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Final thoughts on SXSW 2012 from none other than lead singer JC Brooks (naturally of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound). Photos and video are courtesy of the band.
— Day 6
The interior of our touring van is covered in wolfmother wallpaper, and as we leave Austin and our first SXSW in our rearview I can shove my overfed self-critic into a mental trou de loup and say that we did some damn fine work...
Our final day in Austin began well — we were all good little boys and got ourselves to bed at a reasonable hour the night before, knowing that we were facing a 4 show day at the end of the gauntlet that was SXSW. I was particularly nervous because my voice wasn't feeling too strong — it actually wasn't feeling much besides hurt-y (as Ralph Wiggum would put it). I did my morning routine of throat sprays and gargles, all the time wishing that I wasn't so grimly adherent to my work ethic/personal philosophy. See, I had been told through the week to be smart and conserve my voice because we have 4 shows on the final day of the festival. Unfortunately, all I heard was: Save the good shows for later. Being hyperaware of mortality in general, I know that later isn't necessarily going to be a reality for all of us, and that death can often be sudden and cruel, so I don't save anything for later. I have a deep and abiding fear of seeing death approach and (knowing the flagellate that I can be) using that last split second of life to kick myself for not putting it all out there during my last performance, for not fully listening during my last conversation, for not fully falling into my last kiss. So I saved nothing, and though I had a week of great shows, staring down the "home stretch" was giving me agita.
JCBUS and Counting Crows' Adam Duritz (photo courtesy the band)
We had some technical difficulties, but here's the final day of tour diary from Jip Jop, and some photos from a few impromptu shows to remember. Guess the old rule rings true — it's not a good party, till the police show up.
— Day 4
Hello from Austin! Our second show brought the house down (almost literally) with police coming to stop all the commotion. We followed a couple of great bands from Berklee School of Music — Canary and Against Atlas.
Seeing some of our favorite artists has been a major highlight of the trip. SBTRKT (below), Terror Pigeon, and Deerhoof to name a few...
Our Saturday morning update comes from the keyboardist (and Clip Art mastermind) Andy Rosenstein of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound. This came in early Saturday, so my apologies for not getting it posted sooner — totally editor error, these guys have been amazing with their daily recaps. Photos and video are courtesy of the band.
— Day 5
by JCBUS keyboardist (and Clip Art mastermind) Andy Rosenstein
With only one show to play, yesterday felt like a day off. Billy and I went over to Barton Springs in the morning for a run along the water. It was excellent to be able to escape from pavement and crowds, if only for 40 minutes or so. It was dangerously rocky for running, but if you're visiting Austin for the first time, I can't suggest it highly enough as an easy hike.
After cleaning ourselves up, we headed down the Bloodshot day party. Technically it was located at the Yard Dog Gallery, but in practice was just a whole lot of people energetically hanging out in an alley. The food was great, the Lagunitas beer flowed freely, and it was my first chance to watch the many many members of the Bloodshot family play on one stage. I got to see Lydia Loveless for first time. She killed. Rosie Flores and her band blew my mind. Then it was our turn.
If you missed out on Thursday's 5pm live stream of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound performing at the YouTube/Google Live At The Lot party down at SXSW, you can enjoy it today while you're just hanging around your cube. Check this handy time-stamped URL, or play the whole thing on the embedded player below (you can get to the band at the 4h 22m 16s mark). Great job, guys! If you're not already reading along with the band's SXSW 2012 tour diary, just check out their posts here in Transmission, along with updates from Chicago hip hop group, Jip Jop.
The boys have been busy busy busy! This update came in during the wee hours of the morning from Billy Bungeroth (oop) bassist, Ben Taylor of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound from down in Austin at SXSW. They've got another couple full days of shows to go! Power through it, fellas! Photos are courtesy of the band.
— Day 4
Sweet merciful crap, I'm exhausted. It's 3am and I finally made it back to the hotel and it sounds like an angry bear is sawing logs in the bed next to me. But no worries, since as soon as I finish writing this, I'm going to collapse. We rocked the outdoor stage at the Paste Magazine party this afternoon, right after the indoor set by our LA doppelgangers, Vintage Trouble; ran into their guitarist and drummer on 6th street a few hours ago, nice folks.
Another overnight (possibly probably sleep-deprived) update from Billy Bungeroth of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound from down in Austin at SXSW. Photos and video are courtesy of the band.
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JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound perform at the Ginger Man at SXSW 2012 (Photo courtesy the band)
Day 3
Big Things Happening
"Here's the thing about SXSW," Andy tells me, "As you walk through the streets, everyone starts to feel like the walk-on's in your life." You see guys from other bands you've toured with, new fans, old friends you haven't seen in years. And don't forget celebrities: Jim DeRogatis (Sound Opinions), Jack White (Third Man Records), and Carson Daley (who was sitting in on drums with TheeOhSees!!!). It doesn't feel like Texas, it's as if someone turned Williamsburg into an amusement park and all your friends are there. And whether it's the lack of sleep, or 312in a can, it feels like something is happening.
Gearing up for their next show in Austin tonight, Carlos checks in with what's been occupying Jip Jop's time in Texas. Do we have some new SXSW converts? Yes, yes we do.
