SXSW day six: It starts with softball and ends with star power

It's been my custom to play shortstop for the Mixed Media Mongrels in the SXSW Softball Tournament under coach Stephen Easley since 2004. I had to miss SXSW last year, so it was good to catch up with the friends I've made on the team, and we've had some good runs in past years.

This wasn't one of them, however. We were okay defensively, but couldn't get the bats going. I batted first and hit two singles before flying out to right field in the last inning, but never made it past second base. It was a single loss elimination tournament, and we went down 8-3. But troubles were drowned with a can of free beer and lots of free food, including cole slaw, potato salad, beans, sausage, chicken, chipped beef, ribs and brisket.

I got back to the condo, washed up and changed, grabbed a tin of Guinness for the walk and made my way to the Continental Club to meet Craig Laskey, who had gone earlier and picked me up a $20 ticket for a very special edition of Alejandro Escovedo's annual Sunday concert with a number of his friends. It's not an official SXSW event, but it's a tradition that I finally took part in for the first time.

Things got underway at 1:30 p.m. with sets by Frank Mustard Project, Krayolas, Triple Cobra, Kris Gruen and The Bombettes before I arrived just before 5 p.m. The adrenaline from earlier in the day had disappeared, and Craig and I commandeered two bar stools behind the club where we could still hear things but could rest our weary bones for a while since we had a long night ahead of us. But Maren Parusen and John Velghe sounded okay from a distance.

We moved inside and propped ourselves against the bar for Miss Melvis, and then I started paying more attention once Jesse Malin hit the stage at 7 p.m. The performance was highlighted by "San Francisco," "Burning The Bowery," "Black Haired Girl" (which has similarities to Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl") and "Revelations." He ended with a cover of The Clash's "Death Or Glory" that was nowhere near as good as the original, but an excellent choice nevertheless.

The male/female guitar and drums duo The Ghost Wolves was up next and the first song was an alternative blues number that I didn't mind, but the woman's high-pitched voice quickly got on my nerves and the end of the set didn't come soon enough for almost everyone in the rapidly filling club.

Garland Jeffreys played one of my favourite sets of the week when I saw him earlier in the week, and the repertoire was pretty similar in this one with the same sharp Austin musicians, but it lacked a bit of vibrancy. But he's almost 25 years older than me, so I can understand why, considering I was feeling pretty wiped out. But he walked up and introduced himself before his set, and we had a brief conversation after it, and was pleased he was so nice since I've always respected him and his music.

Tommy Stinson

Former Replacements and current Guns N' Roses bassist Tommy Stinson (who's also had shorter runs with Bash and Pop, Perfect and as a solo artist) was up next and opened with new solo album title track "One Man Mutiny" with just him on acoustic guitar accompanied by a slide player. They were then joined by a guitarist, bassist, drummer and Stinson's wife, who looked much better than she sang.

"Zero to Stupid" featured impressive lap steel and was followed by "Match Made in Hell." Stinson switched to bass partway through the set for more rocking tunes. It was good, but I'd still to prefer to see him with The Replacements one more time.

Mike Barfield

I'd never heard of Barfield, The Tyrant of Texas Funk, so took a brief respite on a padded bench by the mercy table, but went out to our perch beside the stage once I realized how good the group sounded. Mike Barfield is an entertaining frontman and his bandmates were all fine players. These guys combine to make a great party band, but I doubt they'll ever venture up to Canada.

Kid Congo Powers -- who cut his teeth as a guitarist with The Gun Club, The Cramps and Nick Cave's Bad Seeds before fronting The Pink Monkey Birds -- played a completely entertaining set that showcased his guitar skills and quirky lyrics. The frontman was justifiably smiling throughout songs including "I Found A Peanut," "Rare As The Yeti," "Golden Brown" (which he stressed wasn't The Stranglers number of the same name), "Black Santa," "Bubble Trouble" "LSDC" and covers of The Cramps' "I'm Cramped" and The Gun Club's "For The Love of Ivy." The club was packed with about 200 people, but some still managed to dance despite the tight quarters.

Kid Congo Powers

The main attraction, Escovedo and lots of guest stars, took the stage at 12:30 a.m. You can read about that amazing set in my Spinner review.

Money spent on food during six days and nights of SXSW: $8.

SXSW day five: old and new acts make for a great night

I had work to do through the morning and early afternoon, but planned on heading to the South Congress and South First area of Austin for some bands I'd already seen this week but would be happy to enjoy again -- as well as Glossary, who I've seen in years past, and Howler.

But I ran into The Agency Group's Adam Countryman outside his company's party at Lambert's and figured I could drop in for some lunch and a drink before being on my way. Ironically, for an event hosted by a booking agency, no bands played at it. But I dined amply, deliciously and freely on cole slaw, potato salad, devilled eggs, boar ribs and barbecued brisket and chicken. There were also margaritas, mojitos and other cocktails I'd never tried before and, since there were nice people to talk to at the party, I elected to stick around and enjoy most of them.

The back-up plan, once 4 p.m. rolled around, was to return to my favourite hangout of this SXSW: The Ginger Man. The Wedding Present was playing at 4 p.m., Tommy Stinson was at 5 p.m. and John Doe was on at 6 p.m. That sounded like a good way to spend three hours. But unfortunately, a lot of other people thought so too -- which was compounded by The Ginger Man having one of the best beer selections in the city and it being St. Patrick's Day. My SXSW badge didn't give me priority access and, since I'd also seen those three acts before and hate waiting in lines, I returned to my condo to get some more work done and have a few beers on my own.

The Standells

I try to avoid Sixth Street as much as possible on the Saturday of SXSW, especially when it's St. Patrick's Day, but I took a chance on fighting through the drunken masses to go to Buffalo Billiards to see some '60s garage rock heroes, The Standells. It was a group I'd always thought was from Boston, until I got to Austin, because its biggest hit was about Beantown's Charles River.

