE! At the college I went to, in a hidden corner of a forgotten building, there was this small room called "The Heaven Room." The room was all mirrors; the floor, the four walls, the ceilings. And on the mirrored ceiling there were little patches of painted-on clouds hovering slightly above you, just like little wisps of a dream.

The effect was that it appeared you were floating in the firmament somewhere beyond this universe's borders. And as you stood, solitary, and looked at your image reflected back at you from heaven, soft angelic music played in the background apparently to calm any and all of your earthly cares. It was all very cheesy, of course. And I kind of loved it.

"The Heaven Room" was definitely a guilty pleasure, kind of like how Blink-182 is a guilty pleasure... but not really like that at all.

My point is this; when I listen to the effortlessly ethereal (and dare I say, angelic) voice and dreamlike melodies of Brooklyn's Julianna Barwick, I think of that "Heaven Room." THIS is the music I wish would have been playing in there. Then I wouldn't have felt guilty at all for ditching class to stare up at my image above the clouds and above space and above time. THIS is the music I wish would have been playing in "The Heaven Room." Now, please don't tell anyone I told you this about my college days... ever.

Delorean - Warm happiness. That's how I'd characterize Barcelona's Delorean. They're a synth-pop band that makes for a completely carefree listen. Not that you won't care about them when you listen to them, but that you'll forget all your cares when you listen. Get it?

These guys started out by doing a lot of remixes for bands such as The Mystery Jets, Lemonade (who were awesome when they played our Rockness SXSW show awhile back... just had to throw that in there), The Teenagers and The Big Pink. But then Delorean got all "original music" on us and started writing and releasing their own stuff.

And such pleasant stuff it is! It's likeable dance music that doesn't thump too much. And the thumps are what offend most of the people who don't like dance music (and the stupid robot voice). My mom might like this, and she's definitely anti-thump. Mental note: send some Delorean music to Mom.

Delorean also sounds very pop-European. What does that mean exactly? I have no idea. But pop-European is like pornography, you know it when you see it, er, listen to it, er, something like that. Or, they could just sound a little like Phoenix. Hmmm, I wonder if Delorean will ever be in a Cadillac commercial. Remember when Hum was in that Cadillac commercial? That was pretty cool.

Anyway, the nutshell is this, Delorean is non-thumping European pop that gets parental approval. And that, my friends, is what warm happiness is all about.

Washed Out - This is soooooo smooth. And yes, that's a lot of Os. Washed Out is the one-man bedroom pop project of South Carolina's Ernest Greene. And woah dude, he's put together some of the finest music to "chill" to (as much as I hate that word --- "chill" is almost worse than "funky") that we've heard in a long time.

His synth/guitars/laptop songs have such an easy electro swirl about them and are crafted with perfect pop execution. Though he recorded them in his home, there's nothing about Greene's songs that sound amateur. Maybe Timbaland is his neighbor and came by to borrow a cup of sugar and on his way out helped on Greene's mixes. Who knows?

His vocals, though partially hidden under a few relaxing layers of technology tricks, are the exact fit needed for Washed Out's hammock rock vibe. You can definitely dance to some of these songs, because they've got all those smooth beats and rhythmic things going on. But we prefer to just slowly sway on our back while staring up at the underside of a palm tree. Why work up a sweat?

Listening to Washed Out reminds us we don't have a care in the world (until it's over, then we remember our student loan debt and how we need to go to the store and get a container of milk, a loaf of bread and a ----- DANG IT! We knew we'd forget the third thing Mom told us to be sure to get!).

The Drums - We're about to write about one of our very favorite new bands. Ready? Here it comes! Pre-tty... pre-tty... pre-tty... catchy. That's our attempt at a Larry David impression. But it's also a fine way to begin a profile for The Drums.

As of this writing, this band has played exactly two shows. Two shows! But seeing these guys play, it's as if they've been rocking this blissful pop forever. We just saw them at that second show of theirs, and we can definitely say it was one of the most enjoyable experiences we've had at a "rock concert" in quite some time.

Singer Jon Pierce is a showman through and through, and he's a big reason why this band was so fun to see. He bleeds confidence and oozes congeniality. Plus, there is plenty of power in his pipes.

Along with Pierce (who was in Elkland), The Drums other principal player is Pierce's longtime BFF, Jacob Graham (also in Horse Shoes). But on stage, the songwriting buds come with a crew of four (not counting a couple of female backing singers) to make their pop sound more like POP.

This band just knows how to write a song that shimmers and sparkles and jingles and jangles. It sounded like every song they played was a potential summer hit. The Drums are definitely '80s Britpop inspired, but also are into some strange activity called "surfing," so they rock a sound inspired by that obscure marine activity too.

The band lists some of their influences as being The Wake, The Smiths and Joy Division. But why not throw in some New Order too? But whatever and wherever they cull their influences, our motto has always been "breezy guitars + easy beats + dynamic vocals = bro-ham party time." The Drums' music all adds up to something that's nice and lovely and happy. And catchy; pre-tty... pre-tty... pre-tty... catchy.

Teengirl Fantasy - And here I thought Zach Morris was every teen girl's fantasy. I guess I was wrong. Should've known it was electro! Stupid! Stupid! No wonder I never got any dates in 7th grade.

Teengirl Fantasy is Logan Takahashi and Nick Weiss, two students from some school called Oberlin in a state called Ohio (they've also spent some time studying in this place called Amsterdam, also known as Hamsterdam to fictional Baltimore residents... speaking of which, these guys would fit in very nicely with that whole Wham City scene).

Together, they use their synths and machines and mircrophones and mighty gear to mix it up, build it up, tear it down, and get those glitches going all over the place. If you like your electro with some disco POP drone, Teengirl Fantasy is the duo for you. You'd like them if you like Fuck Buttons, too.

Anyway, you can't help to NOT help to not dance to this. That's our way of saying Teengirl Fantasy is very danceable indeed. This crew of two has recently played shows with bands like Neon Indian, Beach Fossils and Dan Deacon, and they have an album coming out on the stellar True Panther record label (Girls, Lemonade and lots more bands we like).

That all being said, Teengirl Fantasy is definitely a dream come true (we just HAD to end this with a cheesy tagline... we're looking to make our next million making bumper stickers).

For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!

The 2010 SXSW Music Festival runs from Wednesday, March 17th, to Sunday, March 21st, in beautiful Austin, TX.

It's SXSW time yet again! Shows! Parties! BBQ! Beer! Yeah, you know the deal. Anyway, thanks for checking out Oh My Rockness' special SXSW edition of our showlist site (for all of you who stumbled upon this a roundabout way, Oh My Rockness permanently lists shows for NYC, Chicago and Los Angeles. Check us out!) Like every year, there are a billion bands playing down here, and unless you have a jetpack (we were promised one&.once), there's no way you're going to catch all of them play. So you'll have to be smart, synchronize your watches, and plan accordingly.

Below is a list of some of the bands we're definitely going to see. It's by no means all-inclusive (For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!), but we hope it helps you plan your attack during these five days of music debauchery.

Tanlines - NYC dance duo Tanlines is the new let's-get-this-party-started-right-quick project from Jesse Cohen (Professor Murder) and Eric Emm (Don Caballero, Storm & Stress, Free Blood).

Using computers, drums and a guitar, Tanlines expertly lay down the techno thumps and jungle-meets-Caribbean-meets-Brooklyn rhythms to create something seriously fun to dance with your friends to. Imagine if cruise ships weren't totally lame and you went on one with a bunch of hot people who liked beer, Trivial Pursuit and Frisbee. This is the music I would want to hear blasting on deck as soon as all the hot people and I enter the warmer waters of the greatest vacation of our lives.

Besides beating up and sampling down their own songs, Tanlines has done a lot of rocking remix work for bands like El Guincho and Telepathe too. You should check them out. They make winter feel a tad more bearable.

JEFF the Brotherhood - BOOM goes the brotherhood. JEFF the brotherhood are two brothers, neither of whom is named Jeff. One is named Jake and the other is named Jamin. Both are named Orrall. Whew, glad we got that over with.

Now, JEFF the brotherhood state in no uncertain words on their MySpace page that they "are not garage rock." Fine, ok. JEFF the brotherhood are not garage rock. They are psych-punk... garage-rock. BUST! Anyway, a whole lot of noise is created by just two guys. I love when that happens.

Their dueling guitar/drum rock-outs are distorted and fuzzy and they make ample use of reverb effects. Jake even busts out the wah-wah pedal on occasion for extended guitar solos, too. You know, sometimes the wah-wah is all you really want out of life.

Anyway, if none of the above helps you form a neat and convenient label for JEFF the brotherhood, think of their sound as falling somewhere in the middle of Japandroids and that band Disappears. Throw in some '70s punkness too. And, of course, compare them to every garage-rock band you can think of. BUST.

The Smith Westerns - And... buzz goes the dynamite! Chicago's The Smith Westerns are a fuzzy lo-fi band that has lots of pretty (and slightly psych-y) melodies floating in and around some serious (mostly) garage-rock goodness. The kids are into it! But this isn't garage-rock in the aggressive "my riffs will start a fire and make even this here pile of greasy rags EXPLODE!" kind of way. This is the garage in the sensitive hearts "tool box, everything I do, I do it for you" kind of way.

These four teenagers must be four teenagers in la-la-la-love, because these songs are so sweet. Is this sensitive sensibility why this is sometimes called glam-garage? Who knows? Not I. If you like that band Girls you will probably enjoy these four young lads (and they recently toured together).

People compare The Smith Westerns a lot to Marc Bolan's T. Rex, too. And you see? I would never step out and say they sound like T. Rex myself because that's too vulnerable and risky. Pretty tricky of me, indeed!

The Smith Westerns have recently played shows with The Soft Pack, Neon Indian and Jay Reatard. When's the last time a Chicago band has received this much buzz? Um, let's say Veruca Salt. Man that band was so ALT.

Pearl Harbor - Trippy, man. Trippy. Los Angeles' Pearl Harbor is a laid-back, breezy band comprised of two sisters; Piper and Skyler. Piper is in her early twenties, and Sky (as of this writing) is 14 years old. Yes, 14 years old. Woah.

