5 Coolest Things I Did at SXSW

Ok, so pretend I posted this a month ago, when SXSW was still relevant.  But my band booked a gig down in Austin, TX during our spring break so we'd have an excuse to go to SXSW.  Turns out Austin is a kick-ass city and we came out with some pretty cool stories.  Here are the top five things that happened that made the 34 hours of driving to and from Austin worth it:

5. Watch Jack White play from outside of a bar

The cool thing about SXSW is that you don't necessarily need to buy a badge to enjoy lots of great shows.  The not so cool thing is that nearly every show is at a bar, which makes it difficult for us almost-21-year-olds to see all the cool shows.  However, we wouldn't have gotten into this show anyway, as the line for badge holders was far out the door.  Luckily, the stage was very close to some of the bar windows, so we could kinda sorta watch the almighty Jack White from outside.  Needless to say, his set was incredible.  Jack White was accompanied by an all new, all female band that added some fresh instrumentations and arrangements to classic songs such as "Hotel Yorba."  Not bad for a free show but hopefully I'll have better seats for Lollapalooza.

4. See M. Ward and the Shins for free

When we found out that one of the highest-profile shows of the week was absolutely free, we had no other choice but to go to see M. Ward and the Shins.  The concert was located on the opposite side of the river from Austin with the stage facing away from the city.  The Austin skyline definitely made for a spectacular background for the concert as the sun set.  While I hadn't listened to much of either's music beforehand, I quickly became a fan as both concerts were amazing.  I was especially impressed with M. Ward's style of guitar playing and the way he commanded your attention onstage.  Badass is the only word I can think of that adequately describes him.  The Shins show was super chill until a mosh-pit inexplicably broke out during the band's final song.

3. See Mumford & Sons for FREE

Are you sensing a theme here?  We discovered that Mumford was also playing a free show with Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes on the UT campus in Austin.  The concert was in support of a  documentary, featuring both bands touring the Southwest in a train, called Big Easy Express.  The movie was shown before the start of the show and if you get the chance, I recommend you check it out.  The show itself was incredible and the chemistry between the two bands great to watch.  Members from each band would often join the other band during their sets to provide extra vocals or instrumentation.  At the end of Mumford & Sons' set, they brought out a local high school band to accompany the band.  Too bad my high school band never did anything that cool.

2. Participate in Tom Morello's Occupy SXSW Rally

I won't pretend to know all the details of the Occupy movement, so I'm not trying to make a statement one way or another.  But if it means I can see one of my favorite guitarists up close and personal, then it's got my support!  Tom Morello (of Rage Against the Machine fame) played a stunning set inside of a bar featuring Wayne Kramer from MC5.  Of course, we could not get into the bar to watch the show, but they projected a live feed of the set on the side of the building so those without badges could watch.  After playing some of the best electric guitar work I have ever seen inside, he came out with his acoustic guitar and led the Occupy mob in "This Land Is Your Land" and his own "World Wide Rebel Song."  While there were police all around the rally, the crowd was very calm and no riots broke out.  But I still would have flipped a police car if Tom Morello had told me to.

1. Meet Freaking Arcade Fire

I haven't stopped bragging about this.  So we were at some random venue that we were watching some random band play at.  We just happened to be walking out when I saw some faces I had seen before.  After a few seconds, I realized that it was Win and Regine Butler from Arcade Fire.  "Pretty cool!" I thought.  Then I realized that "Holy shit Arcade Fire just walked by us!!!"  Naturally, we ran after them and proceeded to freak out as we shook Win Butler's hand.  He politely wished us a happy SXSW and then walked off into the distance as I wet myself and called all of my friends.

So, yeah, I met one of my favorite artists of all time.  What did you do over spring break?