I've heard The Baseball Project cover The Standells' "Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White," but it was great to hear the original. The band also played some new material that wasn't exceptional, a fast cover of "Hey Joe" and another old gem in "Try It," which was banned from some radio stations for what were deemed to be obscene lyrics but which seem pretty tame by today's standards. The moment I'd been waiting for was saved until the end and while it didn't sound nearly as menacing as it did 46 years ago, "Dirty Water" had me exiting the club on a high note -- and just in time to see R.E.M.'s Peter Buck walking down the street.

Sugar & The Hi-Lows

I've discovered Sugar & The Hi-Lows over the past month and wanted to see if I'd like the group live as much as on record. Being given a ticket for a free drink on the way in didn't hurt those chances. The guitarist, bassist and drummer were attired in suits and Sugar lived up to her name. The Nashville band deserved a bigger audience and "See It For Yourself" deserves to be a hit. The quartet bridges '60s and 21st century pop, rock and soul sounds, and sucked me in further with "Stubborn Lover," the soulful "I've Got You Covered," "Show and Tell," "This Can't Be The Last Time" and an extended "I Think I Said Too Much." While the group's "Proud Mary" cover didn't live up to Ike and Tina Turner or Creedence Clearwater Revival standards, I like that the band tackled it.

Squarehead

Squarehead, a Dublin indie pop/rock guitar, bass and drums trio with a roots edge, displayed both lots of energy and some songwriting chops at Friends. And I guess that it was appropriate that I see an Irish band on St. Patrick's Day. The bassist jumped into the decently sized crowd during the last song to add a bit more excitement to what was already a set that surpassed my expectations.

I'd run into my friend Lauree at Friends and since we had a good vantage point at the front of the stage and both had Belfast's Cashier No. 9 near the top of our 11 p.m. to-see lists, I bought us a couple of more beers and stuck around. The sextet plays songs that you'd like to sing along to, but we didn't know them well enough. That should change. This was another strong discovery.

The midnight hour rolled around and it was time to go back to more familiar territory with Peter Case and Paul Collins backed by a rhythm section at Easy Tiger Patio. These guys go way back to the '70s with power pop kings The Nerves and then formed The Breakaways, but their material was never released until a 2009 compilation that I now feel I need to have after hearing some of the songs at this gig. Case was also in The Plimsouls and has had an underrated solo career, while Collins fronted The Beat and has released solo records, and their set offered an overview of their careers.

I was too busy bopping to take comprehensive notes, but "Don't Wait Up For Me Tonight," "I Don't Fit In" and "Great Big World" were just a few of the highlights. Collins said they would have been happy to play for two hours, but were limited by the festival's 40-minute set format. Two hours would have been great, but what I heard was pure power pop bliss and it would have been a great way to end SXSW on a total high.

But it was only 1 a.m. and not time to go home yet, so instead of taking a chance on something I may not like I joined my friends at Red Eyed Fly for a few more drinks and a set by JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, who I'd already enjoyed on Friday afternoon and liked at least as much tonight.

We returned to our condo for our nightly beers until 4:30 a.m. routine, but this time we brought friends (including the Waco Brothers) so things might have gone a bit later -- but it remained civilized and no-one got hurt.

Money spent on food during five days and nights of SXSW: $8.

SXSW day four: Chuck Prophet, Wacos, Big Star and more

After a morning and early afternoon of work, music began for me at 2 p.m. with Chuck Prophet at The Ginger Man -- of course that was after a naked guy rode past me on a bike during my two-block walk to the club.

Chuck Prophet and Peter Buck

I've loved Prophet's last two albums, 2009's Let Freedom Ring! and this year's Temple Beautiful, and the former Green On Red member was high on my 2012 South By Southwest Music Festival priority list. He didn't disappoint in a set that included "Castro Halloween," "Left Hand and the Right Hand," an extended "Willie Mays Is Up To Bat," "Doubter Of Jesus (All Over You)," "White Night Big City" and "Little Girl Little Boy."

I'd seen R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck standing at the side of the stage and wasn't surprised when he came on to join in on "You Did / Bomp Shooby Dooby Bomp" to end the set. It became an exhibition of guitar prowess with Prophet, Buck and band member James Deprato, and Prophet briefly bowed before Buck. Prophet received a deserving standing ovation, and any discerning adult who enjoys rock and roll and storytelling should definitely investigate this man.

I wanted to stick around for The dB's, and figured that Buck would also play with them, but I had obligations on South Congress and walked 25 minutes south to the Yard Dog Gallery to see Lydia Loveless. Last year's Indestuctible Machine was one of my 15 favourite albums of that period, and  although I spent the time wisely chatting with Bloodshot Records publicist Josh Zanger, I would have liked to have heard more and am hoping the young alt.country artist makes it to Toronto soon.

J. Roddy Walston

I walked a few blocks north to Jo's Coffee for J. Roddy Walston and The Business and arrived just in time to hear the rocking "Don't Break The Needle." Walston was sitting behind a piano at the front of the stage with his band members surrounding him and his cover of Little Richard's "Lucille" outrocked the original. A new song called "Marigold" has me looking forward to a new album, while '70s rock throwback "I Don't Want To Hear It" reinforced why I went to this showcase in the first place. This is throwback rock and roll with soul that wins more than Charlie Sheen.

I returned to the Yard Dog to add some notes to my Waco Brothers article for Spinner, but first saw JC Brooks and The Uptown Sound. He's one of the young entries in the soul revival and looks like he could be around for a while as he reinvigorates the genre along with more seasoned artists like Sharon Jones, Charles Bradley and Lee Fields. I would have appreciated some  horns, but the band was rock solid even without them, and his soulful cover or Wilco's "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" elevated his coolness to another level.

The Waco Brothers

The Waco Brothers pulled off another terrific show that included "Fox River," "Walking On Hell's Roof Looking At The Flowers," "Too Sweet To Die" and "Red Brick Wall" before singer/songwriter Paul Burch came on stage to play songs from the group's forthcoming The Great Chicago Fire album.

