Monday, March 17, 2008

"I'll be that one..." - SXSW Austin,TX

It was back in October of 2007. I was in Nashville, hucking merch. between sets at the back of The Station Inn. Because sales were nonexistent, I had plenty of time to catch up with B.V.D., a grammy-winning bluegrass producer, and long time "deep-throat" Wilders advisor (who saw something he liked in a very-green Wilders playing in a Nashville hotel lobby 8 years ago). The conversation went something like this:

B.V.D.: What's next year look like for you guys?

Me: Well, we've got a new record coming out in April.

B.V.D.: What are you going to do to promote it?

Me: Uhm, well we're going to tour, of course, and we are going to South by Southwest.

B.V.D.: (rolling his eyes, sarcastically) What FOR?

For the uninitiated, the South by Southwest Conference (SXSW) occurs each March in multiple locations throughout metropolitan Austin, Texas. For four days, the streets of Austin fill with music industry hustlers of all shape and size. Managers, agents, label and publishing reps, lawyers, producers, and a slew of other non-musicians converge to catch showcases by literally thousands of musicians that come to Austin each year in hopes of "making it big". From morning until late into the night, there's rockers, rappers, twangers, screamers, punkers and poppers everywhere- a dizzying array of musical styles blasting out of every nook and cranny, restaurant, bar, car wash and parking lot in downtown Austin.

So, five months after my conversation with B.V.D., I'm standing on a street corner outside the Austin Convention Center watching the stream of hipsters flowing around me. And it's like I'm standing in the middle of a military parade, except these soldier's uniforms are not olive drab. There's salon-fresh hair color in every shade of the rainbow carefully coifed to achieve that perfect "unkempt" look. Mirrored sunglasses, tattoo sleeves, Converse Hi-Tops and facial piercings are standard issue. Each soldier's social insignia is represented by carefully chosen graphics printed on their tight black t-shirt. And just like any military parade, the majority of the soldiers are impossibly young.

As the throngs move past me, I realize I'm laughing out loud. I'm remembering a comic strip by artist Daniel Clowes, (later made into a really awful movie entitled "Art School Confidential"). In the comic, an aging painting professor gives a stern "scared straight" lecture to his impressionable first-year drawing students about the reality of their career choice. He rants that only one graduate in a hundred actually makes a living as a professional artist. The other 99, having spent four years getting a degree in what is essentially a hobby, will be left to work mindless jobs at art supply stores, movie theaters and restaurants. Above the head of each student, there is a thought bubble which reads, "I'll be that one..."

And this is the tragedy of SXSW. Here, there are thousands of kids who are looking for the quick pick to stardom. And they are deadly serious about it, focusing every ounce of energy into making some kind of impact. But the reality is that most of them will zero chance of succeeding in this fickle, image-obsessed music business. The truth is that no matter how good you sound, how cool you look. or how hard you work, most success stories come down to at least 50% luck.

Based on this assumption, B.V.D. was right- what the hell business did we have going to SXSW anyway? I mean, we are already a working band with low-level success. We've all quit our day jobs, We are signed to a label that manages our recordings, and we have a booking agent that gets us work playing for money. And what about the SXSW market? Even though it takes place in the heart of Texas, there's precious little country music at SXSW. Sure, there are a lot of so-called "alternative country" bands. But, admittedly, we don't fit very neatly into that category. And bluegrass and oldtime music was nonexistent as far as I could tell. But still we chose to go and throw our hat in like everybody else.

I realize it's sort of weak, but basically my answer to B.V.D.'s question was, "why NOT?"

And, as a result, for three days, we soaked up the warm Texas sun, ate great Texas Bar-B-Que, and saw some killer bands. We also played a couple of showcases ourselves. Who knows what the impact will be? But, like the young soldiers that surrounded us the entire time we were there, we believed it was possible. You've GOT to believe right?

20 comments:

  1. If you Wilders haven't earned the right to "believe," then I can't imagine who else in the world has! Keep following your dream! You are much-loved.

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  2. Ditto to Ann Onnymous' comment!!!

    I have said it before, and I will say again...you are a HECK of a good writer, BroPhil.

