By Amanda DK

Have you noticed anything different about Los Angeles lately?  Something unusual, out of place?  An infestation, if you will, but one…that is musical in nature?

For the past couple weeks the city has become home for the latest installation of Play Me, I’m Yours, a sprawling, free public art installation, where 30 pianos painted by local artists will be placed in high-traffic public spaces around the city – and anyone can play them! The project was conceived by a London artist, then went to NYC, and is now in Los Angeles.  You can view all the piano locations here – most of them can be found Downtown, but there are a few mid-city, a couple in Santa Monica, even ones in Torrance and Burbank.  The piano I would especially like to point out to you is outside of the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

This Thursday April 26, Tadpole Audio is excited to join forces with Play Me, I’m Yours,  LA Chamber Orchestra, Hollywood Arts Council, American Cinematheque, Buzz Bands LA and Karmeck Productions to present Love Letters To LA: Pianos Live – a one night only, pop up concert featuring local artists all covering songs that mean “LA” to them.  Artists will include the piano outside of the Egyptian Theatre as part of their acoustic tribute to the City of Angels. The event begins at 8:45pm (rain or shine) and is free to the public.  Additional details can be found on the Facebook event page, but participating artists include:

RACES
LA Font
Mariah McManus
One Two
Jess Delgado
Morgan Karr

…and many more.  Plus a super special surprise guest artist!

Hope to see you there.

The piano that currently sits outside the Egyptian Theatre, where the concert will take place!

By Amanda DK

Recently a handful of independent managers, artists, songwriters (and friends) have reached out to me asking the same question in slightly different ways:

How do I get my music into television and films?

I hope those people don’t find it impersonal or rude that I’m answering them with a public article.  I’m writing this because I want to help…honestly, helping them is helping me.  It’s just that these sort of questions come up multiple times a week and I am always giving the same answer.

Just about a year ago I wrote an article on this subject for the Paper Crane Collective. Consider this the “second edition” of that piece. A year later, I’ve worked at two more companies, going from music for scripted television at a studio, to an unscripted television production company, and now work with an independent music supervisor on feature films. I have another year in the field, receiving pitch emails and cold calls from companies, producers, you name it. While most of what I said then still holds true now, I’ve incorporated a some feedback I received on the last article, as well as some additional thoughts from over the last year.

Disclaimer: While I have been doing this for a few years – I’ve only been doing this for a few years.  All music supervisors have their own way of collecting and organizing submissions, so in no way am I saying that these are the definitive rules.  There are none.  If there are, I don’t have them.  These are merely my humble observations from my own experiences and from what I’ve heard from others at panels or in conversation.  I invite any music supervisors who might read this to add their own opinions in the comments.

1. Make strategic connections.  If you are an independent artist, it will be more beneficial in the long run to try and gain representation by a pitching company rather than cold call a big studio or an independent supervisor.  Studios and other big companies get so many calls and emails everyday it’s way too easy to get lost in the shuffle, not to mention there are other political agendas and relationships at play as well.  And a lot of places flat out do not take any unsolicited material.  Not all of them of course, but your music is definitely more likely to be moved to the top of the bin if it comes from someone a supervisor already knows and likes.  Before reaching out to any supervisors, I recommend first targeting representation by pitching companies who have a strong catalog that your music would fit in well with, and more importantly – already have connections with all the people who are placing music.  There are big ones like Audio Network and Music Dealers, who have huge searchable databases, and more boutique companies like Position Music, Lip Sync Music, Ghost Town, and Secret Road Music Services.  And hundreds more all of which have their own specialties, set up and deal-making situation.  How to get representation by one of these companies (and deciding which company is right for you) is someone else’s article, so I won’t go into it.

2. Be educated about the business side.  I know it sounds painful.  But on the most basic level you have to understand that there are two sides to a song (master and publishing), what elements are in a license, that samples from other songs always need to be licensed, and so forth.  I recommend reading All You Need To Know About The Music Business by Donald Passman; the book is an overview of the whole industry written for artists and does a great job explaining some pretty complex concepts in an understandable way.

