I’ve been mildly obsessed with this band since running across them at a SXSW. A tolerance for the imperfectability of live music is an accepted part of SXSW, and really live music viewing in general. This just didn’t apply for this band. They were slick as all hell, fancy and big – and I just loved them. It wasn’t just for all that, but also because they managed to combine 70s anthem rock with disco bass beats, and some serious light strobe action. It was a welcome relief from being indie sympathetic. So I’ve tracked this band’s live shows as I’ve tracked no others, but haven’t managed to see them when I was in Austin, in Colorado (of course), or even in Houston because they were touring so much. Turned out, my visit with Austin coincided with their visit with Austin. And then I really got to know the band. First impression: they share a lot of similarities with Chili Cold Blood, another Austin band I love for their heavy grooves and proggy funk. My music partner that night, WomanInCharge, pointed out that they sounded like the Allman Brothers, which upset me, because I was avoiding jam band music after my recent Colorado stint, but I realized she was absolutely right. This band was Southern rock (nothing wrong with that) and jam band. In fact, this explained my initial attraction to the band, because I cannot deny that I listen to southern rock when I’m alone in my closet. But this band went two ways. Sometimes, they were way too poppy and Black Keys, with their audience of pot smoking I’m-on-my-big-night-out-outside-of-tech-work audience, and then they’d draw on Led Zeppelin and be stoner excellent. They also have an electronica persona, very similar to Ghostland Observatory, as WomanInCharge correctly observed. In all, I feel conflicted about his band, which fits exactly with ThinLizzyLover’s observation from SXSW that he both loved and hated this band.

This band looked like your typical low-key rockabilly band except for the guy with a pleasingly sleazy 70s look (he turned out to be visiting from Austin). Nick Gaitan was on the upright bass, because Nick Gaitan is in every band in this town. Rockboy was overcome with joy when they launched into classic rockabilly (Setzer-esque, Reverend Horton Heat-esque), but was in the depths when they strayed into a more straightforward rock n roll sound. It was nearly southern rock. Some blues too. The bass was a beautiful looking instrument. As he does at many shows, Rockboy spent most of the time grumbling because they weren’t playing rockabilly and trying to determine whether the guitar was a Gretsch (per Rockboy, it was a guitar that sounds like a Gretsch but looks like a Gibson Les Paul – it was unclear to me why this was important information). Some bands can pull off a lack of identity, but this band didn’t.

[Nashville, TN] we saw them last year and liked them enough to see them again – ghoulish wailing swamp punk – they were a little messy but I think that’s the point

[Austin, TX] nooo!!! – if I’d known they were local, I wouldn’t have allowed this stop – as it turns out, they were one of my top three bands of SXSW 2011 (yay Austin!): everything good about the 70s – and they must have emerged from the womb arena rockers, because I swear the lights got brighter the second they came on stage – they started with a slow southern rocker but pretty quickly shifted into very very exciting disco rock – they were slick and sexy – kind of remind me of Chili Cold Blood now that I think of it, though bigger and prettier – ThinLizzyLover: “I hate them and like them”

I don’t necessarily follow this band but they definitely stood out amongst the masses of current indie bands – two effortlessly remembered songs (“Cowbell” and “In Houston”) … and Rockboy was made to go… and they happily turned out to be much better than I expected – all krispy flaky guitar and bass: crisp, fast, and rich – they’re less indie and more dance-y southern rock funk – they’ve got character and soul – guess I will have to be a follower now

so Rockboy billed this band as a fantastic garage rock band he’d discovered at a previous SXSW – this didn’t really fit what I found online about them but I had faith – uh, well, not at all – they’re a mix of all of my guilty music pleasures: The Eagles, Tom Petty, The Beach Boys, Cracker, Jackson Browne – his voice was very David Lowery at times, which is definitely a plus for me – they were a tight bundle of country psych, jam rock, and southern rock – they made me intensely homesick for California and for long desert highways and for the 70s (even if all of these are ½ fantasy memories of mine) – they are from San Francisco – so their sound wasn’t necessarily anything new, but their sound was smooth and full and they came off as strikingly professional

three average guys singing average songs, mellow jammy singer/songwriter with a country tone, reminded me of Songs: Ohia but less fabulous of course, some Neil Young, the interesting thing was that they acted as the house band for the night, playing on the window stage while the other bands were setting up, very classy of the Hole

former member of The Weary Boys, a band that never impressed me as much as they did the general Austin populace – I wasn\”t feeling moved by this incarnation until I realized I really liked them, I did – they\”re founded in harmless country rock but there\”s just enough Southern rock and jam band posturing to make them just up my alley