"It combines the brute sexuality of the Waco Brothers with the songwriting virtuosity of Paul Burch," said the irascible Langford. The lovely Tawny Newsome, who Langford introduced himself to during the title track even though she's a member of his Skull Orchard band, also came on stage to sing harmonies with violinist Jean Cook.

The Tex-Mex "Monterey" was next, but Langford paid tribute to the Canadians in the crowd instead of any residents of the California city who may have been in attendance. Perhaps that had something to do with us getting him drinks and having Diana Aubrecht as his songwriting muse. Other songs from the excellent new album included "Wrong Side of Love" and "Cannonball" before a return to the Wacos' "Plenty Tough Union Made" and covers of The Small Faces' "All Or Nothing" and Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" and a by-demand encore cover of T. Rex's "20th Century Boy."

I made my back up north to see Posies and modern Big Star member Ken Stringfellow (and Indigo Girl Amy Ray, who came up for a duet) at The Ginger Man for a bit before I had to return to the condo for a few hours to get some work done.

I hit Frank at 10:15 to see The Love Language, who were harder-edged than I expected. I enjoyed it, but prefer the recorded versions of their songs over their live ones and look forward to a new album in July.

I ducked into the Cedar Street Courtyard for two songs from The Scoundrels, a British roots hybrid band that sounds like it could have been from Louisiana. "Sexy Weekend" was great and I want to hear an EP that's coming out on April 24.

Ken Stringfellow and Peter Buck

I returned to The Ginger Man for a Big Star tribute led by Stringfellow, fellow Posies member Jon Auer, Big Star drummer Jody Stephens and a number of guests that extended things well past the normal 35-minute showcase duration. Blitzen Trapper's Eric Earley was the first guest for "Feel," and then Buck and Latebirds guitarist Markus Nordenstreng came up for a totally rousing "In The Street."

Stringfellow and Auer shared vocals on "Back Of A Car" and Nordenstreng returned for "When My Baby's Beside Me." Two members of Cotton Mather did "The Ballad of El Goodo" and then X's John Doe moved from standing behind me with a beer to the stage to sing "I'm In Love With A Girl." The dB's' Peter Holsapple was supposed to come up for "Way Out West" but couldn't be found, but Stephens singing the song was enough magic to replace the disappointment of not seeing him.

Members of Star & Micey, a group I want to see, came up for "Thirteen" and then a female singer who I didn't recognize killed on a cover of Velvet Underground's "Femme Fatale." Auer took lead on "Don't Lie To Me" with Doe on harmonies before Buck and others came on stage for an amazing "September Gurls" to end the 75-minute set.

That left enough time to go around the corner to Frank and the Merge Records showcase to see the label's latest signing, Bob Mould. I've seen him a number of times in various incarnations with Husker Du, Sugar and on his own over the past 25 years, and this didn't rank among the best of them, but an encore of "If I Can't Change Your Mind" left me very happy.

Money spent on food during first four days and nights of SXSW: $8.

My morning work obligations, 1 p.m. interview with The Cult's Ian Astbury and my eagerness to get to the Yard Dog made me miss my early afternoon free food parties and realize that I hadn't yet eaten by 10 p.m., so I stopped at one of the dozens of delicious food trucks that have taken Austin by storm. I feel so guilty and ashamed.

SXSW day three: Garland Jeffreys hasn't lost a thing

My Thursday began at the Austin Convention Center with a keynote address by Bruce Springsteen (you can read my coverage on Spinner for more details), filing my article and two free lunches: fish and chips at Latitude 30's East of England party; and steak, beef, pasta and salad with the Germans at Parkside Restaurant.

Archie Powell & The Exports

Music began at 3:15 p.m. with Archie Powell & The Exports, which has become one of my favourite bands over the course of 2010's Skip Work and Great Ideas In Action, which will be available to the rest of you on May 1. The four members were cramped on the small stage at 512, but Powell still managed to jump around. The room isn't conducive to a loud band, but the quartet's crunchy and delicious pop hooks still shone through.

Joe Pug was playing his final two songs, accompanied by an electric guitarist and upright bassist, when I arrived at the Ginger Man back patio. I'm not familiar with the singer/songwriter, but was told by friends that it was an enjoyable set.

Jon Langford and Skull Orchard

Sunshine and cold beer were a fine accompaniment to Jon Langford (who curated the day's entertainment at Ginger Man) and Skull Orchard. Jean Cook's violin was a welcomed accompaniment and Tawny Newsome made a fine vocal and visual foil to Langford. The set was highlighted early by "Strange Ways to Win Wars" before the twin guitar attack was unleashed on "Tubby Brothers." "Pill Sailor," "I Am The Law" and an extended "Sentimental Marching Song" showcased Langford's songwriting mastery, but I've heard those songs numerous times and was really looking forward to a man I've been waiting to see for 30 years.

Garland Jeffreys

Garland Jeffreys didn't disappoint and started his 5:20 p.m. set on a huge high note with "I'm Alive." The 68-year-old hasn't been particularly prolific on the recording front this century, but "Coney Island Winter" from last year's The King of In Between showed he still has what it takes. He followed it with "35 Millimeter Dreams" and climbed on a table to sing part of it. Another new song, "The Contortionist," was also strong and his band members had the material down solidly.

"Modern Lovers" was followed by another new one titled "Til John Lee Hooker Calls Me" that featured Jeffreys singing down on one knee and then on his back. That set the tone for perhaps his biggest song, "Wild In The Streets," which had many in the audience singing along.

That was cranked up considerably with his brilliant cover of ? and The Mysterians' "96 Tears," one of the best songs ever and which I also heard on Tuesday night from Joe "King" Carrasco & The Crowns. Langford got up on stage to dance and sing along, and Jeffreys and the band effortlessly slipped in parts of Velvet Underground's "Waiting For The Man" and Rosie Flores was called up for a bit of the Ernie K. Doe hit "Mother-in-Law." It was over the top.