3. Know who owns your music, or at least who has the right to license it for film and TV.  If there are three writers, each with their own publishing entity, would a supervisor need to get permission from all three or is there a point person?  Who owns the master recording of a song – the producer, the artist or the label?  Generally if you have a label, the label owns it, but basically just make sure you have these conversations with your team. Don’t do any deals with pitching companies without talking to the other owners of the song, or even better – get everything in writing. The first rule in licensing music is never assume. In this scenario, never assume that just because you wrote a song with your best friend they’re cool with you pitching it all around town, and approving its use for little or no money, or for any kind of film.

4. Do your research.  If you do insist on cold calling a large company, make sure you know what projects they’re working on.  With this great invention of the Internet, you can find out almost everything about a production.  Take a moment and think, “does my music really fit into anything they’re working on?”  if the answer is yes, mention that.  If not, then be clear that you are aware it may not work right now, but you’d like to be considered for the future.  I don’t know any music supervisor who doesn’t appreciate when artists show they’ve put in a little effort.

Music supervisor Julia Michels on doing your research and attention to detail:

5. Be polite and professional.  If you’ve never met or built any rapport with someone, don’t be their best friend right away.  I’m not saying you have to call me “Ms. Krieg,” but I will seriously get emails from producers being like, “Hi.  I want to put music into your soundtracks.  Let me know what you’re working on.” Also, please save any emoticons for the second or third email into a conversation.

6. Say No to Social Media. I know, I know, I just posted a whole article extolling the virtues of Twitter. But Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn – I don’t recommend using any of these services for artists trying to connect with a music supervisor, especially Facebook and Twitter.  LinkedIn is technically a “business” networking site, so I’ll let that fly (if anyone feels differently please speak up), but I know many executives who try and keep Facebook only for social interactions. Definitely don’t friend anyone you haven’t already corresponded with via email, or have met face to face. And personally, I think tweeting a link at someone is kind of lazy (it shows you didn’t do your research). If I ask for artist or song ideas on Twitter or Facebook, that’s a different story, and it will likely never be for a music search at work.  When it comes to pitching music for licensing though, do a little bit of digging and you’ll probably find an email somewhere.  Yes, there are a few supervisors who do publicize music searches on Twitter and Facebook.  I understand both sides – why social media can be a useful tool, but also uncontrollable and unpredictable – however, since the majority of supervisors I know aren’t tweeting their needs, I would err on the side of caution and stay away from social sites.

7. Always include music to download.  Sure, the more information about a new band the better; a YouTube video or an article including a stream of your track on Stereogum is cool, maybe a couple press links too, but the bottom line is that we can’t send those to an editor to try to picture.  Try services like OneHub or Box.net which both give the option of streaming and downloading.  SoundCloud is also a good tool, but it can be a pain to download all the tracks individually. I used to download everything I was sent right away, but now I get so many submissions emails I can’t even read through them to find out what they’re each telling me to do (stream, download, check out a show) I just file them away until I can get to downloading them, maybe a month later.  So whatever service you choose to send your music – make sure those links don’t expire.

8. Have high quality versions, stems and lyrics for all of your tracks on the ready.  High (or “broadcast”) quality files can be WAV of AIF and are necessary for the final mix.  Music editors will also often request instrumental and “a cappella” (vocals only) versions of the track to cut the song better into the scene, but if you can provide other stems as well, even better.  And with regards to lyrics, it’s always great when we can find them easily online – at the very least though, have some a Word Doc or PDF that you can fire off right away when someone asks.