Anyway, the two sisters make swirling shoegaze-y music that's hazy and harmonious and dreamy and sunshine-y and, well, you don't need more adjectives to get the gist. Like most leisurely, dreamy and swirly pop music, this can be a cerebral head trip where all you want to think about is the fleeting, drifting days under the relaxation of the mighty sun's rays. Told you. It's trippy, man. Trippy.

Pearl Harbor will probably appeal to fans of all those old '80s shoegaze bands (you know the bands I mean... let's not get into it) and Best Coast for sure, that band Dunes, and First Aid Kit maybe (but really that's just because they're two young sisters too). Comparisons foreva!

Now if you'll excuse me, there's a pool raft with my name on it (I like to put my name on all my pool accessories for some reason... it's weird).

Neon Indian - Neon Indian is the blissed-out work of Alan Palomo. Palomo is also in that band VEGA. Neat. Live, Palomo has three other peeps helping him to create a beautifully mellow and melodic world full of calming synth strikes.

Now this here Neon Indian band sure knows how to write a pretty perfect electro-pop song, let me tell you that. Actually, they sure know how to write about twelve perfect electro pop songs, because that's how many songs are on their brilliant debut Psychic Chasms. The songs are smooth like Washed Out's songs are smooth. Or, perhaps they are smooth like Small Black's songs are smooth. But you know, maybe they're just smooth like Neon Indian's songs are smooth. Let Neon Indian BE Neon Indian! Oh the curse of smoothness comparisons!

So this is one of those bands you can put play and let yourself go to a more relaxed state without even really trying. Their silky synth jams and mellow vocals are akin to surfing a perfect wave of chamomile tea, but instead of a board (too dangerous) you surf on your La-Z-Boy. Oh yeah, Neon Indian is just like surfing on a La-Z-Boy.

Air Waves - Brooklyn's Air Waves are a very agreeable pop trio led by singer/songwriter Nicole Schneit. She writes concise, acoustic guitar songs with completely bouncy choruses. They'll induce your lips into a wonderful whistle. They'll make your mouth curl up into a smile. They'll make your toes involuntarily start tapping. They'll even make you squat and squawk like a chicken. Air Waves does strange things to a body, I tell you.

And Shneit sings these addictive songs in a nice, smoky style that sounds at times a little like a more optimistic Chan Marshall. Optimism is always nice now and then, isn't it? Leave the angst at home, I gave at the office.

You know, Air Waves songs would be a good soundtrack to this short film idea we've been thinking about. Hmmm. It's about this loveable-but-confused bug that sways on a seaside hammock trying to figure out his future. Post-graduate degree? Job? See the world? It ends with him deciding to do nothing more than crawl out of the hammock and drift slowly out to sea, leaving the brown sand and the blue horizon behind. FIN.

Sleigh Bells - Sleigh Bells ring. Are you listening? Brilliant, that's just brilliant! By the way, I've been meaning to ask you; who the hell is Parson Brown and what makes him so make-believe worthy? You and your snowman can pretend to be anyone and you're going to pretend he's Parson Brown?

But moving on... Sleigh Bells are a dance-y, punk-y and mostly lo-fi-ish duo from Brooklyn consisting of master melody constructor Derek Miller (he was in Poison the Well) and singer Alexis Krauss (she teaches 5th grade). (Man, I wish Alexis Krauss was my teacher in 5th grade. But no, I got stuck with my mom. It's not easy getting a detention because you forgot to make your bed one lousy morning, let me tell you. Not easy.)

These two create dirty and distorted pop ditties that sometimes sound a little Yeah Yeah Yeahs-ish... but not ALL the time, so don't freak out on me for reaching for a low-hanging band comparison. Sheesh! I'm just trying to help you get an idea. Help ME help YOU! Sleigh Bells got lots of those nice riffs and guttural rhythms with layers of distortion that sounds like you just blew out your speakers. Miller definitely is into the low end of things when he writes these songs. It's all BOOM BOOM BOOM. But there are pretty epic melodies going on here too that work with the noise to add a nice little pep in your step as you rock out. And that's where the dance-y part of this duo's punk comes in. You can bop to the booms.

So check out Sleigh Bells. Who knows? You just might find yourself walking in a musical wonderland. Hey-yo! (James Brown I can see... but Parson Brown?!)

For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!

The 2010 SXSW Music Festival runs from Wednesday, March 17th, to Sunday, March 21st, in beautiful Austin, TX.

Chicago's Disappears (fronted by Brian Case, currently of The Ponys and formerly of 90 Day Men) are an excellent new band that rock all sorts of swirling guitar reverb. The resulting music sounds as if it's transported straight from those hazy basement club nights when little Lou Reed and crew played for their illegally blissed-out pals.

These four rock out quite nicely, especially when their decibels inch extremely close to straight-up noise. Yet, even with minimal pop melodies buried beneath all the raucous effects, the prevailing mood Disappears sets is one of darkness. Something sinful is going on here, but I'm not sure what it is.

Maybe echoes have always felt evil to me. It's kind of the same feeling that Crystal Stilts gives me. I'd like to label this as something like shoegaze-noise-goth, but that just sounds dumb. Oh well, guess I can't call them anything other than a good band. Disappears has recently played shows with Deerhunter, Department of Eagles and Times New Viking. Give them a try and I think you'll like them. Be careful though. Caring is creepy.

Disappears play SESAC Day Stage Cafe, on Saturday, March 21st.

I could listen to these guys all day. I mean, I won't ("Herbie Goes Bananas" is on in fifteen- minutes). But I could.

Sheffield, England's Slow Club is a male/female guitar/drum duo (no, this isn't The White Stripes) that play a strange blend of folk-pop. I say strange because this music actually makes you feel pretty happy.

I'm used to troubadour folk-pop that makes me feel like the world is one big empty void and this here acoustic guitar is my only friend and even these six-strings will probably turn on me one cold dark night and bite me in the butt. Slow Club (Charles and Rebecca) is not that type of folk-pop.

Pretty harmonies, hand-claps and sing-a-long choruses that could come straight from the wooden pews of a dusty old church somewhere doesn't add up to a depressing listen. One song even has a refrain of, "Let's Fall Back in Love" with hooting and hollering in the background, for goodness sake.

Yet, miraculously, their melodic joy never comes across as cheesy or overly-sentimental. Slow Club is both heartfelt AND substantial. I dare you to try and write songs that meet both of those criteria.

The duo has most recently put out releases for the U.K. label Moshi-Moshi (Casiokids, Hot Chip, Matt & Kim), and those people at Moshi don't seem to miss much. They hit it right on the sweet-spot yet again with Slow Club. A good listen!

Slow Club play Volume, on Saturday, March 21st.

So The Golden Filter is this new female-fronted dance band from NYC that sounds like Blondie. And here's the thing, The Golden Filter is really "mysterious." Do you know why I say they are mysterious? I say they are mysterious because I (and if I made the list, then several thousands others did too) got a press release blast from the PR company hired by the band or their label to tell everyone that The Golden Filter is really "mysterious."

Hmmm, not sure true mystery is exactly shrouded in press releases. And if you are serious about being a mysterious band, you can't go right out and just say it. Lack of subtlety is no mystery. Nor does it make you a band of mystery if you take lots of pictures (that you post on MySpace, of course) with long hair strategically placed in front your face, or sun rays that happen to be just so bright that it's hard to decipher your features.

But I digress for a second. The Golden Filter is certainly catchy in their electro-ness, and the band is playing a bunch of dates with The Presets, so that's cool. But really, no one cares about the mystery angle... unless the woman who sings in this band happens to be Margot Kidder in disguise. Now THAT would be a mystery. Why would Margot Kidder be in a dance band that sounds like Blondie?

The Golden Filter play Beauty Bar, on Thursday, March 19th.

Omaha's Box Elders are an up-and-coming in-the-garage band made up of two bass- and guitar-playing brothers and one drummer/keyboardist. That's right, a drummer/keyboardist. And I thought patting my head while rubbing my tummy and juggling meat pies with my knees was difficult.

The three dudes rock that raw, messy punk sound that will surely convert fans of bands like Cheap Time, Thomas Function, The Soft Pack and Jay Reatard. They'll also be loved by those who think everyone on the In the Red roster can do no wrong (Box Elders aren't on In The Red, but they sound as if they should be).

What makes Box Elders maybe even more unique is that their music can be super melodic, like Buddy Holly and the Crickets melodic (everyone knows he was the original punk rocker anyway). Perhaps this isn't garage-punk after all and is just a clever ruse. Maybe Box Elders is really just a good old fashioned sock-hop where the kids come to dance and play and have a gee-whiz bang time. Think about it.

Box Elders play The NY Noise Party, at Ms. Bea's, on Wednesday, March 18th.

We're putting on a party with our Oya Festival friends on Thursday night at The Music Gym!

(If you're not the clicking-through type, our line-up features Max Tundra, WAVVES, Casiokids, Lemonade, The New Wine, and Chikita Violenta).

This week, we'll tell you about Wavves. Next week, we'll tell you about someone else. But most importantly, come out on Thursday night and rock with us.

We love Wavves! It's a messy, fuzzy, lo-fi, wonderful, chaotic, happy, muddled and absolutely fascinating melodious affair. Wavves is the wickedly warbled work of San Diego's Nathan Williams, a young man who knows how to write and record a killer melody on what must be a shoestring budget.

Think of Wavves as a nice compliment to what fellow noisy lo-fi California kids like No Age and HEALTH are rocking, if you need that contemporary band comparison fix. But there's something a little less aggressive going on here.

Sure, Wavves songs sometimes explode into an abrasive avalanche of reverb, feedback and other discordant disarray (in a bedroom recorded sort of way), but the sound assaults somehow make you stand tall with a smile plastered on your face, instead of lowering your head and sullenly lifting your fists.

What it comes down to are solid little melodies. Williams can bury them in the most distorted of sonic layers, but an accessible song structure is still able to shine through the chaos. And the listener is left with a most beautiful mess.

