Every band we saw yesterday was either great or at least interesting, right up until the Casiokids, who bored us. They were also the first band that was all dudes. Coincidence? You decide. We did go home during Casiokids, missing some midnight/1AM shows, but that’s because we had to preserve our energy for tonight’s big show: Devo. So perhaps the theme of the day would have fallen apart, except of course the shows I had scheduled if we could hang in were Rye Rye and Mika Miko. So, no. But, until the Casiokids, every band we saw yesterday (and most the day before) had some female members and either were awesome, or at least did not suck. Which is why I find this number—-388 out of 2,000 bands at SXSW with female members (hat tip to Ann from Feministing for the link)—-shocking, because that doesn’t fit my experience at all. But then again, we’re doing the indie rock circuit mostly, with some dabblings on the side. Perhaps there’s a more male-dominated, corporate SXSW that I’m ignorant of, possibly willfully. But the good news is that independents out there are female-friendly.
We got out around 4:30 to see Hot Panda at the Mint Records Hootenanny at Headhunter’s. Apparently, the entire Mint Records showcase was great, because my friend who was already there before us said that The Pack A.D. blew her socks off. The Handsome Family was playing when we got there, and they go straight into my file “bands I respect but don’t like”. Here’s The Pack A.D., and indeed, they rule:
We hung out to see Hot Panda, and they were awesome, and I got better pictures this time.
