Thursday, March 16. At this point, most of us have been tackling SXSW for almost a week. Chug a Redbull or two, because there are still so many sleepless nights to be had.
On Thursday, there’s one place you want to be: Banger’s Sausage House and Beer Garden for night two of StubHub’s showcase. Let’s discuss.
Seattle’s heavy pop act Dude York is kicking off the day. Dude York will be treasured by fans of Diet Cig and Japandroids. Their distorted, frustrated, anxiety-ridden rock will jolt you awake much faster than 2 p.m. your cold brew coffee. Peter Richards, Claire England, and Andrew Hall’s sophomore album Sincerely dropped on February 24, so expect to hear a lot of new loudness.
Chi Town's Ne-Hi (clever name) will also take the StubHub stage on Thursday. Already spotlighted by Stereogum and NPR, Noisey went ahead and called the quartet the “nicest boys in the midwest.” The band formed in 2013-- after Jason Balla, Mikey Wells, James Weir, and Alex Otake were invited to score a friend’s film. Their fuzzy, garage rock sounded too good to be contained.
StubHub has built a smart lineup-- Ne-Hi is similar to Twin Peaks, Meatbodies, and Dude York. If you dig this midwest, indie-rock sound, come early and stay all day.
At 6 p.m., gears begin to switch. NOLA’s experimental soul artist Pell is working with Federal Prism-- founded and operated by TV On The Radio producer Dave Sitek. Pell’s near spoken poetry has been showcased on stages at Lollapalooza and Reeding & Leeds. Pell has released two albums to date, Floating While Dreaming and LIMBO. Both are chock full of insightful lyrics and beats tucked behind memorable titles like “Queso,” “Sandlot,” and “Dollar Store.” I am personally a fan of Pell’s handles across social-- @PellYeah.
And the heavy hitters for the evening? Just bossbabes Bleached, impossible to miss Sofi Tukker, the dreamy pop sounds of Electric Guest, and BANKS.
You know what to do. Get in line early, and grab a beer as soon as you get in the door. Stake out some perfect stage real estate and don’t move. It’s going to be a great show.