Los Headaches

I had to return to my condo to write up my Nardwuar interview for Spinner, but was in Flamingo Cantina by 8:25 p.m. to hear lo-fi Mexican garage rock band Los Headaches. I enjoyed it more than similar bands I saw on Wednesday night because of its rootsy edge and sense of melody, and it deserved a bigger turnout than this sparsely attended showcase received.

Viva Viva's set time was moved up by 30 minutes and was almost over at Bar 96, so I headed back up Red River Street to Valhalla to see Denver, Colo. quartet Bad Weather California. I was hit by a loud and raunchy wave of sound when I walked in, but the tempo and aggression was toned down a bit on the succeeding songs, and I preferred when the guitar-driven indie rock went in more of a pop direction.

I would have preferred to have seen Bruce Springsteen, The Jesus and Mary Chain or the Big Star tribute, but Spinner assigned me to cover its showcase at Stubb's with Girls, Kaiser Chiefs and The Temper Trap. You can read that coverage here.

Cannon Bros.

The Stubb's show ended by 1 a.m., which gave me time to make it to Maggie Mae's Gibson Room to see young Winnipeg guitar and drums duo Cannon Bros. There's a bit of a buzz growing about the group's Firecracker/Cloudglow album back in Canada and, while Cole Woods and Alannah Walker (who look similar with their horn rim glasses and flippy hairstyles) are still quite young, you can definitely hear the potential in their music. They trade off instruments and lead vocals, which is the weakest element in their less muscular than the White Stripes repertoire, but the small but enthusiastic group that gathered in front of the stage showed their heartfelt appreciation by leaping on stage to dance during the final song.

That still left time to catch the end of Austin band The Gourds set at Antone's, and I'm glad I did. I've liked and respected the group for years, but this was my first time seeing it along with an audience that seemed evenly split between locals and out-of-towners. There were also more young people in the crowd than I expected for this veteran roots band, which augments the basic guitar, bass and drums instrumentation with violin and accordion. The set featured a fitting tribute to the late Doug Sahm in "At The Crossroads," which includes the line "You just can't live in Texas if you don't have a lot of soul." The Gourds have more than enough soul to retain their residency.

Money spent on food during first three days and nights of SXSW: $0.

SXSW day two: Most acts fall short of expectations

Much of Wednesday was spent working, so I didn't see as much music in the afternoon as I would have liked, but I made an appearance at the Canadian Blast party to see some friendly faces, eat some brisket and have a beer.

Library Voices

I also finally got to see Library Voices, a large and literate indie pop group from Regina, Sask. which released one of my 10 favourite albums of 2011: Summer of Lust. It's Denim on Denim predecessor was also excellent, so I'm not sure how I keep missing the septet when it comes through Toronto since it's been on my radar for a couple of years. The band plays pure pop music with jangly guitars, keyboards and an occasional saxophone fill, and it put on a higher energy show than I was expecting. The fine original material was complemented by a fun cover of The Box Tops' "The Letter."

Whitehorse, the husband and wife team of Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland had an interesting set-up with guitar, bass and a variety of effects, but I preferred what I heard on the self-titled debut album from last year to the two songs I heard live before I had to leave.

I returned to the rented condo I'm staying in for the week to wait for a phone call and get some things done and at 6 p.m. made my way to The Green Mesquite for the annual dinner hosted by the good folks at Collective Concerts. I caught up with a few people, enjoyed a three-meat plate with a couple of sides and a few Shiner Bocks, and was ready to start a night of music by 9 p.m.

Oklahoma's The Boom Bang was at Friends and the singer introduced the set by saying, "We're probably going to be the worst band tonight." Unfortunately he wasn't lying. The group's sloppy garage rock meets punk material made me finish my beer quickly and make it to Whiskey Room in time for the last few songs from Jerusalem and The Starbaskets. This two guitars and drums trio had a relatively deadpan vocalist and, while the wall of guitar sound didn't knock me out, it was definitely a step up from The Boom Bang.

The Pinstripes

A Cincinnati band called The Pinstripes was busking in the intersection of Sixth and San Jacinto and did a pretty good job of The Skatalites' "Guns of Navarone." A woman with a rub board randomly walked up and joined the group, which handed out download cards to people who'd stopped to watch after a couple of songs.

Taiwanese '60s pop throwback band Wonfu's set time changed at The Loft, which meant I missed it. So the back-up plan was Nashville's Turbo Fruits at the Beauty Bar Backyard. It was solid straight-ahead rock-and-roll until closer "Volcano" ended things with a sludgy stoner rock vibe.

Turbo Fruits

Thee Oh Sees and Tennis switched time slots at Red 7 Patio and, while I like Thee Oh Sees, I've seen them three times and this was reserved as a night for new discoveries. So I moved west to see the final two songs from Scotland's French Wives and quite enjoyed them. The first was pretty upbeat and catchy, but still rocked, while violin was used to good effect on the closing single, "Younger."

I returned to the Beauty Bar Backyard, which had now filled to capacity, for Bleached. I missed the group's recent Toronto show, so was happy I caught most of its set. The female-frontlined band plays melodic pop punk that's far superior to most groups that classify themselves as such these days. It ended up being my favourite performance of the night.

I shifted over a patio to Red 7 where I found a dozen friends waiting to see Lee Fields & The Expressions. Unfortunately the wait lasted 35 minutes before his well-dressed band played an instrumental before the star stepped out in a black pinstripe suit and silver shirt unbuttoned to reveal a gold chain. Fields initially made a minor name for himself as a funk artist in the '70s and then took a career hiatus before a recent revival in fortune as a younger generation has rediscovered vintage soul and funk of late through the likes of Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings and Charles Bradley. I'd rank Fields below them. The band was tight and he was able to sound relatively smooth and simultaneously raw, but it still seemed like there was a bit missing. But he had the audience on his side and got people waving their arms in the air and singing along at times.

