Austenite

Mister Lonely

Well kids, it's upon us again. The birds are singing; the drinks are flowing; David Wain must be nearby; and my quaint city is again becoming the the cultural mecca I wish it was all the time. Of course, I'm talking about SXSW 2008. Musically, this year promises to be one of the best ever as far as I'm concerned; it's gotten so that I don't even have a plan for what to see - I'm just going to wander around on my bike. 

I used to be really into the film side of things but I'm less interested in that ever-so difficult and expensive art form all the time. But from the little attention I've paid to the film festival, it looks pretty rad. Mostly, I'm excited to see Harmony Korine's new film Mister Lonely. No, I'm not kidding; after like eight years, he's finally made what's sure to be another masterpiece. Unfortunately, I haven't seen it yet. The U.S. premiere was today, and I had to work until 30 minutes beforehand so I didn't try to get in. But it's playing at the Ritz again on Friday, the 14th, and sure as yer born, I'll be camped out at least an hour early.

If you need any more convincing about how amazing this film will be: Diego Luna plays a Michael Jackson impersonator living in Paris where he meets a Marilyn Monroe impersonator who invites him to a commune for psychopathic celebrity look-a-likes in Scotland where she lives with Charlie Chaplin and her daughter Shirley Temple; oh, and Werner Herzog plays a priest. Also, David Blaine is involved and there's a character named Renard, which is my name, basically, and it means Fox in French.

If yer not sold, you are clearly retarded. Sorry, retards everywhere.

Pyrite Radio

Alright, SXSW '08 is going to be ridiculous. I can't even begin to name all the amazing parties and things. But I do want to mention that Steve Reich is doing a show at St. David's Episcopal Church. Seriously, what?

Due to the absurd amount of amazing music that'll be in the air during SXSW, I decided to make this podcast an hour and a half, rather than the usual hour-long mix. So it's 28 bands that are all playing a ton of shows. None of them are Austin bands (although Best Fwends do live here now, they're on the South By list as being from DFW), and you should be able to see all of them for free, one way or another.

C&C #5: Austenite

1. HEALTH // Glitter PIlls

2. NO AGE // Every Artist Needs a Tragedy

3. These New Puritans // Colours

4. MGMT // Kids

5. Dicks // All Night Fever

6. Team Robespierre // Black Rainbow

7. Brutal Knights // You're Fired, I Quit

8. Mika Miko // Business Cats

9. The Teeth // Ball of the Dead Rat

10. The Death Set // Distressed by Late Night Television

11. Think About Life // Paul Cries

12. Abe Vigoda // Secret City

13. Digital Leather // Mirrors

14. Plastic Little // I'm Not a Thug

15. A Place to Bury Strangers // To Fix the Gash in Your Head

16. An Albatross // The Great Sarcophagus

17. Best Fwends // House Ghost

18. Jay Reatard // Waiting for Something

19. Matt & Kim // Silver Tiles

20. The Big Sleep // Bad Blood

21. Takka Takka // We Feel Safer at Night

22. The Mae Shi // 7xx7

23. Fuck Buttons // Bright Tomorrow

24. The Raveonettes // Dead Sound

25. Holy Fuck // The Pulse

26. Pissed Jeans // Caught Licking Leather

27. Walter Meego // Forever

28. The Apes // Walk Thru Walls