SXSW Picks - Wednesday 3/18

Today is where the daytime shows start becoming very competitive and overwhelming. We are highlighting only a few – it is very hard to decide where you want to spend most of your day. We are sharing 3 of our favorite day showcases that are definitely worth checking out and quite a few bands in the evenings, as the quality of bands rises later in the week. We are hoping that it doesn’t rain the entire day – all outside shows are rain or shine and will not be canceled.

The day shows are great because you can experience the festival if you didn’t buy a wristband or badge. All you have to do is RSVP and get there early. We didn’t include awesome lineups like the YouTube showcase (War On Drugs and Future Islands) as it’s badges and artist wristbands only.

If you like what you hear, click the artist’s name to be taken to their Facebook page or website. We’ve covered some of these bands, so we’ve added links to additional information, including album reviews, in case you wanted to find out more (and the links usually contain more music for you to check out).

BEAUTIFUL BUZZ & TBD FEST – The Brew Exchange 706 W. 6th Street (Click on their name for RSVP link)

12:30pm Wildling

1:00pm Magic Giant

1:30pm Sad Girl

2:00pm The Delta Riggs (more info)

2:30pm Highly Suspect (more info)

3:00pm Dreamers

3:30pm Only Real

4:00pm Pompeya

4:30pm Taymir

5:00pm Civil Twilight

HYPE HOTEL – 1100 East 5th Street Austin, TX (RSVP here)

12:00pm Cathedrals

1:00pm Only Real (See Above)

2:00pm Circa Waves

3:00pm Shura

4:00pm Hundred Waters

5:00pm Alvvays (had one of our favourite albums of 2014)

Waterloo Records – 600 N Lamar Blvd (No RSVP Required – ALL AGES)

12:00pm Title Fight

1:00pm The Districts (album review)

2:00pm Matthew E. White

3:00pm Jacco Gardner (more info)

4:00pm Moon Duo (album review)

5:00pm Twin Peaks (“Making Breakfast” video)

6:00pm Will Butler (album review)

EVENING

Of course the HYPE HOTEL LINE UP and HOUSE OF VANS evening showcases are solid again. Here are a few highlights of who is playing tonight. The majority of these showcases will require badges or wristbands to get in.

8:00pm

Good Field @ Red Eyed Fly (Inside)

COIN @ Hype Hotel – recommended evening showcase

9:00pm

Alvvays @ Mohawk Outdoor – recommended evening showcase

Young Rising Sons (on a Mundo List) @ Maggie Mae’s Rooftop

9:30pm

Public Service Broadcasting (album review) @ Red 7 Patio

10:00pm

Andy Shauf (album review) @ Sledge Hammer

The Dodos (album review) @ Bungalow

10:30pm

Mother Falcon @ St David’s Bethell Hall

11:00pm

Mew @ Buffalo Billiards

Best Coast @ Hype Hotel

12:00am

Wild Adriatic @ The Trophy Club

Kopecky @ The Majestic

Wolf Alice @ Hype Hotel

12:45am

The Mowgli’s @ Buffalo Billiards

1:00am

Diarrhea Planet @ Trinity Hall, Old School

Carl Barat and The Jackals @ Lucille

SXSW can be a bit overwhelming – this is just a small portion of the bands for tonight and you can’t be in two places at once. It is always best to make a list of your ‘must see’ bands and find out everywhere they are playing. More than likely if you miss a night show, you can catch them later in the week.