Built To Spill

I've been trying to land a Spinner.ca interview with Built To Spill, which hasn't been easy and cost me a few hours waiting by the phone on Wednesday afternoon -- and there's still a chance it might not happen later this week. The Idaho alt.rock band packed the IFC Crossroads House at Vice to the point where I couldn't see it after snapping a quick photo on my way in. A large arched brick wall that runs through the centre of the venue eliminated my sightline and, while the couple of songs I stayed for sounded good, I wanted to see as well as hear so I moved on.

Nick Waterhouse's set time had changed at The 512, so my back-up plan came into effect with Psychic Ills at Elysium. The group played a sometimes droning set of spacey rock for stoner hipsters that was accented by a black stage pierced by laser lights. It didn't impress me as much as I hoped for, but at least I found a padded bench where I could still see the group.

Technical problems delayed Bare Wires' start and plagued the part of their set I stayed for. But what the group lacked in execution, it made up for in energy. But the garage punk was below my expectations so I elected to make one last musical stop.

Bare Wires

Brooklyn, N.Y. indie pop band The Drums drew a large crowd to The Stage on Sixth Patio, and many of those in it were screaming women. The group comes across as a more pop-oriented Interpol or vintage British new wave act and sounded a bit too polished. My enjoyment level decreased as the set went on despite the enthusiasm of dancing frontman Jonathan Pierce and 2 a.m. meant the night was over.

Money spent on food during first two days and nights of SXSW: $0.

SXSW day one: Joe "King" Carrasco lives up to his name

I've been coming to the South by Southwest Music Festival since 2004 but haven't seen any more of Texas beyond the Dallas and Houston airports, so I changed things up a bit this year and spent a day in Houston and another in San Antonio before jumping full on into SXSW. I'll take San Antonio. Houston? Probably not.

New Town Drunks

The music began Tuesday night at tenOak, which I'm hoping isn't a music venue the other 51 weeks a year. Chapel Hill, N.C.'s New Town Drunks, a sextet featuring acoustic guitar, saxophone, upright bass, keyboards, drums and the sexy Diane Koistinen on lead vocals had the honour. Two dozen people were there to take in the group's mix of folk, rock, cabaret, alt.country, jazz and tango. Koistinen came into the audience to dance and the best line of the show came in the last song, which included the lyric "Like John and Yoko all night long, lying naked with a bong."

Whiskey Daredevils

Another band with a booze-related name, Whiskey Daredevils, was a step up. Greg Miller had crazy eyes, but was an excellent showman and I thoroughly enjoyed his three band members' backing on a set that featured old school country music played loud and fast. "Long Gone" inexplicably incorporated some of The Doors' "The End," "Bakersfield" mocked Buck Owens' hometown as being filled with strip malls and 7-11s and not being Nashville West as the band members had expected, and "Trucker Bomb" was about running over plastic bottles filled with urine on a highway median with a lawnmower. Good times.

I first saw Frank Turner three years ago in Austin and have continued to be a big fan, including hosting the launch of his 2010 North American tour in my living room. The British singer/songwriter played a solo acoustic show at Latitude 30 on Tuesday night and opened with "I Knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous," "Try This At Home" and "Peggy Sang the Blues" before doing a couple of new tunes. One was about getting tattoos, and Turner got a pretty bad tattoo in Austin before, and the other was called "Time Machine."

Turner returned to more familiar territory with "Substitute," "Wessex Boy" and "Me and My Friend Dan" before covering Tom Petty's "American Girl." It hurt to tear myself away from the club after "I Still Believe" and "The Road," but I've seen Turner quite a bit over the past three years and have been waiting to see Joe "King" Carrasco and The Crowns for 30 years.

Joe "King" Carrasco and The Crowns

I finally got my chance at Skinny's Ballroom, a relatively small room that wasn't even full. That was a major injustice. Carrasco's nuevo wavo mixes new wave, rock and roll and conjunto and is a total blast. Carrasco lives and plays regularly in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and told me that a lot of his neighbours are from Ontario, but I don't think he's performed in Toronto since I moved there in 1988. Carrasco's early albums were big favourites of mine and he pulled out some classics like "Let's Get Pretty" early on.

Joe "King" Carrasco

But the band has a new album to push, and title track "Que Wow" just became my favourite song written by a guy stricken with typhoid in Mexico. Carrasco said he was friends with both Manu Chao and ? and the Mysterians' Bobby Balderrama, which gave him even more credibility points along with his cover of "96 Tears." I don't know Spanish, but I sang along to every word of "Buena." Carrasco changed crowns mid-set and came into the audience a couple of times, including climbing on top of a table beside me at the bar, and ended the 80-minute set with an extended "Don't Bug Me Baby." He wanted to do an encore, and we were all ready for it too, but the club unfortunately nixed that.

I talked to Carrasco after the show and traded business cards, so hopefully that planted enough of a bug to get him up to Toronto. In the meantime, folks in Austin can see the man and his band at the Austin Music Awards tonight and at The Dog and Duck Pub on Friday at 4 p.m.

Rekindled memories and fun surprises at Juno Concert Series show

The Juno Award festivities begin in Ottawa at the end of the month and culminate with the April 1 televised awards show from Scotiabank Place, but I don't think any of it will be as fun as the March 3 installment of the Juno Concert Series at Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern.

Three talented groups acted as house bands over the course of the evening and made excellent accomplices for the top shelf guests who joined them.

The Order of Good Cheer started the night and was soon joined by Thom Darcy of Small Sins and Serena Ryder. The best part of their time on stage was a ripping run through Andy Kim's "Rock Me Gently," one of my favourite songs as a child and one I still hold in high esteem. I wasn't disappointed.

Jason Collett with The Order of Good Cheer

Jason Collett seemed to be battling a cold, but still did a fine job of The Weakerthans' "Sun in an Empty Room" and Metric's "Gold Guns Girls."


Collett's Broken Social Scene buddy Kevin Drew then bounded on stage for what he described as a "bar mitzvah version" of Corey Hart's "Never Surrender" with ad-libbed allusions to "Boy in the Box." I'd happily take it over the original song.