9. Metadata. Metadata. Medatata. This should go without saying but always, always, always make sure track titles, artist, and album (if applicable) details are embedded in any tracks sent.  It’s appalling how often people forget to do this. If pop in a CD or open a zip file I received a couple months ago, and see “Track 1,” “Track 2,” “Track 3”…I probably won’t take the time to chase down whoever sent it to me for the missing information.  Assuming of course, I know who it came from.  So equally if not more importantly – make sure contact information is embedded in the track information as well.  If I can’t figure out where it came from, I don’t know who to reach out to should I want to license it, and since music searches generally have a quick turnaround, I may move on to another track.  Similarly if I get a flash drive or a CD without any song titles or artists names,

10. Less Is More. Especially when first introducing yourself to a studio or music supervisor.  As I mentioned, if you can research their current projects and gear to that – great.  Otherwise maybe go with a selection of tracks that best represents your catalog.  Either way, don’t ever send more than ten or fifteen songs unless specifically requested.  Any more than that can be daunting for the supervisor who already has a mountain of music to go through.

11. Don’t Follow Up. I’m not sure if I’ve made this clear yet, but MUSIC SUPERVISORS GET SENT A LOT OF MUSIC. Sometimes it takes us a really, really long time to get around to listening to all of it.  Weeks. Months. It all comes down to the projects we are working on.  If you happen to send hip hop while we’re in post on the twentieth Fast and Furious film, I’ll probably put my ears on that before some new punk pop or experimental folk.  It’s all a waiting game, and unfortunately, you have to be patient. Trust me, if you sent us something, and it works in a film – we will find you. If you must check in to see how we liked your EP, give it a month or so.  Another way to get priority? See tip number one.

Music supervisor Andrea Von Foerster’s thoughts on the subject of reminder emails and when to follow up:

Sometimes I get asked to give my feedback or opinion on music I’m sent, and I honestly don’t know what to say.  From where I sit, I only really feel qualified to comment on whether the song or artist is a fit for any of the projects I have a hand in at that moment, not how good or bad they are.  That’s what bloggers and other critics are for.  I tell people on the phone all the time, “if you don’t hear from us, it doesn’t mean that we don’t like your music or it’s bad – we just don’t have the right fit for it right now.”  In my experience, pitching for film and television is like trying to hit a moving target.  I do not envy (and highly respect) anyone who does it.  As they say, “success is when opportunity meets preparedness.”  Hopefully this helped at least a little with the latter.

In the coming weeks be on the lookout for a follow up post with a few tips on how to kick ass if (or when) a music search comes your way (and it has nothing to do with whether or not your song is chosen in the end).

By Amanda DK

Artist: Matt FX
Origin: New York, NY
Label: None
Latest Release: None

It was only last Friday that I made this announcement via Twitter:

Can’t wait until more people hear some of the music @FXFELDMAN is making. I’m not an A&R expert, but I think he may have the 2012 summer jam

— Amanda Krieg (@tadpoleaudio) April 6, 2012

Well, it’s appears that summer came early this year (or is generally always hanging around, if you live in Los Angeles like I do). Moments later I found out that I could, in fact, share this infectious tune with all of you. And the same statement I made then still holds true today.

Some of you may remember Matt FX as the young music supervisor of the US version of Skins, filling episodes with upwards of fifteen songs each, including the likes of Caveman, Figurines, Bear In Heaven, Phantogram and Superhumanoids (just to name a few).  In his interview with TA just over a year ago, Matt mentioned that he had recently bought a bunch of equipment for his studio – “Breezy” is the first fruit we are hearing of his labors, and man, it tastes good.

Popsicle good. Or ice cold lemonade good. Or waves crashing onto the shore on a hot day good.  Typically I’m not the one to endorse sparse, lo-fi electronic beats, and really, if I had any criticism of the track it would be that I wish it built more every minute or so, but the chorus is just so darn catchy.  It will get stuck in your head in the best way possible, I challenge you not to sway along with the melody – reminiscent of a sunny steel drum jam – conjuring dreams of a getaway to a peacefully uninhabited tropical isle.

Matt FX “Breezy (feat. Zoe Penina)”

By Amanda DK

Artist: ROSTAM
Origin: New York, NY
Label: None
Latest Release: None

Rostam Batmanglij became known to most people via one of the biggest breakout indie pop bands of the past decade. He then stirred up some buzz again a few years ago as one-half of Discovery, his collaboration with Wes Miles, lead singer of another popular band (in hipster circles at least) Ra Ra Riot.