[Nashville, TN] hard tight punk “n” roll with a swampy influence – great

so here’s the story – I came to love one song (“Good Bye Mary Lou”), a punkish bluegrass song, by this no-name band called Angels of Light and propagated it through all mixes therewith – I had a vague notion of Akron/Family but didn’t know they’d been the backing band for Angels of Light until I read their show bio – the show bio also mentioned Michael Gira as the lead singer of Angels of Light which got Rockboy excited because he knew him as the lead singer of the Swans – anyway, we went to this show because of a string of distant associations – I was mostly pleased and the anti-anything-remotely-psychedelic Rockboy was not – they are in essence a jam band, tapping such a wide variety of sounds that I characterize them officially as a schizophrenic band – they literally have no distinguishing characteristic which, even if I am a girl who loves variety, may not be a good thing for a band looking to make a name for themselves – they began with a song that made me love them: a more psychedelic Songs: Ohia (melancholy folk) – suddenly it was thrash which firstly is a signature move of this generation (to intersperse loveliness with hardness) and secondly seemed an misguided attempt to prove they’re not soft or that they’re hip to all aspects of our culture – but in sum, it didn’t sound good and it didn’t sound organic – they then proceeded into the other tagsound of this generation of music, Afro pop, which they did very well, reminding me of Paul Simon – in the end, I believe that they will return, if they want to endure, to the sounds that are their strength: very pretty and sophisticated pop – if it matters, they dress like 70s road hippies with t-shirts and bandanas which seemed to me a lame attempt to suggest campfire jams

was prepared to hate this band because of previous experience with their ignorant insensitive lyrics – the ZZ Top biker look is consistent across the band members with their ratty long goatees -some mix of speed metal, sludge metal, and Southern rock – had some slow dirges and ended with a blues number – their hyped up stuff was my favorite – vocals were annoying and they lacked creativity but I can\”t say I hated them -they\”re excellent musicians – believe one of the band members is the sound guy at The Continental Club

The Indigo Girls came to Boston for a brisk two-hour set that covered their career of classic tracks and the full breadth of their new album Poseidon and the Bitter Bug. The Indigo Girls have polished their performance to the point that their songs stand as a testament in their own right, even stripped of all the flash of the full band performance like on the heavenly version of The Wood Song. Backed only by Julie Wolf on keyboards, accordion and vocals, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers scorched the stage with their trademark vocals and gospel harmonies. The crowd embraced old and new songs, lending their voices to Power of Two and an enthusiastic rendition of Closer to Fine (one verse of which was given to opener Lucy Roche who couldn’t compete in personality or stage presence with Ray or Saliers). The highlights included a jam on Shame on You that brought the crowd to their feet, and the live debut of the scorching ballad True Romantic to lead off the encore.

Indigo Girls setlist
Love of Our Lives
Sugar Tongue
Fill It Up Again
Dairy Queen
Power of Two
Driver Education
What Are You Like
Reunion
Run
Yield
Get Out the Map
Shame On You
Fleet of Hope
Moment of Forgiveness
Digging for Your Dream
Ghost of the Gang
The Wood Song
Second Time Around
I’ll Change
Land of Canaan
Closer to Fine (w/Lucy Roche)
Encore
True Romantic
Galileo

people in the bar were excited for this band – I categorized them as some crazy mix of Southern rock and metal – they also had a distinctively 80s metal sound to me, i.e., they were technically good but not my style – they even threw in a bit of old-school screamo – their conversations with the audience were entirely cuss words – maybe Motorhead?

I haven’t stopped giggling at this band yet. They fit (almost) every caricature of an 80s ‘heavy’ metal band. CAUTIONARY: This may be more a reflection of my age and personal bias than the actual quality of this band. Drummer with a red bandana singing in a quasi-screamo but totally 80s metal growl. They’re basically a hard rock, driving hard, metal-hard, with touches of Lynyrd Skynyrd and some real blues grooves. While the guitarist in the camouflage baseball cap was incongruous and cute, the bassist member was Will-Ferrell-as-a-metal-head incarnate, with the grandiose swagger and smirks and an upswung arm in some pagan salute at the end of each song, plus a cheesy haircut and goatee to boot. They were old (mid-40s) and the crowd was too. The girls, sorry women, were embarrassing me and should have been embarrassing themselves with their obvious efforts at behaving like metal groupies… at the age of 47… Oh! And there were some devil horns thrown too!