Wavves is one of the six great bands playing the Oh My Rockness/Oya Festival show, at The Music Gym, on Thursday, March 19th.

It's Austin time again, and every year it's more overwhelming than the last. And that's not right. You shouldn't be overwhelmed, you should be rocking out! So to "whelm" you just exactly right, we've picked nine of our favorite up-and-coming bands we think will make it big soon after playing SXSW 2009. And we're going to tell you why these nine are awesome in nine awesome words. Isn't that so deliciously high-concept! (Plus, we thought you'd prefer nine of our words to two-thousand-and-nine.)

So think of this short SXSW spotlight as a poor man's non-rhyming sonnet or something. (And oh yeah, these nine bands don't include the six bands playing the sick Oh My Rockness/Oya Festival show on Thursday night at The Music Gym featuring Max Tundra, Wavves, Casiokids, Lemonade, The New Wine, and Chikita Violenta.

NINE WORDS FOR NINE BANDS YOU SHOULD SEE AT SXSW 2009: PART NINE

Box Elders - Good Buddy Holly garage-punk with a drummer/bassist!

Disappears - Swirling-Noise-Goth with tons of good guitar reverb!

The Golden Filter - Electro-dance music from NYC (is NYC a word? and no, words in parenthesis don't count as words) that sounds like Blondie.

Kittens Ablaze - Joyful power-pop made with strings. Drink to this!

Let's Wrestle - Sloppy and messy and fuzzy punk-pop from London!

Obits - Drive Like Jehu Hot Snakes. I'm Rick Froberg, bitch!

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Shoegaze-indie-pop with plenty of guitar jingle-jangle!

The Tallest Man on Earth - How's this: he toured a ton with Bon Iver.

Women - Hazy lo-fi melodies kinda like The Velvet Underground!

There you have it: nine awesome words for nine awesome bands. Of course, if you want more than nine words, you can just click their name to read their entire Oh My Rockness profile. But those profiles are SO BORING.

See you in Austin, rockers. And, of course, we hope to see you at our show ("Geez Rockness, give it a rest about your show already!")

Those nine bands sound cool, now take me to the SXSW showlist!

It's SXSW time yet again! Shows! Parties! BBQ! Beer! Thanks for checking out Oh My Rockness' special SXSW edition of our showlist site (for all of you who stumbled upon this a roundabout way, Oh My Rockness permanently lists shows for NYC, Chicago and Los Angeles with more cities coming soon. Check us out!) Like every year, there are a billion bands playing down here, and unless you're the Rocketeer, there's no way you're going to catch all of them play. So you'll have to be smart, synchronize your watches, and plan accordingly.

Below is a list of some of the bands we're definitely going to see. It's by no means all-inclusive (For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!) , but we hope it helps you plan your attack during these five days of music debauchery.

White Williams - White Williams is the plugged-in pop project of Cleveland's Joe Williams. Double W's happy synths, good-natured bass thumps, and blissful laptop beats have been gaining steady acclaim, especially after he played a bunch of dates with his like-minded gadget peers, Girl Talk and Dan Deacon.

His peaceful, up-tempo jams remind me of Hawaiian surf songs meets Hot Chip (especially Williams' carefree tenor). There's a breezy quality to these machine-made sounds that make you feel well on your way towards becoming relaxed. Maybe you could call White Williams' "hammock-rock." He recently signed to the experimental-electric label Tigerbeat6 which will definitely help spread the word to those looking to get laid-back.

Headlights - If you like Stars, you'll like Headlights. You can also compare them to a less-annoying version of Mates of State (who were once on Headlights current label, Polyvinyl).

This very pleasant indie-pop band out of Champaign, IL (Bruce Weber Foreva!) composes three-minute songs that practically ooze with gooey toe-tapping melodies. Led by Erin Fein's fine (sorry) vocals and warm keyboard skills, along with Tristan Wraight's gentile guitar, Headlights certainly seek to soothe a listeners' pop sensibility.

And don't take this musical seduction to mean that Headlights' songs are downers; most of them are vibrantly upbeat. They're neatly constructed, so cordially that you can't help but cast your cares away when you hear them. There's no slop in this pop.

Shout Out Louds - Shout Out Louds are four lads and one lady from Sweden and they sound a whole lot like The Cure. Seriously. Singer Adam Olenius does a spot-on impersonation of Robert Smith at his most happy. And I guess that's the biggest difference between the two groups (besides, you know, millions and millions of album sales). Shout Out Louds don't reach for that anguished diary drama like The Cure often did.

This band instead opts for those fun, catchy cowbells and hyper-melodic choruses (more like "Friday, I'm in Love" maybe). Yee haw! And it's a good thing Olenius doesn't incessantly sing about hearbreak, because The Shout Out Louds don't have a whole lot to be sad about these days. I mean, they're on Merge Records, after all. Many people also like to compare Shout Out Louds to their compatriots, Peter Bjorn and John. But whatever, these guys are The Cure.

Los Campesinos - Los Campesinos! are seven young guns (four guys and three girls) from the U.K. that play unquestionably "fun" music that's full of resoundingly happy choruses. This is a group that just gives off a feeling of general delight. It's indie-pop with a little mischievous punk thrown in to keep the cheese factor at bay.

Los Campesinos! brings tons of guitars, strings, horns, chimes, keys and a glockenspiel (of course!) to the party, and they can be compared to The Go! Team meets The Unicorns meets Architecture in Helsinki meets the good humor of Art Brut.

If you go to their show, you'll most certainly leave grinning. And by writing songs accessible to pretty much all, Los Campesinos are most assuredly going to be smiling themselves... all the way to the bank.

Evangelicals - I still can't decide if Evangelicals' singer Josh Jones sounds like Alec Ounsworth (of Clap Your Hands) or Cass McCombs or Rufus Wainwright. Weird. Anyway this Oklahoma quartet (there are other bands there besides The Flaming Lips) plays crazy skewed pop that falls somewhat into psych territory, but really that's just because the songs are strange and sometimes they "jam."

A lot of the time though, this just sounds to me like good old-fashioned math-rock. There are lots of guitar noodlings over falsetto squeals (courtesy of Jones) that zigzag up and down over pretty straight-forward melodies. Call Evangelicals an accessible inaccessible band. And for a group that likes to get all insane with structure, it's comforting to know that Josh Jones can actually sing. His pipes keep the band's intentional musical misdirections from becoming a chore to listen to.

No Age - Los Angeles' lo-fi-garage-noise duo No Age has been compared to everyone from Lightning Bolt to Deerhunter to Built to Spill. And you can throw in some of the rudimentary recording elements of The Ramones into the mix, too.

This exceptional band is comprised of Dean Spunt and Randy Randall, both formerly of the LA beloved punk band, Wives. These two guys throw out all sorts of musical fastballs, curves and changes from the stage. Sometimes No Age engage in full-on rock freak-outs (Lightning Bolt), and at other times they get a little spacey, slow and hazy (Deerhunter). They also employ melodic guitar solos throughout (Built to Spill). There's no predictability here, other than a definite D.I.Y. vibe.

This Will Destroy You - San Marco, Texas band This Will Destroy You play big dramatic instrumental "post-rock" that sounds very similar to their state-mates, Explosions in the Sky. Their theatrical songs have the post-rock formula pretty much down: a clean, gentle strum of a guitar in the beginning of the song, which gradually picks up pace and becomes more aggressive strumming, which turns into feedback, which finally turns into EMOTION. That's post-rock. You know what we mean.

And, sure, even though we've all heard this sound before (Mogwai. Early Maserati. Saxon Shore. Mono. Tristeza. And on and on and on...), I'm still a sucker for it and probably always will be. This is inspirational music that inspires me in spite of myself. I know when this band's guitars go for that shimmering high note that This Will Destroy You wants me to feel the same pain and joy and nostalgia that they do. And you know, even though I know all this, it still works. Damn these guys.

For a list of a WHOLE BUNCH MORE OF BANDS playing SXSW, go HERE!

The 2008 SXSW Music Festival runs from Wednesday, March 12th, to Sunday, March 16th, in beautiful Austin, TX.

Oh My Rockness is once again teaming up with the people who started the massively popular Oya Festival in Oslo, Norway (there were 65,000+ strong at the festival in August...we know because we were there!) We're again holding our show at Emo's Jr (last year, we humbly admit the place was packed to see our show featuring Ra Ra Riot, Cloud Cult, The New Violators, The Lionheart Brothers and DataRock all played). It's on Saturday night, March 15th. And it's going to be awesome. Here's who's playing Rockness/Oya SXSW Round Two!

Best Fwends - Ft. Worth/Austin's Best Fwends are a high-energy and completely hilarious duo (reference their song, "Dump in the Dark") that plays geeked-out garage that's perfect punk party music. This is furious lo-fi fun made possible with penny keyboards, thrift-store guitars, crapped-out computers, and other random toys. These two youngsters are certainly not audiophile phenoms and aren't out to wow anybody with the musical craftsmanship. Best Fwends are not about intricate time signatures and complex orchestration. Best Fwends about making you have so much fun during their set, you'll want to barf. Fans of The Black Lips, Espilons and Team Robespierre will love these guys. They're on the wonderful U.K. label Moshi Moshi which has put out records by Hot Chip, Lo-Fi-Fnk and Matt and Kim.

Videohippos - Videohippos are one of Baltimore's best experimental-gadget-art bands. And perhaps that description of this instrumental duo might make you think of another Baltimore experimental-gadget-art guy right off Cal Ripken's bat. And you'd be correct in correlating Viddeohippos to electro-gear-head Dan Deacon (Deacon is perhaps more "party" than "experimental" though). Videohippos are not only good pals with their wacky Wham City neighbor, but are also brothers in sound to Deacon's technological debauchery. These two eclectic dudes have an album out on mighty Monitor Records (Oxxes, Yeasayer).