That said, it seems a bit ridiculous that it took the release of his solo work to finally get my attention.

The jangly, largely instrumental “Wood,” was one of my favorite songs of 2011, and it’s possible that if I had gotten to “Don’t Let It Get To You” before 2012 rolled around, it would have landed on that list too.

“Don’t Let It Get To You” is both gritty and charming. Aggressive and lyrical. Snare drums spit the the rhythms throughout, punctuating piano and flute melodies that are the foundation of the song. A refreshing example of tropical beats that are sunny, but not sparkling.

So what can we expect next? The score for “Sound of My Voice,” a Fox Searchlight film written by Rostam’s brother, Zal, and Brit Marling. Directed by Zal. Starring Marling. Watch the first twelve minutes here. I’ll tell you, they’re pretty compelling.

Rostam “Don’t Let It Get To You”

By Amanda DK

At this point it’s a given that Twitter and the music industry are inextricably linked.  The site has changed the way artists can interact with fans, how marketing strategies are devised and executed, and set a new, even faster pace for the spread of news and buzz.  It’s been invaluable tool in growing this blog; I’ve built countless relationships with social media experts, fellow bloggers, and publicists through Twitter alone.  But what about for music supervisors?

Many music supervisors are on Twitter.  Andrea Von Foerster (@AVonFoerster), Chris Mollere (@cmollere), Lindsay Wolfington (@lonewolflindsay), and the infamous Scott Vener (@brokemogul) to name a few.  As far as I know, however, Chris, Lindsay and Nora Felder (@norafelder) are the only ones Tweeting the songs used in their shows immediately after airing.  Chop Shop Music, run by Alexandra Patsavas, uses social media to promote both their artists and their soundtracks.  On the whole however, it’s taken the music supervision community a lot longer to embrace Twitter than other areas of the music industry.

And I understand why – for a music supervisor (or anyone, really) Twitter is daunting.  Who is worth following?  What kind of things should I tweet?  Do you really expect me to keep up with another social media website?  Plus, as a music supervisor, we already get music pitched from all sides – email, snail mail, Facebook, LinkedIn.  Is opening up one more avenue for random producers to throw SoundCloud links our way a good idea?

Concerns aside, Twitter cannot be ignored.  Here are four ways music supervisors for TV or film, studio or independent, established or aspiring – can all benefit from using the site.

1. Building Relationships.  Both in your niche of the industry and outside of it.  I mentioned that I’ve befriended a lot of bloggers and publicists. Yes, this might be directly beneficial for my blog, but these contacts have made me a better informed and connected music person overall. The many facets of the industry are becoming more interconnected every day, so you never know when you’ll be able to help each other or collaborate in the future.  Or save the day with a lead no one else has.  Besides, ever had a problem tracking down contact info for a label or publisher?  The email address you need might be a retweet away.

2. Staying Informed.  Who has a new album coming out, who is getting back together, who just released a new track, what is the most popular show to be at (and did the band rock it), and most importantly, who is everyone talking about?  Many supervisors don’t have time to read full magazines or peruse Stereogum daily, but with Twitter a quick scroll will keep you up to date with the highlights and then some.

3. Separating the wheat from the chaff.  It’s no secret that in all areas of the industry – particularly music supervision – there is a glut of music.  Music is easier to make, emails are easier to track down.  Supervisors are sent so much music from all angles, and while we still want to discover the next “it” band (and get them cheap before they sign to a major and are no longer affordable), how do you even begin sorting through the pile of CDs quickly accumulating next to your desk?  Following a handful of your favorite blogs or journalists (not just Fader or Pitchfork) will give you some insight into who’s EP to listen to first.

