It’s likely no mistake that both of Steam Down‘s official SXSW showcases are scheduled to start at 1:00am – not only does the London jazz/hip hop collective make the kind of music that will surely keep the party going well into the wee hours, but they also seem like they’d be a hard act to follow, so might as well have them close out the venues each night.
Check out the video below for Steam Down’s latest single “Overcome” featuring TINYMAN, Germane Marvel, and Afronaut Zu.
Steam Down play Sellar’s Underground on March 16 at 1:00am and The British Music Embassy @ The Courtyard on March 18 at 1:00am.
Metal and hardcore have not really had the biggest presence at SXSW in recent years, but luckily for those who like things on the heavier end of the musical spectrum, there’s still a few such acts that manage to make their way onto the lineup each year.
One of those acts that I’m looking forward to seeing in action at this year’s SouthBy is Philadephia’s Soul Glo. The band will be heading to Austin in support of their latest release, last year’s Diaspora Problems. Check out the video below for the album’s lead track “Gold Chain Punk (whogonbeatmyass?)”
SXSW 2021 was a strange one – right in the middle of a pandemic, all acts were asked to deliver a virtual concert for SXSW attendees to view at home. As odd as that sounds, several bands got extremely creative and left a real mark on the viewers. Norway and Taiwan in particular come to mind, with all the bands from those countries taking a problem and creating an opportunity.
One of the greatest things about SXSW is the wide range of diverse acts that come in from all over the world. And one of the most consistently fun nights I have had in SXSW over the past years has always been the Korean pop night. In the past years I have seen several hit K-pop groups including:
F(x)
Red Velvet
Hyuna
Mamamooo
This year, K-pop returns. Things have changed – K-pop is now one of the biggest genres of music in the world (if you can call it a genre) and bands like BTS and Blackpink are among the most popular bands on Earth. Even on a personal basis, I have been listening to more and more K-pop bands. It’s fun, catchy music. I think they have figured out the formula for creating hooks – the thing I really enjoy is that there is no hesitation for bands in K-pop to mix genres – often songs in K-pop feature pop, electro, rap and rock all in one song. There’s no baggage there that seems to exist in North American music (imagine if Taylor Swift suddenly drops a hardcore rap – there would be some pushback)
The song GingaMingaYo is a great example of the blend of genres. The song dips and dives between pop and electro, all punctuated by choreographed dancing and ultimately becomes a year worm you can’t escape. The group behind this song is called Billlie. Debuting in 2021, the South Korean band consists of seven members and has had some success in the past few years with the single mentioned as well as other songs such as “Ring My Bell.” Given that they have not released new music since mid 2022, their reappearance in Austin might signal new material.
Either way – watch the video below. This will be a fun time