Shining - First things first. There are two bands from Scandinavia named Shining, which can be confusing to say the least. One is a black metal band whose singer is named Kvarforth. We're all for black metal and one-named singers, but that is not the Shining band we're writing about here. The Shining we're writing about is Oslo's exceptional experimental band that blends post-rock with jazz and psych to create something that has drawn comparisons to The Mars Volta, John Coltrane, and Slayer. Sweet! This strangely cinematic band full of modern musical composers explore all sorts of tuneful terrains when the play, and their melodies often sail far outside the scope of traditional "indie rock." Yet their songs always build (often very dramatically) to some sort of logical conclusion that is highly-satisfying to an "average" listener. So Shining is experimental, but easily accessible. On stage, they often employ three bass players in addition to their four regular studio members to make an explosion of surround-sound that will blow your mind.

Hanne Hukkelberg - Norway's Hanne Hukkelberg (pronounced Who-kel-burg) has been making a name for herself in Scandinavia and beyond for her prosaic indie-pop. Hukkelberg's seductive croon has often been compared to Feist, and the imaginative orchestration (pianos, gentle string plucks) and electronic experimentation (scattered glitchy-clicks, synths and sparse field-recording sounds) of her songs draw the inevitable comparisons to Bjork. The ruler of them all, Billie Holiday, is a name often thrown about when speaking of Hukkelberg, too. Hanne Hukkelberg may perform under her own name, but this is no solo act on stage. Live, she has an impressive backing band of six (give or take a few) to help realize the grandeur of this cerebral listening experience. This is slow-motion music made for mellow fellows who like to veer towards the fanciful.

James Yuill - I can't remember how I stumbled upon James Yuill's MySpace page. The first song I heard was "This Sweet Love." Wow. That's a hit if I ever I heard one. And then I heard "No Surprises" and I thought someone was joking with me. How could this guy be completely unknown with such instantly accessible electro-pop tracks like these? This Londoner is a one-man-band. He writes all of his songs, and performs them live with his guitar and tech tools as his only source of accompaniment. To say his songs are catchy is like saying Santa Claus is a pretty good dude. His extremely pleasant melodies sort of remind one of Hot Chip, but probably not as "club friendly." Yuill's style is more laid back. You can rock out to this, but more in a "I love life" sort of way instead of a "let's shake our asses!" sort of way. Anyway, this guy won't stay under-the-radar for long. His self-released record is too good for labels not to notice. Well, the smart labels anyway. (That requirement cuts the number of potential suitors in half.)

Team Robespierre - Brooklyn's Team Robespierre rock the super fun synth-punk, with an emphasis on the punk. Their raw, electric sound reminds me of (broken-up) bands like Q and Not U, El Guapo, and Fugazi (if Fugazi had keyboard players, that is). These five guys are the perfect band to ask to play when you want to turn your broken-down loft or vacant parking lot into an instant party space. Just have them plug in their guitar, bass and keys and watch them go for it. Fun noise will be made, with all members dishing out vocal jabs. Team Robespierre utilizes a whole mess of both machine and man-made beats, and you can certainly dance to their thumps. Just don't confuse this with dance-punk. This is more like punk-dance. You will have a good time at this show.

We hope to see you out on Saturday, March 15th at 7pm at Emo's Jr. Say hi. We'll be the ones rocking.

Best Fwends, Videohippos, Shining, Hanne Hukkelberg, James Yuill and Team Robespierre play the Oh My Rockness/Oya Festival SXSW show at Emo's Jr., on Saturday, March 15th, at 7pm.

We got out our abacus, and though it was hard to get an exact number because the balls were soaked with Shiner, we figured out that we saw roughly 23 bands (in honor of Michael Jordan, of course) in the four days and nights we were down in Austin. Now I know what some of you may be saying, "23?! I saw 2,003!" But we've always been about quality over quantity, and all 23 bands we saw were legitimately good. And that's something, so there. Here's a brief recap of some of the bands we saw that are worth extra noting.

Pelican - perhaps my favorite set of the whole fest. These guys play aggressive metal that is also unmistakably pretty. Try to wrap your head around that one. Some of the best guitar riffs I have ever witnessed.

Shout Out Out Out Out - I LOVED these Edmonton guys, if for nothing else than their awesome attitudes. They were so cheery, and their dispositions were a direct reflection of the happy electro-rock they so convincingly create. Two drummers. Two bassists. Some keys. And some killer frontman leg kicks (even with a full bladder)! Shout Out Out Out Out's set was definitely one of the most enjoyable experiences I had in Austin.

New Violators - The singer of this Norway band wears all white and his shirt-blouse comes complete with wings attached to his back. They certainly felt like a gift from pop heaven. Human League, meet your modern match. Nobody knew these guys when they started their set, but by the end people were dancing and even singing along to the songs they just learned. Awesome.

Walter Meego - This Chicago trio wears bright colors and plays danceable electro-pop. Laptop meets guitars meets catchy catchy catchy. They're playing the Oh My Rockness "March Radness II" party at Knitting Factory on March 31st so you'll just have to trust that 1) we love them and 2) you should go see them.

Ra Ra Riot - These guys were such a surprise! I've liked their songs for some time, but live they really step it up. This young group from Syracuse kicked out the seriously energetic jams, including a cover of my favorite Futureheads cover of Kate Bush's "Hounds of Love." They've got electrified strings, tons of melodies to sing along to, and a completely engaging singer. Watch out.

DataRock - I thought these guys were going to be a duo with more Data, but they ended up being a quartet with more rock. Not that I, or anyone in the audience was being a stickler for details, these Norwegians had us all when we saw their matching red track suits. I had a bird's eye view on the steps of Emo's Jr. when DataRock played, and it was fascinating to see all those sweaty heads bopping up and down in coordinated unison. These guys are the perfect party band.

The Lionheart Brothers - Another stellar Norway band. If you like Serena Maneesh's swirling and shoegazing rock-outs, you will definitely be down with The Lionheart Brothers. The singer looks just like Bobby from Karate Kid (you know, the one that sweeps Daniel's leg), and he definitely knows how to lead a crowd. He crouches, he flails, and his band will one day play many big places in the States.

Marnie Stern - Guitar whiz Marnie is alone on stage with her axe and an iPod strapped to her belt. That's it. She wails her repetitive songs as she plays and it plays. It's obvious from the start that she's an awesome guitar player and a truly talented woman. It's good stuff if you can stand it.

Hot Club De Paris - This young trio sounds like they're from Chicago...in 1994. But they're from England in 2007. There's a ton of Cap'n Jazz at work here. You know those distortion-free twinkle guitar notes that slide up, down and around a driving rhythm section? These guys have that. And they were exactly what I wanted.

The Narrator - These guys really ARE from Chicago. They play the somewhat spazzy (but not TOO spazzy) rock that sounds like the reason I got into indie rock in the first place. You've got nicely placed rock-outs in the middle of mathy melodies, so what more do you need? If you like Oxford Collapse (which I do) you will also like The Narrator.

Gallows - this show was dangerous! I expected the beer bottles to start flying at any time when I was down in the pit (yeah, there was an actual pit at SXSW) watching these guys freak the hell out. One of the louder shows I've ever been to was also one of the scariest. Please don't break my nose. I just want to listen to your songs. It was great though (mostly because I made it out alive). Hot Snakes times 100.

SXSW sure was fun. But phew, I'm sure glad it's over.

We got out our abacus, and though it was hard to get an exact number because the balls were soaked with Shiner, we figured out that we saw roughly 23 bands (in honor of Michael Jordan, of course) in the four days and nights we were down in Austin. Now I know what some of you may be saying, "23?! I saw 2,003!" But we've always been about quality over quantity, and all 23 bands we saw were legitimately good. And that's something, so there. Here's a brief recap of some of the bands we saw that are worth extra noting.

Pelican - perhaps my favorite set of the whole fest. These guys play aggressive metal that is also unmistakably pretty. Try to wrap your head around that one. Some of the best guitar riffs I have ever witnessed.

Shout Out Out Out Out - I LOVED these Edmonton guys, if for nothing else than their awesome attitudes. They were so cheery, and their dispositions were a direct reflection of the happy electro-rock they so convincingly create. Two drummers. Two bassists. Some keys. And some killer frontman leg kicks (even with a full bladder)! Shout Out Out Out Out's set was definitely one of the most enjoyable experiences I had in Austin.

New Violators - The singer of this Norway band wears all white and his shirt-blouse comes complete with wings attached to his back. They certainly felt like a gift from pop heaven. Human League, meet your modern match. Nobody knew these guys when they started their set, but by the end people were dancing and even singing along to the songs they just learned. Awesome.

Walter Meego - This Chicago trio wears bright colors and plays danceable electro-pop. Laptop meets guitars meets catchy catchy catchy. They're playing the Oh My Rockness "March Radness II" party at Knitting Factory on March 31st so you'll just have to trust that 1) we love them and 2) you should go see them.

Ra Ra Riot - These guys were such a surprise! I've liked their songs for some time, but live they really step it up. This young group from Syracuse kicked out the seriously energetic jams, including a cover of my favorite Futureheads cover of Kate Bush's "Hounds of Love." They've got electrified strings, tons of melodies to sing along to, and a completely engaging singer. Watch out.

DataRock - I thought these guys were going to be a duo with more Data, but they ended up being a quartet with more rock. Not that I, or anyone in the audience was being a stickler for details, these Norwegians had us all when we saw their matching red track suits. I had a bird's eye view on the steps of Emo's Jr. when DataRock played, and it was fascinating to see all those sweaty heads bopping up and down in coordinated unison. These guys are the perfect party band.

The Lionheart Brothers - Another stellar Norway band. If you like Serena Maneesh's swirling and shoegazing rock-outs, you will definitely be down with The Lionheart Brothers. The singer looks just like Bobby from Karate Kid (you know, the one that sweeps Daniel's leg), and he definitely knows how to lead a crowd. He crouches, he flails, and his band will one day play many big places in the States.

Marnie Stern - Guitar whiz Marnie is alone on stage with her axe and an iPod strapped to her belt. That's it. She wails her repetitive songs as she plays and it plays. It's obvious from the start that she's an awesome guitar player and a truly talented woman. It's good stuff if you can stand it.