Billy Talent frontman Ben Kowalewicz added a bit of a hardcore element to the Forgotten Rebels' "Surfin' on Heroin" and had me wishing that Billy Talent was that punk.

That ended The Order of Good Cheer's night and, while The Beauties set up behind him, Ron Sexsmith offered a solo acoustic interpretation of Max Webster's "Let Go The Line" that worked surprisingly well in that format.

The Beauties established their prowess from the start by opening their portion of the show by jamming out on The Guess Who's "Guns, Guns, Guns."

Ian Blurton with The Beauties

Ian Blurton maintained his guitar hero reputation by leading a blazing romp through April Wine's "Weeping Widow."


Bahamas' Afie Jurvanen was more restrained but no less impressive as he took The Beauties through a bluesy "Cortez the Killer" that had the crowd spellbound. I'm sure that Neil Young and Crazy Horse would have approved.

Former L'Etranger leader and now New Democratic Party member of parliament for Toronto's Davenport riding Andrew Cash followed and took the opportunity to campaign to the packed club, which seemed to largely share his left-leaning political views. He was joined by Ladies of the Canyon's Maia Davies on Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows," but they should have left that one alone.

The Skydiggers' Andy Maize and Josh Finlayson put a big smile on my face by singing another of my childhood favourites, Pagliaro's "What The Hell I Got." It was obvious that Maize enjoyed himself singing it as much as I did hearing it.

Andy Maize and Josh Finlayson with The Beauties

NQ Arbuckle's Neville Quinlan had the crowd singing along enthusiastically to the chorus of Blue Rodeo's "Hasn't Hit Me Yet."


Drew returned for a song called "Last Night in the City," which he said he's been doing with The Beauties at The Dakota Tavern for the past three years. I liked it.

The Beauties' night came to an end after another visit by Maize and Finlayson and a lead vocal turn by Joel Stewart on the Skydiggers' beautiful "I Will Give You Everything."

I've loved Arkells sets of Motown and other vintage covers in the past, so I was excited to see what they might come up with along with some of their musical friends. It was a surprise when Born Ruffians' Luke Lalonde joined them for Broken Social Scene's "Cause=Time." I was standing beside Drew watching the performance from the Horseshoe office window and it was obvious he appreciated it. When I asked him for a verdict afterward, he replied: "That's an unbelievable feeling."

The lovely Emm Gryner pulled off another pleasant surprise by singing Joel Plaskett Emergency's "Extraordinary." It was pretty good at first and just kept getting better.

The ever-smiling Jose Contreras reprised his band By Divine Right's "Stella Heart Ocean."

Davies took the lead while Cuff The Duke's Wayne Petti and others gang-sang the chorus of Young's "Harvest Moon" along with the audience. Great Lake Swimmers' violinist Miranda Mulholland added an impressive solo for good measure.

Petti took centre stage to sing his own band's "The Future Hangs." The harmonica-fuelled country rocker is probably my favourite Cuff The Duke song, and it sounded just as good in the hands of the Horseshoe assemblage.

Members of Tokyo Police Club and Our Lady Peace drummer Jeremy Taggart whipped more excitement out of the crowd than from me with OLP's "I Loved You All Along," but at least I didn't have to hear Raine Maida singing it.

Drew and Davies were back yet again and made a winning combination on what may be my favourite Dears song, "You and I Are a Gang of Losers."

The crowd erupted when The Tragically Hip's Gord Sinclair and Paul Langlois joined the Arkells for the Hip's "Grace, Too," but it was Arkells singer Max Kerman who stole the show. If Hip frontman Gord Downie ever becomes ill and needs an emergency fill-in, we've found the man to do it. Kerman even did a mid-song stream of consciousness spiel on working a baseball glove in and waiting for the sun to come out a la Downie. The performance had all the benefits of the Hip, but without the group's often annoying fans.

The night ended with the Arkells, The Beauties, The Order of Good Cheer and some of their guests crowding on stage to play Bryan Adams' "Run to You." It seemed like almost all the hipsters in the audience let their guards down and pumped their fists in the air and sang along to the chorus.

The show was presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) and North by Northeast in conjunction with the Ontario Media Development Corporation, and the $20 cover charge went to MusiCounts, CARAS' music education charity.

It was a good cause and definitely a better night than February's edition of the Juno Concert Series, and one that every person I talked to was happy to have witnessed.

Steam Whistle Unsigned Music Series

Friday marked the 21st installment of the Steam Whistle Unsigned Music Series, but it was my first time making it out to one of the three-act shows at Toronto's Steam Whistle Brewery Roundhouse.

Luke Lalonde

Tickets were just five dollars and all of the proceeds were donated to the Artists’ Health Centre Foundation, an organization with a mandate to raise the standard of health care, educational resources and quality of life for artists.

But it wasn't just the cheap cover and good cause that coaxed 500 folks out of the house on a chilly night. The bill featured Born Ruffians singer/guitarist Luke Lalonde introducing himself with a different band as a solo artist, up-and-coming soulful rock sextet The Paint Movement and indie pop act Boys Who Say No, which was launching its Contingencies debut album.

I'm a Born Ruffians fan and still prefer that band over Lalonde's solo work, and I'm not that big on the other two acts either. But they all provided a solid night of entertainment for the people who are supporters, while I was content to stand back, observe, have a couple of beers and enjoy OMD's "Enola Gay" over the sound system during the first between-band break.

The Paint Movement

A pay-what-you-can donation jar was left beside boxes of small square slices from Pizza Pizza adjacent to the free coat check near the entrance, which was another nice touch and a second way of adding to the Artists’ Health Centre Foundation contributions.

I've been to a few music industry parties at Steam Whistle in the past, but it's been a couple of years since my last visit. The place has been spruced up and the roundhouse provides great sight lines to the stage. The brick and  glass walls make for a very loud room -- which can be a positive or negative quality, depending on your perspective.

It's obvious that a lot of thought and work goes into the Steam Whistle Unsigned Music Series, and I'll try not to wait 21 more shows before returning.

