SXSW - Night One

After a busy day it's straight out to the first gig of choice, which is the Domino Showcase in a venue called Antone's. I'm about to go and join the back of the already sizeable queue when Rigsy says hello. He's already halfway to down the line of people, so I shimmy in beside himself and Feargal. A wee bit sneaky, but it's not to be the last time that Rigsy saves me a long wait. Props to that man.

First on the bill is a DJ set from Simian Mobile Disco. I'd been hoping for a live set from them, but they're spinning good tunes, so it's OK. Set highlights are definitely Plastikman 'Spastik', followed by Green Velvet 'Flash'. While the foray into mid 90s techno is appreciated, as Rigsy pointed out it's not what you expect to hear at half eight on a Wednesday evening!

Next up is spiky new wavers These New Puritans. They plough the art rock furrow previously sculpted by The Fall and Wire. Their recent single 'Elvis' is the clear stand out track. A pulsing belter, the set could have down with a few more of those moments. The front mans top is classic though, looking some kind of feathered metalesque armor top. Kudos.

A quick jaunt across town to Maggie Mae's to catch DeLorean, who hail from Spain. I first discovered this band at Primavera in 2005, totally by accident and largely down to the fact that they share their name with the car used in Back To The Future (the movie trilogy with which I am obsessed). Turned out that the band are actually a rocking prospect. They thump along with a mixture of phat keyboards, thick bass and zingy guitars, kind of like a techno saturated Moving Units. Great stuff.

I then head back to the Domino showcase again, where for the second time in the same night Rigsy enables me to jump the queue. What a guy. We're in to see wonder-Scots and recent AU cover stars Sons & Daughters. They're the band of the night so far, throwing the gritty in with the glam. 'Dance Me In' still slays, and you just can't beat a Scottish accent.

We stick around the same venue to catch a bit of The Kills, who come out all guns blazing. They sure make a fierce amount of noise for a duo. Full of attitude and purpose, they attack each song as if they want to beat it up and thrash the life out of it. It's a technique that works though, and the onstage dynamic is a treat.

If this is what you can see in one night, I reckon this is going to be a hell of a few days.