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  3. Wow, great reading. Hit the nail on the head. I hope one of those tycoon lawyer record company owner types saw you all and liked you all. But they are really looking for another band they can manipulate and morph into "new country" and market and make millions. Your resistance and your staying the course is greatly appreciated by all. What would you do if Sony offered you a big contract? Allison Crause is one of the great fiddle players who never fiddles and constantly cranks out elevator music. $$$$$$$ talks. Would you compromise, tell us Phil, we are all waiting.

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  4. Sorry Phil, I know what the answer is. I should be spanked.

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  5. I do believe the Wilders have that ol black magic, no matter what they be playing. We will get to hear some different sounds when the new CD gets out.........I for one am ready! Elevator Music......Gosh they might draw a crowd riding up and down. Think so??

    Naw LV you don't need spanked, well let me correct that......I'm sure you need spanked, no telling what crazy things you have been up to.(Very Big Grin) :^}

    Peck peck

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  6. I agree, LVJ should be spanked, just on general principles and not because of anything specific he said.

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  7. It's Krauss; and as far as I know there is nothing wrong with being paid tons of money for having tons of talent.

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  8. We "anonymi" agree on this one! Alison Krauss is a tremendous talent and works very hard for her money.
    I'm still hoping that someone with a ton of money will recognize our incredibly talented Wilders, and they can start enjoying the "star" status they deserve! We poor folks/fans are good for moral support, I suppose, but unfortunately that won't pay the bills.

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  9. Ya don't get paid for having talent, you get paid if a bunch of people will pay to listen to you. That is only marginally a function of talent. And, it is either totally unfair or totally fair depending on how you view the world. It's also why Allison Krausse sings lame ballads rather than plays kickass fiddle.

    Now as for me I am willing to sell out right now, but nobody seems to be buying.

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  10. To answer LVJ's question, I doubt if we would sell out for money. However, if anybody has got some money to offer us, I guess we can test that theory can't we?

    In Alison Krauss's defense, she has been branching out nicely lately (in my opinion). After all, she just had a grammy-winning duet album with Robert Plant that's pretty easy on the ears. And, I would imagine that it might be pretty hard to branch out very much when you are raised as a bluegrass prodigy.

    But in LVJ's defense, she doesn't give us that luscious fiddle as much as she used to. Whatever, if we are splitting hairs over Alison Krauss, we are a pretty sorry lot. Let's take the fight to the REAL bullshit in Nashville. I won't name names, but y'all can. Ha Ha!

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  11. Ok, I couldn't resist...

    Big and Rich.

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  12. Not dissin' Allison, she still does plenty of good music, as do most of the folks who came up from the acoustic bluegrass and oldtime ghetto. Commercial country is a different story. I enjoy almost all music, from classical to folk to hard rock to rap, but I cannot stomach commercial country. It irritates me within seconds and I can't even identify the reason. The fake hick accents and the steriotyped lyrics have something to do with it, but not all. There is something vile and offensive buried deep in that genre that if distilled out could be used for biological warfare.

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  13. I have nothing to add except that if I win the lottery, we will all be....hmmmmmm.....I'm not sure.

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  14. I have nothing against country music, if it's genuine. You're right, Tick, the fake accents and cornball schtick stick in my craw, too. I like any music that's REAL--and you don't get much "realer" than The Wilders!

    I don't mean that I consider "image" to be a bad thing necessarily--and it's necessary to make any group stand out in a crowd--, but it should be based on reality.

    (Hope that lottery pays off soon, LVJ! You ARE going to spread the winnings around among your blogger friends, aren't you?)

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  15. Yep, even those german girls. We will start our own record company and call it "Image is Everything"

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  16. I just found a review of the new CD "Someones got to Pay", they like it!


    http://blogcritics.org/archives/2008/03/27/211827.php

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  17. Here you can listen to snipets of all the songs, its on Amazon.

    Under the cover click on"Listen to samples"

    If link doesn't work go to Amazon.com and search for it in "music"

    "Someone's got to Pay"

    http://www.amazon.com/Someones-Got-Pay-Wilders/dp/B0014DQO4I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1206753821&sr=1-1

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  18. If you couldn't get the link to work and find it on Amazon
    I forgot to say click on the cover and it will take you to the Listen to Samples.

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  19. I saw the Wilders at SXSW and they were awesome. It was one of the highlights of the festival for me. I can't wait for the new album and to see them live again.

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  20. Hey, Anonymous! Glad you liked The Wilders! Hope you're one of those influential people with a lot of money--are you?

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