4. Good PR. I am a vocal believer in the value of good press.  Yes, it’s good to be liked.  But more practically, being liked leads to better relationships and better work. “You can catch more flies with honey,” as they say. Well the more flies you have, professionally speaking, the more value you have.  One of the goals of The Guild of Music Supervisors (@guildofmusic) is to “act as a valuable, highly specialized resource to further the understanding of the constant evolution of music in media,” or in other words, to educate those in related fields (filmmakers, television and advertising executives, for example) on the role of the music supervisor.  Raise the profile of the profession.  What better medium than one that allows you to connect directly with fans?  As I mentioned earlier, more supervisors should tweet songs used in the television shows, films, ads and even trailers they work on.  But what about a Twitter Q&A?  A TweetChat about a particularly controversial song or moment?  The best way to raise your profile is to engage your audience. And always thank the licensors.

15 Music Supervisors To Follow…

Andy Gowan (How I Met Your Mother) @supermusicsupe
Chris Mollere (The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars) @cmollere
Nora Felder (Californication) @norafelder
Season Kent (Revenge, The Fighter) @Season_Kent
Gabe Hilfer (Project X, 50/50) @waveuno
Laura Webb (Teen Wolf) @lalawebb
Andrea Von Foerster (500 Days of Summer, Modern Family, Chronicle) @AVonFoerster
Kier Lehman (Director of Music Creative Affairs at Sony Pictures) @IamKier
Rebecca Rienks (Ice Loves Coco) @BuhbeccaBinks
Daryl Berg (Executive Director of Music at Shine America) @darylberg
Tracy McKnight (Head of Film Music at Lionsgate) @CalamJane
John Houlihan (Abduction, Good Old Fashioned Orgy) @TastyMM
Lindsay Wolfington (One Tree Hill) @lonewolflindsay
Tricia Halloran (Castle, The Big C) @bnwtricia
Marcy Bulkeley (Herzog & Company) @marcyb52

10 More Twitter Accounts for Music Supervisors to Check Out…

@FauxMusicSupe
@ABCMusicLounge
@ChopShopMusic
@guildofmusic
@Licensor
@HighBiasIndustries
@MTVSoundtrack
@LakeshoreRecs
@MusicLicensed
@MusicLicensing

These lists could have been much longer, especially if I had included all the brilliant music licensing and pitching professionals who make our lives much easier!

By Amanda DK

PUJOL

As was the case last year, with limited time before my flight, I spent Saturday frantically trying to see as much music as I could as fast as I could.  I managed to get into Rachael Ray’s Feedback (with a bunch of moms and locals) early on for some brisket and biscuits, but when trying to return for LP a couple hours later was given the run around and then turned away (lesson learned, RSVP confirmation emails mean nothing – always pick up that extra badge).

Good thing there were only five or ten other excellent showcases on the same block.

That morning at Stubbs I found myself staring at a T-shirt that boasted the local catchphrase, “Keep Austin Weird.”  I’d seen similar shirts around town, but for some reason this one in particular stuck, remaining with me until I boarded my plane back to Los Angeles that afternoon.

Bands I Saw:

Bob Schneider
Stream some tunes here.

*Imagine Dragons

Imagine Dragons “Look How Far We’ve Come”

*J. Irvin Dally

J. Irvin Dally “Teething”

PUJOL

PUJOL “Mayday”

*Turf War

Turf War “Cheers To The Years”

Companies, Websites or Other Organizations That Made My Day Brighter:

Extreme Music
Rollo & Grady
Autumn Tone Records

SXSo Random:

As I mentioned, at the airport I ran into the same A&R executive that was on my flight to Austin (as well as several friends) boarding the flight beforehand.  One of the friends I ran into was traveling with her boss who, at the time I met up with them, was catching up with Taylor Hanson.  It was really hard to play it straight when shaking the hand of he who “MMMBops.”

Additional Tips & Tricks:

The SXSW Go Official App was incredibly handy, laying out everything happening at the festival hour by hour, with links to information, maps, and other details.  If it were not for this, I would have never have found out that Emperor X was performing just a few blocks from where I was.

