Out the Other's Guide to SXSW On the Cheap (Part 3)

Okay in Part 1, you learned to keep your expectations within reason, but to come up with a list of five bands you REALLY want to see, so you have some goals.

In Part 2, you made a list of every show your top five bands were playing, from official showcases to free parties.  And you RSVPed for absolutely everything, figured out on a map where all the venues are, and wrote down a few excellent backup plans.

Game on.

STEP 5:  Attack!

Now you’re ready to go!  You have your handy list of every opportunity you have to see the bands you REALLY want to see – along with the time, location and other bands on the bill.  Now all you have to do is make some decisions and see some bands.  Let’s break this down into daytime and nighttime.

Daytime:

The easiest and cheapest thing to do, of course, is try to check out your top bands at free day parties, which will keep you from paying for anything but your bar tab.  Plus, some parties even have free booze, especially if you get yourself VIPed. Ideally, you can just hop from awesome party to awesome party, checking out the bands you were dying to see and discovering some amazing new bands.  A few notes:

• I’m not sure what attendance will be like this year, but the parties can get PACKED.  Especially later in the day, when the “headliners” are playing – in my experience, if you try to hop over to a party just to see the headliner, you’ll end up waiting in line and never get in.
• It never hurts to get to parties early for this reason too.  And big parties like the Fader Fort will make you wait in line for ages to get a wristband, then wait even longer to get in, even if you RSVPed in advance. 
• My favorite parties are always the ones with multiple stages – indoor/outdoor, etc.  Like Emo’s Main Room and Emo’s Jr. (Main Room is outside, Jr. is inside – note that Emo’s Annex is a completely different venue that is a tent across the street), or the Mohawk.  Set times are usually staggered so you can pop back and forth between stages and hang out for a while.
• Parties at venues with seating somewhere also rock, because you can chill and sit in between bands or during bands you’re not into.  The bleachers at Emo’s Main Room rock.  You’ll be standing a LOT and I promise you’ll want to sit down sometimes.
• Don’t be afraid to check out bands you’ve never heard of.  That’s EXACTLY what SXSW is all about.
• Some parties do have free food and free booze, but don’t plan your schedule around that stuff.  In my experience, the food runs out quickly and the free booze lines are long, and you’re there for the free music, not the free comestibles.
• Some parties also have free stuff, but keep in mind when you take something free that you’re going to have to carry it around for the rest of the day, or at least until you can get to your car or hotel room.
• GET DOWNTOWN EARLY IF YOU’RE DRIVING AND PARKING.  No, seriously.  There are sweet parking situations to be had, but you’ve gotta be the early bird.  We usually aim to be downtown by noon or one.
• If you plan on party-hopping, have enough cash for your bar tab.  Or even if you’re at a venue with multiple bars – it’s just easier, you don’t have to wait around to close your tab or anything.  And be warned, I’m pretty sure all the downtown ATMs have some steep fees, so maybe hit an actual bank ATM on your way in.
• Be careful.  Everyone is pretty cool and chill and happy at SXSW (how could you not be?) and I’ve never personally witnessed any shadiness, but there are a ton of people there, and a lot of them are drinking, and it means you should be careful with your money, your belongings and yourself.

Nighttime:

Okay, you rocked your face off all day, now it’s about 6 p.m. and all the parties are winding down.  The first official showcases don’t usually get started until 8, or 7 something at the earliest.  And you only have three options when you’re doing this on the cheap:

•    Take the night off.
•    Find a free party to go to
•    Pay your way into an official showcase.

First up, there are some great, free night shows you can check out.  The Red Gorilla Festival, a little side-festival during SXSW, usually has free nighttime shows going on at several venues downtown during the festival.  Also check Showlist Austin (once again) for unofficial nighttime shows and parties.

But if you want to go to a legit showcase – and it’s possible, because I’ve gone to several official showcases without a badge or wristband – here’s my advice:

• Most of the official showcases actually sell a few covers at the door, but there’s a trick to making sure you can get in.  First up, SHOW UP EARLY!  I seriously can’t emphasize that enough.  If it’s a big, coveted show, you’ll probably have to wait in line, so the earlier the better.  Grab a hot dog from a cart at dinner time and sit on the sidewalk and wait if you have to.
• Once you get to the venue, just ask if they’re selling covers – you should be able to find someone who knows.  Either they’ll tell you there’s no way you can get in, they’ll tell you the cover charge, let you pay it and let you in, or they’ll tell you what the cover charge is and tell you that you can maybe get in.  A lot of times they have to let badge and wristband holders in first, but you can stick around and be the first in line when they decide to take some regular covers.
• Seriously, get there early.  Better to be patiently waiting inside the venue than wandering around and then showing up too late.
• In my experience, covers can range in price from about $8 to upwards of $30, depending on the size of the venue.  I think we've mostly paid $10-20 to get into showcases.
• Don’t just try to stay at a daytime party venue until they switch over to the official nighttime showcase.  It won’t work, and you’ll piss people off.
• The people working the daytime party probably won’t know what the cover will be that night and your odds of getting in, because usually SXSW people come to work the door at night. 

One big thing to remember – for both official showcases and unofficial shows.  It’s ALWAYS going to be easier to see an up-and-coming band than someone who has already made a name for themselves.  But remember, just because a band isn’t getting radio play doesn’t mean they’re not popular – all of the current buzzy blog bands will have massive audiences, so keep that in mind.

Coming up in Part 4 - general tips and tricks.

Comments

[Danielle]

Also, the key thing I learned last year (after interviewing Janet!) is that most official showcases suck. Really. If you have the option to see the band at a party, do that. Times New Viking in a half-full frat bar with everyone wondering which Important People will show up? Eh.

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