SXSW - Day 2 Girls, Here We Go Magic, The Golden Filter, Nite Jewel, JDS and more

-Girls

I started day two off at The Peacock for Gorilla vs. Bear's annual party, aptly titled Gorilla vs. Booze III. The scene was insanely crowded and unbearably hot, but it didn't stop anyone from jamming their way inside the venue to catch the amazing lineup. Brooklyn's Here We Go Magic are hands down the best new discovery I've made here in Austin. Their music is absolutely gorgeous and captivating. I think these guys will be huge really soon.

Girls played next, delivering a mostly hot & sweaty, rocked-out set, with the exception of the pain-ridden slow burner "Hellhole Ratrace". The crowd seemed to intensify when The Golden Filter took the stage. Their high energy dirty electro suited the sauna-like conditions well, but it was so packed I couldn't see a thing. Sounded fantastic though.

*****

I kind of accidentally stumbled across a great pair of sets at Todd P's party, held in the dusty backyard of Ms. Bea's, a rather rundown local bar. The setting here is gritty, but really charming. It's a trip to watch the Hispanic locals intermix with the hipsters, but it's also beautiful to see this tiny bar get an overwhelming amount of business.

-JDS

First, I caught JDS, an experimental violinist from Brooklyn who plays over tripped out samples and dramatic micro korg synthscapes. I was so taken with her music that I introduced myself to her afterwards. She was really lovely and explained how her parents owned the property, which led her to curate the "Day Into Night" portion of the Todd P event.

-Nite Jewel

Nite Jewel are an awesome new electro duo from Los Angeles. I've recently become increasingly addicted to their debut disc Good Evening and the lush sound translates perfectly live.

As the sun began to set, I headed back downtown for what turned out to be an incredible night. More on that later. Got to get back out there again!