Chuck Prophet - Temple Beautiful

I admit to losing touch with Chuck Prophet after the demise of Green on Red and through the string of albums he made through the '90s and into the new millennium. But I became reacquainted through 2009's Let Freedom Ring!, which became one of my favourite albums of that year.

I don't think the follow-up, Temple Beautiful, quite matches that more politically charged record. But it comes damn close and shows that Prophet is in the midst of a career renaissance at age 48.

Temple Beautiful has been described as Prophet's "ode to San Francisco," the city he's called home for most of the past 30 years. He launched the album with a bus tour around the city that highlighted some of the haunts alluded to in his songs, and the report I read made it sound like a magical night.

Steph Finch, Prophet's longtime life and musical partner, adds harmonies and keyboards to a number of tracks. The rest of the musicians augment the songs terrifically, including the saxophonist who comes in on the excellent "Little Girl Little Boy." But it's Prophet's guitar, voice and songs that take Temple Beautiful to the next level above "pretty good rock-and-roll record."

"Castro Halloween" and "Willie Mays is Up at Bat" (on which I'd love to see Prophet collaborate on stage with The Baseball Project) are the most obvious nods to San Francisco, at least to those of us unfortunate enough not to have been there yet.

I'm sure that the Cyril referred to in "Who Shot John" is San Fran native Cyril Jordan, the founder and guitarist for garage rock greats The Flamin' Groovies. The end of "I Felt Like Jesus" is reminiscent of what you'd hear from Prophet's friend and transplanted San Franciscan (and one of my musical idols), Jonathan Richman. Prophet borrows from one of Richman's more obvious influences by adding somewhat of a doo-wop element to the vintage pop-and-roll sound on "White Night, Big City."

The two slower songs on the record, the strings-infused "Museum of Broken Hearts" and the closing "Emperor Norton in the Last Year of His Life (1880)," fall a bit short of the other 10 numbers. But that's probably just  because I like Prophet most when he's rocking.

I've never seen Prophet perform, but will catch at least one set at next month's South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas. He would have been high on my list of must-see acts anyway, but the songs on Temple Beautiful cemented it.

Little Barrie and Charles Bradley rock and wail

I doubt if most people who joined forces to sell out Lee's Palace on Saturday night knew much about opening act Little Barrie. I was in the same boat until recently.

Little Barrie

But the British trio definitely made new fans with its 35-minute set that largely showcased its fine King of the Waves album, which will be released in North America on Feb. 28 by Tummy Touch Records. Both the record and the performance opened with "Surf Hell," a surf-garage tune with an edge that's a great momentum-starter.

King of the Waves is Little Barrie's third album and, like 2005's We Are Little Barrie debut, it was co-produced by Orange Juice founder and Scottish solo artist Edwyn Collins ("A Girl Like You"). Collins also added backing vocals to "Money in Paper" on the record, which offers a no-nonsense, swaggering dose of rock-and-roll with dashes of psychedelia, blues and soul thrown in.

Little Barrie is much better known in Japan than in Canada, but frontman Barrie Cadogan has made a name for himself by playing guitar with Primal Scream and Paul Weller and is a talent to be reckoned with. Drummer Virgil Howe has his own share of non-Little Barrie notoriety, as he's the son of Yes guitarist Steve Howe.

Little Barrie will open shows in the midwestern and northeastern United States for soul belter Charles Bradley throughout most of this month. If you like what you see, pick up King of the Waves as well since there's no drop-off in entertainment value from the stage to the studio.

Charles Bradley

Bradley languished in obscurity for years, working as a cook in various U.S. cities and performing James Brown songs while playing occasional gigs under the name Black Velvet. But he was discovered by Daptone Records' Gabriel Roth in Brooklyn, N.Y. and Daptone's Dunham Records imprint released his No Time For Dreaming debut album a year ago.

The record gained critical acclaim and Bradley, now nearing his mid-sixties, has created a growing fan base with his sweat-soaked performances that reinforce his nickname of "The Screaming Eagle of Soul."

It's obvious that Brown, "The Godfather of Soul," had a huge impact on Bradley. He tries to emulate some of the late entertainer's moves, though falls far short in mastering them.

Bradley also likes flashy clothes, as he first appeared to a rousing ovation while wearing black pants, a black shirt and red-sequined jacket. The jacket came off early, and a costume change later in the set showed off a white jacket and black vest with no shirt. The jacket again was quickly removed to reveal a sweaty, shimmering belly.

Bradley certainly can belt out his material, and his delivery elicited frequent screams from the audience, which featured a higher ratio of women than most Lee's shows. In addition to the album repertoire, the soul and funk treatment was given to Neil Young's "Heart of Gold," which had many in the crowd singing along.

But I was at least as impressed with Bradley's seven-piece band -- guitarist, bassist, drummer, keyboardist, trumpeter, saxophone player and a young woman hiding away in the back clapping with a tambourine -- as I was with him. The group was tight, talented and melded well with the vocalist throughout the 55-minute set, which also included a couple of instrumentals to get things started.

Bradley was wearing a flashy gold jacket and no shirt when he came out for his encore number, and then he left while the band continued to extend things for a couple more minutes. Bradley emerged on his own at the microphone (as many of the 600 people in attendance were filing out) to offer a sincere, heartfelt thank-you to everyone.

Bradley hasn't had the easiest of lives, but he's making the most of his opportunities now. And hopefully the good times will continue to roll for him, since he deserves that.

Waco Brothers & Paul Burch - Great Chicago Fire

If I didn't have enough reasons to look forward to the South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas next month, I have another one after listening to the Waco Brothers and Paul Burch's Great Chicago Fire.

The album will be released by Bloodshot Records on April 24, but the raucous Chicago country punks and the talented but under-appreciated Nashville singer/songwriter will be performing together at SXSW.