Hot Club De Paris - This young trio sounds like they're from Chicago...in 1994. But they're from England in 2007. There's a ton of Cap'n Jazz at work here. You know those distortion-free twinkle guitar notes that slide up, down and around a driving rhythm section? These guys have that. And they were exactly what I wanted.

The Narrator - These guys really ARE from Chicago. They play the somewhat spazzy (but not TOO spazzy) rock that sounds like the reason I got into indie rock in the first place. You've got nicely placed rock-outs in the middle of mathy melodies, so what more do you need? If you like Oxford Collapse (which I do) you will also like The Narrator.

Gallows - this show was dangerous! I expected the beer bottles to start flying at any time when I was down in the pit (yeah, there was an actual pit at SXSW) watching these guys freak the hell out. One of the louder shows I've ever been to was also one of the scariest. Please don't break my nose. I just want to listen to your songs. It was great though (mostly because I made it out alive). Hot Snakes times 100.

SXSW sure was fun. But phew, I'm sure glad it's over.

Toronto's Tokyo Police Club play optimistic and twitchy pop with a beat. They say that if you were to throw Bowie, Joy Division, The Arcade Fire into a blender, you'd find the inspiration for their sound. One thing is for sure, these four guys definitely love pronounced bass lines, chants, hand-claps and rapid drums. If that's not optimism, I don't know what is.

They've been building hefty buzz as they tour Canada (btw, did you know there is a venue in London, Ontario called The Alex P. Keaton... how much does that rule?) and the States, and will continue their quest to take over the world, one addictive riff at a time. Also, be sure to check out their debut album!

U.K.'s Field Music signed to the same label as The Go! Team and are from the same neighborhood as The Futureheads and Maximo Park (in fact, Field Music member Peter Brewis was The Futurehead's original drummer, and sometime Field Music drummer Tom English is on loan from Maximo Park).

Citing influences ranging from My Bloody Valentine to Big Star to the ever-hip Stravinsky, Field Music create lush and atmospheric songs of indie-pop grandeur. Featuring falsetto harmonies, expansive keys, and Wire-like guitars, Field Music manage to merge ornate orchestration with a tad of punky spazz, all in roughly 3 minutes time. And if you listen really hard, you can sort of hear a little bit of The Shins in there, too. What more do you want?

Tokyo Police Club and Field Music play Beauty Bar Patio, on Saturday, March 17th.

These guys aren't from Japan, they're just "pretending to be Japanese," according to the chorus of their song "Photocopier." And half of their name is taken from their love of the Karate Kid. That alone makes a fan out of me.

The trio is from Brighton, England, and Pat "how come you not hurt hand" Morita and Daniel with an L aside, they're definitely down with those sweet electro samples and beats. This is fun disco-Kraut-funk that is catchy and sometimes silly (I believe I heard a "Sock it to me!" at least once).

Their influences vary from Can to Brian Eno to Sly and the Family Stone and Aphex Twin. Fujiya & Miyagi are a good time. I'd play them at a dance party if I had any friends.

Fujiya & Miyagi play SESAC Day Stage Cafe, on Saturday, March 17th.

Beach House are a Baltimore duo that play organ and reverb heavy songs that are a safe substitute for tranquilizers. Alex Scally (guitar) and Victoria Legrand (organs/vocals) write layered, down-tempo songs full of all sorts of those subtle electronic pulses that can slowly entrance and seduce the listener into taking a chilled-out trip.

Aggressive music this isn't. This isn't a rock-out, it's a space out. Beach House makes the kind of music meant for reminiscing, lava lamp gazing, and sleeping-bag star watching. Their gentle swirls will appeal to the easy-going fans of Cass McCombs, Spiritualized and Nico.

Beach House play The Tap House at Six, on Friday, March 16th.

Insound always throws killer parties. And this one is no exception. Apes and Androids, The Black Lips, Walter Meego, Shout Out Out Out Out and Pelican represent the finest line-up in the land. You can dance. You can rock. You can dance-rock. This is going to be one helluva show!

Pelican rules! Instrumental, forceful and somehow melodic, think of these Chicagoans as an angrier Mogwai, or Explosions in the Sky on Andro. Pelican play repetitious, almost trance-like, guitar riffs that steadily build into a euphoric atmosphere of hardcore noise with the most subtle trace of pretty guitar lines floating over the top. With driving, precise rhythms that tread the fine line between melody and dissonance, they ward off the instrumental band curse of monotony. And the best thing about Pelican; they're interesting.

Now this is what a live band should be: two drummers, four bass players, two samplers and five synthesizers. Toronto's Shout Out Out Out Out were one of my fav-fav-favorite bands at last year's CMJ festival. It was amazing to watch the passive crowd perk up and congregate around the stage once these guys began to play. Before I knew it, the whole place was a sweaty mess. These six dudes rock exciting and energetic electro pop. Shout Out Out Out Out relies exclusively on vocoder vocals, which reaffirms that before anyone did anything, Cher and the Transformers did everything. They have a hard-to-find record out called Not Saying, Just Saying which is nice and bouncy, but not nearly as nice and bouncy as seeing them straight from the stage.

Remember when we were talking about DataRock and Hot Chip and how they were two of the few bands that can pull off making happy electro rock? Well, silly us. We totally forgot to mention Walter Meego! We love Walter Meego! This under-the-radar Chicago duo (and sometimes trio or quartet, I guess... who knows) kicks out the seriously cheerful synth jams. There doesn't seem to be a pretentious note played in their musical repertoire (which is not easily said of an indie-dance band), and that's mighty refreshing. It seems like Walter Meego's mission is just to help you party by plugging in and going off.

Behold the grimy garage guys who call themselves The Black Lips! Straight from the swamps of Atlanta, Georgia! Vice Records' latest signing (transferred over from In the Red Records) are a raucous young band that puts on notoriously insane live shows, which often include spitting, peeing, fistfights, beer bottle smashing and setting instruments ablaze. In other words, this is just good old fashioned rock 'n' roll. They are an intensely energetic band, and it's apparent they revel in playing the part of mischievous punks. The Black Lips are for fans of The Ponys, alcohol, and New York City circa 1977.

Think David Bowie meets "Bohemian Rhapsody" meets Godspell meets Tron, and you're left with Apes and Androids. We caught these guys recently and thought we stepped straight into a rock opera. This young fearsome fivesome peppers their electro-inspired songs with four-part harmonies/chants (that's where the "Bohemian Rhapsody" comes into play) that surely sounds light-years ahead of 2007. This must be the new shit, because I've never heard anything like it before. They are a band designed to dance to, and sure enough, most people were. But they aren't all antics. Make no mistake, Apes and Androids are tight. They all rocked as one unit, led by the powerful Bowie-esque pipes of their sassy singer.

Pelican, Shout Out Out Out Out, Walter Meego, The Black Lips and Apes & Androids play Club DeVille, on Friday, March 16th.

War, global warming and general political upheaval got you down? Well, if the future of music sounds like this, there's hope for tomorrow after all! For three Thursday nights in February, you can catch NYC's Dragons of Zynth rip forth their wacked-out futuro-rock at Tonic. That's three chances to see this insanely entertaining live band. Don't strike out!

Dragons of Zynth are gaining a strong word-of-mouth following based on the strength of their crazy live shows. Not too long ago, there was a week where it seemed like everyone I talked to about music brought up Dragons of Zynth and how awesome they are. So I figured I better see what these guys are all about. I'm glad I did. These five guys put it all out there. Think of their sound as sort of synthy stoner rock from outer space. According to their bio, they take an "audio-physio-psychic" approach to music. Sounds spot-on to my ears. They are currently working on their debut album, with production help from some of the TV on the Radio guys, and will then commence in taking over the world. 2007 could very well be the year of Dragons of Zynth.

Dragons of Zynth play The Parish II, on Thursday, March 15th.

Oh My Rockness is teaming up for an insane show with the gentleman who founded the fine Oya Festival in Oslo, Norway. Don't know Oya? It's been around close to a decade and last year 45,000 people attended the 3-day event. The last couple of years everyone from Morrissey, Beck, Franz Ferdinand, Sonic Youth, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Knife, Hot Chip, Band of Horses, Wolf Parade and, well, many more amazing bands have played!

Confirmed to duel for the Norway side are: New Violators (seriously, what critic doesn't like these guys? They're going to be H-U-G-E, we tell you), Datarock (who had one of the best albums of 2006, according to NME), and The Lionheart Brothers (featuring members of Serena Maneesh and 120 Days).

Confirmed for the US of A side are: The Ponys, Cloud Cult and Ra Ra Riot (another NME favorite).

Plus, we've got the Pitchfork guys on the wheels of steel all night. You may rank their musical selections on a 0.0 - 10.0 scale if you so choose.

It's Thursday night at Emo's Jr (the center of all the action). You're seriously not going to want to miss this one.

It's Norway vs. The US of A. Who will reign victorious?

The Ponys, Datarock, The Lionheart Brothers, Cloud Cult, New Violators and Ra Ra Riot play Emo's Jr, on Thursday, March 15th.

Today is the first music day of SXSW 2007. Are you excited? We certainly are. So without further ado, let's get right to it with our first Recommended Show of the week! Check back every day as we will update this daily with a new show and a new band that Rockness thinks are "must sees."

Loney Dear, Oxford Collapse and Maps and Atlases are playing Emo's IV together. That's three great bands for the price of one (wrist) band. Here's why you should check it out.

NYC's Oxford Collapse play noisy, spazz rock that puts on emphasis on disjointed, spiky guitars, yelps and howls, tambourines, and bass-induced grooves. Fans of early Dischord stuff will see an obvious (and successful) homage to the stripped-down sound of Nation of Ulysses and Fugazi, yet Oxford Collapse also seamlessly incorporate the dancier aspects of bands like Radio 4 and Q and Not U with the "artiness" of Liars and Oneida. Your sweat will be well spent.

Sweden's Loney, Dear is Emil Svanängen and a rotating cast of his friends. Their music strikes me as a cross between the cherubic vocals of Sigur Ros, the arrangements of Sufjan Stevens, and the bittersweet optimism of Rogue Wave. There seems to be no instrument Svanängen can't play, and he records all of his manipulations straight from home. Live on stage, he sometimes has up to nine supporting musicians playing guitars, sax, drums, clarinets, keys and claps to make his grand orchestral vision a reality. Loney, Dear's latest album is called Loney, Noir and I must remember it come December when thinking about my "Best of 2007" picks.

