This article originally appeared on Boston Band Crush ). SXSW with Sarah Borges!
Interview Questions:
1. Where/When are you playing?
Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
Continental Club
8PM
1315 S Congress
Austin TX
Thursday, March 19th, 2009
Antone’s
Tribute to Doug Sahm – 8pm
213 W. 5th
Austin TX
Presented by the Americana Music Association and Vanguard Records
Thursday, March 19th, 2009
Mother Egan’s
Official SXSW Showcase – 1am
715 W. 6th
Austin TX
Friday, March 20th, 2009
The Belmont
Details: Vanguard/Sugar Hill Records, Russell Carter Artist Management and
PASTE magazine present – 2PM
305 W 6th st
Austin TX
With Indigo Girls, Death On Two Wheels, and The Bridges
Friday, March 20th, 2009
Maria’s Taco Express
Sin City Party – 1pm
2529 S. Lamar
Austin TX
Saturday, March 21st, 2009
3rd Coast Music Party
9pm
Pennfield 3601 S. Congress
Austin TX
Saturday, March 21st, 2009
SoHo Lounge
Mpress Records Party – 4pm
217 E. 6th St
Austin TX
w/Rachel Sage
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009
3rd Coast Music Party
9pm
Pennfield 3601 S. Congress
Austin TX
2. How did you get your SXSW gig?
In 2004 our friend Joan Hathaway, from WMBR in Cambridge, MA, sent our music to John Conquest from 3rd Coast Music, which hosts a parallel
festival to the official SXSW. She kept plugging us to him, and he finally
gave us a show.
3. Is this your first time at SXSW?
Nope. This is our 5th time in 6 years, and I really do feel like I can
measure how we’ve progressed by where we’re at as a band each year when
SXSW time rolls around. I’m happy to be putting out our 3rd record in 5
years of attending the festival.
4. If you’ve gone before, have you performed and how did it go?
We have performed every year, and it’s always been a good experience. Year
one was just about figuring it all out. We didn’t have a record out, only
some homemade demos. Year two we had a record (Silver City) out on a label in Texas, year three we found a new label at SXSW (Sugar Hill), year four we had our first Sugar Hill record (Diamonds in the Dark), and this year, year 6, we’re about to put out record number 3, The Stars Are Out, on
March 24th.
5. How important do you think it is to have an ³official² showcase?
I think it’s helpful in making connections, but really any playing you can
do during SXSW week is a plus.
6. What do you hope to achieve by playing at SXSW?
We’re really looking to get the word out about our new record, and SXSW is
a great place to do that because you’ve got so many music people in one
place at the same time. It’s also a time to re-connect with friends in
other bands. Usually you’re like ships passing in the night when you’re
out on tour, so it’s a time to meet up.
7. How do you plan to use the conference to promote yourself?
We have some press stuff to do down there, and we’ll flyer for the shows
while walking around town. We’ll also use the week to hand out advance
copies of the record to radio and press folks.
8. Are you attending any of the actual conference? Are you attending
other shows, what shows/bands are you looking forward to?
I try to make it my practice to not schedule anything during SXSW week
because our schedule’s pretty tight (7 shows!), and I’m a big sleeper. But
our drummer Rob Dulaney, makes spreadsheets and things in order to see as many bands as possible, so I’ll probably tag along with him some when I’m not napping!
9. Do you expect that Boston will have a strong showing this year?
I hope so. Boston musicians are all over the country, and we always seek each other out down there. Our friends Eilen Jewel and her band are playing during the week so I’m sure we’ll check them out. It’s nice to have a camaraderie with musicians from your home town.
Check out their video for “Stop and Think it Over”