SXSW Recap

One of our favorite festivals, South By Southwest, in pictures…

And just like that, another SXSW has come and gone. Gotta say, I’m happy it’s over, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a blast. It kicked off on the Sunday of interactive, when a regular night at the bar turned into watching Willie Nelson through a chain-link fence down the street. The week that followed was a blur of new and old friends, with highlights including a Wednesday night show at Hotel Vegas featuring Thee Oh Sees and several great local bands. On Thursday night it was over to South Congress, where a bunch of friends were vending at Hotel San Jose as part of their annual South by San Jose – a free event with amazing shopping and killer lineup.

On Friday, it was out to Willie Nelson’s ranch for what we hoped would be a long day of country music and talented local vendors, though the weather looked menacing. We got to enjoy a good amount of sunshine before the clouds rolled in and the ranch was cleared out. A group of us huddled in one of the houses as the sky darkened outside the window, until the fire marshal sent us all out to our cars. When the storm died down we stood in the misty rain and watched the sky turn red from flashes of lightning, and the surrounding scenery was so beautiful I almost didn’t mind.

On Saturday I ventured back to Hotel San Jose for the day to hang with friends and catch sets by Robert Ellis, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, and Golden Dawn Arkestra. The storm had brought some cooler temperatures with it, perfect for a day spent relaxing to good music with good people.

I’ve found that the people are really the highlight of SXSW, rather than the music. There’s always great music to be heard in Austin. But SXSW brings together so many people from different walks of life, and the best memories for me are always meeting new people and spending time with old friends who are in town for the festival. I found myself capturing portraits of a lot of these people, in an attempt to highlight what makes this experience so memorable each and every year.

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Thee Oh Sees at Hotel Vegas