Chicago's Maps and Atlases make music that's hard to wrap your head around. You need a map to figure out where they're going. At first they sound like Don Caballero (of the "American Don" era) with their crazy time signatures and distortion-free rock-outs, but then at other times they sound like Danielson (mostly due to the singer's voice... as far as I know, he doesn't sing in a tree, though) crossed with a masculine version of Joanna Newsom's folk-freak-outs. They've recently toured with Rahim, Matt & Kim, and These Arms are Snakes. Chicago does it again.

Oxford Collapse, Loney Dear and Maps and Atlases play Emos IV, on Wednesday, March 14th.

Portugal's X-Wife (not Portland, Portugal!) rock the explosively catchy synth punk that's a strong cross between The Rapture (they sound a lot like The Rapture actually) and LCD Soundsystem. This trio is comprised of one vocalist/guitarist, one bassist, and one synth/beat machine/drums dude. Together, they all work effectively to create dance songs that also feature well-placed rock-outs. It's not just dance, and it's not just punk. It's dance-punk!

X-Wife released two well-received albums with limited distribution, but buzz has steadily been swelling for these guys on our shores. After this current US tour and their dates at SXSW, everyone will have heard of X-Wife, just like everyone has heard of James Murray, er, Murphy. Murphy.

X-Wife play Friends, on Wednesday, March 14th.

Oh My Rockness is teaming up for an insane show with the gentleman who founded the fine Oya Festival in Oslo, Norway. Don't know Oya? It's been around close to a decade and last year 45,000 people attended the 3-day event. The last couple of years everyone from Morrissey, Beck, Franz Ferdinand, Sonic Youth, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Knife, Hot Chip, Band of Horses, Wolf Parade and, well, many more amazing bands have played!

Confirmed to duel for the Norway side are: New Violators (seriously, what critic doesn't like these guys? They're going to be H-U-G-E, we tell you), Datarock (who had one of the best albums of 2006, according to NME), and The Lionheart Brothers (featuring members of Serena Maneesh and 120 Days).

Confirmed for the US of A side are: The Ponys, Cloud Cult and Ra Ra Riot (another NME favorite).

Plus, we've got the Pitchfork guys on the wheels of steel all night. You may rank their musical selections on a 0.0 - 10.0 scale if you so choose.

It's Thursday night at Emo's Jr (the center of all the action). You're seriously not going to want to miss this one.

It's Norway vs. The US of A. Who will reign victorious?

The Ponys, Datarock, The Lionheart Brothers, Cloud Cult, New Violators and Ra Ra Riot play Emo's Jr, on Thursday, March 15th.

It's time, homey. Things are about to get loco. Bake your corned beef and boil your cabbage because it's SXSW 2007 (March 14-18). Every year thousands of post-rock pilgrims make the long treacherous trek from their respective states and countries to the magical terra firma called Austin, Texas. We go for the holy trinity: bands, beer, and Artz. We go to listen, to love, and to get free stuff. We go to see, to be seen ("hey, you're from NYC?!?! So am I!!!") and to once again visit LBJ, the talking cowboy robot. Below you will find Oh My Rockness' short list of bands you should see during this long weekend of enlightenment. If you follow our guidance, you will come out SXSW seeing some great shows and will finally be able to forgive yourself for the musical mistakes in your past.

Walter Meego
File Under: Dancey
Remember when we were talking about DataRock and Hot Chip and how they were two of the few bands that can pull off making happy electro rock? Well, silly us. We totally forgot to mention Walter Meego! We love Walter Meego! This under-the-radar Chicago duo kicks out the seriously cheerful synth jams.

Apes and Androids
File Under: Futuro
Think David Bowie meets "Bohemian Rhapsody" meets Godspell meets Tron, and you're left with Apes and Androids. This young fearsome fivesome peppers their electro-inspired songs with four-part harmonies/chants that surely sounds light-years ahead of 2006. This must be the new shit, because I've never heard anything like it before.

Shout Out Out Out Out
File Under: Dancey
Now this is what a live band should be: two drummers, four bass players, two samplers and five synthesizers. These six dudes rock exciting and energetic electro pop. Shout Out Out Out Out relies exclusively on vocoder vocals, which reaffirms that before anyone did anything, Cher and the Transformers did everything.

Pelican
File Under: Melodic Metal
Pelican rules! Instrumental, forceful and somehow melodic, think of these Chicagoans as an angrier Mogwai, or Explosions in the Sky on Andro. Pelican play repetitious, almost trance-like, guitar riffs that steadily build into a euphoric atmosphere of hardcore noise with the most subtle trace of pretty guitar lines floating over the top. They pull off the fine line between melody and dissonance, and ward off the instrumental band curse of monotony.

Matt & Kim
File Under: Happy Rock
Brooklyn's Matt and Kim are an undeniably energetic drums (Kim) and keys (Matt) duo from Brooklyn that play super tight, and super happy, toe tapping tunes. hink of their songs as the soundtrack to slow motion summer montage; grinning guys and gals engaged in silly horseplay... a water fight, maybe, full of giggles and romps through sprinklers.

Call Me Lightning
File Under: Herky Jerky
Milwaukee's Call Me Lightning employ a superbly skittish angular sound that propels this punk. But their angularity and scratchy vocal shrieks are nicely supported by melodic overtones that give these songs some feeling. In other words, you can rock and hum to this. The band's riffs sound similar to their label mates The Plastic Constellations, and you can throw in a Minutemen reference in regard to their bass lines, too.

Fujiya & Miyagi
File Under: Dancey
These guys aren't from Japan, they're just "pretending to be Japanese." The trio is from Brighton, England, and Pat "how come you not hurt hand" Morita and Daniel with an L aside, they're definitely down with those sweet electro samples and beats. This is fun disco-Kraut-funk that is catchy and sometimes silly (I believe I heard a "Sock it to me!" at least once).

Beach House
File Under: Hazy
Beach House are a Baltimore duo that play organ and reverb heavy songs that are a safe substitute for tranquilizers. Alex Scally (guitar) and Victoria Legrand (organs/vocals) write layered, down-tempo songs full of all sorts of those subtle electronic pulses that can slowly entrance and seduce the listener into taking a chilled-out trip. Aggressive music this isn't. This isn't a rock-out, it's a space out.

The Big Sleep
File Under: Rock Riffage
The Big Sleep are an NYC trio that plays driving psych-rock that sounds similar to the forever-underrated Turing Machine, or Trans Am back when they were good. This band is extremely tight on the rhythms, creating walls of stunning guitar sound backed by precise percussion. Their songs definitely get a groove going, and you can almost hear each member's pure delight at how well they can rock it with each other.

Dragons of Zynth
File Under: Futuro
This NYC band is gaining a strong word-of-mouth following based on the strength of their insane live shows. Think of their sound as sort of synthy stoner rock from outer space. According to their bio, they take an "audio-physio-psychic" approach to music. Sounds spot-on to my ears. They are currently working on their debut album, produced by Dave Sitek and Kyp Malone, their two fans/friends/touring mates from TV on the Radio.

Jesu
File Under: Melodic Metal
England's Justin K. Broadrick is the main visionary behind the dark drone-experimental psych-ROCK band Jesu. He also used to be the Godflesh guy (1990-2003), a pioneering industrial band. His new band, Jesu, is a thunderous trio that perfectly executes dynamics in song. Their sound is an epic, layered journey through steady sonic build-ups that often leads to an explosion of distorted noise. There's something both scary and sweet about the atmospheres these guys create.

The Kingdom
File Under: Eccentro-Pop
I really like The Kingdom, even if the singer's voice sounds like Dave Matthews. This new Portland band is bros with The Thermals, with whom they share a similar style of music, although with less emphasis on the punk and more emphasis on the weird. Their songs start off pretty normal and to-the-point, but then they pull out these crazy strings and piano interludes that take it in a completely different direction.

Genghis Tron
File Under: Scary
Here's what you need to know about Poughkeepsie's Genghis Tron (besides the fact that their band name rules). They scream rather than sing, they have an absolutely insane drummer (ok, it's actually a drum "machine" but why get picky), and they're really really really loud. This is a brutal band for fans of Gospel, The Locust, the old stuff on the Gravity, and those who enjoy migraine headaches.

Midlake
File Under: Pop Hearts
Texas' Midlake play super melodic electro-folk that sounds like Fleetwood Mac meets Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, meets Cass McCombs. Singer Tim Smith also gets a lot of Wayne Coyne comparisons, although he's not as warbled as that guy. Think of pick-up trucks, dusty roads and Robert Duvall, and you're left with Midlake. A very optimistic band, Midlake's breezy songs sway, slide and croon.

The Narrator
File Under: Herky Jerky
Infectious Chicagoans The Narrator play manic, Dischord-inspired post-rock punk that sounds like Trail of Dead meets Unwound meets Detachment Kit. They mix chaotic machine-gun outbursts with introspective arrangements, often abruptly and in mid-song, to create a stop-start whiplash of tracks that could best be described as "tumultuous anthems."

O'Death
File Under: Good Ol' Boys
Brooklyn's O'Death feature six members who can lead a straight-up hootenanny full of boot-stomping "goth-country" songs. These good ol' boys use fiddles, guitars, ukuleles, banjos, and trombones to get their rockin' revelry started. They list some of their influences as being "whiskey" and "Appalachian mountain music," which is very accurate, but I also hear Neil Young.

Oxford Collapse
File Under: Herky Jerky
NYC's Oxford Collapse play noisy, spazz rock that puts on emphasis on disjointed, spiky guitars, yelps and howls, tambourines, and bass-induced grooves. Fans will see an obvious (and successful) homage to the stripped-down sound of Nation of Ulysses and Fugazi, yet Oxford Collapse also seamlessly incorporate the dancier aspects of bands like Radio 4 and Q and Not U with the "artiness" of Liars and Oneida.