Mophie Juice Pack – The week before SXSW I went to the nearest Best Buy in search of a phone case that had a built in charger and came out with a Mophie Juice Pak.  Little did I know, not only would the phone case/charger combo be a trend this year, but the Mophie brand as well.  I ran into at least six other friends with the same device, and for good reason.  Since phones tend to die around 3 or 4pm at SXSW due to excessive texting and tweeting, the extra boost on the go proved invaluable.

By Amanda DK

Escort

After a stop at the BMI Acoustic Brunch in the morning, Friday afternoon I made my way over to the Convention Center to moderate the panel: “Music In TV Pilots: Sales Tool or Strategy?”.  Panelists included Phil Sgriccia (Executive Producer, Supernatural), Daryl Berg (Executive Director of Music, Shine America), Chris Jackson (Director of Music, E! Networks) and Alexandra Patsavas (Chop Shop Music).

There should be audio posted on the SXSW website soon, but we discussed such things as how to establish a music voice for a show, the pros and cons of using recognizable music, the benefits of hiring a composer and some of the challenges of working on a television pilot.  Ultimately, a pilot is a collaborative process, and with money, jobs and success on the line, there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen and even more people to please!

Bands I Saw:

 The Lumineers (BMI Acoustic Brunch @ The Four Seasons)

The Lumineers “Ho Hey”

Jillette Johnson (BMI Acoustic Brunch @ The Four Seasons)
Watch her perform in NYC here.

**Lucius (The Wild Honey Pie Bee Hive Party @ Uncorked)

Lucius “Don’t Just Sit There”

Conveyor (The Wild Honey Pie Bee Hive Party @ Uncorked)

Conveyor “Mukraker”

**Mariah McManus (Official Showcase @ Deseo Lounge)

Mariah McManus “Say It Again”

**Delta Spirit (Time Out North America Showcase @ Stubbs)

Delta Spirit “Time Bomb”

**St. Lucia (Neon Gold Showcase @ Karma Lounge)

St. Lucia “Closer Than This”

Guadalupe Plata (Sounds From Spain Showcase @ Red Eyed Fly)

Guadalupe Plata “I’d Rather Be A Devil”

**Escort (BandPage HQ @ Empire Automotive)
Watch their highly enjoyable video for “All Through The Night” here (there are muppets).

Where I Dined:

 The Four Seasons – Sounds fancier than it was. Not to complain about free food, but this was nothing different from your average hotel brunch, except maybe better breakfast potatoes, coffee and muffins. Same gooey scrambled eggs though.

 Taco Truck at Trinity and 7^th – Just as fancy as it sounds. Nothing better at 3:00am. After sampling both the Picadillo and Al Pastor, I was able to successfully recommend the Al Pastor to two other customers.

Companies, Websites or Other Organizations That Made My Day Brighter:

Zync Music
Bank Robber Music
The Wild Honey Pie
Chop Shop Music
The Agency Group
The Grammy Museum
Talenthouse
Mxdwn
Evolution Music Partners
PEN Music Group

 SXSo Random:

You may be wondering what this category is doing here.  Sure, running into the same random A&R guy at the beginning and end of the trip is slightly odd.  But having crack (cinnamon sugar) popcorn thrown at you is more deliciously fortuitous than random.  Well, IT’S BECAUSE OF FRIDAY.

- Saying hello to friends at the BMI Acoustic Brunch somehow led to a photograph of me with famed singer-songwriter, Donovan.  I should probably be embarrassed about this, but it was a full three days later before I discovered he was the man behind “Mellow Yellow.”