As much as I love the Wacos' unpredictable Austin shows and can sing along with most of their songs, it will be good to hear new material since this is their first studio album since 2005's Freedom and Weep. I've never seen Burch perform, but was an advocate of 2003's Fool for Love, enjoyed his interpretations on last year's Words of Love: Songs of Buddy Holly, and have liked what I've heard from him from various compilations and collaborations.

Waco Brothers' Deano Schlabowske and Joe Camarillo at Guero's in Austin.

So I thought this would be a combination that fits squarely into my wheelhouse, especially after finding out that it was brokered over margaritas at Guero's in Austin. I've enjoyed a few of those tequila-laced cocktails with musicians over the years there, too.

My high expectations for Great Chicago Fire were met easily, right from the opening up-tempo title track and its shared lead vocals, female harmonies, up-front guitars and T-Rex influence ("20th Century Boy" has long been a staple of Wacos performances, so perhaps that isn't as surprising as one might initially think).

Deano Schlabowske sings lead on the Tejano meets Jason and The Scorchers-ish "Give In" and "On The Sly," while offering a nifty guitar solo in "Up On The Mountain."

Waco Brothers' Jon Langford, Deano Schlabowske and Tracey Dear.

Jon Langford's insurgent country number "Cannonball" is sweetened by the backing vocals of Tawney Newsome and Bethany Thomas, and "Someone That You Know" canters along jauntily.

Burch's "Wrong Side of Love" is poppy, but with a honky-tonk element courtesy of Pat Brennan's piano. Brennan adds accordion to "Monterey," which would do the Texas Tornados proud. The more lush "Flight to Spain" is surprisingly restrained, but the guitar-fuelled "Transfusion Blues" returns to more familiar Wacos territory.

Bryan Ferry's cover of Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" remains my favourite, but the bluesy singalong version that ends this album certainly isn't a disappointment.

Great Chicago Fire is my favourite album of 2012 so far, and I can't envision it not being among my top picks 47 weeks from now.

Punk revival highlights Juno concert

Exclaim! Media celebrated its 20th anniversary and the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences raised money for its MusiCounts charity when they joined together for a night of music at Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern on Feb. 4 as part of the Juno Concert Series.

The first part of the evening was dedicated to Canadian pop songs, with young combo The Elwins acting as house band. I walked in to hear Broken Social Scene's Brendan Canning crooning Remy Shand's "Take A Message." I wasn't a fan, but it may have been people's only chance to hear the song live, since Shand seems to have disappeared following the platinum sales and Juno-winning success of his one and only album, The Way I Feel, in 2002.

The Elwins did an original, fun, bouncy and slightly ska-influenced pop tune called "Stuck in the Middle" that I quite enjoyed. I wasn't familiar with the band before, but would be interested in seeing a set of its original material.

Tokyo Police Club's David Monks performed a song I didn't know and then Canning returned with quirky pop artist Allie Hughes for The Poppy Family's "Where Evil Grows." It had a nice fuzz tone, but the vocals lacked the edge that Terry and Susan Jacks brought to the original in 1971.

Former Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, King Cobb Steelie and Phono-Comb member Don Pyle next offered a slide show of photos from his 2011 book, Trouble in the Camera Club: A Photographic Narrative of Toronto's Punk History 1976-1980. He described some of the shots he took as a teenager of Blondie, The Ramones, David Bowie, The Clash and such local favourites as Teenage Head, The Diodes, The Mods and The Ugly that brought back memories to a certain segment of the audience that packed the venue.

The Sadies were the backing band (and it seemed strange to see Sean Dean not playing an upright bass) for the following set of Toronto punk tunes, with Pyle sticking around to sing a couple of them. Mickey Skin took folks back 34 years to when her band The Curse, North America's first all-woman punk band, issued the single "Shoeshine Boy" about murdered 12-year-old Emmanuel Jaques. She followed that up with "Somethin' Ya Can't Tell Your Mother."

Other highlights included a rendition of The Viletones' "Possibilities" and Fucked Up frontman Damian Abraham (who's abandoned his straight edge ways and was drinking beer) taking off his Toronto Maple Leafs jersey to bark through Teenage Head's "Picture My Face."

Hip-hop karaoke was next up, which thinned the crowd considerably (and eventually prompted my exit). But I was entertained by Mandy's energetic rip through Maestro Fresh Wes' "Let Your Backbone Slide," and it was good to see pioneering female MC Michie Mee again.

The evening didn't live up to my expectations and wasn't as good as last year's decade-themed shows in the Juno Concert Series, but spending time with friends at the gig compensated for the lack of on-stage thrills.

Hospitality shines in studio and stumbles on stage

Hospitality, Merge Records' latest signing, will release its debut self-titled album on Jan. 31 -- and it's already assured of a spot on at least my honourable mention list when I compile my favourite releases of 2012 in about 350 days.

The New York City band formed in 2007 and has grown into a quartet that's landed opening slots for Stereolab, Wild Flag, Frog Eyes and The Rosebuds. The group's relatively gentle, lo-fi indie pop caught my ear off the first listen. 

The most immediately noticeable aspect of Hospitality is lead singer/guitarist's Amber Papini's voice. It's not particularly strong, but it fits the material that Papini also writes. I'd heard that she tried to emulate Psychedelic Furs singer Richard Butler, and perhaps a bit of his sometimes deadpan delivery is evident. But more often I thought I was capturing strains of Claudine Longet in one of the funniest movies of all time, The Party.

The arrangements aren't too complex, but they have depth, and the three musicians who augment Papini play their parts well. Band member Nathan Michel co-produced Hospitality with Shane Stoneback (Vampire Weekend, Sleigh Bells) and, after seeing the band in person on Wednesday night, their impact is larger than you might originally think.

Hospitality's performance started slowly but picked up in places, most notably on "Friends of Friends," "Eighth Avenue" and "All Day Today." But for the most part it seemed a bit flat and uninspiring and didn't reach the heights I'd hoped for going in.

Since I like most of the songs on Hospitality quite a bit, I'd give the band another shot live. But after a few listens to the album and viewing one performance, I'd say your money is better spent on the recorded version than the live version of the band.