— Day 3
SXSW has not failed to disappoint! Every street is full, every bar packed, and every show is live. We started the day by heading to the Greenbelt to take a break from the crowds and experience a different side of Austin.
The latest update from Billy Bungeroth of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound from down in Austin at SXSW. Photos and video from the band create a lively multimedia montage.
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Day 2
SXSW is a madhouse and it hasn't even started yet. We have two shows to play tonight before official heck in begins tomorrow — one for a Google Party the other for an Innovate Chicago party. We wind up setting up at the first gig and the schlepping our equipment six blocks through a sort of Wrigleyville meets Mardi Gras with Mumford and Sons lookalikes standing on every corner atmosphere to the next. The sets are and the good band continues to play well. In all honesty though we got upstaged by an awesome quartet of thousand year old Japanese punks superheroes called Peelander Z. Basically the Peelanders dress like power rangers or giant squids and bowl themselves across the stage — literally bowl while playing Shonen Knife meets the Ramones dlacored punk.
Our second gig goes great, no squids no problem. Lots of folks dancing. I'm not sure what I expected but this is a scene like no other. In a week I'll be better equipped to say. It's crowded, which stinks, but it's with music, which rules.
Well never fear, Jip Jop is making some new friends down in Austin, and fitting in just fine. Here's the latest from Carlos and Jip Jop.
—
Day 2
We played at Baby Blue Studios on E. 12th St. and witnessed a dusty garage party turn into a wall-shaking dance party before our eyes. Bikes chained to gates, keg lines, red cups, and a crowd ready to party late into the night gave us that authentic Austin vibe we came for.
The energy was amazing! Our boys at Good Luck Sir put together a great line-up of music that we were happy to headline.
The second of the two bands we're following on their tour from Chicago to Austin, Texas is the neo-soul outfit JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound. They've got an exhaustive schedule lined up for the week, often with two shows per day, just minutes apart, and we're so glad they decided to burn some of that sweet sweet downtime with some tour diary posts for Gapersblock. Below is the first report in from guitarist/vocalist Billy Bungeroth.
—
Woke up to the sun in the backseat of the van this morning, somewhere on the outskirts of Austin. Our first time trekking down for SXSW. Back in January, we were waking up in Minneapolis to -11 degrees, so 82 degrees and sunny is a good look.
Its been six weeks off the road in Chicago and the nerves we had that we'd be rusty for SXSW were calmed by duo of 90 minute sets in Davenport and St. Louis which went off great.
Today we woke up at our buddy Phil's, some of us inside on bunk beds, some of us outside in the van. The lines for coffee were too long so a spread of fish tacos and Lone Stars got us going. We dug for soul 45s at Friends of Sound. I was able to find Laura Lee's "Dirty Man" on Chess. And now BT's in the bathroom of our hotel mowing JC's hair with clippers, Kevin's online, and Andy's meditating in the lotus position.
Anyway you figure it, we're preparing for the week ahead.
Ladies and Gentleman, welcome to Austin.
- Billy
See JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound's full SXSW schedule after the jump:
Once again we're following some awesome Chicago bands down to Austin for SXSW. Carlos from Jip Jop is the first of our friends to check in, with a quick recap of their drive down to Texas. Jip Jop's blend of hip hop and jazz presented with some killer horns, keys, drums and rhymes is sure to entertain the crowds down south. Check out their album Important (and download it) at Bandcamp.
—
Coming fresh off a performance at Chicago's Double Door (above), with no sleep and a van that fits about 12 uncomfortably, eight (8) of us packed in (equipment included) and started on the 1,164 mile road-trip to SXSW.
Even with no rest, the van was still rowdy. Rest stops for coffee runs, band members creating music in the backseat, lots of laughs and one goal, don't stop until we get there. The all encompassing sentiment in the air was unbridled and pure excitement.
Here's a rundown of other performers from the region so far:
BoDeans (Now listed as being in Milwaukee instead of Waukesha, as they were last year)
Cheap Girls (Lansing, MI)
Circuit des Yeux (Lafayette, IN)
Diplomats of Solid Sound (Iowa City, IA)
Tammar (Bloomington, IN)
Wet Hair (Iowa City, IA)
Again, it's very early in the announcement process -- only three rounds so far -- so it's nice to see that at least a few Chicago and regional bands are in the mix already. Stay tuned in early 2012 for what's sure to be a longer list.
Musikanto is fronted by Mike Musikanto, who made his mark on Chicago's folk/roots/Americana scene with Sleeper Car. The band's music shows a lot in common with past SXSW act Joe Pug, but with more of a full-bodied sound. Musikanto's lightly rough tenor rises above the lilting folk orchestration on Sky of Dresses, the band's second album.
Another act, Mahogany, is listed as being from Chicago, but they're actually from Philadelphia and New York. Their geographic misplacement appears to be the result of an upcoming 12-inch they're putting out on BLVD Records.
As always, we'll be bringing you coverage of Chicagoland acts at the SXSW Music Festival as it happens. Stay tuned.
Final thoughts on SXSW 2012 from none other than lead singer JC Brooks (naturally of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound). Photos and video are courtesy of the band.