- At around 10:00pm, I decided to take a look at Facebook – something I rarely did, since it would just eat precious battery life.  There was a Facebook message from my aunt, letting me know that my cousin was also at SXSW.  I haven’t seen him in several years…but honestly wasn’t sure what a professional trumpet player would be doing at a weeklong music orgy alongside folks like Cloud Nothings or The Men.  As it happens, his band was playing once more at 1:00am, before driving to San Antonio to catch a 7:00am flight.  The venue was a block from where I was, and I didn’t have any other plans at that time, so I made my way over to Bandpage HQ to see Escort.  Thankfully I ran into some new friends from Glide Magazine, without whom I would have been hiding in the back.  Instead, I was up close and personal for perhaps my favorite show of the festival.  The eighteen member disco funk collective (there were three violinists!  THREE!) brought the party harder than any other act I saw, and was the perfect way to end my last night in Austin.  Plus, I got to congratulate my cousin on his recent engagement.

- By the time this fiesta was done, it was approaching 2:30am and all I wanted was a taco (see “Where I Dined” above).  One of the truck patrons I recommended the Al Pastor to happened to be in a well-known Los Angeles indie band.  We actually have mutual friends, and may even have met before.  Josh* definitely did not recall this, lamenting to my friend and I about the girl he had made out with earlier, and who had just left with some other guy.  ”How much have you had to drink?” I asked, “A lot,” he replied. As he and my friend finished their tacos (I finished mine way earlier), we chatted about music, and how his SXSW shows had gone.  And then, “I have like, a forty-five minute walk home,” Josh informed us.  We walked with him as far as the Hilton and then said our goodbyes.

*Name changed to protect the drunk

By Amanda DK

Photo Credit: Eric Weiner, The Wild Honey Pie

I’m not sure if it was jetlag or excitement, but despite a bedtime of 3:15am, I was up and unable to get back to sleep at around 9:00am.  Thankfully, almost all of my roommates seemed to be in the same boat.

Bands I Saw:

*Geographer (Mashpot & Thrillcall House Party @ Secret Location)

Geographer “Kites”

*Daughter (@ Red Eyed Fly)

Daughter “Candles”

Punch Brothers (Red Light Management Party @ Stubbs)

Punch Brothers “Rye Whiskey”

MyNameIsJohnMichael (Redlight Management Party @ Stubbs)

MyNameIsJohnMichael “Orphan”

*Alabama Shakes (Redlight Management Party @ Stubbs)

Alabama Shakes “Hold On”

Three Blind Wolves (Beauty Bar)

Three Blind Wolves “Echo On The Night Train”

Yellow Ostrich (Red Eyed Fly)

Yellow Ostrich “The Shakedown”

*Slow Club (The Parish)
Watch the video for “Two Cousins” here.

*Milo Greene (Chop Shop Music Showcase @ Maggie Mae’s)

Milo Greene “1957″

*The Gossip (Chop Shop Music Showcase @ Maggie Mae’s)

The Gossip “Perfect World”

Where I Dined:

Stubbs BBQ – I had Stubbs grub twice actually, free BBQ was provided at the Mashpot/Thrillcall Event, so my breakfast was chicken, ribs and sausage.  Then I tried a jalapeno brisket taco during the Red Light Management party at the venue.

Chi’lantro Food Truck – Mexican/Asian fusion. I loved the flavors in my tacos, but word on the street is that the Kimchi fries burrito (yes, seriously) is incredible.  The truck has actually been featured on the Cooking Channel and Food Network.

Companies, Websites or Other Organizations That Made My Day Brighter:

Secret Road Music Services
Cutting Edge Group
Glide Magazine
Nimbit
District Music
Selectracks
Casablanca Media Publishing
Sony Music

Everyone responsible for and/or who I caught up with at #MEGABLAAG: YVYNL, Wholly Roller, Dailybeatz, Cream Team, smokeDONTsmoke, Gluttony is the New Black, I Guess I’m Floating, Ears of the Beholder, Rawkblog, Beats Per Minute, Loudersoft, The Music Ninja, exfm, Jaxart Records, The SF Critic, Buzz Bands LA, Twenty Four Bit, Metrojolt.