not as dirty (“music for the unwashed and well-read” as they say) as I remembered them “darling curly haired middle-aged member still smoked on stage but nobody else did” think the vision I have of them all living together in a trailer in a incessant jam session is just that (a vision), easy to pick out the member who sang on the cover of Gin and Juice with his highish irreverent voice, had them classified in my head as hard bluegrass but totally inaccurate, covered a huge range of styles on a generally “rootsy” (as they said) foundation, started off with strong twinges of Cajun but depending on who sang veered toward British invasion, Southern rock, etc. etc., they’re a more countrified Grateful Dead, you should know that guitars, mandolins, bass, accordions, keyboards, drums, fiddles, banjos, lap steels are employed

In contrast to The National, Modest Mouse grabbed your attention and did their part as a solid warm up for R.E.M. Yet another six man band with two drum kits and an energetic lead singer, Issac Brock, who didn’t so much sing as spew the words. He also played guitar with his teeth. The band sounds like the product of The Presidents of the United States of America and Stone Temple Pilots. In fact, can’t you hear STP doing a really dirty version of Peaches?

The highlight was a slow, rolling version of The Good Times Are Killing Me. The band famously includes Johnny Marr, he of Smiths fame (assuming you’re old enough to appreciate that in any discernible way.) I zoned out for long stretches of their set, which in my opinion, started to drag towards the end. But to their credit (or perhaps less so to mine) much of the crowd was enthusiastically into it.

the alter ego of Chili Cold Blood (more country and less funk) but not as different as expected, still slick fast and electric, lots of Southern rock flavor, I really like these guys no matter what band they are for the night

fantastic, their sound had a roundness and polish that you don\”t often hear in live music, lots of energy, diversity of sounds revolving around hopped-up rock country, from garage to psychedelia, very energetic show with lots of appealing personalities, I think there were two exchanging vocalist duty, stilly-moustached keyboard player, and a guitar player who kept leaping up to the microphone to yell out punk references, if all of that wasn\”t enough they claim Jay Reatard, Gun Club and Lee Hazlewood as influences

adored their sound-the way blues rock ought to be done, the music made the lot of skinny boys sexy boys, lots of southern flavor, reminded me of that movie Black Snake Moan, good drums and slide, “Black Ass Woman” is the song to start with

a country rocker in a backwards baseball cap with a lot of cool posing, apparently a god to the glam-country set because the girls could barely take time away from the show to pee, did a lot of bad covers

this really disturbing lead singer, not an ounce of pretension, wearing a white v-neck sweater with trim on the neck and cut-off sleeves with a vest, sizeable nose, seemed an excellent guitar player, couldn\”t quite put my finger on music genre, quality but not really interesting, little swampy maybe?

didn\”t want to go, didn\”t want to go, typically a venue for country/blues for the 40-something set and 45 minutes out of Austin, DrummingNeighbor did research for me and said that he\”s got a great voice (truck commercial style) but that his songs are constructed on the country standard (not so great), he was good, too much of the Stevie Ray Vaughn Texas blues but sometimes would noodle in very pleasing southern rock manner, everything was gravelly (voice, guitar) and high quality

So there are very few bands that could get me to come out for a concert on a “12 Days of Christmas Tour” but Sister Hazel just happens to be one of them. Sister Hazel’s last radio hit (well, only radio hit) “All for You” was 10 years ago, but the band has active with tours and new albums despite the lack of mainstream support, including their first holiday album Santa’s Playlist. In 2000, I saw them at a fans-only radio show at Sunset Station Casino in Las Vegas and I was blown away. The four guys Ken Block, Andrew Copeland, Jett Beres and Ryan Newell (along with drummer Mark Trojanowski) all sing vocals and their harmonies are transcendent. Their musicianship is stellar and I almost thought, almost thought they could pull off a Christmas show that I would enjoy.

Rock versions of Christmas songs, and lots of them, but Sister Hazel found a balance between their southern rock roots and unique interpretations of traditional Christmas tunes. They brought a unique flavor to “White Christmas” (a full reggae version and an acappella version during a stunning rendition of “River”) and a convincing bluegrass rendition of “The Dreidel Song” which prompted Block and Copeland to trade “Dueling Banjos” briefly. Christmas Time Again became a rollickin’ tongue-in-cheek rap song complete with Beres in fully blinged Santa Claus gear.

A orchestra and choir from the South Shore Conservatory were on stage for a number of songs. For most, the strings and the choir were completely drowned out but occasionally, the effect hit home, particularly on “Silent Night” and “O Holy Night” which became heavenly gospel numbers. I got the impression that the orchestral version of a song like “Champagne High” might have been something to hear, except that there was no discernible effect. You saw them playing but it was the band that you heard.