The Six Parts Seven
File Under: Inspirational Instrumental
This wonderfully uplifting band from Kent, OH plays easy-going instrumental music that will definitely appeal to fans of The Album Leaf, Tristeza and Saxon Shore. Six Parts Seven (on Suicide Squeeze) is the perfect band to play at work when that Excel spreadsheet is getting you down, or your emails keep getting bounced back for no reason. They'll help you chill out.

Tokyo Police Club
File Under: Happy Rock
Toronto's Tokyo Police Club play optimistic and twitchy pop with a beat. These four young guys definitely love pronounced bass lines, chants, hand-claps and rapid drums. If that's not optimism, I don't know what is. Be sure to check out their acclaimed debut album.

We Are Wolves
File Under: Dancey Spazzy
Montreal's We are Wolves is the 945th band to use that creature in the title of their band name. A full-out guitar/drum/synth attack, the band's staggering blasts are like Les Georges Leningrad's off-kilter electro tweaks crossed with Lightning Bolt's distorted vocal shouts and Suicide's guitar insanity. Feedback, danceable bass booms and lurching percussion are what make We Are Wolves such wild animals.

All these bands are playing SXSW 2007. What are you waiting for?

Being from Illinois, I know the beauty and wonderment of being a Great Lake swimmer. Is there anything more sublime than a dusk-time Lake Michigan wade in late July? Toronto's Great Lake Swimmers picked an apt name for their bittersweet alt-folk sounds of sparse nostalgia. The band creates gentle, melancholic soundscapes using acoustic and lap steel guitars, pianos, and Tony Dekker's sweetly harmonic vocals.

Their haunting music has been compared to Nick Drake, Mark Kozelek and Will Oldham. Commenting on everything from heartbreak to manic depression to spiritual transcendence, Great Lake Swimmers are cerebral and not the least bit superficial. Great Lake Swimmers play Red Eyed Fly, Saturday, March 18th.

Band of Horses' upcoming album on Sub Pop, Everything All the Time, is my extremely early favorite for Best Album of 2006. Point blank, these Seattle guys are one of the best new bands I've heard in a long time. Think Flaming Lips meets Rogue Wave meets Akron/Family. This is pretty much perfect sunshine pop that is right up there in talent with their label mates, The Shins (in fact, I might like Band of Horses even more!).

I saw them open for Iron and Wine a long while back and remember being impressed, but something clearly happened in the many months between that show and this album. Now, Band of Horses are more than just an impressive opening act. They are on their way to becoming indie super stars. Catchy. Poignant. And Awesome.

Band of Horses plays Red Eyed Fly, Friday, March 17th

You can count on Insound to throw a killer party in Austin every year. But they've never put on anything quite like their 2006 SXSW fiesta. The almost impossibly solid St. Paddy's Day line-up includes Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Serena Maneesh, Pink Moutaintops, The Boy Least Likely To and Love is All. Not only are all 5 of these bands buzzing really hard, but there's free beer and BBQ too! Plus, it's only 2 bucks to get in. God bless these guys.

NYC's Clap Your Hands Say Yeah has become the poster band for the power of online hype. Everyone pretty much now knows the story...unsigned band builds big buzz off of a few music blogs and mp3 websites. The hype continues until, seemingly all of the sudden, they are playing for David Bowie and selling out 1000+ capacity venues in the US and abroad. Of course, none of this really happened overnight (it took about three nights), but their rapid rise was attributed to seemingly everything except their talent. And the truth is these guys are talented. Sure they sound like a strange mutation of Talking Heads and Bob Dylan, but at least they don't sound like Joy Division, right? Maybe that initial hype is dying down a bit, but their songs are just getting started.

Norway's Serena Maneesh can, at times, be musically manic-depressive. Sometimes they rock high and sometimes they rock low. Most of the time, they are a purely guttural band out to slay you with their spiky guitars, dangerous rhythms, and distorted samples. But the band does have their lonely moments of reflection, incorporating sparse piano hymns, flutes and hushed, dark atmospherics, between instrumental explosions. Not too many bands can kill you with feedback AND flutes. If that's not musically manic-depressive, I don't know what is.

Pink Mountaintops is the guy from Black Mountain, who received recording help from the other members of Black Mountain. So yeah, Pink Mountaintops are sorta Black Mountain.

There's nothing that gets a party started better than glockenspiels, handclaps, recorders, banjos and synths. England's The Boy Least Likely To (how did that band name make the final cut, I wonder?) are definitely a party band, regardless if their songs have a strange preoccupation with dying young. Think of these sunshine guys as a slightly less spunky version of The Go! Team or Belle & Sebastian without the pathos. If you were going to ride on a Magic Bus somewhere warm, The Boy Least Likely To is who you should have blasting from the 8-track.

Sweden's Love is All play post-punk that prefers "fun" and "jangly" over "angst" and "gloomy." Of course you probably already know that, considering the name they chose for their band. What I hear most when listening to Love is All is The Wedding Present's strums with a happier temperament. Love is All's music defies these cynical times, making them the most optimistic of rebels.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Serena Maneesh, Pink Mountaintops, The Boy Least Likely To, and Love is All play Club Deville, Friday, March 17th.

Chicago's Chin Up Chin Up are one of those rare bands that I not only instantly liked the first moment I heard them, but also have kept me interested after all these months of spins. Many bands can be awesome once, but very few have songs with the complexity to remain in heavy rotation.

Chin Up Chin Up are just an incredibly catchy band, whose meticulously layered math-pop music sweeps you away to American Analog Set territory and beyond. The band creates an inviting wall of sound by fusing warm, clean guitar melodies and subtle synths around the "typical" time/tempo changes of a Midwest indie band, but these guys should not be lumped into any one category based on their zip code. This is something else.

The songs on Chin Up Chin Up's remarkable debut full-length, We Should Have Never Lived Like We Were Skyscrapers flow with unnatural grace, each track's transitions not only working, but also sounding as if the story couldn't unfold any other way. It's not an album where you feel the need to skip to the "good tracks." Live, the band more than brings their album to life, coaxing out an even richer, more dramatic, sound from their instruments.

The musical talent coming out of The City of Broad Shoulders seems to be finally coming out of its lull, and Chin Up Chin up is right at the forefront of reclaiming Chicago's indie glory. A good thing too, because the White Sox pitching staff can't do everything. Or can they?

Chin Up Chin Up play Emo's Jr, Thursday, March 16th

You can kill three birds with one stone (somewhere PETA is frowning) in Austin, because a few of our very favorite bands are playing together this week at the Frenchkiss/Monitor Records showcase. Phew! At least you get a few hours in one place before hustling across the highway to some other show you just know is going to be worth the trek. Frenchkiss Rahim, Thunderbirds are Now!, and The Plastic Constellations put on entirely energetic shows that will be bring some serious sass to your pants. Start your weekend early and rock these mischievously disjointed rhythms. (The Monitor portion of the show rules too! We just ran out of space!)

Headlining this friendly battle between Frenchkiss label mates is Thunderbirds are Now! Yee-haw, these guys rule! If anyone has seen these guys play, you don't need to be convinced that their live shows border on legendary. (If you saw them and didn't think so, you probably weren't drunk enough.) Detroit's TAN! play catchy keyboard rock with much help from wiry post-punk guitars, killer cowbells and even maracas. This is rhythm rock with a sly, rambunctious spirit that will get even the meekest of the meek up to dance. Ok maybe they won't get all you shy dudes to actually dance, but at the very least, they'll certainly inspire a vigorous nod of enthusiasm. Yelps, wails and struts to synths. What else do you need?

Minneapolis' The Plastic Constellations formed in 1995 when the four members were but spry, earnest 14-year-olds. They have certainly matured nicely. The band has now had over 10 years to practice their playfully quirky melodies, driven by a blazing post-punk rhythmic intensity, making for completely infectious and highly energetic live shows.

Each member shares vocal shouts in the key of atonal, and their sense of humor is always at the forefront of these spazzy songs they sing. Think of them as the Dismemberment Plan meets Modest Mouse meets Les Savy Fav. If you feel like going to a show that's "fun," but not so fun as to be a "joke band," The Plastic Constellations may be exactly what you're looking for. Yeah, I know we at Oh My Rockness talk about Rahim ALL THE TIME, but what can we do? Our hands our tied on this one... if you come across a band on whose music you can depend, you must recommend. Rahim is hands-down one of our favorite new bands. Think melodic, art-pop similar to Afghan Whigs meets Les Savy Fav meets a dash of D.C. Dischord. Rahim have tremendously strong melodies supported by a plastic-whistle-blowing drummer, a keyboardist/bassist/sometime drummer, and a guitarist/vocalist who spins his clever web of words into something that actually rocks. It's refreshing to see a band live who are actually into what they're playing, and excited about being on stage. If you guys have fun up there, we have fun down here. And Rahim shows are always fun. Get there early and see them rock out. They're seriously better than Hirickey's chicken pad thai.

Thunderbirds are Now!, The Plastic Constellations and Rahim play Soho Lounge, Thursday, March 16th

Holy show, where did the year ago? It's hard to believe it's SXSW time again! It seems like only yesterday Bloc Party and The Go! Team took over this town (I think they seriously played like 474 shows each). We also discovered Elijah Wood was an indie rocker (who knew?), and we got obliterated on Shiner Bocks at the Crown & Anchor. But twelve months pass fast, and it's once again madness, baby. It's as overwhelming as always to figure out which bands to see (you can't see them all, no matter how cocky you are that you can), so we've made a little concentrated list to help you focus. You will miss plenty of shows, just don't miss these.

Animal Collective
Perhaps a more spiritual, but just as innovative, version of their friends Black Dice, NYC's Animal Collective take a cerebral approach to the craft of fucking shit up. A collective in the truest sense (they have so many shifting members if they all got together they would have to tour in Noah's boat), Animal Collective play experimental psychedelic folk that is anything but ordinary. This band takes fragments of sound, twists them up and ties them together to create beautiful pop melodies you've never heard before. Their live show slays!

