South By Southwest

SXSW Wrestling Review: Lucha Underground, March 14

Posted on March 27, 2016 by Ricky in South By Southwest | Leave a comment

lucha underground

lucha underground

When you go to SXSW, you go with an open mind and the expectation that you will come away with some new experiences. When I heard that there was luchador wrestling at SXSW, it was a no brainer for me. I haven’t really followed wrestling lately, but the inner child in me was secretly excited to see live wrestling.

Lucha Underground is a wrestling organization that you can probably consider indie. If WWE was Jay-Z, Lucha Underground is that dude handing out mixtapes on the streets. They are on the rise and, as with most independent things, have a dedicated following. The night at SXSW was a showcase for the organization and as I arrived at the Austin Music Hall (RIP) it appeared their fans were out in full force. The showcase featured a few matches – I saw a 1 on 1 match, a ladies 1 on 1 match and a 3 on 3 tag match. The last match featured Rey Mysterio, the only wrestler I recognized.

Wrestling live is a lot like a hip hop show mixed with theatre. There’s a lot of call and responses – each wrestler has their own catchphrases and also even during a match, there are moves that fans will respond to with specific phrases. I would imagine if you know the wrestler, it would be pretty fun to shout stuff out. The main comparison would be at a concert where everyone is singing out the lyrics to songs they know, only in wrestling you are shouting out catchphrases or something to wrestler moves. My only complaint was that each wrestler had to do a speech before each match and well, let’s just say not all of them are as smooth as The Rock and it provided for some occasionally cringe-worthy moments.

The thing you don’t quite realize until you actually see the show live is how big and athletic these guys are. I think one of the wrestler’s arm was thicker then my torso. Some guy could be 250 pounds and then jump up and do a front flip and land on his feet like it’s nothing. Yes wrestling is scripted, but you cannot deny the athletic ability of these men and women.

I enjoyed the Lucha Underground night, it was action packed and the crowd was insane. I don’t think I saw a louder crowd at SXSW than the one at Lucha Underground. The band El Conjunto Nueva Ola played in between matches and they were quite entertaining. Having donned luchador masks, they played their own tracks as well as modern day covers. I did not expect them to do Maroon 5 covers, but yet, they did.

Live wrestling, it’s something to check out. Because Stone Cold said so.

ps. I couldn’t didn’t know how to end this article, but I wanted to do it with a wrestling catchphrase. Here are some other options

  • So watcha gonna do when wrestling at SXSW runs wild on yooooooou
  • Wrestling at SXSW. OOOOOOohhhhh Yeeeeaaaaah
  • Did I enjoy wrestling at SXSW? Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!

That’s about all I got.

SXSW Review: Diarrhea Planet, March 19, Little Woodrow’s

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Paul in South By Southwest | Leave a comment

IMG_20160319_130547

To quote Billy Joel (this will probably be the only time Billy Joel comes up in the context of a Diarrhea Planet review), it was a pretty good crowd for a Saturday. That’s what the members of Diarrhea Planet seemed to be thinking as they played a 1:00 pm set on the last day of SXSW, aka “the most hungover day” according to them. “You guys look pretty awake. I was expecting more of a sunglasses crowd. You must have a couple of Pedialyte in you.”

It’s true, by the end of the week, SXSW can take it’s toll on you, even if you haven’t been going that hard. But word has gotten out about Diarrhea Planet, a six piece outfit making some of the most straight up enjoyable music I’ve heard in awhile, and enough people managed to get themselves up early enough to catch an impressive set by the band. With their four guitar arsenal, there’s plenty of opportunity for lots of metal-influenced soloing and general rocking out at any given moment during one of their shows.

One of the highlights of their set was “Life Pass,” off of their upcoming album Turn To Gold, described by the band as being “… about what happens when the party catches up to you. I think it’s pretty appropriate for today.”

SXSW Review: Charli XCX, March 18, Stubbs

Posted on March 24, 2016 by Ricky in South By Southwest | Leave a comment

Charli XCX

The last time I saw Charli XCX, she was a pint size girl trying to break America by going by her own rules. I don’t recall if she had penned the starmaking “I Love It” track for Icona Pop yet but she was definitely unknown. I remember watching that show and thinking she was a brave performer and definitely had her own thing going.

Fast forward a few years and Charli XCX has grown dramatically both in fame and as a performer. In the years since her initial appearance, Charlie XCX has released several albums, a massive hit and participated in many collaborations so it’s no surprised that she was one of the headliners for Stubbs. Her new album sees her collaborate with Sophie, who is someone I guess.

Taking the stage in what can only be described as a Chun Li meets NC-17 outfit, Charli XCX commanded the crowd’s presence from the get go. Filling the giant stage with what can only be described as pop star dance moves, Charli XCX had the crowd dancing and jumping. Her new material was quite hip hop heavy and I marvelled at how Charli XCX was able to pull it off with such ease. If you were to just listen to the music without knowing the artist, I bet people would be shocked to find out it comes from a white girl from England. Still, a pop star, no matter how hard they try, cannot deny their pop star past (if they are trying to break away from it) and Charli XCX delivered her hits to a delighted crowd. I was really glad she didn’t use any vocal assistance with the track “Boom Clap,” arguably her biggest hit. For most of the set, you couldn’t quite tell which parts were from her, and which part was pre-recorded, but when it came down to lay it down, she abandoned the pre-recorded material, which was great.

The only mis-step in the show was her introduction of a special guest. She brought out QT, who frankly, nobody knew and QT sang her one song that was apparently a hit somewhere, but to me it sounded like a really annoying anime song with chipmunk like vocals that would probably be a mountain dew commercial in Japan.

SXSW Review: CHVRCHES, March 18, Stubbs

Posted on March 24, 2016 by Ricky in South By Southwest | Leave a comment

CHVRCHES

Sometimes the good guys win. This is my feeling with Chvrches. I don’t know why, but I root for them. When I first saw them at SXSW three years ago, they were a band with a few singles and a lot of buzz. They had to play the Spin stage at Stubbs and being relatively new, they seemed timid and quite shy in front of the rowdy open bar crowd (who were there for Kendrick Lamar, nonetheless). Three years and two excellent albums later, Chvrches returned to Spin at Stubbs and were the headliners of the day. That, my friends, is growth

Not only have they grown in fame, but man, has Lauren Mayberry grown as a performer. Leaping onto the stage to start the set, Mayberry was no longer the singer who wanted your attention, she has become a performer that demanded it. Between running between spots on the stage, dancing and twirling and delivering her vocals, Mayberry has made the transition to bonafide star.

The funny thing is, Chvrches don’t really need that star quality that much because their tracks are really really good. Building off the success of their debut album, their latest album Every Open Eye was also full of amazingly good tracks. Given the live blistering beats and the performance dynamics, these tracks jump at you live. My favorite track, “Clearest Blue” was especially lively and the Depeche Mode sounding payoff of the track had the grounds shaking from so many people dancing.

This band is only going to get bigger. I’m glad I was there at the start(or almost at the start)

« Previous   1 2 ... 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 ... 149 150   Next »