Thursday, March 9, 2006
Go West (by Southwest), young band
POLLY HIGGINS
Tucson Citizen
Austin, Austin, Austin.
You might have South by Southwest, the 20-year-old music festival that has grown to more than 1,400 acts from around the globe.
But we here in Tucson have something as well: I-10. And because the six-lane interstate crosses through the Old Pueblo, we get a lot of bands en route to SXSW.
Monday and Tuesday night will be the inaugural West by Southwest, with 27 groups playing at five venues - Club Congress, Vaudeville Cabaret, the Red Room at Grill, Solar Culture Gallery and Plush - in the downtown and Fourth Avenue areas. The majority of acts are headed to Austin; some locals of note are included as well, though our own The Beta Sweat are performing at SXSW.
"It's clearly a modest start to something that could be really big," Club Congress entertainment director David Slutes says, adding that future WXSW events are certain and might be longer and include panel discussions.
"If you're interested in new music, you'll get a good deal, because these bands have all been handpicked by South by Southwest," he says.