SXSo Random:

One of my roommates was walking along the street and a bus full of dancing women threw him a large bag of cinnamon sugar kettle corn. This lasted in our room for another day and a half and became affectionately known as “crack popcorn.” Not sure if this was the brand, but I imagine any kind of cinnamon sugar kettle corn would be equally addictive.

By Amanda DK

I arrived later than most (or at least many) on Wednesday night. Unsurprisingly, my flight was full of musicians and industry types.

An hour or so after landing I was in the hotel room. I quickly addressed the work emails that had accumulated during my travels, and booked it to the Convention Center to grab my badge and begin my SXSW adventures.

Bands I Saw:

Favorite performances are starred.

*Ed Sheeran (The Warner Sound @ La Zona Rosa)
Stream “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You” here.

*Kimbra (The Warner Sound @ La Zona Rosa)

Kimbra “Settle Down”

Emperor X (Official Showcase @ The Hideout)

Emperor X “Glitnir”

U.S. Royalty (ASCAP Showcase @ Bat Bar)

U.S. Royalty “Sleepy Eyes”

The Men (Sacred Bones Showcase @ Elysium)

The Men “Bataille”

Eve 6 (@ Red 7)

Where I Dined:

Blue Ribbon BBQ –Some of the meat in my pulled pork sandwich looked a little undercooked, but clearly I’m just a BBQ newb – my stomach didn’t feel anything afterwards but satisfied.

Halcyon Café – A charming café during the day and lounge at night, it’s comforting to be able to get a good iced coffee any time you need one.

Coolhaus Truck – I’ll admit it, I had kind of a binge evening (though no alcohol) on Wednesday. They were parked outside La Zona Rosa for a few hours, and I could not resist the “Gary Clark Jr’s Austin Breakfast” flavor (Jameson Whiskey with Lucky Charms ice cream) sandwiched between two snickerdoodle cookies. Heaven.

Companies, Websites or Other Organizations That Made My Day Brighter:

The Spellbound Group
Ghost Town
Hipstamatic
The Spitz Agency

 SXSo Random:

Next to me on the plane was a make-up artist who had never heard of the conference before, but was going to do Bruce Springsteen’s make up for his big Keynote Speech and performance. On the aisle, I came to learn, was an A&R executive who was responsible for signing both Kimbra and Gary Clark Jr. to Warner Brothers Records. Upon arrival in Austin the crew wished us a happy South By Southwest.

I happened to run into the same A&R guy at the Convention Center while picking up my badge. He was about to head over to La Zona Rosa to see Kimbra perform at The Warner Sound Party. As I was about to head that way myself, he waited with me for a bit. I explained that I work in music for film and television. “Oh, my brother is actually a television actor,” he says. I look at his badge and back up at him. I know who his brother is, and let him know as much (I’ll let you guess who it might be). My badge ended up taking forever to print, so I urged him to wait and he departed. I actually saw him again at the airport on my way out, about to board a flight just before mine. Full circle.

By Amanda DK

I’ll be honest, Spanish Prisoners isn’t the standard fare that makes me take stand up and notice.  They are dreamy, hazy and meandering, and from Brooklyn – usually a lethal combination for me.  Much of their debut album Gold Fools, doesn’t accomplish anything I haven’t heard before, but yet…is strangely pleasant and compelling.

There is something about their their melodies and songwriting that is anchored in something real and familiar.  One thing I will say about the lush reverb, is that it does make me appreciate more when the bass line comes through crisp and clear.  Two of the tracks even managed to move me enough that I simply had to share with all of you.

First “Know No Violence” veers more into the pop category, with it’s upbeat snare rapping, and sing-song vocals.  It is by far the most lively and varied track on the album, bouncing from sparse, lithe guitar licks to a catchy chorus line.

“That’s When I Froze” provides a lovely contrast, starting very quietly and building to a finale that I can only imagine becomes quite epic live.  Plus I love that I can hear the acoustic plucking, stripped of the haze that blankets the rest of the album.

And considering that you can pay whatever you want for the whole album on their Bandcamp, you have no excuse not to grab Gold Fools right now.