A prerecorded version of “Twas the Night Before Christmas” (mixed with the strain of “Jingle Bells”) played during brief interludes and the show closed out with the studio version of “There’s Something in the Air (At Christmas)” which sounded like it was sung by the Chipmunks (on the album, it’s a choir of children.) Copeland’s mic went out during “One Little Christmas Tree” and again during “Please Come Home for Christmas” and again at the opening of “Run Rudolph Run” which prompted him to observe that somebody didn’t want Sister Hazel to sing the songs he chose for Santa’s Playlist. Whatever. Even the technical problems didn’t ruin the night.

The four college students in the row in front of me were so disturbingly drunk even before Sister Hazel started their set, that I almost walked out. I was boxed into my seat, and thus privy to my own little sideshow of drunken dirty dancing. It only ruined one song, “Change Your Mind” which is actually one of my hands down favorite Sister Hazel songs. But to my pleasant surprise, all of the non-holiday songs on the setlist were among my favorites, so it turned out to be a great night for that, too.

Sister Hazel 12 Days of Christmas Setlist
Twas the Night before Christmas (intro)
Merry Christmas Baby
Little Drummer Boy
Change Your Mind
One Little Christmas Tree
Happy Birthday to You
White Christmas
Twas the Night before Christmas (interlude)
River / White Christmas
Silent Night (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
The Dreidel Song
Your Winter (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
Please Come Home for Christmas (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
It’s a New Year (Just Get Along)
Twas the Night before Christmas (interlude)
Run Rudolph Run
Happy
All For You
Twas the Night before Christmas (interlude)

1st Encore
Christmas Time Again
Your Mistake (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
Champagne High (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
I’ll Be Home for Christmas (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
Twas the Night before Christmas (interlude)

2nd Encore
O Holy Night (w/ South Shore Conservatory)
There’s Something in the Air (At Christmas)

pure Southern rock: Lynyrd Skynyrd reincarnated, all three of the guitarists had annoying habit of gripping cigarette in lips continuously while playing – too young to act so depraved plus I saw the Christian cross around Jason\”s neck, appealing accent – they\”re all from Alabama, wasn\”t sure I liked them until they proved their guitar mettle, knew Jason was from Drive-By Truckers but was overcome with joy when they did my favorite song from them about staying true to your roots and not singing with a fake British accent, very enjoyable band, have that country singer knack for telling a story

Mostly exciting because set up on a piece of cardboard being pulled by a truck — inventive way to participate in South by Southwest? Seemed a good band as well — young, psychedelic. Experimental says Rockboy.

Texas trash metal. Liked their hick metal facial hair. Too much for my out-of-town visitors, I think.

the songs I\”ve downloaded cracked me up, they are still appealing (love their homestate of Florida) but are more typical Southern swamp music than I expected, good at it though

swear it was the sound guy from Continental Club I always adore, confirmedly the bassist from Butthole Surfers (JD Pinkus), those trashy goatee beards-glorifying the cursedness of being southern white trash, was enjoying their humor and speedy hard rock but then sang a song called “Don’t put your dick in me”-too genuine honky for me, read an article later that said they were attacked by lesbians after a show who “mistakenly” thought they were homophobic

Texas rock, I think he’s famous?

supposedly country for the thinking man, from Athens, GA

Counting Crows choose mostly their best known songs for the set, and they performed with gusto. Having always been kind of a passive fan of theirs, I really wasn’t expecting to be blown away. In the first twenty minutes, they played “Mr. Jones” and Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” – my two Crow favorites, and I started to wonder if the rest of the set was going to be a bomb.

But actually not. Counting Crows have played together forever, and that kind of synergy defines quality. They eschewed most of their slower material, and that translated into a vigorous, lively set. And they played songs I recognized, always good for a few points on the enjoyment meter. All my worrying was for nothing, they are simply an awesome live band. They ripped through versions of “Rain King” and “American Girls” and gave a bittersweat extended version of “Round Here” complete with a five minute invasion of Van Morrison’s “Sweet Thing.” The two songs blended seamlessly into each other and this was easily the highlight of the whole evening. Even “Hanginaround,” which is by far the most painful tripe in their singles catalog, was performed with style. They invited the opening act, Stew, to take a verse on “Hanginaround.”

Counting Crows Setlist
Rain King
Hard Candy
Mr. Jones
Big Yellow Taxi
Miami
Black And Blue
St. Robinson In His Cadillac Dream
Omaha
Round Here / Sweet Thing
American Girls
Hanginaround
Encore
Goodnight LA
A Long December

tight fast rockabilly-quite good actually, lead singer is the main attraction-a massive burly man in semi-drag (colorful cowboy hat and glitter and streamers over tight black pants and black t-shirt-oh and flaming platform boots) scream-roaring the entire time, he’d ocassionally break into a gay dance, made stupid obscene jokes and ordered shots of Jaegermaiester but wasn’t impressive after the antics of previous band