Arctic Monkeys
Here we go again... another "hot," "hip," "hype," "retro," "art-rock," "dance" band from the UK that listened to a lot of Wire and Gang of Four. Now, I know it's probably not their fault (is it?) that they have a sound that's been blasting across the Atlantic ad nauseum these last couple of years (with emphasis on the "ad"... did anyone hear Franz Ferdinand piping out of the World Series promos? How about Bloc Party in the Target spot?), but I can't help but wonder why we need another one of these bands to listen to? But I guess they are pretty catchy... and today, that's all a band seems to need to be.

Art Brut
Art Brut are a somewhat ironic "art-wave" band from London. These guys place special emphasis on the comedic elements of the "I'm in a band" scene. That's not to say these guys are a "joke band" (*shudder*). They are very serious about making songs that actually do rock. But they allow themselves to see the inherent folly of it all, which is mighty refreshing. These three-chord staccato songs have a strange, simple brilliance to them. And while they aren't reinventing the wheel by incorporating self-aware smarminess with rock, they definitely do it delightfully well.

Band of Horses
Band of Horses' upcoming album on Sub Pop, Everything All the Time, is my extremely early favorite for Best Album of 2006. Point blank, these Seattle guys are one of the best new bands I've heard in a long time. Think Flaming Lips meets Rogue Wave meets Akron/Family. This is pretty much perfect sunshine pop that is right up there in talent with their label mates, The Shins (in fact, I might like Band of Horses even more!).

Bound Stems
Chicago's Bound Stems have been compared to a weirder Walkmen, The Arcade Fire (ehhhh, possibly), and even the Dead Milkmen (which would definitely light up the eyes of Rockness' own, Claire Freeman. She loves that band for some reason). This band is further proof that a musical Renaissance is happening in Chicago. Even Paul Konerko resigned from the White Sox because he's such a big fan of these guys.

The Boy Least Likely To
If you're gonna name your album, "The Best Party Ever," then you damn well better bring it. And bring it this U.K. duo does. Strangely, this "party" band sings a lot about death. Yee haw! There's nothing like reflecting on ones own mortality to put you in a festive, merrymaking mood. But these two do it with such whimsy; you can't help but smile, even if we're all going to die.

Chin Up Chin Up
Chicago's Chin Up Chin Up are an incredibly catchy band, whose meticulously layered math-pop music sweeps you away to American Analog Set territory and beyond. They create an inviting wall of sound by fusing warm, clean guitar melodies and subtle synths around the "typical" time/tempo changes of a Midwest indie band. But these guys should not be lumped into any one category based on their zip code. This music is something entirely else.

Field Music
U.K.'s Field Music cite influences ranging from My Bloody Valentine to Big Star to the ever-hip Stravinsky. They create lush and atmospheric songs of indie-pop grandeur, which feature falsetto harmonies, expansive keys, and Wire-like guitars. Field Music manage to merge ornate orchestration with a tad of punky spazz, all in roughly three minutes time. And if you listen really hard, you can sort of hear a little bit of The Shins in there, too. What more do you want?

Great Lake Swimmers
Is there anything more sublime than a dusk-time Lake Michigan wade in late July? Toronto's Great Lake Swimmers picked an apt name for their bittersweet alt-folk sounds of sparse nostalgia. The band creates gentle, melancholic soundscapes using acoustic and lap steel guitars, pianos, and Tony Dekker's sweetly harmonic vocals. Their haunting music has been compared to Nick Drake, Mark Kozelek and Will Oldham.

The Juan Maclean
You probably know John (Juan) Maclean from the seminal indie-electro band, led by his pal James Murphy, Six Finger Satellite. His latest band, (somewhat) bearing his own name, is on Murphy's DFA label, and sonically falls nicely within the label's now-patented dance-jam genre, albeit with a little less punk (but plenty of cowbells). The Juan Maclean relies on building rhythmic tension through repetition, incorporating heavy synths, big bass sounds, and pulsating beats (both machine- and man-made). Seeing this band live is much more of a rockin' experience than listening to them on disc. On stage they're more spazzy, like LCD Soundsystem, while on tape they're a little more mechanical, like Kraftwerk. These guys play long songs and could very well be the jam band for people who hate jam bands.

Mogwai
Holy shit, I love this band. I love them, I love them, I love them. Going to a Mogwai show reminds me of how I felt when I went to shows in high school. [Cut to me as a 17-year old, listening to the electric pulse of some emo band, and exclaiming with a transcendent shout, "Who cares what I got on the math test, life is bigger than grades, man!"] When Mogwai hits the distortion pedal mid-song and erupts into a fireball of emotion, I feel like I'm closer to knowing my place in this grand world (which obviously doesn't include math). Have you heard their new album? It's piano heavy. Mogwai playing pianos?! What a world.

The Organ
The organ (the instrument) that The Organ (the band) heavily incorporates into their sound gives them a bit of a The Cure/Joy Division/80's feel. And certainly this Vancouver group's sense of melancholy would fit nicely with Robert Smith and Ian Curtis's preoccupation with that emotion. But don't lump The Organ in with all those rip-off retro bands. Though inspired by the past, the band writes clearly original music. And they also happen to be really, really good.

Pink Mountaintops
Pink Mountaintops are shrouded in secrecy. Are they Black Mountain or are they not? They sure sound like Black Mountain. They look like Black Mountain. But no one will really say what the true difference between these two bands is. One thing is for sure, if you like Black Mountain's psych-rock-metal, you'll definitely be down with the Pink Mountaintops.

Plastic Constellations
Minneapolis' The Plastic Constellations formed in 1995 when the four members were but spry, earnest 14-year-olds. They have certainly matured nicely. The band has now had over 10 years to practice their playfully quirky melodies, driven by a blazing post-punk rhythmic intensity, making for completely infectious and highly energetic live shows. Think of them as the Dismemberment Plan meets Modest Mouse meets Les Savy Fav.

Psychic Ills
NYC's Psychic Ills (who always seem to be touring with The Double) incorporate soaring space rock, psychedelica, and drone with the ferocious rhythms of punk rock. While their dark electronics can sometimes fall into the "spooky" genre (spooky = silly sometimes), these guys make up for it when they let their guitars rip. Go to their show and be pleasantly prepared for a very big sound.

Rahim
Rahim is hands-down one of our favorite new bands. Think spazzy (but not so spazzy it's annoying), hard, art-pop similar to Afghan Whigs meets a little bit of Fugazi. Rahim have tremendously strong melodies supported by a plastic-whistle-blowing drummer, handclaps, and an unlimited supply of energy. It's refreshing to see a band that is actually into what they're playing. Because if you have fun up there, we have fun down here. And Rahim shows are always fun. Leave the mopey vocalists and sneaker watcher strummers to someone else; we'll take yelps and shakes any day.

Serena Maneesh
Norway's Serena Maneesh are a purely guttural band out to slay you with their spiky guitars, dangerous rhythms, and distorted samples. They have been compared to wall-of-noise bands like Sonic Youth and The Jesus and Mary Chain, mixed with the grand orchestration of Sigur Ros and M83. They even had their friend Sufjan Stevens play the flute and marimba on their latest self-titled album. Not too many bands can kill you with feedback AND flutes.

Sybris
Sybris is a Chicago quartet that fuses the art rock of the 80s with the melodic punkness of 2005. Their press kit quotes My Bloody Valentine, Pixies, Belly(?) and Swervedriver as musical ancestors, but really what we're talking about here is the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Perhaps they conveniently forgot about those guys, so as not to risk being pigeonholed as, well, "just like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs." But they really do rock, no matter how original their sound is.

Test Icicles
Test Icicles have a terribly silly (or is it just terrible?) name, but one shouldn't always judge a band by their moniker. A young (2 of the 3 members are still teenagers), spazzy screamo group from the U.K., Test Icicles sound like The Blood Brothers meets Death From Above 1979. With gyrating bass lines, squealing guitars and distorted vocals, Test Icicles appeal to both the punk kids and the club kids (an increasingly blurry line of distinction these days).

Thunderbirds are Now!
Detroit's Thunderbirds Are Now! play catchy keyboard rock with much help from killer cowbells and maracas. This is sassy rhythm rock with a sly, rambunctious spirit that will get even the meekest of the meek up to dance. Plus, these guys stage dive. They have been compared to Talking Heads and the Pixies, but since they're on Frenchkiss Records, you might as well throw in their whole roster, too. This show shall be all rowdy and shit.

Two Gallants
San Francisco's Two Gallants are one helluva band to see live precisely because you aren't quite sure what you're seeing. Is it alt-country? Is it garage-blues? Is it punk? Is it Irish folk? One thing you're sure of is that singer Adam Stephenson and drummer Tyson Vogel are almost disturbingly talented. The duo rhythmically duel with each other, creating both angry and heartfelt drunken tales that make you want to stomp your boot on the floor and raise your beer towards the skies. This music is poetry.

Wolfmother
Wolfmother sounds a whole lot like Led Zeppelin meets Black Sabbath. So this must mean they are the most awesome band on the face of the planet. Ok, so they aren't exactly up to par with Zeppelin and Sabbath, but boy they sure rock like them. This is classic rock through and through. It's not even like their sound borrows some elements of classic rock. They take 100%. IÕm not positive, but I'm pretty sure these guys found a telephone booth time machine and came here straight from the year 1969.

The SXSW Music Festival runs from Wednesday, March 15th, through Sunday, March 19th.

Rahim is hands-down one of our favorite new bands. Think spazzy (but not so spazzy it's annoying), hard, art-pop similar to Afghan Whigs meets Les Savy Fav meets a little bit of Fugazi. Rahim have tremendously strong melodies supported by a plastic-whistle-blowing drummer, handclaps, and an unlimited supply of energy.

It's refreshing to see a band that is actually into what they're playing. Because if you have fun up there, we have fun down here. And Rahim shows are always fun. Leave the mopey vocalists and sneaker watcher strummers to someone else; we'll take yelps and shakes any day. We can't wait for their debut on Frenchkiss so we can spazz out with them too, albeit in the privacy of our own apartment. (Sadly, we're too shy to shake it at Sin-e.)

Catch Rahim at SXSW 2006!